From: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org (fegmaniax-digest) To: fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Subject: fegmaniax-digest V8 #261 Reply-To: fegmaniax@smoe.org Sender: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk fegmaniax-digest Tuesday, July 20 1999 Volume 08 : Number 261 Today's Subjects: ----------------- For L.A. Area Fegs (and those with Internet Radio Functions) [Griffith Da] JfS: one woman's opinion [Natalie Jacobs ] MABD review in Chill Trib: "shaggy English head" [DDerosa5@aol.com] wavendon [four episode lesbian ] Re: speaking of foul spew... ["Capitalism Blows" ] Eyes Glued Shut [Michael Wolfe ] Re: smoking link ["Capitalism Blows" ] Re: Eyes Glued Shut ["Capitalism Blows" ] Re: MABD questions ["Gene Hopstetter, Jr." ] Re: JfS: one woman's opinion ["Capitalism Blows" ] MABD in Tribune, third and final try. [DDerosa5@aol.com] Re: JfS: one woman's opinion (and then Eddie's, and now my opinion . . . ) [MARKEEFE@aol.] Jewels for Sophia [Joel Mullins ] Afire, J.S. Owl Hopes. ["Chaney, Dolph L" ] Re: JfS: one woman's opinion (and then Eddie's, and now my opinion . . . ) [MARKEEFE@aol.] Re: Eyes Glued Shut [dmw ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 11:42:32 -0400 (EDT) From: Griffith Davies Subject: For L.A. Area Fegs (and those with Internet Radio Functions) ** "Weekend Becomes Eclectic" goes on the road with Robyn Hitchcock ** - - Saturday, July 31 - Robyn Hitchcock and Jonatha Brooke sip coffee and perform live when Mike Morrison takes "Weekend Becomes Eclectic" to Starbucks at Melrose Ave. & Stanley. From noon to 2pm. The event is free. We hope to see you there! - ------ griffith _________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 12:59:05 -0400 (EDT) From: Natalie Jacobs Subject: JfS: one woman's opinion I wrote my review of JfS for the station last night. I said something like: Pretty good, but not one of Robyn's best efforts. The surreal lyrics and catchy tunes are there, and a few songs really rock out, but too many tracks sound flat and listless, both in terms of songwriting and production. *** 1/2 (I had to keep it short because we write reviews on little 1 x 3" stickers that we put on the front of the CD inserts.) My picks (suggestions for DJs to play) were: Mexican God, Viva! Sea-Tac, I Feel Beautiful, Antwoman, Elizabeth Jade, and Don't Talk To Me About Gene Hackman. n., the dark princess of WCBN ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 12:47:57 EDT From: DDerosa5@aol.com Subject: MABD review in Chill Trib: "shaggy English head" Greg Kot focuses on the Lips, of course, with the "yearning, ruptured voice of Wayne Coyne" and calling the band "alchemists--determined to find beauty in the mundane, possibility in ugliness, love in all the wrong places"--then he loses me by comparing them to Kraftwerk!? And Throbbing Gristle (OK, that was the video, but still...) He does mention the other bands, including a "solo Robyn Hitchcock plying psycho-comedic pop songs" and says Sonic was "futzing" and sebadoh "dolefully bashing". "Hitchcock was the best match for the Lips, his off-kilter lyrics erupting from graceful melodies and punctuated by maniacial guitar flourishes. And while his set lacked the visual panache of the headliners, it's probably just as well: No video camera could possibly contain the pictures lurking in this man's shaggy English head." The camera was cool, by the way, mounted on a mic stand. Robyn on the second night saw a video monitor on the balcony and, pointing at it, warbled "Look! it's me!" and preened for a moment, not seeming to notice there was an slightly bigger screen behind him. Ah, memories. I'll carry them with me for days. Or so. I think. dave ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 13:25:52 -0400 From: four episode lesbian Subject: wavendon for those who may have been wondering, the "wavedon" that robyn is playing in on september 21st is actually wavendon and is in milton keynes. apparently, there was a missed "n" is david greenberger's listings. woj ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 10:50:44 PDT From: "Capitalism Blows" Subject: Re: speaking of foul spew... and don't miss me first and the gimme gimmes' cover of the song. by the way, robyn & co. *did* perform the song at the april largo jamboree, which is probably how the notion of it appearing on JEWELS slipped into my subconscious. _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 17:21:34 +0000 (GMT) From: Michael Wolfe Subject: Eyes Glued Shut I skipped out of work early on Friday to catch this. Really enjoyed it, personally. I don't have much to say about it that I think