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Soundtracks Of Our Lives w/e 4 October 2009 CE
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1001realapes
1001realapes
2379 posts

Edited Oct 04, 2009, 09:54
Soundtracks Of Our Lives w/e 4 October 2009 CE
Oct 04, 2009, 08:28
Os Mutantes : A Divina Comedia...

Os Mutantes : Mutantes

Rita Lee : Build Up

Rita Lee : Hoje e o Primero...

Os Mutantes : Tecnicolor

Os Mutantes : Jardim Eletrico

Os Mutantes : Tudo Foi Feito Pelo Sol

Os Mutantes : Ao Vivo

O'seis : Suicida / Apocalipse

Ennio Morricone : Moses

Ennio Morricone : Orient Express

Ennio Morricone : I...Comme Icare

Led Zeppelin : Houses Of The Holy

The Beatles : A Hard Days Night

John Lee Hooker : Urban Blues

Gruff Rhys : Candylion
bubblehead2
bubblehead2
2167 posts

Edited Oct 04, 2009, 12:48
Re: Soundtracks Of Our Lives w/e 4 October 2009 CE
Oct 04, 2009, 11:21
Haven't posted for ages but these ring bells for one reason or another recently...

The good....

JAH WOBBLE - I Could Have Been A Contender (3CD comp) -For the princely sum of £6 pretty much all the Wobble i need. Some terrific collaborations on here.

GOLDFRAPP - Supernature - Ooh la la, Madame Alison gets a bit rude.

HARVEY MILK - Live At Supersonic 2008 - Only managed to catch half their set on the night so was chuffed to stumble across this. Heavy shit man.

SLEEP - Sleep's Holy Mountain - Really, really heavy shit. Riffage puts me in mind of a mammoth thats crawled out of a tar-pit. Lyrics make me laugh tho' and i'm not really sure if that's the intention.

THE HEADS - Tilburg - Sounds even weightier on vinyl, nice !

THE HEADS - Time In Space Vol 2 (2CD) - Haven't heard vol 1 but the first CD here collected from material through their surprisingly long existence is pretty fab. The single 40+ minute track on CD2 is much harder work though and i kinda lost interest after 20 minutes or so. Er, which according to the sleeve notes makes me a bit of a dick, hehe.

WOODEN SHJIPS - Contact - Hmm, hypnogroovy. Or, we've gotta schtick and we're gonna use it.

MUGSTAR - Today Is The Wrong Shape (EP) - Brutal and a wee bit proggy, their cover of Fairport's Tam Lin is a wonderfully incongruous thing.

V/A - Seeing For Miles - Freebie CD with Uncut, like its forerunner, Comets and Ghosts, this is a bit of an eye opener with more than a few bands on it i'd like to hear more by.

The OK....

GONG -2032 - Feel a bit churlish describing it merely as OK but some of its just a bit lumpen and lacks the deft lightness of touch i kinda associate with Gong. That said, it's much better than their other recentish releases and i do like the story / concept, the humour and the vibe and have particularly enjoyed Gilli Smyth's contributions on the first few plays. Guess they set the bar so high back in the day that disappointment was kinda inevitable for me personally. Oh, and there should be a law against the naff but catchy violin part in Dance With The Pixies, get out of my head why dontcha !

The ugly....

NEKTAR - A Tab In The Ocean - Not my kinda prog at all and about as psychedelic as a premier league footballer on a night out on the piss.

Happy listening everyone,

mark x
Popel Vooje
5373 posts

Edited Oct 04, 2009, 15:11
Re: Soundtracks Of Our Lives w/e 4 October 2009 CE
Oct 04, 2009, 11:54
Having exhausted the recent plethora of new releases, and my copy of the new Volcano Choir album still in limbo due to the postal strike I've been on somewhat more of a retro trip than usual this week. Better snap out of it soon before I find myself writing for Uncut, but in any case...

The Misunderstood - Before the Dream Faded
The first half is heady, frenetic and innovative psychedelia that would surely have made them famous in 1966 had they not been continually dogged by bad luck, not to mention the nomadic continent-hopping various members were forced to undertake in order to evade the draft. The second half is slightly more generic rhythm'n'blues / garage band stuff but still with enough flashes of greatness to make it worth listening to.

