Chalkhills Digest, Volume 6, Number 230

                 Wednesday, 9 August 2000

Topics:

                       White Power
            I love X Men, I mean, XTC because.
      Kevin and Sherl and Andy and Dave and Alice...
                   XTC Media Droppings
                   Beck is kinda cool.
               A Spousal Unit Breakthrough
                  Are you receiving me?
    Bass Tabs for XTC or Dukes of Stratosphear songs?
                Stoopidly Happy- Hey, TVT!
              I'm leaving and so is my wife!
               Drums, Drums and more drums.
                      burning turds
         Re: Coach, Let's Talk About Your Record
           Hit page down! Another long OT post
               Re: Politics and Pirating...
                    Artists I collect
                   more threads ......
                  J' Accuse, J' Accuse!

Administrivia:

    To UNSUBSCRIBE from the Chalkhills mailing list, send a message to
    <chalkhills-request@chalkhills.org> with the following command:

        unsubscribe

    For all other administrative issues, send a message to:

        <chalkhills-request@chalkhills.org>

    Please remember to send your Chalkhills postings to:

        <chalkhills@chalkhills.org>

    World Wide Web: <http://chalkhills.org/>

    The views expressed herein are those of the individual authors.

    Chalkhills is compiled with Digest 3.7b (John Relph <relph@tmbg.org>).

Oh dear what can the matter be, my children sweet children.

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

Date: Mon, 7 Aug 2000 22:12:18 -0400 (EDT)
From: Radios In Motion <radiosinmotion@iwon.com>
Subject: White Power
Message-ID: <384228536.965700743799.JavaMail.root@web190-iw>

I had to step in on this as yet another person on this list, Joseph Easter
in this case, said he did not like White Music.  I have read a lot of
peoples comments on either White Music or Go 2.  To be honest, and I am not
being biased here, I don't understand how you would not like White Music or
Go 2!  I mean, if you are the type to compare their first works with their
later stuff, then maybe that could cause you not to like those albums, but I
think they are great.  WM and Go 2 both have their place in any XTC fans
collection.

I will actually admit they are some of my most heavily played XTC albums.
The intensity and energy that rubs off of those albums is awesome and I cant
understand how anyone who is an XTC fan would not like them!  Of course, we
all have our own tastes (as I hear) and we can all respect each others
differences (or can we?).  In fact, because Joseph does not like White Music
I am leaving this list!!! Ok, I am lying, but that is how some of the people
are acting lately.  Why are you reading this anyway?  I thought you would
page down already...

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

Date: Mon, 7 Aug 2000 22:19:15 -0400 (EDT)
From: Radios In Motion <radiosinmotion@iwon.com>
Subject: I love X Men, I mean, XTC because.
Message-ID: <383398590.965701155662.JavaMail.root@web193-iw>

I love XTC because they reflect my thoughts like a little movie!  Not to
steal someone else's comments, but many of their songs are like a soundtrack
to my life.  Some of you get what I am saying?  You know, those songs that
just make you feel alive, and you think no one else connects to the music
like you do?  Get me? Huh?  Yeah, I knew you did.  Kinda funny finding
someone who connects to music like you do, aint it?!

Oh, X Men is a DAMN good movie.  Especially for those of us born in the late
60's early 70's who grew up reading XMen.  Of course, that is my 20
something oppinion!  Don't leave the list now because I like Xmen!

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

Date: Mon, 7 Aug 2000 22:24:50 EDT
From: WTDK@aol.com
Subject: Kevin and Sherl and Andy and Dave and Alice...
Message-ID: <a7.6523262.26c0c972@aol.com>

Annamarie said-

> In my surfing, I found an enlightening article from the San Francisco
>  Chronicle from late 1996 about Gilbert's musical history and "relationship"
>  with Sheryl Crow.

I read the article when Joel Selvin wrote it. I have to say it is a bit one
sided. While Crow may or may not having been using their relationship to help
her career (something I doubt as Don Henley tried constantly tried to hit on
her during his tour for his last album. If she had wanted to build a career
the old fashioned way, she would have taken him up on her offer. He's made it
very public that she didn't and their both the wiser for it).

