Lists of the noughts and ‘09

Posted on January 1st, 2010 by Andy

Artists of the noughts

Kristin Hersh – For more than just the music she made – for being the person she is and for painting a future that I can believe in.

Nina Nastasia – Never disappointing on record and one show that I will rate amongst my most memorable. If pushed You Follow Me might be my album of the decade.

The Clientele – Probably the band I’ve seen most over the decade, and not disappointed, not even once… and a run of perfect albums over that time too.

Damon & Naomi, Luna, Dean & Britta – I consider myself very lucky that in Galaxie 500’s demise I was gifted with three acts I adore and the chance to be friends with some of the nicest people.

Joanna Newsom – Two stunning albums, one great (and one fairtly good) performance. Ys could have been album of the decade but I’m now unable to put it into lists or charts – it can’t be found next to anything else.

Honourable mention to Ballboy, Yo La Tengo, The Decemberists

Albums of ‘09

The Xx – The snob in me is bothered by just how popular The Xx have become. But I still keep listening to the album and it really is quite excellent.

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart – This year has been sprinkled liberally with nostalgia – whether it has been me dipping into my metal past with Sabbath and Hawkwind, or spending time with Lush, Pale Saints, Bleach and Drugstore – the late 80s and early 90s nostalgia was fueled by The Pains…

13 Most Beautiful… – The DVD is good but I’ve mostly listened to 13 Most Beautiful as an album, having ripped the audio from the DVD. It works beyond the films.

There were plenty of others too… Julie Doiron, Cheval Sombre, The Clientele, Wye Oak, School of Seven Bells etc.

Gigs of ‘09

13 Most Beautiful… – Carnegie Hall – Not just for the show – although that was exceptional, but for the event, for the before and the after. And for Tugboat as an encore.

Damon & Naomi – The Luminaire/Cafe OTO – two great shows although I had to leave the second one early so the Luminaire show takes the prize.

Dean & Britta – St Giles – More for what it was because if I think to hard there were disappointments – the venue worked better as an idea than in reality. But lovely all the same.

Most shows I went to this year were wonderful so I’ll chip in honourable mention to Julie Doiron, Pastels/Tenniscoats, The Clientele, Spiritualized

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My top 6… punk tracks

Posted on August 26th, 2009 by Andy

This list was inspired by my finding the “Best Punk Album In The World… Ever” in my collection. Given that only two of these six songs are on that compilation I think we have to assume that the title is misleading (and given that The Motors and the fucking Tubes are on it!!). Punk, for the sake of this list, is going by a fairly narrow definition – music made in the late 70s and early 80s by young scruffy people with guitars.

I was never a punk, I liked punk music and owned Clash and Damned albums and a fair few punk singles, but I was a headbanger (which is probably why the punk bands I generally liked were very much on the rock side of punk rock – see my previous ascii illustration).

But for all my denim and leather and loud music and lusciously thick and greasy hair (swoon) I still loved pop music. Top of The Pops was still regularly viewed right into the mid 80s and I still bought singles in Boots and Smiths which is where a couple of these tracks stem from.

There is no Clash or Damned or Buzzcocks because none of them made songs that I love as much as these (except maybe The Buzzcocks who came very close to being on this list and would definitely be here if it was a Top 7).

• The Members – The Sound of the Suburbs
  I have enduring memories of The Members performing Sound of the Suburbs on Top of The Pops (although it wasn’t this performance so they must have been on twice – or it was on a different TV show). They looked so ordinary. Sound of the Suburbs is like a punk version of one of my other favourite songs, Pleasant Valley Sunday.
• The Rezillos – Top of the Pops
  I love Faye’s voice, I love the anti-corporate lyrics and the gorgeous irony of their ToTP appearance (and the major label that it was released on), and I love just how it makes me feel.
• Fatal Microbes – Violence Grows
  I suspect there’s a whole swathe of people who have John Peel to thank for their love of Violence Grows, I’m one of them. Honey Bane’s delivery is perfect. I also remember Peel playing it years later as a comparison with Wipe it Away by Bleach. Didn’t Boy George write about his love of this song in Take it Like a Man?
• The Slits – Typical Girls
  I’m pretty certain that I came late to Typical Girls (and The Slits), I do own a 7″ somewhere but bought it at a record fair years afterwards. I di remember a school friend lending me Cut (I guess I probably had to smuggle it into the house) and I had a tape of it around but probably never listened as much as I should have.
• The Newtown Neurotics – Blitzkrieg Bop
  I saw The Newtown Neurotics a couple of times in the mid 80s. This is obviously a cover of The Ramones track but has a wonderful anti-war lyric and one of my favourite song endings ever… “and we’ve gone”
• Television Personalities – Part Time Punks
  Part Time Punks was all I knew of the Television Personalities until quite recently. I can’t remember how or when I became aware of this song and it wasn’t until the TVPs back-catalogue arrived on eMusic that I discovered that they were much more than just this one track.