this forum cares to hear, but I did think it was a delicious irony that this film that would supposedly set new standards for showing sex in mainstream cinema was in fact so incredibly moralistic at its core. In front of it, though, was playing the full-length trailer for Fight Club. Yeah! I was anticipating this movie before, and now I'm practically frothing at the mouth. Regardless of the merits that the film may or may not eventually display, the preview is a work of art. It does a great job of giving an impression of the overall story arc without pinning anything down or giving anything away. There's a great bit where the Brad Pitt character asks the Edward Norton character who he'd like to fight, if he could fight anyone. Norton doesn't miss a beat in replying, "Shatner. I'd kick his ass." All that and The Pixies "There Goes my Gun" playing in the background (don't know if it's actually on the soundtrack, tho). "Is that your blood?" "Some of it." - -Michael Wolfe ps: Eddie, so I'm a blasphemer for opting not to see the Femmes for the bazillionth time, eh? You've been listening to "3" too much, my friend. You know it's just going to be Blister in the Sun, Add it Up, Gone Daddy Gone, American Music, et. al, ad naseum. Honestly, how many times is seeing that a fresh experience? Lily Wilde, Pete Krebs, and the Femmes are all playing during the same time slot, and I can only choose one. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 10:57:04 PDT From: "Capitalism Blows" Subject: Re: smoking link there's a great john jonik cartoon that's got a cigarette in the manner of a huge candy cane, with a kid standing there licking his lips at the prospect of digging in to it. it lists all the sugarrific ingredients (or at least, many of them), and the caption is something like: and we wonder why cigarettes appeal to kids. i was not aware of that! though of course, i'm not surprised. it just boggles the mind, the number of "respectable" venues/publications which cannot fucking distinguish between "it's" and "its". i'm pleased to say that, as i'm a proofreader of Eat The State!, you will never see this problem in that particular publication. From: "D B" Reply-To: "D B" To: outdoorminer@zdnetmail.com, fegmaniax@smoe.org Subject: Re: smoking link Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 07:50:29 PDT http://quitsmoking.about.com/library/weekly/aa071999.htm ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 11:02:12 PDT From: "Capitalism Blows" Subject: Re: Eyes Glued Shut well factually, it's BLIND LEADING THE NAKED that *really* knocks me for a loop, though i do think that 3 is quite underrated as well. well there you go. i've *never* seen the femmes live! their shows are usually in the $25 range, and not that i *couldn't* fork over, or absolutely *wouldn't*. just that i've never quite been able to bring myself to do so. now i won't have to. (i always wanted to see the dead at least once, just to see what the fuss was about. but i never got around to it. kept thinking, "aw, they're *always* touring. i'll catch 'em one of these times.") _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 13:05:55 -0500 From: "Gene Hopstetter, Jr." Subject: Re: MABD questions >From: Joel Mullins >Subject: MABD questions > >2. Does anyone have any info on the instore appearances? Is this >something that Robyn's doing at every stop, or just a few? Basically, >should I be trying to find out if he's doing one in Austin? I'd imagine that an instore at Waterloo is likely (he's played there quite often and regularly, right?), but if that doesn't like it's gonna happen, I'm gonna start bugging the guys at 33 Degrees. They might be pretty receptive to Robyn. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 11:09:18 PDT From: "Capitalism Blows" Subject: Re: JfS: one woman's opinion 3.5 out of four, or out of five? the album just doesn't do it for me like most robyn albums do. i think i've three major problems with it. 1. the percussion bugs me. it's either intrusive, wholly inappropriate, or flat-out too wimpy. they don't seem to get it right anywhere, except maybe NASA Clapping. when we were discussing the record last week, cynthia mentioned that she wished that if he was going to use a band, he'd just used andy & morris, which was *precisely* what i'd been thinking. this could've been a spectacular egyptians record. 