11 posts tagged “90s”
|
10/22/09
Northern* Olympia, WA
Solo Discography
10/23/09 The Artistery* Portland, OR 10/24/09 Luigi’s Fungarden* Sacramento, CA 10/25/09 Gilman St.* Berkeley, CA 10/27/09 Vacation Vinyl Instore - LA, CA 10/27/09 Echo Curio* Los Angeles, CA 10/28/09 Biko Garage* Santa Barbara, CA 10/29/09 Needles and Pens* San Francisco, CA * with Kellarissa
|
|
|
What I love about Tiger Trap is that all their songs (from all three singles they've released) is that they're short, they're cute, and Melberg's twittery vocals. Even though the term "twee" (I hate that word) existed since the 80s, I have often thought that Tiger Trap were pioneers of modernday twee-pop.
Melberg would continue her unique songs with Go Sailor and The Softies, sort of simultaneously in 1994. Between the two projects, it was obvious which one seem more important, since Go Sailor quickly went away after only three singles.
The Softies (Melberg's collaboration would be with Jen Sbragia) was more significant, releasing four albums, their last one being Holiday in Rhode Island, available from K Records. The thing about The Softies, is that they were going for that two-vocals harmony thing and their songs are often pretty mellow... unlike their punk-counterpart with the same name (I think they were from the UK).
Since I left the radio station in the mid-90s, I will admit to not keeping up with the whereabouts of Rose Melberg and her various projects (working as a drummer in another short-lived band, Gaze, working with Elliott Smith, The Potatomen, etc). I did know she went solo, or at least had solo records, but I was still surprise to find out that Rose Melberg is back with her third studio album, Homemade Ship, released last Tuesday on K Records.
I was actually pretty excited to listen to the new album, but since my only knowledge of her music were pre-1996, it seems a lot more mellow acoustic than even the softest Softies music. In fact, with all the background vocals by Larissa Loyva, one could mistaken Homemade Ship to be the latest Softies album.
The album seems very personal to me, especially on "Sidewalk" and "Old Days". But I also get the impression that Melberg must really love two other things in life: nature and animals.
In the form of nature, she seems obsessed with water ("we watch the water float you"), moon, wind, ships, and sailing. As for animals, she just doesn't just write about them, but often singing that she is an animal ("Bear in a Cave", "Sharks", crows on "Old Days", raccoon on "Moon Singer").
In some ways, the title track, "Homemade Ship", about being lost due to instruments failure, is my favorite song, because I feel as if Melberg simply isn't singing about sailing, but more about life and where she is.
If you were hoping for the new record to sound like Tiger Trap or Go Sailor, you will be disappointed. If you're already comfortable with The Softies, then I think you'll feel right at home with this very quiet and tender Homemade Ship album.
Can't get enough of Melberg? Head over to NPR to hear "Old Days" as the Song of the Day for August 19th. Pick up Homemade Ships at K Records (LP for $10, cheap!).
09/25/2009 02:35:10 ♥ vu (
) ♥ myspace.com/rosemelberg ♥ krecs.com
|
06/12/09
Jannus Landing St. Petersburg, FL
06/13/09 House of Blues Lake Buena V, FL 06/14/09 Variety Playhouse Atlanta, GA 06/16/09 9:30 Club Washington D.C. 06/17/09 Trocadero Philadelphia, PA 06/18/09 Thursday at the Square Buffalo, NY 06/19/09 Fillmore NY @ Irving Plaza NY 06/20/09 Paradise Rock Club Boston, MA 06/23/09 House of Blues Cleveland, OH 06/25/09 The Vogue Indianapolis, IN 06/26/09 4th Street Live Louisville, KY 06/27/09 House of Blues Chicago, IL 06/28/09 Summerfest Milwaukee, WI 07/09/09 Alive @ 5 Stamford, CT 07/10/09 Bottle & Cork Dewey Beach, DE 07/11/09 The Norva Norfolk, VA 07/12/09 The National Richmond, VA 07/14/09 Rex Theatre Pittsburgh, PA 07/15/09 Emerald Theatre Mt. Clemens, MI 07/17/09 Snowden Grove Southaven, MS 07/18/09 40 Watt Club Athens, GA 07/19/09 3rd & Lindsley Nashville, TN 07/24/09 Kansas City Live Kansas City, MO 07/25/09 The Pageant St. Louis, MO 08/12/09 Independent San Francisco, CA 08/13/09 Plaza De Cesar Chavez SJose, CA 08/21/09 Power Plant Live Baltimore, MD 08/22/09 Budweiser Raleigh, NC 10/04/09 New Riverfront Gretna, LA 10/07/09 Walt Disney World Orlando, FL 10/08/09 Walt Disney World Orlando, FL 10/17/09 Great Miss. Balloon Race Natchez, MS |
Compiled today are recent news and releases from bands from the 90s:
BETTER THAN EZRA
betterthanezra.com ♥ myspace.com
Technically, this band's been around since the late 80s, but they weren't well-known until they signed to Elektra Records in the mid-90s with the re-release of Deluxe (the album with their hit song "Good").
