August 2008 Archives

FRIDAY FLASHBACK! Boston: Rock’s Most Fertile Journeyman City?

Aug 082008

As I mentioned recently, it’s impressive to see newcomers to the Halls of Rock dig into the rich archive of rock discussion threads on Rock Town Hall. To help facilitate that process, I’d like to kick off a FRIDAY FLASHBACK! feature, where I’ll pull a possibly once-more relevant post out from the deep recesses of our archives and bring it back to The Main Stage for review by veterans and possibly first exposure for newcomers.

This first FRIDAY FLASHBACK! is relevant to me, at least, because I’m heading to Boston this morning and because Townsman KingEd‘s reflections on a recently deceased journeyman rocker from my own pathetic rock ‘n roll hometown have been on my mind. A local rock scene is a terrible thing to waste. Enjoy!

This piece was originally posted on 7/27/07.

As documented long ago in the original Rock Town Hall listserv, historically, Boston is the major East Coast city with the worst output of soul artists. Recently a friend and I were discussing the fact that Boston, for a city teeming with enthusiastic rock bands, rock clubs, rock press, and college radio stations, has produced a dearth of great rock bands. The original Modern Lovers were great, but they were gone in a flash. Aerosmith…a poor man’s Rolling Stones crossed with a poor man’s Led Zeppelin. Good stuff, but not mind-blowing. The Cars, Boston, J. Geils Band, and other heavy hitters of ’70s FM Rock were all solid, but they didn’t expand anyone’s consciousness, at least not anyone with a consciousness worth expanding. Then you’ve got the great ’80s scene. Everybody loves some band from that scene. I love Big Dipper. Someone else loves Mission of Burma. Someone else thinks Throwing Muses was the bees knees. The Pixies are a Boston band, right? Big whup! Is The Pixies the best Boston could do?

I know what you’re thinking: “Mr. Moderator, how dare you – a native of Philadelphia, a large, East Coast city with far lesser claims to rock ‘n roll greatness – criticize Boston! All you’ve got is your stinking TSOP, Todd Rundgren, and The Dead Milkmen.” You’re right. Philadelphia is a terrible rock ‘n roll town, but my point is not to say that this is the case for Boston, just that Boston, for as rich as the city is in solid, journeyman rock bands, has not produced a downright dominant band in either rock or soul music. Are they gonna blame this on the curse of the Bambino too?

Does Jazz Go With That Rock?

Posted by Mr. Moderator

Aug 072008

What rock musicians have been able to successfully incorporate elements of jazz into their rock?

How we define “elements of jazz” is best left to you, but I hope we have the good sense not to allow, say, Ted Nugent‘s hiring of the Brecker Brothers to play on one of his songs as an example of a rock artist incorporating elements of jazz into their work.

Rock artists have been pretty comfortable slipping country, blues, and folk into their music, and as much as we deride ’70s-style jazz fusion, a number of jazz artists have incorporated elements of rock into their sound in an effective way. But beside the occasional scat singing of Van Morrison or the chops-laden session cats on a Steely Dan or Paul Simon album, have any rock bands since the days of Soft Machine spent much time even trying to take a “jazz approach” to rock? Joni Mitchell seemed to have gone whole hog into a jazz approach, but I’m not sure that it succeeded beyond a few songs. Of course, I’ll leave it to you to determine what a jazz approach is, or what exactly is jazz altogether.

Is Tortoise a rock band successfully incorporating jazz elements, or do they just market themselves as such? (Full 30-minute set of the band follows!)

This is an open-ended set of questions. Improvise.

I look forward to the scat we toss around!

RTH Confessional: Artists You Discovered Thru Commercials

Posted by sammymaudlin

Aug 072008

Time to ‘fess up. I clearly have no qualms about laying it all out for ya so I’ll start.

I discovered The Sonics via the Nissan SUV (I think) commercial. I also discovered Chris Knox (Tall Dwarfs) via the Heineken commercial that uses It’s Love. The Knox album on eMusic (Beat) has a definite Taking Tiger Mountain By Strategy vibe.

I Wanna Look Like Darcy Clay

I confessed. I am at one with god.

What say you?

PhillyStyle: Robert Hazard

Posted by KingEd

Aug 072008

At one point last night, while standing behind home plate at Citizens Bank Park and watching the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Florida Marlins, I was suddenly overcome by a spell of Philly Pride. Cranky, old Ed King actually got misty as he looked out over the field, took in the sounds from the crowd, and remembered the franchise’s rare past glories and frequent letdowns. This is my team, I thought. My team’s lovely little ballpark. For better and for worse, my people.

An hour after having gotten in tune with my city, I arrived home to read that one of Philly’s Great White Hopes of the early ’80s, Robert Hazard, had died. Damn, I had no idea the guy was even sick!
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I Wanna Be…the Last Man Standing!

Posted by the great 48

Aug 062008

…Your Dog.

Go!

Creepiest Lyric Ever

Posted by Mr. Moderator

Aug 062008

Townsman Mac has suggested the following thread, which I think you’ll agree is worthy of our consideration:

Creepiest lyric ever. This came to me while listening to Blood and Chocolate, an album by a man who has written many a creepy lyric. The persona (or self portrait) Costello creates is one of the creepiest ever. I would save my favorite creepy lyric from that album for the thread, but as an example: E from Eels sings on the song “Going Fetal” (which is done in the tradition of ’50s dance crazes):

“Everyone is going fetal.
It’s the dance the kids all feel.
Just get done under your desk.
Feels like your momma’s nest, alright.”

Which is hi-larious, but downright creepy.

I wonder in a head to head who the creepiest lyricist would be: Costello or Waits?

The long interview clip I’ve set at the top of this thread provides another example, one that Townsman Chickenfrank and I have had many a laugh over. Now let’s creep Mac out!

Randy Newman Releases Harps and Angels

Posted by Mr. Moderator

Aug 052008

I know some of our Townspeople dig Randy Newman and will find the release of Harps and Angels, his first album of new, non-soundtrack material since 1999, to be an occasion for joy. The New York Times opens its Critics’ Choice review with these words:

Randy Newman can do saccharine and he can do sour. At his best, though, his songs deliver complex flavors, with a pungent but searching ambivalence. “Harps and Angels,” his first album of new songs since “Bad Love” in 1999, presents a mess of conflicting feelings and motives. Intermittently brilliant, occasionally belligerent, it presents a vision of American identity as sprawling and ultimately as confused as the country itself.

Wow, it’s like the guy assembled that paragraph out of a box of Rock Critic Refridgerator Magnets! Ignore my sarcasm; I have been working on appreciating the guy the last few years, even going as far as to buy an album and burn a copy of another. Mitchell Froom co-produces this new one! Fans of Randy Newman and fans of Rock Town Hall, I urge you to consider supporting both Newman and the Halls of Rock by buying this album through the portal that follows. Thanks!
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