From: owner-loud-fans-digest@smoe.org (loud-fans-digest) To: loud-fans-digest@smoe.org Subject: loud-fans-digest V1 #63 Reply-To: loud-fans@smoe.org Sender: owner-loud-fans-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-loud-fans-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk loud-fans-digest Thursday, May 3 2001 Volume 01 : Number 063 Today's Subjects: ----------------- Re: [loud-fans] Favourite gigs ["Phil Gerrard" ] Re: [loud-fans] Tedious list server enquiry [Dana L Paoli ] [loud-fans] Various recent topics [Elizabeth Setler ] [loud-fans] The rest of Andrea's tape [Jeffrey with 2 Fs Jeffrey Subject: Re: [loud-fans] Favourite gigs Jen wrote: > > The Gun Club, Manchester Poly, 1989 (not that much fun, actually, > > but Jeffrey Lee Pierce had pinned me against a wall and threatened > > to kill me an hour before the band went on stage, which added a > > certain, uh, frisson to the show) > > so, what brought on this behavior of mr. pierce's toward you? i'm > very curious. At that time, I was writing occasional reviews for the local student paper 'The Mancunian', and when I reviewed gigs I'd always try to have a few words with the musicians beforehand just to flesh out the story. A few months before the Gun Club came to town, Nick Cave had been there, and I'd spoken to Kid Congo Powers, who at the time was a member of both the Gun Club and the Bad Seeds before Cave's show. He was a nice guy, and assured me that Jeffrey Lee Pierce would be quite happy to talk to me before his gig. So I got to Manchester Poly, notebook and Gun Club cassettes (for autographs) to hand, and hung around outside the dressing room for a while. Stevie Vayne, who was in the *excellent* support band the Vaynes - whatever happened to them? - strolled past, I asked him what was happening, and he told me that Pierce was in the middle of an interview with a guy from Sounds. A few minutes later, the dressing room door opened, and Pierce stalked out, followed by Kid Congo Powers, Pierce muttering 'fucking slug bastard...' or some such. I cheerily stepped forward with my notebook thrust out, only just registering the apprehensive expression on Powers' face, and introduced myself with, fucking idiot, 'it's OK, we're not *all* that bad'. Pierce threw me against the wall and snarled 'You're gonna tell me what I think? You decided I'm gonna like you? I should fucking kill you, slug!' Powers, who I think half-recognised me from before, told Pierce to cool it, that I was OK, I was just some kid, Pierce let go and walked towards the bar. During the gig - during which, BTW, I stood well away from the stage - Pierce was clearly quite well gone, and I didn't find it too reassuring that some of the crowd started up the traditional English heckle 'you fat bastard', but it did rock, and passed without further incident. The next week I was scheduled to review a Rollins Band gig, but I decided that the piece would probably work just as well without any input from the artist - peace & love phil ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 14:43:46 -0400 From: Dana L Paoli Subject: Re: [loud-fans] Tedious list server enquiry The other advantage of reply-to-the-list is that it's the de facto standard. If all lists use the same protocol, remembering what to do is easier. Also, it's when I'm sending a private message that I'm paying the most attention to its destination, so it's better to have that case be the exception (apart from the fact that it's much less frequent). >>>>>>>> Another advantage is that we can form a group demanding that Dennis munge the smoes... Munge the smoes! - --dana ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 14:17:50 -0500 (CDT) From: Jeffrey with 2 Fs Jeffrey Subject: Re: [loud-fans] Tedious list server enquiry On Thu, 3 May 2001, Ian Runeckles & Angela Bennett wrote: > Just wondering, but because I'm a)dumb and b)not very observant I keep > replying to individuals rather than the list. Every other list I'm on, I > hit reply and it goes to the list. Can smoe be set this way? Let's summarize the benefits and risks of each approach, shall we? REPLY TO LIST: ++ ease of use, saves time editing - -- risks sending personal e-mails to list, may make personal response more difficult AS IS: ++ prevents embarrassment of above risks, encourages senders to take care re whom they send to - -- takes more time to send to list w/o editing, encourages double replies to senders of replied-to messages The benefit of Reply-To seems exactly symmetrical with the disadvantages of the current set-up. But to me, the risk of Reply-To is way worse than the risk of the current set-up. Some of the folks in this discussion probably weren't here when some folks were pretty upset by messages sent to the list that were intended only