Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Archive for the ‘The Flaming Lips’ Category

Ben Schott–Schott’s Original Miscellany (2003), Schott’s Food & Drink Miscellany (2004) & Schott’s Sporting Gaming & Idling Miscellany (2005)

Posted in Ben Schott, Books about music, Books about writers, Collecting, Dip-in Books, Dreams, Drinking, Food, Funky Web Sites, History, Holidays, Oddities, Outer Space, Pac Man, Short Books, Smarty Pants, The Flaming Lips, War, Wikipedia on February 7, 2009| Leave a Comment »

originalSOUNDTRACK: THE FLAMING LIPS-Race for the Prize (1999) & Waiting for a Superman’ (1999) singles.

race11race21When these singles were released, Zaireeka was out of print; these discs were the only way to get any of the tracks.  So, each of these singles has two track from a Zaireeka disc as a B-side: “Riding to Work in the superman1superman2Year 2025 (Your Invisible Now)” & “Thirty Thousand Feet of Despair.”   “Race for the Prize” (1 and 2) have the tracks from Zaireeka discs 1 and 2, and “Waitin’ for a Superman” (1 and 2) have the tracks from Zaireeka discs 3 and 4.  The singles aren’t really worth hunting down at this point since Zaireeka is now available, but at the time, they were worth it.

[READ: January 18-Feb 5, 2009] Schott’s Original Miscellany

This is the book that started the Schott empire!

Ben Schott wrote this book (the origin story will appear shortly) and it was so successful that he wrote 2 more volumes (all reviewed here).  This led to his annual almanacs/miscellanies. There are different versions of the annual almanac for England and the U.S. (and Germany too!) and I can’t help but wonder just how different they are.  So if any one has an old UK edition of a Schott’s almanac that they want to send me, let me know!

For all your miscellany needs, check out  http://www.miscellanies.info/. Lots of information here! (more…)

Read Full Post »

Ara 13–Drawers & Booths (2007)

Posted in Adventure, Ara 13, Christmas on Mars, Clifford Chase, Funny (ha ha), Funny (strange), Joseph Heller, Meta, Military, Religion, Smarty Pants, Supernatural, The Flaming Lips, Threats, Unreliable narrator, War on February 6, 2009| 1 Comment »

drawersSOUNDTRACK: THE FLAMING LIPS-Zaireeka (1997).

zaireekaOkay, get ready.  Zaireeka comes as a 4 CD set.  With a twist.  Each CD is meant to be played simultaneously.  So, you get yourself 4 boomboxes hit play at the same time and enjoy!

Each CD has some aspects of each song.  So, on one disc you may get some vocals, maybe another has some guitars and sound effects.  It all varies per disc.  In fact, on one disc, track 6 is given a warning, perhaps my favorite warning ever on a CD: “This recording also contains frequencies not normally heard on commercial recordings and on rare occasion has caused the listener to become disoriented.”

And if you do a search for Zaireeka you will read the gamut of opinions about the disc and its ridiculousness or its social coolness.  So I won’t go into that.  I will say that one fine day many years ago I tried the experiment.  I got 4 radios and synched up all the songs and it worked and it was a lot of fun.  I also listened to the set in many different ways:  Discs 1-4 individually.  Discs 1& 2, discs 1&3, discs 1& 4, discs 2& 3, discs 2&4, discs 3&4 and then discs 1,2 & 3, discs 1, 2 & 4, discs 1, 3 & 4,  and discs 2, 3 & 4.  Phew.  (I had a lot more free time on my hands back then).  And since then, I haven’t really listened to the discs at all.  Because, well, how often do you get a chance to listen to 4 discs at once?

So, online I found a stereo mixdown version of the disc.  I know purists argue that that is simply not the way to listen to the disc, and they have a point….  Many of the effects are certainly lost, and since part of the point of the experiment is that the tracks are going to wobble and go out of synch, the mixdown does ruin the effect.  However, if you actually want to hear the songs as songs, not as experiments, the stereo mixdown mix is the way to go (at least until they release the disc in a 5.0 DVD version (which evidently they might…maybe?  in 2000, or maybe 2007, or who knows.))