While Gilbert was a great talent, it sounds to me like Selvin had an ax to
grind. Having read most of his stuff in the SF Chronicle I can safely say
that the guy isn't all that sharp. I'd suggest reading between the lines on
that one. As you know, every relationship has 2 sides. Look at the conflict
between Andy and Dave as an example. It all depends on whom you
believe--their stories, taken together, give a far more accurate picture of
what occurred but, nevertheless, still doesn't portray the whole story.

Sadly, we'll never really know what happened. Maybe that's how it should be
as all relationships, regardless of whether you're a celebrity, should be
somewhat private.

So take it with a grain of salt (to use the cliche)

Wayne

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

Date: Mon, 7 Aug 2000 23:28:29 -0400
From: Gary McBride <garym@usa.com>
Subject: XTC Media Droppings
Message-ID: <v04220800b5b51a5f8f2e@[199.218.243.109]>

Just a heads up (literally)...

The new issue of CMJ (Everclear on the cover) has a one page
featurette on Andy P with some of his favorite lead soldiers...  page
84... the photo is testament to the statement that "Grass doesn't
grow on a busy street." Here's the text:

It's hard to believe that the author of a peacenik line like,
"Generals and majors always seems so unhappy/Unless they got a war"
keeps a stockpile of 3,000-plus toy soldiers in his attic. Yet XTC's
skittish songwriter Andy Partridge harbors a soft spot for cast iron
generals and majors with a pint-sized appetite for destruction. For
nostalgic reason, the machismo-mocking pop troubadour prefers the
mid-20th century mass-produced toy infantrymen he deployed as a
child, as well as late-1800's German models with doll-like faces and
lumpen features that cost about $30 each. "It's still cheaper than a
cocaine habit," reason Partridge, whose recently released Wasp Star
(TVT) ripples with similar dry English wit. Since Partridge can't
draft troops very quickly at $30 a head, he also sculpts them out of
epoxy and occasionally gets on his elbows and knees for carpet
combat. The relatively innocent pastime keeps XTC's frontman in touch
with the "big kid" inside him--it's not only a driving force behind
his songwriting, but a defense mechanism. "The big kid protects me
because I don't trust anyone and I think people are there to fuck you
over. It's something my psychoanalyst is trying to unravel for me. I
hope he doesn't kill the big kid off, though, he's been very useful."
-- Neil Gladstone (c) CMJ

Wasp Star also clocks in at #10 on their radio airplay chart...

Also, a three-star review in the June issue of French FHM:

Quand on tape XTC.com sur le web, on ichoue sur... un site de cul.
Tant pis pour les infos sur le duo brittanique. Mais au fond, ce
n'est pas si mal trouvi, tant l'humeur d'Andy Partridge et Colin
Moulding s'affiche printaniere. Personne ne fabrique plus de la pop
comme XTC. Pas mime eux puisqu'on mentirait en soutenant que leurs
plus riches heures (l'indipassable English Settlement de 1982) n'ont
pas dija sonies. Ce douzieme album leur donne l'occasion de
s'encanailler comme aux plus beaux jours. Sorties du grenier, les
guitares dichirent a plaisir la dentelle bucolique don't la maison
XTC s'etait fait une spicialiti.

Which AltaVista roughly translates to:

When one types XTC.com on the Web, one lands on... a site of bottom.
Such an amount of worse for the <infos> on the duet Brittanic. But at
the bottom, it is not so badly found, so much the mood of Andy
Partridge and Colin Moulding is displayed <printaniere>. Nobody
manufactures more the pop one as XTC. Not even them since one would
lie while supporting that their richer hours (the <indipassable>
English Settlement of 1982) do not have <dija sonies>. This twelfth
album gives to them the opportunity of <encanailler> as at the most
beautiful days. Come out of the attic, the guitars tear has pleasure
bucolic lace of which house XTC had been made a speciality.

Anyone speak enough French to improve on the translation?

----

I'll take a belated stab at my Alien Abduction Five:

XTC - English Settlement
Harry Nilsson - A Little Touch of Schmilsson in the Night
Crowded House - Woodface
Marshall Crenshaw - Downtown
Young Fresh Fellows - The Men Who Loved Music

...of course I'm banking that I'll be able to pick up a copy of Elvis
Costello's "Get Happy" on any planet in the universe.

