Indie-List_V3_N21
Bored but always sincere
Everyone acts so weird around me
#############################
Indie List Digest!
March 29, 1994
Volume 3 Number 21
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SXSW: What Terry Saw
SXSW: What Terry Didn't See
Eric's Trip, Picasso Trigger, Young Rock & A Day in the Park
Sebadoh Furore
Travel Opportunities to Holland!
Labradford
Versus, Jawbreaker
Uncle Wiggly, the Gravel Pit
Telegraph Wants Writers!
A request for clothing
--------------------
Well, here we are. You've patiently been awaiting this, so here's the
first I-L under the new editor- or moderator- ship. We're still
working a few kinks out of our system yet - so if the next couple of
issues seem a bit more ragged than they were under the expert
keyboards of our predecessors, we trust you'll bear with us. We'll
have it all sorted out by issue #100 (which is all too soon, let me
tell ya'). Additional delays in this issue because of travel (see
below) and machine problems at the bloofgamatic. We thank you for all
your support!
In our personal music fronts, despite being IN Austin during the last
day of SXSW, I opted not to go out and see Junior Brown or any of the
other fine acts that evening. But I don't think people need
vietnamese restaurant reviews in the I-L, so I'll forgo that. I did
manage to catch Pony at a tiny club named Thurston's (in Chicago, for
the second leg of my trip about the states). If you've seen them, you
know the fine quantity of high volume noise they can put out. In a
chat with Kitty (the bassist) it was revealed that their CD on
Homestead is due on May Day of this year. It should be a fine
followup to their 2ble 7" pack we all know and adore in this house.
I wish I could be as happy about the opening band, Brain Kiss. While
their coop, Crank Records, sounds like an admirable idea - coops are
always a good thing, especially in these cusping economic periods,
their sound left me cold. They want to do a lot of different sounds,
but I wish they would understand a one of them first. But I feel sure
they have good record collections, the backhanded praise of so many
bands these days. Maybe in another year...
Thanks to a desperate sinus attack, I missed out on the glory that
would have been Killdozer. Anyone who wishes to fill me in on how
that went down, I'd love to know.
es
--------------------
Somnambulant Saturday: Mazzy Star in Chicago
(elbows eric out of the way, sits down)
since my better half had told me days before that he was going to go
to killdozer, i decided to do the polar-opposite thing and go to
mazzy star on the 26th at the metro...an added attraction was cath
carroll, the unrest poster child, who was on the bill as well as
mazzy and acetone.
due to a scheduling difficulty, we missed cath carroll and arrived
at the beginning of acetone. this trio had gotten good marks in the
chicago reader, with lots of neil young references etc. a little
neil, a little...erm...beach boys, and a little guitar pop was what
it amounted to. Lots of slow, melancholy songs, but also lots of
endless solos, or so it seemed to me. perhaps they were just
expressing themselves, though.
between sets, a friend told me about the time he & my exboyfriend
ate tater tots with howe gelb when giant sand came through
bloomington a few years ago. when they got back to the car, the
bassist was sitting in the car with a map spread out in front of him
"where's...iowa?" was the question. a geography lesson
ensued. we trust they found their way there alright, although they
never came to bloomington again.
seeing mazzy star in 1994 at the metro was not too different from
seeing mazzy star in 1990 at the metro, except that it was a whole
new taste experience back then, and now the audience was filled with
adoring fans yelling 'ho-o-o-o-pe!' the band seemed to have more
players, too, than i remembered; a bewildering number of musicians
kept roaming around the stage ('it's an earth, wind & fire show!'
exclaimed one onlooker).
the mazzy thing has always fascinated me; i've been able to deal
with the ever-so-detatched demeanor because the mysterious,
lying-awake-all-night songs have fascinated me. i was not
disappointed. they played all the hits we love from 'she hangs
brightly' plus more from the new one, which i don't have. hope may
be blue, but she's blue in a beautiful way.
over and out.
az
--------------------
From: "Harris, Terry J." <HARRISTJ@f1groups.fsd.jhuapl.edu>
SXSW what I saw and how it was
It was my annual trip to the SXSW thingee in Austin last weekend. The
weather was fabulous compared with Baltimore's, and I tied my personal
best -- seeing 24 bands in four days.