But what about the songs?  It’s hard to say that the songs are typical Flaming Lips songs, because that’s not really very meaningful.  (Lips songs being off the wall at the best of times).  However, the songs are designed to allow the different discs to go out of synch somewhat, creating echoes or even stranger sounds.  As such, they are rather meandering pieces, somewhat lengthy, without a lot of heavy beats (that said, there are sections with very loud chaotic drums, they just don’t have other parts to synch up to).  But this experiment allows the songwriting to shine through in th emost minute details.  And it pays off on their next album in big time.

A track by track rundown goes:

“Okay I’ll Admit That I Really Don’t Understand” opens with a big drum splash and a fantastic bassline. Intermittent piano chords let you know that this song  isn’t going to be typical.  Fun effects and a swelling chorus add to the ambience.  It’s a short song, but it sets the tone for the rest of the disc.

“Riding to Work in the Year 2025 (Your Invisible Now)” starts off in a chaotic jumble, but once it settles down it has yet has another fantastic bassline  to start.  The middle choral part is really beautiful, although that scream section is pretty jarring/creepy.

As the title, “Thirty-Five Thousand Feet of Despair” suggests, it’s a sad song about a depressed pilot.  The effects include a plane taking off.  The song is propelled by a heartbeat-like drum, and the echoing voices suit the experiment very well.  There’s a “sane” vocal track and an “insane” vocal track.

“A Machine in India” is 10 minutes long.  It’s got a long meandering middle section, but the slow keyboard melody remains constant.  It’s also the first real occurrence of Wayne’s apparent obsession with vaginas (see Christmas on Mars).  It begins sweetly as a nice acoustic song but it explores many sonic areas (according to theliner notes, Wayne and his wife were discussing her menstrual cycle, and that was the jumping off point of this song).

“The Train Runs over the Camel but Is Derailed by the Gnat” begins with a fascinating cacophony of drums and ends in a very sweet “na na na” chorus.  In between you get yet another splendid trippy pop song.

“How Will We Know? (Futuristic Crashendos)” contains a shockingly high pitched sound (as warned) and yet the main body of the song is another of Wayne’s folky and very catchy melodies.

“March of the Rotten Vegetables” is probably my favorite track on the disc, despite the fact that it’s an instrumental.  It starts with some really interesting squeaky sounds and a cool guitar riff.  It morphs into yet another bombastic drum “solo” over a nice piano melody.  The liner notes indicates there are bats involved, but I’m not quite sure I hear it.

“The Big Ol’ Bug Is the New Baby Now” is a spoken word piece in which Wayne relates a story about how his dogs treat a stuffed toy like a baby, until they get a “Big Ol’ Bug” which becomes, as you may guess, the new baby.  Each disc has different ambient effects.  As the song ends, a swelling chorus sings the title until the loudly barking dogs bring an end to the song and the experiment as a whole.

As I mentioned, the stereo mixdown version is one way to enjoy the music.  But I must say that even listening one disc at at time can be fun (although really, that comes down to much more of an experimental music experience than anything else).  The social aspect of the performance certainly appeals, but I’m pretty antisocial and can’t imagine that I’d ever do it.

If you like the Lips at all but have been afraid of this CD because of how ridiculous it is, it’s probably worth the outlay of funds to buy the set or download a track or two.  It’s a fun disc that rewards patience, and, really, the songs are all very good.  You could also look for the stereo mixdown, but really, you’d only be getting half the story.

[READ: February 3, 3009] Drawers & Booths

Full disclosure: Ara 13 asked if I’d like to read his book and write about it. I looked up the book on Amazon, and it sounded cool, so I agreed.

Drawers & Booths is a work of metafiction.  A simple definition of metafiction, in case you don’t know, is: “a type of fiction that self-consciously addresses the devices of fiction;  metafiction does not let the reader forget that he or she is reading a fictional work” (for the full Wikipedia explanation click here.)

