From: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org (fegmaniax-digest) To: fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Subject: fegmaniax-digest V10 #114 Reply-To: fegmaniax@smoe.org Sender: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk fegmaniax-digest Monday, April 9 2001 Volume 10 : Number 114 Today's Subjects: ----------------- Re: Revisionist marketing [Eb ] Re: Vinyl->mp3 [Brett Cooper ] _Dave Joins Roger and Then Leaves Himself_ [Dolph Chaney ] re: Fillmore Fillmore Fillmore ["Russ Reynolds" ] Spice Girls [Terrence Marks ] Re: Fillmore Fillmore Fillmore [David Librik ] Great time... ["Mark Gloster" ] Re: _Dave Joins Roger and Then Leaves Himself_ [Bayard ] Queen of Variations [Tom Clark ] Re: Queen of Variations [Glen Uber ] Re: Fillmore Fillmore Fillmore [Glen Uber ] Re: _Dave Joins Roger and Then Leaves Himself_ [Chris Franz ] Slightley OT ["marcus slade" ] Soft Boys Soar at the Fillmore/Reunion tour features '70s classics [Jeff ] RE: basement-life.com interview ["Bachman, Michael" ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 8 Apr 2001 13:34:50 -0700 From: Eb Subject: Re: Revisionist marketing >>Eb (and it's partially Matador's fault, if they're truly going to skip >>reissuing A Can of Bees and Invisible Hits as well) > >Don't you think it's *mostly* Matador's fault at this point? >I'll wager that many of the fish-out-of-water, neglected >masterpiece themes are right there in Matador's press kit. Well, it's not quite that simple. After all, *any* released/promoted album has a single, maxi-duplicated press kit which accompanies the disc's mailing. It's not like these press kits always "brainwash" the recipient journalists into writing identical pieces. And press kits are *always* gushy and hyperbolic, regardless of how crummy the artist actually is -- those hyperboles aren't universally swallowed. I mean, speaking of Matador and hyperboles, the advance disc for the upcoming Mark Eitzel album (on Matador) swoons that this restless spirit is "not content with a legacy as the finest singer-songwriter of his generation".... Now, what *isn't* typical is that a label would selectively buy rights to *one* album from an artist's catalog, and ignore the surrounding ones. That was my point -- it's strange, if Matador really has no plans to reissue the other two Soft Boys albums. If so, this makes a strong statement that Underwater Moonlight is the only Soft Boys album which truly "counts." Speaking of press kits, I received the new live Springsteen album the other day via an automated mailing, and was amused to see no press bio or photo whatsoever (that's a rarity). It's like Columbia is so confident about Springsteen's clout, they're just saying "Hey, it's BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN. 'Nuff said!" Heh. Choke, Tiger...choke! Eb, who really oughta drop several shopping bags' worth of press kits on Ebay, one of these days np: Blake Babies/God Bless the Blake Babies ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 08 Apr 2001 12:55:57 -0800 From: Brett Cooper Subject: Re: Vinyl->mp3 on 4/6/01 4:13 PM, Terrence Marks at normal@grove.ufl.edu wrote: > I recently acquired a copy of Mort Garson's Sounds of Ataratia. I'd like > to have a copy on mp3. Is one of you with a particularly good > vinyl-ripping system willing to help me here? I would suggest simply to make a CD master first, and then rip to MP3 all you want. iTunes is an awesome program, for all us Macsters. Brett ******************************************** Cooper Collections http://home.gci.net/~coopercollections ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 08 Apr 2001 16:17:16 -0500 From: Dolph Chaney Subject: _Dave Joins Roger and Then Leaves Himself_ Glen mentioned _Dave Joins Roger and Then Leaves Himself_ in his Fillmore account -- is this the first working title we've heard for the SB's potential upcoming rekkid? I'm thinking this is some obscure English Beat / General Public reference (Dave Wakeling & Ranking Roger)...? Or Robyn is just having fun with my brane. dolph ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 8 Apr 2001 14:21:00 -0700 (PDT) From: Eclipse Subject: Re: Fillmore Fillmore Fillmore On Sun, 8 Apr 2001, Glen Uber wrote: > I know that the lovely and charming Eclipse and her equally lovely and > charming friend Ayala were standing next to and behind me. Jeff the Ironic > Dwarf was nearby