Sets I saw worth a comment or two:
The Bis-quits -- the new band featuring Will Kimbrough, formerly of
Will and the Bushmen. This time, however, Will is not the full-time
center-of-attention, but part of a fairly solid band. Two guitars,
bass and drums -- basic Big Star-derived mid-80's guitar pop. I liked
it. I always do. They said they have a record out, but I know
nothing about it.
Radial Spangle -- the band from Oklahoma that is not the Flaming Lips.
They played a loud and not particularly good set. The guitarist was
drunk, and the sound was bad. Hordes of people were there though,
most however trying to sneak through the venue's back door to see B*ck
(you know the one, god knows why).
Morphine -- Obviously one of the buzz bands of the weekend, the huge
gymnasium-sized Terrace Theater attracted a massive and appreciative
crowd. They put on an impressive show, and the two-sax-at-once encore
was pretty hot.
True Believers -- the long-awaited headlining reunion was probably the
only show at SXSW that would not have been hopelessly overshadowed by
the Morphine set immediately before. The True Believers reunion was
put together to promote Ryko's reissue of a couple of their mid-80's
albums. Sounding exactly halfway between the Velvet Underground and
Los Lobos, the Believers put on a wondrous show (including, by the
way, two Lou Reed tunes). Obviously enjoyed by both audience and band
alike, the performance was extraordinary if only for its charm and
warmth. I've been a long-time fan and I really enjoyed the set.
Afterward, several Austinite companions were nearly tearful with
praise for their local heros. And although there was a rumor that
they might play a mini-tour to support the Ryko effort, it was clear
that the show was of special significance.
The Gay Sportscasters -- An Austin semi-all-star band, I think.
Featuring Evan Johns on guitar. Notable mainly for the visual
extravagance -- two quasi-pro go-go dancers, a guy in drag playing
tambourine, a lead singer doing obscene things to the microphone, and
extraordinarily bad t-shirts for sale. A comic version of Panther
Burns, maybe.
Loud Family -- scheduling errors last year kept 'em from playing.
This year they had a difficult (not very crowded) early-evening time
slot, but it was quite good. A few new songs.
Lois -- Played a non-SXSW afternoon gig solo. She seemed quite
nervous and somewhat rushed. She broke a string on the second song.
A small but appreciative audience cheered anyway. Me included.
Kitchen Radio -- I had never heard of them, but they played a nice set
of straight-forward, strummy, rootsy, guitar-pop (not unlike the Silos
or Blood Oranges maybe) at the same afternoon gig. I'll buy a record
if I see one.
Giant Sand -- One of my favorite shows ever was their performance at
SXSW last year. This year's was similarly great. Howe Gelb again had
quite a bit of help. The psycho sisters -- Susan Cowsill (ex-Cowsill,
duh), Vicki Peterson (ex-Bangle) and Paula Jean Brown (ex-wife) -- did
the backing vocals as needed. A variety of illustrious extras helped
out on guitars and violin. (Howe said they were signed to Restless
immediately after last year's SXSW show but that since then their rep
had left. I don't know what that means exactly, but I do know the
most recent album "Purge and Slouch" is very, very good.)
Syd Straw -- played a humorous and delightful Sunday night set, backed
by Giant Sand and members of the Continental Drifters. Three bass
players. Very fun.
Alejandro Escovedo -- chief True Believer, he closed out SXSW as he
always does Sunday night, drawing a huge crowd. Austin's best
musicians cycled in and out of his big band -- horns, strings,
guitars, drums, everything. The highlight for me was their "Now I
Wanna Be Your Dog" with three drummers.
