Ben
Struggling Artist
Posts: 86
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Post by Ben on Oct 5, 2011 7:07:29 GMT -5
It's been bloody years since I posted a message here but I thought I'd respond to the "nudge" ha ha!
Sounds eminating from the speakers in my house this year have included (in no particular order):
Preservation: An Album To Benefit Preservation Hall - Preservation Hall Jazz Band and Various Artists (worth owning for the Tom Waits songs alone)
The Whole Love - Wilco
Icehouse (2011 Reissue) - Flowers
Real Eyes - Gil Scott-Heron
Rid of Me - PJ Harvey
Adalita - Adalita
Long Gone Whistle: The Songs of Maurice Frawley - Maurice Frawley
Monks Dream - Thelonious Monk
The Harrow and the Harvest - Gillian Welch
Low - David Bowie
Mingus Ah Um - Charles Mingus
ATLiens - Outkast
National Ransom - Elvis Costello
Womadelaide 2011 - Various
Musical event of the year so far was Bob Dylan followed by Elvis Costello at the Byron Bay Blues Festival back in April. Costello blew Dylan away. And who could forget sinking in the mud to George Clinton the following evening? Well worth the $450 admission!
I hope this message finds all those who still frequent the boards here in the best of health and of course, continuing to dig up as many good sounds as I still seem to be able to in these days of pointless, endless TV talent quests. Just over 3 weeks till the new Tom Waits album hits the shelves. Now there's a reason to smile!!
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Post by strat-0 on Oct 5, 2011 11:35:42 GMT -5
Wow, $450! That's getting pretty steep!
Looks like some good spins goin' on! Now, where's Maarts?
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Post by Ayinger on Oct 5, 2011 18:17:40 GMT -5
Maarts clued me into those ICEHOUSE re-issues.....I'm dying for Primative Man
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Post by RocDoc on Oct 6, 2011 11:08:26 GMT -5
i am really curious to hear that new wilco...there's a webcasted bootleg that's available that i've been meaning to grab. and good to see you glen! and ben, alRIGHT! always love that eclectic tastes first sucking up monk and mingus over to costello/tom waits to outkast. with a dash of 'world' fuckin' A right! a man after my own heart. ~ NP:   no way in hell should this guy be lumped in the title 'jimi imitator' because he's easily one of the most original riff masters i've heard in a long time. i mean if bonamassa's now considered a guitar god, gales at LEAST deserves to be on his very same level. i dig the shit out of bonamassa, but i can only take him in small-ish doses because he nearly overwhelms, same as how i see zappa. this guy's playing i can listen to for hours because somehow for me, he un-spools his stuff in a somewhat different, even MORE exhiliarating way. it's like he's got more of a bluesman in him, like bits of luther allison/albert collins that he draws more from than does joe bonamassa. i'm on my 2nd consecutive listen....absolutely smokin'! |
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Post by RocDoc on Oct 6, 2011 11:23:39 GMT -5
sorry i missed your post up there don, the one that came after the j geils....that's prob my favorite period, though even after freeze frame, they still had their deep r&b cuts in their set, whammer jammer, first i look at the purse, all that shit. a first rate r&b band throughout, but heck, ya gotta pay the bills! at least they didn't try to replace peter wolf with steve perry or some such shit!  |
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Post by Ayinger on Oct 6, 2011 20:01:44 GMT -5
The new ANATHEMA is really really good score. Mellowed out versions of old goth-metal tunes....a lot resorted to airey inststrumentals with 'cookie-monster' vocals tossed aside. Nice, somewhat dark feeling stuff to mellow out to! |
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Ben
Struggling Artist
Posts: 86
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Post by Ben on Oct 7, 2011 8:32:09 GMT -5
Thanks RocDoc - music for every mood! There's just so much great stuff out there, it's impossible not to be eclectic!
I'm still digesting the Wilco album. There's a lot to take in. Early opinion is that's it's better than their last album and at least equal to A Ghost Is Born. Ghost probably had a few more immediate standouts (Late Greats, Company In My Back), but it also had a lot more extended, noodling keyboard work that bored me. This album is probably more even. The extended tracks hang together better and hold your attention more. I'm especially liking the first song, Art of Almost.