SPOILER ALERT:  Generally I try not to give anything away when I review a book.  Some things are unavoidable of course, but any major plot twists or surprises I try to leave for the reader to discover by him or herself.  However, because this book is metafictional, and there are twists, surprises, and massive plot alterations throughout the book, the only way I can review it at all is to give some of these things away.  I don’t think I ruin anything for anyone, but tread lightly if you want nothing revealed. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Lemony Snicket–The Lump of Coal (2008)

Posted in Art, Children's Books, Fables, Funny (ha ha), Holidays, Lemony Snicket, Short Books, The Flaming Lips on February 5, 2009| Leave a Comment »

lumpSOUNDTRACK: THE FLAMING LIPS-Clouds Taste Metallic (1995).

cloudsClouds Taste Metallic is a clear precursor to later Lips albums.  The opener “The Abandoned Hospital Ship” even sounds like it could come from Soft Bulletin (in fact it sounds more than a bit like “The Sparks That Bled”). Wayne’s high voice is finally finding its range nicely.  The chord progression is also great. The only thing that makes it sounding off the wall is the fuzzed out guitar solo (and the tubular bells, of course).    “Psychiatric Explorations of the Fetus with Needles” returns to the fuzzy rock of old.  On “Placebo Headwound” the acoustic guitar is back but it is buttressed by the wonderfully full bass sound that the Lips have started using (and will continue to use on the next few discs).  “This Here Giraffe” is one of my favorite early songs: a loping bassline over a cute and catchy chorus (“This here giraffe…laughs”).

“Brainville” is probably their nicest ballad to date.  It has a sweet feeling and a goofy chorus.  “Guy Who Got a Headache and Accidentally Saves the World” is yet another great alternapop song.  “When You Smile” could also come right from Bulletin.

“Kim’s Watermelon Gun” is a fast and fun rocker.  The next two tracks “They Punctured My Yolk” (later sampled by the Beastie Boys on To the 5 Boroughs, and “Lightning Strikes the Postman” are instantly classic fast alternapop songs.

“Christmas at the Zoo” is another pop gem like “Giraffe”; what is it about their poppy animal songs?   Despite its message “Evil Will Prevail” is another seemingly happy poppy song.  And the last song “Bad Days” is listed as (Aurally Excited Version) although it doesn’t sound any different from the rest of the disc but it sure sounds good.

The major labels have been very good to the Lips, sonically.  And the Lips are about to repay them by releasing the most ridiculous album ever….

[READ: January 26, 2009] The Lump of Coal

In what seems to be a new tradition, Lemony Snicket has written another holiday book.  Unlike The Latke Who Couldn’t Stop Screaming, this book is not published by McSweeney’s and it features art by Brett Helquist (the artist from A Series of Unfortunate Events).

Also unlike pretty much everything else he’s done, this book is actually sweet and heartwarming. There’s nothing sinister about the book at all. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Lucy Thomas–Jokes Told in Heaven About Babies (2003)

Posted in Corporate skewering, Dave Eggers, Dreams, Essays, Flash Fiction, Funny (ha ha), Funny (strange), Lucy Thomas, McSweeney's, Short Books, The Beach Boys, The Flaming Lips on February 2, 2009| Leave a Comment »

jokesSOUNDTRACK: THE FLAMING LIPS-Transmissions from the Satellite Heart (1993).

transIt’s easy to see how people could cry about the Lips moving to a major label.  I mean, comparing this to Hear It Is, they’re like different bands. Except that they’re not.  They’re still the same band, they’re just better, more refined, more mature (maybe) and they know how to use their previous experiments in a way that assists and strengthens the music.

Pretensions aside, this was the disc that scored them their biggest hit, “She Don’t Use Jelly.”  It’s a super catchy, slightly annoying, certainly borderline novelty song (except that all Lips songs are borderline novelty, they’re so weird).  I was thrilled when I saw the Lips on the Soft Bulletin tour and they not only played “Jelly,” they made a big party out of it with balloons and all kinds of fun.

