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* * THE INDIE-LIST DIGEST #11 (December 4, 1992)
* "Confucius say: Man who stands on toilet is high on pot."
* * Moderated by Mark Cornick, Joshua Houk and Liz Clayton.
* * Mailed weekly from indie-list world headquarters in Chicago, Illinois.
* * Run by real people, not LISTSERVs and MAILER-DAEMONs! :)
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From: Mark Cornick, slacker extraordinaire <stu_m1cornic@vax1.acs.jmu.edu>
A couple of administrative notes before we get to the good stuff:
* I mistakenly stated in a previous digest that the new High Back Chairs EP
does not feature Jim Spellman on guitar. In fact, it was recorded before Jim
left the band, and thus does feature the Velocity Girl drummer (on guitar,
that is.) I apologize for the error.
* My Internet access will soon be moving to a different address. Effective
January 1, 1993 (or maybe sooner), I will be taking mail at
<mcornick@delphi.com>. Because I am leaving JMU for a while, my current
account (stu_m1cornic@...) may be deleted. If it is, and my mail bounces,
try the Delphi address.
* My new account will have very limited storage space, and I will be charged
by the minute for using it. Because of this, I will no longer be able to
mail back issues of the digest. If anyone with more storage space would like
to provide this service, please let me know. Note that the FTP archive at
<cs.uwp.edu> will continue to be available.
* Joshua is still on vacation, so please send those submissions to me until
he comes back (we'll let you know when that happens.)
Cool? Now... Things I got over the Thanksgiving break include:
* Seaweed, "Measure" 7" (Sub Pop): Another slice of punky grunge (grungy
punk?) that's pretty much the same as they've always sounded. Two cool
tunes. Full color sleeve. Orange vinyl. Rock on.
* Shudder To Think, "Songs By Shudder To Think" 7" (Sub Pop): The first
recordings with the new lineup. Very dark. They sound a little upset to have
lost half the band. I'm not really sure if I like this or not. It's not bad,
but it really makes me miss _Ten Spot_. Oh well...
* Lid, "Eros Catholica" 12" (Radioactive Rat): I've mentioned this before,
but I'll mention it again. Lid are an often under-rated band from Richmond,
Va. Four tracks of primo grunge (although one track, "Dogfucker", is kinda
overlong.) This may take some effort to find, but it's worth it.
* Lois (Maffeo), "Press Play And Record" 7" (K): Volume 30 in the
International Pop Underground series. The former Courtney Love (The Band)
singer gives us a few more cool acoustic tunes-- kinda different sound from
her old group, but not overly so. Very likable. Nice cover art (a sketch of
a girl in overalls pulling a leash with nothing on it... hmmm...)
* Purple Ivy Shadows, "Cascade" 7" (My Pal God/Superfly): Another one of my
pet Richmond bands, now moved to NYC. Quiet, sorta atmospheric
stuff--elements of Galaxie 500, Slowdive and Dif Juz. But there's enough
noise in there (including some cool soprano sax skronk) to keep you awake.
Covers printed by indie-lister Matthew Robb. Highly recommended. Sean Murphy
is chummy with the guy who put this out, and will send you one if you send
him $3.00. Do so.
* Robert Delaney, "The Robert Delaney Radio Show" 7" (D-Tox): For Tube Bar
fans, here's an awful recording (circa 70s) of a Cub Scout babbling into a
tape recorder. This kid is pretty demented. No musical value, but might be
interesting for Negativland-style tape collage fans (or creators.) Well, at
least I didn't pay for this one. :)
* Edsel, _Strange Loop_ CD (Merkin): Edsel (a trio) play
bordering-on-mainstream progressive music that wouldn't be out of place on
_120 Minutes_, but they do it in good spirit, with some good songs (like
"Unravelled", "Empire" and "Coil-Re-Coil" which was a 7"), and (if this
means anything to you) they have some lala cred since Eli Janney is an
occasional member (he also produced the record.) Not hardcore, not lala, not
really indie-rock, but enjoyable nonetheless.
