Tuesday, September 30, 2008

A Brief History of Grungy Pop -Rock

For some reason, lately my musical attention span has decreased. It is probably purely affected by the situations in which I listen to music. Because of this, it feels like my musical tastes have dumbed down a bit, and gotten somewhat more primitive and immediate. Put away the Jazz and Jamband cd booklet, bust out the underground 60s and 70s Rock and New Wave.

It kind of feels like in the late 70s, when people started viewing bands like Yes and Led Zeppelin as bloated, self-important, pompous and indulgent, and started favoring the straight-ahead, stripped-down approach of bands like the Ramones and the Talking Heads. Punk and New Wave followed, and much of its sound was taken from both the mindless teenage surf-sci fi party music of the early 60s, and the obscure, raw garage bands of the late 60s. These late 60s bands (think “Louie Louie”) were really the first wave of groups to really utilize guitar distortion and feedback as components in a simple pop song, having been shown the way by the Beatles. And in the late 70s and early 80s, a second, new wave of bands re-embraced this aesthetic of pop primitivism. The Ramones, Devo, the B-52's, the Police, the Talking Heads and Elvis Costello all emerged during this period with a similarly simple and tightly wound approach to their music.

So it is this type of musical approach that I'm craving right now, as pop-rock before the mid-80s is often surprisingly relevant, compared to most produced after. One excellent compilation for obscure and awesome 60's garage rock is the Nuggets Box Set: Original Artyfacts From The First Psychedelic Era 1965-1968. Almost every band on the 4-cd set is obscure and unknown. At its best it is essential and groundbreaking, at its worst its at least entertaining. It is all grungy and raw, but still really catchy in that 60's pop way. This set was originally released as a double-LP set in 1972, and played a role in influencing the bands that let up to and became part of the Punk and New Wave movement. The garage sound of these bands definitely rubbed off on bands like the New York Dolls, the Stooges before the Punk and New Wave generation embraced it. This made apparent by the fate of the Strangelove's 1965 pop ditty “I Want Candy” (on disc 4), which was turned into a New Wave classic in 1982, when it was covered by the band Bow Wow Wow.

Nothin' like good old teenage kicks to satiate the musical ADD. I'm bustin' out the surfin', twistin', rock-n'-roll high school radio candy like its my job, and it feels great. Compared to listening to Jazz, this feels like switching to a lollipop after trying to eat a spaghetti dinner. Its lot sweeter, and also succinct and less messy, but it has no nutritional value in the long run. It is instant and momentary gratification. Just listen to the Ramones' Rocket to Russia and tell me that it's not totally musically refreshing...

Friday, September 26, 2008

Sometimes You Just Feel Like Astral Weeks

Sometimes You Just Feel Like Astral Weeks

Sometimes mood is melancholy, and blues runs deep.

Maybe you're alone, unable to sleep.

Maybe you're numb, and need

A reminding taste of the world's wells of emotion -

Need soul that cuts sharp and to the core,

And you know its time for Van the Man.


His tortured pleas reveal things -

Deep human urges, pain and suffering,

Rapture, beauty and ecstasy,

Mixed together in a confusing blend.

It feel strange, possibly uncomfortable,

As it is too real and from the deep deep heart -

This is not music to listen to socially.


But as it pierces with its truth,

Van's voice recalls a feeling forgotten or lost in everyday life -

And in doing so gives undeniable proof that it exists.

For though his cries are tinged with loss and longing

They contain a sense of hope and renewal which lifts the spirit

As this is a spiritual record. (Let Mr. Bangs tell you about that)

Because sometimes you don't know what to do with your hands

And sometimes you just feel like Astral Weeks.


This really is a marvelous album.

