Music General Music Discussion Catch-All

[Death From Above]

I don't know if listening to Tom Waits when I'm already depressed as shit is a particularly good idea but, like, the man's real good and it would be tough to throw together a playlist of his stuff that sucks.

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0NnTOJhJSVsEk81AhICw8Q?si=ab4393b82b0c4043

[odessasteps]

Making the peppy/upbeat Tom Waits playlist might be a fun exercise. 

[odessasteps]

Was reminded of the cheesy simplicity of this today. 
 

 

[Travis Sheldon]

On 2/24/2023 at 7:40 PM, odessasteps said:

Was reminded of the cheesy simplicity of this today. 
 

 

A masterpiece. 

Sad that I missed Kathy Valentine at Grimey's last week. 

[Mister TV]

Pittsburgh Rock Legend Donnie Iris turns 80 years young today, dude is still out there rocking and selling insurance! NBC usually sneaks Ah! Leah! during Steelers home Sunday Night games.
 

 

[DEAN]

46 minutes ago, Mister TV said:

Pittsburgh Rock Legend Donnie Iris turns 80 years young today, dude is still out there rocking and selling insurance! NBC usually sneaks Ah! Leah! during Steelers home Sunday Night games.
 

 

Don't forget his first hit!

 

[JLowe]

10 minutes ago, DEAN said:

Don't forget his first hit!

 

I bought a carrying case of random 45s at an antique store for $25 last year. This was one of them, had never heard of them. It's in the "to-sell" pile. 

I had also never heard of Donnie Iris before I went to college in central PA and all of the DJs at our radio station that were from the Pittsburgh area would play "Oh Leah." 

[JLowe]

HAPPY DE LA DAY! 3 IS THE MAGIC NUMBER!

De La Soul's classic early Tommy Boy albums are finally available on the streaming services! RIP Trugoy.

[odessasteps]

I forgot how weird this video was.

 

[odessasteps]

As if Continetal using Yaz as the opening to their TV wasn’t strange, I just remembered Joel Watts used the Art of Noise as bumper music on the UWF show. 

 

[odessasteps]

Saw an story about "talking heads reunite backstage recently.  And I clicked on it and if David Byrne isn't there, even calling it a partial reunion seems clickbaity. 

[Zimbra]

Speaking of the Talking Heads A24 acquired the rights to Stop Making Sense and are going to do a 4k remaster and a theatrical run.

I swear to god if it doesn't come near Madison...

[RIPPA]

1 hour ago, Zimbra said:

Speaking of the Talking Heads A24 acquired the rights to Stop Making Sense and are going to do a 4k remaster and a theatrical run.

I swear to god if it doesn't come near Madison...

 

[odessasteps]

Once  I used Paranormia for my max headroom podcast, I think I’ve listened to this album more in 2 weeks than I have since 1986. 

 

[odessasteps]

 

[Dolfan in NYC]

The 2023 Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame class has been announced:

Kate Bush, Sheryl Crow, Missy Elliott, George Michael, Willie Nelson, Rage Against the Machine, and The Spinners

 

Main snub is Joy Division/New Order.   

[Mister TV]

9 minutes ago, Dolfan in NYC said:

The 2023 Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame class has been announced:

Kate Bush, Sheryl Crow, Missy Elliott, George Michael, Willie Nelson, Rage Against the Machine, and The Spinners

 

Main snub is Joy Division/New Order.   

Of the class I think only Bush and Elliott should be in, Crow and The Spinners are Hall of Very Good level acts not HOF level. 

[odessasteps]

 

[supremebve]

On 5/3/2023 at 11:14 AM, Mister TV said:

Of the class I think only Bush and Elliott should be in, Crow and The Spinners are Hall of Very Good level acts not HOF level. 

I agree with Crow and The Spinners, but I believe RATM, George Michael, and Willie Nelson are worthy to be in.  

 

18 hours ago, odessasteps said:

 

@odessasteps I always preferred this version.

 

[writeradam84]

I've been listening to a lot of Warren Zevon recently. He had a great catalog of songs. My current favorite is "Desperadoes Under the Eaves". I could listen to that song for hours and not get tired of it. Such a nice relaxing vibe and I could totally imagine that song being played on a record player with it emitting from a giant stereo in the 70s/80s (whenever it was released).

Other songs of his I'm really enjoying at the moment are "Frank and Jesse James", "Mohammed's Radio" and there's a really cool demo version of "The French Inhaler" on the Preludes album.

[ohtani's jacket]

I've been deep diving albums from 1983 recently. 

Random thoughts.

