Chalkhills Digest, Volume 13, Number 1

                 Saturday, 6 January 2007

Topics:

                   Music, Best of 2006
         Andy discusses "Making Plans for Nigel"
                     Happy New Year!
                       On the telly
                Early Moonstrance sighting

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And what a year when the exams and crops all failed.

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Date: Sun, 31 Dec 2006 17:06:00 -0700
From: "Thomas Vest" <tvtwo@hotmail.com>
Subject: Music, Best of 2006
Message-ID: <BAY109-F40BD20BDD334F4F7D7D016A1BB0@phx.gbl>

Hello music lovers & fellow Chalkfriends.

Here is my list of favorite releases from this past year (in order):

1)   The Decemberists - The Crane Wife
2)   Robyn Hitchcock & The Venus 3 - Ole! Tarantula
3)   Bob Dylan - Modern Times
4)   Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere
5)   The Elected - Sun, Sun, Sun
6)   Sonic Youth - Rather Ripped
7)   Goldfrapp - Supernature
8)   Home Video - No Certain Night or Morning
9)   Paul Weller - Catch-Flame! (Live at The Alexandra Palace)
10) Pearl Jam - Pearl Jam
11) Yo La Tengo - I Am Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass
12) Tom Waits - Orphans:  Brawler, Bawlers & Bastards
13) Artic Monkeys - Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not
14) Raconteurs - Broken Toy Soldiers
15) Neil Young - Living With War

The Crane Wife came out of nowhere & flew into my cd player, my computer- my
mind- residing there like thickening concrete.  I am unable to get their
songs out of my head.  The Island..., with its 70's prog riffs & nautical
tone is the class of the album.  Five tracks later, Shankill Butchers lays
you bare as a sort of goodnight story gone horribly wrong.   Then you've got
their indie fans crying foul as they jumped to a major label only to be
rewarded with their most acclaimed album to date.  Buy this album today as
The Decemberists are for real!

Ole! Tarantula was not an album I ever wanted to purchase.  I've had this
hatred- yes hatred, for Robyn Hitchcock since I first heard him shriek "So
You Think You're in Love" many years ago.  Hated that whiny song and figured
his music past, present and future must be just like that.  Therefore, I
never understood why so many people liked him or his early claim to fame as
the principle force in The Soft Boys.  Yeah, I've likely missed out on some
good music.  This year, Ole! Tarantula kept popping up on Chalkhills,
magazine articles and word of mouth.   I finally got to hear a bit of it and
promptly purchased it at Tower Records when they were liquidating all their
stock (RIP).   There is not a song on this album I do not like.  Brilliant!

Other worthy releases this year:

U.N.K.L.E. - Self Defence (Never, Never, Land - Reconstructed and Bonus
Beats - 4 Disc Set)
Secret Machines - Ten Silver Drops
Tool - 10,000 Days
Andy Partridge - Fuzzy Warbles #7, 8
Pinback - Nautical Antiques (A Selection of Rarities from 1998 - 2001)
Revolver Reloaded (From Mojo Magazine)
Q Covered:  The Eighties (From Q Magazine)
Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris - All the Roadrunning
Morrissey - Ringleader of the Tormentors
The Beatles - LOVE <----------------- Really, REALLY GOOD!

Guilty Pleasure of the year:

The Rudy Van Gelder reissues for Blue Note Records.  Not sure how many are
in this series (he's also re-mastered RVG Editions for Prestige), but every
one I've gotten this year is fantastic!

These three are especially outstanding:

Joe Henderson - Page One
Herbie Hancock - Maiden Voyage
Bud Powell - Time Waits

Disappointment of the year:

The Flaming Lips - At War With the Mystics
Beck - The Information
Thom Yorke - The Eraser
TV on the Radio - Return to Cookie Mountain

I had such high hopes for these four albums and all four failed to keep my
attention for very long.  I was most hopeful for the new Beck album, but it
seems he is floundering in genre-hell and has no idea what to do with his
work much less the packaging and presentation of his cd- and speaking of
packaging--

what was with the shite packaging on Tool's - 10,000 Days (What the hell
were they thinking?)