I guess the weird thing is that they've never revealed where the name comes from:
I'm sure it's probably best if we didn't know the origin of the name. What's the fun in knowing anyway?We have never revealed it, even under duress.
- singer Kevin Griffin
Their latest album is called Paper Empire, released just recently in May on Ezra Dry Goods.
THIRD EYE BLIND
3eb.com ♥ myspace.com
06/12/09
Hard Rock Pool Las Vegas, NV
06/13/09 Marquee Theatre Tempe, AZ 06/16/09 Roseland Ballroom New York, NY 06/20/09 Showbox SoDo Seattle, WA 06/21/09 Crystal Ballroom Portland, OR 06/23/09 Ventura Theatre Ventura, CA 06/24/09 House of Blues Anaheim, CA 06/25/09 Palladium Hollywood, CA 06/27/09 Pipeline Cafe Honolulu, HI |
I know a lot of bands do this, but through contests, they're able to get people to basically remix songs for them (via indabamusic.com) or, just very recently, they needed a support act for their June 16th show at the Roseland Ballroom. The show is almost sold out and it would be a nice break for any band - they ask that you email your myspace page to openfor3eb[a]gmail.com. NOTE: deadline for bands is 10am EST on Sunday, June 14th.
Since they had recorded so much music, whatever doesn't make it on Ursa Major will be collected in another album, tentatively called Ursa Minor. Keep an "eye" on the band at news.weheartmusic.com.
* Update 6/12/09 11:53am: I just received this breaking news: "the upcoming Third Eye Blind album will be released on August 18th via Mega Collider"
ALICE IN CHAINS
aliceinchains.com ♥ myspace.com
|
Tour Dates
07/18/09
Comerica Park Detroit, MI
08/01/09 Marlay Park Dublin 08/02/09 Sonisphere Festival Knebworth 08/06/09 Cologne, GR Essigfabrik 08/08/09 Berlin, GR Columbia Club 08/10/09 Hamburg, GR Grunspan 08/11/09 Amsterdam, NE Melkweg |
William DuVall is the new singer, who joined the band in 2006. They seem to be very excited about their upcoming album, Black Gives Way to Blue, out on September 29th, 2009, on Virgin/EMI records.
Just prior to the album's release, they are planning on playing through Europe (particularly in Germany). Their upcoming gig on July 18th is with Kid Rock at the Comerica Park in Detroit.
Can't get enough? More at news.weheartmusic.com.
SOUNDGARDEN
chriscornell.com ♥ myspace.com
|
06/13/09
Download Festival Donington
06/14/09 Olympia Dublin 06/17/09 New Exhibition Centre Tel Aviv 06/20/09 Nova Rock Festival Nickelsdorf 06/21/09 Roxy Prague 06/23/09 Markthalle Hamburg 06/24/09 Huxley’s Berlin 06/25/09 Szczecin Rock Festival Szczecin 06/27/09 Peace & Love Festival Borlange 06/29/09 Vega Copenhagen 07/01/09 Train Aarhus 07/03/09 Quart Festival Kristiansand 07/06/09 Alcatraz Milan 07/07/09 Ostia Antica Rome 07/10/09 Bilbao Live Festival Bilbao 07/11/09 Optimus Alive Festival |
As far as I know, Soundgarden broke up in 1997 and remained so. Along with Pearl Jam, Nirvana and Alice in Chains, Soundgarden destroyed the world with grunge/metal/rock music. They supernova with their major hit song "Black Hole Sun" (which incidentally failed to get mentioned on my the Sun article).