Charly García's Clics modernos... Argentina's great musician, or so they tell me. Can't understand what he's singing about, but the music is nice. Don't mind listening to music in a different language, but I know people who do. Liked this enough to listen to three more of his studio albums and an MTV Unplugged record. Mix of pop and singer-song writer tunes with a touch of New Wave.

Brian Eno with Daniel Lanois & Roger Eno's Apollo: Atmospheres & Soundtracks... sure is atmospheric. Dunno when I'd listen to this since I don't plan on heading into orbit any time soon. Maybe late at night some time? Really late at night?

Oingo Boingo's Good for Your Soul... extremely 80s. I am 100% certain you could have only made this record in the 80s. It's a nice record that incorporates plenty of different sounds, including some world music influences, which helps make the tracks distinct from each other. 

Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble's Texas Flood... Blues rock is my least favorite of all the blues genres, but this is pretty good for what it's intended to be and Vaughan's solos are good if you like that sort of thing. I did really like one of the tunes that was some really lowdown blues. The best thing about it was that it felt genuine and wasn't commercial sounding.

Daniel Johnston's Hi, How Are You: The Unfinished Album... Daniel Johnston was a young, mentally unwell man who recorded albums in his bedroom and later turned into a cult figure, and in some folks' opinions, a musical genius. He never finished this album because he suffered a breakdown while recording it. It gives you a pretty scary insight into the struggles he was having at the time. He has this really weird singing style where he sounds like a teenager, but you get used it after a while and some of the tunes are really good. 

Lady Pank's Lady Pank... Polish New Wave, Pop Rock album. Couldn't under a word but bopped along to it anyway. I liked this a lot, though apparently the lyrical content is hugely important so I missed a big chunk of the album's importance right there.

Bad Brains' Rock for Light... part punk, part reggae. I get why Bad Brains did that, but are you hardcore or are you reggae 'cos it makes my head spin switching between the two.

Lewis' L'Amour... low key, ambient pop. Quiet record. I had a hard time hearing what he was singing. Listened to it twice but no impact.

Oz' Fire in the Brain... Pretty standard early 80s NWOBHV influenced record. Some nice riffs. They get bonus points for being from Finland. Nothing on here is as cool as Turn The Cross Upside Down.

Aztec Camera' High Land, Hard Rain... sounds like a mix of The Smiths and Crowded House. Pleasant enough but didn't jangle enough for my liking.

Womack & Womack's Love Wars... smooth soul. I like my soul a little rawer, but it was well produced. 

Rudimentary Peni's Death Church... not as hard as I remembered or expected. I was expecting this to be balls to the walls, which it wasn't. Unless I wasn't listening properly, which happens.

Minor Threat's Out of Step... this was also softer than I was expecting. I think I've been spoiled by other hardcore acts somewhere down the line. 

The Fabulous Thunderbirds' What's the Word... this was a lot of fun. Texas Blues with a strong Boogie element. Enjoyed this one from start to end. Stevie Ray's brother's band, for those of you who don't know.

John Fahey's Railroad I... Fahey is an absolute legend as far as I'm concerned. I never got as far as his 80s albums when I binge-listened his records, but this was good stuff. Kinda crazy to hear when you think about 1983 and the type of music that was in vogue, but great to hear the legend continue to do his thing.

Albert Collins & The Icebreakers' Don't Lose Your Cool... man, Albert Collins sure got goofy on this record. Fun, but goofy. I thought I was listening to Johnny "Guitar" Watson, or somebody else, the way he was jiving. Hell, it could have been a Screamin' Jay Hawkins record half of the time. However, it wasn't bad, and Collins' playing was rock solid. 

[Curt McGirt]

On 5/5/2023 at 11:56 AM, writeradam84 said:

I've been listening to a lot of Warren Zevon recently. He had a great catalog of songs. My current favorite is "Desperadoes Under the Eaves". I could listen to that song for hours and not get tired of it. Such a nice relaxing vibe and I could totally imagine that song being played on a record player with it emitting from a giant stereo in the 70s/80s (whenever it was released).

Other songs of his I'm really enjoying at the moment are "Frank and Jesse James", "Mohammed's Radio" and there's a really cool demo version of "The French Inhaler" on the Preludes album.

I really need to dig into his post-Envoy work, haven't somehow. Check out the Stand In the Fire live one for sure. He is completely lit on Stoli and screams out that he'll shoot every last one of the crowd  They do a great cover of "Bo Diddley Is A Gunslinger" to boot. Go figure.

[ohtani's jacket]

More albums from '83...

Steve Hiett's Down on the Road by the Beach... mellow surf rock/ambient pop. Nice album to listen to on a Sunday morning or whenever you're chilling.