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My top 6… songs with SFX

Posted on July 3rd, 2009 by Andy

• Brian – Planes Stacking Up – tweeting birds (no video for this one – maybe I should make one)

• The Sweet – Blockbuster – an air raid siren

• XTC – Senses Working Overtime – I love crows!

• Belle & Sebastian – If You’re Feeling Sinister – playground (no video)

• Black Sabbath – Black Sabbath – rain, thunder and church bells – this might be the greatest opening ever!

• Reparata & The Delrons – The Captain of Your Ship – foghorns

Edit: I took out the videos as I’ll probably turn this into a series and this ugly long ill thought out post was bothering me.

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My top 6…stupidly long song titles

Posted on May 15th, 2009 by Andy

McCarthy and Ballboy pretty much own this list I could have filled it up with either of them…

• And Tomorrow the Stock Exchange Will Be the Human Race – (54 characters) – McCarthy
• I Don’t Have Time to Stand Here With You Fighting About the Size of My Dick – (75 characters) – Ballboy
• Stars of Aviation are singing about the summer, but is it going to be sunny, Carol? (mp3) – (83 characters) – Stars of Aviation
• Some Months Later, at a Club in New York City, Marcel Sees Albertine Dancing With Another Girl (With Whom He Suspects She Is Having an Affair) And Leaves, Jealous and Upset (mp3) – (172 characters) – Saturnine
• Come Sing Me a Happy Song to Prove We All Can Get Along the Lumpy, Bumpy, Long and Dusty Road – (92 characters) – Bert Jansch
• It’s the End of the World as We Know It (and I Feel Fine) – (57 characters) – REM

Here’s the video for Ballboy’s entry…

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My Top 6…cover versions

Posted on April 2nd, 2009 by Andy

Here are my submissions to Cover Me, Volume 17 of Splotchy’s Green Monkey Music Project (visit the link to download the two 36 track compilations the first one has the selected cover versions, while the second has the original versions of the same songs).

Your selections should all be songs which are not the original versions, but are rather another artist’s interpretation of the original. I want the cover of the song to be meaningful, or important, or special to you in some way that distinguishes it from the original, and I’m going to want you to explain the significance when you discuss your selections after the mix has been published.

Obviously I could have had six Galaxie 500 songs…or Luna ones, but resisted the temptation to be quite that unimaginitive.

Ceremony – Galaxie 500 (originally by Joy Division) – Ceremony is, unquestionably, the greatest cover version anyone’s done of anything ever. In 1990 I saw Galaxie 500 at the Subterania and they finished the set with Ceremony, joined on stage by Kramer. If I had to throw away all but eight minutes of my gig going memories – those would be the eight minutes I’d hang on to.

Blue Christmas – Low (originally by Elvis) – I first heard this on the car radio in a supermarket car park (I think it must have been Peel sitting in on an earlier show as he did occasionally – or I was out shopping late!). Mimi’s voice just left me breathless – I had to sit in silence for a minute or two before heading off to do the shopping.

Flaming Telepaths – Espers (originally by Blue Oyster Cult) – I’d never heard the original before hearing this. Greg and Meg’s voices work so well together and this one really opened up a prog seam that I wasn’t sure I had or at least had long covered up. The original is only fair – the cover is immense.

Leaving Here – Motorhead (origially by The Birds) – In 1979 Motorhead was my escape into musical individuality – one of the key moments in that escape was on 1st May 1980 when Motorhead mimed to “Leaving Here” on Top of the Pops. Music changed pretty profoundly at that point. The live version of the Golden Years EP (which the TOTP performance was promoting) was head and shoulders above the weak studio version on On Parole.

Cast a Shadow – Yo La Tengo (originally by Beat Happening) – Two of my favourite bands. Stuart had this on a 7″ – was it on the back of Speeding Motorcycle? – I was jealous and have been careful to buy pretty much anything Yo La Tengo have released since.