That summer of '95 saw the band doing some major touring that would've permanently damaged Cornell's vocals cords if he had kept going:
The band canceled and rescheduled the concert dates at a later time. The band split up shortly after concluding their 1996 Lollapalooza tour with Metallica.I think we kinda overdid it! We were playing five or six nights a week and my voice pretty much took a beating. Towards the end of the American tour I felt like I could still kinda sing, but I wasn't really giving the band a fair shake. You don't buy a ticket to see some guy croak for two hours! That seemed like kind of a rip off.
- Chris Cornell
So, recently, you may have actually heard about Cornell with his high profile work with former Rage Against the Machine members in a band called Audioslave as well as hearing his theme song on the James Bond movie "Casino Royale" with "You Know My Name".
More info at news.weheartmusic.com
Update 6/12/09 1:35pm: Wow so many bands from the 90s...
MEAT PUPPETS
themeatpuppets.com ♥ myspace.com
|
Tour Dates
06/12/09 Mercury Lounge - New York, NY
06/13/09 Rock n Roll Hotel - Washington, DC 06/14/09 Cat's Cradle - Carrboro, NC 06/16/09 The Earl - Altanta, GA 06/17/09 Exit/In - Nashville, TN 06/19/09 Cambridge Room - Dallas, TX 06/20/09 The Parish - Austin, TX |
You may remember this band as closely tied to Nirvana in the early days, as Kurt Cobain was a huge fan of the band. Their most famous album is probably Too High to Die in 1994, the album was produced by "worst band name ever" Butthole Surfers' Paul Leary.
The band broke up and recently reunited in 2006. The new album is called Sewn Together on Megaforce Records and was released on May 12th.
06/12/2009 01:51:42 ♥ vu ()
♥weheartmusic.com♥podcast.weheartmusic.com♥news.weheartmusic.com
Update 6/12/09 10:10am: Possible origin of name?
| crankypants wrote: Fri, Jun 12, 2009 at 9:27 AM |
I always thought it was possible that Better Than Ezra's name came from Dinner At The Homesick Restaurant by Anne Tyler (who wrote The Accidental Tourist, among others). I never thought too much about it, and didn't know they'd never revealed the source, and I read the book in HS way before the band was around and never read it again. BUT...there was a character named Ezra and it always made me think of that. The End.
God's Guest List pretty much sums up the band for me, and all the 90s britpop I loved, so take a listen if you've not heard them before. I'll leave Vu to fill in anything else interesting, I mean, I was like 12 in 96, I wasn't paying much attention... except to the Chart Show on ITV and Louise Wener jumping in to swimming pools.
- Chris "oh noes! dead frogs everywhere!" topher.
|
08/28/08 Koolhaus Toronto, ON
Solo Discography
08/29/08 Royal Oak Music Theatre Royal Oak,MI 08/31/08 Ravinia Festival Highland Park, IL 09/02/08 The Pageant St Louis, MO 09/03/08 Ryman Auditorium Nashville, TN 09/04/08 Bama Theatre Tuscaloosa, AL 09/05/08 Variety Playhouse Atlanta, GA 09/06/08 Carolina Theatre Greensboro, NC 09/08/08 The National Richmond, VA 09/09/08 Recher Theatre Towson, MD 09/14/08 Westhampton Beach PAC NY
|
You must have remembered "Voices Carry" by 'Til Tuesday in the early 80s, don't you? What I know about the song is that it was inspired by a breakup between singer Aimee Mann and then-boyfriend Michael Hausman, also in the band (both were previously in another band called The Young Snakes).
The video, like all music videos from the 80s, was pretty cheesy, with a 80s new wave hairstyle... it's definitely one of the best MTV videos, very unforgettable, like "Take On Me" by A-Ha.
'Til Tuesday broke up after releasing three albums between '85-88, and shortly Mann declared her solo music career. By this time, "alternative" was just making its way to MTV's 120 Minutes, a show that I actually remember seeing her music video for "I Should've Known" on for her debut album, Whatever. I just remember liking her hair in the video.
By the way, I love the cover art to this album. I remember how cool her Dr Martens were, that a year later, I bought my first pair when I was on holiday in London.