---

The artists I compulsively collect in addition to XTC:

X
Crowded House/Split Enz/Tim Finn/etc...
Aztec Camera
Elvis Costello
Otis Redding
Young Fresh Fellows
Jazz Butcher
Loudon Wainwright III
The Cure

Back to lurking...

Gary

	[ See the photo at
	  http://chalkhills.org/images/promo/SoldierBoy.jpg ]

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

Date: Tue, 8 Aug 2000 00:08:46 -0400 (EDT)
From: Radios In Motion <radiosinmotion@iwon.com>
Subject: Beck is kinda cool.
Message-ID: <381831936.965707730460.JavaMail.root@web190-iw>

I found this qoute below on CDNOW from Beck.  Though I am not a huge fan of
his new material, I think this is a great qoute and I think the interview
shedded light in his change of style from earlier albums.  It also is a very
good point about the music today.  Though I personally think Britney and
Puff suck, this is a point that needs to be recognized.  The interview
(which can be found at CDNOW.com actually made me gain a little more respect
for the guy that I had lost recently.
Anyway, read it already!

Beck Say's:
"We're inundated by a universe of Britney Spears and Puff Daddy. That kind
of music is taking over, like it or not. So if you're going to make any kind
of commentary, or if you're in a position where you're going to bear witness
to that and raise questions about what is real art and what is trash, and
play within that, then you're going to have to step into some of it. You're
going to have to go be it."

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

Date: Tue, 8 Aug 2000 01:04:02 EDT
From: IMSUNBAKE@aol.com
Subject: A Spousal Unit Breakthrough
Message-ID: <b7.5aca524.26c0eec2@aol.com>

To those of us Chalkers in Mixed Marriages/Relationships (you know, those
matches in which "the one you love" is tepid-to-frozen over XtC?) ...

My spousal unit expressed a very nice opinion about Seagulls AND This World
Over just this afternooon. Pass me the smelling salts. I mean, 2 songs out
of, what, a million, ain't so bad?

There is hope, there is hope.

Watched Hitchcock's "The Birds" tonight and couldn't help but wonder how
Seagulls would have played as background music.

Annamarie, not the first genius to have ever thought that, I'm sure.

WishWishWishWishWishWishWish....

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

Date: Tue, 8 Aug 2000 00:56:19 EDT
From: KINGSTUNES@aol.com
Subject: Are you receiving me?
Message-ID: <33.88bde0e.26c0ecf3@aol.com>

>dear xtc fans,it seems a few share my view.AN XTC LIST WITH MINIMAL XTC
>CONTENT? WHATS GOING ON? of course we alllike various bands,but is this
>not chalkhills? you know,land of PARTRIDGE,MOULDING,THE WONDERFUL
>TERRY,GOD LIKE D,GREGORY AND OLD BARRY.,sorry but >simon,springsteen,cave
>et al dont come close to ANDY.COME ON,THIS IS RESPECTABLE STREET NO >SUNSET
xxxxing boulevard.

>kind regards, DAVE

OK!  Why don't YOU say something about PARTRIDGE,MOULDING,THE WONDERFUL
TERRY,GOD LIKE D,GREGORY AND OLD BARRY., !!!!!!!

We're obviously starved for some input, so help us out here!

(or is this someone yanking the chain again?)

Tom "falling for it again!" K  :- /

ObXTC - Your turn!  We're waiting!

BTW, have you heard The Shaming Of The True yet?  (Plug!)

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

Date: Tue, 8 Aug 2000 14:46:06 +1000 (EST)
From: Mark <mwot4794@mail.usyd.edu.au>
Subject: Bass Tabs for XTC or Dukes of Stratosphear songs?
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.3.93.1000808144045.9826N-100000@extro.ucc.usyd.edu.au>

Hello, all.

