SOUNDTRACK: GARBAGE-Garbage (1995).
I was thinking about how IJ reminds me so specifically of a place and time (I instantly think of the apartment I was in when I started reading it). And there are also some discs that I was crazy about at the time too.
I very distinctly remember when the first Garbage single “Vow” came out. I remember seeing it in Newbury Comics [the absolute best record store chain, ever] on Newbury Street and it was plastered with stickers about how it was the new band from Butch Vig and he had produced every popular alt record in the 90s and blah blah blah. But so I basically got Vigged out and didn’t bother listening to it.
Strangely, I don’t remember what changed my mind about them. I assume I heard the first proper single “Queer” and instantly fell in love with the band.
It makes me laugh that the band was initially marketed as Butch Vig and two other high-profile producers got together and made this great music and they found this unknown Scottish woman to from the band. And then, shortly there after the band was Shirley Manson and three unknown guys. Heh, prettiness wins out.
Garbage was at a record store in downtown Boston that year. I went down, but went to the wrong location (Doh!) and by the time I got to the right one, the line was too long and I was told I wouldn’t get in. Alas. (Hey, I’ve still got my autographed poster from The Verve before they released “Bittersweet Symphony.”)
This album was in very heavy rotation at my house at the time. I must’ve listened to it 1000 times. But this is the first time I’ve listened to it in awhile. It’s hard for me to be critical of it since I know every nook and cranny. But listening to it today I think it is still pretty damned awesome. The vocals are tight and creepy/sexy. The songs are all solid rocking/catchy. And the production is superb (obviously).
Not a bum track on the whole release, even 14 years later.
[READ: Week of August 24] Infinite Jest (to page 729)
There has been much discussion here on the forums and here between me and Infinite Tasks about the IJ timeline. There is the pretty glaring observation that M.P. tried to kill herself on November 7th, was in the hospital for five days and then appears in Ennet House on November 8th.
In last week’s reading, the WYYY engineer is musing about M.P. He was told that she was hospitalized, and I considered that maybe that five day gap came BEFORE she tried to kill herself (for otherwise, how to explain that Mario missed her radio show sometime in late October?). And yet that doesn’t seem to jibe with the fact that she’s apparently in there for an overdose.
A new timeline issue may be cropping up in this week’s reading. A green Nunhagen-sponsored car appeared during the Escahton match. We learn this week that Steeply is driving a Nunhagen-sponsored car. But she arrives during the Hal/Stice tennis match, three days after Eschaton. Has she been trying to get into E.T.A. for three days? But, also, note that she left AZ, and Orin met the Swiss hand model (and Orin is having his second go -round with her during the match), early on the 11th (I think). So I don’t think Helen could have been at ETA during the Escahton match. Is there a second gunman green car?
This timeline stuff bugs me mostly because I feel like IJ is really fantastic. And I assume that DFW spent a lot of time on it. (Certainly more time that I am spending reading it!). I imagine him with charts and graphs and circles and arrows explaining where everyone is at any given time. Now, there are a number of conceivable explanations for the mistaken timeline:
- Most of the stories about Madame Psychosis are second-hand, so they could be wrong.
- There is ample evidence that people in this book are crazy and therefore not to be trusted.
- And of course, there’s always the possibility that DFW just screwed up.
If this final option is the reality, I won’t be devastated. I don’t think the book hinges on a few minor timeliness issues. But I will be a bit surprised. DFW seems like such a meticulous guy (I mean, geez, look at the detail he puts into his scenes) so it would be really surprising if he got timeline issues messed up.
There is always the possibility that these issues will be cleared up, after all, he ties up so many loose threads, but I suspect they won’t. And that’s okay. I won’t turn into Steeply’s father poring over every page and keeping a journal in little notebooks (that’s what the blog is for!)
It is incredible serendipity that I did the JOI filmography during this week as this week’s readings actually count on knowing a bit about it. And since I had just reevaluated it, I was aware of a thing or two during Hal’s viewing scene.
Week 10 starts off seeming like a lot of nothing is happening. There’s a few post-Event scenarios. Until we get to November 14th, and a whole lot goes on. A whole lot! (more…)
SOUNDTRACK: SONIC YOUTH-SYR 5: Sonic Youth Featuring Kim Gordon/DJ Olive/Ikue Mori (2000).
The fifth SYR disc is rather different from the others in that the only SY member is Kim. This is a sort of side project for Kim, 
SOUNDTRACK: SONIC YOUTH-Silver Session for Jason Knuth (1998).
This record came about for two reasons. One was the suicide of longtime Sonic Youth fan (whom the band didn’t know) Jason Knuth. And the second was because when they tried to record vocal tracks for One Thousand Leaves, the band upstairs was so loud, it kept interfering with their recording.
SOUNDTRACK: SONIC YOUTH-SYR 4: Goodbye 20th Century (1999). 
This SYR recording consists of Sonic Youth’s interpretations of 20th century composers’ works. Some of the composers are obscure, but a few are more or less household names: John Cage, Yoko Ono, maybe Steve Reich. I knew a few of these composers from Kronos Quartet, but for the most part the pieces are all new to me. Since I don’t know the original pieces I have no idea how faithful they are.
It took me going to Seattle to learn about 
ten. For reasons known only to my head, I was convinced that Sasha was a black woman. Little did I realize that he is not. And that he was in a band that I have a CD of called Ui. He is an excellent resource for all things music, whether I like the artist he’s talking about or not. Some entries are 
SOUNDTRACK: SONIC YOUTH-SYR 3: Invito Al Ĉielo (1998).
This SYR release adds Jim O’Rourke to the mix (O’Rourke played with with them on A Thousand Leaves too). I’ve always been aware of O’Rourke but I’ve never really listened to any of the bands that he’s been associated with (and there’s a lot). So, I’m not sure what his actual contributions are, but he seems to be pushing the SY members into a much more noisy/abstract direction. (A few samples of Gastr Del Sol shows them to be pretty out there, so perhaps pushing SY in a direction that was not too far from where they’d go on their own. And, I rather liked the Gastr stuff, too).
SOUNDTRACK: FANTÔMAS-Suspended Animation (2005).
If you know Fantômas, then you know what you’re in for. If you don’t, well, it’s a surprise!
SOUNDTRACK: SONIC YOUTH-SYR 2: Slaapkamers Met Slagroom (1997).
The second SYR release is like the other side of the coin from SYR1. The premise is the same, the players are the same, but the result is rather different.
SOUNDTRACK: SONIC YOUTH -SYR 1 Anagrama (1997).
SOUNDTRACK: SONIC YOUTH-TV Shit (1993).
This is a funny little addition to the SY catalog. It is essentially four covers of a song by Youth Brigade called “No Song II” (which is from Dischord records, Possible EP 
I Just Read About That... 