From: owner-support-system-digest@smoe.org (support-system-digest) To: support-system-digest@smoe.org Subject: support-system-digest V3 #280 Reply-To: support-system@smoe.org Sender: owner-support-system-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-support-system-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk support-system-digest Wednesday, October 18 2000 Volume 03 : Number 280 Today's Subjects: ----------------- a new pic at Mesmerizing [Kenneth Lee ] Badly Drawn stuff [Jason Long ] OT: Badly Drawn Boy review [Jason Long ] kristin hersh concert [Ascending to the Stars ] More off-topic stuff (but not about Badly Drawn Boy) [Jason Long ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 00:28:41 From: Kenneth Lee Subject: a new pic at Mesmerizing Technically, it's not really a new pic, but an older picture. You've seen some pics from this photo shoot, but not this one (I think). It's from a Japanese magazine "Rockin' On" dated April 1994. Yes, I am now scouring the earth for *new* Liz material. as always, enjoy! - -Ken kenmlee@ix.netcom.com MeSmErIzInG - AnOtHeR LiZ PhAiR WeBsItE http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Club/2471/ ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 07:16:06 -0400 From: Jason Long Subject: Badly Drawn stuff Adele wrote: >I've been a lurker on this list for way too long, so here goes: >When I saw Jase's NP about Badly Drawn Boy, I just had to respond. This >summer, I became OBSESSED with Damon Gough ( =BDB). His album, The Hour of >the Bewilderbeast, is the most musically and lyrically stimulating album >since... well, since Exile, at least in my opinion. It's absolutely >brilliant. It has a really lo-fi feel, kind of like he's sitting in the >room with you, messing around on his guitar just for your entertainment. >But at the same time, the album has this careful, cragted feel, as if it's >more than just music being played. You feel like you're listening to a >entire musical experience. Every sound matters and every sound, even the >odd ones, are beautiful and interesting. and Lynda wrote: >NP: Badly Drawn Boy, _The Hour of Bewilderbeast_ > >is this album good? someone has told me about them/him (whatever it >is)...........they will be playing at the 9.30 club........should i check it >out??? >any advice is great!!! I'm not sure if I can recommend going to see Badly Drawn Boy live; from what I've heard, his live shows are pretty hit-and-miss. Some nights Damon's delivers the goods; others, he's a disappointment. Of course, one thing to remember is that early on, Liz didn't have a reputation as a strong live performer -- but there's a heck of a lot of people who still wish they had the opportunity to see one of those early shows. And I'm sure that if Damon Gough's career progresses the way I hope it does, there will be a lot of people in a few years kicking themselves for not seeing him now. Is the album good? Overwhelmingly so. If you do decide against seeing him live, at least pick up the CD; it may just be the best music I've heard in a long while. For me, while I liked much of it from the start, I found that it did take several listens to fully sink in, and at this point, I'm addicted. As Adele wrote, it is a very interesting album, both musically and lyrically. It does give the impression of being one artist's singular vision, completely untampered with, which does give it something in common with _Exile in Guyville_. It also has a very personal and intimate feel, and even though the arrangements aren't always conventional nor what you expect, there is a strange beauty to them. Also, again borrowing from Adele's thoughts, the album does seem well-crafted and thought out, but it never feels belabored over. It feels very fresh to me -- especially given the current musical climate -- the way that _Guyville_, _Gun Shy Trigger Happy_, _Dig Me Out_ and _Slanted and Enchanted_ did (but, I must point out, I'm not comparing this album's sound to any of the aforementioned, just the quality). Like all things, this album definitely isn't for everyone; Steve Kisko mentioned to me in a private e-mail that the album has been getting a lot of raves on the Elliott Smith list and it does seem to me that fans of Smith's style of songwriting, although not particularly his sound, would probably be the most apt to enjoy it, as well as those who favor Liz's _Guyville_ over her later releases. One thing about the Badly Drawn Boy album is that listening to it now, it reminds me of a discussion I had with fellow list member Nora a month or so ago. We had gotten to talking about all the music released this year that we liked, and while we agreed that there were a lot of new albums we enjoyed, we were still both somewhat dissatisfied because