Anyway, her latest album is called @#%&*! Smilers (if you're not familar with 'comic book' symbols, the "@#%&*!" stands for "Fucking"), inspired by a thread on the newsgroup alt.bitter. The lyric book is all 50s-style pop artwork, all original artwork by a famed artist Gary Taxali, who lends a very distinctive style to the overall package. You can watch the video where she talks about her album artwork on Face Culture.
There are two version of this album, I only have the standard edition for reference, but I have seen the very nice limited edition, which looks like it was hardcover book with two holes (see amazon). Although it's slightly more expensive, I do always recommend getting the limited version.
The album starts off with "Freeway", a song about a guy who has a lot of money, but can't even drive on the freeway (probably because the law enforcement would pull him over for the lack of paying his tickets).
There are a few songs that caught my attention on the record. I liked the toned down "Stranger into Starman" song. The song shows off Mann's easy-to-listen to voice, backed by just a piano and a splash of violins at the end. I also really enjoyed the duet with Sean Hayes on "Ballantines". There's a point in the song that Hayes sounds like he's playing trumpet with his lips.
The big single from this record is "31 Today". I thought it was interesting to note that if that song was really about Aimee Mann, then that would've meant she wrote that song in 1991, just a little after 'Til Tuesday broke up.
Also, be sure to check out my favorite off the album, the foot-tapper "Borrowing Time".
With nearly thirty years in the music industry, Mann shows us that she's still going strong... and well-traveled since her days in 'Til Tuesday. @#%&*! Smilers is available now at all retail locations, and at the moment there is a promotion at Target to sell it for $11.98.
|
I was pretty thrilled when I received Connected: 90's 12" Mix to review, as I was already well familiar with all the songs and artists on the two promo discs. In fact, I had the review written weeks ago, but waited until it got closer to the release date of July 7th to post the review. I'm glad I waited because by the last hour, they decided to upped the anti and added a third disc and changing the cover artwork (and not to mention that they reshuffled the track listing). As you can see with the links to artists we've previously covered on W♥M, that we really like the first disc.
One of the major differences I've noticed right away was that they had replaced Electronic's "Getting Away With It" with New Order's "World in Motion", which is fine as they are more or less Bernard Sumner. If there were other artists and songs that were dropped, it's probably due to licensing issues.
I have to say that I did agree that "World in Motion" is better fitted for this compilation, because this song is so closely associated with the 1990 World Cup. It just feels good to hear the competitive "it's one on one", a song that's sure to be played at every World Cup.... although whenever I hear that rap from Jamaican-born football player John Barnes, it just drowns the songs in late 80s/early 90s.
In 80s and going to the 90s, the three major releases for singles were: 7", 12" and cassingle. The 90s introduced us to the CD single (and eventually the double CD singles, parts one and two), but this compilation collects all the 12" mixes. Usually the 12" mix were special because they're often exclusive to the 12" and were catered to underground DJs who needed them in this format to scratch and live mix.
Even if you know all these songs from hearing them on the radio, these dance remixes always adds something new to something already familiar.
These tracks demonstrate England's evolution of dance music. You see, in the early 90s, there was a breaking point in the music timeline. One group became what you might know as Britpop, while the other group focused more on dance (raves and techno). You hear the second group's diverse music on these tracks.
From early Madchester (Stone Roses, Happy Mondays) to funk (Deee Lite) to house (M People, Nuyorican Soul) to big stadium dance rock (U2, Primal Scream) to even trip hop (Tricky, Massive Attack, Portishead), it's all here: all the big hits!
There are a few outstanding tracks from the two discs: the remix of Deee Lite's funky "Groove Is In The Heart", the Bottom Won Mix of Stone Roses's amazing baseline of a dance classic "Fool's Gold", Stereo MCs' "Connected" (of course!), Snap's extended mix of "Rhythm is a Dance", and Soup Dragons' trippy "I'm Free" the 12" mix.
The new tracks that were added to the album, included two that I already know and love: Moloko's "Fun for Me" and Beats International's "Dub Be Good to Me". Since I've already mentioned Moloko's song in a previous article, I should tell you about Beats International.
The guy behind Beats International is really Norman Cook - aka Fatboy Slim. As you can hear from his remix of "Be Good to Me", he really knows how to manipulate the song. Check out that bass and the mixing of a DJ introducing the song "Tank fly boss walk jam nitty gritty, you're listening to the boy from the big bad city. This is jam hot" and also the outro.