“Jelly” isn’t entirely representative of the album, but, if you really listen to it, it’s not that far afield from the rest of the disc either.  “Turn It On” is the first time you can really hear all the elements of the Lips coalescing into what they would one day become.  Wayne’s voice is coming in close to what we know now, and the musicianship is quite good.  “Pilot Can at the Queer of God” (see, their titles haven’t sold out!) on an earlier disc would have been a messy shambles, but their refined sense makes this a fantastic song with cool backing vocals and everything.  A sort of punk Beach Boys if you will.

“Chewin the Apple of Your Eye” could actually have been a B-Side of Soft Bulletin, in its simple acousticness.  “Superhumans” starts showing off the kind of interesting drum sound that would be a staple of their later releases (this disc welcomes drummer and main contributor Steve Drozd, so that makes sense).

“Be My Head” is another fun Beach Boysesque song. It’s such a simple, happy song (complete with ahh’s in the background).  The distorted guitar isn’t overpowering.  The only thing that is decidedly not Brian Wilson is the lyrics (“You can be my head, I’m through with this one).

“Moth in the Incubator” seems to summarize their whole career in one song.  An acoustic intro, a noisy, crashing middle section and then a slight weird yet catchy as hell melody to close.

Track 9 is listed as “********” but its’ actually a song called “Plastic Jesus” from the film Cool Hand Luke.  A short acoustic song.

The disc ends with the really cool “Slow Nerve Action” a very simple riff, but it is played so differently from the rest of the album, (almost like a professional guitarist?!).  A simple song but very catchy.  An excellent end to a great disc.

[READ: January 26, 2009] Jokes Told in Heaven About Babies

I can’t really say how disappointed I was by this book.  And primarily I was disappointed because the title is awesome and has so much potential.  However, the title is neither accurate nor expounded upon.  That’s right, the book with probably the funniest title published in 2003 is misleading. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Various–Dear New Girl or Whatever Your Name Is (2005)

Posted in Art, Beck, Funny (strange), McSweeney's, Oddities, The Flaming Lips, Threats on February 2, 2009| Leave a Comment »

dearnewSOUNDTRACK: THE FLAMING LIPS-Hit to Death in the Future Head (1992).

hitAfter a few years on an indie label, The Flaming Lips moved to the majors with this disc.  The experimentation is downplayed somewhat although that’s not to say there’s none.  One could see that some die hard fans would be disappointed in the move as the Lips limit the acid somewhat, but just judging by the cover (polka dotted toilet seat) and the title (what on earth does that mean?) it’s clear they haven’t sold out.

“Talkin’ Bout The Smiling Deathporn Immortality Blues (Everyone Wants To Live Forever)” opens the disc with a fun deep bass voice singing, “Oooh wah wah” while Wayne ‘s normal voice sings one of their catchiest songs thus far.  “Hit Me Like You Did the First Time” is also a catchy number with a wildly distorted guitar riff opening.  “The Sun” is practically a mellow folk song, propelled by a smooth bass line.

“Felt Good to Burn” has a wobbly backwards feeling (so indeed, the experiments have not ended). “Gingerale Afternoon (The Astrology Of A Saturday)” sounds like a pretty typical  college radio hit song circa 1992 (although sightly underproduced).  Both of these tracks could easily have come from Beck.

“Halloween on the Barbary Coast” is probably the only song that tells you “you know you’ve still got shit for brains” that you don’t feel insulted by.  It’s a slow building beauty with a vaguely middle eastern feel and wonderful to sing along to.  On “The Magician Vs. The Headache,” the magician is another great acid power pop song.  The headache would be the twenty or so seconds of repetitive blasts at the end of the song.   “You Have To Be Joking (Autopsy Of The Devil’s Brain)” is another mellow ballad, despite the title. “Frogs” feels like a pretty normal song aside from the lyrics, until you get to the squalling guitar solo (all 2 bars of it).  “Hold Your Head” is a keyboard filled mellow song that sort of fades the album out.

So, even though these songs are a lot less aggressive and trippy than their previous records (or even than their titles would suggest), the Lips don’t just end the record pleasantly.  The final untitled track is 29 minutes of unchnaging thunder claps and nonsense and noise blasts echoing back and forth from speaker to speaker.  Take THAT major labels!