P.S. Taking the award for the funniest moment of the weekend:
Several of us were watching an early evening show of Sam Phillips and
Cracker standing next to a group of high-schoolish looking boys and
girls drinking shots of rum out of the cap of the rum bottle. Vaguely
amusing....Turned very amusing when I confirmed that one of said
youngsters (who I thought looked familiar) was indeed the portrayer of
the sweet long-haired freshman in "Dazed and Confused". Still in
character, I suppose.
terry.harris@jhuapl.edu
--------------------
From: "Harris, Terry J." <HARRISTJ@f1groups.fsd.jhuapl.edu>
SXSW What I didn't see
This separate note is addressed mostly, I guess, to those in the know.
Noticeably absent at SXSW this year was the new indie and indie-pop
stuff that is (um, in my opinion, I suppose) otherwise up-and-coming.
With the exception of Eric's Trip and the Spinanes and a sprinkling of
others, SXSW was devoid of many bands that I expected might be there.
SXSW has always been awash with roots-y guitar bands, and it is a
substantial part of Austin's music scene historically. (True
Believers, Zeitgeist/Reivers, etc.) And I love the stuff. I
commented during one guitar-band set last weekend that there must be a
zillion bands that play that kind of stuff, and that I'd go see each
and every one and buy all the records if I could. (See my reviews for
proof.)
But as SXSW is, in fact, an industry conference, I expected more
representation from bands on say Alias, Spin Art, Teenbeat, Drag City,
K, or even Dischord or Matador. Are all those bands happy where they
are? Or, did they apply to SXSW and not get in? Or did they apply at
all? Is it a regional thing? After all, Lois played a non-SXSW gig.
And the previous issue of Indie-List described a set of non-SXSW shows
that included Hammerhead and Don Cabellero, for example. To compare,
an independent music conference-thing next week in NYC seems to be
very well attended.
I've gone to SXSW for four years now, not as a registered
conventioneer, but simply as a fan. (It is a great vacation
destination resort for live music junkies like me.) Although this was
not the first year I noticed conspicuous absence, this year was
perhaps the most glaring.
Anyone care to comment? Feel free to mail me directly as it is mostly
for my own curiosity, and as it may ultimately lead to too much
conjecture for this here Indie-List.
terry.harris@jhuapl.edu
--------------------
From: exit flagger <beastie@gibbs.oit.unc.edu>
eric's trip, picasso trigger, young rock, a day in the park
there's nothing like the feeling of something new...
good day all. here's to our new editors!!!! to honour the initiation
of the two pure people, i would like to make a sacrifice to the great
and almighty "kwoth". (sorry, tribal religions are really getting to
me)
anyways, here's four new things i've picked up that you guys will want
to know about (or at least would like to thing so...:)
*eric's trip--"warm girl" 7 inch
derivative records @ po box 42031 / montreal, quebec canada / h2w 2t3
(this is also distributed by k records)
this is essential for eric's trip fans. it appears to contain old
songs (2 from 1991 and 3 from 1992) that were recently mixed and all
thrown together to be released and loved. anyways, this 5-song seven
inch is great! the first song, "warm girl," is classic eric's trip,
maintaining the fast and upbeat tempo with the great harmonies that
eric's trip so easily masters. "window" experiments with a lot of
feedback that comes off being really bizarre (especially for the
band's sound that i'm familiar with). still good, though. "so easier
last time" is my favorite song because it says a lot about the way
life is.
love tara was one of the best-kept secrets i discovered this year, and
ever since then i have been a big fan of eric's trip. this single
complements the album very well. near perfection!!! **1/2
*picasso trigger "hole in the fire" lp
alias records / 2815 w. olive ave. / burbank, ca usa / 91505
picasso trigger is punk rock. they are a four-piece hailing from
raleigh, nc. there is something about this band i really like. they
are obnoxious as shit and downright annoying at times (a la lead
vocalalist kathy poindexter). but every time they come around, i go
see them. why? i don't know. call it infatuation. but when it comes
down to it, i like them because they are aggressive and don't take any
shit. so when their full-length debut came out, i was first in line.
