SOUNDTRACK: RALPH STANLEY-Tiny Desk Concert #31 (October 13, 2009).
Ralph Stanley is apparently a living bluegrass legend, although I’ve never heard of him. He plays a clawhammer banjo (and apparently has for 63 years).
The concert lasted only 6 minutes, but in that time he sang three a capella songs: “Gloryland,” “Turn Back, Turn Back” and “Amazing Grace.”
It’s hard to assess a legend based on this performance. I’ve no idea how good his voice was back in the day. He sounds fine here, albeit understandably quite old. I’d have liked to hear his banjo.
[READ: January 3, 2014] Grantland #8
It is becoming apparent to me that Grantland loves basketball. Like, a lot more than any other sport. This issue had a ton of basketball in it. And, I have to admit I was a little tired of it by the end–there was a lot less pop culture stuff, too. So, it felt especially basketball heavy. I realize of course that the time frame covered was the playoffs, but still.
BILL SIMMONS-“Searching for a Superman”
A lengthy article about Dwight Howard, discussing the pros and cons of signing him again.
MARK TITUS-“How Did He Get So Good?”
A look at Paul George and Danny Green doing better than expected in the NCAA playoffs.
CHARLES P. PIERCE-“A Dark Day in Boston”
Pierce wonders about Boston after the Boston Marathon bombing–he says the city will come back stronger. (more…)
Since I have posted about Phish already, it seemed like time to listen to an ICP song. I admit that when their first album came out, they seemed goofy enough to check out their album. I love a cartoony band that is going to “ruin America.” But I had heard that their music was just too awful to enjoy ironically, so I never bothered with them (if I had been a few years younger, I probably would have embraced them wholly). In the book below, Rabin says that their newer stuff is not only a ton better than their early stuff (which he admits is raw and pretty terrible) he says that it is quite poppy.
So I listened to a few of the songs that he mentions (and there are some funny lines), but I decided to focus on this one which Rabin describes as “a groovy throwback number that finds ecstasy in a bleak moral reckoning…finding the joy in the macabre and the celebration in the gothic. Also, it’s catchy as fuck.”
That’s a highfalutin way of saying that they sing about blowing shit up. Lyrically the song seems to be about ICP talking to their fans (in the harshest terms possible, which I guess is affection: “Cuz you’re the evilest pedophiles, rapists and abusers/All together we’ve got fifty thousand of you losers”). It’s an insider tract and if you don’t like it or get it, well, you’re not supposed to.
But aside from the lyrics about rapists and all the cursing, this song could easily be a big hit. It is, yes, catchy as fuck.
But I won’t be listening to more from them.
[READ: January 2, 2013] You Don’t Know Me But You Don’t Like Me
Every year my brother-in-law gets me cool and unusual books, most of which I’ve never heard of. This year, he got me this book which I’d never heard of. I was confused by the title (which is confusing). The author’s name sounded familiar, but I wasn’t sure—until I saw the A.V. Club connection. So, at first I thought this was going to be about going to interesting shows or basically having something to do with the A.V. Club. But, as the subtitle says, this book is exclusively about Rabin’s travels following Phish for a summer and also going to some ICP Gatherings of the Juggalos.
The theme of the book is how most people have never heard the music of either band, but they have formed opinions not only of the bands, but their followers. Rabin points out plenty of exceptions to the stereotypes, but you won’t be leaving this book thinking much more of the preexisting stereotypes than you already do. Sure, some Phish heads are doctors, and some Juggalos are employable, but the majority are (despite his best efforts) what you think they are. But one of the main messages that he seems to promote in the book is that each of these groups have created tribes around them. And those who aren’t part of the tribe may scoff, but they secretly wish they could be having as much fun as the members of the tribes. And that may in fact be true.
I’ve enjoyed Phish’s music for years, although I’ve never seen them live. And as for ICP, I didn’t even realize they were still around—although that Workaholics episode should have clued me in. Naturally these two bands could not be more polar opposite in terms of music and fanbase (although Rabin did encounter some crossover). So he sets out to show how he can enjoy both groups. (more…)
SOUNDTRACK: BOB & DOUG McKENZIE-“The 12 Days of Christmas” (1981).
This is my preferred old school version of “The 12 Days of Christmas.” It was one of the first parodies of the song that I had heard (and I was big in parodies back in 1981).
I loved how stupid they were (on the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me…a beer). I loved trying to figure out what a two-four was, and it cracked me up that they skipped a whole bunch of days.
I also enjoyed how they continued to snipe at each other throughout the song. Not comedy gold perhaps (that would be “Take Off” recorded with Geddy Lee, but a nice way to start, or end, the season on these “mystery days.”
Evidently, decades after SCTV went off the air, Bob & Doug got an animated TV show (without Rick Moranis). And they made a video of the song. Hosers.