I recently celebrated my 21st birthday, and with the obvious gifts of
responsibility and level-headedness (yeah, right...), my parents saw fit
to bestow on me a spanking new bass. Needless to say, I love this
beautiful instrument in a way that is almost physical, and the chance to
be able to play Colin's sparkling bass lines filled me with joy: however,
(I'm getting to the point, I promise!), there seems to be a single bass
tab for XTC on the net, namely "Mayor of Simpleton", on the chalkhills
site. Now, good song as it is, it's not my favourite, and the prospect of
it being the only song I'll be able to play makes me a sad panda.

To make a long story marginally less tedious, are there any bass tabs out
there for XTC or Dukes songs?

yr servant,

mrak

--
"I should be in bed, I need my 11 hours. I'm a real sleep addict.
I started off just napping. Then I got into the harder stuff...siestas.
Before I knew what was happening I was a sleep junkie."
Andy Partridge, Melody Maker, 8-18-79

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

Date: Tue, 08 Aug 2000 09:03:57 -0400
From: erik schlichting <eriks@ci.conover.nc.us>
Subject: Stoopidly Happy- Hey, TVT!
Message-ID: <3990053D.FD5D8DC3@ci.conover.nc.us>

Chalkers,

I don't know how many of yoou keep up with all the album
reviews under the "What's New" section of Mr. Relphs
Chalkhills website. After the first two dozen, they seem to
run together. If they start to get boring, take a foreign
language review and feed it through the babel fish (
http://babel.altavista.com/translate.dyn ) . I believe this
method has been mentioned here before. Here is an excerpt
from a translated French review  (
http://www.telerama.fr/culturama/musique/vw_fiche2.asp?tl_airs=M002045869
).

"XTC (pronounce "Ex-your-sy "...) has distilled a music as
faultily complex as mithodi- quement jubilatoire. Small
songs of innocent appearance, but faggots of fits-trapes
melody, of rhythmic cracks, eccentric arrangements, vocal
psychedelic and caustic humour. A little like if Andy
Partridge and Colin Moulding, the two forts in topic and
single rescapis of the original group, played being
Lennon-McCartney meeting Frank Zappa in the room of a
municipal academy..."

"...the occasion for our two small drainage canals to
decline their know-how of craftsmen of the double eighth
note and to prove, once more, that they are always the
uncontested Masters of the pop British."

Faggots? Forts? Drainage canals? It doesn't get more
entertaining than this!

However, between the reviews and the discussion on this
list, there seems to be overwhelming support for "Stupidly
Happy" as a radio friendly single. Are you listening, TVT?
Wouldn't now be the time to release the "Stupidly Happy"
single, while "I'm the Man..." is still inching up the
(niche) charts?

Push! Push! Now, while the general public is beginning to
see XTC out the corner of their ear!

Erik

(General Public. Now, there's a band I haven't heard in a
while. It may be time to go get that disc from the
cabinet....)

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

Date: Tue, 8 Aug 2000 10:16:04 EDT
From: Tomgriffin100276@aol.com
Subject: I'm leaving and so is my wife!
Message-ID: <12.ad1d16.26c17024@aol.com>

Just a few thoughts on recent threads:

1. Misheard XTC lyrics-  My brother used to swear that in Earn Enough for Us
Andy sings "and purple comets on the bus"  ("and hurtful comments from the
boss").  No amount of arguing could convince him of the truth.  But, then
again, he never did lose a logical argument. :-P  Also (in Another
Satellite), he swore that "two worlds that won't collide" was "two worlds
that walk alike".  Considering what happened with Andy and Erica I think that
my brother's version was more correct in the long run.

2. Politics (sorry)- Drew McDonald is right and Joe Easter is wrong.  Al Gore
did serve in Vietnam as a journalist type (just like Joker in Full Metal
Jacket).

3. XTC jobs- To add to the list it is noted that Colin did milk delivery for
a while, but was fired for theft.

4. Music to fall asleep (happily) to- My current nighttime music is
Arthur...by the Kinks (Three Bags Full Sir!)

5. Finally, Paul Simon (sorry again)-  I don't think anyone questions the
good intentions of Simon in going to S. Africa.  But, it was an unwise thing
to do.  If apartheid wasn't already beginning it's death throes by the 1980's
he could have lent a lot of good propaganda for the Nationalists, helping to
prop up the apartheid system.  To think that he helped to end apartheid in
any way from this seems to be wishful thinking among his fans/justification
after the fact.  If anything, his time there probably had no discernible
effect in the end.

