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Unsung Forum » Soundtracks to Our Lives Weekending 4th June 2011 |
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Joolio Geordio 1300 posts |
Jun 05, 2011, 00:57
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In the wake of a great Hawkwind gig last week I have been indulging in a one man Hawkfest this past 7 days Here goes Hawkwind- Blood of the Earth, Take Me To Your Leader Levitation Sonic Attack Choose Your Masques Quark Strangeness and Charm The Weird Tapes Vol 3 (I think) Free Festivals Electric Teepee Various Artists Daze of the Underground Hawkwind tribute album That's me returning to outer space! Joolio |
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IanB 6761 posts |
Edited Jun 05, 2011, 17:13
Jun 05, 2011, 09:16
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A Scarcity of Miracles - A King Crimson ProjeKct As Fripp notes this is the first KC line up with a majority of Brits for a long long time and you can certainly hear that. Less hyper technical, more about the songs than the cleverness applied to the arrangement of those songs and Mel Collins brings a lot of warmth that blows in from 1972. Overall it's like a very good Porcupine Tree album (Harrison's drumming obviously bridges the two bands) but with more memorable everything. The tunes stick in a way that they rarely do with Steve Wilson's stuff and I think this is Tony Levin's best record in quite a while. Some of it has such a strong pop sensibility that it sounds alarmingly / enjoyably like somewhere between Ulver's more commercial offerings and the second a-Ha album but Fripp fits right in. Which would be no suprise to fans of "Exposure" and the associated Hall and Gabriel solo records. It is also mercifully short at 43 minutes. It does what it does and leaves you fresh not worn down. When it comes to studio albums enough with the 75 minute cds and multi disc "Tales of Sandanista Oceans". If you are going to take that much time you'd better make good use of it. Which takes us to ... Spirit of 76, Son Of Spirit & Future Games - Spirit I love California's Mercury period and would reach for these way before the 60s stuff. Sure it's messy and a little sprawling but it's timeless music, playful messy and endlessly ambitious. Real visionaries don't have to talk about how far sighted they are they just do the work. Also bravo the 70s for allowing people the latitude to take these kinds of chances with the same resources as those artists that were were aiming for the lowest common denominator. We wont see that again. Seed - Nick Harper Saw him at the Green Note last weekend and he was, as always, jaw- dropping. In a venue as cosy as that it's like having him play in your front room. So good was he that he made the supercharged "Double Life" album sound like an under played warm-up. I had also forgotten what a great record "Seed" is and that it is far more than the sum of his gene inheritence. 15 years on I still think of him as the coming man though easy to forget that he was 30 before he released an album of his own. This is one of those records for the Unsung lists of 2021. Watertown - Sinatra This was Frank's 1969 D.I.V.O.R.C.E concept album with lyrics by Jake "Dazed & Confused" Holmes. So grim-faced it makes "Lush Life" sound like "The Birdy Song" it could be subtitled "Songs For Broken Down Lovers". Easy listening soundtrack to suburban desperation. A big favourite of my Mum's when I was still too young to have learned about the 35 minute album experience. This is what probably set me up for "Relayer" and "Blood on the Tracks". Dangerous Music (2010 Remaster) - Robin George Grindstone - Shining The great thing about being given records (thanks Moonie) is that you often end up with music that you would never have picked out for yourself. Both these fit that category. Some bands create their own music world and you take it or leave it. If Blackjazz was a shock to the system then Grindstone is even more so. Nothing quite like listening to an artist that isn't wasting time paying homage to anyone else and they may be shoving Ulver aside as my favourite Norwegians. Loving it. As for the Robin George it's another time machine album back to the days when Heart and Poison were fighting over the Elnett. Robin George is apparently the Rupert Hines of hair metal. Credits for days but always the briedsmaid rather than the main focus. If you have any love for that era when mainstream metal reached for the keyboards in a big way then this is a record worth hearing especially as at this point the guitars are still winning. Roger Waters - Desert Island Discs BBCR4 I like this show under Kirsty Young and I liked Waters appearance on it. He gets a bad press but who could live without the Floyd's best moments before he bailed? And who couldn't live without the post "Final Cut" Floyd? Interesing that both he and Debbie Harry went for the same slice of Mahler in their selections. Even when detatched from the Visconti visuals there is something in that music that is all about the bitter-sweetness of mid-life. Which brings me back to ..... Director's Cut - Kate Bush Still loving this. Said all I had to say about it last week. Hasn't paled in any way shape or form.