Five Dials Number 29 was the first issue I had read in a while. (I read this before going back to 26-28). And it really reminded me of how great Five Dials is. I don’t know why this isn’t Part 2 after Number 28’s Part 1 (there was no 28b either), but that’s irrelevant. This is an independent collection of great writing. I was instantly surprised and delighted to see that César Aria was included in this issue (I didn’t even know he had made inroads in England).
CRAIG TAYLOR-Letter from the Editor: In Swedes and Open Letters
Taylor’s usually chipper introduction is saddened by the contents of this one. The discussion centers on Sweden and the city of Malmo, where integration is proving to be tougher than they’d hoped. Black skinned people are profiled pretty explicitly. Taylor talks about meeting the writer Jonas Hassen Khemiri (who they subsequently published in issue 21) who deals with issues of race. In March of 2013, Khemiri wrote an open letter to Swedish Minister for Justice Beatrice Ask after she brushed off concerns about racial profiling. The letter went viral including getting translated into 15 languages. So I guess there is some positivity after all. (more…)
SOUNDTRACK: THE BIRD AND THE BEE-12 Days of Christmas (2008).
I first heard a bit of this song in a Sephora a few years ago. Then they played it on New Girl (in two separate Christmas episodes). But I never knew who the artist was. Then some kind soul pointed me to the band and lo, I found the track.
I don’t know much else about the Bird and the Bee, but this is hands down my favorite rendition of the 12 Days of Christmas. In addition to the great, groovy sound (which reminds me of the Cocteau Twins), I just loved how…different the song sounded. Turns out, according to their soundcloud page, “we changed the song so that every repeat is a completely different progression.” I love it.
The song never gets boring and her voice is simply gorgeous. I only wish it was available for sale or download or something.
[READ: December 16, 2013] Five Dials #27
I was a little harsh on Five Dials Number 26, but overall, it still kept up the greatness that has been Five Dials. And #27 keeps up the excellence. Since Five Dials likes globetrotting, this issue is based in and around Greece, the county that is in tumult.
This one also has letters from Our Glorious Readers. One of the readers sensibly comments that the Berlin issue would keep her busy throughout the winter. Wish I had doled mine out better. I feel that Toronto gets a little knock from the editors who seem to think it is not as cool as Berlin. I also enjoyed the reader’s description of Peter Stamm’s writing as being like skiing.
CRAIG TAYLOR-A Letter from the Editor: On Timelines and Greek Photographs
Taylor talks about the timelines that tend to appear in newspapers, most of which seem to talk about the collapse of something or other (like the Greek economy). After visiting Athens, Five Dials felt it was time to bring some Greek writing to English readers. The letter talks about the contents within and gives good context to Dimitris Tsoumblekas’ photos which are quite good but are even better when you know what they are doing–especially the one about his father. (more…)
SOUNDTRACK: BOB DYLAN-Christmas in the Heart (2009).
I have been a dabbler in Dylan over the years. I like his hits, I like some of his albums, but I’ve never been a huge huge fan. So the biggest surprise to me was that Bob Dylan now sounds like Tom Waits. His voice is so crazily gravelly, it’s almost (almost) unrecognizable as Dylan.
That said, on some of the tracks it works very well–like he’s had too much to drink and is enjoying the revelry of these traditional songs. I imagine him as a benevolent uncle trying to get the family to sing along. And sing along they do. He has a group of backing singers who sound like they are straight out of the forties and fifties (on some songs the women sing incredibly high especially compared to Dylan’s growl). I’m not always sure it works, but when it does it’s quite something.
The first three songs are a lot of fun. However, when he gets to “Hark, the Herald Angels Sing,” it really sounds like he has hurt himself. He seems to really strain on some of those notes–note the way he pronounces “herald” (heeerald).
The more secular songs fare better with “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” sounding especially Waitsian and being all the better for it. Although I feel that perhaps he made up some lyrics–“presents on the tree?” It’s interesting that in “O Come, All Ye Faithful” he sings the first verse in Latin (I don’t know that I’ve heard any other pop singers do that) and it works quite well.
A less successful song is “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” in which the music just seems to be too slow for him. His verses end early and it seems like the backing singers are just out in the middle of nowhere. Perhaps the best song is “Must Be Santa.” I love this arrangement (by Brave Combo) and Dylan has a ton of fun with it (and the video is weirdly wonderful too).
“Christmas Blues” is a bit of a downer (as the title might suggest). I’d never heard this song before and Dylan is well suited to it. Dylan’s version of “The Little Drummer Boy” is also very good–he croons gently and his voice sounds really good. I was surprised to hear him do “Christmas Island,” a song I have come to love this year–his version is quite fun as well, with the backing singer doing Aloha-ays.