I could be wrong.

Finally, Dave Gregory was right!  There should have been only one Apple
Venus, with the following tracks:

Easter Theatre
Church of Women
Playground
Wheel & the Maypole
Frivolous Tonight
Frivolous Tonight (demo version!)
Your Dictionary
I'd Like That
I'm the Man Who Murdered Love
Harvest Festival
Some Lovely/My Brown Guitar
Young Cleopatra (well, why not?)

Tom

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

Date: Tue, 8 Aug 2000 09:15:20 EDT
From: Chauncy14@aol.com
Subject: Drums, Drums and more drums.
Message-ID: <24.8e2520f.26c161e8@aol.com>

Hello Clan,

Just for shits and giggles, I thought some of you may be interested to know
that the 2000 Drummers Awards were released by Drum! Magazine Online, i.e.
Drumlink.com. Enclosed is the URL if anyone is interested.

It must be noted that neither Chuck Sabo nor Prairie Prince made the lists,
but some YOUR favorite bands' drummer did.  Check it out.

http://www.drumlink.com/stories/default.asp?cmd=view&articleid=24

Here are just a few:

Drummer Awards
Drummer of the Year: John Otto
Runners Up: Carter Beauford, David Silveria, Brad Wilk

Best Jazz Drummer: Brian Blade
Runners Up: Peter Erskine, Billy Cobham, Jason Marsalis

Best Fusion Drummer: Dennis Chambers
Runners Up: Billy Cobham, Dave Weckl, Steve Smith

Best Funk Drummer: Chad Smith
Runners Up: Russell Batiste, Willie Green, Stanton Moore

Best Mainstream Rock Drummer: Carter Beauford
Runners Up: Jon Fishman, Kenny Aronoff, Chad Smith

Best Alternative Rock Drummer: Brad Wilk
Runners Up: John Otto, Chad Sexton, David Silveria

Best Punk Drummer: Travis Barker
Runners Up: Adrian Young, Byron McMakin, TrA~ Cool

Best Metal Drummer: Tommy Lee
Runners Up: Lars Ulrich, Vinnie Paul, Danny Carey

Best Country Drummer: J.D. Blair
Runners Up: Mike Palmer, Joe Smyth, Greg Morrow

Best R&B Drummer: Ahmir-Khalib Thompson
Runners Up: Willie Green, Joseph aZigabooa Modeliste, Stanton Moore

Best Studio Drummer: Kenny Aronoff
Runners Up: Vinnie Colaiuta, Jim Keltner, John aJ.R.a Robinson

Best Drum Clinician: Akira Jimbo
Runners Up: Terry Bozzio, Walfredo Reyes Sr., Trilok Gurtu

Regards from Chicago,
John Gardner

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

Date: Mon, 7 Aug 2000 23:12:37 -0700 (PDT)
From: Tyler Hewitt <tahewitt@yahoo.com>
Subject: burning turds
Message-ID: <20000808061237.2233.qmail@web2103.mail.yahoo.com>

I'm a bit behind in Chalkhills after being out of town
for  a few days, and in readiing through several days
worth came across this:

Flaming is a form of censorship: it silences people.

Sorry, but as far as I'm concerned, that's a load of
crap. Flaming has NEVER prevented me from sending off
any number of bullshit-laden posts, and I get the
feeling that plenty of others on this list feel the
same.
I'm thick-skinned enough to accept the differing
opinions of total strangers with whom I have one thing
in common.  Anyone who isn't probably needs a boost of
self-esteem.
Besides, it's fun to read the posts of those of you
who bait the others on this list with turdlets of
information that are begging to be flamed.
It's also fun to read the posts of those oversensitive
types who feel compelled to rush to the defense of
things they feel strongly about.
Apperantly I fall victim to this as well....

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

Date: Tue, 8 Aug 2000 09:52:06 +0100
From: "Smith, David" <David.Smith@tfeurope.com>
Subject: Re: Coach, Let's Talk About Your Record
Message-ID: <4BBE67B71C1DD411A23600508B65F71E6860FB@tfsecmsg04.tfseur.co.uk>

Greetings to the few of us who are left!