the pictures makes this album worth $12 alone. there are little dolls
with nose rings and mohawks and all, plus there is a great (and i
guess kinda cheesy) photo of them. that picture will explain picasso
trigger's music and attitude.
as a whole, i like the album. but in a way, i find the production
inhibiting (david barbe of sugar is the producer). this only comes
from me being used to the band's very raw live sound though.
anyways, the high point of the album is "matarcher" which is a full
fledged attack (i think) on matt from the archers of loaf. it's
agressive, mean, and downright fun listening. the album also contains
some of the band's older material, like the single "valentine" (which
has a picture of a naked woman puking, how wonderful..:), "the man's
fault" (from the falling off the planet comp), "colossal man" (from
the plutonium single), and "queenie" (from pyloric waves comp). as
you can tell from a few of the song titles, this band likes to bash
guys, but for some reason, (call me rash) i like it!!!
all the old songs, though, are somehow different from the original
ones, and in my opinion aren't quite as good. the production of them,
as well as the new songs, i think takes away from the energy that the
band has. so it's not their fault. it's still fun though. it's
definately worth trying, especially if you're into stuff like slant 6,
liz phair (who says it like it is), pj harvey, bikini kill, etc., etc.
music by itself **
with production *
*young rock--video compilation
mammoth records / carr mill 2nd floor / carrboro, nc usa / 27510
filmed by norwood cheek of the sex police (who also have a video on
here), the video highlights 17 bands and gives a intimate look at the
town of chapel hill. the videos aren't as fun to watch as the
commentaries from the local people, though (i love al at al's garage,
and the lady at ma's country cookin'!!!). there is a short interview
with laura (from superchunque), who says that the schoolkids records
people are really nice. but take it from me, the store is lame and so
are its employees who are quite snobby (go to record exchange!!!)
the best video of them all is the chicken wire gang's "new lanes".
their "ho down and twangy" sound proves their freshness. the video
itself is hilarious and portrays the band sitting in the back of a
pick up playing, while driving down the highway. polvo's "vibracobra"
pulls second best. in my view, polvo is about as close to perfection
as music can get (second only to the absolute omnipotence of the
flaming lips). the video is quite strange (as would be expected),
portraying tractor trailer trucks and people playing on the beach.
zen frisbee's "jonesin" places third. the song title describes the
band's mentality relatively well. the video is totally wack and is
really funny. other notables come from the archers of loaf--"wrong",
small--"chew it down" (eric from the archers played in small when this
video was filmed), metal flake mother--"mean to me" (it's a shame this
band broke up, but the phoenix is squirrel nut zippers who are
great!!), superchunk--"precision auto", the veldt--"the cradle will
fall" (strange mix of r+b vocals, layered guitaring, and hip hop
beats--this band will probably get really big), pipe--"submariner",
and lots more.
though i wouldn't pay $18 for this, it's fun to watch, especially all
you people who like the so-called "chapel hill" sound. we are the
next seattle ya know...;> (i can't believe i just said that).
*a day in the park...a compilation of now sounds
now sound records / po box 91317 / durham nc usa / 27708
i don't need to review this album. the excellence of the bands says
it all. automatically gets *** before listening. after listening,
you know that this is as close to perfection that a compilation can
get.
the dambuilders start the comp off with a great instrumental. archers
of loaf come next ragging all those people who do that obnoxious power
walk at 7 in the morning (while the rest of us are still asleep from
being wasted, dreading our waking hour), then versus comes in doing
another great song. need i go on? the 16-band sampler highlights some
of the best bands in american independent rock today. among others
are the grifters, crayon (these guys are amazing), spent, small 23,
portastatic (mac of superchunque spinoff), diskothi-q, blaise pascal,
butterglory, nothing painted blue, unwound, and a few others i can't
quite recall.
(tv advertisement)--if you only buy one compilation this year, make it
a day in the park!!!!! another advantage--i got the cd for $10. so
it's pretty cheap.
*** (if 5 weren't the limit, it would be much higher)
--clark
the true meaning of the story (of your life) will never be known until
the last chapter has been read.