Finally, “O Little Town of Bethlehem” is pitched a wee bit high for him (and the Waits voice is more scary than avuncular here).
So overall it’s a weird collection (to say nothing of the artwork–both the cover and the inside cover), but I think it’s well suited to the day after the festivities.
[READ: December 15, 2013] Five Dials #26
I was shocked to realize who many Five Dials issued I had put off reading (and that this one came out over a year ago!). I knew 26 was a large issue, so I put it off. And then put it off. And then put it off, until Issue 29 came out. (I read 29 before this one, which got me to jump back and tackle this large one).
I have to admit I did not enjoy this one as much as previous Five Dials. The bulk of the issue was taken up with German short stories, and I don’t know if it was the choices of the editors, but (a few) of the stories just didn’t grab me at all. Having said that, there were one or two that I thought were very good. But with this being such a large issue, perhaps it deserved to be spaced out a little better–Weltanschauung fatigue, no doubt.
This issue starts with Letters from Our Glorious readers and other sources.
I feel like this is a new feature for Five Dials (although again, it has been a while). There is applause for the Bears (From Issue #24) and the acknowledgement of Zsuzsi Gartner’s first adoptees of her story ideas (Issue #25 Pt 1). There’s also the amusing story of a guy who got nailed at work for printing the color issue (something I used to do at my old job as well) and a refraining of answering spam.
CRAIG TAYLOR-On Ewen and German
Taylor doesn’t say much in this intro, since the “heavy lifting” is done by Anna Kelly. He does mention Paul Ewen (and his food writing) and the first Five Dials questionnaire (which I assume it is too late (and too far away) for me to submit for that free HH book).
ANNA KELLY
She explains about wanting to know secrets, and how when she was little, learning Pig Latin was a such a huge boon to her secretive life. Then her sister started studying German, and Anna herself was hooked. She says that reading German works in German is like flying. And she wants to share German language writers with us. Of course, we won’t be reading them in German, so there will be no flying. (more…)
After releasing their first album, Sigur Rós was approached by Icelandic musicians to remix the album. And thus came Recycle Bin. I realized too late that I really just don’t like remix albums all that much–they’re mostly just faster drums plopped on top of existing songs. And such is the case here. Despite the interesting musical pedigrees of the remixers, there’s nothing anywhere near as interesting as on Von itself. There are ten tracks, but only 5 songs.
”Syndir Guðs” gets two remixes:
Biogen keeps the bass but adds some more drumlike sounds.
Múm removes the bass, adds some wild drums and trippy textures and reduces the 7 minutes to 5. It is quite pretty but very far from the original.
“Leit að lífi” gets three remixes
Plasmic takes a spacey 3 minute wordless noodle and turns it into a heavy fast dance song with speedy drums, big bass notes and with spacey sounds.
Thor brings in some fast skittery drums and keeps the spacey sounds (which sound sped up). And of course bigger bass noises.
Sigur Rós recycle their own song into a dance song by adding funky bass and drums.
“Myrkur” gets two remixes. the original is a fast-paced groovy track.
Ilo begins it as a spacey non-musical sounding piece. After two minutes they add a beat of very mechanical-sounding drums. It’s probably the most interesting remix here.
Dirty-Bix adds big, slow drums. It keeps the same melody and vocals as the original but totally changes the rhythm and texture of the song, (removing the guitar completely).
The remaining three songs get one remix each.
The original “18 Sekúndur Fyrir Sólarupprás” is 18 seconds of silence. Curver turns it into “180 Sekúndur Fyrir Sólarupprás” and makes a muffled drum beat and some other samples from the album, I think. It constantly sounds like it is glitching apart until the end where it practically disintegrates–an interesting remix of silence.
“Hún Jörð” 7 min Hassbræður increases the drums and adds a more buzzsaw guitar sound and makes the vocals stand out a bit more.
“Von” has delicate strings and Jónsi voice. The remix by Gusgus adds low end bass and drums making it a thumping rather than soaring track.
I prefer the original, but I much prefer their next album to the first one.
[READ: end of October to early November 2013] original articles that comprise Both Flesh and Not
As I mentioned last week, I decided to compare the articles in Both Flesh and Not with the original publications to see what the differences were. I had done this before with A Supposedly Fun Thing… and that was interesting and enlightening (about the editing process).
This time around the book has a lot more information than the original articles did. Although as I come to understand it, the original DFW submitted article is likely what is being printed in the book with all of the editing done by the magazine (presumably with DFW’s approval). So basically, if you had read the original articles and figured you didn’t need the book, this is what you’re missing.
Quite a lot of the changes are word choice changes (this seems to belie the idea that DFW approved the changes as they are often one word changes). Most of the changes are dropped footnotes (at least in one article) or whole sections chopped out (in others).
