Let’s get a little chatter going, shall we? Most of you know this drill by now, but if you’ve been following along from the sidelines and want to make your initial splash in the Halls of Rock the following questions require nothing more than your gut answers! There’s no better way to jump into the fray because the only expertise required is a sound knowledge of and confidence in your gut feelings!
What would you like to come back to earth as in your next musical life?
Can songs about digital media and related devices ever be as satisfying as songs about physical media and related devices (eg, Paul Simon’s “Kodachrome”)?
What artist are you most tired of seeing kicked around here unfairly in the Halls of Rock?
What do you most wish for in a remastered reissue of a beloved album?
What’s the most recent album you’ve listened to that you really, really wish you could turn a fellow Townsperson onto?
What artist’s sometimes unfair ass-kicking can you not get enough of here in the Halls of Rock?
I look forward to your responses.
What would you like to come back to earth as in your next musical life?
Something better than a rock nerd. I want to be a real Rock Star, with lotsa money!
Can songs about digital media and related devices ever be as satisfying as songs about physical media and related devices (eg, Paul Simon’s “Kodachrome”)?
What, like “I want my MP3?” No, that’s stupid. Sooner or later, the Great Unwashed won’t even remember those.
What artist are you most tired of seeing kicked around here unfairly in the Halls of Rock?
The Eagles. It’s not fair to the other bands that the tag “The Eagles Suck” doesn’t hit 70% of the posts here.
What do you most wish for in a remastered reissue of a beloved album?
That they don’t fuck up the sound, and that it’s not too expensive. Oh, and that they don’t “remaster” it more than once every fifteen years or so.
What’s the most recent album you’ve listened to that you really, really wish you could turn a fellow Townsperson onto?
The Buffalo Killers. Their first album is really super!
What artist’s sometimes unfair ass-kicking can you not get enough of here in the Halls of Rock?
Lothar and the Hand People.
“What’s the most recent album you’ve listened to that you really, really wish you could turn a fellow Townsperson onto?”
I picked up the new Tom Jones album last week and I gotta say it is just great. Gritty gospel, the best Americana album of the year. Go figure.
I’ll have to give the ass-kicking questions more thought, but the rest for now:
A harp.
Probably not, since – sincerity problems admitted upfront – it’s hard to see anybody writing one that won’t be an obvious cash-in or wrapped too tightly in irony. If Daft Punk didn’t come up with a solid iPod song by now, it probably won’t be done, though if anyone can come up with a line delivered as well as “When I look back on all the CRAP I learned in hah-skewl” I’m willing to give it a shot.
That said, does Kodachrome have much company? Were there any really good songs about VCRs or fax machines or rear projection TVs? If the next best nuclear age material goods song is ZZ Top’s “TV Dinners”, then maybe it’s harder than it looks.
That somebody will get an extra review copy and give it to me for free.
2K: I have heard two Buffalo Killers songs (not both from the first album, though, I think) and quite enjoyed them. I’ve been meaning to look a bit further into their stuff. I don’t know if this is quite what they are, but they sound like they might fit into some vaguely defined menacing stoner rock (stoner noir?) genre that I wish I knew more about/haven’t just made up.
Al: That does sound strangely intriguing. Not sure that I’ll actually look into it, but I think I could see how that might be interesting.
I was thinking, alexmagic, of that big hit by Outkast (when’s the last time anyone’s listened to that double-album opus?), the one about shaking it like a Polaroid. Maybe there aren’t many other good songs about pre-digital media, but some good television songs come to mind.
What would you like to come back to earth as in your next musical life?
a hit.
Can songs about digital media and related devices ever be as satisfying as songs about physical media and related devices (eg, Paul Simon’s “Kodachrome”)?
no
What artist are you most tired of seeing kicked around here unfairly in the Halls of Rock?
the doors
What do you most wish for in a remastered reissue of a beloved album?
to hear an instrument or vocal something or other that i never knew was there
What’s the most recent album you’ve listened to that you really, really wish you could turn a fellow Townsperson onto?
LA Woman
What artist’s sometimes unfair ass-kicking can you not get enough of here in the Halls of Rock?
James Hetfield
What would you like to come back to earth as in your next musical life?
A groove.
Can songs about digital media and related devices ever be as satisfying as songs about physical media and related devices (eg, Paul Simon’s “Kodachrome”)?
I continue to use the term ‘record’ to mean the recorded music irrespective of medium. I recommend it, because it’s non-specific, and media will change with increasing speed in the future. We’re probably closer than we realize to a time when ‘digital’ will be old hat. My real attachment is to the music. It lasts forever. Storage in anything but hearts and minds is temporary.
What artist are you most tired of seeing kicked around here unfairly in the Halls of Rock?
