From: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org (fegmaniax-digest) To: fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Subject: fegmaniax-digest V15 #234 Reply-To: fegmaniax@smoe.org Sender: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk fegmaniax-digest Friday, October 6 2006 Volume 15 : Number 234 Today's Subjects: ----------------- 3 RH articles - not sure these have been posted [HwyCDRrev@aol.com] The Barrett/Hitchcock Connection [HwyCDRrev@aol.com] Re: Bleakest. Book. Ever. ["Jason R. Thornton" ] Re: The Paranoiac-Critical Method [J ] New Album, anyone? [Devin Ens ] that Quail [Jill Brand ] Re: Bleakest. Political Argument. Ever. [2fs ] Re: New Album, anyone? [2fs ] Re: Groovy DK [hssmrg@bath.ac.uk] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 5 Oct 2006 01:27:18 EDT From: HwyCDRrev@aol.com Subject: 3 RH articles - not sure these have been posted _http://www.harpmagazine.com/articles/detail.cfm?article_id=4611_ (http://www.harpmagazine.com/articles/detail.cfm?article_id=4611) Syd Barrett: Wayne Coyne and Robyn Hitchcock Pay Tribute _http://www.texasgigs.com/news/2006/oct/03/cdw103/_ (http://www.texasgigs.com/news/2006/oct/03/cdw103/) Robyn Hitchcock & Venus 3: Ole! Tarantula Robyn Hitchcock sought out some old friends to record his new album, Ole! Tarantula, and he found the Venus 3: Peter Buck, Scott McCaughey and Bill Rieflin. By enlisting "3/4s of the Minus 5 and half of R.E.M," Hitchcock has created what he calls, "the rockingest record I've made in years." While the album roars with the garage-fueled energy of his Soft Boys days, Hitchcock's lyricism continues to drive his songs. The New York Times says, "[His songs] bridge the psychedelia of Pink Floyd's Syd Barrett and the archetypal English 'nonsense' of Edward Lear," and Rolling Stone says, "Robyn Hitchcock's songs are a lot like the genetic code: they're tough to crack, but the secret of life is in there somewhere." Robyn Hitchcock and the Venus 3 will be touring in the fall of 2006. _http://www.chartattack.com/DAMN/2006/10/0301.cfm_ (http://www.chartattack.com/DAMN/2006/10/0301.cfm) ROBYN HITCHCOCK & THE VENUS 3 Ole! Tarantula (_Yep Roc_ (http://www.yeproc.com/) /Outside) Robyn Hitchcock has been one of the most prolific yet enigmatic artists of the past 30 years, and alternative pop fans wouldn't have it any other way. On this record he's joined by R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck and, among others, touring members Scott McCaughey and Bill Rieflin, who are also part of The Minus 5. Openers "Adventure Rocket Ship" and "Underground Sun" lead you to believe that this will be a full-on psychedelic pop record, but that's dispelled by the hint of saxophone on "Museum Of Sex" and the jaunty piano-based melody on "Belltown Ramble." Album closer "N.Y. Doll" is written from the perspective of the late New York Dolls bassist, Arthur "Killer" Kane. The contributors on Ole! Tarantula might get it more attention than most of Hitchcock's more recent albums, and deservedly so. Don't be afraid of this spider. Steve McLean ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 5 Oct 2006 11:29:48 EDT From: HwyCDRrev@aol.com Subject: The Barrett/Hitchcock Connection _http://www.furious.com/Perfect/barretthitchcock.html_ (http://www.furious.com/Perfect/barretthitchcock.html) (http://www.furious.com/perfect) The Barrett/Hitchcock Connection Robyn photo by Michele Noach from _the Robyn Hitchcock museum_ (http://www.robynhitchcock.com/) By Keith Walsh When Syd Barrett began to lose his mind in the late '60's, music fans around the globe watched helplessly as one of rock's more promising figures began to fade away just as his star was rising. Many put the blame strictly on an excessive use of drugs (and certainly mass media did little to dispel this explanation) while others have suggested that a predisposition for schizophrenia or even Asperger's syndrome (a form of autism) exacerbated by drugs may have been at the root of his decline. Whatever the case may be, after his condition worsened following only a few years in the spotlight, Syd reverted back to his given name (Roger Keith Barrett) and went in to near seclusion for 30 years. Barrett passed away on July 7, 2006 due to complications from diabetes. And though he spent the most of his adult life in solitude (releasing his last official recording in 1970), the impact of Barrett's musical output endures in the form of the few albums he did record, and by his impact on the many musicians who have been moved by his modes of expression b at turns startlingly honest (particularly on the solo albums) or