[READ: January 26, 2008] Dear New Girl or Whatever Your Name Is

According to the back of the book Lisa Wagner, the designer of this book, confiscated notes in various school districts around Los Angeles.  These notes, including the title’s inspiration were then given to various artists to use as the basis for pieces of art. (more…)

Read Full Post »

David Garnett–Lady into Fox (1922) [THE COLLINS LIBRARY No. 3 (2004)]

Posted in David Garnett, Drinking, Fables, Funny (strange), Marriage (Happy), Marriage Trouble, McSweeney's, Paul Collins, The Collins Library, The Flaming Lips on January 31, 2009| Leave a Comment »

fox1SOUNDTRACK: THE FLAMING LIPS-In aPriest Driven Ambulance (1990).

priestThis is where the Lips really hit their stride.  While they are still experimenting with sonic noises, the dedication to songcraft takes precedence.  It’s as if they wrote cool songs first and then fiddled with them, rather than using the fiddling as the main focus.  The album is divided into two sides: Smile Side and Brain Side.  Amusingly all songs are listed as being 3:26 long, and yet none of them actually are.

“Shine on Sweet Jesus” is catchy as hell and also features some of the interesting effects that Wayne & co would really play with later (multi layered deep voices, etc).”Unconsciously Screaming” is another simply great thrashy song.

“Rainin’ Babies” seems like it would be a pretty harsh song and yet it isn’t.  Its got a catchy chorus (“this is my present to the world”) and is one of many highlights on the disc.  “Five Stop Mother Superior Rain” has pretty weird lyrics over a nice acoustic bit.  It sounds so innocent and yet it starts: “I was born on the day they shot JFK”.  It slowly builds to a singalong chorus of “You’re fucked if you do and fucked if you don’t.  Five star mother superior rain.”  Whatever that means.

Brain Side doesn’t start out too auspiciously with the rather meandering “Stand in Line.”  But it is quickly redeemed with the epic “God Walks Among Us Now.”  It’s squeals and squalling and distortion and it’s catchy as all get out, and it contains the wonderful chorus:  “Used to be alright then things got strange.”  “There You Are (Jesus Song No. 7)” is a more delicate ballad.  (It’s surprising how much acoustic work there is on the disc).

“Mountain Side” returns us to the rocking noise.  It’s another simple, catchy song with enough distortion to keep it interesting.  “What a Wonderful World” is a cover of the classic song.  It seems so much like a parody, and yet knowing Wayne’s later lyrical work I’d suggest it isn’t.  It’s done  genuinely, despite themselves, and you never get a sense that they’re snickering at all.

The two bonus songs are okay, but they tend to ruin the rather nice ending of the disc.  (But such is the problem with bonus tracks).

[READ: January 17, 2008] Lady into Fox

In the first few pages of this book, as the title implies, a Gentleman’s wife turns into a fox.  The fact that Garnett was able to write 78 pages about this and keep it interesting is pretty remarkable.

Basically, when Mr Tebrick’s wife turns into a fox–more or less before his eyes–he decides that he will bring her home in hopes that this will just wear off.  The story turns into something of a fairy tale, with Mrs Tebrick wearing a house coat and playing cards (although she cannot talk) and with them trying to lead a normal life. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Frank Buckland–Curious Men: Being a Collection of Freaks, Frauds, and Fine Fellows. Gathered by an Eminent Victorian (1830-1838) [THE COLLINS LIBRARY No. 6 (2008)]

Posted in 19th Century, Dip-in Books, Frank Buckland, Freaks, Funny (strange), Led Zeppelin, McSweeney's, Oddities, Paul Collins, Pink Floyd, Short Books, The Collins Library, The Flaming Lips on January 29, 2009| Leave a Comment »

curiousSOUNDTRACK: THE FLAMING LIPS-Telepathic Surgery (1989).

telepathicAlthough the overall sound of the Lips on this disc isn’t that much different, the band sounds more accomplished. Rather than just banging out songs in a garage, this one sounds like a bunch of guys banging out songs in a studio and then experimenting the hell out of them.  In fact, the experimentation often takes over the quality of the song itself.  Wikipedia states that this album was originally going to be released as a thirty minute sound collage, although that was modified to what we now have, and that makes some sense.  This experimentation will certainly pay off in later years as the Lips hone their studio skills.