Husker Du - Warehouse Songs & Stories
Not their best album - in fact, in some respects it's the weakest of the final five, at any rate - but even a slightly below par Husker Du album was still good enough kick most other new releases of 1987 into orbit. There are a few classics scattered across this double LP ("Friend You've Got To Fall", "Ice Cold Ice", "She's a Woman and Now He is a Man" and "Up in the Air" being the most obvious - but Grant Hart's songwriting isn't as strong as usual, and Bob Mould's subsequent AOR / college rock tendancies are already beginning to make tone-lowering appearances here and there. Probably for the best that they split afterwards rather than turn into R.E.M. with a fuzzbox.

Spiritualized - Let it Come Down
Again, not their best album - but it was on heavy rotation during my trip to America eight years ago due to having only just been released at the time, so for me it always triggers pleasantly misty-eyed memories of the San Francisco bay.

Liars - s/t
Again, not their .... oh sod it, you know the rest. The detuned guitars and the morass of reverb in which they've seemingly drenched every instrument here remind me a good deal of "EVOL"- period Sonic Youth.

Fatboy Slim - You've Come a Long Way Baby
Definitely his best album - in fact, probably the only one worth owning. The Basement Jaxx-meets-John Barry-in-a-converted-warehouse vibe of "Right Here, Right Now" still thrill, as does the infuriatingly catchy "Praise You".

Jim O'Rourke - Insignificance
Noted experimental/improv musician releases his third pure song-based album that recalls everyone from The Beach Boys to Judee Sill to Radiohead to Cat Stevens (although the dissonant last two minutes of "Life Goes Off" still make for a mightily strange and disorientating conclusion to this brief 7-track album).

The Grateful Dead - Live/Dead
Been listening to this recently due to having just bought the new "Gimme Shelter" DVD, in which the Dead fail to appear (Garcia was too scared, apparently) except for a miniscule spoken segment in which they express their aghastness at how the whole affair seems to be descending into chaos and violence ("The Hell's Angels are doing the beating on the musicians? Doesn't seem right, man!"). Encapsulates hippie idealism in its last gasp before the opportunists and crazies moved in and paranoia descended. "Turn on Your Love Light" is still dull as dishwater, mind - never could enjoy the Pigpen stuff much.

Camper Van Beethoven - s/t
For anyone who still thinks the novelty indie hit "Take the Skinheads Bowling" was as far out as CVB ever got, this album is one of the most off the wall and genuinely psychedelic albums to come out of the 80s.

Over and out.
Ascorpius
Ascorpius
82 posts

Re: Soundtracks Of Our Lives w/e 4 October 2009 CE
Oct 04, 2009, 12:07
Being the sad person that I am I have taken all the music out of the car and replaced it with Floored vol 1, 2, 3 and 4. Now the miles just vanish before my eyes (and ears)
mingtp
mingtp
2270 posts

Re: Soundtracks Of Our Lives w/e 4 October 2009 CE
Oct 04, 2009, 13:11
Popel Vooje wrote:
The Misunderstood - Before the Dream Faded
The first half is heady, frenetic and inventive psychedelia that would surely have made them famous in 1966 had they not been continually dogged by bad luck, not to mention the nomadic continent-hopping various members were forced to undertake in order to evade the draft. The second half is slightly more generic rhythm'n'blues / garage band stuff but still with enough flashes of greatness to make it worth listening to.


I absolutely fuckin' love that album! There's a very interesting back-story about their relationship with John Peel - how he found, funded, housed and championed The Misunderstood from the first moment he heard them in a Mall in (I think) Houston or Dallas. My memory is hazy, but I do know the entire band turned up on JPs doorstep in London and he managed them for while.

Someone put me straight if I've got that wrong. Need to re-read Margrave of the Marshes to be sure.
Stevo
Stevo
6664 posts

Re: Soundtracks Of Our Lives w/e 4 October 2009 CE
Oct 04, 2009, 13:34
they came from a place called Riverside in California, hence Blue Day in riverside being the title of the 2nd, earlier side of that lp. The mall bit is right though.
Their entire history, from before pedal steel guitar whizz Glen Campbell joined to the point where he's the sole early member in 1969 and beyond is told across 4 issues of Ugly things magazine. pretty rivetting read for the most part. Ugly Things also released the original singers memoirs in book form which was pretty interesting too. Following him through the formation of the band, trip to the UK, draft dodging which winds up with him being a Krsna monk in the hills of India and onwards.
Plus they put out a cd of various recordings of the Misunderstood over several years in the 60s.
there was also a pairing of the 2 mini lps Legendary goldstar lp & Golden Glass by some other label. That's early recordings on Goldstar & the '69 line up on Golden Glass. That line-up also appear in the supershow video filmed in a warehouse on the outskirts of London, pretty interesting '69 film even with the Led Zep material having been removed.
Stevo
Np David Crosby If I Could Only Outtakes Wall song
(this is up at Tapecity right now BTW)
Fitter Stoke
Fitter Stoke
2601 posts