* Various, _New Dominion_ CD (Turn Of The Century): This may have already
been mentioned, I can't remember, but anyway, it's a 19-song compilation of
Virginia bands. It once again proves that there is more to my home state
than Gwar and Bruce Hornsby. Top bands include Burma Jam (Bad Brains-ish
dub-core), Buttsteak (one of my friends called them "a grunge version of the
B-52's), Purple Ivy Shadows (q.v.), Eggs (you should know who they are--if
not, former members of Unrest and Scaley Andrew), Hassan Chop! (garage pop
featuring indie-lister Mark Bunster on drums), Kepone (the Richmond
supergroup with Gwar, Burma Jam, Honor Role and Butterglove members),
Breadwinner (instrumental "math-rock" as Sean called them) and Kingdom Scum
(ugly noise stuff, much like Negativland with sicko lyrics and a
Consolidated beat.) Get this and forget that Bruce Hornsby ever had a #1
hit.
There's more 7"age to come next week, including the Luna Christmas single
and two new 7"s from Compulsiv (thanks, Bryan...)
And in who-will-they-grab-next news: Virgin has signed Shonen Knife.
STOP PRESS: MARK ROBINSON FINALLY COMES THROUGH ON MY ORDER
Well, I finally (after about five months of waiting on Mark, bastard) got
the import edition of Unrest, _Imperial FFRR_ on CD. The synopsis:
a) Much better cover art and design. Remember, this is a 4AD-related
project.
b) "Volume Reference Tone" is thankfully much quieter on the import.
c) Three of the bonus tracks, "Yes She Is My Skinhead Girl", "Hydrofoil No.
1" (same as "Hydroplane" from the Skinhead Girl 7") and "Wednesday & Proud"
were already available on 7"s. (The recordings are slightly different, but
the songs are the same.)
d) The fourth bonus track, "Full Frequency" is an a capella version of
"Imperial" (and not an amazingly good one at that.)
Summary? If you don't already own the album or the 7"s represented, buy this
version. Otherwise, unless you're a TeenBeat Kollektor Skum like myself,
don't bother--blow the $17 on a night at _Malcolm X_ or something.
So here's the meat:
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From: Eric Labow (elabow@csugrad.cs.vt.edu)
[ Eric lives just down the highway from me in Blacksburg. The JMU/Turkey
Tech rivalry is fairly strong; then again, the Turkey Tech/anyone rivalry is
pretty strong. Anyway, I fully agree with everything Eric is about to say,
and in particular, I highly recommend the Baby Igor 7". - Mark ]
Welp, since this is my first submission I should let everyone know what kind
of thang is happening here in Blacksburg, Virginia. Where you ask?
Blacksburg, VA- home of the fighting castrated turkey for a school mascot
(VA Tech), some of the cheapest bars in the country, and the only other
place in the country that gets as much rain as the Pacific Northwest. It's
located in southwest VA close to just about nothing unless you consider the
WVA state line something. Believe it or not, but there is a good alt. music
scene 'round these parts thanks to WUVT, Squealer records, and all of their
supporters. The past year has seen Jawbox, Rev. Horton Heat, Helmet
(twice), Knitting Factory Tour, Holy Rollers, Miracle Legion (twice),
Finger, Supersuckers, and Basehead to name just a few.
Squealer is the cool local 7" indie label is who has relatively unheard
bands outside of Blacksburg such as Baby Igor, Joe the Fireman, and Milk
Badger. Baby Igor (hardcore) had a 7" out last Spring, JTF (laid back
VU/Miracle Legion type) has one out now, and Milk Badger (ultimately cool
indie pop) will have one out in stores by January. All are distributed by
Squealer/K. If you work for a radio station that will play these bands then
send me mail, and I'll see what I can do to get you these.
