OT: Whatcha Listening To?

[RangersChamps2417]

i've been listening to a lot of Creed lately. His voice brings me back to the good ole days when I was in HS and nothing mattered. The Human Clay album was the soundtrack of my summer.

Listening to a lot of Nickelback lately as well

 

[eco's bones]

The thing with Closer is that I love the juxtaposition of the almost poppy guitar riffs and bass lines (and forget about the keyboards in Isolation) and Ian Curtis’ haunting lyrics. There are great hooks all over the album (Peter Hook is very appropriately named). It’s such an off balance experience. It’s sorta like they took songs like Disorder and She’s Lost Control and just refined them a bit.

You have to be in the right mood to listen to it, though. It’s like looking into the abyss, staring at death. It’s almost a spiritual experience. Pink Moon is sorta the same way.

There's something very sorrowful or guilty in the lyrics to Love will tear us apart and Atmosphere. He was f***ing up his marriage was part of it. He'd married when he was 16/17 and had a young daughter and his wife was giving him hell for taking up with a French journalist--the medication for his epilepsy pretty much castrated him--so it wasn't like he could have sex with her anyway. The girlfriend got to go on tours with them though--the wife would stay at home with the kid and when he'd showed back up she'd scream at him. They had a huge fight and she walked out of the house the night he hung himself. She came back and found him the next morning. The band were about to go to America for the first time. So that ended that. Grand Mal seizures are no joke. It was almost a perfect storm of events. Peter Hook claims that many years later he took Curtis's prescription to an expert on people with grand mal seizures and this Doctor told him they'd stopped prescribing such medications--they'd proven to be very harmful.

But anyway I have to be in the right mood to listen to anything at all these days. I must have gotten these records somewhere between 1981 and 1983. I got the first couple New Order records but I eventually stopped with them because of their turn towards dance/synth music. I loved the guitar and bass riffs off Unknown Pleasures. Punk was my thing but back in the late 70's and 80's there was a wide range to that kind of categorization. It took me a while to appreciate Closer as much as Unknown Pleasures--my favorites off of that are Atrocity exhibition, Isolation and Colony.

I fart around sometimes on She's lost control on the guitar. It's not that hard.

 

[JESSEWENEEDTOCOOK]

There's something very sorrowful or guilty in the lyrics to Love will tear us apart and Atmosphere. He was ****ing up his marriage was part of it. He'd married when he was 16/17 and had a young daughter and his wife was giving him hell for taking up with a French journalist--the medication for his epilepsy pretty much castrated him--so it wasn't like he could have sex with her anyway. The girlfriend got to go on tours with them though--the wife would stay at home with the kid and when he'd showed back up she'd scream at him. They had a huge fight and she walked out of the house the night he hung himself. She came back and found him the next morning. The band were about to go to America for the first time. So that ended that. Grand Mal seizures are no joke. It was almost a perfect storm of events. Peter Hook claims that many years later he took Curtis's prescription to an expert on people with grand mal seizures and this Doctor told him they'd stopped prescribing such medications--they'd proven to be very harmful.

But anyway I have to be in the right mood to listen to anything at all these days. I must have gotten these records somewhere between 1981 and 1983. I got the first couple New Order records but I eventually stopped with them because of their turn towards dance/synth music. I loved the guitar and bass riffs off Unknown Pleasures. Punk was my thing but back in the late 70's and 80's there was a wide range to that kind of categorization. It took me a while to appreciate Closer as much as Unknown Pleasures--my favorites off of that are Atrocity exhibition, Isolation and Colony.

I've fart around sometimes on She's lost control on the guitar. It's not that hard.

The lyrics are probably the most depressing, real, scary lyrics I’ve ever heard (Pink Moon as well but it’s beautiful music so the message is somewhat hidden in comparison). That aspect is really what launches the album(s) to its legendary status. It’s such a tragic, sad situation. I was actually watching some shit on Youtube about it, and I saw Sumner basically say what you’re saying. They were blind to it. He was just an “artist”.

On a complete side note, it’s also depressing that Hook and Sumner’s relationship deteriorated throughout the years. Their musical chemistry is unbelievable.