Looks like I won the "bad record" poker with Rory. he said:

>"You got me beat. I fold. I'll mail you all the Chris
>De Burgh and Bucks Fizz records that you have now WON!

>Double Ha!"

Zoiks - hoist by me own petard!!

Is it now politically correct to admit that Cheryl Baker used
to be my fantasy "older woman"?

Artists I have the entirety of:
Steely Dan (including Don's solos)
ELO (hey, I was young)
The Police (not Sting, lost interest after Soul Cages)
Genesis (not Phil, lost interest after second album)
Radiohead
Ben Folds Five (not too impressed with "Meissner" though - worried
about creative muse deserting them)
Madness (just bloody luv 'em)
The Specials
Heaven 17
Scritti Politti
Talk Talk

Artists I DON'T have the entirety of, but should, and am working
on it, godammit!
Errr  . . . XTC . . . sorry.

This is NOT to say I rank the other higher than XTC - if I had to choose
one artist for the desert island I would spend five hours deliberating
between XTC and Steely Dan - and then blow my head off as I really
couldn't separate them. Oh, and try and stuff the small Radiohead
collection down me undies!

It's just that I came to most of those bands early in their careers and
bought stuff as it was released. I came to XTC around Mummer (borrowed
from local record library 'cos the cover looked interesting) and then
didn't follow them up until I "happened across" Oranges & Lemons a
few years later, loved it and thought "hmmmmm, there may be something
here"

I now need to add Big Express and the "early stuff" (pre Black Sea) which
I'm apprehensive about as most of the bits I've heard don't reach up my
trouser leg the way the later stuff does. Then it's on to the collectables
. . . hee hee!

Oh, and here's a thing, I'm currently taking drum lessons (I might have
mentioned). At my last lesson I spied a poster on the wall for a "drum
clinic" that was held at the venue in 1996. As ever it listed the
participants - about six of them - and finished with "and from America,
Chuck Sabo". Damn, four years too late!

Smudge "jeez, they just ripped their skirts off" boy
E-Mail: david.smith@tfeurope.com

"Ah hah hah haaaa-aaa haaaa
I know this mush is stew"

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

Date: Tue, 8 Aug 2000 10:13:17 +0000 (MET)
From: rappard@dds.nl
Subject: Hit page down! Another long OT post
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.3.90.1000808094229.25079A@fatima.dds.nl>

Just the usual roundup of remarks I took umbrage with or completely
agreed with:

Ryan Anthony <hamsterranch@yahoo.com> wrote:

> Now, there's a thread! Which names, other than those
> of our beloved Swindonians, natch, command universal
> respect in this Chalkhill? I start the bidding with
> Maurits Cornelis Escher. I know someone will mention
> Frank Zappa, but isn't he akin to Stephen Hawking in
> that he is respected far more than he is actually
> enjoyed?
I absolutely love and loathe Escher at the same time - having been a
mathematician in training myself, I enjoy the mathematical underpinnings
of his work, but their esthetical execution is absolutely horrendous.
Perhaps I need new glasses? Anyway, this comes from someone who think
the art of engraving reached its pinnacle with Tiepolo and Piranesi, so
you could consider me a curmudgeonly old bastard for all my 28 years.
  Zappa is probably well-respected here, but I don't know anyone who can
listen to a Zappa album all the way through - it's just a very rocky ride
of alternating duds and gems.
  And a pre-emptive strike: Elvis Costello is not universally respected
here - I hate him with a passion, I can't stand his voice for more than
five seconds.

