From: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org (fegmaniax-digest) To: fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Subject: fegmaniax-digest V7 #296 Reply-To: fegmaniax@smoe.org Sender: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk fegmaniax-digest Tuesday, August 4 1998 Volume 07 : Number 296 Today's Subjects: ----------------- Re: sundry [hal brandt ] Re: tour dates up the cornhole [Bayard ] Re: sundry [Eb ] "Not Rhiannon Again! Aaaargh!" [Tom Clark ] what IS a feg? [dwdudic@erols.com (luther)] Re: sundry [hal brandt ] Further Proof of the Conspiracy [JH3 ] Re: Eb-bait (no Hal Halverstadt content) [Eb ] Re: gah! [Eb ] music to squelch to [james.dignan@stonebow.otago.ac.nz (James Dignan)] Vegemite [Danielle ] Re: nuddy [james.dignan@stonebow.otago.ac.nz (James Dignan)] Re: Nmh [Ross Overbury ] Re: haltroll [Eb ] sex, style, fegmania, and Lloyd [Lorelei D Laird ] MacManus and Child Reunion [was: Re: that song you all know...] [KarmaFuz] Zappa vs. Dead [Mike Runion ] Fingers in the notches in your spine [Natalie Jacobs ] Re: Zappa vs. Dead [dlang ] Re: sex, style, fegmania, and Lloyd [Terrence M Marks ] In defence of OTC and AiS ["Gene Hopstetter, Jr." ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 03 Aug 1998 16:56:29 -0600 From: hal brandt Subject: Re: sundry Eb quoted Tom: > > >Tom: > >>o Make an Eb effigy ...and wrote: > >I've always felt that your standing as a Eb-basher is underrated on this > >list...but keep it up, and perhaps you'll be viewed in the upper echelon. Tom politely corrected: > [sound of joke flying overhead] > > Again I'm misunderstood. Eb's ubiquitous presence on this list only > demands that he represent at all feggatherings. Plus, an effigy isn't > necessarily a BAD thing! Really, Eb, your often indulgent posts are assimilated and even enjoyed by many on the list. Even your relentless plugging of bands (NMH and now Rufus. Ever think of becoming a publicist or a record label rep? Or, do you just enjoy boasting to the artists via fanmail later about how many units you moved for them?) is appreciated by those on the prowl for new music. So, why the continued persecution complex? It doesn't become you. This is not meant to be an "attack", so please keep it civil. Just wondering, /hal NP- "Dark Star>Cumberland Blues" from the latest Dick's Picks. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 3 Aug 1998 19:14:15 -0400 (EDT) From: Bayard Subject: Re: tour dates up the cornhole eddie wrote: 1982 February 12, Hope & Anchor, Islington ROBYN w/Matthew Seligman, Rod Johnson July 9, The Venue, Victoria they also toured europe, but i couldn't find any dates. _______ matthew knights recalls (fron the chronology): July 9th 1981. Robyn plays at "The Venue", Victoria, London. This was a solo performance with lots of dancing girls hired to dance on stage in fish costumes. The girls were part of the act, all had the same costume and danced very well in time to the music! There was an elaborate stage set as well - fish were very much in evidence! "The Venue" has since been converted into a Garfunkel's. which of you chaps has the wrong year? Gotta keep this straight - don't wanna lose my "king size sausage dog" weenie status.... and THANKS eddie! =b ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 3 Aug 1998 16:19:05 -0700 From: Eb Subject: Re: sundry /hal: >Really, Eb, your often indulgent posts are assimilated and even >enjoyed by many on the list. Even your relentless plugging of >bands (NMH and now Rufus. Ever think of becoming a publicist or >a record label rep? Or, do you just enjoy boasting to the artists via >fanmail later about how many units you moved for them?) is appreciated >by those on the prowl for new music. So, why the continued persecution >complex? It doesn't become you. This is not meant to be an "attack", so >please keep it civil. 1) Every one of Tom's "jokes" regarding me has a very hostile undercurrent. Kinda like your above comment about me "boasting to the artists via fanmail." 