Even though the experiments tend to overshadow the songs, the compositions are more intricate, the playing is more precise (even though it is still somewhat sloppy sounding) and they sound like a real band.

The album is a lot of fun, although the middle two tracks: “Hell’s Angels Cracker Factory” and “UFO Story”could easily be removed and made a separate EP.   (And yes, I realize that “Hell’s Angels” is a bonus track not on the original LP, but it really messes with the flow when dropped in the middle of the disc).

But back to the beginning.  “Right Now” has a great, weird squeaky opening riff and a fantastic chorus that is reminiscent of Pink Floyd’s “Astronomy Domine.” “Chrome Plated Suicide” is a surprisingly poppy song, drenched in distortion to give it anice edge.  “Hari-Krishna Stomp Wagon” is subtitled “(Fuck Led Zeppelin)” which is pretty funny since so many of their earlier songs sound so Led Zeppelinish.

There are two super-short pieces that fill up the disc: “Michael Time to Wake Up” is a thirty second feedback squall and “The Spontaneous Combustion of John” is 53 seconds but is an actual song song, with acoustic guitars.  “UFO Story” is in fact a 6 and a half minute spoken word story about UFOs.  It’s a mellow drony piece with a barely audible (presumably stoned) Wayne relating a tale about seeing the same UFOs on two distinct occasions.  The middle two minutes are basically just  guitar squalling feedback, and the  final the two are a pretty piano melody.  “Miracle on 42 Street” isgentle instrumental, with a lot of cool bass, that opens with some fun radio snippets.

The second “side” of the disc is pretty different from the first. It contains a series of rather short, rather simple songs.  The experimentation has also mellowed somewhat.  It’s not as crazy as the first half and, in fact is a return to the acid rock of the first two albums.  “The Last Drop of Morning Dew” is another short song although it’s not silly.  “Shaved Gorilla” begins with a classical sample (which I cannot place), and then turns into a tidy little rocker.  And the disc ends with the wonderfully titled “Begs and Achin,'” a solid distortion filled rocker.

Two bonus tracks come on the disc “Fryin Up” (on Easter Sunday, blowing off everything off on Monday…hee). Doesn’t sound out of place on the disc at all.And “Hell’s Angels Cracker Factory” is a 23 minute (!) instrumental freak out. It opens with the roar of motorcycles and includes reversed tape loops and distortion, blessed distortion.  As a track it works pretty well, although, as I said, in the middle of a disc it’s a bit of a distraction.  On the reissue Finally, The Punk Rockers Are Taking Acid the song is reduced to 3 minutes, which gives you a taste for it without taking up the bulk of your evening.

Overall, the album is a transitional step, but it’s an important one.  And if you like your music freaky, it’s an enjoyable one, too.

[READ: January 15, 2008] Curious Men

This is a collection of articles originally published in the 1830s.  The subject is, essentially, human oddities.  Buckland was a sort of collector of oddities.  Yet unlike P.T. Barnum, he seems to have befriended, rather than exploited many of the people in question.  In fact, this collection of articles shows him investigating some of these bizarre claims, and seeing if they need to be debunked. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Clifford Chase–Winkie (2006)

Posted in Adventure, Clifford Chase, Dystopia, Free Speech, Funny (ha ha), Funny (strange), Futurama, Meta, Nirvana, Political Humor, Pregnancy, Prison, Racism, Religion, Short Books, Soiled Underpants, Supernatural, The Flaming Lips, The Replacements, Threats, War, WMDs on January 14, 2009| 2 Comments »

winkieSOUNDTRACK: THE FLAMING LIPS-Oh My Gawd!!!..The Flaming Lips (1987).

gawd1The cover of this disc makes a statement.  And it should tell you everything you need to know about the music inside.  It’s got skulls and psychedelic colors and Oh My Gawd!!!  And yet, it doesn’t, exactly.  It’s not quite as out there as the cover might make you think.