--------------------
From: kbaw@world.std.com (Kathleen M Billus)
Sebadoh live in Princeton, NJ
I read with great interest Sean Murphy's assessment of Sebadoh at Jon
Solomon's house, Princeton, NJ 3/21/94. I immediately took issue with
such unsupported criticisms as "Lou's occasional between-song
mumblings were inane at best" and "one should adjust their attitude
accordingly" (viz. playing in someone's living room or playing a
club).
I realize that the Indie-List format lends itself to casual criticism
and the occasional offhand remark, but this sort of name-calling just
sends me up one wall and down the other. I got on the horn with Lou
and read it to him so that I could offer the Listers a portrait of the
event from the eyes of the accused.
[ah yes...reviews are a subjective thing, and one man's trash is
another man's treasurer, as the jody grind used to sing. i dont have
any problem with anyone offering another point of view. however, i
appreciate the fact that I-L reviewers will mention things they
don't like as well as what they do like. Doing so is not
name-calling.--az]
First, Sean urges "Mr. Barlow" to "adjust [his] attitude" to the
living room setting. When he returned from this mini-tour, Lou told
me in none-too-scant detail his observations of the Solomon house
show. He said that people were "completely wary" of him to the point
of avoiding him entirely before the show. He said that when the band
arrived at the house, they walked in and sort of stood around for
a while. Everyone there seemed very busy and focused so Sebadoh just
went about the business of eating. He said very few people approached
him. Those who did seemed incredibly uncomfortable. Jason,
who Sean described as "really nice" noted that no one he talked to listened to
him. He had to repeat himself several times. As for Lou having an
anti-Ivy League attitude and "wanting to make fun of the 'Ivy League'
crowd in attendance," Lou thought the crowd was quite young, too young
to be a university crowd, and only asked if people were going to high
school the next day to get some idea of what the people there were
like and where they were coming from. Basically, he was just trying
to make conversation, not trying to insult the audience. It seems
Sean, and perhaps, the group as a whole, had more preconceptions about
Lou and his attitude than Lou had about any of them. And, as for
attitude adjustment for a living room show, Lou noted that people were
wary and incommunicative. Lou found this strange and puzzling.
Kathleen Billus kbaw@world.std.com
--------------------
From: "K. Lena Bennett" <keb@u.washington.edu>
HOMETAPE FESTIVAL IN NIJMEGEN, HOLLAND (fwd)
I got this off of a.m.a. Due to the groups involved, it looks like a
clear interest to people on this list.
>Newsgroups: alt.music.alternative
>From: arnoudv@ped.kun.nl (Arnoud Verdwaald)
>Subject: HOMETAPE FESTIVAL IN NIJMEGEN, HOLLAND
FAST FORWARD (HOME-RECORDING) FESTIVAL DOORNROOSJE NIJMEGEN
Hi,
I don't know if I am allowed to do this kind of advertising here, and
I don't expect too many foreigners to come to Doornroosje (Nijmegen,
The Netherlands, Europe), but still, I would like to bring the
following festival under the attention of all the people who like
non-mainstream "pop" music (btw, I have no commercial interest
whatsoever).
"Fast Forward" is the name of a small but (hopefully) inspiring
two-day event which will offer lots of music from home-recording
artists (see below for what that's supposed to mean), but not only
that: There will also be poetry, animation, comics and paintings.
on April 22 (Friday):
Tall Dwarfs (NZ); Mecca Normal (Can); Smog (USA); Eugene Chadbourne
(USA); Joost Visser (NL); Judy Dunaway & The Evan Gallagher Little
Band (USA); Billy Childish (UK, poetry); Sexton Ming (UK, poetry).
and on April 23:
Barbara Manning & SF Seals (USA); Billy Childish (UK); Sexton Ming
(UK); Tuli Kupferberg (USA); Peter Jefferies (NZ); Alastair Galbraith
(NZ); Dump (USA); Plover (NL).