Iva Davies will be progressively re-releasing the entire Icehouse back catalogue after striking a deal with Universal music earlier this year. I believe Primitive Man is slated for next year sometime. This year he's done Flowers and a greatest hits package called White Heat. If the Flowers re-release is anything to go by, I'll be picking all of them up. As a seminal Australian album, he's done a great job with it - DVD, bonus tracks, sleeve notes and a much improved sound. Davies has copped some flack from ..... shall we call them the "elite alternative" crowd who either claim he sounds too much like Bowie or that he sold out his initial sound for the latter-day schmaltz of songs like Electric Blue. I think he's had enough good songs to deserve a bit more credit than that. Strip back the 80's production from songs such as Goodnight Mr Matthews, Dusty Pages and On My Mind and you're left with tracks that are as good as anything else the decade had to offer.
At first glance, the $450 Bluesfest admission seems steep but many were claiming it as the best line-up ever assembled by an Australian festival. Aside from Dylan, Costello and Clinton, the lineup included Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi, Blind Boys of Alabama with Aaron Neville, Los Lobos, Grace Jones, Warren Haynes, Paul Kelly, BB King, Tim Finn, Little Feat, Tony Joe White, ZZ Top, Ben Harper, John Legend, Mavis Staples, Michelle Shocked, Gurrumul, Toots & The Maytals, Buffy Sainte-Marie, The Bamboos, Eli "Paperboy" Reed, Eric Bibb, The Meters, Jethro Tull, Leon Russell, Irma Thomas, Rodrigo Y Gabriela, Michael Franti and Raul Malo. Well worth it!
That Eric Gales album sounds amazing. I will have to hunt down some of the tracks and give it a listen ........
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Post by strat-0 on Oct 8, 2011 4:09:07 GMT -5
That is ineed quite a lineup, Ben - I would say that tempers the ticket price! Well worth it! (...Still a little rich for my blood, at the moment.)
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Post by Ayinger on Oct 9, 2011 21:06:12 GMT -5
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Post by RocDoc on Oct 15, 2011 14:01:48 GMT -5
chet atkins rules!! tho it reminds that i haven't listened to him in awhile.:< that chicago power pop just burns in your veins still, don't it, don? shades of those college DJ days, just a hopskipjump from chicago...still, i leaned more toward the houndz back in that day. tho XRT playing shoes and material issue and pezband wasn't anything i'd leap to turn off either. NP:  an absolutely terrific band outta portland oregon i caught wind of while researching the similarly excellent ben sollee while paging through NPR.org. there are 2 of their newport folk festival shows, 2010 and 2011, both of which just floored me (grab them at NPR before these LEGAL dl's expire there), then i looked around for other material and chanced upon this truly wonderful studio album. great compositional sense, with instrumentation incl lots of folksy touches (plus violins! which i of course dig the shit outta), but kyle morton's singing is the clincher - somewhere between perhaps a breathier lindsay buckingham and john lennon, going into the quieter spaces of a band like perhaps, say, XTC. those sorts of VERY nice pop leanings from this band. and those live newport shows, 'quiet' isn't how i'd describe their sets. a very happy-sounding music. i think just about anyone here, past OR present would love these guys. here. this guy bangs it: h**p://pelloalbum.blogspot.com/2010/09/typhoon-hunger-thirst.html
The first chords of this record wash over your face like the gentle swells of tropical lagoon. Dabbled in equitorial sunlight, and swaddled by a curiously warm breeze, this record grabs you, holds you by the shoulders, and tells you softly: everything is going to be ok.
"I've started a new beginning. Suspiciously like the old one, only this time I'm ready."
And then the choral backup vocals come in, and you realize: oh, shit... it really is, isn't it.
And it is. In a way that I cannot really substantiate with examples from the lyrics, I feel rather curiously that this is a record about healing. I think it's the music itself, with it's haunting melodic sensibility, and the careful, rich arrangements. This is an orchestral group of about 10 musicians, and not a one of them is extraneous.
The songwriting is nuanced, whip-smart, and so cohesive that none of the abundant genius comes off as contrived or arrogant. These guys whip two key changes over your head at close range, and you don't even blink; you don't even move. You just breathe and absorb the music. The transitions are so smooth and so seamless that you get goosebumps when you realize that they have started a new song.
The recording is clean and crisp, uncluttered by all the noise (both intentional and unintentional) and meddlesome post processing that has plagued the indy movement in recent years. There's nothing to hide or fudge here. All of the lifting is done by the writing, arrangement, and meticulous performances, delivered to you fresh and unadulterated.
For such a soothing and unhurried offering, 43 minutes goes by extremely fast. When you are at rapt attention, time becomes meaningless as you set yourself aside and just be the music. And maybe that is why I think that this record is about healing, because there is almost nothing more theraputic than leaving all the pettiness and struggle behind for the better part of an hour, not just because you want to, but because you actually can.
