From: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org (fegmaniax-digest) To: fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Subject: fegmaniax-digest V7 #175 Reply-To: fegmaniax@smoe.org Sender: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk fegmaniax-digest Sunday, May 3 1998 Volume 07 : Number 175 Today's Subjects: ----------------- Re: Nick Drake [MARKEEFE ] lou, lou [dwdudic@erols.com (David W. Dudich)] Re: lou, lou [dmw ] Re: lou, lou [Eb ] Re: lou, lou [dmw ] Re: lou, lou [Eb ] Re: lou, lou [sdodge@midway.uchicago.edu (amadain)] Lulu [Eb ] Re: Lulu [sdodge@midway.uchicago.edu (amadain)] cool fegs? [Carole Reichstein ] Storefront and SF goings on [SydneyC33 ] Lou Reed, and oh yes, that fellow Robyn [Chris ] Re: Time is drying your hair [David Librik ] Kristin Hersh in Ann Arbor [Natalie Jane Jacobs ] RH at GAMH [Nur Gale ] Re: Gorey [woj spice ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 2 May 1998 13:57:18 EDT From: MARKEEFE Subject: Re: Nick Drake I just couldn't let this thread pass by without someone (me, I guess) mentioning "Five Leaves Left." In fact, I'll do better than mention it, I'll declare it one of my all-time favorite albums and one that I would recommend to almost anyone. It's not as spare as "Pink Moon" or as (relatively) upbeat as "Bryter Layter," which, for me, makes it just right. . . that and every song being wonderful. For those wanting an introduction, the compilation "Way to Blue" is actually quite good. - ------Michael K. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 02 May 1998 19:32:26 GMT From: dwdudic@erols.com (David W. Dudich) Subject: lou, lou > >Rich pardoned: >>I'm sure I'm in the minority here, but can somebody explain >>what's so special about Lou Reed's career since about 1975. > >Street Hassle, The Blue Mask, New York, Songs for Drella and Magic & Loss >were all among the very best albums of their respective years, if you ask >me. > >>I got about halfway >>through the solo tape when I realized I hated him. That >>wretched voice, those trite pseudo-artistic/poetic lyrics. > >I like his voice. It's unconventional, but evocative. And I have nothing >but admiration for his lyrics -- when Reed fails me, it's because of his >music. It depends. I really LIKED his singing with the Velvets (don't beleive he can sing? I present as evidence "What Goes On" or, indeed, anything off the third Velvets record). > >>I can't stand him, can't stand that he screwed up the Velvets >>reunion with his horrible singing. > I tend to agree. (sorry ya'll!) "I'm sticking w/ you" is AWFUL, the way lou 'sings' it. John Cale, on the other hand- what GREAT vocals! (I just got into Cale...so far, "Fear" beats most solo Lou...) >>Whenever he is quoted >>somewhere he comes off as a total asshole. > Well, this is well known...everybody says he can be like this. > >Generally speaking, his recent work is more respected than his work of >10-15 years ago. true..."New York" is refered to by many as his 'comeback' record. I agree w/ this. Incredibly focused! If only he SANG on it like he did w/ the Velevets, it woulda been even better! ...and as for "rock and roll animal"- great music, HORRIBLE vocals! "white light/white heat" NEEDS the "ah....ah...White Light" second vocal. "rock and roll" NEEDS the other voices. He had a crack band, why didn't he put out another mike or two for backing vocals? ...of course, it was about this time he did "metal machine music...""".... -luther ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 2 May 1998 15:52:26 -0400 (EDT) From: dmw Subject: Re: lou, lou i love unka lou, like, well, an uncle... but i like him best when he's being an asshole. _venus in furs_ and _waiting for the man_ are the shit, and i love the third record even more - -- i like _new york_ pretty well, but when that song comes on where he's talkin 'bout saving the whales i gotta hit the fast forward. i mean, what hte fuck, lou reed as socially conscious caring nice guy? no man, can't do it. i really like "egg cream," though. ripping off matthew sweet (well, sweet's sidemen, anyway) and waxing nostalgic simultaneously for knife fights and soda jerk confections -- there's some honesty for ya. growing up in public, - -- d. - - oh,no!! you've just read mail from doug = dmayowel@access.digex.net - - and dmw@mwmw.com ... get yr pathos at http://www.pathetic-caverns.com/ - - new reviews! tunes, books, flicks, etc. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 2 May 1998 13:07:52 -0700 From: Eb Subject: Re: lou, lou >i really like "egg cream," though. ripping off matthew sweet (well, >sweet's sidemen, anyway) ??? Huh? WHICH sidemen? Eb ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 2 May 1998 16:24:51 -0400 (EDT) From: dmw Subject: Re: lou, lou On Sat, 2 May 1998, Eb wrote: > >i really like "egg cream," though. ripping off matthew sweet (well, > >sweet's sidemen, anyway) > > ??? > > Huh? WHICH sidemen? > > Eb the first time i heard "egg cream," i was powerfully reminded of rob't quine's deliciously salty work on sweet's "girlfriend," but some a/b comparison indicates that maybe it's sweet's own rhythm part that i'm keying on. i like the way it's ballsed-up on the reed track, though -- more bottom. the reviews were so thoroughly mediocre that i never bothered to pick up 'twilight,' since "egg cream" popped up on the _blue in the face_ soundtrack; is that still mike rathke laying down the goods? - -- d. (who usually prefers lloyd over quine, sweet sidemen wise...) - - oh,no!! you've just read mail from doug = dmayowel@access.digex.net - - and dmw@mwmw.com ... get yr pathos at http://www.pathetic-caverns.com/ - - new reviews! tunes, books, flicks, etc. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 2 May 1998 14:31:30 -0700 From: Eb Subject: Re: lou, lou >On Sat, 2 May 1998, Eb wrote: > >> >i really like "egg cream," though. ripping off matthew sweet (well, >> >sweet's sidemen, anyway) >> >> ??? >> >> Huh? WHICH sidemen? > >the first time i heard "egg cream," i was powerfully reminded of rob't >quine's deliciously salty work on sweet's "girlfriend," but some a/b >comparison indicates that maybe it's sweet's own rhythm part that i'm >keying on. Uhh, well, firstly, Robert Quine doesn't play on Set the Twilight Reeling - -- I just checked the credits. Secondly, it's certainly not a case of Reed ripping off Sweet's sidemen -- it's the other way around. Quine played on Lou Reed's "The Blue Mask" back in 1982, when Sweet was probably still a teenager in Nebraska. And Quine's legacy goes back to Richard Hell & the Voidoids, a few years before that. Sweet has drawn upon that vintage "New York sound" extensively on his solo albums -- Richard Lloyd and Fred Maher play on his albums too, and probably some other names I'm forgetting. Eb ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 02 May 1998 18:23:02 -0500 From: sdodge@midway.uchicago.edu (amadain) Subject: Re: lou, lou > I tend to agree. (sorry ya'll!) "I'm sticking w/ you" is >AWFUL, the way lou 'sings' it. John Cale, on the other hand- > what GREAT vocals! > (I just got into Cale...so far, "Fear" beats most solo Lou...) See Eb, I'm NOT the only one who thinks that :). And yeah, I'll take the bait- so Lou Reed sells more records and has more in print. Your point? I'd say it's partly that he's a lot more interested in being a "rawk star" and being in the public eye, so he works at it more, but then, that is what I'd say I suppose. I think it's also that -in general- the style of music Reed likes to pursue is a bit more likely to find a mass audience. Love on ya, Susan P.S. Just got back from "He Got Game". Should be a nomination for Denzel Washington in that if we lived in a just world. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 2 May 1998 16:52:35 -0700 From: Eb Subject: Lulu Susan wrote: > (I just got into Cale...so far, "Fear" beats most solo Lou...) >See Eb, I'm NOT the only one who thinks that :). Hey, when did I ever diss Fear? Sure, *great* record. My favorite Cale album, and yeah, I'd rank that above all but a couple of Lou Reed albums. And Paris 1919 is very very good, too. But that makes exactly TWO Cale albums which I would strongly endorse, and he has released a whole lot more than that.... I still only own four John Cale albums, the above two plus Vintage Violence and Slow Dazzle (both of which I would call "fair to good"). It's possible that I might be able to find another one I like (um...Church of Anthrax? The Academy in Peril? Sabotage? Honi Soit? Fragments of a Rainy Season?), but it's no sure thing. >And yeah, I'll take the bait- so Lou Reed sells more records and has more in >print. Your point? Well, basically: Lou is better than stuffy ol' skin-cancer-seeking Cale. Heh heh. Love reign o'er me, Eb ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 02 May 1998 19:31:46 -0500 From: sdodge@midway.uchicago.edu (amadain) Subject: Re: Lulu >I still only own four John Cale albums, the above two plus Vintage Violence >and Slow Dazzle (both of which I would call "fair to good"). It's possible >that I might be able to find another one I like (um...Church of Anthrax? >The Academy in Peril? Sabotage? Honi Soit? Fragments of a Rainy Season?), >but it's no sure thing. I'd say the best bet for Eb persons on that list is probably "Sabotage". It's a stunner. I have a vinyl copy just cause I wanted to own it in case I someday get a record player :), I like it that much. "Fragments" is a