2) Sorry that I didn't take the Eb-bait in your last two posts. I'll try to do better next time. I also am sorry that Rufus Wainwright makes you flaccid, and I'll do my very best to keep this mental image out of my head the next time I play his disc. Also, I definitely do not rank at the top of the "indulgence" scale on this list. Funny how no one similarly griped about some poor blighter's extended rant about his unfortunate car purchase, for instance. Only better. Eb, erstwhile chat host of "You Don't Know Shit" ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 3 Aug 98 16:50:51 -0700 From: Tom Clark Subject: "Not Rhiannon Again! Aaaargh!" Calif. man hangs himself after Stevie Nicks concert CONCORD, Calif. (Reuters) - Hundreds of fans leaving a concert by Fleetwood Mac singer Stevie Nicks watched in horror as a man hanged himself from a utility pole after having argued with his estranged wife, officials said Monday. The man, who has not been identified, argued with his wife after meeting her Sunday night at an outdoor amphitheater in Concord, a suburb of San Francisco. A spokeswoman for the city of Concord said the wife, who had a restraining order against her husband, notified authorities. The man, carrying a set of car battery jumper cables, then scaled a utility pole near the entrance of the pavilion. As police and fire crews arrived, the man attached the cables to the top of the pole and threatened to kill himself. It was not immediately clear whether he slipped accidentally or deliberately hanged himself, the spokeswoman said. The incident was not the first to tarnish a concert by Nicks. Last month, a Los Angeles Superior Court judge issued a restraining order against a psychiatric patient who believes the rock star is a witch who can "heal" him of his homosexuality. The order bars Ronald Anacelteo from all concerts, venues or recording studios where the 50-year-old singer is performing, as well as from her home and workplace. Nicks joined Fleetwood Mac in 1975, and her stage persona -- long blonde hair and flowing costumes -- has long defined the band for many of its fans. The singer recently reunited with Fleetwood Mac for a tour in support of "The Dance," an album culled from a special concert performance on MTV, and in April she released a three-volume retrospective box set, "Enchanted," that spans her solo career. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 03 Aug 1998 23:59:48 GMT From: dwdudic@erols.com (luther) Subject: what IS a feg? On Mon, 3 Aug 1998 18:03:35 -0400 (EDT), you wrote: > > (151K)> >are any of those people fegs? Well, the guy in the hat in the foreground is my (twin) brother and bandmate Davy "Syd", and that hat is now signed by Robyn (and Richard Thompson too, btw)...does that count? What IS a feg, by definition>? -luther ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 03 Aug 1998 18:19:38 -0600 From: hal brandt Subject: Re: sundry Eb sez: > > 1) Every one of Tom's "jokes" regarding me has a very hostile undercurrent. > Kinda like your...comment about me "boasting to the artists via > fanmail." Sorry if it hits too close to home, but jokes they are. And even if you paranoically perceive them as having "hostile undercurrents", they don't usually warrant the hostile tsunami of your retorts. > 2) Sorry that I didn't take the Eb-bait in your last two posts. Not everything is "Eb-this" or "Eb-that" except in your insistance on creating your "Eb-world" persona. I have no problem with that (it's rampant on the 'net and especially on the numerous newsgroups and lists that you enjoy subscribing to) but let's see it for what it is. > Also, I definitely do not rank at the top of the "indulgence" scale on this > list. Funny how no one similarly griped about some poor blighter's extended > rant about his unfortunate car purchase, for instance. Since you're keeping score, his one-off doesn't compare with your multiple dailies (complete with non-sequitur serializations). We all indulge each other, we all endure the occasional ribbing/attack, we all hit delete or save, we all have opinions, we all have differences. I still say that your persecution complex is sheer egotism at its zenith. /hal ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 3 Aug 1998 20:09:33 -0500 (CDT) From: JH3 Subject: Further Proof of the Conspiracy I got home today and found, in the mailbox, the latest issue of INFO WORLD, aka "The Voice of Enterprise Computing." Before throwing it away I usually check the reviews and the opinion columns in the back, in case there's anything interesting. The "Notes From The Field" column by Robert X. Cringeley, which is (as usual) devoted to good ol' Microsoft-bashing, starts out like this: "To escape for the evening, I decided to take Rose