for a single person. I was - and I don't really want to see the list go through that sort of thing again. Given that the effort of *writing* a message is always greater than the effort of editing the headers, I'm really not sure why all the clamor for this simplification. Is it that hard? (And yeah, I know: how hard is it to delete duplicate messages either...not very, but that's not the main point.) - --Jeffrey with 2 Fs Jeffrey J e f f r e y N o r m a n The Architectural Dance Society www.uwm.edu/~jenor/ADS.html ::a squid eating dough in a polyethylene bag is fast and bulbous...got me? __Captain Beefheart__ ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 12:21:33 -0700 From: bbradley@namesecure.com Subject: RE: [loud-fans] Home on the Range my favorite is still the whip song. not sure of the title or album, but you might find it amusing. - -- brianna bradley web designer, web ops http://namesecure.com IT ALL STARTS WITH A WEB ADDRESS tel: 925.609.1101 x206 fax: 925.609.1112 "The sum of the intelligence on the planet is a constant; the population is growing." Cole's Axiom http://startrekonice.com - -----Original Message----- From: Tim_Walters@digidesign.com [mailto:Tim_Walters@digidesign.com] Sent: Wednesday, May 02, 2001 11:10 AM To: Andrew Hamlin Cc: loud-fans@smoe.org Subject: Re: [loud-fans] Home on the Range >Sorry..."pitch class"? Does that mean she's singing the same figure in >different octaves, or which? "Pitch class" is a note name without a specified octave. I.e. "C" is a pitch class, "C#" is a pitch class, etc., while "middle C" and "high E" are pitches belonging to the pitch classes of "C" and "E" respectively. So what I was trying to say is that she sings a note, then the note an octave higher, etc. >Tim Buckley (the third) was an intense Sumac fan by the way, I've been listening to HAPPY SAD a lot lately (ever since I saw a local band do a cover of "Strange Feeling") and am wondering what to get next. STARSAILOR is supposed to be the big deal, right? ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 14:30:40 -0500 (CDT) From: Jeffrey with 2 Fs Jeffrey Subject: Re: [loud-fans] favorite concert experience On 3 May 2001, Dan Schmidt wrote: > Jeffrey with 2 Fs Jeffrey writes: > > | The best moments of Wire in Chicago, May 10, 2000, were amazing: > | [...] the kind of atonality that would have made Charles Ives cower > | behind his mother's skirts.* > | > | * a reference to an infamous Ives remark, which I can't quite call > | to mind enough to summarize...anyone else know the one I'm thinking > | of? > > The one I know is when some guy was heckling a Carl Ruggles piece > (Ruggles is very sinewy and atonal) and Ives stood up and shouted > something like 'stop being a sissy and use your ears like a man!' (I > checked on the web and there are like ten different versions of the > story, so who knows what the original was.) yeah, that's the one I'm thinking of - in the version I heard, it was more explicitly "take dissonance like a man" (so, uh, how exactly does a man "take" dissonance anyway?). I always thought that was quite funny. - --Jeff J e f f r e y N o r m a n The Architectural Dance Society www.uwm.edu/~jenor/ADS.html ::Some days, you just can't get rid of a bomb:: __Batman__ ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 15:41:34 -0400 From: Dana L Paoli Subject: Re: [loud-fans] Tedious list server enquiry Given that the effort of *writing* a message is always greater than the effort of editing the headers, I'm really not sure why all the clamor for this simplification. >>>>>>. I just like saying "Munge the smoes" and was hoping it would catch on. - --dana ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 13:52:41 -0600 From: Roger Winston Subject: Re: [loud-fans] Tedious list server enquiry Dana L Paoli on 2001/05/03 Thu PM 03:41:34 MDT wrote: > I just like saying "Munge the smoes" and was hoping it would catch on. Just so I get it right, is that pronounced "Munge the smows" (rhymes with "crows") or "Munge the smow-ies" (rhymes with "Foleys")? Please do not read this line, Later. --Rog - -- When toads are not enough: http://www.reignoffrogs.com ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 12:56:00 -0700 From: Tim_Walters@digidesign.com Subject: Re: [loud-fans] Tedious list server enquiry >Some of the folks in this discussion probably weren't here when some folks >were pretty upset by messages sent to the list that were intended only for >a single person. I was - and I don't really want to see the list go >through that sort of thing again. Likewise. But please note that that incident happened under the current system, not the proposed system. In fact, the current system might even be to blame--manual adjustment of the headers is far more prone to error. The