From: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org (fegmaniax-digest) To: fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Subject: fegmaniax-digest V7 #178 Reply-To: fegmaniax@smoe.org Sender: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk fegmaniax-digest Wednesday, May 6 1998 Volume 07 : Number 178 Today's Subjects: ----------------- Half-assed birdy BBQ in Harrisburgh [The Great Quail ] MMM [dwdudic@erols.com (David W. Dudich)] eno [dwdudic@erols.com (David W. Dudich)] Re: eno [Aaron Mandel ] Re: eno [Scary Mary ] Re: Robin the eavesdropper [Insert Nickname Here ] Re: MMM [Insert Nickname Here ] the wacky world of has-beenism [Eb ] RE: Kevin Ayers Alert ["J.M. Brown H9602040" ] whatanight [domis@tfn.com] Re: eno (or, is ambient music crap?) [nicastr@idt.net (Ben)] Re: the wacky world of has-beenism [Terrence M Marks ] addicted to noise [hbrtv219@email.csun.edu] Re: Comic Strips (10% Eb content) [The Great Quail Subject: Half-assed birdy BBQ in Harrisburgh Tom Clark sez: >I'm extremely bummed that I won't be able to make it since I've already >committed to be at some half-assed birdy BBQ in Harrisburgh, PA that >weekend! ;^) Yeah, I heard about that too! I am just dropping Fegdom a line to answer the few queries flittered my way -- I will be putting a FegFest Web Page up real soon, with directions, information, the proper spelling of Harrisburg, and a list of attendees. I've been VERY busy these last two weeks, but this week I think I may finally grab a few hours to whack out a small page. . . . Just to quell any doubts, the party is still on, the guest list is getting quite deliciously big, and the Yaks are almost ripe enough to pluck for the BBQ. Oh, yes, things are going our way, fellow Gong fans. . . . - --Quail (Erm . . . did I say Gong Fans . . . ? Ignore that. . . .) - ---------------------------------+-------------------------------- The Great Quail, K.S.C. | Literature Site - The Libyrinth: TheQuail@cthulhu.microserve.com | www.rpg.net/quail/libyrinth www.rpg.net/quail | Vampire Site - New York by Night: riverrun Discordian Society | www.rpg.net/quail/NYBN 73 De Chirico Street | Arkham, Orbis Tertius 2112-42 | ** What is FEGMANIA? ** "The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability of the human mind to correlate all its contents." -- H.P. Lovecraft ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 May 98 17:58:50 -0500 From: The Great Quail Subject: The Feglycrumb Tinies With respect to Ed Gorey, and fully conscious of the tortured if non-existant rhyme scheme, I offer this as the Feglycrumb Tinies. I fear you will just have to *imagine* the macabre little pictures. . . . __________________________________________________ A is for AMADAIN who took Truman's peyote B is for BAYARD gobbled up by coyotes C is for CHANEY who was dolphed for his sins D is for DIGNAN who went down with his penguins E is for EB who was Ben't, Nick'd and Crumb'd F is for FLOSSHILDE who just came undone G is for GARY nibbled by rabbits H is for HAL exploding on drum kits I is for ITCHY GOD dotted by .chris J is for JEME poisoned by Phish K is for KARMA-FUZZ gotten most instantly L is for LJ bottled while kissing me M is for MARY squashed by a gravestone N is for NICK when Eb broke his tailbone O is for OVERBURY whacked by a stick P is for PERCIVAL who left the List quick Q is for QUAIL roasted with onions R is for RUNION who busted his bunions S is for SYDNEY who choked on a prawn T is for TEWS executed at dawn U is for UBER who was impaled by some Nerf V is for VASKA who dropped off the earth W is for WOJ who's heart gave out bedding Tori X is for X-FILE: GLOSTER when the Quail finished his story Y is for YOU who stopped being real Z is for ZELDA pinned to her wheel - ---------------------------------+-------------------------------- The Great Quail, K.S.C. | Literature Site - The Libyrinth: TheQuail@cthulhu.microserve.com | www.rpg.net/quail/libyrinth www.rpg.net/quail | Vampire Site - New York by Night: riverrun Discordian Society | www.rpg.net/quail/NYBN 73 De Chirico Street | Arkham, Orbis Tertius 2112-42 | ** What is FEGMANIA? ** "The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability of the human mind to correlate all its contents." -- H.P. Lovecraft ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 06 May 1998 00:01:55 GMT From: dwdudic@erols.com (David W. Dudich) Subject: MMM On Tue, 5 May 1998 16:41:27 -0400 (EDT), you wrote: >can't get that great song from _metal machine music_ outta my head. > >------------------------------ what song!!!! the one that goes, "EEEEEHWWWWWWWWWWWWW AAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRR EWWWWWWWWWARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR'!over and over? that album is, uh, well, there is a webpage devoted to it. I suggest anyone with a little free time hunt it up. it says it all. who here OWNS a copy of this monstrosity? -luther ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 05 May 1998 23:59:39 GMT From: dwdudic@erols.com (David W. Dudich) Subject: eno On Tue, 5 May 1998 16:41:27 -0400 (EDT), you wrote: >Date: Tue, 5 May 1998 09:53:11 +0100 >From: Stewart Russell 3295 Analyst_Programmer >Subject: Re: Ol' Monster Noggin > >>>>>> "Eb" == Eb writes: > > >> Brian Eno > >...who had a wonderful cameo on the very last (sniff!) Father Ted: > > "... and this is Father Eno" > Brian: "Hello" > >Ah, Dermot Morgan, we shall not see your like again. > > Stewart > >------------------------------ might as well start a thread... Any fans of the music of Brian Eno out there? his pop songs are often strangely robynesque in their wierd lyrics (though RH would'nt have Robert Fripp playing wierd bits through his songs!) I just have "801 live", "here come the warm jets", "fripp/eno- no pussyfooting", and "music for airports". what next? -luther ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 May 1998 20:53:07 -0400 (EDT) From: Aaron Mandel Subject: Re: eno On Tue, 5 May 1998, David W. Dudich wrote: > Any fans of the music of Brian Eno out there? > I just have "801 live", "here come the warm jets", "fripp/eno- > no pussyfooting", and "music for airports". > what next? get his other "pop" albums, Another Green World, Taking Tiger Mountain By Strategy and Before And After Science. i'm not sure how to describe their relevance to robyn, since the points where eno overlaps with robyn are the aspects of their work for which we've all been deluged with irritating adjectives: "eccentric", "dotty", "very British". don't go to eno looking for emotional resonance, though. i don't see the point of the ambient stuff, myself. a ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 05 May 1998 21:05:52 -0400 From: Scary Mary Subject: Re: eno Luther queried: > Any fans of the music of Brian Eno out there? > his pop songs are often strangely robynesque in their wierd >lyrics (though RH would'nt have Robert Fripp playing wierd bits >through his songs!) > I just have "801 live", "here come the warm jets", "fripp/eno- >no pussyfooting", and "music for airports". > what next? > -luther > "Another Green World" and "Taking Tiger Mountain (By Strategy)" are two of my favourites. If you like his "pop songs" you might enjoy these. Mary ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 May 1998 18:07:31 -0700 (PDT) From: Insert Nickname Here Subject: Re: Robin the eavesdropper On Tue, 5 May 1998, Eb wrote: > When Robyn performs a Neutral Milk Hotel cover in concert, and prefaces it > by saying "This one's in the key of E-flat," THEN I'll believe he's lurking > on the list. ;) Or, better yet, "This one's in the key of woj." - -g- - ----------==========**********O**********==========--------- Glen Uber uberg@sonic.net "Without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible." --Frank Zappa - ----------==========**********O**********==========--------- ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 May 1998 18:02:40 -0700 (PDT) From: Insert Nickname Here Subject: Re: MMM On Wed, 6 May 1998, David W. Dudich wrote: > >can't get that great song from _metal machine music_ outta my head. > > who here OWNS a copy of this monstrosity? Uh...I do...although I've never actually listened to it all the way through. Three or four minutes at a time is all I can take. Five, tops! - -g- - ----------==========**********O**********==========--------- Glen Uber uberg@sonic.net "Without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible." --Frank Zappa - ----------==========**********O**********==========--------- ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 May 1998 18:03:00 -0700 From: Eb Subject: the wacky world of has-beenism TED NUGENT LAUNCHES BEEF JERKY LINE "You can't beat my meat." This is what rocker/hunter Ted Nugent so eloquently says about his newly formed beef jerky venture, Ted Nugent Gonzo Meat Biltong. The avid hunter has teamed up with Michigan-based Double-D Meat Company, which has been making beef jerky for 25 years, to produced three flavors of Ted Nugent Gonzo Meat Biltong -- original beef, barbeque beef, and the flameflower. For now, the jerky is only available at AMOCO gas stations in South Eastern Michigan or via a toll-free mail-order number, 888-5-Biltong. However, Nugent hopes to have the jerky distributed nationally. The packaging features Nugent's mug with a "Legend of Biltong," which reads: "Mankind has survived on meat. Throughout the Old World, sundried and smoked flesh sustained the survivors. Biltong remains today the prime life-giving source of aboriginal tribes and their modern counterparts throughout the globe. Unlike modern jerky products, this original Nugent Biltong is produced exclusively from selected cuts. We guarantee primo quality. Once you Biltong, you'll never jerky again." ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 05 May 98 11:11:00 bst From: "J.M. Brown H9602040" Subject: RE: Kevin Ayers Alert what's the difference between kevin ayers and kevin coyne? (an ignorant) Julian ---------- From: owner-fegmaniax To: fegmaniax Subject: Kevin Ayers Alert Date: Monday, May 04, 1998 5:42PM Kevin Ayers is doing 2 shows on the west coast of the US in the near future. Is anyone going, does anyone care about him? It's kind of a surprise since he probably hasn't released anything here in a dog's age. I was reading some of the Robyn archives and one review compared him to Kevin Ayers, not in content just in general weirdness. He put out some nice records in the 70's, but he's been pretty quiet for quite some time. rich ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 May 1998 11:35:06 -0400 From: domis@tfn.com Subject: whatanight Hey all. This is Olaf's first post. The 4/29 GAMH show has been festering in my psyche and had to burst all over somewhere. This seemed like an apt place. In particular, that Astronomy Domine is something I'll never forget. With Robyn's voice, a ``butch'' acoustic, a piano, and Deni's magnificent violin, the two created a psychedelic swirling version that reminded me of one of those rare moments when the Grateful Dead ``fall apart'' live -- when all the elements of the music seem to become momentarily dissonant, disjointed -- but not really -- and then slide back together in perfection. And here two people pulled it off. I was smiling down to the core and covered with goosebumps. Cool thing: My pal Sean came along to the show -- a proficient guitar player who had never heard a single Hitchcock tune (he's from the Vermont backwoods). He had no idea what expect, but in the space before Robyn fired up Astronomy Domine, Sean mentioned that Hitchcock's style reminded him of S. Barrett. I responded that, ``Why yes, that's one of his cited influences, blah blah'' hardly expecting what came next. Needless to say, Sean was blow away. I remember seeing Hitchcock, weary from a long tour and constantly asking the waitress for more coffee, at the GAMH several years back, and he played Flavour of Night on piano. He dedicated it to ``all his gay friends,'' I recall, but I can't remember the date of the show. Does anyone out there (or in here) know the date? The line between us is so thin... ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 May 1998 21:36:11 -0500 From: nicastr@idt.net (Ben) Subject: Re: eno (or, is ambient music crap?) >On Tue, 5 May 1998, David W. Dudich wrote: > >> Any fans of the music of Brian Eno out there? > >> I just have "801 live", "here come the warm jets", "fripp/eno- >> no pussyfooting", and "music for airports". >> what next? > >get his other "pop" albums, Another Green World, Taking Tiger Mountain By >Strategy and Before And After Science. i'm not sure how to describe their >relevance to robyn, since the points where eno overlaps with robyn are the >aspects of their work for which we've all been deluged with irritating >adjectives: "eccentric", "dotty", "very British". don't go to eno looking >for emotional resonance, though. > Yeah, get "Another Green World" for sure! It has some of the most wonderful "pop" tunes, as well as brief instrumental pieces. It's my favorite Eno album. "Before And After Science" is great too. >i don't see the point of the ambient stuff, myself. > >a Check out "Music For Airports" (I wonder if anyone has ever actually played this music over an airport PA?) or "Discreet Music". The albums that really turned me on to the "ambient/instrumental" Eno, however, were Bowie's "Low" and "Heroes". In reference to ambient music, here's a snippit from New Musical Express, November 26th 1977. An article on Eno by Ian MacDonald: Darkness and sudden death. The self-sustained impetus of thought experienced a kind of hiatus in a hospital off the Harrow Road and in the pale emptiness of Eno's modernistic ground-floor apartment in W.9. He was in a state of "moderate disorientation" and had no way of telling whether this was permanent or simply the passing effects of concussion. He also had a sneaking fear that his brain might have been damaged and felt obscurely that he ought to think while he still could - before he started to deteriorate... In the haze of his convalescence, Judy Nylon came one day and brought him a record of virtuoso harp music. When she'd gone again, he hobbled to the gramophone, put the album on, and collapsed, exhausted, back into bed. The room was in half-darkness and it was raining heavily outside. Eno waited for the sound of the music. "...It was much too quiet and one side of the stereo wasn't working and the side that was the furthest away from me and pointing in the opposite direction anyway, but I was too weak to get up and change it. "So I drifted into this kind of fitful sleep, a mixture of pain-killers and tiredness. And I started hearing this record as if I'd never heard music before. "It was a really beautiful experience, I got the feeling of icebergs, you know? I