out for an evening of romance and music. After an exquisite dinner at 2223 in San Francisco, we headed to Slim's for the concert - a co-worker gave me tickets to the sold-out Sean Lennon and Rufus Wainwright show. But the mood was ruined when I overheard someone near me mention that Wainwright was the 'next big thing.' "Maybe I'm just jaded, but that phrase annoys me. I tend to dislike any contrived marketing terms and slogans..." So maybe it really *is* Eb's world, and he's just letting us live in it? Yikes! Maybe I'd better rescue those NMH CD's from the manure pile! Hurriedly undressing in anticipation of the massive wave of response I expect to get from this post, John H. Hedges ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 3 Aug 1998 18:19:49 -0700 From: Eb Subject: Re: Eb-bait (no Hal Halverstadt content) Hal, at LAST engaging me in the argument he's been straining to start for the past three days, sniped: >> Kinda like your...comment about me "boasting to the artists via >> fanmail." > >Sorry if it hits too close to home, but jokes they are. Don't give yourself too much credit. And no, I don't have direct contact with either Neutral Milk Hotel or Rufus Wainwright, nor have I attempted to get it. Guess what, tapeboy? I hype these artists for one reason only: I think they're goddamn brilliant, and I want them to be famous and successful. But if you insist on finding a self-serving motive there, so be it. I didn't hear a true "WHEEEE!" record all last year. This year, I've heard two. That makes me happy. That makes me want to tell others about these discoveries. So shoot me, I'm a crusader. You're lucky you didn't have me around a couple of years ago, when I was pushing the Wrens' last album on everyone I met. And by the way, from what I gather, your need for your pet bands' validation far exceeds mine. >>2) Sorry that I didn't take the Eb-bait in your last two posts. > >Not everything is "Eb-this" or "Eb-that" except in your insistance [sic] on >creating your "Eb-world" persona. Oh, so you weren't thinking of me at ALL when you posted a gratuitous "Rufus Wainwright makes me soft" comment, then added an Eb-quoting quip about waiting to be "ROASTED"? Or when you posted only to offer an off-the-wall Jerry Garcia URL, which would be of interest to only two or three other folks on the list at most? Mm-hmm, sure. Just who is the troll here, Hal? Eb np: The Disposable Hals of Hypocrisy ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 3 Aug 1998 20:03:36 -0700 From: Eb Subject: Re: gah! More from Haltroll: >> Guess what, tapeboy? > >What, net persona boy? I have zero net persona, only an absence of identity. You'd think that an egotistical maniac like me would be pasting his name and face in every corner of the 'Net, wouldn't you? Hmmm. I'm just not doing so well at this self-hype game, I'm afraid. >>from what I gather, your need for your pet bands' >> validation far exceeds mine. > >Examples? You have none. I burned out on the kind of fanboy, >pop-culturally obsessed behavior you exhibit long ago. Uh-huh. Wish I could say more here, but I promised otherwise. >> Oh, so you weren't thinking of me at ALL when you posted a gratuitous >> "Rufus Wainwright makes me soft" comment, then added an Eb-quoting quip >> about waiting to be "ROASTED"? Or when you posted only to offer an >> off-the-wall Jerry Garcia URL, which would be of interest to only two or >> three other folks on the list at most? Mm-hmm, sure. Just who is the troll >> here, Hal? > >Actually, I was thinking of Jerry G. on his birthday. >You don't like the Dead, I don't like Rufus. Simple as that. Disingenuous boolsheeit. Eb ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 4 Aug 1998 15:19:32 +1200 From: james.dignan@stonebow.otago.ac.nz (James Dignan) Subject: music to squelch to >Ah, c'mon, who *hasn't* made out to "Avalon" at >least once in his or her life? It's a painfully-obvious-yet-essential >part of any seduction made during the past 16 years. yo! I ain't! >while the lyrics have a lot of erotic content, the actual >music itself isn't all that sensual: most folk-rock (for want of a >better term) isn't really. when i think of music to make love to, >i tend to think of more etheriel or ambient stuff, just >because it's easier to listen to on a subconcious level. robyn's >stuff is too upfront: it doesn't fade into the woodwork as >easily, as