Indian Summer – Luna (originally by Beat Happening) – I was really sad when Galaxie 500 broke up but in Feb 1992 Dean came through London with the first Luna incarnation (Stan, Justin and Grasshopper) and played a show at the Underworld that reassured me that maybe a positive spin could be put on the split. They played Indian Summer that night. It was also the last song the played at their last London show in 2005.

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My top 7…albums

Posted on December 16th, 2008 by Andy

Tagged a while back by maurinsky (via Hazel)

This is tricky, mostly tricky because of all I’ve had to leave out (two Galaxie 500 albums for starters).

On Fire – Galaxie 500 (1989)
Best album ever. Nothing more to say (except that its appearance in this list also represents the band’s entire output and that of Luna, Damon & Naomi and Dean & Britta

Ys – Joanna Newsom (2006)
Stunningly ambitious and beautifully realised and one day you all will realise just how perfect a piece of art this is.

Secret Name – Low (1999)
I normally pick “I Could Live in Hope” as my fave Low album, but Secret Name is beautiful and is (according to last.fm) the Low album I listen to more than any other.

The Velvet Underground – The Velvet Underground (1969)
The third VU album is awesome and the contrast between this and White Light/White Heat just makes it better (that doesn’t mean that I don’t love White Light/White Heat).

Hounds of Love – Kate Bush (1985)
Hounds of Love was my by-myself album of choice for a long time. Listening now it’s remarkable as well in that it manages to not suffer from the time it was made. Previously on Everything’s Swirling.

If You’re Feeling Sinister – Belle & Sebastian (1996)
Just really sweet pop. Previously on Everything’s Swirling.

Horses – Patti Smith (1975)
Whenever I listen to this album I’m stunned I don’t listen to it more.

All the places on this list with the exception of the first two are vulnerable from attack from Motorhead, Brian, Nina Nastasia, Throwing Muses, Stereolab, Yo La Tengo or any one of hundreds of others.

THE RULES:

1. Post your list of the seven best albums, the seven bloggers you will tag, a copy of these rules, and a link back to this page.
2. Each person tagged will put a URL to their Blogger Album Project post along with a list of the seven best albums in the comment section HERE at Hill’s Country. Enough already!
3. Feel free to post the “I Contributed to the Blogger Album Project” Award Graphic on your sidebar, along with a link back to this page.
4. Post a link back to the blogger who tagged you.

As before…if you read this consider yourself tagged.

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My Top 6…music fan sites

Posted on June 13th, 2008 by Andy

As the proprietor of a fan site I’ve always had an interest in what fans are doing on the web, a year or so ago I posted ruminating on the fan site and whether it had a place in the brave new 2.0 world…

Whatever the reason it seems the days of the fan site is over and all that’s left are the few excellent sites run by the few dedicated individuals that will remind the world what things were like in the days before MySpace and Wikipedia and blogs…

David Jennings, the author of the excellent book Net, Blogs & Rock ‘n’ Roll, responded arguing that things maybe aren’t so gloomy…and he’s probably right.

Anyway…I was talking fan sites to a couple of people over a lemonade yesterday (more of which maybe at a later date) and I was asked about what my favourite fan sites were. It was a question I found a bit overwhelming in a noisy pub but a lot easier when I was sitting in front of my computer later on. It seemed an ideal opportunity for the long since neglected My Top Six… category to be prodded back to life.

My fondness is for a lot of information so these are mostly concentrated on content occasionally at the expense of aesthetics. Looking over the list they all seem very “traditional” – very web 1.0 which possibly only reinforces David’s counter that…

the next phase of fan site development will see the development of more collaborative projects, whereby fluid groups of fans work together complementing each others’ skills and filling in when someone drops out.