<Insert sound of zipping up flame-proof suit here>

Randy then posted his "(nearly) everything" list - usually I don't chime
in with these threads, but only since my list differs wildly from what
I've seen so far I'll contribute (a full listing can be found at
http://members.xoom.com/rappard/records.htm): Aphex Twin, Band Of Susans,
Beastie Boys, Beatles, Beck, Frank Black, Built To Spill, Catherine
Wheel, dEUS, Flying Saucer Attack, Folk Implosion, Fugazi, Godspeed You
Black Emperor!, Guided By Voices, Helium, Helmet, Husker Du, Lush,
Massiev Attack, Meat Puppets, Mogwai, Bob Mould, My Bloody Valentine,
Nirvana, Pavement, Pixies, Placebo, Police, Polvo, Primus, R.E.M.,
Radiohead, Sebadoh, Shellac, Silver Jews, Smashing Pumpkins, Sonic Youth,
Stereolab, Sugar, Swervedriver, Swirlies, The The, They Might Be Giants,
Tortoise, Unwound, Veruca Salt, XTC.
  Just your standard indie elitist snob list, basically. No wonder I'm
always broke.
  I'm especially surprised that I haven't seen Guided By Voices mentioned
here more often - short, catchy, punky at times. Perhaps the lo-fi
quality scares people off?

And Ozzian Paul.Culnane@dcita.gov.au recommended:

> Completely off-topic, this, but I thought I'd recommend an album that has
> really grabbed me by the nadgers.  It's called "The Hour Of Bewilderbeast"
> and it's by Badly Drawn Boy.  BDB is essentially a one-man outfit (a la
> Eels); the guy's name is Damon Gough.

> There's so much going on in this record and it's far too eclectic to
> nominate comparisons/influences [snip]
I second this - I find it a very intimate and haunting album, what the
Eels' Electro-Shock Blues could have been if it wasn't for the horrible
clanky and tinny production on the latter. It's not as depressing, though
(well, what is?). Keywords: Eels, Beck, jazzy, Belle and Sebastian.

Marty "Yes, we all can make a difference on this list, Todd" van Rappard

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

Date: Tue, 8 Aug 2000 08:22:25 -0700 (PDT)
From: Jon Rosenberger <wile1coyote@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: Politics and Pirating...
Message-ID: <20000808152225.13624.qmail@web106.yahoomail.com>

Date: Sat, 5 Aug 2000 03:02:19 -0400 (EDT)
From: Radios In Motion <radiosinmotion@iwon.com>
Subject: Re: Politics and Pirating...
Message-ID: <383001509.965458942142.JavaMail.root@web193-iw>

This entire post is one huge example in stereotyping individuals. It
makes me sick how you feel a need to place these fine citizens into
little categories due to the fact that they do not agree with your
distorted view of US Politics.

You are brazenly oversimplifying the US political culture and you ARE
WRONG.

What an ASS.

The Mole "thinking of emigrating to Canada".

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

Date: Tue, 8 Aug 2000 08:29:18 -0700 (PDT)
From: Giovanni Giusti <giovanni_giusti@yahoo.com>
Subject: Artists I collect
Message-ID: <20000808152918.17492.qmail@web2103.mail.yahoo.com>

Artists I collect rather rabidly:

XTC (duh)
Steve Reich
Gavin Bryars
Nine Inch Nails
Bjurk - wonder why I don't see her mentioned often here
Pankow (a defunct "industrial" band from Florence, Italy)

bleep - out

Giovanni

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

Date: Tue, 8 Aug 2000 10:07:28 -0700 (PDT)
From: Tyler Hewitt <tahewitt@yahoo.com>
Subject: more threads ......
Message-ID: <20000808170728.7879.qmail@web2104.mail.yahoo.com>

I am all ready with a new thread to take our minds off
of the ongoing debates on the merits of Napster/Paul
Simon/David Hyde Pierce's sexual orientation/etc. and
to help us through the recent exit of several 'hillers
who can't seem to get with the groove here. But, gotta
respond to this thread first:

Now, there's a thread! Which names, other than those
of our beloved Swindonians, natch, command universal
respect in this Chalkhill? I start the bidding with
Maurits Cornelis Escher. I know someone will mention
Frank Zappa, but isn't he akin to Stephen Hawking in
that he is respected far more than he is actually
enjoyed?

Escher is fine. Not an all-time fave artist or
anything (those would be Robert Rauchenberg, Ralph
Eugene Meatyard, John Baldessari) but I do like his
work, and the intellectual puzles it provides.