and so was Marc Holden. I also met Fred the lurker and > Henry the record shop owner. Stacy the vegan and her husband Rob from Austin > were also in attendance. i must say, all the fegs were too kind. everyone was really friendly and nice, making sure everyone could see and making space for everyone &c. standing up front with the feg crowd was great! Glen kept offering to move for me and for Ayala. :) > The set list is as follows: > > Kingdom of Love > Queen of Eyes > Tonight > Old Pervert (this absolutely killed me. an awesome song live) > Your Mind is Connected (?) > Airscape (not as good as I heard it in the past, but everyone else seemed to > enjoy it) > Underwater Moonlight > I Wanna Destroy You (dedicated to "W") i mentioned to Robyn, whom i met after the show (and after a long wait on the cold sidewalk - more on this below), that i personally dedicated this song to my husband, who asked me for a divorce this past week. he chuckled and said, "that's what it's all about". > Human Music (great to finally hear this song live) > Leppo and the Jooves (my favorite Soft Boys song; I finally got to hear it > live. Morris's harmonies were spectacular, Kimberley played slide and > Matthew's bass part, while much more subdued than the original, was solid > and punchy). > Only The Stones Remain (with much hand gesticulations from Robyn) > Sudden Town (I really liked this new song. I'm looking forward to the > forthcoming album, _Dave Joins Roger and Then Leaves Himself_) > Insanely Jealous > > 1st Encore w/Thomas Dolby > You'll Have to Go Sideways (Kimberley played eBow Guitar) > 'A New Song' (I don't know what it's called, but there were a lot of 'sha la > las') i believe this was 'Evil Guy'.. > Astronomy Domine ("Dedicated to everyone who saw the Airplane reunion here > in '89". This was absolutely transcendent. The spirit of Syd seemed to be in > the air and I instantly knew how it felt to have been at the Fillmore circa > 1969.) i'm not really familiar with Barrett outside of PF, and i didn't previously know this song at all, but wow, it was really amazing. there was definitely some kind of vibe in the air during this song. > 2nd Encore > Rock 'n' Roll Toilet the security guard i chatted with after the show kept mentioning that this song reminded him of "Brown Sugar" > Sleeping With Your Devil Mask they'd taken away Matthew's mic previously (i think when taking down Dolby's setup), so he had to walk over to the other side of Robyn to share Kim's mic. it was a stretch for him and the cord on his bass, which wouldn't quite reach that far. he kept having to lean way over to sing "sleeping with your devil mask" with Kim. > Mr. Kennedy (my favorite of the new songs. do I hear a single?) the Robyn-Kim jam at the end of this number was awesome. you could tell they were having a great time playing off each other, and yes, Kimberley does look like a muppet! his facial expressions had me giggling all night. > 3rd Encore > Train 'Round The Bend > Face of Death > Give It To The Soft Boys (Morris, Matthew, and Robyn with 3 of the 4 YFF) this was too much fun. Matthew flung a bottle of water all over the place and i got wet! you could tell the YFF had a great time playing this tune. what happened to Eclipse after the show: fegs hung out on the sidewalk for a while, picture-taking and chatting and deciding where to go next. it became apparant that the only exit from the Fillmore, aside from the front door, was the side gate we were near. i ended up hanging out with another fan (non-feg, but may join the list!) who was armed with some vinyl and a white pen, waiting to acquire signatures. after a short wait, Matthew showed up and was more than happy to sign my UM cd booklet. he was SO nice and friendly and is so cute! :) we decided to wait for the rest of the band, so we stood outside in the cold chatting with the guard behind the gate for a good 45 minutes. finally Jay and Sydney (hope i spelled that right :) came out from behind where he'd been doing a band interview and said that the staff was kicking the band out so they could lock up, and that they probably would be out before long. eventually, Kimberley showed up and signed our stuff; he was kind of shy but seemed flattered that we wanted his autograph and that we praised the show. the merchandise manager's van pulled up to the curb behind us and they started loading up boxes of stuff. Robyn finally