Things you often Wonder

[Seat68]

I know I am closed minded with regards Reggae and Dub, but on the whole I will and do listen to everything. I buy a very broad cross section. Radio is purely country music but I am willing to give anything a shot. I was however very very tribal. My record collection was at one point indie, not mainstream indie, the more obscure the better. Some from other genres but not much. I think what changed was I got less serious, embraced more the music I liked and potentially, got older. That last point has been a huge positive I think, when it comes to what I listen to now. 

[sharkyvilla]

1 hour ago, mjmooney said:

Well, there you go. Someone who likes Pixies and SB&Q. It's a mystery. 

I'm surprised you don't like Here Comes Your Man at least, it's a nice jangly guitar pop song.

 

[tonyh29]

Music is all about familiarity isn't it ?  ... your favourite band bring out a new song and its kinda crap , but its your favourite band so you give it another dozen plays and eventually find that you quite like it  ...

Whereas if its anything @bickster posts i know it is going to be shit and don't bother giving it a play  .

 

Arms of Mary , has a bit going on that I could see myself playing steering wheel guitar to if it came on the radio whilst i was driving  , but if it came on iTunes i'd reach for skip button   .. for some reason it also reminds me of Lyin' eyes by the Eagles  ? Maybe its just me though

[Seat68]

36 minutes ago, tonyh29 said:

Music is all about familiarity isn't it ?  ... your favourite band bring out a new song and its kinda crap , but its your favourite band so you give it another dozen plays and eventually find that you quite like it  ...

Whereas if its anything @bickster posts i know it is going to be shit and don't bother giving it a play  .

 

Arms of Mary , has a bit going on that I could see myself playing steering wheel guitar to if it came on the radio whilst i was driving  , but if it came on iTunes i'd reach for skip button   .. for some reason it also reminds me of Lyin' eyes by the Eagles  ? Maybe its just me though

I played arms of mary yesterday to see if I was as deluded and stupid and had ears full of mince like other people. Lying eyes came on after it. Gospel that. 

[tonyh29]

13 minutes ago, Seat68 said:

I played arms of mary yesterday to see if I was as deluded and stupid and had ears full of mince like other people. Lying eyes came on after it. Gospel that. 

I'd have classed it as soft rock rather than Gospel tbh

Edited June 26, 2020 by tonyh29

[bickster]

24 minutes ago, tonyh29 said:

I'd have classed it as utter shit rather than Gospel tbh

You know I'm right

[mjmooney]

2 hours ago, sharkyvilla said:

I'm surprised you don't like Here Comes Your Man at least, it's a nice jangly guitar pop song.

 

It's ploddy. Weedy vocals, weedy guitars. Too much Velvet Underground influence for me. 

[tonyh29]

5 minutes ago, mjmooney said:

It's ploddy. Weedy vocals, weedy guitars. Too much Velvet Underground influence for me. 

this is a  much better song by them IMO   , peaked at  a massive number 60 in the UK

 

[bickster]

Tsk, I win

 

[chrisp65]

Pixies have completely passed me by, yet my best gig buddy absolutely loves them. But he has to find other gig buddies for Pixies, I can’t be arsed.

They did a signing in Spillers recently and I got an invite to go along for a chat, which I declined. I was half way through telling this anecdotes to...... my ...... mate......when I realised...... he ......doesn’t matter, nothing, who wants another coffee.

 

 

[blandy]

4 hours ago, mjmooney said:

Still on topic with "Arms of Mary" (and "Doolittle", for that matter) I often wonder what it is that shapes our strong likes and dislikes in... well, all sorts of things. 

I didn't expect the (even slightly younger) VTers to like AoM, but I was quite surprised at the level of dislike. I mean, yeah, it's typical mid-70s soft rock/AOR, not exactly fashionable, but it's surely no worse than other examples of the genre? I mean, people still seem to rate the **** ing Carpenters, going on about Karen's lovely voice, but I think they were utter shite - one good single, and that only because of the guitar solo. And why do I hate 80s post punk so much, when people whose views I respect love it passionately? It's not just age, as I know plenty of people whose tastes don't match up to their supposed generational preferences. 