As to the subject of this post, I doubt that we'll
find anyone/anything on this list that commands
universal
respect, outside of the obvious. Chalkhills seems way
to diverse for that. Even in our music tastes-you'd
think that it would be obvious, but I've found that
XTC fans fall roughly into two vague camps-those who
discovered them through their 'new wave' connections
(however tenuous they were) and those who dicscovered
them because they are supposedly Beatle-esque.

The musical tastes of these two groups is fairly
disparate at times. I cound myself among those who
found XTC because of new wave, and I admit that many
of the musical reccomendations I've got from this list
are a little too pop-sweet for my usual tastes.

Enough of that. On to my new thread:

Have you ever bought a record/cd based solely on the
cover art, w/o being familiar with the artist or
music? if so, what was it, and how did you end up
liking it?

I did at least once. The one I remember was an album
by Rick Wakemen that I think was called 'No Earthly
Connection". I was about 13 and had no idea who he
was. I was drawn to the cover art, which was this
distorted-looking circular image that was vaguely
human-looking. A sticker on the cover explained that a
piece of mylar was inside, and you were supposed to
roll it into a tube, and place it on the cover to see
the image undistorted. The effect was pretty
unimpressive. As was the music. But at age 13 I HAD to
like everything I bought, I didn't have enough money
to do otherwise (I would save allowance for 3 weeks to
buy an album). So I played this, and tried to make
myself like it, all the while thinking that it was
badly written and full of bad synth sounds.

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

Date: Tue, 8 Aug 2000 11:42:47 -0600
From: "Joseph Easter" <easter2000@earthlink.net>
Subject: J' Accuse, J' Accuse!
Message-ID: <003c01c00160$118cc420$2f730a3f@default>

I probably misspelled the above, but you get the drift, right? No, probably
not...

And that's the problem. I try to keep my tone lively and lyrical hoping some
will sing along with me, and no doubt they do, but this criticism of the
post is most ridiculous. I enjoy our writings here, especially the
criticisms, and look forward to each one. What I don't look forward to is
this garbage about how "pure" the post is. I love XtC. (Not as much as the
Dukes, but pretty close) And having said that, I enjoy these excruciating
detailed accounts of how the music is made, why Napster sucks, why vee-tube
and I compete for the Insane Chalker Award, why Deb Brown has her nose in me
bum, what Grandmaster Flash Colin M. and MC Andy are up to, why rap and Xtc
are similar, why rap and xtc and are not similar, why firesign theatre
rocks, why sting sucks me bum being nosed by Deb Brown, why some people hate
Wasp Star, etc etc. ad infinitum.

The reason I love this post is because I don't have anyone to share this
common interest with where I live. Try as I might, XtC is an acquired taste,
much like smelly cheese, fine wine, or my ass, which DebBrown can tell you
truly is a fine epicurean delight. I enjoy hearing about your experiences
(yes, you!) and why you hate/love this that and the other. I might not agree
with you, but i like listening.

So, I kind of thought that was where everyone was at. I was never more
wrong. So, boo hoo, I'm going to leave the post. Right. Good riddance I say.
There is always plenty of Xtc content here for me, even when it's too much,
even when it's null. This post is better than a movie to me. So much drama,
but too much bitching.

So (and I promise I'll quit taking this so seriously after this) LIGHTEN UP,
Gang! This is about love and fun and sharing and pooty jokes and cool
illegal demos and making new friends across the globe. Not about your ego,
and if it is, go home! I've got an ego, already! And I can do without yours!
To sum up:

A) I like gay people and am not homophobic.
B) Vegetarians have inscisors too.
C) Deb Brown is on the Bozac (rap reference)
D) I am not evereverever leaving the post.
E) Sting used to be cool, but now needs to quit writing the post.
F) You..
G) Spot.
H) The song LadyBird is really about Pres. Johnson's wife.
I) Al Gore and I started this post.
J) Lighten up.

Other than that, I'll be getting back to me normal self. Hope you leave the
post soon! Cheerio!

Forward all hate mail to

Officer Joseph August Easter, HPD
easter2000@earthlink.net

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

End of Chalkhills Digest #6-230
*******************************

---

Go back to Volume 6.

10 August 2000 / Feedback