In anyone here into Sparks beside The Great 48? We really need to talk about these guys in the coming week, but I’m going to need more than The Great One sniffing that I’ve got no sense of humor and am therefore incapable of liking them. Think about it. Stay tuned.
I may have to wait to have the belt turned over to me until the next Jenny Lewis solo project, but when she and, let’s say Ben Gibbard, cover this, I will be the champion: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQyDSL1rQVQ
Count me in on the Sparks discussion. On their mid 70s records, they sound a lot like Roxy Music, especially the propulsive keyboard parts and “camp” sensibility.
Yuck on many, many counts in this thread! I’ll include my most hated song (Indiana Wants Me is in my top 5 clunkers), Every Mother’s Son and Come on Down to My Boat. This video doesn’t work on so many levels.
But, a cool hipster band like Panda Bear could probably make this even more dreadful. Or Sparks could re do it and become lame hipsters for a new generation.
Thanks Townsman Mr. Moderator. I might add that I am quite the fan of the mid 70’s era Sparks and even some of the later period when they are less of an electronic outfit.
Actually the “offspring” of Sparks I suggest checking out as well. Jet (not to be confused with the current dreadful Australian outfit)featured the bass player Martin Gordon along with David O’List (The Nice) and the lead singer from John’s Children and is very much in the vein of that era of Sparks. The later morphed into Radio Stars.
The band Gleaming Spires were also connected to Sparks and if I am not mistaken one of the dudes in Redd Kross is currently in an “Oliver” role with the band.
Yeah, I dig Sparks plenty. Give me Kimono My House over Queen for that kind of sound.
You know, we usually Reach on things musical, but for the life of me I can’t understand why you don’t like “Come On Down To My Boat”! To these ears, it’s a great mix of rockin’ riff and wimpy pop sensibilities. You’ve confused me here.
Hold tight, those of you who are ready, willing, and able to discuss – intelligently, of course – the works of Sparks. I’ll try to get something up late tonight. If anyone’s got some Sparks .mp3s to send my way for use in this discussion, you may send them to headstache [at] gmail [dot] com. Or, if you’ve got Back Office access, you may load them right into the draft of a post with whatever comments you have. I can compile whatever I find in there and prepare a BALANCED starting point. You can rest assured that I’ll enter this discussion with open ears and mind. Thanks!
Count me in on the Sparks discussion. On their mid 70s records, they sound a lot like Roxy Music, especially the propulsive keyboard parts and “camp” sensibility.
Count me in as a fan as well, though not a huge one. I just have a few of the key mid ’70s albums (Kimono My House and Propaganda), Number One in Heaven (which I don’t like that much) as well as the two most recent, classically-tinged albums, both of which I like a lot (esp. Lil’ Beethoven).
If someone hasn’t already done it, I can post some mp3s later tonight. With all that said, I can understand 2000man and hrrundi not digging Sparks, but I’m a little surprised that BigSteve also has similar thoughts on this subject. Steve, I think they fit in with the more intelligent rock of the ’70s (pre-punk) that you seem to dig like Springsteen, Steely Dan, and especially Roxy Music, though maybe it’s the falsetto voices and the glammy image (I seem to recall you not liking Sweet as well) that turns you off?
Yuck on many, many counts in this thread! I’ll include my most hated song (Indiana Wants Me is in my top 5 clunkers), Every Mother’s Son and Come on Down to My Boat.
I kind of like Come on Down to My Boat. Great bubblegum. What’s wrong with it?
But, a cool hipster band like Panda Bear could probably make this even more dreadful. Or Sparks could re do it and become lame hipsters for a new generation.
Panda Bear isn’t a band, but rather the alias of Noah Lennox from Animal Collective. He’s released a few solo albums (most notably last year’s Person Pitch) and contributed to all the Animal Collective records. Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not a huge fan (though I do like the most recent AC record) and I think his last album was way overrated (though it has its moments), but I sense a lot of knee-jerk attacks on newer bands all lumped into the “hipster” category. Listen without prejudice!
I didn’t think the Sparks thread had started yet. Hvb was trying to get us to hold back till tracks were posted, and I always do what he says. I will comment again when they get their own thread.
I choose to believe that the “Indiana Wants Me” guy was thrown into jail with and was later used as a human shield by Bon Scott in the course of “Jailbreak”.
don’t use that word.
you know the one I mean.
it implies the existance of a state of being that the user is not included in.
the state of being and the illusion of non inclusion exist only in the conciousness of the user.
besides that, it’s dated.
really dated.
beatnick dated.
