Woebot
Well-known member
I'm still only 200 pages in because I've been struggling for the past two weeks with an absolutely insane burden of things. Excuses, excuses! Though hear me out: the week before last I was writing late every night when I got back from animating all day. I did linernotes (two interviews), 5 singles reviews, a 7000 word column, a 1000 word feature (one interview) and a book review.
Then this last week I've been working even later in the evening and trying to care for my wife and two babies, all of whom have been struck by this vicious virus, thats involved all night care as well as doing what i usually do (cooking and putting away breakfast and dinner). Poor little Sam, you should have seen him crashed out, bogies everywhere, heavy lids. I only managed to represent at the RIU&SA panel thing at the last minute, and sadly had to miss the Friday night sesh with The Mover......
....but I've still found time to read 200 pages, not sounding so bad now is it! I've been keeping a little checklist for myself of things which having heard Simon describe I'm desperate to check out. Presumably it's all over the web by now, but if you haven't discovered the pdf discographies available at the Faber and Faber website you ought to check them out as soon as possible. So anyway here's just a few of the things I'm after:
Iggy Pop's: The Idiot
OK OK OK. Yes I did have it when I was kiddywink, but I sold it about 7 years ago. It and Lust for Life are just staples arent they. But LFL is a much less interesting record, very catchy of course but a bit trite and R'n'B-ish. The Idiot on the other hand was a record which always used to unsettle me, Iggy looked deeply unpleasant on the cover and the music was, well, nasty. Cruel. Obviously the vision of something without my ken. And cold. And all those synths....the whole vibe is very Deutsche Gabber. I reckon I probably sold it cos I was never properly reconciled with it. And then I find Ian Curtis listened to it the night he topped himself!
Thomas Leer: 4 Movements and Contradictions
I've already managed to find a copy of private Plane on eBay along with Rental's Paralysis http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=4720279622&rd=1&sspagename=STRK:MEWN:IT&rd=1 which strikes me as one hell of a score for 14 quid. I did have Contradictions at one point, and I've no idea why I sold it.
Devo: The Booji Boy Singles
I think Simon gets justifiably frothy about Pere Ubu's early stuff. The Datapanik collection (heart flutters) is just to die for. And the Modern Dance, well it was just about the only thing I listened to for years darling. I even had that (quite poor) Tin Huey LP at one point, but Devo! Devo?!? Devo I completely missed. I reckon this may have been because they were, in 1985, when I started to get deeper into music, very much around. Doin the college tour thing, and generally reduced to shtick. Bit of a turn-off. I heard that "Are we not men?" for the very first time EVER last week. I turned to my colleague at work and said, "Hmm, this sounds weirdly....like....mid.....period....Eno." Dang, what a great single. (scratches head) Wonder what the LP is like. Blissblogger has some GREAT GREAT GREAT Devo stories, but you'll have to read the book cos I'm not telling you them cheapskate!
Minutemen Paranoid Time and Bean Spill EPs
Why would you be interested in records which I havent actually checked out yet...er I dunno. For some reason these two little blighters have fallen through the cracks in my Minutemen collection and I intend to remedy that. Yes sir I do!
The Fire Engines
Slightly jumping ahead of myself here, havent even got to the Scottish chapter yet. Is there one? Ive been scratching around Postcard alot recently (as is attested elsewhere on this f'rum) but this I must hear....
The Albion Band and Martin Carthy
I'd really appreciate it if someone could reccommend me some good stuff (the best stuff) by these candidates. The Penster is on record saying this is what they were listening to at the Scritti squat. And I know the Albion Band LP was massive, but (again scrathes head) which was THE ONE? On a related note I've been digging a little deeper into UK folk music of this era. The Pentangle "Basket of Light" LP (which I know I'm the last person to hear) is just splendid also on the trail of some Bill Fay, though it looks like I'll have to surrender to buying it on CD.
Vic Godard
This guy I thought just sounded great. The quote of his I liked which I recounted to the panel at RIU&SA was this: (Vic) told Melody Maker that he viewed "Rock" as "potentially a really good secondary education system...Teaching (people) to educate themselves." I wanted to know why that would just be an unthinkable remark for a musician to make nowadays, why it seems (tragically) completely irrelevant these days. Gina spluttered something, which I didnt get , about how Vic Godard only had about 100 fans (yeah didnt understand that remark at all, was that supposed to mean he was irrelevant, unlike The Raincoats who had 500 fans...and you cant really answer back at these affairs, winks) and Morley, quite graciously I thought, cos it was kind of an ill-formed lackadaisical question which seemed to generally fail to ignite the panel's ardour, that with the internet knowledge is at everyones finger tips (nice of him, but i suppose potentially prompting the reply, then why the hell dont people fucking use it to enlighten themselves!?! and wasnt it better in the old days!)
I liked Vic's idea enormously. Truth be told thats EXACTLY how i used "Rock". Like an alternative secondary education system. When I was at my posh public school, I just couldnt begin to understand what the hell use ANYTHING i was being taught was. It wasnt that it wasnt conceivably interesting stuff, Latin, Geography, English Literature and all that, just the starting point, the assumption that lay beneath the reason you were being taught these things was so crooked that I just felt like I was autistic. It just seemed so weird. Rock education superior. Cut with the personal stuff.
The Swans "Filth"
I suppose largely because it's on Glenn Branca's Neutral label. Kind of sexy slice of vinyl. My bruv used to have "Cop" and that was good as well. Actually I regret not having that still as well.