Because it’s funny how much this disc’s first song sounds like the Replacements (except where he starts singing about his brains falling out and everything exploding…not quite ‘Mats material).  But Wayne sounds like early, sloppy Paul Westerberg, and the riffs are not too far off from some of the early ‘Mats records.

Even the wonderfully titled 9 minute epic  “One Million Billionth of a Millisecond on a Sunday Afternoon” isn’t quite as much of a freak out as you might expect.  In fact, the early instrumental part is one of the prettiest melodies they’ve done.  It is particularly interesting given its sparse instrumentation.   The song does eventually drift back into earlier Pink Floyd territory (“Astronomy Domine” etc). But it’s “The Ceiling is Bendin'” that is the freak out you’re looking for, with a fun drum fading and the chaos.  “Maximum Dream for Evil Kenevil” on the other hand is a noisy mess (a fun noisy mess, but a noisy mess nonetheless).

It’s clear that they’re doing some good experimentation with audio effects.  And yet “Can’t Exist” is a delicate little song with just a light touch of feedback.

The first half of “Prescription: Love” is a rocking instrumental that would not sound out of place as a Nirvana B-side (but since it came before Nirvana, let’s say maybe on an SST Records track.  The second half returns to the garage rocking sound (with some funky deep vocals dubbed on…the first of many experiments with voice on future albums).

“Ode to C.C., Pt. 2” feels like it’s going to take of in an explosion but never does. But it has the excellent line “Hell’s got all the good bands anyway.”  “Can’t Stop the Spring” is another fantastic riff rocking song, and it starts and end with a classical music sample.  [Which I can’t place right now, sadly].

The disc ends with “Love Your Brain,” a 7 minute piano workout –which ultimately ends in the destruction of the room.  It sounds like every instrument in the place is destroyed.

So this disc expands the sonic weirdness of the Flaming Lips’ first disc, and it also showcases their growth as musicians.  It’s not a brilliant album by any means although it is quite good.  The most interesting thing is seeing how much they are experimenting with sounds now, and how it will pay off for them later on.

[READ: Late 2006 & December 2008] Winkie

I read this book two years ago, and my memory of it is not that great.  I’m only including it because I really enjoyed it at the time, and would like to make some record of having read it.

UPDATE: I have decided to re-read this book while on P breaks at work.  I am now utterly unsure whether or not I read the book fully last time.  I have just finished it again, and I was totally surprised by so many things (although one or two things did trigger my memory) that I really had to wonder if I finished it.

So, the story is about a stuffed bear named Winkie.  Winkie was a beloved toy of the Chase family and most recently of Clifford Chase [see author’s name now].  As the story opens, Winkie, the stuffed bear, is being tackled by the FBI as they arrest him for terrorist activities.  [You can re-read that sentence to see if your brain digested it.] (more…)

Read Full Post »

McSweeney’s#1 [Timothy McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern (or “Gegenshein”) Autumn 1998 “The Ski Instructor”]

Posted in 19th Century, Bill Clinton, Books about writers, Christmas on Mars, Consumerism, David Foster Wallace, Egyptology, Essays, Flash Fiction, Funny (ha ha), Funny (strange), Glasgow Phillips, John Hodgman, Komar and Melamid, Led Zeppelin, Marriage Trouble, McSweeney's, Meta, Neal Pollack, Racism, Rick Moody, Roberto Bolaño, Sarah Vowell, Short Story, Smarty Pants, The Flaming Lips, War, Zev Borow on January 13, 2009| 3 Comments »

mcsweeneys1SOUNDTRACK: THE FLAMING LIPS-Hear It Is (1986).

hear-it-isI’ve claimed that I love the Lips, but then I was very harsh about their cover of “White Christmas,” and I noted that I wouldn’t listen to the soundtrack of  Christmas on Mars very much.  So, I felt I owed them some love.  But my recollection of their early stuff was that it was pretty weird and hard to listen to.