Colony is probably my favorite Joy Division song. The initial riff and the way it builds throughout the song is just, f***. Incredible. Isolation is one of those songs that’s dangerously close to being pop outside the lyrics, and it’s one of my favorites as well. Twenty Four Hours and Means to an End are up there for me. Means to an End has one of my favorites guitar hooks of all time.

 

[eco's bones]

The lyrics are probably the most depressing, real, scary lyrics I’ve ever heard (Pink Moon as well but it’s beautiful music so the message is somewhat hidden in comparison). That aspect is really what launches the album(s) to its legendary status. It’s such a tragic, sad situation. I was actually watching some **** on Youtube about it, and I saw Sumner basically say what you’re saying. They were blind to it. He was just an “artist”.

On a complete side note, it’s also depressing that Hook and Sumner’s relationship deteriorated throughout the years. Their musical chemistry is unbelievable.

Colony is probably my favorite Joy Division song. The initial riff and the way it builds throughout the song is just, ****. Incredible. Isolation is one of those songs that’s dangerously close to being pop outside the lyrics, and it’s one of my favorites as well. Twenty Four Hours and Means to an End are up there for me. Means to an End has one of my favorites guitar hooks of all time.

Some of the tension between Hook and Sumner stems from Hook being more attached to his bass guitar than Sumner to his guitar. Sumner and the rest wanted to write hits and Hook wanted to rock out. The band also sunk a lot of money into this club the Hacienda back in Manchester that became a scene back in the 80's-90's for bands like the Happy Mondays and Stone Roses. Lots of drugs--lots of criminals types and eventually it went belly up. So there was that too as far as where the blame landed. I think eventually it just got to Hook feeling he was being constantly outvoted by the others and that he was being cheated as far as how money was being distributed. Money issues are something that typically break up bands.

Hook by the way claims the Stones wanted to audition him to replace Bill Wyman and he told him no because he found it almost impossible to play other people's music. He has an unique style and in a lot of JD's music it's right out front almost as a lead instrument. To him though--just because you're able to create a way of playing doesn't mean you'll be able to adapt it to other things.

 

[Edge]

i've been listening to a lot of Creed lately. His voice brings me back to the good ole days when I was in HS and nothing mattered. The Human Clay album was the soundtrack of my summer.

Listening to a lot of Nickelback lately as well

Add some Limp Bizkit to that mix and you’ve met the legal threshold where no one would be prosecuted for pimp slapping you.

 

[Edge]

Going to Billy Joel this Sunday. Really need to kick this bronchitis and infection. Been dealing with it for two weeks. I sound like a two pack a day smoker.

 

[aufheben]

@aufheben do you prefer Closer or Unknown Pleasures

I would only prefer one to the other with a gun at my head, but... hmm, I think Closer is when they were really firing on all cylinders as a band, creatively and technically. Closer is a bewilderingly inventive yet tense album where every second feels like a suspension cable about to snap; grief, in one side, but not out the other. You can't listen to it without sadly trying to imagine its successor.

That said, I think Unknown Pleasures is kind of the portrait of Joy Division. It's an engulfing atmosphere that can never be reproduced. I love the two opening snare hits... Last Chance road sign (any album that opens with snare hits rules as far as I'm concerned.) Something about that album's sound has always been oddly comforting to me; there's this eerie prenatal-warmth to it despite sounding like they recorded on the f***ing moon. Actually, a lot of their songs, before and after, are like that for me... especially their best* song:



That suspended, far-off sound that opens the song—I don't even know what it is, synthesizer I guess... feedback, only reverb maybe—just washes over me... every single f***ing time; vast industrial monotony. 'Dead Souls' is my runner-up favorite, same vibe. Joy Division was probably the first good band I ever liked. I remember walking to the bus stop at, not even the literal ass-crack-of-dawn, it was still f***ing dark out until spring, ear buds in, sipping my thermos of coffee.

*'Ceremony' is the best, but that's just the best song by anyone. Period.