For the most part the changes were that the book version added things that were left out or more likely removed from the article. If the addition in the book is more than a sentence, I only include the first few words as I assume most readers have the book and can find it for themselves. The way to read the construct below is that most of the time the first quote is from the original article. The second quote is how it appears in Both Flesh and Not. At the end of each bullet, I have put in parentheses the page in BFAN where you’ll find it. I don’t include the page number of the article. And when I specifically mention a footnote (FN 1, for example), I am referring to the book as many times the articles drop footnotes and they are not always in sync.
Note: I tried most of the time to put quotes around the text, but man is that labor intensive, so if I forgot, it’s not meant to be anything significant. (more…)
Today is the release date for Pearl jam’s new album, Lightning Bolt. I have heard two songs from it (the fast and furious “Mind Your Manners” and the gorgeous “Sirens”) and I’m quite excited to hear the whole thing. For the release of the album, Pearl Jam has decided to do some interviews. But not with the usual suspects. Rather, they have done four exclusive interviews with surfer Mark Richards, NFL player Steve Gleason, all around awesome lady Carrie Brownstein and director Judd Apatow.
The Mark Richards interview is available in excerpted form here. I’m not sure how long the whole interview is. But from the edited down video, we see that he interviewed all five of them for a bit (and then Stone, Jeff and Mike) and then Eddie. A surfer seems like a reasonable person t ask them about their music and they clearly feel very comfortable with him. (The video above is about 5 minutes). (more…)
It’s tempting to say that Phobos is a carbon copy of Negatron, but that’s not true. While the line up is the same, and the overall tone is very similar—very heavy, aggressive music—there are subtle differences. The first is that the album sounds vaguely more electronic, as if they were really flirting with industrial after the experiment with Jim Thirwell on the last album. E-Force’s vocals, while still abrasive and screamed have a lot of processing on them which makes them far more interesting and actually quite a bit more understandable. There’s also a lot of weird electronic effects that link the album and make it feel more “spacey.”
And while there are different sections of songs and parts that are actually quiet, this i still a difficult album–the vocals especially are exceedingly harsh and will turn off people who like the instrumental sections. I hate to sound like the band’s declining popular are all down to E-Force, but he is the weakest link in the band at this point. Whats weird about thee two E-Force era albums is that although they are very very heavy with several weird parts per song, the basic structure of them is very conventional. So instead of sounding proggy and weird, they sound more like a bludgeoning metal band. Which didn’t really work for them. Indeed, the band intended to if not call it quits at least take a hiatus after this album.
Phobos opens with “Catalepsy I” an introductory song—noises and whatnot. And indeed, these electronic noises link all of the songs of the record, with different sounds in between the tracks (like the way “Bacteria” opens with spacey effects and electronic drum noises for 35 seconds). But the first proper song “Rise,” has an opening guitar riff that is quite normal—dark, but normal. It’s true that the heaviness of the chugging section is heavier than most (like earlier Voivod), but it’s still not that strange. Until the verses come in. And here’s where E-Force’s vocals are a little different—more processed and robotic sounding. It actually works a lot better. And in the middle of the song while the heaviness is ongoing, that opening normal guitar riff comes back. Rather conventionally.
“Mercury” has a more typical Voivod guitar riff although the pounding heavy chords are still quite heavy. There’s more of the distorted vocals and weird chords for the bridge. It also begins a series of increasingly longer songs. This one is nearly 6 minutes. While “Phobos” is nearly 7. It also has an interesting echoing staccato guitar riff with E-Force’s vocals very distorted (like Nine Inch Nails or Skinny Puppy). The bridge is a crazy noisy monstrosity and yet the middle section is very simple: loud chords delivered at a slow pace with interesting effects and fiddly guitar solo noises. “Bacteria” reaches over 8 minutes long. But it is unlike any of their earlier prog songs. It has an interesting echoing guitar opening and a bunch of staggered parts. But once the song’s major chords start up it sounds probably most like the previous album except for the lengthy instrumental/psychedelic section starting at around 5 minutes.
The album slows down somewhat with the 1:48 “Temps Mort” a short instrumental with what sounds alike an accordion. It’s a weird little time out (which is what the title means), and I like it a lot.