There is one song that kind of bothered me, not that it isn't good (because I love "Jump Around"), but because it seems to me that House of Pain shouldn't belong here. You see, looking at all these artists, they all seem to be based in the UK and they're mostly dance, and House of Pain is from the US and leans towards rap. If you listen to this album, this song should definitely "jump" out at you.
Overall, this was a very enjoyable collection that made me a feel a little nostalgic of yesteryear.
Below are the final track listing.
Disc 1 |
Disc 2
|
Disc 3
|
Connected: 90's 12" Mix will be released July 7th in the UK by Universal Records. Fans of 90s dance music will want to check this out.
Links:
www.umtv.co.uk
|
Here's a band I know a lot about: Elastica. I have all their singles, EPs, albums, bootlegs and miscellaneous releases (booklets, playing cards, etc). I was a pretty massive fan, I guess.
I felt that I fortunate to have followed their career very early on, unlike bands, such as The Smiths, that I had discovered very late into the game had to track down records one at a time and uncover that mystery. For Elastica, at the time, the story unfolded in real time.
As I was getting into Sleeper, Echobelly, Lush, and here comes Elastica with their magnificent Stutter in 1993, followed by Line Up in 1994. All the weeklies (Melody Maker, NME) and monthlies (Q, Vox, the short-lived Raw) were talking about them, hyping them up as the best thing since sliced bread. The more they loved Justine Frischmann, the more I fell in love with Donna Matthews.
Sadly, you might probably know them as a "one-hit" wonder with Connection, which I never understood the logic behind why this song was ever that popular. I don't think it was the flashy video, I much preferred the one-take, all white background of Stutter, but this video never really did well (even after a second boost at trying to make the follow-up single in the US after "Connection".)
By the time their self-titled debut album came out, it was possibly the best thing I've ever heard at the time. Forty minutes of perfection. I knew all the songs, from start to finish. From the Wire-inspired "Line Up" to the fast and furious/one-take "Annie" to the bassy "Car Song" to the funky "Hold Me Now".
The song that my friend Jenny and I used to sing all the time was "All Nighter". We never figured out the lyrics, but I think we figured it out eventually: "Got to go to the garage/Got to get some fags and make some tea/Can you lend me enough wedge?/Do you want to walk up there with me?
I take it back, not all the forty minutes were perfect, I'd always managed to skip over "Indian Song". Don't know why, just never really liked the song.
Obviously with success, came the lawsuits. Several bands sued them for plagiarism, particularly Wire ("Connection" and "Line Up" bore huge similarities to Wire's "I Am The Fly" and "Three Girl Rhumba").
|
|
|
They decided to lay low for a while, and after a very long break from the music business, they were reported working on the difficult sophomore album - five years too late, in my opinion. Prior to the album, a 6 Track EP came out with a collaboration with Mark E Smith, from the Fall.
When they asked Smith why they had asked him to appear on the single, he jokingly said something to the extent that if they were going to rip off the Fall, they might as well have the real thing. It was a good collaboration, although the five other tracks were either hit or miss for me.
Once The Menace came out, five years later, I think people were pretty much felt disinterested in Elastica. They tried to write all original material, but it felt more or less cut and paste for me. The only songs that I really liked off The Menace was a overproduced "Generator" (the demo version is more punchier), "How He Wrote Elastica Man" (a different mix), "Your Arse...My Place" (this is a fun song), and "Love Like Ours" (a rough and superior version appeared on Volume earlier).
|
|
|
They broke up a year later, with their final single, appropriately titled The Bitch Don't Work in 2001. The Radio One Sessions was also released shortly, collecting all their BBC sessions. I believe most of these songs appeared in one or or another as B-Sides on various singles - but it is very nice to have them all on one CD.
I was fortunately enough to catch them on tour for The Menace and even bought an overpriced concert T-Shirt, which I've never regretted. It's one of my favorite shirt, a dark navy blue with the classic "Elastica" logo on the front.
After the breakup, I didn't really follow too closely to where everyone went to. Frischmann went to Colorado, of all places, schooling, after a (very public) breakup with Damon Albarn of Blur. Matthews went on to be the frontswoman for Klang (I have a few 7" releases). Bassist Annie Holland disappeared, she's no longer in the music business, while drummer Justin Welch eventually married later member Mew.