My theory (untested) is that radio plays a big part of it. I mean at the age most people started becoming interested in music (rather than something on in the background), for me at least I wasn't the chooser of radio station. So a lot of the music I heard, to start with was that 1970s radio 2 stuff that I hate. Then when I got the chance to listen to my "own" music radio, I'd tune around on the dial and find stuff that was different - whether it be BRMB in the evenings - Robin Valk would play loads of alternative stuff and punk when that came in and what's now called "classic" rock - and I liked it. Peel on Radio 1 too, though with less of a hit rate with me. I think partly because the music was "new" it was interesting. I'm still like that - new stuff interests me, though I'm struggling to find much new stuff this year that grabs me.

Back to that AoR shite @Seat68 posted, it's the sound of it that grates - the production, the voice, the instruments - everything. There's nothing there lyrically either. It's not dark, it's not angry, it's not sad or happy, or whistful or funny or odd - it's just....meh, with a catchy bit (that I also don't like).

People wouldn't be allowed to like that sort of thing if I was King of the World. No, that's wrong, they'd be made to like it, so they rebelled against it and liked something else, better. 

 

[Seat68]

14 minutes ago, blandy said:

My theory (untested) is that radio plays a big part of it. I mean at the age most people started becoming interested in music (rather than something on in the background), for me at least I wasn't the chooser of radio station. So a lot of the music I heard, to start with was that 1970s radio 2 stuff that I hate. Then when I got the chance to listen to my "own" music radio, I'd tune around on the dial and find stuff that was different - whether it be BRMB in the evenings - Robin Valk would play loads of alternative stuff and punk when that came in and what's now called "classic" rock - and I liked it. Peel on Radio 1 too, though with less of a hit rate with me. I think partly because the music was "new" it was interesting. I'm still like that - new stuff interests me, though I'm struggling to find much new stuff this year that grabs me.

Back to that AoR shite @Seat68 posted, it's the sound of it that grates - the production, the voice, the instruments - everything. There's nothing there lyrically either. It's not dark, it's not angry, it's not sad or happy, or whistful or funny or odd - it's just....meh, with a catchy bit (that I also don't like).

People wouldn't be allowed to like that sort of thing if I was King of the World. No, that's wrong, they'd be made to like it, so they rebelled against it and liked something else, better. 

 

I think I will listen to some Crass, get me rebellious spirit up. 

[sharkyvilla]

46 minutes ago, mjmooney said:

It's ploddy. Weedy vocals, weedy guitars. Too much Velvet Underground influence for me. 

Fair enough.  I reckon it's one of the albums that basically invented the sound that the rest of the 90s guitar music would follow and signalled the end of the cultural holocaust that was the 80s.

[mjmooney]

1 hour ago, sharkyvilla said:

Fair enough.  I reckon it's one of the albums that basically invented the sound that the rest of the 90s guitar music would follow and signalled the end of the cultural holocaust that was the 80s.

Yeah, it does sound like a bridge from the 80s to the 90s. The 90s was a bit of a relief for me, as it suddenly became more acceptable to display a range of 60s/70s influences again (Beatles, Stones, Kinks, Byrds, Doors, etc.) In the 80s, the only influences permissable from that era seemed to be the pernicious trio of Kraftwerk, George Clinton and the Velvets (none of which were particularly among my favourites). 

Edited June 26, 2020 by mjmooney

[Stevo985]

On 25/06/2020 at 17:42, Seat68 said:

Now I am concerned that Arms of Mary might have passed you people, yeah, you people by. 
Its a fantastic chunk of soft rock. 

 

I’m late to the discussion. But I’m another one who has never heard of this song. Or the Sutherland brothers. 
 

And having listened to it I don’t recognise it either. Pretty sure it’s the first time I’ve ever heard it

Edited June 26, 2020 by Stevo985

[mjmooney]

12 minutes ago, Stevo985 said:

I’m late to the discussion. But I’m another one who has never heard of this song. Or the Sutherland brothers. 
 

And having listened to it I don’t recognise it either. Pretty sure it’s the first time I’ve ever heard it

We are truly on different planets. Like it or loathe it, that song is one of many that are woven into my very consciousness. 

[bickster]

3 hours ago, mjmooney said:

Yeah, it does sound like a bridge from the 80s to the 90s. The 90s was a bit of a relief for me, as it suddenly became more acceptable to display a range of 60s/70s influences again (Beatles, Stones, Kinks, Byrds, Doors, etc.) In the 80s, the only influences permissable from that era seemed to be the pernicious trio of Kraftwerk, George Clinton and the Velvets (none of which were particularly among my favourites). 