“The Tower” has an underwater kind of feel to it amidst the bludgeoning guitars. The middle and the end have some very cool heavy trippy/spacey metal which is so radically different from the heavy Voivod chords that make up the proper song. Indeed the very end is a minute of mellow spacey guitars. “Quantum” is a pretty straight ahead (for Voivod) metal song with echoed vocals that take some of th edge off (until he screams the chorus). There’s another cool instrumental section. In fact, the whole album has great instrumental sections, it’s kind of a shame the vocals are so offputting (although at the end of this song they are so distorted and computerized that they sound very cool)
“Neutrino” opens with those big loud slow ringing chords of noise before the simple but creepy solo riff comes in. It’s 6 minutes long and has another interesting guitar line amid the noise. It takes 3 minutes (of 7) before the vocals come in and the song gets much darker. “Forlorn” is the closest thing to a hit on the album. The chorus is really easy to sing along to. And the verses are actually pretty straightforward. It’s very very heavy and isn’t going to make the radio anywhere, but it’s still catchy. The album proper ends with “Catalepsy II,” more swirling noises that sound like the beginning.
There are two bonus tracks on the CD. “M-Body” was written by Jason Newsted and is the most industrial mechanized/voiced songs on the album. It’s certainly out of place, although it does hint at what is to come on their next album. “21st Century Schizoid Man” is a cover of the King Crimson song. They’d done Pink Floyd and King Crimson fits pretty nicely. As with the Floyd covers this one is very heavy. Piggy gets the guitars right. But as with the rest of the album, E-Force’s vocals just don’t work. Whereas Snake’s weird pronunciations accented the covers in a cool way, E-Force just seems to be forcing his way through the track (the fact that he puts 3 syllables in “century” is pretty unforgivable. Overall the song is pretty great, although I’m not so sure about the guitar solo which sounds like Piggy doesn’t really know what to do.
And that’s the end of this Voivod lineup. Two albums and a lot of lost fans.
[READ: September 20, 2013] Terry
I have known about this book for a pretty long time. I was never really that interested in reading it because, while I don’t know all that much about Terry Fox, I felt like I knew enough about him to not bother with a full bio.
For those who don’t know (basically anyone from the U.S.), Terry Fox was a young man who developed cancer at the age of 19 in 1977. and had his leg amputated. To draw attention to cancer research he decided to run (yes run) across Canada on the Trans Canada Highway. He had a prosthetic leg, he practiced running every day (he was already a natural athlete) and he decided that in 1980 he would run from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific (he even had a bottle of water from the Atlantic that he wanted to pour into the Pacific). His plan was to run between 26 miles a day. Yes, run a marathon every day. He called it the Marathon of Hope.
When he started out, the media coverage was nothing but as he progressed and his friend (who drove the van alongside him) started making media attention, Terry’s cause became more well known. And by the time he made it to Ontario, he was a huge personality—making TV appearances, talking to anyone and, most importantly, making a ton of money for cancer research. (more…)
SOUNDTRACK: BONNIE “PRINCE” BILLY-LIve on Mountain Stage (April 11, 2013).
I saw Bonnie “Prince” Billy several years ago when he opened for Godspeed You Back Emperor. His set was really good. And yet I have never bought any of his music (his back catalog is just too intimidating to want to jump into). But i still enjoy his music, and this Mountain Stage appearance shows off his songs and his between set humor.
He plays four songs here: “Oh How I Enjoy The Light,” “We Love Our Hole,” “Screaming Issue” and “You Remind Me Of Something (The Glory Goes).”
“We Love Our Hole” is from an Australian movie about surfing (and features some great baking vocals from Emmett Kelly and especially Cheyenne Marie Mize. And “Screaming Issue” is a Loudon Wainwright song (it seems funny to me that he has so many songs but he chose to do a cover) and he does a great job of it. “You Remind Me of Something” may be my favorite song of the set.
One of these days I’ll have to dive into his recorded work. But, oh where to start?
[READ: September 19, 2013] Two Pints
Two Pints is a delightful, short book that shows just how funny Roddy Doyle is. I’m not sure how easy it is to find in the States, but if you’re a fan of Doyle’s humor, this is worth tracking down.
It is a series of conversations between two mates at the pub. Each entry is dated starting with 24-5-11 (May 24, 2011 for us Americans) and ending 4-9-12 (September 9, 2012). At first I thought that they were regular meetings, but they aren’t. Some come weekly some more frequently. But in each visit, the two men meet at their local with a pint to discuss the events of the day (often quite reluctantly).
Of course they also talk about their wives and kids and grand kids (the one crazy piece of nonsense is that one man (neither are named) keeps talking about buying wild animals for his kids (polar bears, hyenas and the lot). It’s so strangely far-fetched for something that is otherwise down to earth, that I’m just not sure if Doyle was making a point or just being goofy.
But otherwise, one man begins talking and the other joins in.
They talk about Gaddafi (one of them thinks he’s the guy at the chipper, the other one is sure he’s spotted him working at the airport—the perfect hiding place). They talk a lot about the Queen (it’s okay to hate the Brits again, phew) and The Pope (the mean German pope, not the nice new pope). They talk about politics and voting. They even talk about Anthony Weiner. (more…)
After Angel Rat, original bassist Blacky left the band. That’s never a good sign. After the tour for this album, original singer Snake left the band. That’s an even worse sign. I still can’t quite figure out exactly why Snake left (personal problems) but he went on to form the band Union Made. For a very detailed history of the band, check out this very cool timeline at Voivod dot net.