lesson I take from that incident, and others like it that I've seen, is that every e-mail is potentially a public document--one is always a few erroneous keystrokes, yours or someone else's, away from a goof. I prefer to have the need for caution up front, where I can more easily keep it in mind. Caveat scriptor. Interestingly, Lotus Notes has a "feature" far more dangerous than either of the two alternatives we're considering: when you decide not to send that rash flame you've been typing, and close the window, you get a dialog asking you what you want to do with it. Guess what the default is? That's right, "send message". Which is, of course, both the most dangerous and least frequently desired option. Nice one. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 16:27:11 -0400 From: Dana L Paoli Subject: [loud-fans] munge the smoes (ns) > I just like saying "Munge the smoes" and was hoping it would catch on. Just so I get it right, is that pronounced "Munge the smows" (rhymes with "crows") or "Munge the smow-ies" (rhymes with "Foleys")? >>>>>>>> I was thinking "smows," but "Munge the smowies," does sound cuter. I think it's something you do when the smoes get wet. I'm really trying to add content, but it's just not happening today. - --dana ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 13:26:12 +0800 From: Elizabeth Setler Subject: [loud-fans] Various recent topics Hey kids, There have been a bunch of things I wanted to comment on, but I've been busy and out of town and stuff. The following is my attempt at consolidated catching up. Someone mentioned Yazbek's work on The Full Monty. As the one dork who had the soundtrack listed in her year-end list, I feel uniquely qualified to answer. :-) He wrote all the lyrics and music, and even though it's got a whiff of The Theater about it, it's still quite recognizable as his work. We saw a preview of the show in San Diego and even my non-musical-theater-fan boyfriend thought it was pretty great. But if you can't quite make the stylistic leap, he's got a new album called Damascus coming out on July 19th. Vocal ranges: I'm kinda surprised that the max is around 4 1/2 octaves, as I had that back when I was actually working on my voice, and it never occurred to me that I might have the hugest range in the world. That said, there's no reason on earth you'd ever need that many notes except to annoy your friends. I do wince when music critics don't seem to have any concept of what an octave is; my latest annoyance was a positive review of the Solipsistics' Jesus of the Apes that contained the sentence: "Imagine if Stephin Merritt sang a couple of octaves higher and wasn't gay." There are several things about that that irritate me (what the hell does gay have to do with anything?), but even if the writer was trying to be funny with the octaves thing, I think he created a misleading impression of what the music actually sounds like. Favorite concert experience: There have been dozens of candidates, but one stands out a bit. About four years ago, I went to Largo for the evil and cruel purpose of bringing a friend to marvel at the badness of Andrew Dorff's performance. I did this regularly, and while I can't say I'm proud of this, damn, it was funny. Just as we were planning to leave, I was introduced to a fascinating gentleman, which delayed our departure long enough that we saw Rickie Lee Jones and Jon Brion walk in through the back. Apparently, Rickie Lee had called the club and asked if she could come down and sing because she was depressed. I actually wasn't a fan of hers, but what with the fascinating gentleman factor, I decided to stick around. -us and maybe 12 or 15 other people. The two of them played into the wee hours of the morning - mostly standards and Beatles songs - and it was the most gorgeous music I've ever heard. Just absolute raw, pure, intense emotion filtered into great songs. The bonus is that the fascinating gentleman and I have been happily shacked up ever since... :-) My other live favorites, most of whom I've seen so many times it's impossible to pick one show as a standout: Richard Thompson, Andy Prieboy, Crowded House, Old 97's, Vinx, Terry Reid, Mother's Finest, and usually Jon Brion, although he's inconsistent by design. Reply-to: I'm actually perfectly happy either way, but I hate when a list I'm used to changes its setup. Creature of habit, I guess. My two most embarrassing private-email-sent-to-list stories took place on a reply-to-author list anyway. (The worst one, a late-night diatribe from a guy I'd briefly dated on what was wrong with the way I ran my life, was even weirder... he'd been unsubscribed from the list in question for months, and suddenly his mailer started CCing all his mail to the listserv. ) Tattoos: When I