MOD: whoever covers “somebody’s watchin me” could have a hit with it as long as Jacko still sang the choruses.
I have a boatload of Sparks tunes coming your way.
I have loved them since 1982 when i saw them perform “mickey mouse” on SNL
HVB, Tvox and BigSteve – I don’t know exactly what it is that makes me hate Come on Down to My Boat so much, but whatever it is has made me hate it with a passion since I was a kid with just an AM radio. Maybe it’s too many guys singing at once. I don’t know, but it’s fingernails on a blackboard for me. And I don’t have big problems with bubblegum, but that’s a fine line and you can go from fun to stomach churning in less than two minutes flat.
Berlyant, I don’t generally prejudge new music. I’m all a twitter waiting for Jan. 22 so I can rock my ass off with the new Black Mountain album. I haven’t even grabbed my free download for preordering it because I want to hear it on something that’s not portable first. There’s some other swell stuff coming out the 22nd, too. None if it is reissues of oldies, either. Indie Rock rides a fine line with me, too. I like a lot of it, but sea chanty’s, dirges and weird electronic experimentations and twenty member bands usually turn me off.
Berlyant, I don’t generally prejudge new music. I’m all a twitter waiting for Jan. 22 so I can rock my ass off with the new Black Mountain album. I haven’t even grabbed my free download for preordering it because I want to hear it on something that’s not portable first. There’s some other swell stuff coming out the 22nd, too. None if it is reissues of oldies, either. Indie Rock rides a fine line with me, too. I like a lot of it, but sea chanty’s, dirges and weird electronic experimentations and twenty member bands usually turn me off.
I wasn’t singling you out explicitly, but just the use of that word on this site, which generally annoys me. With that said, I like sea shantys, weird electronic stuff and especially a good dirge when they’re done well.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UeQsZOQqO6I&feature=related
man, you guys don’t know jack about how hipsters think.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HaAOCGb3bw
THIS is the best song some annoying hipster band will ever do!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4anOSSGm6U&feature=related
Has Fiery Furnaces covered this one yet?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0FiS5e72ws&feature=related
In anyone here into Sparks beside The Great 48? We really need to talk about these guys in the coming week, but I’m going to need more than The Great One sniffing that I’ve got no sense of humor and am therefore incapable of liking them. Think about it. Stay tuned.
I may have to wait to have the belt turned over to me until the next Jenny Lewis solo project, but when she and, let’s say Ben Gibbard, cover this, I will be the champion:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQyDSL1rQVQ
Count me in on the Sparks discussion. On their mid 70s records, they sound a lot like Roxy Music, especially the propulsive keyboard parts and “camp” sensibility.
Great to hear, Dr. I’m going to have to refresh my senses with them. Now I’m sorry I traded in the couple of albums I once bought.
Here’s a good place to start.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9vc-5XH9QQ
Hey, Doctor:
Ugh.
Yours,
HVB
“Indiana Wants Me” by R. Dean Taylor
Has anyone tapped this one yet?
I was not familiar with “Indiana Wants Me”. I just found this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbgoC–jMOU
Nice one, Townsman Petesecrutz, and nice handle you’ve got there.
Yuck on many, many counts in this thread! I’ll include my most hated song (Indiana Wants Me is in my top 5 clunkers), Every Mother’s Son and Come on Down to My Boat. This video doesn’t work on so many levels.
But, a cool hipster band like Panda Bear could probably make this even more dreadful. Or Sparks could re do it and become lame hipsters for a new generation.
Nice post – I forgot my awful video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50b-Q-Z1bF0
Thanks Townsman Mr. Moderator. I might add that I am quite the fan of the mid 70’s era Sparks and even some of the later period when they are less of an electronic outfit.
Actually the “offspring” of Sparks I suggest checking out as well. Jet (not to be confused with the current dreadful Australian outfit)featured the bass player Martin Gordon along with David O’List (The Nice) and the lead singer from John’s Children and is very much in the vein of that era of Sparks. The later morphed into Radio Stars.
The band Gleaming Spires were also connected to Sparks and if I am not mistaken one of the dudes in Redd Kross is currently in an “Oliver” role with the band.
Yeah, I dig Sparks plenty. Give me Kimono My House over Queen for that kind of sound.
Hey, 2K —
You know, we usually Reach on things musical, but for the life of me I can’t understand why you don’t like “Come On Down To My Boat”! To these ears, it’s a great mix of rockin’ riff and wimpy pop sensibilities. You’ve confused me here.