Below, you will find some classic singles from Elastica: Justine on Line Up (US version), Donna on Connection, Annie on Stutter, and Justin on Stutter (Australian version).
|
|
|
|
|
Links:
www.elasticated.org
|
|
|
|
|
|
Sorry, no music from me today (surely Vu will add some to the post?) but a heads up for all the UK readers.
Play.com are currently running a Best Of The 90s sale with albums and best-ofs from some of the best bands of the 90s from only £2.99 shipped. $6 in the US might get you a new album, but here we can't even pick up stuff in charity shops for that little so it ain't bad. Anyway...
Choice highlights so far include an Echobelly Best-Of for £2.99, Sleeper Best Of for £4.99, Manics' Everything Must Go £4.99, and my personal favorite, DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince Best-Of, £2.99. I could go on forever as seriously, every row has a great band on them, so just check out sale for yourself.
- Christopher
Vu's Note: Sadly, I own all these albums you mentioned (plus about 75% of what is on sale at that store). 90s, baby....
Incidentally, in Suede news, singer Brett Anderson will be releasing his second album, Wilderness on July 7th at his concert that costs £30. Surely, you may think this is expensive, but as a way to pad the pain to fans, buying the concert tickets ensures a USB stick with his new album on it.
|
|
Back in the day, I made compilation VHS tapes of music videos airing on MTV's 120 Minutes (and later Alternative Nation). So before either hosts (Dave Kendall, Lewis Largent, or Matt Pinfield) would introduce the song, I pressed the record button, hoping the video or song would be a good one.
I would then sometime watch hours and hours of music videos, from Jesus Jones to The Pixies to The Smiths to The Descendants to Soul Asylum to Curve to Luna... I had about five volumes of this (SP mode, so about 100 minutes worth of selected music video). This was pretty much how I discovered new music back then.
The first time I remember seeing "Labour of Love" by Frente!, it was unannounced, but I had recorded it anyway. It was a black and white video and I remember I thought Angie Hart was gorgeous with her hair and nose ring.
By the time they released "Bizarre Love Triangle" (a New Order cover song), I knew I (Hart) Frente!
Remember, this was in 1994, and internet was very young and I didn't know anything about this band. I tried to find out more about the band, obviously they're from Australia. I thought perhaps the two main persons in the band (Angie Hart and Simon Austin) were a couple. I'm still not sure about their relationship to this day, but this Frank Sinatra cover song they recorded "Somethin' Stupid (Stoopid)", it almost suggest that Simon Austin was in love with Angie, doesn't it?
To this day, I have bought three copies of Marvin the Album (I don't know, I lose things!), and the third time, I think I only paid $4 at a used CD store.
So here's a breakdown the songs off Marvin the Album:
|
|
- Girl – 2:42
- Labour of Love – 3:01
My absolute favorite song. I love the part where she sings, "I'll be far from the cars and guitars and everybody else". Just when you think the song couldn't get any better, this is this amazing FLUTE in the middle of the song. - Ordinary Angels – 2:49
This was issued as a single and remix single in 1994, but originally appears on Clunk EP in 1992. I have the remix single and I would have to admit that the 7" remix is a better version than the album version. - Lonely – 3:23
Also released as a five-track Single/EP. One of the B-Side, "Get Real", was a collaboration with Ween! - Most Beautiful – 2:50
- Cuscutlan – 3:00
- Pretty Friend – 2:35
- No Time – 3:20
This EP, along with Whirled and Clunk, I think preceed their debute album. Please note that the B-Side, "Blue" (acapella), is not the same song that appears on Buffy the Vampire Hunter[W♥M] (also called "Blue"). - Reflect – 3:06
- Explode – 2:50
- Accidently Kelly Street – 3:21
One of my Australian penpal sent me this song on cassette and I remembered how much I loved it (this was before I purchased the album the first time). This was such an easy song to like, especially when Hart sings, "It seems that were on holidays/And sleeping in is not a sin". - See/Believe – 3:06
- Dangerous – 3:00
- Bizarre Love Triangle – 2:01
This was a one-take beautiful video, featuring a new Angie Hart, sporting a short black haircut. She looked so much like Dolores O'Riordan from the Cranberries.