And yet, I proved myself wrong.  Hear It Is is not the Flaming lips of the early 2000’s.  It’s almost like the bratty younger brother of that band.  Only Wayne and Michael Ivins are present, and the band is pretty much just guitar, bass and drums.  The guitar is distorted and noisy (except when it’s acousticy and mellow).  The album doesn’t sound too far out of place for a college radio record in the late 80s.

Except of course that Wayne and the boys are pretty out there. The music is psychedelic, acid inspired and quite punk.  So you get songs like “Jesus Shootin’ Heroin” a seven minute epic of heavy riffs and screaming, but also of background “Ahhhh’s”.  You also get “With You” a song that starts out like a pretty, acoustic ballad. “Godzilla Flick” is a ballad like no other.  And yet despite all of the freakouts and noise, really at this stage what you get is a Led Zeppelin inspired heavy garage band having a lot of fun.  To say that this is going to blow your mind would be unfair, but to anyone who says the early stuff is unlistenable, they are totally wrong.   Hear It Is is sloppy, punky and a little ridiculous, the ideal incubator for what will become the Lips of 2000.

This CD comes with a cover of “Summertime Blues.”  This disc was reissued along with their initial EP and some bonus tracks on the disc Finally the Punk Rockers are Taking Acid.

[READ: 1998 and January 10, 2009] McSweeney’s #1

I have been reading McSweeney’s since its inception.  (My copy of this issue even has the two page typed letter that explains the failure of Might magazine and the origins of this one. However, it’s been over ten years since I read the first issues.  Given my new perspective on McSweeney’s, and how I read just about everything they release, I thought it was about time to go back to the beginning and proceed through the issues until I meet up where I first started reviewing them.

Issue #1 has many features that are absent in later issues:

First is the cover.  This cover is simply filled with words; practically littered with them.  There are subtitles, there are jokes, there’s all sorts of things (I mean, just look at the full title of this issue).

Second is the letters column.  The difference with this letters column compared to most publications is that they are all (or mostly) nonsense.  One comes from an author whose piece is accepted into the issue (Morgan Phillips).  Another is a funny/silly letter from Sarah Vowell.  And there’s a letter to his cousin from John Hodgman (whose comic potential may not have been tapped at this point?). (more…)

Read Full Post »

12 musical things I (we) dislike about Christmas

Posted in Beck, Brian Wilson, Canadian Music, Christmas Album, David Sedaris, Eartha Kitt, Holidays, Johnny Cash, Paul Debraski, Radio, Religion, The Beach Boys, The Flaming Lips, Wikipedia on December 22, 2008| 2 Comments »

Last year I listed my 12 favorite Christmas discs.  This year I figured I’d do 12 gripes and 12 raves about Christmas music in general.  Of course, I’ll start with my gripes.

Note: This list only includes songs that we personally own (mostly on compilations we’ve bought over the years).   This is why “Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer” and Paul McCartney’s “A Wonderful Christmas Time” are not included here, because I don’t own them, so I don’t have to hear them.

This is Sarah here, chiming in as the co-owner of all this Christmas music and lover of Christmas music and person who makes us listen to it all December long.  I felt compelled to butt in, so you’ll see my comments below.

In no particular order…

1. “Santa Baby”
earthaBoy I can’t stand this song.  I know it’s supposed to be cute and racy and risque or whatever, but I simply can’t stand how crassly materialistic it is.  And I’m not one who thinks Christmas is all about, like, Jesus’ birth or being good or anything.  I know it’s all about the presents; however, this song is just….so…wrong.  And if the Eartha Kitt version (the one you hear most of the time) veryspecialweren’t bad enough, the Madonna version (on A Very Special Christmas) is just abysmal.  She sounds like a sexually deranged Betty Boop (which I suppose is not unusual for her circa this release, but still).  Stop trying to seduce Santa!  Make it go away!

Sarah: I concur. (more…)

Read Full Post »

« Newer Posts - Older Posts »