What is this 'home recording' thing? A few lines from Doornroosje's
press-info: "A huge little festival featuring Home-Recording artists
from all over the world! With the grunge-hype declining a whole range
of new artists is looming ahead. The sounds presented by fresh labels
like Ajax, Drag City [...bunch-a-names] are only just the tip of the
iceberg. Bands and artists like Thinking Fellers, Union Local 282,
Trumans Water, Pavement, Liz Phair, Sebadoh and Palace Brothers seem
to prefer simple and often Lo-Fi recording techniques over expensive
high-tech studios. [...] A swiftly recorded demo is often more
suitable to capture the magic, that undefinable thrill without which
music becomes old and anaemic. It is a matter of fact that
Home-Recording has grown into a trend: record your music before the
feeling fades, then on to the next song! The established values of
sound-quality, song-structuring, "The Rock Band Ideal" and playing
skills once again being questioned. [...]" ... yeah well..., take it
or leave it... Anyway, might you be in Holland at the time this
festival takes place, and to you Doornroosje's lines make sense, then
of course you shouldn't miss this small-but-cozy festival. Oh,
admission is only FL 15 (less than $10) for 1 day, FL 25 for both.
(For everyone who regrets s/he will have to miss this festival, you
might be interested to hear that a compilation CD "with all the
artists that participate" will be released, which "will contain more
than 60 minutes of music and be priced as a CD single".)
If you need more information you can call +31.80.559887 or fax
31.80.568015
Arnoud Verdwaald
--------------------
From: Kent Williams <williams@cs.uiowa.edu>
Labradford 'Prazision LP'
This is a first -- a recording that I can't decide whether to discuss
on the indie-list or on IDM [Intelligent Dance Music -- es].
Prazision is the duo of Mark Nelson and Carter Brown, and their music
seems to have one foot solidly in the ambient world and the other in
world of American indie-rock. Synthesis -- what a rush!
Some tracks on this record feature strummed guitar, and they all
feature combinations of funky Moog sounds, heavily processed and
reverbed. Their is singing and spoken word, mixed at a level where
you might, with concentration, make out words. The overall feel is
dreamy and vaguely sinister.
'Soft Return' is a kind of spooky evocation of reincarnation -- "Going
round, it's clear you'll never stop/Going round, it's clear you'll
never stop ... I'll be there to take you back inside the womb ...'
All done to a I IV V chord change straight from the Jesus and Mary
Chain, but slowed down, with echoing Moogs.
They claim to have recorded it 'in Mckinley Hall, downstairs at the
end of the hall.' Like the Cowboy Junkies' 'Trinity Sessions,' the
natural echo of the acoustic space lends a warmth absent from the
digital echo effects used by UK ambient artists.
This is definitely a treat -- an album with ambient tendencies, but
with a distinctly American feel.
For the indie-listers -- 'Prazision' was recorded by Rob Christianson
of the Eggs.
[Labradford is interviewed and discographied in the most recent ish of
Speed Kills (#5), for those who might be interested -es]
--------------------
From: vasant@phoenix.Princeton.EDU (Christopher Vasantkumar)
SLEEPER/VERSUS/JAWBREAKER @ the Grand in NYC 3/25/94
Four dollars for Versus and Jawbreaker--quite a bargain. We arrived
too late to see Sleeper; I haven't heard anything by them, so I'm not
particularly sad to have missed them.
Versus started soon after our arrival. All my friends have seen
Versus at least three times. I have meant to see them at least three
times. Finally, I did. Their set was short but good. They played
between five and seven songs, most of them either new or unreleased.
Richard and Fontaine had some lovely harmonies. Two notable songs were
"Bright Light(s)" and the one off of the CD which Fontaine sings and
whose title momentarily eludes me. Speaking of Fontaine, and please
forgive any sexism in this remark, she is very, very cute, and a good
bassist as well.