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Fitter Stoke 2614 posts |
Edited Jun 05, 2011, 11:21
Jun 05, 2011, 11:19
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Okay, here's me for the last week: Clive Gregson 'Bittersweet' - excellent new album from one of our most unsung singer-songwriters. Admirers of Clive's previous work will walk away from this one with a big smile on their faces as always; newcomers will find this as good a place to start as any. No one makes me ask "Why did no-one come up with this chord sequence before" more than this guy; Gruff Rhys 'Candylion' - so impressed have I been with Rhys' new album 'Hotel Shampoo' (a real album of the year contender for me, by the way), that I've backtracked to his previous record, which is in a very similar vein of baroque pop. Here's another guy with a very real melodic gift, not mention a distinctive vocal style. I dig his solo work more than his band's, to be honest; Richard Thompson 'Action Packed - The Best Of The Capitol Years' - near faultless collection of peak-commercial period Thompson that is currently being flogged at my local His Master's Voice emporium for a very reasonable three sobs. You really can't go wrong at that price. Blow your bus fare on it and walk the long miles home; Jethro Tull 'Live - Bursting Out' - capturing the last great line-up of Tull in concert before personnel changes, vocal problems and the comforts of affluence slid them into mediocrity, this reminds me why I've always loved the work of this band's first ten years; Also played Aereogramme's sterling swansong 'My Heart Has A Wish That You Would Not Go' (my favourite album of the last decade), Hank Marvin's self-titled solo album from 1969, and Pink Floyd's magnificent 'More' from the same year - their most underrated record ever. And some fine performances from a recent, cheap anthology of Charles Munch recordings called 'Charles Munch Conducts Romantic Masterworks', including a magnificent interpretation of Schubert's delightful Second Symphony. It ain't rock'n'roll, but I like it, like it, yes I do... Off to Shetland on me hollybobs next week, so I'll be quiet for a while. Have a good week or two, discerning dudes. Dave
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mingtp 2270 posts |
Jun 05, 2011, 11:35
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Albums Doug Shipton - Dedicated Swallower of Fashion Pete and the Pirates - One Thousand Pictures The Flying Eyes - Done So Wrong (check this one out Redfish) Viva Voce - The Future Will Destroy You Rayographs - Rayographs (top flight entertainment!) Lumerians - Transmalinnia VA - Pure.. Psychedelic Rock (£7 for 4 CDs - rude not to I thought) Awaken! - Now In Technicolor Light Arctic Monkeys - Suck It And See Sin Agog - Curiouser Curiouser Podcast (our man reaches a milestone!) Tracks Sons & Daughters - Breaking Fun Flogging Molly - Speed of Darkness Bop / Subwave - Intercontinental Meltdown
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machineryelf 3681 posts |
Edited Jun 05, 2011, 12:37
Jun 05, 2011, 11:39
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Stooges – S/t,Funhouse,Raw Power,Metallic KO Iggy Pop – The Idiot,Lust For Life,BlahBlahBlah still buzzing from seeing the Stooges, rather impressed by The Idiot as well, not had a proper listen in Yonks, both timeless and well ahead of the game Explosions In The Sky – The Earth Is A cold Dark Place post-rock is a bit of an over saturated niche these days but this is still one of its high points Main – Hydracalm post Loop Robert Hampson before he went completely wallpaper music, this is brilliant in a quiet loop way, after this he went IMHO ditchwater dull Gram Parsons – GP/Grevious Angel Bob Mould – Modulate Mott The Hoople – The Ballad of:A Retrospectiv strange compilation this, not tracks I would have picked , but then it's all personal perspective innit PJ Harvey – Shake England Shake,White Chalk Graham Parker & The Rumour – Vertigo a nice round up of earlyish GP, this one IMHO does pick all the right tracks Magnetic Fields – 69 Love Songs, Distortion Bong – Beyond Ancient Space, Live At Roadburn, Gilgamesh Lives Nico – Femme Fatale-The Aura Anthology not classic Nico, but she does have that voice and this certainly is listenable Sisters of Mercy – Floodland GOTHUBERLORD,accept no substitute, this expanded Floodland is the bendy joint bits on the legs of a swarm of bees, magnificent [some may care to differ] Deep Purple – In Rock,Fireball, Machinehead triumphant triumvirate, especially remastered edit another reason to love this site http://www.headheritage.co.uk/unsung/search/?q=deep+purple absolutely spot on DP reviews, who needs Mojo James Blackshaw – O True Believers V/A – Gold Leaf Branches V/A – Art of Field Recording Vol2