The Outer Limits got a pretty big release. I have an original copy that came with 3D glasses and all of the illustrations in 3D. But I was a little disappointed in Angel Rat and I don’t think I gave The Outer Limits much of a chance. It was no Nothingface. But the band was always morphing. Since Angel Rat went very commercial, this album brought things back into the prog realm (with a 17(!) minute song) but also had a lot of commercial songs.
The album opens with “Fix My Heart” which starts out much heavier than anything on Angel Rat. It’s also got some metal guitar pyrotechnics (squeaks and harmonics). Snake’s voice isn’t quite as pretty as on Angel Rat either—he growls a bit, but maintains his nicer voice overall. Nevertheless, “Fix My Heart” is a pretty commercial enterprise (as the title might even suggest). There’s some good “spacey” guitars sounds which bode will for the sci-fi angle of the album (and there’s some cool effects that reward headphone use). “Moonbeam Rider” starts with a very classic rock sounding riff and then morphs into a kind of pretty, mellow verse. But the interstitial guitar is all speed. It’s a nice mix of fast and slow. This song features some interesting bass work—nothing fancy but for the slow parts it is actually keeping the beat instead of the drums. The bassist was a studio musician for this album. There’s also what sounds like a bong during the pre-guitar solo section (the solo is fairly traditional).
“Le Pont Noir” is a mellow, slow guitar song with a very cool delay effect and Snake’s whispered vocals. The bridge gets heavy with a wonderfully weird Piggy guitar riff. It’s one of my favorite songs on the album.
Then the band’s second Pink Floyd cover appears. This time it’s the even more obscure “The Nile Song.” They have rather heavied this one up with crunching guitars and Snake’s distance screaming filling in the void (although in fairness the original vocals are also screamed). It’s not as dynamic or exciting as “Astronomy Domine,” but it’s still a cool cover. “The Lost Machine” starts off heavy with Away’s double cymbal work (a noisy splash and a fast ride cymbal). Then Piggy’s guitars have a slight delay on them which makes the opening chords sound especially odd. The bridge is a place for Piggy to show off some more weird spacey chords and some very cool guitar riffs. There’s even a spoken word narrator in the middle of the song that explains the “mission” “Time Warp” opens with a very bright and up beat sounding verse. But it quickly disintegrates into (intentional) musical chaos as the narrator gets lost in space.
This all leads up to the 17 minute “Jack Luminous.” If anyone doubted their prog rock leanings, this should dispel that immediate. 17 minutes, multiple parts, a sci-fi epic, it is prog (but heavy prog) at its finest. There are some incredibly catchy parts as well as some less catchy parts, and sections seem to change every two minutes or so. The slow down at 10 minutes is very cool—different guitar effects and the suspenseful bass line. There’s repeated sections as well, which means if you like some guitar line (the spacey part near the end) it comes back! It’s not quite as dynamic as say 2112, but it’s a very successful sci-fi epic.
“Wrong Way Street” returns to the normal and more conventional. The bass that opens the song sounds great and the chords are fairly conventional–the chorus is even really catchy. “We Are Not Alone” is a break-neck metal song, The drums are super fast, the guitars are relentless and the chorus even has an echoed “Hey!” that gets you to sing along. The song also features a cool slow, almost jazzy bass and drum section that lets Piggy throw some soloing in before returning to the fast paced verses.
There’s lots of theories about what happened to Voivod after this album. The success they had achieved earlier was now gone and the band seemed like they couldn’t decide to be metal or prog or is they should go for more pop music. The problem of course is that they were too weird to get mainstream acceptance anyway.
So Snake left and then there were only two original members. The next step would be a drastic one.
[READ: July 9, 2013] Grantland #7
This issue seemed to come hot on the heels of #6. But I enjoyed it just as much. A few notes: no Jeremy Lin in this issue. Lots of LeBron James, three articles about soccer! And a few pop culture moments that I had forgotten about.
REMBERT BROWNE AND DUSTIN PARKER-“The Jeopardy! Teen Tournament JUST. GOT. REAL.
Leonard Cooper didn’t know the final Jeopardy answer but he still won and he made a hilarious joke at the end (in cartoon format);
BILL SIMMONS-“Daring to Ask the PED Question”
Simmons talks a lot about PED’s in this forum. Of course, to me PED is my initials. For him (and sports fans) it is performance enhancing drugs. He asks why sports doesn’t do more about it. There are so many people who do it that every time we see someone who might be doing it or who suddenly has a good season, we assume they are doing them too. It would be a service to the players and the fans to have rigorous testing or none at all.
