fell off a bit

So, yeah, turns out that posting a blog every day is pretty hard to do. Especially if you're actually writin' something, as opposed to: copy .... paste .... type "so how 'bout that OJ book / Michael Richards rant?"

I will do seven eventually..... but yeah, when I feel like it from now on.

And no, this one doesn't count.

Filters

As y'all know, having filters help ya seperate all the wheat from the chaffe. It's all about being discriminating. People usually go too far, however, and say lame stuff like "I don't like country" or "It's got a good beat so I can dance to it."

Sigh. That's missing the point.

Filters should help, not hinder your appreciation for music. Be a gourmet, not a picky eater. Filters should help you take the rough with the smooch... er, smooth.



Take this example. I long time ago, I was reading that Bob Mould had this "what's good and what's bad" thing all worked out. Something like, and pardon the paraphrase, "all the best music combines noise and good melody." And I agreed with him....at the time. What an entirely limiting opinion! But it worked for me at the time, because that's about all I listened to in the early 90's.

God was I a dope.

Much more recently, I was taken to task on being a King Crimson fan, "How can you possibly put up with Greg Lake?" Which is a valid question... same as with a lot of things I like. Just kind of filter out the vocals and enjoy the rest. I love that early stuff, when they just go nuts and do whatever seemed possible to them at that stage. Unfortunately some of that stuff involved crappy lyrics and crappy singing, but I'm not gonna my records just because the dude went on to form ELP.

I mean, or as Karl Pilkington would say, what I mean is, don't be going and throw out the burger just 'cos you don't like the pickle.

Electronic music I like

Missed one yesterday, so today ya get two!

here are three of my favorite recordings (synthesizer music):

Terry Riley: A Rainbow In Curved Air (1970) - melodic, influential, and SHOCKINGLY GOOD. Sound files on this link.


Mauricio Kagel : Transition (1960) - Completely raw, electronically generated sounds.... non-harmonic tones and non-instrumental qualities. I can't believe it's from 1960!

music for this kinda stuff don't look like this:

it's more like this:

or this:

(It should be noted that I have no idea what any of this means. If you want to your eyes to REALLY glaze over, check this)

Klaus Schulze - ruled the early 70's (late-70's not so good) with a series of great synthesizer recordings. Trippy stuff!

NOSTALGIA - GUILTY PLEASURES VS. SIMPLY DATED

OK, here we go... number two in a series of seven!

Shannon says I should make this one about the Jingle Cats. Maybe... not this go round.

I'm not pressed for ideas. Yet.

OK, here's my music appreciation blog for today:

The Police = retarded
A-ha = enduring pop gem!

Wait.. wait...let me explain! Nostalgia is Fluff - the question is whether it's got the "right" fluff vs. the "wrong" fluff.

let's try another one.

The Turtles Greatest Hits = a turd.
The Ventures in Space = a gem!

Maybe this is getting confusing...let's try a different tack. All right, when we're talkin' old stuff, I'd have to say that the main question is how well the artist or album has stood the test of time. We all have our different opinions on whether a thing is still good, or whether it's become dated. Particularly devisive issues are the Beach Boys and the Carpenters. I really don't care for either one, but a lot of people seem to writhe around in ecstacy when these musical turd/gems get played.

You see... balancing what you like and what is good for you is everything. Yep. It's the whole music is food thing. Musical attributes are like vitamins, or flavor, or whether it sticks to your ribs, or have lots of sugar for a junkfood fix... on and on. Just like how slobs eat crud, smarties eat nutritious food, and then there's the health nuts that eat cruddy nutritious food (new age or modern fusion would the analogy here).

Let's be like the smarties.

The question is not whether it's a handful of vitamins (like Frank Zappa's symphonic work, or an Anthony Braxton record), or a handful of Jolly Ranchers (say, Chumbawamba's Tubthumper or Kid Rock's Devil Without a Cause), you've gotta really balance what's good and what's good for you.

Or not. Just throw on that same Pixies record you've heard 34,632 times and forget everything I said.

Everyone else join me tonight by watching this amazing clip from the Dead C. Turn those crappy computer speakers all the way up to ten!



Fortifying, yes?

DIG DIG DIG ALWAYS DEEPER DEEPER

I think this credo pretty much sums up my lifelong modus operandi when it comes to music.

There are always new things to discover. Music from bands I've never heard, and even in albums I thought I knew like the back of my hand. For this reason I listen to Pink Floyd's Piper in the Gates of Dawn several times a year, but couldn't tell you for sure whether or not I own Dark Side of the Moon. I've already devoured that one, yeah-it's-great-and-stuff-but-I-don't-ever-hear-anything-new-in-it-so-stop-it-already. Don't ever make me wallow through that dreary Us Us Us Us And Them Them Them Them And Awwwfter all we only ORDINARY MEN men men men. Give me Syd Barrett singing about either an evil feline, or maybe a particularly wild, groovy girlfriend: Lucifer go to sea. Be a hip cat, be a ship's cat. Somewhere, anywhere. That cat's something I can't explain. OK, enough about Pink Floyd. Maybe I should be talking fellow English psychedelics Soft Machine instead, but I don't wanna lose you. Plus they're hit or miss anyway.

Anyway.

This exemplifies to me why I so often buy, borrow, even steal (damn internet makes a crook outta me sometimes) so much music... and so rarely sell CDs, records, and even those damn cassette tapes. It's like a painful, "what happened", if I look for an album and I realize I sold it. The wretched truth is that I need music around me at all times. Old stuff will do, but something newly "discovered" is even better. Shannon would attest to how even a short car ride to the grocery store without remembering to bring a couple CDs can be a big problem in my world.

Maybe being a musician has something to do with why I can't relax about music. Not to say that I'm any different than anyone else who feels quality is important, but it gets obsessive at times. To everyone I've annoyed, sorry. Blame my parents (and my brother) for instilling it in me.

It's the same reason I had this crazy dream a couple nights ago. I was going to perform with my band at this little mini festival in some creepy city I didn't recognize. Nothing too unusual yet.... this I have done. But people were starting to show up, and I got a copy of the flyer, and instead of seeing my band's name on the flyer, it was just my name.

Barrett will be performing an installation for drums, cymbals and gong entitled BASTARD MAGNET SING.

Having nothing prepared, I panicked, which was enough to wake me from my slumber. And I got up right away and was going to head to the rehearsal space to go figure something out. Then I had coffee, and put on a record, and eventually calmed down.

Wait. This was supposed to be about being a music fan. Hmmm, I'm clearly not adept at keeping to a subject. OK, I'll try to get back to that tomorrow.

Or, maybe I need to work on my "installation". I wonder what that would entail....

-pbrchicken

BONUS FEATURE!
today's obsession:
Nazz: Nazz, Nazz Nazz, and Nazz III.

Coming this Monday! A NEW POST!

A series of posts, actually. This is active as I'll ever get on my blog... then I'll probably slip back into hibernation.



Starting Monday, and for one week, I will post a daily excursion into the music I that I hold closest to my heart. There will be raves, rants, and quite possibily some guilty pleasures I'll regret admitting for the rest of my life.



Who knows, the process will unearth a couple new discoveries along the way. I will try my best to include links to sound files, movies & images whenever possible.

Seven Days - Seven Reasons why I love music.

If anyone has any reactions, I will be curious to hear 'em! ENJOY!