endearingly eccentric. As a founder of Pink Floyd, and a gifted writer, vocalist and guitarist, Barrett specialized in sometimes whimsical and absurd pop gems over the course of three albums: Pink Floyd's 1967 debutPiper at the Gates of Dawn, and two solo albums b The Madcap Laughs and Barrett, both from 1970. The psychedelic Piper is considered by many to be an essential piece of pop history, while two solo albums and a collection of alternate takes and demos (Opel, later released in 1989) reveal a tortured soul seeking redemption through the creative process. By projecting his pain and suffering outward in the form of a collection of hauntingly beautiful tunes, Barrett gave meaning to the isolated and woeful condition of his existence by sharing it with others. In the harrowing song "Dark Globe" from The Madcap Laughs, he sings lyrics that are best heard to be appreciated: My head kissed the ground I was half the way down, Treading the sand, please, please Please lift a hand I'm only a person With Eskimo chain I tattered my brain all away Won't you miss me? Wouldn't you miss me at all? Barrett's desperate longing is even more apparent when one observes the ragged tone of his voice, framed by the workmanlike strumming of his guitar, as he reveals the joys found in sharing his sorrow with the world. Those who call themselves Barrett fans include David Bowie (who once said that there was no Floyd without Barrett) and Brian Eno, but perhaps the best living example of a performer in the vein of Syd Barrett is singer/songwriter Robyn Hitchcock. While Barrett had been institutionalized a number of times, Hitchcock has carved out a niche for himself writing and singing songs so surreal and spaced-out that in a less enlightened culture he too might find himself institutionalized or at least medicated. Add masterful guitar work and a voice that smacks of not only Barrett, but also John Lennon and Bowie, and you've really got something worth listening to. Though some of Hitchcock's other influences include the Beatles, Bob Dylan and Captain Beefheart, the Barrett comparison is perhaps the most apt. It's not just the whimsy of Hitchcock's music, or the absurdity of the lyrics that beg the comparison b it's a spirit the moves over the face of Hitchcock's entire body of work In 1976, in a studio in the Cambridge of Barrett's childhood and later convalescence, Hitchcock began his recording career with the Soft Boys, a band that allowed him to fuse an uncanny knack for pop hooks and lyrical invention into a punk/pop synthesis that hints at the years of brilliance to come during a prolific career with his band the Egyptians and as a solo artist. And while there's no evidence that both artists' Cambridge ties are anything other than coincidence, it's interesting to note that the town boasts a high level of creativity and innovation: among its luminaries it counts the great physicist Stephen Hawking, and is at the heart of Britain's high technology center called "Silicon Fen" and the "Cambridge Cluster" due to a remarkable growth in successful high tech startups. Still in the shadow of Cambridge, on the Soft Boy's second album Underwater Moonlight, Hitchcock displays psychedelic styling and a bizarre sense of humor that finds him professing his love in one breath, while singing about insects bursting out from the flesh under his chin in the next ("Kingdom of Love"). In the spiritual Kingdom of Love, You are the one that I am dreaming of, In the spiritual Kingdom of Love, You've been laying eggs under my skin, Now they're hatching out under my chin, Now there's tiny insects showing through, And all them tiny insects look like you. And while these lyrics are far more abrasive than anything Barrett ever recorded, their psychedelic, even psychotic flavor can be understood in light of the fact that Hitchcock has time and again declared himself a Barrett fan. When asked by _David Hepworth on the occasion of Barrett's death_ (http://laxman.hipcast.com/deluge/6987ff02-87dd-152c-cd36-f6825d67b3ce.mp3) what might be appropriate words for Barrett's headstone, Hitchcock said: "I'd just put 'Syd Barrett.' 