Beach Party Tonight

Tonight La Tostada and I get to see Yo La Tengo again.
I'm so excited.
Actually i'm a little sick, so I'm not as excited as I wanna be.


This will be the 3rd time I've seen them and they say that this tour is the "Behind the storyteller's music" tour or something. They say it'll mostly be acoustic with some stand-up mixed in, or something. La Tostada is thrilled cause she loves YLT's more quiet side - where as I can dig the skronky noise for a bit longer. Either way it's a win/win.

After I saw them the first time (not too long ago, acutally) i was inspired to add in more YLT to the GoA's songs. This song in particular cribs directly from Ira's use of Drop-D tuning and smacking the back of the neck just so to make that super sweet ambient chord that you hear a lot in their songs. Ira is a freaking genius with the way he twists and turns his electric all around to make all these textures.

He really gets me to thinking about the physical form of the person and their vocal/non-verbal epxression and the very well developed expression or avatar that some guitarists conjure up when they play. Like Keith for example. I keep saying I want to make a post/essay about this issue and Ira and Keith are perfect examples. You'd think Ira was narcoleptic on stage, he barely opens his eyes, and his vocals are very soft and gentle - but then he makes with these 15 minute long (or longer) skronk-anallias of roaring chords and squealing amps...it's quite something to see. and in general James is very tall and seems super gentle and sweet and Georgia seems like the shyest drummer ever - but then they can be the loudest, most abrasive band since White Light/White Heat. It is a marvel. And i'm lucky to get to see them again! yay US!

Analogies

Amy Ray : Driver Education :: James Joyce : Ulysses :: The Existence : Life all at once

------

That is all.

(Mp3, Lyric) for the song

Is this what Deaner was talking about?

As announced here, Ween have a new record out. And i'm stoked for it. A little bit of history of me and ween.

Geaner and Deaner are like two slightly older brothers to me. My cousin made me a tape at the beginning of 10th grade of some newer music, as i'd been on a steady diet of Zeppelin, Stones and AC/DC - i'd gotten my mind blown recently with The Velvet Underground and I knew from liner notes and other stuff that there were all these other bands that took the VU thing and ran. I knew about R.E.M. of course, but the Clemson radio station only came in when it was cloudy so i didn't have money to buy a bunch of records, so my Cousin made me a tape. Of all the stuff that was on that tape, They Might Be Giants (what evs), Chickasaw Mudpuppies (eh...), Jane's Addiction (now were talking!, but all their fans are so DRAMA-ey) Ween leapt out at me, shook my hand, and whispered in my huge ear "You can do this". SO funny, and SO lo-fi and so confident. So perfect.

So, I've seen Ween 5 or 6 times - and In 96 I think, i got to interview Deaner on the Mollusk tour for a local paper. That was difficult, it was my first interview - it was during soundcheck so we couldn't hear each other - and Deaner was very foggy after a nap and needed some coffee. Any way - it was a real treat to meet him and talk to a real hero of mine.

Deaner is an amazing guitarist - and being somewhat of a guitarist myself i have definite likes and dislikes - i don't as a rule like guitar solos. and I have walked Swiftly away from any concert that sounded like a "Jam Band" - Not saying that Ween are - they are not. But I have seen Ween do a, i'm not kidding here: i timed it, 45 minute version of LMLYP - which you could assert was a "Jam" of the "Wicked" variety. I think it is all to easy to fall into cliche and self indulgence when soloing on guitar. Having said all that

Here, watch Deaner rip something alive from the depths of the earth with his bare hands. This clip is long and it's mostly a guitar solo but not many people on earth get a chance to see this -

Microtonal Van Halen

Oh man.

Ouch.

Head over to Create Digital Music and see some painful tech trouble. Both the Bass and Eddie Van Halen's guitar are playing a few microtones below their synth backing track. oof.

The Moby Equation

Magnificent.

Only - they left out the most galling part of the whole Moby/Play phenomena - He was literally STEALING the good parts of his songs from unpaid african american folk artists. His offence goes WAY beyond the justified criticism that Elvis and most other white artists need to own up to, in terms of appropriating black music to a white audience. With Moby, its worse, because - he's not even copping the style of Big Boy Crudup - he's using the recordings of Bessie Jones and others and putting shitty, simple, Theory I first week re-harmonies under them with soft synths. big whoop.

And one more knife twist in this pointless post. He has this screed about being a Vegan in the sacred space of liner notes for this record. and on the cover, what do we see on his super-cool feet? Some nikes. some leather sneaks made by nike. Way to live in a glass house doood. here, take this rock and nail it to the wall.

(is she not amazing looking? and she knew *all* these songs. I wish i could have learned from her directly, not just from Lomax's tape recordings - but thank god for those)

Busking: Rounds 4 & 5 (ding! ding!)

Not to turn this into a busking blog but:

That's been the biggest musical whatever happnin' in Dr. Confusion's world so - here's a collection of observations and anecdotes from rounds 4 & 5 of the great Busking Adventure of the Naughties.