say, This Mortal Coil or Cocteau Twins often do. >this is hardly a flaw: i can't imagine fucking to the velvet >underground either. wellll, it depends on the mood, I suppose. some folky stuff is definitely bonkable-to. John Renbourn's wonderful instrumental album "The hermit", for instance. Perhaps that's it though - it's instrumental. Oh, and depending on the mood, anything from Donovan and the Monkees (!) through 'warmer' ambient stuff - like the aforementioned This Mortal Coil - to (when the dynamics of the mood demands) Nine Inch Nails. It all depends on the mood you're trying to enhance. A range of music can help shape a wide variety of interesting situations, moods and scenarios (I'll leave this last comment unexplained, to give your imaginations some exercise). Some of the Real World stuff is excellent though - U Srinivas's "Dream" and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan's "Night Song" (both co-authored by Michael Brooks) in particular. But NOT They Might Be Giants or the Tall Dwarfs! >i always prefer to scramble eggs during sex myself......... reminds me of the infamous question and answer: "How do you like your eggs?" "Unfertilised." >>how can you NOT be distracted by everything when "Avalon" is playing? It's >>one of the most boring songs I've ever heard. Avalon is also very boring as suburbs of Lower Hutt go. Naenae and Wainuiomata are far better. James (fulfilling his daily NZ reference quota) ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 3 Aug 1998 20:27:45 -0700 (PDT) From: Danielle Subject: Vegemite > Eb, reading his copy of Dimsie Gags on Vegemite Watching Eb eat Vegemite was one of the funniest experiences of my short life. I recommend taking a jar along with you if you ever meet him. Danielle, who gains a great deal of satisfaction from watching Hal lie rather transparently about his motives _________________________________________________________ DO YOU YAHOO!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 4 Aug 1998 15:30:43 +1200 From: james.dignan@stonebow.otago.ac.nz (James Dignan) Subject: Re: nuddy >which begs the question, how many of us post naked? given that 99% of >posts seem to be issued between 9 and 5 local time, i'm guessing fewer >than one might expect - i will be polling your significant others for the >dirt on this - I post from a university open computer lab, so I always keep at least my socks on James PS - you'll all be glad to know I answered Dolph's kiwi music question by private email! James Dignan___________________________________ You talk to me Deptmt of Psychology, Otago University As if from a distance ya zhivu v' 50 Norfolk Street And I reply. . . . . . . . . . Dunedin, New Zealand with impressions chosen from another time steam megaphone (03) 455-7807 (Brian Eno - "By this River") ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 4 Aug 98 0:43:14 EDT From: Ross Overbury Subject: Re: Nmh > > Eb, count me in on the list of NMH appreciatin' Fegs. > > > Jeff Mangum convinces me. He sounds like he's connected to the songs > and vice versa. That's my impression, too. The effect on me though, is different that Robyn. Robyn sounds mostly new to me. Jeff sounds like I've known the songs forever and have just heard them after a long spell of amnesia. The simple song structure has plenty to do with it, but I suspect it's more than that. I keep thinking of Buddy Holly, or maybe the Everly Brothers, or Don McLean (during the more wistful parts). Not that NMH sounds outdated. - -- Ross Overbury Montreal, Quebec, Canada email: rosso@cn.ca ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 3 Aug 1998 22:00:41 -0700 From: Eb Subject: Re: haltroll IndignantD: >Then, what is "Eb" if not a net persona? A shorthand signature is not a "persona." By this absurd rationale, I should accuse you of using "/hal" as a persona. Sheesh. >You talk about yourself >in the third person, a red flag of mental instability. Oh, please. Now that comment was *truly* desperate. >Right, my JG post was a swipe at you. I think you're just upset that it didn't elicit the nasty response you were hoping for. >Meanwhile, your FZ post was of interest to all. A lot of Fegs contributed ideas and comments to the "annoyance" thread, in case you didn't notice. So perhaps the FZ quote *was* interesting to those folks. And anyway, there are certainly a decent number of Zappa fans on this list (not counting Susan, obviously...heh). More Zappa fans than Dead fans too, I'd venture to guess. I'm also quite intrigued with this concept of "typical Eb-groupie response." I really wasn't aware that my groupies constituted a tangible population. I'll expect your behavioral study of the Eb-afflicted on my desk by the end of the week, neatly typed and double-spaced. Eb ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 4 Aug 1998 02:32:18 -0400 (EDT) From: Lorelei D Laird Subject: sex, style, fegmania, and Lloyd Excerpts from mail: 3-Aug-98 what IS a feg? by luther@erols.com > > What IS a feg, by definition>? We have come for your sister... My boyfriend asked me that yesterday. it seems pretty intuitive, but I guess not. Anyone out there a Moxy Fruvous fan? I thought they were a sort of boring version of They Might Be Giants, but then the aforementioned boyfriend went to a concert of theirs and liked it so much he bought ever single album they have on the spot, thus causing me to reconsider. On Mon, 3 Aug 1998, lj lindhurst wrote: > Now I know that critiquing the way a band looks is shallow and all, and > maybe I am shallow and all (eh, alright), but I think there is somethin g > about the way a band looks and acts that is important when you are seei ng > live music. I mean, there are certain things that are par for the cour se > with rock&roll-- there is a certain mystique, a certain sexuality, a > certain fashion that shines through. Right? I mean, this is undeniabl y > part of the act, and an important part, isn't it? Quoth Marilyn Manson: "My plan for the millenium is to save rock n' roll from my senseless and unimaginitive peers, and to look good while doing so." Style, baby. Style. Excerpts from mail: 2-Aug-98 Re: anthropology now! by Eb@deltanet.com > Yeah, yeah, I know...kickboxing is the sport of the future. Or at least, > that's what Lloyd Dobson told me. Lloyd Dobbler! The uber-boyfriend. Eighties movies a-go-go! :} Excerpts from mail: 31-Jul-98 Re: bouncing by Gary Sedgwick@ib.bhs.de > historic FegFest '98, I > > submit the two albums that I have...um...made love to. ("Ooooh! Made lo > ve to!" they all titter > > mockingly.) Love & Rockets "Seventh Dream Of Teenage Heaven", and The > Edge's "Captive" soundtrack. The Cure, "Galore". Not quite as notable as Skinny Puppy, but certainly not appropriate for the activity at hand. I suspect that I should be out hunting a copy of Roxy Music's "Avalon" now... - -Lorelei "I mean, that's what it's about. Blowjobs. Everything else is second fiddle to that." - -Christopher Lee ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 4 Aug 1998 03:52:43 EDT From: KarmaFuzzz@aol.com Subject: MacManus and Child Reunion [was: Re: that song you all know...] DChaney@facstaff.oglethorpe.edu writes: > Joe Loss ---> Ross MacManus (sang with the Loss Orchestra) > Ross ---> Declan (presumably sang together at home) Ross appears on Declan's song "A Town Called Nothing (Really Big Nothing)" a bonus track on the reissued _Blood & Chocolate._ > Declan ---> Glenn Tilbrook > Glenn ---> R. R. Hitchcock > ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 04 Aug 1998 08:21:52 -0700 From: Mike Runion Subject: Zappa vs. Dead > More Zappa fans (on this list) than Dead fans too, I'd > venture to guess. Ugh...really? Time for a poll! Okay, I'll start. I'm not a deep fan of either, and I know it's probably not hip to say, but I could probably sit through a Dead session far easier than a Zappa one. Just call me a Southern-fried surfer dude I guess. Found a mint condition "Exploding In Silence" picture disc and a "Brenda's Iron Sledge" 12" last weekend in Orlando! Damn, maybe this place ain't so bad after all? (Whoops! Sorry...RH content...my bad.) Mike (who is now officially finished with grad school...WooHoo! Thanks y'all for keeping me insane through the rough spots over the last two years.) - -- Mike Runion Cocoa, FL, USA /******************************************************************\ | VCM: http://www5.palmnet.net/~mrrunion/cones.htm | | Fegmaps: http://www5.palmnet.net/~mrrunion/fegmaps | | Spoken Word Tape: http://www5.palmnet.net/~mrrunion/wordtape.htm | \******************************************************************/ "Wait a minute. Time for a Planetary Sit-In!" - Julian Cope ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 4 Aug 1998 08:50:09 -0400 From: Natalie Jacobs Subject: Fingers in the notches in your spine Dolph dolphed, >I liked the OTC disc (Dusk At Cubist Castle), but I ultimately had two >problems with it: >1) a dire need for editing (and I LOVE too-long albums [like I love >too-long posts and too-long sentences], so that's saying something). >2) it, like Apples In Stereo, felt too kitschy and pastiche-ridden. [snip] > >Jeff Mangum convinces me. He sounds like he's connected to the songs >and vice versa. In fact, more than connection, it's that sense that the >songs are, for lack of a better term, "soul-spew." Perfect, spot-on, "like he said," etc. God knows I've tried to enjoy "Dusk at Cubist Castle" - Fegs a-plenty have told me, "Just keep trying," but I don't have the energy to keep playing a 70-minute album over and over again in the hopes I might like it on the tenth hearing. It's not that I dislike it, but for the reasons Dolph mentioned, I can't get into it. As for NMH, some five or six months after buying the album, there are *still* portions of it that make me cry, and there's no higher compliment I can pay than that. As long as I'm quoting the Dolphster, I must add here that Dolph is a truly charming and talented guy, and it was a pleasure hanging out with him last weekend. If any of y'all have the chance to meet him, leap at the opportunity (and ask him to bring his guitar!). >So, I ask (timidly, fearing yet welcoming the onslaught) for Feg >recommendations regarding kiwipop. Private e-mail would probably be the >best idea, I'm guessing. Nah, post it to the list. After falling deeply in love with the Chills a couple of years ago, I'm wondering if Kiwiland has other treasures to offer... I've so far been unimpressed with the 3D's and Straitjacket Fits, but I'm sure there's more to Kiwipop than that. >Anybody seen those tv ads for "Focus Contact Lenses" where lj is whining >to her mom about having to wear glasses? It's great! I thought that was Kennedy, the MTV "personality." >np: Rasputina/How We Quit the Forest (music: C, CD-ROM material: B+/A-) Isn't Rasputina the band best known for playing in their lingerie? Or am I getting them mixed up with someone else? >which begs the question, how many of us post naked? Uh, not me, though since I finally got my dial-in software installed at home, I do occasionally post in my nightie on the weekends. (Not as interesting as it sounds, folks...) n. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 04 Aug 1998 22:26:58 -1851 From: dlang Subject: Re: Zappa vs. Dead I appreciate a fair bit of Frank's work, Hot Rats, Freak Out , 200 Motels-Bongo Fury and some of his video shows- he was a GREAT guitarist at times..I but really got into his work through Captain Beefheart -who is heaps better IMHO. dave ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 4 Aug 1998 09:29:34 -0400 (EDT) From: Terrence M Marks Subject: Re: sex, style, fegmania, and Lloyd On Tue, 4 Aug 1998, Lorelei D Laird wrote: > Anyone out there a Moxy Fruvous fan? I thought they were a sort of > boring version of They Might Be Giants, but then the aforementioned > boyfriend went to a concert of theirs and liked it so much he bought > ever single album they have on the spot, thus causing me to reconsider. Y'know, They Might Be Giants is a much better band than they appear to be. They're mainly known for novelty hits, but they're good songwriters, and John Flansburgh (in addition to making the top 10 in People Magazine's online "Most Beautiful People" poll[1]) is a very good guitarist[2]. I heartily recommend "Apollo 18" and "Lincoln" to everyone out there. 1: Not that that means anything. Ravishing Rick Flair got 2nd place because some guy had an entire computer lab vote for him constantly for two weeks. 2: Not in the calibre of Steve Howe or Yngwie Malmsteen, mind you, but better than you'd think on first listen. Rather like hearing Robyn and figuring he's a competent rhythm guitarist, then hearing that solo at the end of "You and Oblivion"[3] and realizing he's got a good deal more credit than you gave him for. 3: I really hope that odd solo is at the end of "You and Oblivion". Terrence Marks normal@grove.ufl.edu ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 04 Aug 1998 07:53:07 -0600 From: hal brandt Subject: more Eb-junk In denial, Eb the persecuted whined: > Oh, please. Now that comment was *truly* desperate. Accurate? > I really wasn't aware that my groupies constituted a tangible > population. Sycophants was the word I should have chosen. I didn't say the number was tangible, in fact I know of only two, one of whom leaps into my inbox every time I disagree with you. > I think you're just upset that it didn't elicit the nasty response you were > hoping for. Eb, I could give a damn if you hate the Dead. There's no explaining that to you. Hell, you probably think that all my Dead CD's/tapes are in my collection just to piss you off. Ferchrissakes, /hal Now watching: "Fishing With John" on IFC with Tom Waits putting a red snapper down his pants. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 4 Aug 1998 10:15:48 -0400 From: "Gene Hopstetter, Jr." Subject: In defence of OTC and AiS I've read with much interest and respect the current thread discussing a somewhat "it's good but not quite great" attitude about Olivia Tremor Control and Apples in Stereo (sorry if you posted something contrary to that; I know all generalizations are false; I hope you get the idea...). Now I'd like to jump into the discussion. 1) Granted, OTC's "Dusk..." album maybe a bit choppy and rough, but it's that quality I like about it. It has a sort of naive and "at-home with the chemistry set and tape decks" feel to it, which I like about many other bands and their records (cf. Red Crayola's "Parable of Arable Land" and almost all of the Legendary Pink Dots' stuff.) Granted, it's rough around the edges, but boy-howdy is it a grand psychedelic experience (which are few and far between in these 90s). And how could you not love a band who sings lyrics like "Model portrait heads of Gertrude Stein...Define a transparent dream"? Also, it's one helluva good *first* album. Give those guys exactly what they want to record and play with (the constraints of time and money are evident in the album, and I'm sure they'd enjoy a sizeable quantity of LSD) and I don't doubt they'd make a masterpiece. They got a tons of ideas, and I hope they get to record them all. 2) Granted, the Apples in Stereo stuff is light and fluffy (as Uncle Bobby sez, "Stained-glass elaborations collapse, and candyfloss evaporates honey! Only the stones remain!), but goddamned it, it's fun! It's groovy! It's sticky sweet lemonade on a hot muggy day! And it makes unapologetic nods to the Kings of Bubblegum (whom I consider some of the best Pop Bands ever): the 1910 Fruitgum Co. and the Ohio Express (and the Creation, and the Pink Floyd, and the Beach Boys, and so on). And it is because it is so unangry, so undidactic, that I love it. I am *so completely absolutely fucking* tired of today's Complaint Rock, and AiS are the perfect antitote. I've always thought it was more radical to be happy (it's too easy to be angry) and for that I think AiS is pure genius. 3) Ah, the collective! The Elephant 6 collective is loose, creative, and positive. When is the last time there was such a group of musicians active in music? The Wash. DC's Dischord scene? Thas was all punk rock and straight edge polemics, right? Not since Mr. Van Vliet locked the Magic Band in a house and recorded "Troutmaskreplica" can I think of a similar situation (correct me if I'm wrong, tho). The Elephant 6 bands remind me of when I was a kid banging on things with my friends, only they actually got off their asses and recorded it. And, if you ask me, there just ain't enough music out there meant to just make people feel good. They are the unRock unStars, and that's cool. 4) Robert Schneider (lead guy of AiS) is not a person to be ignored. Besides his savvy writing and guitar playing in AiS, keep in mind that it is he who has recorded most of OTC and NMH's material. NMH's first album is mainly Jeff Magnum and Schneider playing, and was recorded by Schneider, and is a lo-fi masterpiece. There are moments on that album which are unparalleled in their wonder and beauty for me. And NMH's second album's qualities have not gone unnoticed in this-here list, so I won't go into that. But Schneider is not a engineer/recordist/producer to be ignored, especially considering the amazing recordings he's made on no doubt a shoestring budget. Whew. There, it's all out of my system. I'll go work now. ++++++++ Gene Hopstetter, Jr. + Online Design Guy http://extra.newsguy.com/~genehop/ ++ All hail Brak! ------------------------------ End of fegmaniax-digest V7 #296 *******************************