-------
One of the truly great things about RIU&SA is that you get to hear the blissblogger talking about really quite famous records like Talking Heads "Remain In Light" and Wire's "Chair Missing" while usually he's writing about something deeply obscure (c'mon Simon, you know it's true!) And you're just overpowered by the need to check them out again.
Then this last week I've been working even later in the evening and trying to care for my wife and two babies, all of whom have been struck by this vicious virus, thats involved all night care as well as doing what i usually do (cooking and putting away breakfast and dinner). Poor little Sam, you should have seen him crashed out, bogies everywhere, heavy lids. I only managed to represent at the RIU&SA panel thing at the last minute, and sadly had to miss the Friday night sesh with The Mover......
....but I've still found time to read 200 pages, not sounding so bad now is it! I've been keeping a little checklist for myself of things which having heard Simon describe I'm desperate to check out. Presumably it's all over the web by now, but if you haven't discovered the pdf discographies available at the Faber and Faber website you ought to check them out as soon as possible. So anyway here's just a few of the things I'm after:
Iggy Pop's: The Idiot
OK OK OK. Yes I did have it when I was kiddywink, but I sold it about 7 years ago. It and Lust for Life are just staples arent they. But LFL is a much less interesting record, very catchy of course but a bit trite and R'n'B-ish. The Idiot on the other hand was a record which always used to unsettle me, Iggy looked deeply unpleasant on the cover and the music was, well, nasty. Cruel. Obviously the vision of something without my ken. And cold. And all those synths....the whole vibe is very Deutsche Gabber. I reckon I probably sold it cos I was never properly reconciled with it. And then I find Ian Curtis listened to it the night he topped himself!
Thomas Leer: 4 Movements and Contradictions
I've already managed to find a copy of private Plane on eBay along with Rental's Paralysis http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=4720279622&rd=1&sspagename=STRK:MEWN:IT&rd=1 which strikes me as one hell of a score for 14 quid. I did have Contradictions at one point, and I've no idea why I sold it.
Devo: The Booji Boy Singles
I think Simon gets justifiably frothy about Pere Ubu's early stuff. The Datapanik collection (heart flutters) is just to die for. And the Modern Dance, well it was just about the only thing I listened to for years darling. I even had that (quite poor) Tin Huey LP at one point, but Devo! Devo?!? Devo I completely missed. I reckon this may have been because they were, in 1985, when I started to get deeper into music, very much around. Doin the college tour thing, and generally reduced to shtick. Bit of a turn-off. I heard that "Are we not men?" for the very first time EVER last week. I turned to my colleague at work and said, "Hmm, this sounds weirdly....like....mid.....period....Eno." Dang, what a great single. (scratches head) Wonder what the LP is like. Blissblogger has some GREAT GREAT GREAT Devo stories, but you'll have to read the book cos I'm not telling you them cheapskate!
Minutemen Paranoid Time and Bean Spill EPs
Why would you be interested in records which I havent actually checked out yet...er I dunno. For some reason these two little blighters have fallen through the cracks in my Minutemen collection and I intend to remedy that. Yes sir I do!
The Fire Engines
Slightly jumping ahead of myself here, havent even got to the Scottish chapter yet. Is there one? Ive been scratching around Postcard alot recently (as is attested elsewhere on this f'rum) but this I must hear....
The Albion Band and Martin Carthy
I'd really appreciate it if someone could reccommend me some good stuff (the best stuff) by these candidates. The Penster is on record saying this is what they were listening to at the Scritti squat. And I know the Albion Band LP was massive, but (again scrathes head) which was THE ONE? On a related note I've been digging a little deeper into UK folk music of this era. The Pentangle "Basket of Light" LP (which I know I'm the last person to hear) is just splendid also on the trail of some Bill Fay, though it looks like I'll have to surrender to buying it on CD.
Vic Godard
This guy I thought just sounded great. The quote of his I liked which I recounted to the panel at RIU&SA was this: (Vic) told Melody Maker that he viewed "Rock" as "potentially a really good secondary education system...Teaching (people) to educate themselves." I wanted to know why that would just be an unthinkable remark for a musician to make nowadays, why it seems (tragically) completely irrelevant these days. Gina spluttered something, which I didnt get , about how Vic Godard only had about 100 fans (yeah didnt understand that remark at all, was that supposed to mean he was irrelevant, unlike The Raincoats who had 500 fans...and you cant really answer back at these affairs, winks) and Morley, quite graciously I thought, cos it was kind of an ill-formed lackadaisical question which seemed to generally fail to ignite the panel's ardour, that with the internet knowledge is at everyones finger tips (nice of him, but i suppose potentially prompting the reply, then why the hell dont people fucking use it to enlighten themselves!?! and wasnt it better in the old days!)
I liked Vic's idea enormously. Truth be told thats EXACTLY how i used "Rock". Like an alternative secondary education system. When I was at my posh public school, I just couldnt begin to understand what the hell use ANYTHING i was being taught was. It wasnt that it wasnt conceivably interesting stuff, Latin, Geography, English Literature and all that, just the starting point, the assumption that lay beneath the reason you were being taught these things was so crooked that I just felt like I was autistic. It just seemed so weird. Rock education superior. Cut with the personal stuff.
The Swans "Filth"
I suppose largely because it's on Glenn Branca's Neutral label. Kind of sexy slice of vinyl. My bruv used to have "Cop" and that was good as well. Actually I regret not having that still as well.
-------
One of the truly great things about RIU&SA is that you get to hear the blissblogger talking about really quite famous records like Talking Heads "Remain In Light" and Wire's "Chair Missing" while usually he's writing about something deeply obscure (c'mon Simon, you know it's true!) And you're just overpowered by the need to check them out again.