would just occasionally hear the loudest parts of the music, get a little flurry of notes coming out above the sound of the rain - and then it'd drift away again... "And I began to think of environmental music - music deliberately constructed to occupy the background. And I realised that muzak was a very strong concept and not a load of rubbish, as most people supposed." And what did Muzak think of you? "They didn't seem very interested. None of the canned music companies did. They're making money hand-over-fist, so they probably don't care about new ideas. "Anyway, the result was that I resolved to make a much stronger commitment to experimental music and take it much more seriously. "Firstly, I thought contemporary experimental music was too intellectual and ignored the possibilities of appealing to the senses - whereas rock seemed to be off in the opposite direction, there being a strong heavy metal revival on at around this time. "So I figured something ought to happen in between that was extremely beautiful but unengaging, as it were. So you could enter it on any level you chose, ie., sitting there with headphones on, really listening to what was going on - or else you could turn it down and let it sit in the background. "The only thing I knew that sounded anything like that was Gavin Bryars' The Sinking Of The Titanic, which was why it was the first release on Obscure Records. "Anyway, on May 9 1975, I did Discreet Music which, for me, crystallized this new style." Discreet Music is Eno's personal favourite amongst his own creations. Oddly enough, it was actually produced by machinery, being a tape-delay pattern he set up and left going to produce a "landscape" for Fripp's guitar. All Eno did was play a brief phrase on the synthesizer keyboard; a Revox, on half-speed playback, did the actual music. "It's one of a very select handful of pieces which I constantly return to and which I never seem to exhaust. They have this capability of being appreciated on any level. They don't dictate their terms. They're always fresh because they're always modified by their context. "They're very bland, in a sense, and can accept any context you choose to play them in. It's no coincidence that, at around this point, I started to be involved in doing a lot of film music - and found that I enjoyed it almost more than the stuff I was doing for my own records. ''Because an important aspect of film music is that it lacks focus. It doesn't state a central issue, because the central image is the issue on the screen. "And so, from then on, I began to remove focus from all my music - which led first to Another Green World, and then to this new one..." ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 May 1998 22:07:18 -0400 (EDT) From: Terrence M Marks Subject: Re: the wacky world of has-beenism Glad to get off thsi VU kick. Tried listening to VU&Nico, but I just don't see what's so good about it. Apart from the strings on "Venus in Fur", it all seems muddled and amateurish. I'm sure it was something real big to sing openly about drugs back then, but it just doesn't seem nearly as impressive now. (Oh...header longer than message) Why would anyone buy meat from Ted Nugent??? Were I to make a list of rock'n'rollers I wouldn't buy food from, he'd be on it, (but below Lou Reed and John Cale). That souds about as appetizing as Andy Capp's Hot Fries. I would lose respect for anyone who bought that beef jerky for any reason except novelty value... (And if anyone is curious about tMr. Cantor's "krazy kat" novel,well, I'm looking to get my copy as far away from me as possible. You just have to pay shipping and accept my Galaxie 500 CD also.) Terrence Marks normal@grove.ufl.edu ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 05 May 1998 21:50:16 -0500 From: sdodge@midway.uchicago.edu (amadain) Subject: Re: the wacky world of has-beenism >Glad to get off thsi VU kick. Tried listening to VU&Nico, but I just >don't see what's so good about it. Er, the fact that it's smart and sharp and a lot of it has a hypnotic drone quality that's really brilliant and effective at setting the kind of mood they aim to set. Also, it's got a relentlessly stripped down aesthetic that was way ahead of its time and lays the connection between rock and roll and avant-classical and jazz bare for all to see. Very generally speaking, as other rockers of the time were trying for an elaborate effect a la the Romantics (no, not the guys who sang "what I like about you" :)), the VU were going for stripped down dissonance a la the Moderns. I guess it all comes down to whether you like that or not. Apart from the strings on "Venus in >Fur", it all seems muddled and amateurish. I'm sure it was something real >big to sing openly about drugs back then, but it just doesn't seem nearly >as impressive now. The main importance of that as I see it was that by talking about heroin, street life, -urban- issues, the VU (Lou