Sorry but you were listening to the wrong 80's bands

Echo and the Bunnymen, possibly one of the "biggest" bands of that period were steeped in the Doors / Beatles / Stones / Byrds. Hell they even covered most of them. McCullogh even used to sort of adlib others lyrics live and Dylan frequently featured. The velvets did too but never Clinton or Kraftwerk. They've even recorded  and released covers by the Beatles and the Doors. I've seen them do Paint it Black as a cover. WIll Sergeant is a huge Psyche fan, always has been. McCullogh was more Bowie / Dylan / Patti Smith

And as the Bunnymen were the leaders of that particular style of "alternative" music, many other bands followed that lead.

Could you get less like the Byrds than the La's? The Pale Fountains were the reincarnation of Love

And I'm only mentioning bands from the 80's from one city here off the top of my head

That statement is just so wrong. I literally discovered the bands you mention through music in the 80s

[mjmooney]

10 minutes ago, bickster said:

Sorry but you were listening to the wrong 80's bands

Echo and the Bunnymen, possibly one of the "biggest" bands of that period were steeped in the Doors / Beatles / Stones / Byrds. Hell they even covered most of them. McCullogh even used to sort of adlib others lyrics live and Dylan frequently featured. The velvets did too but never Clinton or Kraftwerk. They've even recorded  and released covers by the Beatles and the Doors. I've seen them do Paint it Black as a cover. WIll Sergeant is a huge Psyche fan, always has been. McCullogh was more Bowie / Dylan / Patti Smith

And as the Bunnymen were the leaders of that particular style of "alternative" music, many other bands followed that lead.

Could you get less like the Byrds than the La's? The Pale Fountains were the reincarnation of Love

And I'm only mentioning bands from the 80's from one city here off the top of my head

That statement is just so wrong. I literally discovered the bands you mention through music in the 80s

I agree with every word. I liked the La's and the Bunnymen (and the Roses), but let's face it, they were outliers. Didn't rate them as much as the originals, but still. Likewise, there were some decent American bands carrying the torch - REM were the big ones, but there were also Green on Red, The Long Ryders, The Bangles, Rain Parade, Los Lobos, and the other paisley underground bands. But they weren't really threatening the charts of the mainstream media. As much as I find them a bit limited, it was Oasis who made the breakthrough. 

Edited June 26, 2020 by mjmooney

[bickster]

15 minutes ago, mjmooney said:

I liked the La's and the Bunnymen (and the Roses), but let's face it, they were outliers.

Mike, they really weren't outliers. They pretty much defined the period along with the Cure (No velvets / kraftwerk et al here) and a few others. REM on the other hand did record at least three Velvets covers (all are on Dead Letter Office).

I find your dislike of 80's music quite fascinating tbh. I think it's because of Leeds tbh  Now if you said you didn't like the music coming out of Leeds in the eighties I might agre. SIsters of Mercy, Red Lorry Yellow Lorry etc

What about Orange Juice? Aztec Camera?or even Prefab Sprout?

The Smiths? they were just a rockabilly version of The Byrds with a knobhead for a singer

[Seat68]

33 minutes ago, bickster said:

Sorry but you were listening to the wrong 80's bands

Echo and the Bunnymen, possibly one of the "biggest" bands of that period were steeped in the Doors / Beatles / Stones / Byrds. Hell they even covered most of them. McCullogh even used to sort of adlib others lyrics live and Dylan frequently featured. The velvets did too but never Clinton or Kraftwerk. They've even recorded  and released covers by the Beatles and the Doors. I've seen them do Paint it Black as a cover. WIll Sergeant is a huge Psyche fan, always has been. McCullogh was more Bowie / Dylan / Patti Smith

And as the Bunnymen were the leaders of that particular style of "alternative" music, many other bands followed that lead.

Could you get less like the Byrds than the La's? The Pale Fountains were the reincarnation of Love

And I'm only mentioning bands from the 80's from one city here off the top of my head

That statement is just so wrong. I literally discovered the bands you mention through music in the 80s

One of the best covers I have ever heard was the Bunnymen covering All You Need Is Love. How does that cover sit with you, not trying to trip you up, just think the entire work is exceptional.