The lyrics are probably the most depressing, real, scary lyrics I’ve ever heard (Pink Moon as well but it’s beautiful music so the message is somewhat hidden in comparison). That aspect is really what launches the album(s) to its legendary status.

Colony is probably my favorite Joy Division song. The initial riff and the way it builds throughout the song is just, ****. Incredible. Isolation is one of those songs that’s dangerously close to being pop outside the lyrics, and it’s one of my favorites as well. Twenty Four Hours and Means to an End are up there for me. Means to an End has one of my favorites guitar hooks of all time.

Definitely one of my favorites.

Have you seen the movie Control? Came out, Idk, like six or seven years ago. It's pretty good from what I remember. And 24-Hour Party People is just awesome ; Steve Coogan is the funniest goddamn human being on earth.

 

[Rongomania]

Some of the tension between Hook and Sumner stems from Hook being more attached to his bass guitar than Sumner to his guitar. Sumner and the rest wanted to write hits and Hook wanted to rock out. The band also sunk a lot of money into this club the Hacienda back in Manchester that became a scene back in the 80's-90's for bands like the Happy Mondays and Stone Roses. Lots of drugs--lots of criminals types and eventually it went belly up. So there was that too as far as where the blame landed. I think eventually it just got to Hook feeling he was being constantly outvoted by the others and that he was being cheated as far as how money was being distributed. Money issues are something that typically break up bands.

Hook by the way claims the Stones wanted to audition him to replace Bill Wyman and he told him no because he found it almost impossible to play other people's music. He has an unique style and in a lot of JD's music it's right out front almost as a lead instrument. To him though--just because you're able to create a way of playing doesn't mean you'll be able to adapt it to other things.

Love JD and New Order. They changed my life, music for sure and inspired countless human beings and will, eternally.

However, Peter Hook is a dick. Probably cracks the top five biggest dicks I've met working in music. I didn't fanboy him whatsoever, I'm a consummate professional. I am greatly inspired by a lot of his work and Ian, so when I met him and he had this awful attitude and was just - a dick - it really bothered me.

Back to the tunes - great stuff there.

 

[Kakko Schmakko]

 

[eco's bones]

Love JD and New Order. They changed my life, music for sure and inspired countless human beings and will, eternally.

However, Peter Hook is a dick. Probably cracks the top five biggest dicks I've met working in music. I didn't fanboy him whatsoever, I'm a consummate professional. I am greatly inspired by a lot of his work and Ian, so when I met him and he had this awful attitude and was just - a dick - it really bothered me.

Back to the tunes - great stuff there.

I've seen or read Hook in interviews and he can come off as a bit self-absorbed/obsessed. Looking at that whole late 1970's Manchester scene though--Joy Division for me was No. 2. I was a massive fan of the Fall. They were the band I liked the most.

 

[eco's bones]

I would only prefer one to the other with a gun at my head, but... hmm, I think Closer is when they were really firing on all cylinders as a band, creatively and technically. Closer is a bewilderingly inventive yet tense album where every second feels like a suspension cable about to snap; grief, in one side, but not out the other. You can't listen to it without sadly trying to imagine its successor.

That said, I think Unknown Pleasures is kind of the portrait of Joy Division. It's an engulfing atmosphere that can never be reproduced. I love the two opening snare hits... Last Chance road sign (any album that opens with snare hits rules as far as I'm concerned.) Something about that album's sound has always been oddly comforting to me; there's this eerie prenatal-warmth to it despite sounding like they recorded on the ****ing moon. Actually, a lot of their songs, before and after, are like that for me... especially their best* song:



That suspended, far-off sound that opens the song—I don't even know what it is, synthesizer I guess... feedback, only reverb maybe—just washes over me... every single ****ing time; vast industrial monotony. 'Dead Souls' is my runner-up favorite, same vibe. Joy Division was probably the first good band I ever liked. I remember walking to the bus stop at, not even the literal ass-crack-of-dawn, it was still ****ing dark out until spring, ear buds in, sipping my thermos of coffee.

*'Ceremony' is the best, but that's just the best song by anyone. Period.

Definitely one of my favorites.