CHRIS RYAN AND ROBERT MAYS-“The NFL Coaches Family Portrait By the Numbers”
A silly analysis of a photo of NFL coaches.
WESLEY MORRIS-“Jodie Foster’s Big Night”
What exactly did Jodie Foster say at the Golden Globes? (This was in January and everybody talked about it and now it’s September and I’ve completely forgotten about it—funny ephemera of pop culture).
JONATHAN ABRAMS-“Out of Africa”
A serious look at trying to bring basketball to Africa. How the culture and language problems make it very difficult to establish any real cohesion in the diverse country. But there are a few examples of boys coming from Africa and benefiting from host families and then heading back to help those who love basketball back home. The main focus is on a 15-year-old Alexis Wangmene who came to the States (and left his family!) to try to gain an education and basketball skills. It’s a heartfelt story.
MOLLY LAMBERT-“Modern Love”
About the show Catfish which just goes to show we can sink even lower as a culture.
CHUCK KLOSTERMAN-“Mental Health Protocol”
About Royce White again. Last time there was a lengthy look at him. Now we get to hear that he thinks that everyone has some kind of mental health issue.
ANDY GREENWALD-“Eat Bray Love”
How cooking shows have gone from educational to crazy and annoying. He dislikes Top Chef and the new Anthony Bourdain show The Taste (which he says is awful) but he likes a decent show called Chopped.
ZACH LOWE-“The Fragile Science of Basketball Chemistry”
Sure the Heat were great this year, but it’s the way they evolved as a team, creating chemistry, that is so impressive.
RAFE BARTHOLOMEW-“The Pariah”
Timothy Bradley beat Manny Pacquiao in a disputed judges call. Instead of rising to fame, he has been avoided like the plague.
BILL SIMMONS-“The All-Manti Te’o Mailbag
Remember that crazy story about the football guy with the dead girlfriend who turned out to be fake? I never really understood the story and while they spend a lot of time talking and theorizing about it I still don’t get it. Did they ever find out the truth about it?
CHRIS BROWN-“Speak My Language”
When you play for the Patriots, you learn their way of doing things—it is simple and efficient, a streamlined version of what other coaches try to do.
KIRK GOLDSBERRY-“The Evolution of LeBron James”
Using diagrams, we see how much of a different player James is in just the last few years with The Heat. This article has made me want to watch James in a game while he is at his peak. So, Heat vs Bulls at the end of October, you’re on my schedule.
SEAN McINDOE-“The Non-Hater’s Guide to the NHL”
Even people who hate everyone in the NHL (which is everyone) can agree that there are some players who are universally admired: Martin Brodeur, Pavel Satsyuk. Teemu Selanne, Jarome Iginla, Jonathan Toews, Martin St. Louis, Gabriel Landeskog, Patrick Elias (Devils get two!), Ryan Smyth, Steve Sullivan, Saku Koivu, Henrik Lundqvist.
ALEX PAPPADEMAS-“God Needs a Hobby”
A look at Dan Harmon and his podcast Harmontown. Harmon seems like he might be a crazy alcoholic, but he’s also pretty darn funny.
MARK TITUS-“Duke’s Ignominious Son”
Everybody hates Christian Laettner, but that’s only because he’s pretty and he made The Shot
MARK LISANTI-“Three Days in Austin”
Dealing with the craziness of the South by Southwest film festival. Sounds awful.
HUA HSU-“The Alien Has Landed”
Soccer legend Ronaldo returns to Old Trafford
BILL SIMMONS-“The Greatest Action Franchise That Ever Was”
Live blogging the Fast and Furious 6 trailer. I admit I may have to see these films after reading this.
ZACH LOWE-“Lights, Camera, Revolution”
There’s some kind of new technology that will change the NBA forever. I pretty much don’t care.
TESS LYNCH-“Nostalgia Bites”
Watching old Real World episodes shows how much things have changed in reality TV, but also how much certain behaviors are not new.
BRIAN PHILLIPS-“Maradona, Then and Now”
Maradona was an amazing kid—at 15 he was remarkable at his ball control. Now at 52 he’s a crazy loon. What exactly happened in between?
ANDY GREENWALD-“From Big to Small, From Movie to TV”
Why not make Men in Black into a TV show—with some other film recommendations.
AMOS BARSHAD-“How Soccer Explains Israel”
I didn’t expect to enjoy this but I found it very interesting. An Israeli soccer team has signed two Muslim players and it has caused incredible animosity and even arson. How this look at a team is like a microcosm of the whole Israeli situation.
LOUISA THOMS-“Back to School”
Missy Franklin won a ton of medals in the Olympics. And then she went back to high school. What’s it like to be on her team at Regis Jesuit?