really, though I'm sure the others were part off this too) were allying themselves with the urban Beatnik tradition, and positing themselves squarely AGAINST the romantic, flowery, psychedelic tradition. This also shows up in the fact that they tended to wear fairly tailored clothes and lots of black- very consciously against the prevailing trend of frillies and flowers and lurve. The "amateurishness" you speak of was quite deliberate and very much part of this- they were deliberately FOR a modern, raw, urgent, dark sort of sound rather than a conventionally beautiful or "good" one. Again, you either dig this or not. >Why would anyone buy meat from Ted Nugent??? I'm afraid I haven't got any ideas for that one :). >I would lose respect for anyone who bought that beef jerky for any reason >except novelty value... There would be other reasons to buy it? :) And while you're at it, pass the Sinatra Spaghetti Sauce :). Love on ya, Susan ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 May 1998 22:58:23 -0400 From: lj lindhurst Subject: Re: question for lj >or anyone else who was at the filming. >we know they did four gigs in two days. but, we couldn't agree on >whether they did retakes or not. please enlighten. I was only at one of the days of the filming-- day 1, first gig. It went really well, and there were no retakes. Highlights: I saw Robyn's mom on the way out, and they also interviewed me and former feg Tom Dobbs on the street (he has since joined the Merchant Marines and is probably somewhere getting his nipple pierced now)(isn't that what Merchant Marines do?). They asked us what Robyn's music meant to us. I thought I gave a pretty good answer, and that I should definitely be in the movie, goddamnit. (can't remember what it was now though)(but it was brilliant, I swear) Were there ANY fan interviews in the movie? lj ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 May 1998 10:38:00 -0700 From: hbrtv219@email.csun.edu Subject: addicted to noise Robyn Hitchcock On Display In Abandoned 'Storefront' Hitchcock teams with director Jonathan Demme on new film that features psychedelic pop-rocker at his weirdest. Contributing Editor Colin Devenish reports: SAN FRANCISCO -- Robyn Hitchcock stood on the stage of the historic Castro Theatre facing an audience littered with film buffs on a movie-going binge and fans eager to see their favorite performer. He was introducing the film "Storefront Hitchcock," which was about to be screened as part of the 41st annual San Francisco International Film Festival. And then came this warning: "I hope your flesh is good," said Hitchcock, dressed in a black jacket, a black and white polka-dot dress shirt and bright purple pants. "I hope your minds are popping with the right stuff." And while the announcement may have seemed strangely unclear, even alarming to some, the premise of "Storefront Hitchcock" is simple enough. Under the direction of Jonathan Demme, Hitchcock stands playing guitar in a storefront window for 86 minutes. That's it; nothing more, nothing less. Film-goers who paid their money looking for the kind of cannibalistic action that marked director Demme's most famous film, "Silence of the Lambs," probably dozed off early on. But for fans of Hitchcock, 45, an English singer/songwriter and former frontman of post-punk act the Soft Boys, "Storefront Hitchcock" provides a unique look into his unique approach to live music, taking viewers through several monologues between the 15 songs and offering a glimpse into his songwriting process. Filmed in an abandoned furniture store on 14th Street between Fifth and Sixth avenues in Manhattan, N.Y., and composed of four performances recorded over two days, the film's early moments are marked with the inadvertent hilarity that ensues as sidewalk passersby realize that a live performance is taking place on the other side of the glass. Later in the film, Demme, whose 1984 concert film "Stop Making Sense" profiled new-wave pioneers Talking Heads, alternates the background behind Hitchcock from a solid black curtain to a multi-colored panel, with various objects like a large hanging tomato and a disco ball thrown into view at intervals. The result produces an unbalanced feel to Hitchcock's performance that reflects the quirky, uneven songs for which he's known. The most delightful moments of the film come when Hitchcock takes time out from playing his acoustic and electric guitars on songs such as "1974," "Devil's Radio" and "Glas s Hotel" (RealAudio excerpt) to explain his collection of humorous, solemn and inane songs to the unseen audience. Prior to "Let's Go Thundering," he praises the human rib cage for keeping our guts in and preventing what he describes as "spleens a-go-go." He prefaces a song that describes a time in the future without human beings with a dedication to computers: "We apologize. We're not responsible. We created you. We're extinct." Perhaps the most intriguing song