2. natalie jane mentioned production. i think this is where it falls down, as well. in fact, i *love* ROBYN HITCHCOCK'S XMAS PARTY, which would indicate that the songs are just wonderful. but the album doesn't --i dunno quite how to explain it-- doesn't seem to leap out of the speakers and attach itself relentlessly to your person the way ELIXIR does. 3. i really, really miss deni. From: Natalie Jacobs Reply-To: Natalie Jacobs To: fegmaniax@smoe.org Subject: JfS: one woman's opinion Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 12:59:05 -0400 (EDT) I wrote my review of JfS for the station last night. I said something like: Pretty good, but not one of Robyn's best efforts. The surreal lyrics and catchy tunes are there, and a few songs really rock out, but too many tracks sound flat and listless, both in terms of songwriting and production. *** 1/2 (I had to keep it short because we write reviews on little 1 x 3" stickers that we put on the front of the CD inserts.) My picks (suggestions for DJs to play) were: Mexican God, Viva! Sea-Tac, I Feel Beautiful, Antwoman, Elizabeth Jade, and Don't Talk To Me About Gene Hackman. n., the dark princess of WCBN _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 14:24:33 EDT From: DDerosa5@aol.com Subject: MABD in Tribune, third and final try. So far I sent this to the wrong address, then (I guess) somehow forwarded it blank. I almost doubt you all even care, but fuck it, I'm gonna try it one more time. Now word back yet from that guy that taped the Chicago instore--hope he's reliable. Talk to yall soon. dave Greg Kot focuses on the Lips, of course, with the "yearning, ruptured voice of Wayne Coyne" and calling the band "alchemists--determined to find beauty in the mundane, possibility in ugliness, love in all the wrong places"--then he loses me by comparing them to Kraftwerk!? And Throbbing Gristle (OK, that was the video, but still...) He does mention the other bands, including a "solo Robyn Hitchcock plying psycho-comedic pop songs" and says Sonic was "futzing" and sebadoh "dolefully bashing". "Hitchcock was the best match for the Lips, his off-kilter lyrics erupting from graceful melodies and punctuated by maniacial guitar flourishes. And while his set lacked the visual panache of the headliners, it's probably just as well: No video camera could possibly contain the pictures lurking in this man's shaggy English head." The camera was cool, by the way, mounted on a mic stand. Robyn on the second night saw a video monitor on the balcony and, pointing at it, warbled "Look! it's me!" and preened for a moment, not seeming to notice there was an slightly bigger screen behind him. Ah, memories. I'll carry them with me for days. Or so. I think. dave ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 15:21:28 EDT From: MARKEEFE@aol.com Subject: Re: JfS: one woman's opinion (and then Eddie's, and now my opinion . . . ) In a message dated 7/20/99 11:12:12 AM Pacific Daylight Time, etews@hotmail.com writes: << i dunno quite how to explain it-- doesn't seem to leap out of the speakers and attach itself relentlessly to your person the way ELIXIR does. 3. i really, really miss deni. >> I can imagine how this theme might hold true for a lot of people. Myself, I wasn't a huge "Moss Elixir" fan, but I really, really like "JfS." I couldn't say for sure why that is. Maybe it's a song-for-song thing; maybe it's the production. But I *do* think the album's have very different tones and wouldn't be surprised if people liked one a lot and the other just fairly well. Just an hypothesis. - ------Michael K. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 14:40:48 -0700 From: Joel Mullins Subject: Jewels for Sophia I picked up JfS this morning and I've just about finished my second listen. First, I want to reply to Eddie's comment: > when we were discussing the record last week, cynthia > mentioned that she wished that if he was going to use a band, he'd just used > andy & morris, which was *precisely* what i'd been thinking. Well, I partially agree with this. But I think this is mainly because it's what we're all used to. This album sounds quite a bit different than his other full-band albums. Not having Andy's bass is somewhat difficult to get used to. I don't want to say that the album would've been better if Andy and Morris had contributed, because I'd really have to hear it that way to know for sure. But I do understand how some people miss the Egyptians, because in many ways, I miss them too. > i really, really miss deni. I don't agree with this at all. I love Moss Elixir and everything that Deni did on it, but I think one album with a shitload of crazy violin is enough. (I guess that'd be two albums if you count SH). Anyway, so far, I'm loving this album. I can definitely say it's his best album since the last one he did. (I can't really compare it to the other albums at this point because I've only heard it twice). Actually, I can say that