there hadn't been anything yet that had completely floored us. Most of the albums we liked were released by artists we were already fans of, whose records are pretty consistent in terms of quality. The new albums by people like Michael Penn and XTC were great, above average releases by both, but hardly surprising; at this point, it's easy to take for granted that their albums will be of a certain standard. As one critic stated in a review of the latter's _Wasp Star_, "Ho hum, another great XTC record." Even Sleater-Kinney and Elastica, both of whom outdid themselves with their new records, fell just a little short of stunning me -- high expectations of both bands probably factors into my reactions, though. One of the closest things to a completely revelatory album this year for me would have been Aimee Mann's _Bachelor No. 2_, and while I still find it amazing, it's easy to take it for granted as well. Yes, it is pretty much Aimee's finest hour, but having already heard many of its songs on either the limited preview EP sold at her shows last year or on the _Magnolia_ soundtrack, I'm not as knocked out as I would have been had the material all been unfamiliar to me (although it does still pack a punch). This Badly Drawn Boy album has filled that void, though. I think I've now got the record that both offers the surprise of the new and is a real stunner. Typical musical junkie that I am, though, let's see if I'm still as enthralled three or four months from now or if I've started chasing after other new treasures. I may be hard to please, but I'm hoping _The Hour of Bewilderbeast_ will hold up well for me. Long response and probably far more rambling than necessary, but I hope this helps. Cheers, Jase P.S. Glad you decided to post, Adele -- always good to hear from some new voices! ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 07:48:12 -0400 From: Jason Long Subject: OT: Badly Drawn Boy review Okay, as if I haven't already posted enough about BDB, but if you're not interested, please just skip over this. I found this review of his album on the Wall of Sound site and thought it might offer up some idea of his actual sound, since I think my earlier post probably failed to do just that. - ---- Badly Drawn Boy The Hour of Bewilderbeast Label: Beggars Banquet Genre: Alternative File Under: Stunning debuts Rating: 88 Oftentimes ineptitude can be mistaken for brilliance, when the warped ramblings of a dilettante become confused for worthwhile innovation. This, happily, is not the case with Badly Drawn Boy, the latest winner of the ultra-prestigious Mercury Music Prize. There are a couple of instances on this disc in which the band's principal (and only) member, Damon Gough, straddles that wiggly line between the nonsensical and the sublime, but by and large, The Hour of Bewilderbeast is a remarkably refreshing creative achievement. Since debuting with this album in the United Kingdom earlier this year, Gough has been likened to monomaniacal creators like Nick Drake, Sebadoh, and Elliott Smith, all of whom factor into Gough's quirky, melodic craftsmanship. In songs like "Stone on the Water," his shimmering acoustic guitar and sad cello overlay echo the sound of his brooding hero Drake, while "Another Pearl" resonates with the kind of post-punk indie rock sound championed by bands like Sebadoh and Guided by Voices. Between tracks, on odd little segues and doodles, Gough indulges his darker, more idiosyncratic sides, most effectively on the excellent, Beatles-esque "Blistered Heart" and the accordion anthem "Bewilder." These moments are giddy, evocative interludes that set the listener up for the songwriter's truest moments, songs like the lounge-y pop gem "Once Around the Block," the Paul Simon-styled "This Song," and the glorious acoustic "Camping Next to Water." There's a spontaneity about The Hour of Bewilderbeast, a virtual effortlessness on Gough's behalf, that transforms the record from a typical independent project to a gift from an immensely talented artist. Here's hoping it's not merely a fluke. - Bob Gulla ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 09:21:44 -0400 From: Ascending to the Stars Subject: kristin hersh concert well, not much up with liz these days, but i am very happy because there are actually a bunch of concerts i want to go to. yeah! i was getting very depressed over the summer with the lack of interested shows. but anyways... for all the greater boston area folks, kristin hersh is playing 2 shows this sunday, 10/22 at the brattle theater in harvard square. this is a perfect venue for kristin to play solo shows-- i saw here there a couple years ago (After strange angels came out-- spring of 1998?) and its just awesome. kind of like the knitting factory, but