Anyway, without too much ado, Jawbreaker followed. They played for
about an hour and a half, a very fine set. They played a mixture of
old favorites ("Want," "Fine Day," "Chesterfield King") some songs off
of 24-Hour Revenge Therapy ("Ashtry Monument, "The Boat Dreams...")
and some new stuff (a song that Blake dedicated to his car, another
one dedicated to his 13-year-old sister, and "Accident Prone." Blake
has always seemed to me to be the Karl Hendricks of pop-punk, with his
intelligent, confessional lyrics. Their second-to-last song,
"Accident Prone," seemed to give that theory some more weight.
Terming it "ending in extreme melancholy," Blake, Chris and Adam
proceeded to play a song sounding more like Seam, Hum, Hurl or Bitch
Magnet tham your average Bay Area punk-pop ditty. It blew me
completely away. Blake dedicated it to Richard of Versus, and added
that they had just come up with it while on tour. Watch out for it on
record. I will be. This could signal a major breakaway from the
tired LOOKOUT! records type music for this entertaining, talented and
extremely polite band.
I am no longer a lurker,
Chris Vasantkumar---vasant@phoenix.princeton.edu
--------------------
From: Anne Marie Cruz <amcruz@minerva.cis.yale.edu>
Uncle Wiggly Live At Yale; The Gravel Pit's debut-CD
Hey there. First I just wanted to send a huge scream o' joy at the
great job that everyone who has ever been involved with the I-L list
has done, is doing and will continue to do. This is a godsend for
people like me who are constantly jonesing for the next dose of
e-smack. Yay!!!! Now then:
Uncle Wiggly @ Yale:
Wow. The "aimless wiggly" experience was completely new to me, and
now I feel as if I've rediscovered microwaved Quaker Oats 100% Natural
Cereal (you think it's going to be just plain weird, but the stuff
ends up being awesome). They're three adorably quirky guys with an
adorable sound: subtly disturbing guitar licks tempered by a kind of a
cuddly, Meat Puppets-during-the-Up-On-The-Sun-days bass line (think
"Maiden's Milk" here). Guitarist William Berger did most of the
singing in his touchingly vulnerable whine, although for some songs
he switched places with drummer James Kavoussi, who was even more
touching, vulnerable and whiny. In fact, he looked so confused I just
wanted to run up and hug him (I probably could have, too, since they
were so friendly). Michael Anzalone provided the hilarious,
deadpanned between-song banter and the happily melancholic bass. They
have some stuff out on the Shimmy Disc label: *There Was An Elk*,
their 23-song CD, is fantastic. They usually play in NYC, I think, so
if you can, check the yum that is Uncle Wiggly.
The Gravel Pit, *Crash Land*, Feralette Records:
On to the less strange and more straightforward. The Gravel Pit is
this terrific bitter bar band from New Haven; they're very sardonic,
crunchingly twangy and probably too unfashionable for most of the IL
crowd.
[now, now. all are welcome here. even those with messy hair and
dirty faces. especially those, actually.--az]
(That is, they're not dream-pop, sloppy-pop, the new vanguards
of punk, etc. They're the kind of guys who sulked and listened to a
lot of The Kinks, The Beatles, Levi Stubbs and surf music in high
school). Still, I love 'em and their debut CD, *Crash Land*, which was
produced by Jim Dickinson (I know you know, but he's the Jimmy D. who
colloborated with The Replacements, Alex Chilton, and Spin Doctors
[not that I'm personally too psyched about that last credit- can the
IL maybe make an M-ch--l B-lt-n rule about Sp-n D-ct-rs?]), is a
pretty good representation of their sound. Jed Parish, lead singer
and lyricist of The Pit (not to be confused with the Portland band of
the same name, by the way), writes these beautifully poignant
melodies and then undercuts the cheesy sentiments with his jaded
lyrics ("Blind to every sideshow at this carnival./ You're my favorite
animal." or "I seized the day/ and shoved it in a box./ I kneel and
pray/ and every day it knocks."), his wicked, acerbic vocal riffs and
deliberately bouncy organ and harmonica solos. Throw in Jeff Juhase's
solid rhythm guitar (his solos aren't the greatest, but there aren't
many), Pete Caldes' energetic, stabbing drums and Ed Valauskas' moody
bass and you get some of my favorite songs in the universe. Some
small complaints: being used to their gigs, I thought the CD on the
whole was much slower than normal. Also, the order of the songs is
somewhat choppy, but that's easily remedied by your friendly
neighborhood shuffle feature. These guys were planning to crash (npi)
the South By Southwest, so some of you might have seen them. If not,
and their live shows are 100 times better than the CD, and you want
more info, e-mail me @ amcruz@minerva.cis.yale.edu
or write to:
The Gravel Pit
PO Box 7450
New Haven, CT 06519
or call bassist Ed V. @ 203-453-2963
or write to:
Feralette Records
206 Sheffield Place
Nashville, TN 37215-3235
Yee-ha. <smile>
-Anne Marie Cruz
--------------------
From: Mark Cornick <cornick@access.digex.net>
telegraph wants writers...