it is way more accessible than Moss Elixir or Storefront Hitchcock or You and Oblivion. All those albums took me many listens before I started to get into them. This one is growing on me really fast, which is something that hasn't happened with a RH album since Respect. The only weak song, IMHO, is "The Cheese Alarm." And that's likely to grow on me. "Mexican God" is the perfect opening. "I Feel Beautiful," "Sweet Mouth," "Guildford," and "Dark Princess" are all beautiful. "NASA Clapping" and "Elizabeth Jade" fucking rock. "Hoot Hoot" is great and "Gene Hackman" is hilarious and a really cool song, too. The other songs that I didn't mention are ones that I like quite a lot, but not as much as others, but hey, I've only heard them twice. Who knows how I'll feel in the coming weeks. Overall, my first impressions are very good. I like the production, even though it is different than what we're used to from a Robyn album. A lot of the distorted electric guitar bits sound very new to his sound and I'm assuming that a lot of those were played by Tim, Kimberly, Grant, and Jon (haven't had a chance to closely study the liner notes yet). And I'm really glad he decided to use all these other musicians. If Robyn just kept making Element of Light over and over again, I'd get a little bored. One thing I love about his music is how it's always changing in some small way. So, although I do miss the Egyptians in some ways, I'm glad Robyn's experimenting with new people. After all, he did record many albums with Andy and Morris. And even without them, he's still able to impress the hell out of me. Joel ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 15:49:11 -0400 From: "Chaney, Dolph L" Subject: Afire, J.S. Owl Hopes. OK, my track-by-track. MEXICAN GOD -- I am probably the only person who started humming Beck's "Cold Brains" during the intro, but there you go... I loved the song live at Quaker Gets Indigestion, but this version is more remarkable because, to me, it's the first truly '90s sounding Robynsong. Is he trying to write for the next Khaleel or Ben Harper record? Ah well, if it comes out like this, better them than the Bangles... THE CHEESE ALARM -- woohooooooo! Very tactile sound here -- the electric guitar really cuts, and I am a total sucker (to my own record's credit/detriment) for insane and distracting percussion, so I dig the tabla action. And since, after years of exposure, I still froth with giggles at the "Cheese Shop" sketch every time, this one is a clear winner for me. My only gripe would be that I'm getting a little weary of hearing this same guitar intro over and over again. VIVA! SEA-TAC -- Both here and live, I find I'm not so fond of the song. It's certainly fun, but I'm sure this will be a "skipper" for me after repeated listens, as it feels to me like he's taken the easy way out lyrically ("ok, let's make a list of things prevalent in Seattle and rhyme them! yay it's a song!"). Still, he got 3/4 of the Young Fresh Fellows in the studio on the same tune, and that always leads to some pleasure. I FEEL BEAUTIFUL -- Lovely, to be sure. First impression is that this is good but other artists do this sort of thing far better. However, it's a direct direction that I hope he pursues -- but not at the expense of other sorts of things. I almost feel like he's *trying* to be direct and evocative and wistful, which is what places this on a level below, say, "Cynthia Mask" and "No I Don't Remember Guildford" and... YOU'VE GOT A SWEET MOUTH ON YOU, BABY -- OK, somehow here he figured out how to combine the sensual candor of "Cool Bug Rumble" with the intimacy of EYE, in increasingly viscous production texture that feels like getting caught in the honey referenced in the lyric. And dang, he followed up the word 'butterfly' with the phrase 'flutter by...,' which ranks with Lyle Lovett's "flyswatter/ice water blues" for shoulda-been-obvious-but-wasn't songwriterism. NASA CLAPPING -- Give it to the Soft Men! Hooooooooo doggies!!! And released to the public on the day the Apollo 11 crew received the Langley Gold Medal for Aviation, too... (http://cnn.com/TECH/space/9907/20/apollo.11.awards/) This and "Elizabeth Jade" beat the crap out of "Viva! Sea-Tac" and steal its lunch money. SALLY WAS A LEGEND -- Ever since its appearance on VH-1's Midnight Minute, I've liked this as well as any of his '90s material. Now, with full lyrics and a whirring mix, "Sally" feels like the long-lost-lamented cousin to "Madonna Of The Wasps," another should-be-a-hit that surely won't. Maybe Tom Petty could make it so? ANTWOMAN -- If it had been Robyn instead of the Beatles on 1967's "One World" TV special, this would