all seats. anyways, the shows are at 7 and 9:30pm, and the concert is entitled "works in progress." tickets are $15 in advance, $17 dos, so if you have the time and the money, definitely check it out. i'll be there, so it has to be cool (:ruthie:), trying to figure out if she'll be back from her darmouth interview on thursday in time to 1) tutor, and 2) catch death cab for cutie at the middle east ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 09:37:00 -0400 From: Jason Long Subject: More off-topic stuff (but not about Badly Drawn Boy) Some responses to responses to my tape swap review... Becky wrote: >shoulder holster is from morcheeba's 'big calm.' it's >a great album. a song from that album also made it >onto the mix tape i made. Thanks to both you and Wendy for letting me know which album "Shoulder Holster" is on. Needless to say, _Big Calm_ will now be going on my "must get" list -- can't wait to hear more from them. >(um....is mine coming soon?) If anyone still hasn't received their mix tape or CD from the swap, it probably wouldn't be a bad idea to e-mail a reminder to whoever was supposed to make yours for you. If you're met with no response, please e-mail me. I really hate to do this, but anyone who reneges on sending a mix will be disqualified from participating in any future swaps. o wrote: >first of all, this particular song almost demands the context of the entire >'basement tapes' album. greil marcus' liner notes are excellent and the >entire album works as a collection of ghostly, timeless songs. but just any >one of them would have a hard time if surrounded by more polished, >not-so-timeless songs. the tape you're describing does sound like a really >good, smart set of songs. this one selection just seems a bit out of place. I guess in many cases, context is everything, which is something I hadn't stopped to consider. I now have to wonder how certain songs I included on the tape I made for Paige will sound outside of the context of their albums... >the new yorker magazine has a review of the 'beatles >anthology' book this week, and the writer points out that between 8/65 and >8/66, the beatles released 3 lp's (this is the count in british lp's -- in >the u.s. capitol actually released 4 lp's including singles not on the >british versions). those lp's were 'help', 'rubber soul', and 'revolver'. >10 months later they released 'sgt. pepper'. NOBODY does that anymore. no >one is capable, first of all. but second, labels are so cautious about >releasing too many titles from one performer that they'll actually >discourage more than one album every 18 months or so. It is impressive to think of how prolific the Beatles were, while managing to maintain such a high level of quality. I think there are a couple of things to remember, though: back then, they didn't have to waste time making videos or doing the amount of press that prominent bands now need to do just to stay in the spotlight. It seemed like the public was much less fickle then, and less ready to move on to the next thing right away. Also, once the Beatles stopped touring, they were able to devote all of their time to writing and recording, which certainly helped them maintain such a high level of output. And having more time to spend making their albums, they were able to take the time to experiment more, which gave birth to their more groundbreaking records. Of course, as you said, most labels now won't even consider putting out an album by a band unless it's been a couple of years since the previous one (maybe this is part of why bands have to do so much to stay visible). This is part of why I'm surprised that both Radiohead and Everclear are both planning on putting out companion pieces to their current albums less than a year after their releases. >so, dylan's released, what, 33 albums in 35 years, not counting live and >greatest hits packages. some of them are losers, no question, but who even >TRIES to work that hard at exploring and documenting musical and lyrical >directions anymore? (certainly not liz -- who's officially pissed me off, >btw, for taking so goddam long between releases that we are reduced to >reading on this list long-winded diatribes about bob dylan's career and You know, ultimately, I can't be upset about _whitechocolatespaceegg_'s delay given a lot of what we know now. I can't hold anything against Liz for taking time out to get married and have a baby. Also, going back to the '96 Shelved Demos/Studio Recordings tape, it's easy to see why she wanted to start from scratch; there was some promising material but it seemed like Scott Litt and Liz were not on the same wavelength. And of course, once Liz did have the first version of the record completed, it fell victim to the sort of label