[ _ . ._.. . __. ._. ._ .__. .... ]
hey you! write for telegraph
telegraph, the new monthly (perhaps twice-monthly) internet zine from
ILIJ, seeks writers. We are looking to establish a "staff" of sorts;
i.e, we're looking mainly for people who are interested in writing on
a regular basis.
You need not be a professional writer, an English major, or anything
that severe. You should be able to express yourself well without
being stuffy. You should have a sense of humor. You should be able
to write objectively and not be too in-jokey. More than anything
else, your writing should be unique; we want people with their own
hip, irreverent style. Since we can't pay you, we're looking for
people who enjoy writing and will do it for the fun of it (and perhaps
some name recognition.)
We are looking for "feature" articles, interviews, profiles, and
like-minded works, in addition to reviews of indie-related music,
zines, books, film, etc.
Submissions for telegraph are accepted on an ongoing basis. The
deadline for publication in any given issue is one week prior to the
release date. The first issue is tentatively set for April 15, 1994.
telegraph will be distributed under the GNU GPL -- this means the
author of the article will retain a copyright, but free distribution
will be allowed and encouraged. Not all submissions will be used.
All submissions, whether published or not, remain the property of the
author.
Send your submissions to the telegraph operator, Mark Cornick, at
<cornick@access.digex.net>.
Please redistribute this announcement to anyone else you feel might be
interested. This announcement, and other telegraph-related files, can
be retrieved from the telegraph relay station archive:
* ftp: ftp ftp.digex.net, then cd /pub/access/cornick/telegraph
* www: url is "file://ftp.digex.net/pub/access/cornick/tgx.html"
Thanks!
- --the junta telegraphica
Mark Cornick, Sean Murphy, Chris Karlof
--------------------
From: Erika Sherman <esherman@umich.edu>
stereolab anyone?
Is there any kind soul out there who can get me a stereolab tshirt?
I've been desperately seeking one to no avail for a few months
now...:( I'd be eternally grateful! Thanks (I hope <grin>)
Erika Sherman <-------> esherman@umich.edu
DEFENDER OF COSMIC FREEFORM!!
<------------------------------------------------------------>
The Indie-List Digest is published a few times each week (usually
Tuesdays and Fridays) by the Indie-List Infotainment Junta, Unltd.
What Who Where
Editors Eric Sinclair esinclai@indiana.edu
Anne Zender azender@indiana.edu
Mailings Liz Clayton lclayton@uhuru.uchicago.edu
Archives Chris Karlof karlofc@seq.cms.uncwil.edu
FTP/Gopher /pub/music/lists/indie @ ftp.uwp.edu
Consultants: Mark Cornick, Joshua Houk, Sean Murphy, and K. Lena Bennett.
Indie-List is not copyrighted. It may be freely reproduced for any
purpose. Please cite Indie-List as your source.
<-------------------------------------->
please send your articles for the next
issue to <indie_submit@indiana.edu>.
<-------------------------------------->
[Submitted by: karlof chris knox (karlofc@seq.cms.uncwil.edu)
Wed, 30 Mar 1994 11:13:31 -0500 (EST)]