Friday, September 19, 2008

Pretentious Top 5 Lists (a la "High Fidelity")


This week I will present some well-thought out musical top 5 lists, which were pondered over laboriously with ma nephew Matt in the Arizona desert this past July. There was lots of time to kill in between the time spent tracking California Condors, so we retorted to impressing each other with our vast musical knowledge. About 8 miles deep in the Grand Canyon, there wasn't much to do during a long day of sweating and hiding under a rock from the blistering sun (though no hot chili peppers). At well over 100 degrees, we threw out top 5 lists of our own device, just like John Cusack and Jack Black. These are some of the results, none of which can be considered definitive:

My
Top 5 Grateful Dead Shows:

- May 2, 1970 - Harper College - Dick's Picks 8 - This show is epic. It's all over the boards, with a nice country-gospel tinged acoustic set, followed by an absolutely primal, furious electric performance.
- June 26, 1974 - Boston Garden - Dick's Picks 12 - This is pure liquid drippy trippy Jerry at his cleanest and most blissful. China Cat ->Rider is my all time favorite.
- August 27, 1972 - Field Trip, Veneta, OR - One of the legendary all-around amazing shows. From clean, tight, succinct songs to summer melty deep space jams, this one has it all.
- October 29, 1980 - Gainsville, FL - A seemingly random choice, this show is meaty, with thick, muscular playing, added to greatly by Brent Mydland's organ and keys. Really intense and rocking.
Tie for 5th:
- July 12, 1990 - RFK Stadium, Washington, DC - Played during a massive rainstorm, this is another rocking, meaty show that Brent is all over. A great version of "Foolish Heart," then a way-out-there, very powerful "Dark Star."
- May 9, 1977 - Buffalo, NY - I choose this over the more popular show the night before, mostly because of its absolutely perfect Help->Slip->Frank opener. Everything else is also performed to perfection. Just flawless music.

Matt's Top 5 Grateful Dead Shows:

- May 2, 1970 - Harper College
- Dick's Picks 8
- May 8, 1977 - Cornell University

- May 22, 1977 - Pembroke Pines, FL - Dick's Picks 3
- January 17, 1968 - Eureka Municipal Auditorium
- June 17, 1991 - Giants Stadium

My Top 5 One Hit Wonders:

- House of Pain - Jump Around
- Edgar Winter Group - Frankenstein
- Dexy's Midnight Riders - Come On Eileen
- Don McLean - American Pie
- Eurythmics - Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)
Honorable Mention: Faith No More - Epic

Matt's Top 5 One Hit Wonders:

- Dexy's Midnight Riders - Come On Eileen
- Eurythmics - Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)
- Thomas Dolby - She Blinded Me with Science
- Rick Derringer - Rock and Roll Coochie Coo
-The Knack - My Sherona

Top 5 Songs about Pot (in order):

1. Cypress Hill - Hits from the Bong
2. Peter Tosh - Legalize It
3. Bob Marley - Kaya
4. Black Sabbath - Sweet Leaf
5. Peter Rowan - Panama Red


List of Musicians who should have died years ago to save their reputation and legacy:

- Rod Stewart - Should have died right after Faces broke up in the mid 70's. Entire solo career was a poor decision.
- Eric Clapton - Should have overdosed and been dead in 1972. His entire solo career is regretable.
- Sting - Should have died in the late 80's early 90's
- Tina Turner - Should have never existed in the 80's at all. Poor decision on her part.
- Robbie Robertson - Should have died of a cocaine OD during the after party for The Last Waltz in 1976
- ELVIS (the definiton) - Probably should have died right after his '68 comeback special
- Pete Townsend - Should have died in 1978, with Keith Moon
- Michael Jackson - Should have died right after "Bad" was released in 1987
- Elton John - The 80s did not treat this guy well either. Should have died in the late 70s.
- Metallica (whole band) - Should have all gone down in a plane crash during their world tour for The Black Album in 1991.
- B-52's (whole band) - Their first album was incredible. Everything else sucked. They should have gone away back in 1979.
- Ozzy Osbourne - Should have gone down in the plane crash that killed Randy Rhoades. That was the last good music he ever made.
- Bono - Actually, Bono should have never existed on this earth as we know him. I would respect the man more if he was never the lead singer of a band called U2, and ended up a local mechanic in Dublin.