introduction was his explanation for a tune about the English Isle Of Wight, which he explained is sinking at the rate of 10 feet a year, a fact he said means that the ghosts of those who lived before are stretching further and further out to sea. Accompanied at times by violinist Deni Bonet and later by guitarist Tim Keegan, Hitchcock shows himself to be an attentive performer, throwing sidelong glances during songs at his fellow performers, at one point offering Banet (sic) a drink of water from his glass. At the movie's end, one feels not so much like they've seen Hitchcock in concert or watched a movie about him but that they've been allowed to sit in on a practice session with all his music, biting wit and eccentric personality on prominent display. Hitchcock, Bonet and producer Peter Saraf came together onstage after the film to field questions from the audience. Hitchcock dominated the forum, frequently choosing to be flippant or glib with his initial reply to the sometimes inane questions, before giving a more sincere response. Among those inquiries shot down by Hitchcock included "Where is the worst audience?," which he countered with "You can find a bad crowd anywhere if you look for them. Are you looking for a bad audience?" Hitchcock also mocked the idea of a Soft Boys reunion. "After a certain age, I don't think you legally have to have a band." And how did it feel to be the focus of a film? Hitchcock cut the cleverness momentarily and said, "I feel myself flinching at some points when I see myself onscreen." ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 5 May 98 22:55:34 -0500 From: The Great Quail Subject: Re: Comic Strips (10% Eb content) Jon "They Eat Quail Eggs, Don't They?" Fetter writes: > For a fairly good/odd modern comic, there's one that's about a cat >and a dog (and their owners) that's drawn in a rather rough, simple style >with Herriman-style humor. Yes . . . that's "Mutts" which is one of those comics that is so heartbreakingly cute that only Eb would not like it. - --Quail PS: Um, Eb? Of course I am not going to argue about John Tesh. We all know that Yanni is the superior mind. . . . n.p.: The Grateful Dead's amazing cover of 4'33." God DAMN, can they ever jam out a John Cage tune! - ---------------------------------+-------------------------------- The Great Quail, K.S.C. | Literature Site - The Libyrinth: TheQuail@cthulhu.microserve.com | www.rpg.net/quail/libyrinth www.rpg.net/quail | Vampire Site - New York by Night: riverrun Discordian Society | www.rpg.net/quail/NYBN 73 De Chirico Street | Arkham, Orbis Tertius 2112-42 | ** What is FEGMANIA? ** "The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability of the human mind to correlate all its contents." -- H.P. Lovecraft ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 6 May 1998 00:40:27 -0500 From: nicastr@idt.net (Ben) Subject: Re: the wacky world of has-beenism >>Glad to get off thsi VU kick. Tried listening to VU&Nico, but I just >>don't see what's so good about it. > >Er, the fact that it's smart and sharp and a lot of it has a hypnotic drone >quality that's really brilliant and effective at setting the kind of mood >they aim to set. Also, it's got a relentlessly stripped down aesthetic that >was way ahead of its time and lays the connection between rock and roll and >avant-classical and jazz bare for all to see. Very generally speaking, as >other rockers of the time were trying for an elaborate effect a la the >Romantics (no, not the guys who sang "what I like about you" :)), the VU >were going for stripped down dissonance a la the Moderns. I guess it all >comes down to whether you like that or not. > > Apart from the strings on "Venus in >>Fur", it all seems muddled and amateurish. I'm sure it was something real >>big to sing openly about drugs back then, but it just doesn't seem nearly >>as impressive now. > >The main importance of that as I see it was that by talking about heroin, >street life, -urban- issues, the VU (Lou really, though I'm sure the others >were part off this too) were allying themselves with the urban Beatnik >tradition, and positing themselves squarely AGAINST the romantic, flowery, >psychedelic tradition. This also shows up in the fact that they tended to >wear fairly tailored clothes and lots of black- very consciously against the >prevailing trend of frillies and flowers and lurve. The "amateurishness" you >speak of was quite deliberate and very much part of this- they were >deliberately FOR a modern, raw, urgent, dark sort of sound rather than a >conventionally beautiful or "good" one. Again, you either dig this or not. Well put! Those 4 original Velvets albums are "must haves"! For all their dissonant experiments on the first two albums, don't forget that there were some great pop tunes there too, "Sunday Morning", "Femme Fatale", etc...! ------------------------------ End of fegmaniax-digest V7 #178 *******************************