politics that were enough to make Aimee Mann tell Interscope to fuck off, but simply found Liz willing to go back and write and record a bunch more material until she came up with something they felt had more commercial potential. I almost wonder if that's what is happening this time as well, and that's why no new record is in sight. It'll be interesting once something is released, and the story of the record's genesis starts comes out in interviews. So for now, while I'm irritated by all the delays, I'm waiting to see what the reasoning behind them is before I pass judgement. >finally, for anyone who saw both, i have to say that the sleater-kinney show >at 930 in d.c. on 9/27 was SO much more kick-ass than their earlier visit in >may or june. it was like a different, much better, much more excited band. >they even had a couple of extended guitar breaks, and they appeared to be >having a blast. It seems like most people who saw them on this last set of dates are in agreement with you. I hadn't seem them all since they toured for _The Hot Rock_, but there was no comparison between the band I saw a year ago and the one I saw last month. They're one of the rare bands who just keep getting better. When they played "Dig Me Out" they extended the outro to the point where the tension was almost unbearable -- it was probably the most explosive performance I've seen at any show this year. And let me say, if they sound as excited on their next record as they have live recently, it's going to kick the ass of anything that comes within miles of it. Thanks to DarkSide, Peter and Mike for their Dylan recommendations. I think for now, my next purchase will be _Blood on the Tracks_, then maybe _Desire_. It's great to know that I still have so much to discover after those. Mike, thanks also for the advice on Tom Waits. I'm still not sure which of your recommendations I'll start with, but I'm keeping the list handy; a lot may depend on what titles are in stock when I go searching (I've never seen more than a couple of his discs in the bins at a time at any of the stores I usually frequent). Okay, I need to stop posting before this turns into an all-Jase digest... Cheers, Jase NP: Game Theory, _The Real Nighttime_ ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 16:11:43 EDT From: BeeFly27@aol.com Subject: tape swap are you out there? i know i am a horrible person. i have yet to send my cd out. i was ultra busy and then i had all kinds of problems with the computer and the burner. generally though im an ass that is irresponsible. so i cant remember who i was supposed to send my tape too. thats horrible huh? well i think its stacey but if you will email me with your address. i know i asked you a second time but then the computer broke and stuff and i lost it. thanks bunches ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2000 18:32:57 EDT From: AWeiss4338@aol.com Subject: This will make your day I read Bilboard regurally, and saw this today in it. On page 16 there is a photo of Liz, new, with the president of Capitol records, Roy Lott and this caption under it. She's got a nice smile:). 'In The Studio: Rocker Liz Phair is currently working on her next studio collection, her first since 1998's WCSE. Here she is pictured with Capitol Records president Roy Lott, in Studio A at the historic Capitol records tower in LA. The set is planned for release during mid 2001.' So now we have confirmation that Liz is working on her album and a release period. Mid 2001, I'd say late spring, all of summer. Great news, save your money for next year. I suspect that in the next few months we'll hear more about this. Andrea aweiss4338@aol.com ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 16 Oct 2000 20:01:38 -0500 From: "Wendy Bryant" Subject: a favor i've been a steady reader of this mailing list of a long time. and, i always hear various folks talk about artists. and, either i can never find their cd or im too cheap to buy something that i hardly know or know via sound clips. i was wondering if someone would make me a tape or cd? i have lots of music myself and a few bootlegs of ani difranco, tori amos and even some liz phair. email me and we can work something out. the artists that i was manily interested in include le tigre belle and sebastion (sp?) badly drawn boy sleater-kinney cat power ben lee (i feel like im leaving someone off!) i know you folks recently did a tape trade, so i hope there is at least someone out there who isn't sick of the tape/cd making aspect. please ~tongue out, paws up~ *im begging* i'm prompt! you'd get my end of the deal ASAP! Wendy (who is greatly looking foward to the new POE) ------------------------------ End of support-system-digest V3 #280 ************************************