NOTE: This is the 1994 International release of Marvin the Album. It was originally released in Australia with a different track listing in 1992.
As much as I love Marvin, I didn't really think much of Shape or the single Sit on My Hands, which I picked up both when I was in Singapore. I listened to them on my then-MiniDisc player and it just made me want to put on Marvin again.
|
|
I have not kept up with Hart, but I do recall that she was in another band called Splendid with her husband, Jesse Tobias.
Splendid enjoyed a little fame, courtesy of Joss Whedon, who is apparently a huge fan of Frente! He had Splendid's songs appearing on his show on several occasions, including them as a band performing live on the "I Only Have Eyes for You" episode. Plus, he had Hart appearing on his short-lived FireFly series. (See images).
Trivia: Hart sings backing vocals on Tara's song, "Under Your Spell" on Once More With Feeling and "Blue" (co-written by Whedon) appears on Radio Sunndale.
Well, the good news is that Frente! reformed in 2004. I don't know what the current status is, but I think they reformed just to get together with Simon Austin and play live shows.
Some rehearsals are in order because they can barely remember how to play or sing "Accidently Kelly Street", as evident from their The Fez Bar show in 2004. Audio courtesy of Angie Hart's official website. It's quite funny to hear actually.
02/10/2008 12:17:02
vu
my♥posts
ihartangie.net
myspace.com
|
|
Yep, it's nearing the end of the year and everyone's doing their top stories of the year. I have so many favorites that I'm splitting them by categories. This is the Shoegazing/Dreampop Top 7 for 2007.
To my ear and understanding, Dream Pop and Shoegazing/Shoegaze are essentially the same, deriving from from the 80s 4AD sound (the most famous being The Cocteau Twins and Dead Can Dance). The term 'shoegazing' was coined by Melody Maker in the early 90s because the musicians in these groups does nothing but stand and stare at the floor.
This quote from wikipedia made me laugh at the generalization of the look and sound of Dream Pop:
The essence of the music is a focus on ethereal textures and moods, rather than on propulsive rock riffs. Breathy, high-register female vocals (and androgynous male vocals) are the preferred means of lyrical delivery; lyrics are generally introspective and existential in nature. Cover art tends to consist of blurry pastel imagery and/or stark minimalist designs.
You may noticed that bands such as Lush aren't listed here, that's because the songs represented here aren't Shoegazing, but more rock (Lush's sound changed shortly after Split was released). Maybe in 2008, I will have to write about the pre-Split Lush. Also, will someone do coverage on My Bloody Valentine already?
Special thanks to Gus, Cristina, and Michael for submitting some of these articles:
|
| ||||
|
| ||||
|
|
12/22/2007 13:13:44
vu
my♥posts
www.weheartmusic.com
DISCOGRAPHY
|
Aw, the 90s, so much to answer for! You guys must've remember this gem of a video called "Stay" by Shakespear's Sister?
This song doesn't get interesting until the bad girl/Bananarama singer, Siobhan Fahey, shows up in the middle of the song, declaring:
You better hope and pray
That you make it safe back to your own world
They got their name from The Smiths' song "Shakespeare's Sister", which was a reference to Virginia Woolf's essay "A Room of One's Own". Their originally name was Shakespeare's Sister, until someone who was making a woodcut of their name had misspelled it as Shakespear's Sister.
Strangely enough: I've got all three albums of their official albums, with the third one not including Marcella Detroit. #3 is actually pretty good, but then again, I've always prefer Siobhan's singing style over Marcella (which is almost too sweet).
I don't know
what it is with goth culture, but whenever I see Siobhan's imagery, it
reminds me of Neil Gaiman's Death and Joseph Linsner's Cry for Dawn,
which I'll include pictures for your reference here.
|
|
July 10, 2007 6:40 PM
vu vu@weheartmusic.com
www.siobhanfahey.com
| buster wrote: Jul 10, 2007 10:46 PM |
i will never hear this song without thinking of the french & saunders parody for the rest of my life. i won't link to it, but it's on youtube if you're curious.
My Groups
-
song of the day Updated: 24 minutes ago
-
We♥Music (host) Updated: 24 minutes ago
-
Music Fan Updated: 24 minutes ago
Neighborhood
Explore friends, family, friends & family, or entire neighborhood.
