SOUNDTRACK: KATE BUSH-Hounds of Love (1985).
I have a very specific memory of the first time I heard the song “Hounds of Love.” I was in high school and the Wilderness Adventure Club was heading towards whatever destination we were going to (funny I can’t remember the destination, but I recall the car trip there). The head of the club (who was a teacher, but not one I had) was driving a bunch of us in his station wagon and this song came on. My friend Brad and I howled with laughter at the “barking” that Kate does. “Roo Roo Roo Roo.”
It only occurred to me recently that the driver probably enjoyed the music or else he wouldn’t have had it on, so that wasn’t very nice of us. It also occurs to me that he must have had the disc (actually the tape, as there were no discs then) because I don’t imagine the song was ever on the radio. (Although I also think there may have been a DJ talking about the songs, so my memory is shaky). I just remember laughing and laughing and quite likely Roo Rooing for much of the trip.
So, it’s funny now how much I love this disc (my high school self was a metal head, my college self expanded his musical mind rather a lot).
Kate’s previous two records were a wonderful precursor to this monumental disc. The big hits come at the top: “Hounds of Love” is indeed an amazing song, as is “Running Up That Hill.” But they’re familiar enough that I don’t have to say anything. “The Big Sky” is a rollicking romp of fun. And “Cloudbusting” is just simply amazing. (Look for the video with Donald Sutherland!). It’s five minutes of intense storytelling.
But for me, the second side of the album (starting with track 6 on the disc) is the real selling point. It’s something of a story called The Ninth Wave. And what I love about it (in addition to the awesome music) are the amazing effects and sounds and voices that are all over the tracks.
It begins simply with a delicate piece, “And Dream of Sheep,” a beautiful piano ballad. It’s followed by the mesmerizing “Under Ice.” The opening string sounds evoke someone skating on an ice (which is what the song is about). As the tension grows (is someone under the ice?) voices far back in the distance compete with Kate singing “Its me!”
The next track, “Waking the Witch” begins with some awesome headphone voice work. Voices from various family members implore her to wake up. Left, right, middle, back. Then, a voices asks “Can you not see that light over there?” With a far off voice whispering “over here.” When the song finally bursts forth, her voice is manipulated in a creepy disjointed way. Followed by different musical sections with cathedral bells. All through the track a male authority figure condemns the girl for being a witch. And as the song ends (with a sample of the helicopter from Pink Floyd’s The Wall she is found guilty. It’s quite intense.
The intensity slackens somewhat with the mellow “Watching Me Without You.” But it builds again with the manic intensity of “The Jig of Life” a traditional jig with uilleann pipes in the background and Kate’s vocals over the top. The song breaks into a very traditional sounding step dance seisiun until Kate starts whispering “I put this moment here” (more of that cool headphone stuff) and the song takes of again.
“Hello Earth” starts as a simple ballad reminiscent of “And Dream of Sheep” but it grows in intensity only to break for a choir passage. It then returns to the intensity of Kate’s voice which fades and ends with Kate’s whispered: “Tiefer, tiefer. Irgendwo in der Tiefe. Gibt es ein licht.” (Roughly: Deeper Deeper, Somewhere in the depths there is a light.)
The disc ends with “The Morning Fog” a respite from the intensity of the music and the contents. It’s a light ballad (with amazing fretless bass work) that seems like it could have been used in a John Hughes film. Especially for the “I tell my mother/father/loved ones/brother how much I love them” lyrics.
The Ninth Wave is one of my favorite suites to listen to. It not only demands attention, it usually gets it.
Hounds of Love is, simply put, fantastic.
[READ: November 15, 2009] Gemini & The Transfiguration of Benno Blimpie
When I was a kid, watching cartoons on Channel 11, WPIX, there was a frequent, (in my memory it was incessant) commercial for a Broadway play. And the only things I remember about the commercial were two snippets: In the first, a young boy is gorging himself on food and his mother yells “TAKE HUMAN BITES!” The second shows a woman who says “I’m not hungry, I’ll just pick” who then grabs a handful of spaghetti from someone else’s plate.
This commercial was such a part of our culture, that my friends used to shout “TAKE HUMAN BITES” at each other all the time. And yet, after all these years, I couldn’t remember what the play was. So, out of curiosity, I did some searching to see if I could find this mysterious play (and, more importantly find the commercial).
So, thank you, internet, for helping me discover the play is Albert Innaurato’s Gemini. No commercials have been forthcoming, sadly.
Well, I thought it would be fun to read this play and see if it was as funny as the commercial seemed. Who could have guessed that the play would have turned out like this? (more…)
I found out about 
SOUNDTRACK: JARVIS COCKER-Further Complications (2009).
I really enjoyed Pulp’s Different Class album when it came out. In fact, I liked it so much I made sure to get This is Hardcore and even the one before the got big, His n Hers. I felt like the earlier stuff was just okay. So either they hit their stride or they got lucky just before they broke up.
I’m popping this updated review into its own post because it’s quite different from 
SOUNDTRACK: TOPLESS WOMEN TALK ABOUT THEIR LIVES soundtrack (2006).
I learned about this soundtrack from a very cool article in The Believer (the beginning of which is online 
SOUNDTRACK: SONIC YOUTH-“Rather Ripped” (2006).
When Rather Ripped came out, I was really excited by it. It rocked heavy, it was catchy and it featured a lot of Kim. I listened to it all the time, and would have said it was my favorite SY disc of this era. However, listening to Sonic Nurse reminded me how much I liked that one too, so I’m unclear now which one I like better.
SOUNDTRACK: EXPLOSIONS IN THE SKY-The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place (2003).
Explosions in the Sky play beautiful, lengthy almost cinematic instrumentals. They are primarily a guitar-drum band, (but they do add bass from time to time).
I’m not sure how I first learned about 
SOUNDTRACK: THE MIGHTY MIGHTY BOSSTONES-Don’t Know How to Party (1993).
I’ve always had a thing for ska (although even I got sick of it when No Doubt took over the airwaves, thanks Gwen). When ska gets added to blistering metal, well, it’s hard to resist. And so we get Boston’s own Mighty Mighty Bosstones.
I’ve also decided that, since the story is steamrolling to an end, and since so many of the end days are coming along, I’m going to update my own calendar (but just the November info). I’m putting it at the end of the post to include this week’s information.
This week’s reading is almost entirely focused on Gately in St Elizabeth’s Trauma Wing. He is stuck staring at the ceiling which is breathing at him. It reminds him of a holiday in Beverly, Ma in which the beach house that they rented had a hole in the roof. The hole was covered by a plastic sheet which flapped and pulsed with the wind. His crib was placed under the hole and it freaked him out (although what is a 4 year old doing in a crib? Well, Gately’s mom is clearly not the best parent.) 
SOUNDTRACK: SONIC YOUTH-NYC Ghosts & Flowers (2000).
In the midst of all of the experimentation with the SYR discs. Sonic Youth released this “proper” release.
of 1996, when the book was published, she had barely played any pro tournaments.
I Just Read About That... 