Have you seen the movie Control? Came out, Idk, like six or seven years ago. It's pretty good from what I remember. And 24-Hour Party People is just awesome ; Steve Coogan is the funniest goddamn human being on earth.

Ceremony is a Joy Division song but as far as I know can only be heard on Still which came out some years after the band morphed into New Order--and that's a live version. It was about the first thing that New Order did--so it's almost like the song belongs to both bands.

 

[Rongomania]

I've seen or read Hook in interviews and he can come off as a bit self-absorbed/obsessed. Looking at that whole late 1970's Manchester scene though--Joy Division for me was No. 2. I was a massive fan of the Fall. They were the band I liked the most.

I must get deeper into 'The Fall'.


Right now I've been into this nice OG copy of Gang of Four - Solid Gold I picked up. Which is just a great record.

 

[eco's bones]

I must get deeper into 'The Fall'.


Right now I've been into this nice OG copy of Gang of Four - Solid Gold I picked up. Which is just a great record.

Gang of Four--Entertainment--great record. Paralyzed and What we all want from Solid Gold. Capital (it fails us now)--another great song of theirs.

The funk bass--disco drumming and Andy Gill's shrapnel like guitar sounds.

The Fall--Live at the witchtrials which was their first LP. I should warn you--some people might not like that one--it can be a good one to drive unwanted visitors out of the house. Hex Enduction Hour and Grotesque were other favorites for me. Mark E. Smith was a real off the wall personality. The Noisey British Masters interview (which is on youtube) was a two parter for him and that's a good place to start to get an idea about his unique persona.

 

[Rongomania]

Gang of Four--Entertainment--great record. Paralyzed and What we all want from Solid Gold. Capital (it fails us now)--another great song of theirs.

The funk bass--disco drumming and Andy Gill's shrapnel like guitar sounds.

The Fall--Live at the witchtrials which was their first LP. I should warn you--some people might not like that one--it can be a good one to drive unwanted visitors out of the house. Hex Enduction Hour and Grotesque were other favorites for me. Mark E. Smith was a real off the wall personality. The Noisey British Masters interview (which is on youtube) was a two parter for him and that's a good place to start to get an idea about his unique persona.

So good. Can't get enough of this one. Thanks for the tips. Definitely just diving into these two groups. I love discovering bands that slipped through the cracks for me somehow.

Now that I spend most of my free time at my friends beastly record shop in BK I am definitely more blessed these days in the discovery department!

 

[JESSEWENEEDTOCOOK]

Yeah so this is the greatest thing of all time



The two GOAT Pauls.

 

[GoAwayGiannone]

Going to Billy Joel this Sunday. Really need to kick this bronchitis and infection. Been dealing with it for two weeks. I sound like a two pack a day smoker.

Jealous! Tickets are always sold out and/or I'm always busy. I'd love to hear Movin' Out live. Maybe one day

 

[GoAwayGiannone]

Been on a real big Queen kick lately. You can forget how amazing of a singer Freddie was and this man Brian May is just something else on some songs. Somebody To Love is like porn for ears.

 

[aufheben]

So good. Can't get enough of this one. Thanks for the tips. Definitely just diving into these two groups. I love discovering bands that slipped through the cracks for me somehow.

Now that I spend most of my free time at my friends beastly record shop in BK I am definitely more blessed these days in the discovery department!

RE the Fall, a lot of my favorite albums are from the "Brix Era", '83-'89. Brix was Smith's girlfriend/wife and guitarist, and brought a pop element to the band, which I like. Also the music videos from that era are really hilarious, mostly just Brix standing around looking hot, or Mark in a pub/soccer pitch lol. Their earlier stuff is great too, I've seen people refer to the the years from their inception to 1982 as the "real" Fall, which I get. I'm far from an expert on them though, but this string of albums is... epic:

Slates EP (1981)*
A Part of America Therein, 1981 Live (1982)*
Hex Enduction Hour (1982)
Perverted by Language (1983)†
The Wonderful and Frightening World of… The Fall (1984)†
This Nation’s Saving Grace (1985)†

The rest of the 1980s are good too.