Anyone with more than just a passing interest in "indie" jazz (ie downtown
NY, improv, free jazz, Knitting Factory) should be interested in SKRONK, the
cool local indie jazz/rock 'zine. Here's what you've been missing in past
issues:
SKRONK #2 (Summer '92): Interview with Jazz Passengers (pt 1); reviews and
articles of Sonny Sharrock, Dave Holland, Bang on a Can Festival,
Anthony Braxton, Erectus Monotone, David S. Ware, and a delicious Sun
Ra stew recipe. Yum! (28 pages).
SKRONK #3 (September '92): Spotlight on John Coltrane; Nation of Ulysses talk
about their jazz message; Jazz Passengers interview (pt 2); reviews of
Edgar Varese, Recliam Your Life punk protest, Polvo, New Klezmer Trio,
Thomas Chapin, Helmet, and NY Composers Orchestra. (34 pages)
SKRONK #4 (October '92): Interviews with NY improv drummer William Hooker,
Michael Ivey (Basehead), and pianist Don Pullen; reviews of Bill
Frisell Band with horns (live), Pavement (live), Muhal Richard Abrams
Orchestra, Praxis, Billy Childish, Art Ensemble of Soweto, Elliot
Sharp, Randy Weston, and Randy's Afrikan couscous recipe. Also
yummy! (30 pages)
A six month subscription to the econo jammin' SKRONK is only $6 for six
issues, or if you would like any of the Skronk back issues mentioned above
you can send $1 to cover the postage to:
SKRONK
1800 Grayland St. #W6
Blacksburg, VA 24060
And maybe next issue I'll get around to reviewing some of the heaps o' CD's
and 7"s that've been lying on my floor for the past few weeks. Yarg!
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From: al@IRIS.CLAREMONT.EDU (ere i am, jh)
As an attempt to pompously pose myself as the indie-l Flying Nun Freak, I
will review my latest New Zealand musical purchases:
[ You'll have to battle Liz for the title. :) - Mark ]
Bailter Space _The Aim_ CDEP (Flying Nun) I got this about a month or so
ago, hot off the Festival press. Typical Bailter Space, more or less, who
sound like nobody but themselves, but are listed (along with The Gordons,
which is basically pre-BS BS) as influences by such luminaries as Sonic
Youth and My Bloody Valentine. The title cut of this four song EP is
possibly the weakest of a strong bunch, and my favorite is the second track,
entitled "The Know." The third track is much more conventional dreampoppy
than their usual, but it is pulled off with aplomb. Also check out
Tanker, Thermos, and the Nelsh EP by BS, and _1st Album/Future Shock_
CD by the Gordons.
Straitjacket Fits Done CD5 (Flying Nun) Also four songs, but FN deems to
dub this a single and not an EP. Whatever. I am probably one of the few
people on the planet that didn't think that their last album, Melt,
was overproduced, but there exists no such "problem" with this release.
Delightfully raw and loud, but still has that great pop backbone. Has the
"Dunedin Sound", with Byrds and Beatles influences of course, but there's
also something else that is impossible to describe. The A-side (of a CD?
OK, title cut) grabbed me the hardest and stuck the longest, but the other
three songs are stellar as well, and bode nicely for the next full length
release. Also check out Hail and Melt.
Shayne Carter/Peter Jefferies "Knocked Out Or Thereabouts"/"Spark Off A
Wire" (Flying Nun) Must start by saying that this does not come close to
approaching their first collaboration, "Randolph's Going Home", which is one
of my favorite songs of all time. Still, very good, and PJ sings on this
one. The b-side is the better of these two very raw, fi-less tracks. Also
check out their first single, which is available on a few compilations,
including the wondrous _XPRESSWAY PILE=UP_ CD; and Peter Jefferies _The Last
Great Challenge In A Dull World_, which is one of the finest records of all
time, available on AJAX, which is planning to re-release a bunch of TKP
stuff any day now. Also good is the Jefferies/Muir single that AJAX put out
a while back.
If you have any questions about these or any other New Zealand releases, let
me know.