came down the steps and we asked for his autograph; he was very gracious and even chatted with me for a moment, asking how we liked the show and how it sounded. he let me shake his hand and was generally very friendly, but didn't stay long and got in the van. suddenly the rest of the crew and band appeared on the sidewalk. Morris seemed surprised that we wanted his autograph and signed our things, but seemed out-of-sorts.. or perhaps he is just a quiet guy. Matthew reappeared and expressed amazement that we'd waited outside for at least 45 minutes for everyone to show up (did i mention that it was cold?). i chatted with him, mentioned that we loved the show, they sounded great, etc. he is so friendly and i thanked him for being so nice to fans. i told him i was reading his tour diaries and loved them; he asked our names and will hopefully mention us in the SF diary entry. :) so now i have a UM cd cover autographed by the Soft Boys, a couple of pins, a shirt with NEON GREEN writing on it, and a very happy memory. :) > > I'm told a topic of discussion at the fegdinner (which we missed) was if I > > had to choose between seeing the soft boys or seeing the Giants in the 7th > > game of the World Series, which would I choose. When I heard about this I > > told 'em it would be the World Series, but after last night I'm > > re-thinking... > > We all knew you'd reconsider. is there really a choice here? :) you guys are really the nicest bunch, and Ayala and i had an excellent time. thank you to all of you for being so outgoing and friendly! fegs RULE! sleepily, Eclipse np: rain on the porch - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Eclipse | eclipse@best.com If this is not what you expected, please alter your expectations. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 08 Apr 2001 14:35:39 -0700 From: "Russ Reynolds" Subject: re: Fillmore Fillmore Fillmore Glen > Some personal impressions: > > **I told Carol and our friend Billy -- whom we met up with late in the > evening -- that this was the best show I've seen in several years by anyone. Yes! I think this now tops my all time list. > **Robyn is better with a full band. More than ever, this show makes me want to hear everything on Trains and Eye done by the Soft Boys. > The Soft Boys are my Beatles and I finally got to see the "fab four". I can echo this as well. Once Lennon was killed the Soft Boys became my Beatles. Finally getting a chance to see them live was sublime. I read in the tour diary that they had paid for some recording equipment for a Live At The Fillmore album. As much as I enjoyed this show I think both Robyn and Kimberley's vocals may have been a little off for that, which was one of the worries Matthew had expressed after the Portland show. I did notice Kimberley coughing several times (hey, maybe those faces he makes are just the expressions of a guy supressing a cough?). - -rUss ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 8 Apr 2001 18:34:36 -0400 (EDT) From: Terrence Marks Subject: Spice Girls I remember hearing rumours a few years back about Kimberly Rew writing for the Spice Girls. Did anyone find anything out? Terrence Marks Unlike Minerva (a comic strip) http://www.unlikeminerva.com The Nice (an organization for comic strips) http://nice.purrsia.com normal@grove.ufl.edu ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 8 Apr 2001 09:05:51 -0500 From: David Librik Subject: Re: Fillmore Fillmore Fillmore Glen the Uberfeg wrote: > 'A New Song' (I don't know what it's called, but there were a lot of 'sha la las') This is "Evil Guy." It's an outtake from the "Queen Elvis" sessions back in 1989. Copies of the Queen Elvis Outtakes made the rounds of this list back in the early '90s. I have no idea what made Robyn decide to exhume this song! It's not at all "Soft Boys" sounding. If I had a chance to talk to him after the show, that's the one question I would have asked him. > Sleeping With Your Devil Mask This, on the other hand, IS Soft-Boys-sounding. It must have been incredible. Just the kind of frenetic spookiness that makes them great. Reading Matthew's tour diaries made me worry that I gave my cold to them. (The day after the Chicago show I woke up with a sore throat, which degenerated into BLECCCH.) He expressed concern that they might not be able to record the "Soft Boys Live At The Fillmore" album that they were planning. Here's hoping they went ahead and did it -- and are gonna put the whole thing on there. - - David Librik who has had "Human Music" stuck in his head for a week now... ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 08 Apr 2001 18:28:52 -0700 From: "Mark Gloster" Subject: Great time... Hi kids! I had a spleendiferous time hangin' witchu homies in da hood on da westsaeed in San'sco. A few highlights should be noted after seeing the Portland show and the SF show: 1. Got to see a bunch of my favorite people. 2. Got to see Jeme and Viv dance a lot. 3. Got to spend real time with Jeme, Viv, Tom, Coleen, and Cynthia. With fegs it is never enough, but I'm grateful for getting some time with "my pipples." 4. I have always really been an Egyptians fan #1, and never got deeply into the soft boys due to primarily the poor recordings with which they were stuck. It is probable that they have improved as musicians and had better rooms and equipment than they used to, but WOW! They were great! 5. I would rather watch Kimberley Rew play guitar than ANY other guitarist. He cares about every note he plays; he makes me laugh; he is also a really good guitarist. 6. Okay John P., I've always been a big fan of Andy, but Matt Seligman is the real deal. Yea, he probably doesn't sing as well, but Matt is perfect for a larger band than 3 people. 7. Morris is still one of my favorite drummers: he is technically very proficient, but that never interferes in his ability to RAWK. He plays what is right for the rest of the music: while making space for the rest of the band to play, he also does interesting and beautiful things. A drummer's playing is incredibly underrated in music. 8. Jeezis, give me Morris, Matt, and Kimberley and I could move the world; but Robyn rounded the whole thing out and didn't disappoint. He entertains the best when he is having a good time. It seems that he is more relaxed than he has been, and enjoyed the reduced pressure in being one of the band more than trying to hold up the weight of the marquis. 9. I enjoyed hanging out a little near Matt and Morris when they _came out front after the show to hang out with fans_. They were very kind and likeable. 10. YFF were a lot of fun. They are a symbol of everything I like about live music. It feels like anything can happen. They skate a line between being good at their craft and making fun of those who are who wank. Kurt (bayard's older brother?) looks like he has no idea what he is going to do when he takes off his guitar. The drummer looks like he is fighting to stay on his seat and his hands and arms completely flail when in the air, but he sounds incredible. I thought sometimes that someone shouldn't play that well who acts so uncoordinated. 11. I really loved both shows. I think the SF show better than the Portland show, but they were both great. I must admit that even though they were incredibly memborable concerts, the very best part is re-connecting with so many of my favorite people. I met some new people too. 12. Eddie, hope you have a great trip. Everybody: be nice to Eddie, he may look like mr potato(e) head but he's all heart, in a vegan-kind-of-way. Y'all should see the Soft Boys and the Young Fresh Fellows. Y'all should get to know each other, too. Happies, - -Markg ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 8 Apr 2001 22:13:16 -0400 (EDT) From: Bayard Subject: Re: _Dave Joins Roger and Then Leaves Himself_ On Sun, 8 Apr 2001, Dolph Chaney wrote: > Glen mentioned _Dave Joins Roger and Then Leaves Himself_ in his Fillmore > account -- is this the first working title we've heard for the SB's > potential upcoming rekkid? the first real one... some waggish person posted (not here) that it would be called _fresh creme rince_, but that was debunked. > I'm thinking this is some obscure English Beat / General Public reference > (Dave Wakeling & Ranking Roger)...? Or Robyn is just having fun with my brane. the first thing i thought was pink floyd, but of course it doesn't follow... ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 08 Apr 2001 21:47:21 -0700 From: Tom Clark Subject: Re: Great time... For those of you who didn't want to wade through all of Mark's posting, here's a summary: blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah me blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah psychobabble blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah non-sequiter blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah They Might Be Giants quote blah blah blah blah blah blah blah. You're welcome. - -tc ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 08 Apr 2001 21:52:00 -0700 From: Tom Clark Subject: Queen of Variations Seattle: I wish I was live I wish I was dead She only wishes she could go to your head Portland: I wish I was in I wish I was out She only wishes you would show her your trout San Francisco: I wish I was up I wish I was down She only wishes - -tc ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 08 Apr 2001 22:42:14 -0700 From: Glen Uber Subject: Re: Queen of Variations on 4/8/01 9:52 PM, Tom Clark wrote: > She only wishes She only wishes she could show you around. He also changed another line: In this horrible age of decay and abuse It's good to know somebody who has an excuse Cheers! - -g- ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 08 Apr 2001 22:45:12 -0700 From: Glen Uber Subject: Re: Fillmore Fillmore Fillmore on 4/8/01 1:05 PM, Glen Uber wrote: > 2nd Encore > Rock 'n' Roll Toilet > Sleeping With Your Devil Mask > Mr. Kennedy (my favorite of the new songs. do I hear a single?) I neglected to include "Bells of Rhymney" which was sandwiched here between Devil Mask and Mr. Kennedy. Milli Regretti, - -g- ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 08 Apr 2001 22:41:59 -0700 From: Chris Franz Subject: Re: _Dave Joins Roger and Then Leaves Himself_ At 04:17 PM 4/8/01 -0500, you wrote: >Glen mentioned _Dave Joins Roger and Then Leaves Himself_ in his Fillmore >account -- is this the first working title we've heard for the SB's >potential upcoming rekkid? > >I'm thinking this is some obscure English Beat / General Public reference >(Dave Wakeling & Ranking Roger)...? Or Robyn is just having fun with my brane. This made me recall a recent time Robyn passed through town and introduced JfS with "This is the title track from my next album," then grimaced and said (and I'm paraphrasing here) "I used to hate it when bands would do that, they'd deadpan something like 'This is a song Dave wrote from our third album,' and I swore I'd never do something so dreadfully dull, but there you are." Then, in Vancouver last week, he introduced Human Music with the enigmatic, "This is a song Dave wrote from our first album." So my guess would be that the weird working album title is some sort of extemporaneous offshoot of that in-joke with himself. Has he mentioned "Dave" elsewhere on this tour? - - Chris, still reeling from a week of Soft Boys and various Scott McCaughey bands, suddenly realizing that the Joe Jackson concert is tomorrow -- then two days until the Psychedelic Furs hit town. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 8 Apr 2001 22:55:46 -0700 (PDT) From: Mike Swedene Subject: Re: Queen of Variations The toronto version is the same as the Seattle one: Seattle: > I wish I was live > I wish I was dead > She only wishes she could go to your head He also apologized for the US electing George W and he dedicated "I wanna Destroy You" to him.... I am working on getting a copy of the show on CDR to start sharing it with anyone interested. Herbie - --- Tom Clark wrote: > Seattle: > I wish I was live > I wish I was dead > She only wishes she could go to your head > > Portland: > I wish I was in > I wish I was out > She only wishes you would show her your trout > > San Francisco: > I wish I was up > I wish I was down > She only wishes > > -tc Get email at your own domain with Yahoo! Mail. http://personal.mail.yahoo.com/ ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 09 Apr 2001 08:44:39 From: "marcus slade" Subject: Slightley OT I haven't seen anyone else mention this but Matthew Seligman was on UK TV on saturday night. He was interviewed as part of Channel 4's 'Top Ten 80's Electro Pioneers' programme talking about being sacked from the Thompson Twins when they went from a 7 piece down to a 3 piece. He said he got given a piece of paper to sign which gave him #500 and he got to keep his bass amp in exchange for leaving the band. Marcus (waiting for April 19th!) _________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 9 Apr 2001 04:07:23 -0700 (PDT) From: Jeff Dwarf Subject: Soft Boys Soar at the Fillmore/Reunion tour features '70s classics no mention of thomas dolby strangely enough.... http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2001/04/09/DD221922.DTL