[Update 2/3/2011: Typhoon is uncontested as my artist pick for 2010]BANG! ~ Thanks RocDoc - music for every mood! There's just so much great stuff out there, it's impossible not to be eclectic! oh yes! AND it's sort of a blessing and a curse - esp after a simple 3-4 word description already gets you curious about some music someone's talking/writing about. i geek out while anyone else would be 'so? bfd.' that byron bay bluesfest - 3 days worth for that 450? if so, then a hundred and a 1/2 a day, 3 full days of music (with i am sure more than the headline names you tossed out) definitely makes it worth it, tho i sympathize that for most of us that's just a big chunk coming right up front, these days especially...hell, you can go 5 days all-inclusive to mexico for just a little bit more $$$ per person. but for a music lover, that IS vacation. |
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Post by RocDoc on Oct 19, 2011 15:29:01 GMT -5
NP:
Eric Johnson "Tribute to Hendrix"
Various Unknown Dates & Venues - late 90's
(Silver cd "Eric Johnson-Tribute to Jimi Hendrix")
Eric Johnson-gtr,vc
Kyle Brock-bass
Bill Maddox-drums
Setlist:
01. Red House (6:30)
02. Spanish Castle Magic (5:22)
03. The Wind Cries Mary (3:35)
04. Manic Depression (4:00)
05. Axis Bold As Love (6:36)
06. One Rainy Wish (4:36)
07. Are You Experienced (7:13)
08. Love Or Confusion (3:11)
09. Manic Depression (4:02)
10. One Rainy Wish (4:49)
11. Red House (4:52)
12. The Wind Cries Mary (3:35)
13. Spanish Castle Magic (8:08)
14. Little Wing (2:09)
15. Are You Experienced (7:13)
Total time: 72:49
428 MB Sound Quality A-
Lineage: sbd/aud(?)> ?> cd-r> EAC(wav)> flac
my god someone did a great job compiling this!
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Post by bowiglou on Oct 20, 2011 14:11:14 GMT -5
I'm not as cutting edge as I used to be, but here are my recent purchases:
(1) Wild Flag........erstwhile members of Sleater-Kenney, Helmut, etc.......great punk/pop/rock
(2) Ryan Adams--Ashes and Fire (very mellow, but likeable)
(3) Wilco---The Whole Love (I think if Musician did an article on the they would label them the 'best band of USA".....)
(4) Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks--Mirror Traffic (not a huge fan of Pavement, but I do rather like his post-Pavement work)
(5) Blondie--Panic of Girls (mediocre at best but I'm still a sucker for her voice!!)
(6) the Head and the Heart (I like this slew of 'beard rock' bands such as Fleet Foxes, Bon Iver, Iron and Wine, etc..and this fits right in...kinda similar to Mumfords and Sons or whatever they are called!)..oh oh, hope I didn't commit a bowiglouism!...and today I am officially 55 yrs of age, so it's gonna get worse!
(7) The Mountain Goats--All Eternals Deck...for some his voice may grate, but this one is stellar
(8)The Jayhawks--Mockingbird time (I think I need to listen to this one more...I want to like it more but it is somewhat of a languid affair...but similar to Go-Betweens, I have the utmost respect for this band)
(9) Patti Smithi--Outside Society.......to some this is a perfunctory best of, but since I haven't availed myself of any of her collections (just solo albums) this hits the mark!
(10) Girls--Father, Son, Holy Ghost.....I have two of their LPs and they don't disappont......
(11) The Pains of Being Pure at Heart--Belong...though the group's moniker is gag-inducing, I am a sucker for reverby JAMC/MBV type of guitars..this has it in spades
(12) St. Vincent---Strange Mercy...both of her prior releases are very highly applauded by the critics, and I do see why...but wheres critics give her > 8 I give it about a 7......at most..but she is an intriguing artist
(13) Eleanor Friedberger--Last Summer....OK, which group is she from?.....some duo..and I love love love this one!.....
(14) Leon Russell--Best of....oh boy, was I fan of him in the 70s......and what a delight to have this retrospective...I can listen to 'Tight Rope" a dozen times a day and never tire of it!
(15) Lindsey Buckingham--Seeds we Sow.......has had mediocre reviews, but quite frankly I am a big fan of this...in fact, I like it more than his first two solo releases.....
(16) Arches of Loaf--Icky Mettle...well, this re-release got a 94 on metacritic so I gave it a shot, though I was not a huge fan of grunge...some of the songs are too coarse for my taste, but I see the positives in this one..
(17) Glen Campbell--Ghost on the Canvas..an Amazon deal which I never would have bought, and damn this is superb!...very touching in many respects especially given his bout with Alzheimers....