Top Five Flying Nun Releases, 1992:
1. Tall Dwarfs _Fork Songs/Dogma_ CD
2. David Kilgour _Here Come The Cars_
3. Bailter Space _The Aim_ CDEP
4. Able Tasmans _Somebody Ate My Planet_
5. Tall Dwarfs _Short & Sick Of It_ CD
(comp of _That's The Long And Short Of It_ and _Throw A Sickie_ EPs)
[ interesting title on #5... but my favorite title in the Compilation Of Two
Or More Records category would have to be the Taang! CD compilation of the
Lemonheads' Creator and _Hate Your Friends_, which was called _Create Your
Friends_. I really miss the old Lemonheads... - Mark ]
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From: Sean Keric Murphy <skmurphy@phoenix.Princeton.EDU>
Yeah, another wacky report from the land of rain, rain, and more damn rain
(no, I don't want to hear all you Seattle people crying about rain, come to
Jersey.)
Well, it's been a while since I've written, but then again, it's been a
while since there's been an indie-list. Things have been pretty quiet here,
except for my trips to the record store (bad boy...i can't afford this any
more) and the occasional good piece of mail at the radio station. Oh yeah,
Unrest is playing here tomorrow night with Jonny Cohen's new band, the
TreeHoppers (or something like that...). I'm a little psyched... :)
Nothing Painted Blue has a new single on the brand new Kokopop label
(side-label for Shimmy Disc - "Shimmy Shimmy Ko-Ko-Bop" - get it?) and it's
great. If you ever have the chance to see these folks live, do it. The
riffs are solid, but it's the lyrics that matter the most - intelligent and
funny, kinda like Jonathan Richman if you need comparisons (not musically,
just lyrically). NPB is from Upland, CA, where Franklin Bruno (gtr, vocals)
teaches philosophy at a local college. He's one of the smartest people I've
ever met - totally kooky but smart and funny as hell. "Swivel Chair" has
some totally genius lines - "I want to play with your office supplies, make
a paper-clip chain" and then that rockin section - "Spin out!" - the air
guitar is there. Get it - you shouldn't be disappointed.
And, the long awaited Grenadine LP, Goya, is available from Shimmy Disc.
Buy it today. Mark Robinson, Jenny Toomey, Rob Christiansen, brilliant.
Great songs, great playing, and just enough jokey stuff to let you know that
they're not totally serious about all this. But serious enough... My only
complaint is that they re-recorded "Gillan" and added a drum beat to it,
kinda like the Unrest "Isabel" single mix, but not as obnoxious (that remix
of Isabel has me screaming "Spandau Ballet! ARRRGH!"). But the
rollercoaster in "Pinky Tuscadero" and the reworking of "Philco" are great.
(Philco used to be a My New Boyfriend song called "My Side Of The Story",
you couldn't understand all of Jenny's lyrics, and Aaron Stauffer of
Seaweed plays the worst gtr solo of all time - I love that song!)
I'm sure someone else mentioned this, too, but the Bricks CD, "A Microphone
And A Box Of Dirt", is totally genius, too. It's got all the songs from the
two singles, "Spy Kitty" (found on "Pulley", machine single #3), and then 12
more songs that remind me how far Mac has fallen of late (yeah, Mower's
good, but I get this feeling that I've heard it all before...). BTW,
there's a new 7" on Eighteen Wheeler records by Portastudio or something
like that - it's really Mac, all by his lonesome. I haven't heard it yet,
but it should be interesting. If any of you ever feel like selling a copy of
"Evil I Do Not, To Nod I Live" (an old NC box set of singles featuring
Slushpuppies, Wwax, Egg, and a couple others I can't remember right now),
let me know. And would you believe that Pier Platters (a very cool record
store in Hoboken) has the first Chunk single up on the wall for $65 ?!?!?
Absolutely ridiculous.
And more news from Simple Machine-land: the Tsunami LP, Deep End, won't be
out until February - they've moved it from Cargo to Southern Studios, and
Jenny's going over to England to record some new guitar parts for it...but
it will be worth the wait. (I've been listening to a demo since late
july...oh wow...) There's also going to be a Christmas split single with
Velocity Girl - order it now and get it before Christmas! $3, as usual,
from Simple Machines.