was young and foolish, I thought they were icky (although most of my friends had them). Now that I'm in my mid-30s, I kind of want one. I wonder how much it would mess up my future? ;-) I think that's all! - -- Elizabeth ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 15:55:21 -0500 (CDT) From: Jeffrey with 2 Fs Jeffrey Subject: [loud-fans] Andrea's swap tape (pt. 1) Andrea Weiss sent me a tape entitled "Tapers' Delight" (I was sort of hoping it would be "tapirs' delight" and all about ant-devouring animals...). Here's what I think of the first part: Dar Williams "It Happens Everyday": Williams writes a good song, but she has that somewhat too "nice" voice endemic to folk-based singers. Fortunately, in her case it has a bit of sand around the edges so as to irritate that sweater-in-a-Volvo affect. The cheesy synth patch ruins what would otherwise be a simple arrangement of acoustic guitar, bass, and minimal percussion - whoever's responsible should start taunting a gun-wielding Eminem. The song makes me interested, the cheese not. Blake Babies "Nothing Ever Happens": This one doesn't do much for me. It's not as interesting as the best of Juliana Hatfield's solo material, partly because it's saddled with run-of-the-mill chords (something Hatfield usually avoids) and yet another pointless synth, in this case of the gnat-like analog tweezed variety. But hey - she sings a whole lot better than she did in the Babies' first go-round. (Nope, I'm not really signing up for the Anti-Synth Brigade...) Morrie Amsterdam - I mean Merrie Amsterburg "Radio": Along with a muted, plucked guitar backdrop, the chorus features a couple of game, Bacharach trumpets - nice. The middle eight slows down and adds a nice touch: some distant, buzzing guitars that fooled me at first into thinking there was a string section. Pretty AAA, but in a good way. Joni Mitchell "You Turn Me On, I'm a Radio": More praise should be directed Joni Mitchell's way: she's been highly influential, and she's never tied herself down to any particular sound, yet her odd streak always wins out no matter what style she's trying. This early folk-rock number is enlivened by her inimitable sense of vocal phrasing. Okay, she hasn't done much interesting for the last fifteen years - but neither has Bob Dylan, and he still gets to wear the Legend hat - at least when his coroner lets him outside. Teenage Fanclub "Sparky's Dream": I'm not sure why, but TFC is one of those bands that I overlook all the time - and then every time I hear one of their songs, especially one of their better ones like this one, I have to ask why I keep neglecting them. Dunno... Cotton Mather "My Before and After": _Kon-Tiki_ is still one of my favorite ablums of the '90s, and this is one of my favorite songs on that album, which seems to be generally a Loudfans fave. Still don't understand why Sharples doesn't care that much for it, though - oh well... Amy Correia "The Bike": Didn't every song on the radio two years ago have this same beat - 2/3 Dave Matthews and 1/3 hip-hop? Plus, the same chord sequence for both verse and chorus, and - wow! - loud guitars and louder, higher singing to let you know when the chorus has come around! Okay, to be fair, the bridge is pretty nice - the mysterious discovery of the Fourth Chord. Barenaked Ladies "Go Home": I admit I'm predisposed to dislike this track, so I pretended it was by someone else, since Barenaked Ladies are generally intensely annoying - and possessed of nearly the stupidest name in music. The results? This is okay, really: a jaunty beat led by electric piano, almost a slightly country feel, nasal vocals which I'm not sure aren't why I'm thinking "country" at all, a pretty sure-footed pop sense, and for some reason the glockenspiel accents on the chorus make me think of _Sesame Street_. Go figure... Kirsty MacColl "In These Shoes": Fun little Latinesque coat-tail hanger-on - - witty lyrics, ace florid trumpet solos. As I said, "fun." Liz Phair "Headache": I'm assuming 95% of Loudfans know this song - but I'll take the opportunity to gripe slightly about Ms. Phair. I really wish she could write more quickly - she's risking a Gabriel-like production rate (that's Peter, not Jon) without the several big singles to sustain it, and like Peter, it seems each album is getting weaker in the songwriting department. (Okay, with Gabriel that started only when he started giving real titles to his CDs: everything just called "Peter Gabriel" is just fine - including the not-really-titled "Security") Sarah Harmer "Weekend State": Nice pun! This is very cool - I like the insistent rhythm guitar in the right channel, and the low-lying, wah-wah lead in the other speaker. The middle eight throws in a cello duo (!) - I too may have to take up Jer