• I'm starting to really dig it, and I start looking forward to my sundays playing at the Ballard farmer's market all week.
• So many kids
• so many dogs!
  
• every dog wants to sniff and maybe pee on the hat.
• 95% white men (who are not dads who have their kids with them) in their 20's are too cool for school and never smile, stop and listen, or toss coins. I think they must all be guitarists too.
• Kids are the secret to steady change - they stop and stare, and the 'rents give them a quarter to drop in...it's a whole procedure...it's fun...i'm going to be learnign some Leadbelly kids songs (the good ones) to tailor to the wee beasties.
  
• Round 4:
• was total fun.
• I got dressed up with a tie and my granddad's jacket
• Right off the bat a guy comes up and says (seriously): " you have the air of the british isles about you. What part are you from?" I replied " I'm from Easley, South Carolina" and he seemed surprised. what fun! - song I was playing one of my new work's in progress which is a John Fahey'd up version of Zeppelin's Bron-Yr-Aur.
• I hit a particularly good stretch on John Hurt's Big Leg Blues and a bunch of young kids started gathering around and actually dancing. that was crazy.
• the one wee wee toddler went up to the hat and lifted it - he found out it jingled onnacounta the change in there and jiggled it once or twice and then full on slung the hat as far up as he could so all the change could clang down and the bills drifted back to earth.
• The poor mom - she was worried and asked the kid to help her put the money back, but the kid was totally pre-verbal and just was looking around. she was all "i'm sorry" and i answered - "don't worry, that was HILARIOUS."
• A nice couple stopped by and said they like the playing and I was extra thrilled at that cause i was doing a stretch of GoA songs. w00t!
  
• The empire ice cream guys across the street from me dropped a dollar in and said they liked the set list (sweet!). So after I packed up I asked them what they liked (costello, Nashville skyline era dylan, maybe some more BRUUUUUUCE!) and didn't (not much, just don't play all along the watchtower 7 times in a row, like some people do {check!})
• Then they gave me a free pint of Peach Sorbet. SCORE!
• It rained most of the day and the strings got hard to play - but it was fun...i wondered if I felt like the Edge felt when they made Live at Red Rocks. god that video was awesome.
• Round 5 (ding! ding!)
• Got there late.
• totally lost my voice and steam like, an hour into it (drag)
• Just not on my A-game.
• Started with my new fully learned "Prodigal Son" which i've been wanting to learn how to play for ummm....20 years. (yep. since i was 10 at least)
• (shout out to Rev. Wilkins for being such a genius!)
  
• Right off the bat got into a discussion with a nice new mom about Mississippi John Hurt and she recommended that tribute album that i want to listen to. I asked her if she wanted to hear "big Leg Blues" again, and she said yes...so I played it again, and she left (husband/partner stopped by and dropped some change, thanks!) and as she was leaving said in what seemed to be honesty: "You play very well, you're very talented" and I was just beaming.
  
• After I tried to play "beulah land" but I had the I IV V right, but not the right capo/chords - oh well.
  
• Empire Ice cream guy dropped a dollar after "Tonight, I'll be Staying here with you" and said "That is the greatest love song in the world" Fucking right it is.
• My hat was pretty anemic on the money front till this guy wandered over as I was finishing up a song. He wanted to see what kind of guitar. I showed him, and he was like, "Humph! well...." as if that was a super fancy guitar. It is. And it was a gift (and the gifter didn't pay the list price, that's for sure). and I treasure it. and play the shit out of it. So i said "Yep. It's a martin, I want these songs to sound good to y'all, y'know?" and he did the head tilt/shrug thing that means "good point" in american non-verbal language. and I asked did he want to hear something in particular. He said "No, but how about a ballad? from the 70's or 60's?" I said how about one from the mid 50's? Cause I was just about to play "Long Black Veil". He stepped EVEN closer to hear it and i was getting nervous...so i just tried to keep as steady a beat as I could and sing it solid. I do it basically the Lefty Frizelle version but try to incorporate some of the Welch and Rawling's bits too. He dug it and when it got to the 3rd verse and it's clear what's going on he gave a little "woo" when he understood the action. and then he pulled out a five and made sure I saw it go into the hat. He said "Good job, learn some Eric Clapton" - I'm thinking he wanted to hear "Wonderful Tonight" but i don't think I'm going to learn that.
• I think the market folks like that I stick around and play while they are packing up - rather than bailing as soon as the market's over and the customers leave. I like that too and want to keep doing that...I hope they like it...they don't really talk to me...but i overheard two workers talking and they looked my way and one said "I know, I love it" to the other one...and I THINK they were talking about me...but who knows.
• I want to learn SO many more songs now... and really really really KNOW them...
• I still need to keep working on my game...there's a lot more guitaring i could be doing, and my singing STILL needs a year or two's study and work 40 hours a week. ooohhh it's a fickle thing, my voice...it needs a LOT of work.

So that's what's happening - i'm still scouring my record collection to find songs I want to do and learn. This has been a great adventure and I really hope to continue to get better and better.

whew!