by Neva Chonin, Chronicle Pop Music Critic Monday, April 9, 2001 Some bands become legends in their own time. The Soft Boys are not one of them. In fact, they had to wait 20 years to enjoy the fact that their witty, neo-psychedelic pop has become a vital reference point for everyone from the Replacements and the Pixies to R.E.M. and the Stone Roses. The Cambridge, England, quartet's brilliant final album, 1980's "Underwater Moonlight," was recently reissued on Matador to thundering acclaim. It's also prompted a reunion tour by the formidable lineup that recorded it: singer-guitarist Robyn Hitchcock (a solo legend in his own right), guitarist Kimberly Rew, bassist Matthew Seligman and drummer Morris Windsor, who are finally playing before the packed houses that eluded them in their late-'70s heyday. Judging by their performance at the Fillmore on Saturday night, the Soft Boys are feeling no pain over history's belated recognition. A sold-out crowd - - much of it too young to have heard the band the first time around -- hailed each song with cheers of recognition and ended the night by enthusiastically dragging their heroes back for three encores. Hitchcock and company gave them a show to remember. Classic songs such as the rousing "Kingdom of Love" and "Queen of Eyes" soared with punk-pop urgency and layered harmonies; the jagged post-punk arrangements and barbed choruses of "Insanely Jealous" and "Only the Stones Remain" resonated ferociously. These old favorites were punctuated with new numbers -- raising hopes for a reunion album -- like "Sudden Town," the dreamy "Air Is Connected" and the phantasmagoric "Mr. Kennedy." Throughout the 90-minute set, Hitchcock's trademark wit was in fine fettle. "Human Music" prompted an observation that "Heaven is dull; all the interesting paintings are in hell." And by way of introducing the gleeful "Old Pervert," the singer offered a tongue-in-cheek bit of biography: "When I was young, I was very unhappy. I was mean to ants; I was mean to grasshoppers. And I projected a future for myself." That future, ripe with hilarity and untrammeled lechery, never happened. Other lyrical predictions rang too true, as when Hitchcock dedicated the anti-war anthem "I Wanna Destroy You," originally penned at the start of the Reagan-Bush era, to the current President Bush. Rew and Hitchcock reignited their celebrated guitar duets on the instrumental "You'll Have to Go Sideways," with a dialogue that ranged from shimmering riffs to dissonant shared rhapsodies. The title track from "Underwater Moonlight" highlighted the band's talent for lavish melodies and Hitchcock's keen ability to intersect death, obsession and desire in a single love song. Original material was augmented by a spate of inspired covers that included the Byrds' "Bells of Rhymney," Pink Floyd's "Astronomy Domine" and the Velvet Underground's hypnotic "Train 'Round the Bend." For the final encore, tunefully raucous openers the Young Fresh Fellows joined the headliners onstage for a ripping version of "Give It to the Soft Boys." This Seattle-born band is a cult classic in its own right, recently reunited around a new double album with the Minus 5, "Because We Hate You/Let the War Against Music Begin." "You can get behind the music, but you can never get far away from it," Hitchcock said by way of introducing the spacey, '60s-inflected "Airscape." His quip summed up both the superb Fillmore show and, more generally, the Soft Boys' two-decade journey from lost band to reborn legend. If their music sounds timelier today than when it was first written, that's probably because it was ahead of its time to begin with - -- or perhaps just timelessly great. Get email at your own domain with Yahoo! Mail. http://personal.mail.yahoo.com/ ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 9 Apr 2001 09:00:16 -0400 From: "Bachman, Michael" Subject: RE: basement-life.com interview - -----Original Message----- At 10:12 PM 4/6/01 -0700, Eb wrote: > >it is an indie masterpiece before that term even existed. The > >Trouser Press Record Guide writes this about the album: "Underwater > >Moonlight is one of the new waves' finest half-dozen albums and > >unquestionably its most unjustly underrated one." [etc] > >You know, these articles have become a little unsettling to me. It's like >history is suddenly rewriting Hitchcock's career, just like the way Brian >Wilson's career was rewritten in the late '80s. Underwater Moonlight is >being recast as Hitchcock's Pet Sounds, the one sacred moment of perfection >in an otherwise up-and-down catalog. At10:56 AM 4/07/01, Dolph wrote. >In general, I agree. What's more, Robyn is somewhat participating in it, >saying "I've never written anything better than 'Insanely >Jealous'"... Only problem with the above position is that Ira Robbins >wrote that about Underwater Moonlight in the first edition of the TPRG, >which dates from '85 if I remember right. Certainly, that same blurb is in >the '91 edition. So the particular assertion you quote is hardly part of >the new journalistic trend. The Trouser Press Record guide from 1985 holds a special meaning for me, as this is where I first read about the SB's and then bought Fegmania! later on in 1985. I always scoured the record shops after that in hopes of getting Underwater Moonlight and back Robyn Hitchcock releases. Cheers to Trouser Press as they got me hooked on the Soft Boys and Robyn. Michael ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 9 Apr 2001 10:57:32 -0400 (EDT) From: Bayard Subject: Re: _Dave Joins Roger and Then Leaves Himself_ On Sun, 8 Apr 2001, Chris Franz wrote: > >I'm thinking this is some obscure English Beat / General Public reference > >(Dave Wakeling & Ranking Roger)...? Or Robyn is just having fun with my brane. > > This made me recall a recent time Robyn passed through town and introduced > JfS with "This is the title track from my next album," then grimaced and > said (and I'm paraphrasing here) "I used to hate it when bands would do > that, they'd deadpan something like 'This is a song Dave wrote from our > third album,' and I swore I'd never do something so dreadfully dull, but > there you are." Then, in Vancouver last week, he introduced Human Music > with the enigmatic, "This is a song Dave wrote from our first album." > > So my guess would be that the weird working album title is some sort of > extemporaneous offshoot of that in-joke with himself. > > Has he mentioned "Dave" elsewhere on this tour? I almost forgot, i also wanted to mention he says this as far back as the great 11-27-78 soft boys show (lady mitchell hall.) "This one's off our first album, written by Dave... it's a bit of power pop called i should've been an anglepoise lamp." ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 9 Apr 2001 11:36:54 -0400 (EDT) From: dmw Subject: Re: basement-life.com interview On Sat, 7 Apr 2001, Ben wrote: > progresses from town to town. It may be unsettling but should not be > surprising. Were talking about rock critics and rock journalists, the > laziest, most unoriginal authors out there. What do you expect? ;-) hey now. i have little respect for those who simply paraphrase the press kit, but there are plenty of good writers who never do. and after a long day of listening to a dozen bloodless Kid Bizkit rip-offs (and far worse) well-intentioned but meritless home studio projects i can understand the temptation. after all, if i just retyped the pr sheet, i wouldn't have to actually *listen* to it. i think there definitely is a snowball effect to the evolution of pseudocrit groupthink, it's all online now, and it's too easy for the writer in philly to read what the writer in austin had to say about the show (random examples - i made a point of NOT reading any of the press stuff because there was a slim chance i might have covered the DC show myself, although it didn't happen, and i have this dread of being unconsciously influenced by someone else's insight and/or turn of phrase). i also wouldn't discount the notion that some of the younger folks at music desks around the country are probably familiar with hitchcock/egyptians as a cult favorite artist, but given the long & twisty in/out-of-print cycle the Soft Boys catalog has had, may never have heard any of the Soft BOys records before. In which case "Moonlight" really could sound like a bit of revelation. might be now, but it won't be later... - -- d. - - oh no, you've just read mail from doug = dmw@radix.net - get yr pathos - - www.shoddyworkmanship.net -- post punk skronk rawk = the new thing - - www.pathetic-caverns.com -- books, flicks, tunes, etc. = reviews - - www.fecklessbeast.com -- angst, guilt, fear, betrayal! = rock music ------------------------------ End of fegmaniax-digest V10 #114 ********************************