have been the song to which everybody would've been grooving, bobbing their flower-bedecked heads and beaming imbalancedly. ("Everybody!") Nice to hear the aforementioned "Cheese Alarm" guitar intro brought to the electric and played with band behind... ELIZABETH JADE -- heeeeeheeheeheeeee! "farmer John farmer John... I'm in luuv with yer daughter..." Total garage fun -- I do Muppet dances to this. Why does it work where "Viva! Sea-Tac" fails? (1) the lyric isn't so obvious. (2) as all garage-rock songs should, it includes the line "I love the way you rock and roll." If you're gonna stomp, stomp like Godzilla. NO, I DON'T REMEMBER GUILDFORD -- My favorite new song from STOREFRONT, done with all those extra elements? Fantastic! I think "Horns" Fletcher's return here is far better than asking Ntshuks Bonga back would've been -- he adds texture without overwhelming as Ntshuks did in "The Devil's Radio." Always a pleasure to hear Robyn add some piano in, as well. DARK PRINCESS -- Continuing what to me is a striking buildup of quality, "Dark Princess" is somehow singalongy, haunting, tender, and creepily psychedelic. Yum! JEWELS FOR SOPHIA -- Again with the YFF and Buck and Capt. Keegan. Not an ideal album-closer, though it's clearly trying to be (see "The Last Balloon"), but a pretty good song. BONUS TRACK ("Mr. Tongs") -- well, it's fun, but it's no "I Wanna Destroy You Part II." DON'T TALK TO ME ABOUT GENE HACKMAN -- This is another example of why I haven't chosen to get into heavy tape-trading. If I'd been hearing this song already for a year or two, I'd be annoyed by it. As it is now, I love it, and it makes a far more enjoyable ending than shutting it off after "Jewels." Overall, Jon Brion's production reminds me of the best work of Froom/Blake, particularly American Music Club's MERCURY. Except that, somehow, a few ? And The Mysterians songs slipped into the running order. The point of the record seems to be letting Robyn try out some things, and as such things usually do, it has moments of brilliance and, well, other moments. To follow up Michael Keefe's theory, I am a bonafide Mossy Licker, and for me this doesn't quite match the batch that made up the '96 albums. But, on balance, it's a thick stew that will stick to my innards happily for quite a long while. finding myself unleavened, Dolph ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 14:45:20 -0700 From: Joel Mullins Subject: Re: JfS: one woman's opinion (and then Eddie's, and now my opinion . . . ) MARKEEFE@aol.com wrote: > I can imagine how this theme might hold true for a lot of people. > Myself, I wasn't a huge "Moss Elixir" fan, but I really, really like "JfS." > I couldn't say for sure why that is. Maybe it's a song-for-song thing; maybe > it's the production. But I *do* think the album's have very different tones > and wouldn't be surprised if people liked one a lot and the other just fairly > well. Just an hypothesis. Well, you're probably right. But that doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me. I mean, all Robyn's albums have different tones. That's what makes him so kick ass. That's why you can find a RH album to fit almost any mood. I loved Moss Elixir, but if JfS had the same tone, I don't think I'd like it as near as much as I do. Joel ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 16:03:37 -0400 From: michelle wiener Subject: where have all the stories gone? and why isn't there one in the liner notes for Jewels? that's one big minus. while i usually appreciate song lyrics, in robyn's case i prefer the fiction. i guess i'll just have to wait with crossed fingers for the outtakes release. and ok, so "gene hackman" hasn't lost its charm for me yet. days after i heard it for the first time i was still humming and singing it, causing those around me to inch slightly away and cast that look upon me that i've gotten quite familiar with in the last couple years...plus i was channel surfing the other day and "postcards from the edge" was on, and lo and behold, there was gene. i wonder what would happen if he and andie macdowell ever did a movie together--i can't remember if that's ever happened or not. something would implode somewhere, i'm sure. i'm in absolute smit with "nasa clapping." and following it with "sally" is an excellent move. i really liked this album when i first heard it, the second time i felt kind of blah about it, which carried over to the third time, then i started listening to "xmas party" again, and now i feel myself being carried back over to the "yay" side. same thing happened with Moss Elixir. saw "an ideal husband" the other night, too (primarily because "blair witch" won't