All-time Top Hired Session Musicians who MADE the albums they played on:

- Richard Davis - Upright Bass on Van Morrison's "Astral Weeks"
-
Mike Garson - Piano on David Bowie's "Aladdin Sane"
- Bernie Worrell - Keyboards on Talking Heads' "Stop Making Sense"
- Duane Allman - Guitar on Derek and the Dominoes' "Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs"
- Billy Preston - Keyboards on the Beatles ' "Let It Be"
- Al Kooper - Organ on Bob Dylan's "Like A Rolling Stone" (great story about this session here)
- David Grisman - Mandolin on Grateful Dead's "American Beauty"
- Jerry Garcia - Guitar on David Crosby's "If I Could Only Remember My Name"
- The Meters - Backing band for Robert Palmer's "Sneakin' Sally Thru the Alley"

That is all. I like the last list the best.



Tuesday, August 26, 2008

A Rant on Radiohead - The Future is Now

I attended a Radiohead show a couple of weeks ago at Great Woods, and the uniqueness of the show that they put on struck me immediately. There really is no band around that sounds like these boys from Manchester. The vibe the band created in the venue that night was intensely otherworldly and intimate. I would describe it as breakbeat-fuzz-guitar-trance. Thom was decked in tight red jeans, and danced and raved onstage like an angelic, melodically inclined alien with something to prove. The fantastic light show, comprised of futuristic LED light sticks suspended above the band's head, accented and perfectly complemented the surreal soundscape of Radiohead's patented ambient show. At the best moments, the band's spacious sound and Thom Yorke's pixie falsetto combined with the intensely colorful light show to induce a trance-like, space-ship bliss-out. At one moment I felt as if I was experiencing the final scene of the film Close Encounters of the Third Kind, where Thom was the alien, extending a sad, yet euphoric offering of music to us Americans. After tonight's show, it leads me to believe that Manchester, UK might as well be another planet relative to New England, as the musical realm that Radiohead lives in is truly a foreign place to us.

Thom Yorke commands attention. The crowd was not talkative, as Thom Yorke's delicate performance demanded an intimacy from all who were present. His falsetto pipes really act as an instrument that is essential to the band's sound. There were times in the show when he played the role of a theramin, sliding up and down the upper register in his own haunting tone. At its most delicate and gentle, his voice quieted the entire amphitheater of people. At his most jubilant, Yorke was a trance-induced shaman, chanting and gasping his voice to drive the breakbeat rhythm forward. Johnny Greenwood proved to be a master of nuisance and atmospheres, and played the role of creating soundscapes all night, switching between guitar, pedals, and keyboards.

The band's excellent setlist choice showcased songs from every album, with no songs from OK Computer played until at least 40 minutes into the set. The band delivered what seemed like endless encores, and with the show peaking in the last minute to a Technicolor static light show, Yorke chanted the band to a climax with an abrupt, grinding halt. Always leave them wanting more. With Radiohead's performance, we were more than happy to get what we got, as it seemed like the band gave us their all.

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Keeping the Torch of Fusion

After seeing Return To Forever perform at the Pavilion a few weeks ago, it got me thinking about Jazz Fusion, and where it has gone in the past 25 years or so. When it first emerged in the early 70's this electrified jazz was approached by its musicians as the next step in their musical evolution. Jazz veterans from the 60's, many of whom were taught in the Miles Davis school, were freed by Miles' embracing of the rock sound and electric instruments. Many formed their own ambitious groups, which evolved through the 70's into bands where the chops and complex musical ideas of these jazz guys were beefed up with electric guitars and synthesizers.

The first tier of Fusion groups included Tony Williams' Lifetime, John McLaughlin's Mahivishnu Orchestra, Weather Report, Herbie Hancock's Headhunters, and Return to Forever, all of which were formed by Miles Davis alumni. These groups peaked through the mid to late 70's with a catalog of complex, unbelievable electric music, some of which was accessible enough to become commercially popular. Albums like "Headhunters," "Heavy Weather," and "Romantic Warrior" all sold an unprecedented amount of albums for jazz, and set the bar higher than ever for the amount of popularity jazz music could achieve.