Fairall's recommendation here. Michael Penn "Coal": Andrea writes, "A lost classic from someone who has many of them." Absolutely - the creative bankruptcy of the music industry is demonstrated by its inability to make a career out of Penn's consistently fine albums. C'mon, he's not *that* hard for people to get - and besides, he's good looking, has famous brothers...geez. The Roches "Bobby's Song": "He was in a car crash, he plays the clarinet / He's trying to stop drinking / but his girlfriend hasn't left him yet"... Thank you, Andrea, for reminding me of these folks. There's some records in my attic I've got to get out! Side two coming later. - --Jeff J e f f r e y N o r m a n The Architectural Dance Society www.uwm.edu/~jenor/ADS.html ::In terms of the conjunctures of cultures, [LA is] less like a salad bowl ::and more like a TV dinner with those little aluminium barriers keeping ::all the vegetables in their places. __Catherine Ann Driscoll__ ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 13:57:25 -0700 From: bbradley@namesecure.com Subject: [loud-fans] irritating people humming at work i should preface this by saying that the incessant wind, which i loathe, has me all wound up today. there's a pun there somewhere.... and the guy across from me is humming yankee doodle dandy over and over and over again. and i know why. the fax machine is turned all the way up, and the number they always fax to is the beginnning of the melody line for that song. i'm gonna throttle him. there's a dilbert comic strip in THERE somewhere... speaking of no content.... - -- brianna bradley web designer, web ops http://namesecure.com IT ALL STARTS WITH A WEB ADDRESS tel: 925.609.1101 x206 fax: 925.609.1112 "The sum of the intelligence on the planet is a constant; the population is growing." Cole's Axiom http://startrekonice.com ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 16:06:01 -0500 (CDT) From: Jeffrey with 2 Fs Jeffrey Subject: [loud-fans] actual praise for actual businesses! Yep, it's true. First up is Sanctuary Records in England, who now own the Castle label. After getting two defective copies of the single-CD issue of the first two Sparks albums from CDNow, I tried a different tack to get a good copy and wrote directly to the e-mail address of the label listed in the packaging. To my surprise (I really was just winging it), I got a response within a day or so stating that the person would acquire a copy of the CD, test it, and send it my way at no charge if it proved to be non-defective. The non-defective copy arrived yesterday, only about two weeks after my initial e-mail. Bravo! And second: I was having trouble finding a copy of the latest Fall recording, _The Unutterable_. On the Fall's website, there's a link to Action Records, an independent shop in Preston (no idea where in the UK Preston is, but anyway...). Counting the 10% discount for coming from the Fall website, I was able to get this import CD for only $16.24 American, including shipping - and it arrived within a week. (Remember that CD prices in the UK are generally higher than in the US, too). Since I usually complain about the stupid record industry and the ignorant labels and the annoying, overpriced mall chains, I figure some praise is overdue - and if this message causes havoc amongst the bots for overshooting hitherto well-hewed-to parameters for my posts, well, so be it. - --Jeffrey with 2 Es Jeffrey, with a goatee and a pinkie that won't bend J e f f r e y N o r m a n The Architectural Dance Society www.uwm.edu/~jenor/ADS.html ::glibby glop gloopy nibby nobby noopy la la la la lo:: ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 16:12:24 -0500 (CDT) From: Jeffrey with 2 Fs Jeffrey Subject: Re: [loud-fans] irritating people humming at work On Thu, 3 May 2001 bbradley@namesecure.com wrote: > i should preface this by saying that the incessant wind, which i loathe, has > me all wound up today. there's a pun there somewhere.... wind/wind? > and the guy across from me is humming yankee doodle dandy over and over and > over again. > > and i know why. > > the fax machine is turned all the way up, and the number they always fax to > is the beginnning of the melody line for that song. > > i'm gonna throttle him. there's a dilbert comic strip in THERE somewhere... Also a vignette from a Nicholson Baker novel: there's this bit where songs people whistle or hum at work get transferred, one person to the other, so that a character notices a cow-orker whistling (say) "Yes We Have No Bananas" in the morning as he exits the men's room...and hears it again, from someone else, as he's entering the men's room, late in the afternoon... - --Jeffrey with 2 Fs Jeffrey, Discontent Provider J e f f r e y N o r m a n The Architectural Dance Society