'Cause in the end, that's what he was. He was a Syd Barrett. There'd been nothing like it before, and there was nothing like it afterwards - -- although it had a huge influence, particularly on me. As you say, the way Robyn Hitchcock has approached life and all the rest of it is really directly descended from that." Aside from his occasional covering of a Barrett tune, (as early as "Vegetable Man" on Underwater Moonlight), or mentioning him in a song ("1974" from Storefront Hitchcock) a mere glance at the titles of Hitchcock's output not only suggests a considerable debt to his hero, but indicates a departure to points far beyond: "Balloon Man," "The Cheese Alarm," "The Abandoned Brain," "Furry Green Atom Bowl" to name a few. Of note is the Soft Boys' "I Got the Hots," with spoken verses in the lower register and a strutting guitar riff that force the listener to admit that the song is a deliberate tribute to Barrett's "Maisie" (from Barrett). Even Hitchcock's unconventional, often angular guitar style owes a debt to Barrett as well. Part of the brilliance of Hitchcock's early solo album I Often Dream of Trains is in the oddly endearing half pop/half classic instrumentals that fall between the songs. Yet it's mostly on the strength of his lyrics and demeanor that Hitchcock has ascended to the throne as the undisputed king of eccentric musical Englishmen. To wit: Even Marilyn Monroe was a man But this tends to get overlooked By our overweight, sexist, mother-fixated media. "Uncorrected Personality Traits" It's not easy to imagine that one showing up on a Ray Davies or Elton John record b or anyone else who is concerned with commerciality over expression. And while this and many other Hitchcock tunes are far more explicit than anything Barrett ever created, what they share with Barrett is a dedication to push forward the state of popular music despite popular trends. And while Barrett's efforts were far more primal and less deliberate than Hitchcock's almost strategic peculiarities, artists of integrity are rare enough that they are entitled to a class of their own. And though Hitchcock has broken and transcended the mold first cast by Barrett, he has revisited it numerous times as a source of inspiration. In doing so over the course of 30 years, he has strengthened his peculiar lyrical inclinations, while dabbling in various forms of punk, psychedelic rock, new wave and folk, proving himself to be one of popular music's most enduring iconoclasts. The post-Soft Boys years begin with Hitchcock's growing tendency towards achieving a sound that is both commercial yet true to his vision. Element of Light (1986) stands out as an album designed to please the ears of fans of the late new wave period, while Hitchcock's major label debut, Globe of Frogs (1988), surprised many fans by not qualifying as a sellout, and won many converts as well, thanks to the success of the single "Balloon Man." The albums Queen Elvis (1989), Perspex Island (1991) and Respect (1993) continued Hitchcock's trend of success with singles that consistently charted on the lower end of the U.S. Modern Rock Charts (from Wikipedia.org's _article on Hitchcock_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robyn_Hitchcock) .) In the following years, Hitchcock has continued to expand his body of work in the rock and folk genres. And though his albums are far more polished than any of Barrett's work, they cannot be fully understood without realizing whose shoulders he stands on. Certainly Hitchcock inherited a generous helping of imagination from his late father Raymond, himself a "cartoonist, futurist and science fiction writer," according to a Hitchcock fan at _Fegmania_ (http://www.fegmania.org/chrono.html) .Yet when one listens to a Hitchcock album, the unmistakable specter of Barrett is not too far off. Apparently, that's more than coincidence. In an interview with Q Magazine, Hitchcock said: "I did let it get out of hand. Syd went beyond being an influence to points where there'd be a takeover." Hitchcock continues: "It was quite sinister. It was as if at certain times when I was singing or writing it was no longer me but this other guy. There were times when I thought 'My God, this guy is roosting in my head.' I think I've exorcised that now." (cited from "Crazy Diamond: Syd Barrett and The Dawn of Pink Floyd by Mike Watkinson & Pete Anderson," p. 143). Like Barrett, Hitchcock takes the listener where he's never been, in the latter's case singing about exploding balloon men, brain-shaped aircraft, or that most difficult of subjects , love -- with impressive degrees of passion and sincerity. There is simply no one else in the music world who plays with an audience's lyrical expectations and gets away with it the way that Hitchcock does. Had Barrett not been overtaken by mental illness, the same might have been said of him. Both artists have tackled the taboo lines of gender bending (Barrett's "Arnold Layne" and "Gigolo Aunt"; Hitchcock's "Queen Elvis" and "Man With A Woman's Shadow"), though Barrett's approach to lyric writing is more often confessional