The Dead.
What do you most wish for in a remastered reissue of a beloved album?
That the freshened up sound refreshes my ears and my memories as well.
What’s the most recent album you’ve listened to that you really, really wish you could turn a fellow Townsperson onto?
Flying Lotus, Cosmogramma
What artist’s sometimes unfair ass-kicking can you not get enough of here in the Halls of Rock?
David Lee Roth, though it’s never really unfair.
What would you like to come back to earth as in your next musical life?
A Lou Reed YouTube clip.
Can songs about digital media and related devices ever be as satisfying as songs about physical media and related devices (eg, Paul Simon’s “Kodachrome”)?
Probably. That Rufus Wainwright song “Vibrate,” about a cell phone, isn’t too bad.
What artist are you most tired of seeing kicked around here unfairly in the Halls of Rock?
Radio City-era Big Star
What do you most wish for in a remastered reissue of a beloved album?
A separate disc for bonus tracks, without a jacked-up price.
What’s the most recent album you’ve listened to that you really, really wish you could turn a fellow Townsperson onto?
Wussy’s self-titled album.
What artist’s sometimes unfair ass-kicking can you not get enough of here in the Halls of Rock?
Lou Reed
With the recent release of Big Boi’s (horribly, horribly titled) new solo album, I’ve gone back and found that I still really enjoy Speakerbox(xx)/The Love Below, though I probably have a greater affinity for Outkast and the George Clinton and Prince material that each half is drawing from respectively than most here.
Super Furry Animals’ “(Drawing) Rings Around the World” is kind of a tongue-in-cheek ode to cellphones and other potentially cancer-inducing technology and it’s pretty great, so there’s one in the plus column that I forgot about.
Kilroy: I freely admit to enjoying both Waiting For The Sun and Morrison Hotel, so I’d be open to a revisitation of LA Woman, which I haven’t listened to much of in some time.
A bassist.
I don’t know, the less tactile a media format or media device the harder it would be to turn into a song, I would think.
Mike Love.
That the engineer didn’t highlight any unnecessary details in the original mix coupled with some cool liner notes.
The Fiery Furnaces, I’m Going Away
Mike Love.
BigSteve – Yes, oh yes on Flying Lotus. If you like that, have you heard Ganjasufi?
Reincarnation? A drummer
Digital satisfaction? I think we need a little more time before fully answering this question. But I think Joy Division’s “Digital” is a pretty good start: “I feel it closing in…” Digital Underground has some fun stuff; I like “Kiss You Back.” And alexmagic, Daftpunk DOES have a digital song, as I found through my YouTube research: “Digital Love,” although I don’t think it’s top-notch.
Ass kicked: Jesus and Mary Chain
Reissue: clarity, extras, band interviews, linear notes
New love to share: LCD Soundsystem “This is Happening”, Beach House “Teenage Dream.”
Keep kicking: My generally kind, empathetic nature makes this a difficult question to answer, but in general, I would suggest continued wailing on Michael Stipe.
What would you like to come back to earth as in your next musical life?
> A limited edition 7″ double gatefold.
Can songs about digital media and related devices ever be as satisfying as songs about physical media and related devices (eg, Paul Simon’s “Kodachrome”)?
>This assumes Paul Simon’s “Kodachrome” is satisfying. But no, I doubt it.
What artist are you most tired of seeing kicked around here unfairly in the Halls of Rock?
>Most of them who get kicked deserve it for one reason or another. No one has ever gone after one of my sacred cows though.
What do you most wish for in a remastered reissue of a beloved album?
>Demos, other songs which didn’t make it to the final product, radio sessions, etc.
What’s the most recent album you’ve listened to that you really, really wish you could turn a fellow Townsperson onto?
>Allo Darling’s new album is fantastic.
What artist’s sometimes unfair ass-kicking can you not get enough of here in the Halls of Rock?
>The Grateful Dead or the Eagles. And it’s always fair.
Alexmagic, Buffalo Killers are pretty swell. The are kind of a Stoner Rock thing I suppose, but I think it’s more of what classifies as “heavy” here in the midwest. They came out of the ashes of Thee Shams, which was kind of a Southern Rock styled garage rock band, but their sound is much leaner as Buffalo Killers. Both of their albums are really good, but the first is the better one by just a little bit.
I keep hearing the name Ganjasufi in the same context as Flying Lotus, ladymisski, but I must admit the name made me a bit skeptical. I guess I should go for it.
And btw if you liked Cosmogramma, I’d recommend Pantha du Prince’s Black Noise, despite the also questionable artist name.
Thanks, BigSteve. Since Mr. Royale’s b-day is quickly approaching, I see a trip to the record store is in order; I’ll look for “Black Noise.”