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IanB 6761 posts |
Edited Jun 05, 2011, 16:53
Jun 05, 2011, 16:34
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machineryelf wrote: Sisters of Mercy – Floodland GOTHUBERLORD,accept no substitute, this expanded Floodland is the bendy joint bits on the legs of a swarm of bees, magnificent [some may care to differ] Totally. Even if you don't like the hits then the Flood II, Driven LIke The Snow, Neverland, Torch, Colours, Emma sequence are all up there with the second side of Closer or a the really good bits of an early Gary Numan record. None more black.
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Squid Tempest 8769 posts |
Jun 05, 2011, 19:49
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I love that period of Spirit, like you, more than the early stuff.
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Squid Tempest 8769 posts |
Jun 05, 2011, 20:05
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Moon Duo - Mazes Really top pop with a krauty edge. Little Feat - Original Album Series A handful of classic albums for the price of one. Splendid stuff, and funky as a big hairy funky thing. Billy Cobham - Spectrum The way fusion should be. Also very full of the funk. Some amazing Tommy Bolin guitar too. Heaven & Hell - The Devil You Know Really getting in to this Dio chappy. Shame I left it too late to see the little chap in action. Alice Coltrane - Transcendence Absolutely beautiful. Fantastic value for £2.99 from Amazon. Stomu Yamashta/Steve Winwood/Michael Shrive - Go Storming stuff. Really good fun this, I'll have to investigate more Yamashta. Imaginary Softwoods - S/T Great album from Emeralds chap. Mist - House Another great album from Emeralds offshoot. Really lovely drifty synth arpegios n stuff. Tonto's Expanding Head Band - Zero Time Finally got a copy of this off E-Bay. Great - lovely to hear that old Moog Series III in action. Datashock - Pyramiden von Gieben (?) Every bit as fab as JC said it was in last month's Druidion. Smashing album, nicely packaged too. Master Musicians of Bukkake - Elogia de la Sombra Really enjoying this trancy ritual thing. Gnod/A Middle Sex - Split Still enjoying this. Got an ace Gnod t-shirt this week too 8-) The Alps - Easy Action Top stuff in foldy pyramid cover.
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rojo 433 posts |
Edited Jun 05, 2011, 20:23
Jun 05, 2011, 20:22
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IanB wrote: machineryelf wrote: Sisters of Mercy – Floodland GOTHUBERLORD,accept no substitute, this expanded Floodland is the bendy joint bits on the legs of a swarm of bees, magnificent [some may care to differ] Totally. Even if you don't like the hits then the Flood II, Driven LIke The Snow, Neverland, Torch, Colours, Emma sequence are all up there with the second side of Closer or a the really good bits of an early Gary Numan record. None more black. I absolutely loved Floodland when it came out in the 80s but cannot stomach it one bit now & quite embarassed by my brief dalliance with Eldritch. Strange one cos I still quite like the other kings of goth Bauhaus esp the last record Burning from the Inside
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IanB 6761 posts |
Jun 05, 2011, 20:26
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Squid Tempest wrote: I love that period of Spirit, like you, more than the early stuff. Glad to hear that I am not alone. With some fans it can by like the Syd v Post Syd Floyd thing.
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