Industrial music, Sylvian, etc.

[Susanne E Trowbridge <umcp-cs!jhunix!ins_aset@seismo.CSS.GOV>]

> Anyway, there seems
>to be many good bands doing fantastic industrial dance music these days
>that just blow Cab Volt's recent stuff away, try Hula, Skinny Puppy and
>all those bands Doug raves about. Maybe Cab Volt should retire? :-) What
>does Sue have to say about this?

>Bill

Truth be told, I avoided any "industrial strengh" music like the plague
'til I met my boyfriend 2 1/2 years ago...he's totally devoted to all
of the above, as well as Severed Heads, Mark Stewart and the Maffia,
etc.  I now have a fair amount of industrial music in my collection,
including Mark Stewart's latest, "Learning to Cope with Cowardice,"
which I have listened to, er, twice.  I can't help it if I prefer to 
curl up with a nice Cocteau Twins or Smiths record!!

However, I GENUINELY enjoy a great deal of Severed Heads' music,
I think Hula's "Fevercar" is dead cool, and the charms of Skinny
Puppy totally escape me (sorry Greg) at least on vinyl.  I hear
they are supposed to be mindblowing live and I shall certainly try
to catch their concert with the S. Heads this winter (with my luck,
they'll hit this area between 25 - 29 November, the dates I am
going to be out of town).  My mind may be changed.

And Cabaret Voltaire should not retire as long as they are capable
of producing something as divine as the "I Want You" 12".


>From: Robert Stanzel <apollo!rps>

>  which Japan material should I start off with,
>given that I love "Brilliant Trees"?  This could be a hard question given
>the mix of styles on BT, but give it a try.

"Tin Drum."  "Tin Drum."  "Tin Drum."

>From: Joe Turner <cutter%umass-boston.csnet@CSNET-RELAY.ARPA>

>Ran into someone today who mentioned that the Sonic Youth were about to
>release their cover version of the whole of the Beatles' ``White Album''.
>Is this true?

I've heard that rumor meself, but that's all it is -- a rumor.
They have just released a 7" under the name Ciccone
Youth (Madonna's last name is Ciccone) covering one of 
Maddy's songs from her first album.  A friend of mine bought
it Saturday...I'll ask him what it's like.

By the way, I think it was very cool of Robert "I am the dean of
American rock critics" Christgau to put SY's "I Killed Christgau
With My Big F*ckin Dick" on his best-of-the-year list.

>Good news (in IED's opinion): Sylvian says that the
>interest in minimalism and "purity" of expression
>(by which IED assumes he is referring to the relatively
>low-tech ambient instrumental stuff which he has
>lately been producing in such volume) "reaches a
>conclusion" with Gone To Earth. Very fine music, but
>considering how little music was actually recorded
>during the Tin Drum period, Sylvian has now dwelt long
>enough in the brilliance of trees, don't you agree?

I just paid $17.99 for my hot copy of "Gone To Earth" and
listened to it about eight times (yeah, even the instrumental
stuff) over the weekend.  The first couple of listens I was
a bit disappointed, as snoozy new age music isn't my thing,
but I like it more now.  It is very good accompaniment to
do crossword puzzles to, anyway, which means I'll probably
be listening to it a lot.  (Any other crossword freaks out
there who care to ponder puzzle standbys like "aval," "oast"
and "raun"?  Ever found any use for these words?)

I'll try to think of something intelligent to say about
"Gone To Earth" later, but what's most immediately apparent
to me is the lack of something as memorable as "Red Guitar"
or "Pulling Punches" from "Brilliant Trees"...

Here's a money-making idea for some enterprising Love-Hound.
KATERCISE!  I'm taking Aerobic Dance again this semester, and
to my dismay, we're working out to the same dismal Tina Turner
and Michael Jackson songs we danced to last spring.  It would
be more fun to stretch to, say, "The Man With The Child In His
Eyes" and progress up to "The Big Sky" 12"...People have started
aerobic classes to Christian and jazz and big band music, so
why not to Kate music?  It could make "going for the burn" less
painful!

-Sue