www.uwm.edu/~jenor/ADS.html ::beliefs are ideas going bald:: __Francis Picabia__ ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 14:49:59 -0700 From: Tim_Walters@digidesign.com Subject: Re: [loud-fans] Andrea's swap tape (pt. 1) >Joni Mitchell .... Okay, she hasn't done >much interesting for the last fifteen years TURBULENT INDIGO is quite good. Not FOR THE ROSES good, but good. Mange the shmoos, Tim ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 18:01:02 -0400 (EDT) From: Aaron Mandel Subject: Re: [loud-fans] actual praise for actual businesses! On Thu, 3 May 2001, Jeffrey with 2 Fs Jeffrey wrote: > First up is Sanctuary Records in England, who now own the Castle label. i think these people were also implicated in the three Wah! reissues that came out last week. actually, they seem to have reissued a *lot* of oldies; the handful of early 80s Brit discs i knew them from are, it seems, the lot. a ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 03 May 2001 18:50:09 -0400 From: Michael Bowen Subject: [loud-fans] Today in the used bins... I know that some of you have been searching for CD reissues of '80s and early '90s Amerindie stuff; I found the following in a local used bin today: Algebra Suicide, SWOON (including cuts from ALPHA CUE) Babylon Dance Band, s/t K. McCarty, DEAD DOG'S EYEBALL (Songs of Daniel Johnston) Sex Clark Five, ANTEDIUM Each was priced at US$5.99 - email me if you'd like me to pick any of these up for you. Hoping I made someone's day, Michael Bowen ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 03 May 2001 18:51:57 -0400 From: Michael Bowen Subject: [loud-fans] Dumptruck I saw a new Dumptruck CD today called LEMMINGS INTO THE SEA. The sticker says that it features a separate CD of live tracks from 1986 - 1989. Is that the period that Kevin Salem was playing guitar with them? MB ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 18:09:48 -0500 (CDT) From: Jeffrey with 2 Fs Jeffrey Subject: [loud-fans] The rest of Andrea's tape Side B begins with: The Go-Go's: "Yes or No": Co-written by Jane Wiedlin and the Mael brothers from Sparks, this song is less frothy than I remember the songs on the first album as being (this one's from _Talk Show_, the follow-up - or was that their third album?). A solid song - some arranging ideas mark it as a product of the mid-eighties, but most wouldn't sound terribly out of place today. Good stuff. Julia Darling "Bulletproof Belief": Jon Brion plays guitar here, and the arrangement seems to bear his stamp as well (did he produce or arrange, too?) Nice moody keyboard sound, and Darling's got an appealingly quavery vocal timbre that works well with the sound. I'm reminded a bit of Sam Phillips wihtout the twang - another one for me to check out. Badly Drawn Boy "Bewilderbeast": I almost typed the title "Bewilderbeats," which would have been an improvement. "Sometimes you don't need words to say what you mean," says Andrea of this instrumental. Yes...but also true when you have nothing to say. Ehhh. Jane Wiedlin "The Good Wife": Another winning Jane Wiedlin song - the shuddering tremolo guitars after the bridge are particularly cool. Andrea says the lyrics show Wiedlin being "a little hard on herself" in this song written in the wake of her divorce - but I read the ostensibly self-critical lyrics as sarcastic, a riposte to the absurd expectations that (it would seem) a "good wife" would be all sugar and no spice. Andrea also notes that if I buy the album, I should check out the photos within, particularly "her topless photo, and the one where she is sitting on top of this woman pulling back her hair, both in lacy corsets, with the woman who is on the bottom the toenail painter. You may think differently about this song after that." I probably would - if I could focus on the *song*... The Rheostatics "The Headless One": Y'know, I used to be afraid of this song...but I no longer fear "The Headless One." (groan) Fans of quirky pop a la Anton Barbeau or XTC should like this (despite its not sounding like either of them), as it's arranged with intense cleverness for a variety of instruments in addition to the usual rock band, and it navigates some tricky meter changes with grace (including a very wicked and positively prog guitar part leading into the chorus). Sicne I have a whole bunch of records by XTC and by Anton, plus a fair amount of prog rock, why don't I have anything by these folks? Badly Drawn Boy "Fall in a River": I like this one much better than the other one - it begins with a cool, in-the-distance effect and maintains a slightly off-center sound even though, compositionally, it's primarily a "nice folk song" as Andrea says. Ends with Alice floating down the bathtub drain to Wonderland... Paul Westerberg "Dyslexic Heart": What