But somewhere around the late 70's and early 80's, something happened. Fusion, or at least quality Fusion, dissappeared. Throughout the 80's there were musicians who definetely kept the torch alive, including Billy Cobham, John Scofield, and Allan Holdsworth. But for the most part, this amazing genre of music was corrupted and diluted by the greedy 80's. In a quest for mass appeal, much Jazz-Rock became shitty, soulless pop improv, with an emphasis on empty virtuosity. One of the few exceptions to this rule throughout the decade was Pat Metheney, who was part of the next generation of Fusion, and continually put out quality music throughout the black hole that was the 80's.

Today, there are bands that still play this type of mind-blowing music, and seeing Bela Fleck and the Flecktones perform an opening set for the re-formed Return to Forever, there definetely was a feeling of tradition being handed down to the next generation. Musicians like Medeski, Martin and Wood, John Scofield, Soulive, Jeff Beck, The Bad Plus, Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey, and Bela Fleck and the Flecktones are still holding it down for this generation, thank God. There is nothing like good Fusion live, and unfortunately many people do not know this, as they have not experienced such an event. Though there was a near-capacity crowd for RTF, Fusion certainly will never be in the mainstream as it was in the 70s.

And for that reason, it is my duty to make you aware of the Aussie female bassist for Jeff Beck's most recent band. Her name is Tal Wilkenfeld, and she is utterly nasty. She is also a 22 year old hottie. She is the future of Fusion, and I love her, probally along with every other male musician who has seen and heard her.

Another hope for Fusion's future is Hiromi, a 29 year old Japanese pianist/composer hottie. She is incredible, an d should be a superstar.

These young women and the incredible music they create give me hope for Fusion's future. I would suggest seeking them out immedietely.

Friday, June 20, 2008

What the fuck is up with that Roger Waters scream?


Seriously, what is the deal with that sound that Roger makes with his throat? You know, the one that sounds like a bird call, like a rapid succession of high pitched, other-worldly noises. He did it a lot more in the early years, like in "Careful with that Axe, Eugene," but he does do it on the Wall once. You can hear him do it 1:00 into this version of "Run Like Hell," and again 5:00 in. Though the best example of Roger's bizzare vocal abilities would be the Ummagumma track "Several Species of Small Furry Animals Gathered Together in a Cave and Grooving with a Pict," which is a vocal collage of his ravings sped up in the studio to sound like small furry animals. The noises that this man emits are freaky enough as they are, so to modulate them like this makes for one unnerving listening experience.
I can't really think of a vocal trait in rock any more distinctive and quirky than this screeching that Roger does.

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Archive II - New Orleans 2005

Going back, I lived in Nawlins for the Summer of 2005 interning at the local music monthly, Offbeat Magazine. I got to review some great shows and albums, and have them published. I left Nawlins for Fall Semester of college 2 weeks before Katrina, and the last issue I was in didn't get distributed until November because of the hurricane. Here are some of the published articles:

Buckwheat Zydeco

Victor Wooten's Soul Circus

Etta James

Avocado Love

The avocado is my favorite vegetable (though it is really a fruit). It has substance, a high fat content, and is a spreadable and filling buttery treat that is absolutely delicious. I often just cut one up and eat it with some lemon juice, salt and pepper, though guacomole is obviously the ideal preperation.

It has an awesome name, which is derived from ahuacatl, the Aztec word for testicles, and was known by the Aztecs as "the fertility fruit," which is badass.

This Blog is called the Ripe Avocado, as that image somehow brings to mind a kind of calm but rich anticipation... The fruit's green lustre, massive pit, and leathery exterior all give it a unique personality that is unlike any other friut or vegetable. It also exudes a zen-like aura in its simple appearance. Due to this, it is not surprising that the avocado has often been used as the subject for Rock Art over the years. Here are some examples:

Pearl Jam - Self-Titled


Hellogoodbye - Self-Titled

And my favorite:
Led Zeppelin @ Fillmore West and Winterland, April 1969


I hope that this vegetable rant has given your perspecive of the avocado new insight.