Djeli Moussa Diawara's Yasimika... This was outstanding. I listened to a remastered version which removed the reverb. Some people claim the original version is better, but I can only judge based on what I've heard, and this was an incredible record. I don't know the details well, but it's essentially acoustic West African music with exquisite singing. 

Tears for Fears' The Hurting... I try to be open minded about music, but even I've got to admit I was looking at this thing and thinking "Aw, man, Tears for Fears?" But this was good... Really good. Mad World, and its remix, is a great single, but there are plenty of good album tracks too. Much more experimental than I was expecting. It must have sounded like it was from the future compared to 70s records. 

Cocteau Twins' Head Over Heels... I've always struggled to get into the Cocteau Twins. Their music is pretty, but I can't understand a word they say. It's like they're singing underwater. 

Ashbury's Endless Skies... If you want to hear a hard rock album that could have been released at the peak of the genre and considered a groundbreaking record, but was actually released in 1983, then this is the record for you. Very good.

No Trend's Too Many Humans...... This was the nosiest, and probably the hardest, record I've listened to from 1983. If you hate people as much as these guys do, you'll be in fine company here. Misanthropic to the core. 

Peter and The Test Tube Babies' The Mating Sounds of South American Frogs... interesting title for a record. Kind of disgusting album cover. This was some solid Oi! punk rock, if you like that sort of thing. 

Fernando Pellon's Cadáver pega fogo durante o velório... the language barrier lost me here as this was samba that was supposed to be fairly dark, pessimistic and sarcastic. And here I thought it was pleasant sounding music. 

OMD's Dazzle Ships... this didn't work for me. I think there's plenty of better New Wave and Art Pop records out there and I wasn't very impressed with any of the sampling. I have a high tolerance for experimental music, but nothing caught my ear on this record. 
 

[ohtani's jacket]

More from 1983...

António Variações' Anjo da guarda... this was fantastic. A sublime mix of art pop, synthpop and new wave from Portuguese singer-songwriter, António Variações. Sadly, Varjacoes only released two records before his untimely death at the age of 39, but what incredible records, mixing contemporary pop with traditional Portuguese rhythms and melodies. 

Acid's Maniac... Belgian speed metal band. Metal was still in its infancy at this time, but it was an incredibly exciting time for the genre with bands popping up in every corner of the globe. I like speed metal A LOT, so I was down with this. They released an earlier self-titled album in '83 that wasn't as good (didn't really care for the female vocals, tbh.) Stick with this record.

Soft Cell's The Art of Falling Apart... this was so fucking weird. Soft Cell are one of those bands where you know they were famous for covering Tainted Love, then you listen to one of their LPs and realize they are nothing like you expected... So much weird shit like a Jim Hendrix medley and a bizarre, psychedelic song about a boy named Martin where they keep chanting "Martin! Martin! Martin!" endlessly. Memorable, if nothing else.

Big Country's The Crossing... perfectly acceptable mashup of early 80s styles. An easier sell than a lot of post punk records mentioned, and even some new wave LPs, too. 

The Fun Boy Three's Waiting... didn't leave any real impact one me, which is possibly why I've never heard of this new wave group. 

Tomoko Aran's Fuyū-kūkan... a few years ago, the internet discovered Japanese city pop, largely through YouTube, I believe, which I guess is a thing now, and not surprising since Japan is absolutely useless at exporting its music to the world. So, nowadays, you get a lot of city pop album recognition when the genre had been all but forgotten in Japan. I love city pop, but it was basically yuppie music. This album, however, is a lot more sophisticated than I was expecting and almost reminded me of a Japanese Sade. 

Normil Hawaiians' More Wealth Than Money... one of those albums that washes over you, then goes back out like the tide. It came and it went. 
 

Edited May 18, 2023 by ohtani's jacket

[Curt McGirt]

Maniac is great but the best Acid song is on the debut. 

Acid - Ghostriders - YouTube

I have to deeply disagree with you about Fire in the Brain. That's one of my favorite '80s metal records ever. III Warning also never got its due, though it is considerably cheesier ("Rock and Roll Widow"?). Here's a coincidence for you: I was looking for something nastier than No Trend from '83 and Government Issue's Boycott Stabb is sitting on my turntable right now. It is nowhere close of course. Maybe the only thing I can think of that comes close from a totally different direction is GISM's Detestation. Also, thanks for reminding me about that Ashbury, been meaning to listen to that for awhile. 

Oh, and Death Church is really more somber than anything. The EPs of RP are unhinged though. This is still one of the most intense minutes of music I've ever heard. 

Rudimentary Peni - Cosmetic Plague - YouTube