proved (to me) to be Paul's last gasp, this is a nice, clever single built around its titular metaphor. But the other track on the _Singles_ soundtrack by Westerberg is forgettable (literally - I can't remember it), _13 Songs_ or whatever even more so - and then there was that execrable version of "Let's Do It." I've heard some folks say _Suicaine Gratifaction_ (speaking of dumb-ass names) was a comeback - but I heard that about _13 Songs_ in relation to the _Singles_ songs too. Jill Sobule "Big Shoes": The second shoe song on this tape. I'm a bit mystified that Sobule's not more popular here - she writes a catchy tune, sings clever lyrics, and her songs sport appealing arrangements (this one topped with piano and horns) - so what gives? The Alice Project "Uncle": Jersey band (if I'm remembering Andrea's locale correctly) - only okay for me, but it boasts an interestingly jazzy piano solo near the end that's pretty unusual for this sort of folky rock song. The Tuesdays "Too Late to Be Good": Andrea says this band of Swedes "sound a lot like the Bangles." Holy apes, they sure do - when the chorus kicked in, I kept visualizing Susanna Hoffs (and had to take a cold shower. I'll be here all week - thank you very much, and have a safe drive home). Really, though - this is pretty good in a very Bangles-y way, but the guitar solo is strictly from commercial - that bending the G string to the same pitch as the B string thing, plus mega-vibrato. Oh well - at least they didn't hire fellow Swede Yngvie Malmsteen to spray 128th notes all over everything. Casey Scott "Paradise Lost": Have you checked by the dashboard light? Anyway, this sounds like an overlong, live version of this song, which features witty, rapid-fire lyrics, with one of those falling-down-the-stairs 6/8 rhythms. Okay - but her vocals are full enough of annoying tics that I don't think I'd like a whole album of it. So a nice collection of songs with several bands I hadn't heard that are worth checking out. Thanks, Andrea! - --Jeff J e f f r e y N o r m a n The Architectural Dance Society www.uwm.edu/~jenor/ADS.html ::This album is dedicated to anyone who started out as an animal and ::winds up as a processing unit. __Soft Boys, note, CAN OF BEES__ np: The Fletcher Pratt _Nine by Nine_ ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 19:11:40 -0400 From: Dana L Paoli Subject: Re: [loud-fans] Today in the used bins... Sex Clark Five, ANTEDIUM >>>>>>>>> All of the guide books seem to disagree with me, but this is easily my favorite of their albums (everyone else says to buy the first one). Especially given that it's hard to find, I'd strongly suggest that someone go for it!! The song "Fool I Was" from this is IMHO the best thing they ever did. And do you really want to live your life without hearing "America Under the Mongol Yoke Prelude"? - --dana ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 13:32:20 -1000 From: "R. Kevin Doyle" Subject: RE: [loud-fans] favorite concert experience Somebody already mentioned seeing REM on the '85 "Fables of the Reconstruction" tour. I also remember that train whistle soaring into 'Feeling Gravity's Pull,' though I remember it at Toad's Place in New Haven. At the time, I remember meeting a girl who I never saw before or since and spending the whole night dancing with her. Awesome, awesome show... But, what really made it spectacular was... The next night I got to see Squeeze, the Hooters and The Truth (the marquee read 'Squeeze Hooters') at the same venue. I had seen Squeeze play their "farewell" version of "Pulling Muscles" on SNL a few years earlier and *never* had thought I'd have a chance to see them. They were great, but the highlight of the night was Michael Q. singing "Her Head's Revolving." He was a little angry at certain portions of the audience, and, as a result, the band launched into that song with this, for lack of a better term, beautiful pop fury. The bland Hooters were unfortunately book ended between a killer opening set by the Truth and a slick, nostalgic concert performance of (essentially) 'Singles 45's and Under.' Then there was the U2 Unforgettable Fire show about a year earlier, back when Bono was still earnest... I was close enough to lick him at one point. I didn't, but the point is, I could have. R. Kevin Honolulu ------------------------------ Date: 3 May 2001 16:42:29 -0700 From: mbowen@samoyedsoft.com Subject: Re: [loud-fans] The rest of Andrea's tape On Thu, 03 May 2001, Jeffrey with 2 Fs Jeffrey wrote: > Paul Westerberg "Dyslexic Heart": What proved (to me) to be Paul's last > gasp, this is a nice, clever single built around its titular metaphor. But > the other track on the _Singles_ soundtrack by Westerberg is forgettable > (literally - I can't remember it), _13 Songs_ or whatever even more so - > and then there was that execrable version of "Let's Do It." I've heard > some folks say _Suicaine Gratifaction_ (speaking of dumb-ass names) was a > comeback - but I heard that about _13 Songs_ in relation to the _Singles_ > songs too. You left out EVENTUALLY, which is the best of the three Westerberg solo albums, particularly if you like "Dyslexic Heart". His first solo was 14 SONGS, btw. MB np: Garbage - 2.0, The Chills - SOFT BOMB, Mary Lou Lord - GOT NO SHADOW, Tommy Keene - SONGS FROM THE FILM, and The Candyskins - SPACE I'M IN, set on random play; pure pop satisfaction! ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 3 May 2001 19:47:52 -0400 From: David A Seldin Subject: Re: [loud-fans] favorite concert experience I'm way too old to remember all my favorite concert experiences, but here's a few highlights I can dredge up: X at the Channel, Boston, summer of 1982. It was 95 degrees that evening, and twice as hot near the stage. They were absolutely at the top of their game. As wonderful as it was to hear John and Exene harmonize, DJ and Billy were even better. I've never heard a punk band play as musically as they did. Amazing. Mission of Burma opened, which was pretty great too. Talking Heads in Detroit, sometime in 1980. The "big band" tour, which started with David Byrne and a boombox, playing "Pyscho Killer", and ended over 2 hours later with the ten-piece band playing "Take Me to the River" as I danced in the broad center aisle, feeling as much joy as I have in my life. This was before they developed all the trappings that made it into "Stop Making Sense", and the show had an organic, celebratory feel I've never encountered again at a rock show. The Clash at a roller rink outside Detroit, winter of 1980. They opened the general admission doors during their soundcheck, which had the crowd eating out of the palms of their hands before they'd played a note. They were easily living up to their claim to be the best band in the world at that moment. Gang of Four at Second Chance, Ann Arbor, summer of 1981. They were incendiary. I have the soundboard tape of this show, and it doesn't begin to capture the power and funkiness of this show. The Replacements at the Channel, Boston, 1985 (?). During the opening band's set, my friends and I noticed that Bob was standing behind us, sipping a beer and chatting up some girl. Two hours later, they take the stage, Paul asking, "Has anyone seen Bob?" They begin the set, and Bob comes running through the crowd and hops onto stage in time for his first solo. They alternated between goofy covers (I remember the Theme from Green Acres) and punching holes in the smoke-filled air, playing with a clarity and energy that their records only begin to approach. Other good'uns: Ani Difranco at the Orpheum, 1999. Ferron at the Opera House, 1990 (?). Iggy Pop/Ramones at Cleveland's Public Hall, 1977. Ramones/Destroy All Monsters/The Romantics, Second Chance, Ann Arbor, 1979. The Loud Family, 1998, TT's, Cambridge. Elvis Costello and the Brodskey Quartet, Symphony Hall, Boston, 1992. That's all I can think of! David On Wed, 2 May 2001 12:21:03 EDT MarkWStaples@aol.com writes: > I'm interested in knowing what other Loudfans' favorite concert experience > was. Which concert just absolutely was THE spiritual, transcendent > experience that stayed with you for a long time thereafter. The kind where > the band/artist was dead on, there wasn't someone around you being a jackass > and screaming "FREEBIRD" or whatever, and when it was over, you wished it > lasted much longer. The absolute creme de la creme. Perhaps it was a Loud > Family set or, for those of you who were so lucky, a Game Theory set (feeling > pangs of jealousy). I rounded it down to four...the most memorable for me > are FINALLY getting to see the LF last year in Athens, Ani Difranco a few > years back in Asheville, Dar Williams at Variety Playhouse in Atlanta in > early '98, and Suzanne Vega at Spirit Square in Charlotte in 1990. Thinking > about it and rounding it down to one, the absolute best concert experience > for me ever was Suzanne Vega. Spirit square was once a church, so the venue > was exquisite; the audience was polite and adoring, and SV was very receptive > and told stories to the audience between songs. The whole experience was > flawless and captivating. > The little plastic castle is a surprise every time, > -Mark, who just discovered that the guy that murdered the retired couple and > kidnapped their daughter here where I live was the guy who cut down the pecan > tree at my sister's house a few weeks ago...NEAT-O. > ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj. ------------------------------ End of loud-fans-digest V1 #63 ******************************