So here is “My Top 6…music fan sites”…

• Stereolab
  In the early days of A Head Full of Wishes the best fan site on the web (IMO) and one it aspired to be like was Robin’s Stereolab site. It was packed with every sort of anything and encouraged users to vote and contribute. Sadly Robin closed down (and passed on his site) so it can only be seen in most of it’s glory on the Internet Archive…
• Go-Betweens.net
  Jonathan’s site is an awesome resource and one that has managed to get an online community going successfully which I never managed to do with A Head Full of Wishes…maybe it’s time to try again…or maybe the time has passed.
• Low
  Another site that you have to head over to the Internet Archive to see it as it should be. I adored the Low website before it became official (and actually for quite a while after) but sadly a lot of the content has gone astray and it looks less like a fan site and more like what I guess it is now – a promotional resource.
• Electricity Comes From Other Planets
  Olivier Landemaine’s Velvet Underground site is utterly breathtaking in it’s detail – it makes me feel like such an amateur.
• Milky Moon
  The Joanna Newsom fan site Milky Moon is a site I like a lot, for a relatively new artist the site has a gorgeously old-fashioned way about it.
• Sparklehorse: What Kind of Name is This?
  Another site overflowing with content and another one that sadly seems to have been neglected of late.

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My Top 6…memorable gigs…

Posted on January 18th, 2008 by Andy

Not really a “Top” 6 but just some gigs that are popping into my head as I write…I’ll try and avoid the obvious Galaxie 500 (and related) gigs here and pick out ones that were memorable not necessarily for the obvious reason of being utterly brilliant…

Terry Bickers
uploaded by BuriedBones

Levitation @ The Tufnell Park Dome – 14th May 1993
For a while during 1993 I lived in a bed-sit in Northfields. The place was a tip and I spent as much of my time as possible not being there. The only good thing was that the guy who lived in the room next to mine had overheard the music I was listening to and befriended me – he and I went to quite a few gigs together over the months until I moved in with Hazel. One night he banged on the door and said he was going to a gig and would I like to come and because being “out” was infinitely preferable to being “in” I said “yes” without even knowing what it was. We arrived and got in through some shenanigans that seemed to involve us being on the guestlist (even though I’m pretty certain we weren’t). Levitation, or more specifically Terry Bickers, were music inkies darlings and so Bickers on-stage quitting of the band was exciting – the quotes on Wikipedia are probably true (I’d guess they come from a recorded source) but my memory (which is not to be relied on) has him calling the rest of the band, or maybe the audience “wankers” before he left the stage.

Gary Glitter @ The Guildford Civic Hall – 198?
I was rather reluctant to mention this – not just because of Mr Glitter’s subsequent demise but mostly because it was not the sort of music I ever really liked and certainly didn’t care about in the 80s. I went because a bunch of mates were going and it was local and we had nothing better to do. The gig however was memorable for the punch up between two blokes that pretty much lasted the whole of the show. It started in the bar before Gary Glitter took the stage and they punched shit out of each other down the stairs into the stalls and through to the encore – occasionally they’d be pulled apart but within minutes the audience would part to reveal them blattering each other senseless again. Glitter tried to make it stop with pleas from the stage but I think they were just enjoying themselves too much. I don’t recall if the fight carried on afterwards…maybe they’re still punching each other in Guildford pubs of a Saturday night…

The Primitives
uploaded by leica_al

The Primitives @ The Borderline – (probably) 1992
Ken loved The Primitives, I sometimes wondered if the “love” was based a bit more on an infatuation with Tracy Tracy, but they sometimes made some very sweet pop music. This was the last time we saw them (and may have been the last time anyone saw them) the gig was tired, beset by sound problems and ultimately saw the guitarist just leave the stage mid-song leaving the rest of the band to struggle through to the end of the show.

Motorhead @ The Hackney Speedway Stadium – July 1982
This was (as I recall) the first London gig that Motorhead did with Brian Robertson and as if the short hair and fancy guitar work wasn’t enough to alienate the hardcore fans he took to the stage in a pair of very short and very shiny shorts.

Miracle Legion @ The Powerhaus – 1989
Ken was a huge Miracle Legion fan but I’d never heard of them so when we turned up at the Powerhaus in 1989 and found it packed to the rafters I was a little taken aback – how can a band I’ve never heard of be quite so popular among the hip and trendy indie kids of London. When the support act came on stage things became clear. I wasn’t really paying attention when they started but looked up and did a comedy double-take – probably a double-double-take…that looked like Kim Deal…and Tanya Donnelly on the stage…and sounded like them. The Breeders had just finished their first record in Scotland and snuck in this secret gig on their way through London…it was clearly not that much of a secret…except to me. The crowd thinned considerably after The Breeders had finished…

