Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Archive for the ‘Oddities’ Category

Karl Shaw–5 People Who Died During Sex: And 100 Other Terribly Tasteless Lists (2007)

Posted in Books about music, Books about writers, Contests, Dip-in Books, Drinking, Food, Funny (ha ha), Funny (strange), Karl Shaw, Oddities, Political Humor, Religion, Sex, Smarty Pants, Suicide, The Flaming Lips, Violence, Virginity (Loss of), Yuck! on March 3, 2009| Leave a Comment »

5SOUNDTRACK: THE FLAMING LIPS-Ego Tripping at the Gates of Hell (2003).

ego1This was the second EP that came from the Yoshimi disc.  This disc contains four original tracks and three remixes.

I’m never entirely sure who these remixes are for.  I have a number of singles where there’s a 7 or 8 minute remix of a track.  And  I suppose they could be played on a dancefloor (it worked for Tori Amos after all) but really, few dance hall goers want to hear The Flaming Lips and few Lips fan are out boogeying it up (and for that matter, when you’re out boogeying it up, the Lips aren’t really want you want to hear anyhow (and really no one has been boogeying it up since 1976 anyhow)).  And, frankly it takes a pretty inspired remixer to do anything other than just sample a line from a song and put it on a fast 4/4 beat anyway.

So really, we’re here for the four originals.  And, as with the Fight Test EP, the songs retain that sense of Yoshimi through and through (even though these are new songs and not outtakes from the session).  “The Assassination of the Sun” and “Sunship Balloons” are two striking songs right out of the Yoshimi playbook.  “Assassination” is piano heavy and “Sunship” has a spoken word intro about love and space.

“I’m A Fly In A Sunbeam (Following The Funeral Procession Of A Stranger)” is an instrumental with a lengthy horn section (!).  It borders on a jazz piece but never loses it’s Lipsiness.  “A Change At Christmas (Say It Isn’t So)” is a spare track, although its Christmas message of happiness is always welcomed (and is a vast improvement over their “White Christmas”).

Many times EPs are just a way to tide you over until the next CD comes out.  But this one provides fans with a little more of that Yoshimi bliss before they move to a new sound on At War with the Mystics.

[READ: February 6, 2009] 5 People Who Died During Sex

This was another Christmas book from Sarah.  It is a collection of macabre lists.  Many of the lists also have a paragraph or two of explanation and/or context.

Some of the disgusting lists include:
10 Alternative Uses for Coca Cola [spermicide/windshield washer etc.]
10 Human Recipes [signs of cannibalism]
20 World Eating Records [12 slugs in 2 minutes]
10 Aphrodisiacs [lion testicles]
40 Syphilitics [J.S. Bach] (more…)

Read Full Post »

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 »

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 »

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 »

« Newer Posts