Debut of the year:

Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere

With the exception of a horrible cover of Gone Daddy Gone by the Violent
Femme's, this album rocks!

Reissue of note that I enjoyed:

The Cure - The Head on the Door (Deluxe Edition)

In the top 5 of their best records and the gateway album at the beginning of
their world-wide introduction/mid to late 80's domination.   The live tracks
on the second disc are inspiring and very chilling if you've ever had the
chance to see The Cure live.

Label of note:

Yep Roc Records

Some of my favorite albums from the past 2 or 3 years are on Yep Roc.

Trend I wish would go away:

Bemoaning the faltering status of the music industry by the very industry
that is destroying itself.

If those jackasses would just drop prices for cd's, a lot of those problems
would start to fade away.  People like to shop in music stores.  Tower
Records was always packed when I went in to browse and shop & my local indie
store is always busy with customers.   Yes downloading is here to stay and
yes it has hurt business but people will gladly pay $8.99 to 11.99 for a new
disc.  Those are fair prices to pay and I do it all the time.

Dropping prices won't fix all the problems the major labels have and there
are numerous other talking points/tangents to discuss on this matter, but it
would be a start.

Hope you enjoyed my list.  Feedback is hoped for and encouraged.

All the best for a wonderful New Year ahead!

Tv

PS>  Special thanks to Mr. Relph for keeping the Chalkhills flame alive
again for another year of spirited debate and fun... always a highlight of
my day when I see "Chalkhills Digest #..." in my in-box.

------------------------------

Date: Sun, 31 Dec 2006 17:50:45 -0800 (PST)
From: Todd Bernhardt <beat_town@yahoo.com>
Subject: Andy discusses "Making Plans for Nigel"
Message-ID: <20070101015045.44264.qmail@web32015.mail.mud.yahoo.com>

Hi:

Over at the XTCfans MySpace site (http://www.myspace.com/xtcfans), the
song of the week is "Making Plans for Nigel."

If you want to know which new wave band was the inspiration for the
song's drum pattern, and whom Andy would love to see naked, check out
the XTCfans blog site at http://blog.myspace.com/xtcfans.

After all, we only want what's best for him...

-Todd

P.S. Happy New Year!

------------------------------

Date: Tue, 2 Jan 2007 11:49:21 -0500
From: Benjamin Gott <bgott@rectoryschool.org>
Subject: Happy New Year!
Message-ID: <550667C9-4718-4741-A493-1004C9C72566@rectoryschool.org>

Hey everyone,

Happy New Year!  Let's hope that 2007 kicks 2006 in the ass!

I've been doing a lot of driving over the holidays, so I've had the
chance to listen to hours and hours and hours of XM Satellite Radio.
My favourite station, "Fred" (Channel 44), has been counting down the
2,044 essential hits of alternative rock.  XTC has been featured
prominently; over the past week, I've heard "Travels in Nihilon,"
"Fly on the Wall," "Holly Up On Poppy," and, as we speak, "Melt the
Guns."  Any XM programmers out there?  You guys rock!

- Ben

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 03 Jan 2007 21:05:22 +0000
From: "Chris Mullin" <chrismullin@email.com>
Subject: On the telly
Message-ID: <20070103210526.38013478088@ws1-5.us4.outblaze.com>

Hi,

Just heard a sampled riff on an J2O advert C4.
I know that ..... it's ....
It took me 2 mins to identify The meeting place.

Stupidly Happy New Year to all

Chris Mullin

------------------------------

Date: Sat, 06 Jan 2007 15:41:43 +0000
From: Mark Fisher <mark-fisher@blueyonder.co.uk>
Subject: Early Moonstrance sighting
Message-ID: <C1C573B7.C9A9%mark-fisher@blueyonder.co.uk>

Barry Andrews has posted a track from the Moonstrance album - I Lovely
Cosmonaut - on his Myspace site:

http://www.myspace.com/barryandrewsmusic

Happy new year!
--
Mark

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End of Chalkhills Digest #13-1
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