Hypnotist
uploaded by Elkay 724

Thousand Yard Stare @ The T&C2 – 1992
Brian played one of their very few gigs and were second on a bill that included a hypnotist. The Brian set was punctuated by some lad shouting and shoving and trying to get backstage to punch the hypnotist because his mates were laughing at him for his on-stage antics while under hypnosis. Brian sharing a bill with Thousand Yard Stare and a hypntotist probably counts as being memorable for the sheer inappropriateness of it…that the hypnotist almost got beaten up just for doing his job (if his job is making floppy haired indie-kids look silly) was just a bonus…

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My Top 6…xmas songs

Posted on December 25th, 2007 by Andy

…in no particular order…

Low – If You Were Born Today
I remember sitting my car in a supermarket car park unable to move while this song was on the radio when it first came out on a 7″ single. It is just stunningly moving – even for an atheist! Low’s Christmas album is one of very few seasonal records that could get pulled out at any time fo year…it was a toss up between this and Blue Christmas as to what made it on the list.

The Waitresses – Christmas Wrapping
I still can’t quite figure out why I enjoy this one so much. Maybe the silly/sweet cranberry ending – but it always fills me with festive spirit.

The Fountains of Wayne – I Want and Alien for Christmas
Just because…well…who wouldn’t.

The Ronettes – Sleigh Ride
“A Christmas Gift for You” is our traditional xmas morning soundtrack – I never get bored of it, and the Ronettes take on Sleigh Ride is the best track on an album full of absolute gems.

Slade – Merry Xmas Everybody
I guess most everyone else in the world is bored sick of this one – but xmas hasn’t really arrived until I’ve heard Noddy telling me that it has.

Brenda Lee – Rocking Around The Christmas Tree
The best Rock ‘n’ Roll xmas song

Galaxie 500 listers may be surprised at the lack of Simply Having a Wonderful Christmas Time given my annual vociferous defence of McCartney’s sugary xmas treat – I love it but would still have to say it’s a far cry from any of the above…

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My Top 6…gigs at the Royal Albert Hall

Posted on October 3rd, 2007 by Andy

(originally uploaded by the_moog)

Between acts at the Albert Hall last week I started looking around the venue thinking of all the different places I’d sat and I suddenly realised that I’d been to quite a few shows so here’s a top 6 (but aside from the first one they’re not really in any order)…

1. Joanna Newsom – September 2007 – Seat: Arena floor
   The view from the floor was surprisingly good although it helped to have an aisle seat. Spectacular show…but I’ve said all that already.
2. 10,000 Maniacs – November 1989 – Seat: Box
   We were in a box to the left of the stage, a friend of mine got the tickets through his work – we shared the box with this nutter who sang along at the top of his voice for most of the show (until I asked him not to and then he mimed for the rest). I think Indigo Girls may have supported.
3. Elvis Costello & The Attractions – January 1987 – Seat: Stalls
   Elvis was doing a run of shows at the Albert Hall split between being backed by The Confederates and The Attractions…we chose, obviously, to see The Attractions. The seats and the view were excellent, the show wasn’t too bad.
4. Elvis Costello & The Attractions – (July 1994) – Seat: Box
   In 1992 Elvis appeared on Desert Island Discs and chose a bunch of music pretty far removed from the music that he had made (up until that point) and while I was aware of his high-brow pretensions I was disappointed that he seemed to not love the music he made (or the music that influenced the music he made) it was this point that I stopped being a fan. I was surprised therefore that the Elvis wiki seemed to suggest that I saw him play at the RAH in July 1994. We sat in a box at the back of the hall so the stage was a bit distant. Difford and Tilbrook of Squeeze supported.
5. Cowboy Junkies – 1992 – Seat: Circle
   My abiding memory of this gig was the "new" percussionist getting an onstage telling off for making a noise between songs which made me sneer at the precious-ness of the band. I’d loved The Trinity Sessions and quite enjoyed The Caution Horses but my Cowboy Junkies thing pretty much ended there – or maybe, more specifically ended at the point at which Margo turned and stared at the new boy and apologised for him.
6. Frank Sinatra – 199? – Seat: Cheapest – up in the gods…
   We had great seats for this – they were (relatively) cheap and supposedly (I think) restricted, but we were looking right down onto the stage, admittedly from a long way away. We could see Frank’s autocue and so could easily sing along, even to the songs we didn’t know…not that there were any. This was really a case of going because we wouldn’t have another chance…and it was in the days when cheap tickets were within reach (rather than the £100 you’d have to pay for the cheapest Barbra Streisand tickets this year!

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