be here for another couple weeks). i'm not sure if there's such a thing as a perfect cast, but this comes damn close. julianne moore is so fantastically bitchy and conniving--i'm not a big fan of hers, but she does well by this movie. and rupert everett & minnie driver need to do more movies together, because their chemistry is great, and they both have the capability to make a simple facial expression hysterical. i walked out of the theater bemused by the fact that i can derive such pleasure from both oscar wilde and parker/stone. cheers, michelle ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 16:24:34 EDT From: MARKEEFE@aol.com Subject: Re: JfS: one woman's opinion (and then Eddie's, and now my opinion . . . ) In a message dated 7/20/99 12:55:18 PM Pacific Daylight Time, skmull@swbell.net (which means it was Joel) writes: << Well, you're probably right. But that doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me. I mean, all Robyn's albums have different tones. That's what makes him so kick ass. That's why you can find a RH album to fit almost any mood. >> I guess, for me, I've just never been able to plug "ME" into a particular mood or time of year or time of day or certain circumstance or anything. "Globe of Frogs" is kind of like that for me, too (although I like the songs on "GoF" better and I associate it with my first really cool record store job, so that's kinda neat). Neither of these albums rank in my top couple of tiers of Robyn albums, and it may well be that I see them as just "good, average Robyn Hitchcock albums." Nothing wrong with that, for sure! I just find a lot of other albums, including "Jewels," to be more compelling. << I loved Moss Elixir, but if JfS had the same tone, I don't think I'd like it as near as much as I do. >> Interesting. There are definitely some artists I'm that way about. I get one of their albums but never feel the need to own other albums, because they all seem to evoke the same thing . . . it's probably even a pretty good thing (otherwise I wouldn't've bought even the one album!), but the redundancy just isn't compelling. Anyway, I find myself dancing about ballet or blueprinting about architecture or whatever that quote is ;-) Run out and buy "Jewels for Sophia!" It's great!! One small step towards your local (independent, please :-)) record retailer; one giant step for Fegkind. - ------Michael K. ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 20 Jul 1999 16:25:44 -0400 (EDT) From: dmw Subject: Re: Eyes Glued Shut On Tue, 20 Jul 1999, Capitalism Blows wrote: > Gone, American Music, et. al, ad naseum. Honestly, how many times is seeing > that a fresh experience? Lily Wilde, Pete Krebs, and the Femmes are all > playing during the same time slot, and I can only choose one.> > > well there you go. i've *never* seen the femmes live! their shows are > usually in the $25 range, and not that i *couldn't* fork over, or absolutely > *wouldn't*. just that i've never quite been able to bring myself to do so. > now i won't have to. (i always wanted to see the dead at least once, just > to see what the fuss was about. but i never got around to it. kept > thinking, "aw, they're *always* touring. i'll catch 'em one of these > times.") i'll take pete krebs, thanks. but for what it's worth, i saw the femmes last year and was completely stunned by how vigorous they were, and how comparitively challenging their set was (e.g., "country death song"). i was also knocked for a loop that they played my alltime favorite vf song, "i held her in my arms," complete with a surprise guest horn section, and at what effective use was made of the digideroo. and they didn't play "american music," though they certainly dragged out some old warhorses, going all the way back to "gimme the car" from before their first album. i'd seen them three to five years previous, headlining some hideous festival thing, and they'd been just as tired and lackluster as i feared, so last year's show was a delightful surprise. (joel will appreciate this - -- i only went because a woman i was flirting with at the the time asked me if i wanted to go with some of her friends. she wanted to go straight home after the (early! dry!) show ended at ten o'clock on a saturday night; i wound up going to some bar and presumably getting into some specie of moderate trouble...) - -- d. - - "seventeen!" cried the humbug, always first with the wrong answer. - - oh no!! you've just read mail from doug = dmw@radix.net dmw@mwmw.com - - get yr pathos:www.pathetic-caverns.com -- books, flicks, tunes, etc. ------------------------------ End of fegmaniax-digest V8 #261 *******************************