(18) Viva voce--the future will destroy you.........rather enjoy this one
(19) Strange Negotiations--David Bazan...don't have any Pedro the Lion in my collection, but may have to start
(20) The Antlers--Burst Apart...was a lukewarm fan of 'hospice' but much prefer this one
(21) Stephen Kellog and the Sixers--Gift Horse....daily special from Amazon..though not exactly my cup of tea, this unpretentious, almost country/rock LP is quite good
(22) Delta Spirit-Ode to Sunshine......great group from San Diego with the spunk of the Mats...love this one
(23) EMA--Past life Martyred Saints---has gotten favorable reveiws, and some songs resonate..but when a young, ostensibly healthy-20 something talks so deeply about dying I just want to wack them across their occipital lobe and make them get a real job!!
(24) David Kilgour--Frozen Orange...I love anything and everything that germinats from the Flying Nun or related label...
25) WARNING: AMAZON DAILY Deal:...yes, go ahead get your arrows out but I bought the best of, gulp, Hall and Oates..and you know, this old foggie kinda likes hearing Sara Smile, etc after detesting them through the 70s/80s.......
(26) The Rosebuds--Loud Planes Fly Low--love this group..wish the female sang more
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Post by Ayinger on Oct 20, 2011 20:31:15 GMT -5
DOC - would you believe I was streaming a rock station out of Crown Point a few days ago (recently met and FB'd the dj, Tom Lounges....a solid Region Rat who's been writing in area music rags Illinois Entertainer, The Midwest Beat, etc for years and I posted a HOUNDS request and within 15 minutes he tossed on "Workin' On My Cool" ! weird you'd bring them up....
BOW - Heard a cut off WILD FLAG this week too....made me wonder how solid of an album it was. You also have me thinking about the BUCKINGHAM effort....I got Gift Of Screws at a cheap library sale for a couple bucks very soon after it was released and it didn't hit with me much. Recall it was good but...hmmmm,,,,maybe I should revisit it. His earlier Out Of The Cradle I thought was very well done.
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Post by RocDoc on Oct 21, 2011 17:13:03 GMT -5
don, i think you mentioned lounges over at FB awhile back....i DO remember that name because it's so weird.
the only Hounds that i've got is the one with our chicago national anthem, 'Drugland Weekend' - the fact that it was SUCH a popular song here still boggles my mind with it's celebratory 'hell YEAH i'm-a gonna get fucked UP!'-message is for sure one i don't want my own son to hear.
'workin on my cool' sounds familiar tho...
~
Bow, helluva list!
lots of alt-country interestingly - GOOD alt-country mind you!
a nod to your encroaching chronological infundibulum i suppose...dbl-nickels, eh?
last year a group of my 'born in 55' friends had a '5-5-5-5-5-5' party on may the 5th at 5:55 PM at a restaurant near Interstate 55 - tho i doubt ANYone drove 55mph!
i sure didn't.
no DLs anymore, eh?
rarely have i heard that a rar-file would deliver a virus, except a few where it became OBVIOUS something fishy was happening.
more often it's all sorts of redirects of the type which various shitheads would plant at the old RS years ago - except now they go to some sorta whammo-blammo thing that you need to shut down your machine in a hurry, if you're not too late already.
my laptop has needed to be wiped/'system restored' a couple of times already - lost a few things but nothing critical.
family's pictures are kept at a different puter, let alone the backup DVDs i've periodically put together.
~
eleanor friedberger is the niece of an MD who's a good friend of mine - she was in 'fiery furnaces' with her brother - all from out of oak park illinois, a town contiguous to the one i grew up in....a place where i believe rocky sigman said he'd visit family, back in the day.
i also went to a high school there.
the lindsey buckingham is one i've read pretty good reviews for....on the previous page here, i talked up the band typhoon - fwiw, to me their singer has an interesting l buckinghamesque timbre....great album. i think you'd like it.
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Post by bowiglou on Oct 22, 2011 14:25:33 GMT -5
hey Rn..yes, the big 55..we had a collective 55-bday amongst my old cohorts last week and it was a blast...instead of talking about girls, drinking, and surfing we now measure our manliness via how many mg of Lipitor we take for our cholesterol!!!
RN, you prompted me to come back here via your very kind bday message.......and yes, I am a bit of a fan of alt-country/Americana...
I'll have to give a listen to your buckingham reference..and yes, it is Fiery Furances...interesting they are neighbors..I just adore her solo LP
oh everyone ..Ijust bought Real Estate---Days yesterday and it may be in my top 5 for 2011
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[img src="http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drh400/h451/h45128rb6df.jpg[/img