Edited Oct 04, 2009, 13:46
Re: Soundtracks Of Our Lives w/e 4 October 2009 CE
Oct 04, 2009, 13:39
Magazine 'Play +' - newly remastered and expanded live album now featuring two shows from 1978 and 1980. The earlier gig is particularly ace, capturing the 'Real Life' line up as that epochal debut was released. Most of that album is featured, songs like 'The Light Pours Out Of Me' and 'Burst' gaining from the added edge of live performance, and Devoto's inter-song asides are entertaining in their willfully obtuse manner. The 1980 gig, featuring the short-lived Robin Simon line-up, is also very fine. Fans shouldn't hesitate;

The Unthanks 'Here's The Tender Coming' - superb record: the best traditional music album I've heard in years. The epic tragedy 'Annachie Gordon' is worth the price of admission alone, fine as the whole package is. I can't stop playing this;

The Beatles 'The Beatles' - In the mini-documentary that accompanies the stereo remaster, Ringo speaks of how playing on the White Album felt like being part of a band again after the studio shenanigans of 'Pepper'. Funny that, given that the album seems to be a collection of solo tracks, many either unaccompanied or featuring only part of the band, sometimes augmented by other musicians. Whatever, it's a (mostly) great double album featuring pretty much every musical genre known to man, and Macca is particularly inspired here, as is George Harrison ('Long, Long, Long' having blown me away for the first time in its remastered glory). And how fascinated I was to recently learn that the closing 'Good Night' is a Lennon creation, the song bearing all the hallmarks of McCartney at his smalztiest. You live and learn. 'Revolution 9' sounds much better in mono than stereo, by the way!

Gong 'Flying Teapot', 'Angel's Egg' and 'You' - collectively the epitome of one of the most creative, mesmerising and exciting bands ever, the 'Radio Gnome' trilogy remains the main reason why I love Gong. It's fascinating to hear the development of the band across the three albums, particularly the increasing domination of percussion - and Steve Hillage's stellar lead guitar work - in the sound picture. That both of those elements are now considerably less prominent probably explains my continued disappointment with the new album;

John Coltrane 'Lush Life' - five wonderfully mellow tracks from the legendary tenor man's underrated Prestige catalogue. Lovely;

Rattle/BPO 'Brahms Symphonies' - I'm afraid that I'm underwhelmed by this. The Third and Fourth symphonies are stillborn here, nothing really happens in the First (though the finale is well paced) and only the Second - shawn of its vital first movement exposition repeat, alas - has any distinction. The Berlin Philharmonic seem to have lost the weighty, sumptuous sound they enjoyed under Karajan and (to a lesser extent) Abbado and now sound like just another orchestra, though I don't think the gloopy recorded sound helps here. As for Rattle, I reckon that his interpretive strengths lie with 20th century composers rather than the great romantics, his VPO Beethoven cycle being similarly unremarkable IMHO (though I do like his Ninth). My allegiance to Giulini, Bernstein, Walter, Jochum, Karajan and Klemperer (to name but a few) in this repertoire remains. Sorry Simon.

And that's me for another week. Good health and good listening, all.

Dave
Jim Tones
Jim Tones
5142 posts

Re: Soundtracks Of Our Lives w/e 4 October 2009 CE
Oct 04, 2009, 13:46
bubblehead2 wrote:

NEKTAR - A Tab In The Ocean - Not my kinda prog at all and about as psychedelic as a premier league footballer on a night out on the piss.


LOL!

I once bought that 'Tab...' LP with my hard-earned paper-round money, purely going on the sight of the album's sleeve, thinking it was going to be like Amon Duul II/Ashra Tempel or summat....... er wrong! =8-[ ]
Popel Vooje
5373 posts

Edited Oct 04, 2009, 15:17
Re: Soundtracks Of Our Lives w/e 4 October 2009 CE
Oct 04, 2009, 15:16
I've never been to Riverside, but the sleevenotes to that album describe it as the American equivalent of Lytham St.Anne's(!), in which case it's not hard to understand why they had to decamp for England. In assition to the Ugly Things article and Peel's autobiography there's a good chapter detailing their history at http://www.richieunterberger.com/misunderstood.html.
1001realapes
1001realapes
2379 posts

Re: Soundtracks Of Our Lives w/e 4 October 2009 CE
Oct 04, 2009, 15:45
Os Mutantes : Haih Or Amortecedor
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