Compilations:
Totally Wired: The Rough Trade Anthology (2004) ... singles / studio tracks from '80-'83
50,000 Fall Fans Can't Be Wrong: 39 Golden Greats (2004) ... greatest hits
The Complete Peel Sessions 1978–2004 (2005) ... six f***ing CDs

*Re-released together on CD in 1992
†Brix Smith

 

[NCRanger]

Shocked that someone else has even heard of them.

 

[True Blue]

Going to Billy Joel this Sunday. Really need to kick this bronchitis and infection. Been dealing with it for two weeks. I sound like a two pack a day smoker.

Saw him last summer at MSG. Just amazing what kind of catalog he has. He can play multiple shows and not repeat songs.

 

[eco's bones]

RE the Fall, a lot of my favorite albums are from the "Brix Era", '83-'89. Brix was Smith's girlfriend/wife and guitarist, and brought a pop element to the band, which I like. Also the music videos from that era are really hilarious, mostly just Brix standing around looking hot, or Mark in a pub/soccer pitch lol. Their earlier stuff is great too, I've seen people refer to the the years from their inception to 1982 as the "real" Fall, which I get. I'm far from an expert on them though, but this string of albums is... epic:

Slates EP (1981)*
A Part of America Therein, 1981 Live (1982)*
Hex Enduction Hour (1982)
Perverted by Language (1983)†
The Wonderful and Frightening World of… The Fall (1984)†
This Nation’s Saving Grace (1985)†

The rest of the 1980s are good too.

Compilations:
Totally Wired: The Rough Trade Anthology (2004) ... singles / studio tracks from '80-'83
50,000 Fall Fans Can't Be Wrong: 39 Golden Greats (2004) ... greatest hits
The Complete Peel Sessions 1978–2004 (2005) ... six ****ing CDs

*Re-released together on CD in 1992
†Brix Smith

I have pretty much all their early stuff--pretty much up through Perverted by Language and practically all of that is in vinyl. I also have a bunch of 45's. After that I have this and that--either on cassette, CD or iTunes.

The 'Live at the Witchtrials' LP is the band as a democracy--after that record it becomes Mark E. Smith as a dictator pretty much from there until Smith died a year or so ago. I don't how many people played in the band over the years but there is used to be a joke that if you were a musician and from Manchester England chances were you had played for the Fall. Witchtrials is really different from any of their other records though--kind of psychedelic and dirge-y. Smith as a vocalist doesn't sing so much as rant his way through--it is a unique voice and an unique way of expressing--sometimes mumbling , sometimes mocking, sometimes speaking in voices.

Kay Carroll managed the band after the departure of Bramah and Baines etc. that signaled the transition from democracy to dictatorship. Carroll was his girlfriend and the two of them took complete control. Brix came along later and Mark and her began an affair. It came to a head between Mark and Kay on their tour bus going to a gig somewhere in the Midwest. Carroll stopped the bus on a highway and walked off in the middle of a blizzard. After that Mark marries Brix.

Anyway there's a book written by Steven Hanley--the longest serving member of band other than Mark called The Big Midweek which is a great read and there's a lot of hilarious shit that happens.

 

[SingnBluesOnBroadway]

Going to Billy Joel this Sunday. Really need to kick this bronchitis and infection. Been dealing with it for two weeks. I sound like a two pack a day smoker.

Maybe you should trade in the Billy Joel tickets for Tom Waits tix.....

 

[Edge]

Saw him last summer at MSG. Just amazing what kind of catalog he has. He can play multiple shows and not repeat songs.

Was a fantastic show.

Was originally scheduled to go The Stones in Philly tomorrow, but it got pushed back to July 23.

Debating about going to Aerosmith in Atlantic City, but I may just wait for the tour.

Mid-life crisis in full swing.

 

[Kakko Schmakko]

Shocked that someone else has even heard of them.

Battle Beast will be touring USA (their 3rd time) this year

 

[Synergy27]

I came across some VIP passes to the Governor’s Ball while I was in town this weekend. Now I know what The 1975 is. I feel like a worse person than I did last week.