Your pal,
HVB
And in any case, you’ve *gotta* give it higher marks than that Sparks crap!
Hold tight, those of you who are ready, willing, and able to discuss – intelligently, of course – the works of Sparks. I’ll try to get something up late tonight. If anyone’s got some Sparks .mp3s to send my way for use in this discussion, you may send them to headstache [at] gmail [dot] com. Or, if you’ve got Back Office access, you may load them right into the draft of a post with whatever comments you have. I can compile whatever I find in there and prepare a BALANCED starting point. You can rest assured that I’ll enter this discussion with open ears and mind. Thanks!
I agree with hvb about the song, but those guys do look like dorks. For comparison’s sake, this is what coolness looks like:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJR_KGZO4U0
BigSteve: we REACH!
All you dorky Sparks fans: do yourselves a favor and watch BigSteve’s video. *This* is what braniac-rock is supposed to look and sound like!
HVB
In HVB’s world, The Music Machine are brainiacs?
Man, all becomes clear…
Count me in as a fan as well, though not a huge one. I just have a few of the key mid ’70s albums (Kimono My House and Propaganda), Number One in Heaven (which I don’t like that much) as well as the two most recent, classically-tinged albums, both of which I like a lot (esp. Lil’ Beethoven).
If someone hasn’t already done it, I can post some mp3s later tonight. With all that said, I can understand 2000man and hrrundi not digging Sparks, but I’m a little surprised that BigSteve also has similar thoughts on this subject. Steve, I think they fit in with the more intelligent rock of the ’70s (pre-punk) that you seem to dig like Springsteen, Steely Dan, and especially Roxy Music, though maybe it’s the falsetto voices and the glammy image (I seem to recall you not liking Sweet as well) that turns you off?
Yuck on many, many counts in this thread! I’ll include my most hated song (Indiana Wants Me is in my top 5 clunkers), Every Mother’s Son and Come on Down to My Boat.
I kind of like Come on Down to My Boat. Great bubblegum. What’s wrong with it?
Panda Bear isn’t a band, but rather the alias of Noah Lennox from Animal Collective. He’s released a few solo albums (most notably last year’s Person Pitch) and contributed to all the Animal Collective records. Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not a huge fan (though I do like the most recent AC record) and I think his last album was way overrated (though it has its moments), but I sense a lot of knee-jerk attacks on newer bands all lumped into the “hipster” category. Listen without prejudice!
I didn’t think the Sparks thread had started yet. Hvb was trying to get us to hold back till tracks were posted, and I always do what he says. I will comment again when they get their own thread.
I choose to believe that the “Indiana Wants Me” guy was thrown into jail with and was later used as a human shield by Bon Scott in the course of “Jailbreak”.
don’t use that word.
you know the one I mean.
it implies the existance of a state of being that the user is not included in.
the state of being and the illusion of non inclusion exist only in the conciousness of the user.
besides that, it’s dated.
really dated.
beatnick dated.
MOD: whoever covers “somebody’s watchin me” could have a hit with it as long as Jacko still sang the choruses.
I have a boatload of Sparks tunes coming your way.
I have loved them since 1982 when i saw them perform “mickey mouse” on SNL
HVB, Tvox and BigSteve – I don’t know exactly what it is that makes me hate Come on Down to My Boat so much, but whatever it is has made me hate it with a passion since I was a kid with just an AM radio. Maybe it’s too many guys singing at once. I don’t know, but it’s fingernails on a blackboard for me. And I don’t have big problems with bubblegum, but that’s a fine line and you can go from fun to stomach churning in less than two minutes flat.
Berlyant, I don’t generally prejudge new music. I’m all a twitter waiting for Jan. 22 so I can rock my ass off with the new Black Mountain album. I haven’t even grabbed my free download for preordering it because I want to hear it on something that’s not portable first. There’s some other swell stuff coming out the 22nd, too. None if it is reissues of oldies, either. Indie Rock rides a fine line with me, too. I like a lot of it, but sea chanty’s, dirges and weird electronic experimentations and twenty member bands usually turn me off.
I wasn’t singling you out explicitly, but just the use of that word on this site, which generally annoys me. With that said, I like sea shantys, weird electronic stuff and especially a good dirge when they’re done well.
Bring on those Sparks tracks, Townspeople! Send them to headstache [at] gmail [dot] com! I’ll add them to the post I just put on The Main Stage.