good bet too, I'm very fond of it (the cover of "Hallelujah" is possibly my favorite track but I dig the piano and guitar "Cable Hogue" muchly too). "Academy in Peril" is interesting, basically instrumental minimalist musings along the lines of another arty person Cale sometimes gets confused with :). You may like it or may not. Honestly I'd say also that if you rate VV and Slow Dazzle as fair to good you'd probably rate "Honi Soit" about the same, though I'd recommend it to fans. For my money the two best Cale albums aside from "Fear", neither one of which you mentioned, are "Helen of Troy" and "Music for a New Society". Actually the only Cale I'd seriously warn people who value their ears away from is "Carribean Sunset". What's up with THAT? Also that damn environmental disaster album he did with Bob Neuwirth. Stay FAR FAR away. >Well, basically: Lou is better than stuffy ol' skin-cancer-seeking Cale. >Heh heh. There are two answers to this. One is well reasoned and adult. The other is: John is cooler than Lou! John rules Lou drools! Nyah Nyah! :) Love on ya, Susan ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 2 May 1998 19:18:40 -0700 (PDT) From: Carole Reichstein Subject: cool fegs? Somebody from the SF Chronicle duly reported: > > Robyn Hitchcock fans pride themselves on being > cool. That may be why nobody mobbed the British > songwriter and performance artist while he waited > in the Castro lobby for the start of ``Storefront > Hitchcock,'' Anybody else spot him in the lobby? Leonardo "ubiquitous" DiCaprio must be getting all the mob action these days... > > Dan and Heidi Poppe are typical Hitchcock > devotees. ``He's transcendentally wacky,'' Heidi > said of her idol's appeal. Arrrg! It's that "W" word again!!! Why do people love this adjective? > > The Poppes and four of their like- minded friends > were the first in line for Tuesday night's screening. I'm surprised the mailing list crowd wasn't first, with the Eddie the caped wonder holding court! This reporter certainly interviewed the wrong bunch.. > But that meant only that they arrived an hour early > - -- Hitchcock fans are too cool to stand in line for > hours. Ha! I always show up shamelessly early for gigs. Not *hours* early, but hey, first in line gets the best seat! Does this make us more cool than, say, Tori Amos fans? No, only slightly less cultish, and we like to have dinner before the show. - -Carole ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 2 May 1998 23:12:00 EDT From: SydneyC33 Subject: Storefront and SF goings on Yes, another post about Storefront... but some other stuff too! Storefront was GREAT. Robyn being Robyn, which is what we like, right? Others have already provided a lot of detail, but one more thing to note...it was fun/interesting to see Robyn so clean cut for the movie. :) Hair neatly trimmed, not nearly as much gray as we're used to seeing today, and was that......make-up?! It was Robyn as I imagine he must have looked a decade or so ago. But to sum it up, the way he looked, sounded, "acted"...*exquisite*. This fan was pleased, indeed. And it was wonderful to meet up with all you Fegs, including our contingent from the Pacific Northwest. I'm sad to say I missed the GAMH show on Wednesday. :( :( :( A HUGE, immovable deadline at work called me back to Sacramento. As if this alone didn't cut deeply enough, it really hurt to hear so many report that this was one of the best Robyn shows in recent history. Can Eddie Tews ever forgive me for having such twisted priorities?!? I can hear him now... "Your *job*?! You missed Robyn because of your JOB?! Silly girl." On to other news... This may have been reported, but I want to remind all Fegs within reach of SF that Anton Barbeau and his band will be at the Hotel Utah (affectionately known--by me anyway (!)--as the "Shoebox") on Sunday, May 3rd at 8:00pm. 4th and Bryant, ya know. And it's FREE! I hear there's "new blood" in the band that was...well...meant to be. :) Oh, and for those closer to Sacramento, Anton will be at the Fox and Goose (10th and R) on Thursday, May 7th. See ya there! Sydney ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 3 May 1998 00:22:54 -0400 (EDT) From: Chris Subject: Lou Reed, and oh yes, that fellow Robyn >I like his voice. It's unconventional, but evocative. And I have nothing >but admiration for his lyrics -- when Reed fails me, it's because of his >music. Now I haven't seen Lou recently, so maybe he's stopped doing this. But what I find most distressing about Lou, is the way he destroys his songs by singing the last word of the song over and over. Of course, the only thing I can think of right now is I Love You Suzanne, but I can remember him going - "You'll try anything