WESLEY MORRIS-“Run, Frank, Run”
Frank Ocean apparently wasn’t as huge as I thought he was.
MALCOLM GLADWELL AND CHUCK KLOSTERMAN–“The Lies He Told”
More about Manti Te’o. This discussion was a bit more helpful about what happened and how crazy it is.
CHRIS RYAN AND REMBERT BROWNE-“A List of Possible Reasons for Rob Gronkowski’s Arm Infection”
Hypothetical humor.
JORDAN CONN-“The Invisible Man”
Marc Gasol is extremely respected by scouts and agents, but the fans all think of him as Pau Gasol’s chubby little brother.
REMBERT BROWNE-“French Quarter Lessons”
While in New Orleans for the Super Bowl, Browne decided to go to a bunch of used bookstores. This is very funny and enjoyable.
JAY CASPIAN KANG-“Fiercely Disputed”
Mike Tyson’s one man show is weird and strangely affecting.
KATIE BAKER-“Do Svidanya to All That”
Several NHL players went to Russia’s KHL during the lockout. And some don’t want to come back.
CHRIS RYAN-“The All-Star Circus”
NBA All-Star weekend is a crazy circus (and sounds worse than the above SXSW festival).
CHUCK KLOSETRMAN AND ALEX PAPPADEMAS-“The Nobituary”
There was a serious rumor that David Bowie was on death’s door. Klosterman and Pappademas imagine writing his obituary.
DAVID SHOEMAKER-“Glenn Beck vs. WWE”
The WWE has always had racists as part of the act. What happens when some goons start acting like the Tea Party?
DAVID JACOBY-“The Pure Heart Meets The Bachelor”
Jacoby’s grandmother watches The Bachelor and he feels badly for her.
STEVEN HYDEN-“Is This It?”
The Strokes’ fifth album had just come out [really?]. It could be their last, but Hyden thinks their last two have been quite good.
BILL SIMMONS-“The Heat in Hindsight”
The Miami Heat came close to breaking the longest winning streak in the NBA. Simmons looks at the fallout and who “wins” and “loses” in the effort.
CHARLES P. PIERCE-“Bleu, Blanc et Rouge”
I had no idea that Charlie Pierce was a Canadiens fan!
KATIE BAKER-“The Ethics of a Family Plan”
Is it ethical to pretend that you are married to your roommate to get a family discount a ta gym? Hell yes.
EMILY YOSHIDA-“A Dark Force”
J.J. Abrams is going to direct the next Star Wars films. Why, when sci-fi is so multifaceted and so different is everything coming down to J.J. Abrams?
SEAN FENNESSEY-“The Case Against Justin Timberlake”
Timberlakes’s previous album was amazing. Then he took years off to make (bad) film and (good) TV. His star would only continue to rise if he stopped making music and only hinted that he would make another album. But the release of his new album (which isn’t that good) can only hurt him.
BRYAN CURTIS-“Waiting for Bettman”
While many New Yorker’s didn’t care about the NHL strike, Canadian writers camped out waiting for Bettman to announce the strike was over.
WESLEY MORRIS-“30 Rock Landed on Us” 30 Rock was many things, but it dealt with racial issues (at least between blacks and whites) better than any show.
RANY JAZAYERLI-“Fall of the Evil Empire”
The New York Yankees look like they won’t make the playoff this year (this was written in March and as of my writing this they have a slim chance at getting the wild card slot). It will be the firs time in a while, perhaps, just perhaps, it’s the start of a new drought for the Evil Empire.
BILL BARNWELL-“The Master Raven”
Ozzie Davis knows how to pick players for the Baltimore Ravens.
REMBERT BROWNE AND DUSTIN PARKER-The Best Chappelle’s Show Sketches of All Time”
Done as a series of cartoons (by Parker); Browne picks his eight favorites:
Charlie Murphy’s True Hollywood Stories: Prince
Wayne Brady’s Show
Charlie Murphy’s True Hollywood Stories: Rick James
Black Bush (especially now that Obama is president)
Clayton Bigsby: Black White Supremacist
Making the Band (P. Diddy)
The Racial Draft (Tiger Woods Now 100% Black)
The Niggar Family (uncomfortable and hilarious no matter how many times you watch it).
Once again, there’s another great issue of Grantland. Once again, I wish they would follow up on some of their speculative stories. But it’s fun to have a time capsule of events that occurred just a few months ago and yet which I have totally forgotten about.
And here’s the cover of The Outer Limits in non 3D style (which I haven’t see before)
SOUNDTRACK: RALPH STANLEY-Tiny Desk Concert #31 (October 13, 2009).
Ralph Stanley is apparently a living bluegrass legend, although I’ve never heard of him. He plays a clawhammer banjo (and apparently has for 63 years).
I Just Read About That... 