in tone, especially on the solo albums, while Hitchcock tends towards more calculated, thought-out quirkiness. One thing is certain b both artists and their audiences have enjoyed pushing the envelope with lyrical content that both shocks and amuses. Despite many similarities in style and approach, the main divergence between Barrett's and Hitchcock's lyrical content remains tied to the fact that Barrett was not granted the luxury of developing a social conscience approaching the caliber of Hitchcock's, as demonstrated in songs like "Legalized Murder" (which takes on capital punishment) or "Filthy Bird" (an indictment of war). Barrett's output on Piper demonstrates a prolific faculty of imagination, and while the solo albums contain the same seed of brilliance, one senses in the solo albums the same brilliance being held together almost heroically in the midst very difficult circumstances. Just a short time after Barrett's passing, Hitchcock put it this way: "I think he kind of had raw talent. Most people, you know, they'll have a tube of it, and they'll squeeze out a little bit, and then they'll mix in some turps, and they'll... put a bit of it in. They'll do an album and there'll be two great songs that they'll play forever, and then four not bad songs, and three songs that only their fan club like. They'll have better and worse albums, and they'll spread it out like that... But Barrett is like a kid who got hold of a tube of talent, the way that children would get hold of toothpaste b squeeze it all out. Barrett sort of went 'Oh yeah,' b out it came. And then there was nothing left." (from David Hepworth's The Word Podcast, July 2006). In a way, Hitchcock's career has had an almost charmed quality that is the antithesis of Barrett's tragic arc. Hitchcock once compared his own musical career to a hot air balloon voyage that manages to stay aloft, thanks to helpful winds in the form of successful singles and movies like Jonathan Demme's concert film Storefront Hitchcock. Suffice it to say the root causes of Barrett's maladies are complex and somewhat inscrutable, but no more difficult to figure out why the fates has chosen to bless Hitchcock's path as he charts his way through a sometimes treacherous industry. Whatever the case may be, in the future, near and distant, when the name Robyn Hitchcock is mentioned, wherever his songs are played and in whatever form, the shadow of Syd Barrett will be looming nearby. ____________________________________ Check out the rest of PERFECT SOUND FOREVER _MAIN PAGE_ (http://www.furious.com/Perfect/index.html) _ARTICLES_ (http://www.furious.com/Perfect/toc.html) _STAFF/FAVORITE MUSIC_ (http://www.furious.com/Perfect/staff.html) _LINKS_ (http://www.furious.com/Perfect/links.html) _E-MAIL_ (http://www.furious.com/Perfect/mail.html) ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 05 Oct 2006 09:12:06 -0700 From: "Jason R. Thornton" Subject: Re: Bleakest. Book. Ever. At 04:54 PM 10/4/2006, 2fs wrote: >Accident my ass. Riiiiiight. Because the rest of the media never ever makes a mistake, especially not unintentional slips that reveal their political biases. - --Jason "Only the few know the sweetness of the twisted apples." - Sherwood Anderson ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 5 Oct 2006 11:29:49 -0700 (PDT) From: J Subject: Re: The Paranoiac-Critical Method * My instinct on breakdowns is that 'Eye' is very clearly a b'down record, to the extent that I find most of the songs unlistenable but good, with 'Glass Hotel' as the standout. 'Decay'/'Decoy' is a I'm thinking that he's had a lot of mental downers in his day, stretching out over several albums. I mean, most of his music around that time is dark, bordering on psycho, which is why I like it so much. I actually prefer Eye to IODOTrains, but both are amazing. I don't know of many acoustic albums that are as raw and edgy. Seems like this list could use a little laughter, so watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KkG7W5JuCs . ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 05 Oct 2006 12:11:56 -0600 (CST) From: Devin Ens Subject: New Album, anyone? Just wondering if anyone's heard the new RH & the Venus 3 album yet. I have to special order it where I'm livin', so I won't get to hear it for a while. Thought I'd hear some reviews and comments in the fan digest, seeing as it came out this week, but I guess folks have more pressing topics... devo ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 5 Oct 2006 17:12:56 -0400 (EDT) From: Jill Brand Subject: that Quail ourQuail wrote: "And the new Decemberists. I've listened to it five times now, and I'm still not sure what to think. I like it, yeah, but part of me misses....you know.... I miss the rough edges and the jangles. But still, "Crane Wife" is really growing on me...." Sometimes I think you live inside my head, like when I say smart things. Jill ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 5 Oct 2006 20:10:15 -0500 From: 2fs Subject: Re: Bleakest. Political Argument. Ever. On 10/5/06, Jason R. Thornton wrote: > > At 04:54 PM 10/4/2006, 2fs wrote: > > >Accident my ass. > > Riiiiiight. Because the rest of the media never ever makes a > mistake, especially not unintentional slips that reveal their political > biases. I don't understand your point. Did I say that only Fox News distorts information, or only Fox has a particular, and legible, bias? The point is: Fox News does have a clear bias (demonstrated again and again), and in this case, a very simple, elementary issue (a politician's political party) was misstated, in such a way that redounds to the favor of the party Fox favors. I take the second half of your sentence to mean you believe this was merely an "unintentional slip...[revealing] their political bias." Let's imagine it started that way: someone preparing the graphic for the broadcast put a "D" by Foley's name (perhaps because in his mind, as a loyal Foxite, unpleasant sexual behavior is what those nasty Democrats are all about). Yet it not only was missed in the editing process, but rebroadcast three times (according to the link The Other Jeff posted). If that's "unintentional," it's sloppiness of the highest order. Once again, you're faced with the classic choice: either Fox is lying, or it's incompetent. Your call. Which one would you prefer? Finally, if you can find a left-wing media outlet as prominent as Fox News is on the right (already, I'm pretty sure I've defined the quest as impossible) which not only distorted information, but did so repeatedly, and that distorted information was a simple matter of elementary fact (not anything that's up for debate), well, okay then... But as I said: the damage of this particular misidentification (even if it was an accident) is particularly insidious, given that a lot of people wouldn't have known who Foley was, and who (if they only watch Fox) might well add it to their litany of disgust at the Democrats. (Okay, granted: if they only watch Fox, it's not likely they'd ever vote for the Democrats anyway...) - -- ...Jeff Norman The Architectural Dance Society http://spanghew.blogspot.com ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 5 Oct 2006 20:26:11 -0500 From: 2fs Subject: Re: New Album, anyone? On 10/5/06, Devin Ens wrote: > > Just wondering if anyone's heard the new RH & the Venus 3 album yet. I > have to special order it where I'm livin', so I won't get to hear it > for a while. Thought I'd hear some reviews and comments in the fan > digest, seeing as it came out this week, but I guess folks have more > pressing topics... There were a few stray remarks here and there, but apparently we were all distracted by those two dogs fighting over a bone. Anyway: Buy it. There. I'm done. (Okay, not quite: As good as Robyn can be just by his lonesome acousticky self, I like him better with a band. I think he's inspired too by it's being a newish band (even though he's played with all these folks before). I haven't utterly digested the CD yet, but on the handful of listens I like a lot of the tracks. Best thing since the Soft Boys reunion - and a few folks (check the archives) are claiming it's the best thing since _Element of Light_ or so.) - -- ...Jeff Norman The Architectural Dance Society http://spanghew.blogspot.com ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 06 Oct 2006 14:05:11 +0100 From: hssmrg@bath.ac.uk Subject: Re: Groovy DK Quoting fegmaniax-digest : > > Date: Wed, 4 Oct 2006 19:16:09 -0700 > From: "Bri N" > Subject: Re:Groovy Mansfield > I'm probably alone on this, but I think Tony Mansfield should've > produced Groovy Decay. I liked what he did with Captain Sensible > around 1982 (and he was working close to RH, but probably too > expensive for the times). Anyway it would've ended up even more > dated, but I love Tony's production. > - -Nuppy What was wrong with the bloke Pat thingy from the Vibrators who produced Underwater Moonlight? I don't know anything about Tony Mansfield, though I bet my mate David Cameron Dudley ('Feeling Hungry In Peckham / Feeling Hungry In Tooting') does. - - Mike Godwin n.p. Heinz 'Just Like Eddie' ------------------------------ End of fegmaniax-digest V15 #234 ********************************