twi-twi-twi-twi-twi-twice" And doing that type of thing all through the song, and in whatever other songs I saw him singing. Everytime I saw him, he was doing that sort of crap. Maybe it was just a mid to late 80s thing, and he's gotten it out of his system. Oh yes, Robyn content- I'm jumping into the queue looking for a copy of the 4/29/98 SF show on DAT - have lots of shows on DAT to trade. Chris ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 3 May 1998 04:22:52 -0500 From: David Librik Subject: Re: Time is drying your hair Russ Reynolds wrote: > ...After the screening I remarked to somebody that the "line of >the film" as quoted in a review from SXSW appeared to be missing. I now >remember that the line was "Time is drying your hair", after some sort of >comment about the Maxell man in the chair poster. He made that remark in his witty repartee with Jonathan Demme, during their interview after the movie. I don't remember the whole context of it. - - David Librik librik@cube.ice.net nerdy groover ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 3 May 1998 12:26:20 -0400 (EDT) From: Natalie Jane Jacobs Subject: Kristin Hersh in Ann Arbor I went to see Kristin Hersh last night. This was a big deal for me as I've wanted to see her ever since the Muses played here in 1989 and I was too young to get in. So I can be excused a moment of utter, swooning heroine-worship as she walked on the stage... The show was good, though she seemed a little subdued and her voice a tad on the hoarse side. She told the story about the wind-up Santa with the knife in its back, and another story about how a couple of Muses "skipped work to make toast" and ended up accidentally toasting a mouse, which they then tried to kill with hairspray. Her humor was very dry; no Robynesque flights of fancy, but still entertaining. In between songs, a woman in the audience started shouting, "Kristin, I love you, you're such an inspiration to me! The Throwing Muses were my life!" "They were my life too," Kristin replied. "And I'm still here." She mostly played songs from the new album, plus a few oddities thrown in, like a song by her father ("He used a lot of drugs in the 60's, so don't listen to the lyrics") and a Vic Chesnutt cover. But the biggest treat was the encore - "Rabbits Dying" and "Delicate Cutters," from the first Muses album. I thought she didn't play her really early stuff anymore, so I was delighted. On those songs in particular, her performance was stirring and passionate, and I left feeling elated. After the show, I went to a magazine shop to poke around, and as I stepped in the door, what should I hear on the in-store stereo but "One Long Pair of Eyes." I congratulated the proprietor on his musical taste. He irrelevantly warned me away from the Housemartins, and I irrelevantly recommended Neutral Milk Hotel. All in all, a very nice evening. n. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 03 May 1998 10:51:59 -0700 From: Nur Gale Subject: RH at GAMH Well, the deities preordained that i not get a complete tape of the GAMH show. My mic battery joined me into oblivion 20 minutes into the show. A great loss, because what little i got is great sound. So yes, a tape tree would be most appreciated to spread the treasure. i'd be pleased to help along with it. i never much cared for Deni before, compared to other violin performers such as Eliza Waterson, a real spark plug in performance, who attacks her instrument with utter abandon, but loses many of its subtleties that Deni preservers. Maybe Eliza spent to much time being mentored by another wild-fiddle player, Dave Swarbrick. Anyhow i really felt Deni proved she is coming more into her own with greater confidence after Wednesday's concert. i think she's matured a lot. Oh yes, an intro since i guess i am one of the newer fegs on the list -- or does mid-age crises transmute one into a *gef*? i came upon fegmaniax via the Richard Thompson net group where i've made my musical gossip home for a few years. RH not infrequently pops up on the RT list discussions, so it is probably just a natural transition into the feg-universe. well, cheers, and here's looking forward to getting to know some of you shortly, Nur Gale ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 03 May 1998 15:05:10 -0400 From: woj spice Subject: Re: Gorey also sprach James Dignan: >Both "The Gashleycrumb Tinies" and "The Curious Sofa" are in "Amphigorey" a >wonderful collection of 15 Edward Gorey short books. there is also _amphigorey too_, with a number of other stories. didn't somebody write a fegversion of the gashleycrumb tinies a while back? woj ------------------------------ End of fegmaniax-digest V7 #175 *******************************