Enough rambling. Rock on.
Sean Murphy, NJ BC
skmurphy@phoenix.princeton.edu
A bang and a wimpey, a wimpey and a bang...
- Attila The Stockbroker
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From: woj <REWOICC@ERENJ.BITNET>
Some reviews...of a bunch of singles I got from Bill Peregoy and one that I
didn't.
Tulips - Sweet and Hateful (7" ep on Sonic Bubblegum) - These guys and girl
are muddier and a tad slower than Helmet, but possess that same hard-hitting
metalistic guitar attack that could have put them on Amphetimine Reptile.
They also have a bit more breadth as shown on "Empty Place", the third
track, which is a rhythm-based number. I really dig the a-side "Choco Pig."
Bill sez that the singer (whose name I have forgotten already) isn't quite
able to realize her studio voice live, but that's no reason not to grab this
single.
Madbox - Screwball (7" ep on Cinderblock) - Schreeching through my lo-fi
Emerson portable stereo, this four song slab seems to draw more from the
school of noise than from noisy pop (or maybe it's just those nasty cheapo
speakers). It's nice and spiky and the guitar work isn't too bad, but this
didn't reach out and grab me that much - not enough to get me raving anyhow.
The noise just comes across as pointless I guess. It's a numbered edition
though, if anyone cares.
The Laurels - burn (7" ep on Heparin) - Bill raved about these guys in a
recent issue of indie-list and I (sort of) understand why: this ep is four
solid songs of noisy pop and I rather like them. I suspect though that the
raving is due to their live shows, which I have not seen. It's worthwhile
stuff though. Cool sticker included as well (how did that guy get such a
long tongue?)
Kudgel - "Alphabet Song"/"Eskimo Pie" (7" on Cinderblock) - I still don't
know what the heck "chimp-pop" (or whatever it is called) is supposed to
mean, but if Kudgel is it, I think it's pretty cool. "Alphabet Song" is a
politically incorrect ramble on the (you guess it) alphabet and "Eskimo Pie"
seems pretty incomprehensible to me; both, however, are noisy gems that need
to be played louder than the Emerson can handle. I like this a lot more than
that "Red Fish" double single with the Swirlies. Another numbered release.
Whoopie.
The Dambuilders - "Popsong = Food"/"Yo Mama Fish" (7" on Puppethead) - This
is probably the fave of the the lot this time. Great, simple pop songs with
a violin! (I'm a slut for strings, so sue me). Catchy and hooky, melodic and
hard to resist - that's the stuff I like and this is it, no ands ors ifs
about it. It's amazing that so many bands can do this stuff over and over
again and I still like it. Better than the Leatherwoods. Yow.
Versus - "Insomnia"/"Astronaut" (7" on Land Speed/Saltpeter) - Close second
to the Dambuilders for high honors. Solid guitar pop with a noisy edge to it
and great songs ("Insomnia" could be my torch song). I heard these guys when
they did a live set on WFMU a few months back and fell in love instantly.
Days later, I heard about them here on the net. Coincidence? Evidence of
ESP? Who knows? Who cares? Order this today and pat yourself on the head.
Gigolo Aunts - "Cope"/"Bloom" (7" on Fire) - I picked this up more cos I
used to know these guys when I was back at school rather than any other
reason. They were Potsdam State students when I was at Clarkson.
Fortunately, I liked the single a bit more than their debut lp on Coyote
from a few years back. Their sound has gotten a bit rockier and they are
tapping into the fuzz-thang quite a bit (in some places they downright
rumble), but they are basically still the slick pop that made them Potsdam's
finest band for a while. They had a couple cassette releases before
_Everybody Happy?_ (the lp) which were pretty good too, but they're
impossible to find now. I used to have one, but i lost it - it was called
_better than fish_. I'm still pissed at them for stealing one of my
microphone stands.
Not much in the way of shows right now. I skipped Negativland cos I was
miffed that Amy Denio wasn't opening for them at the Knitting Factory and
I've only recently starte