EM Survey 4 (Part 08 of 19)

[datta@vacs.uwp.wisc.edu (David Datta)]

                Eclectic Music Survey #4 Results

Survey Posting                                      February 1990

Part 8 of 19 (Thru Eurythmics)


Devo

     THE band.  No record collection is complete without "Are We Not Men",
     "Duty Now For the Future", "Freedom of Choice" and "Live EP."  Heck, you
     need to own them all.
          - James Martin <martin@cpsc.UCalgary.CA>

     Bizarre college guys who were extremely bored with popular music and set
     about redefining it in a dilapidatedly futuristic style. Looking
     thoroughly uncool in their yellow jump suits, they helped redefine
     sartorial style at the same time. Albums got steadily more boring, but
     their impact was great.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

     First time I saw them (on SNL 10/78) thought they're the closest thing
     to Sparks, as far as being quirky, that I'd ever seen. They give a good
     concert, have gone from Westchester to Trenton to see `em. Still, I
     don't love everything they do. But I do wear an Energy Dome every
     Halloween.
          - Paul Mount prm@whutt.att.com

     Great stuff.
          - John Gateley gateley@m2.csc.ti.com

     Headed for obscuredom. The early stuff's the best and they haven't had
     a respectable album in the past three (though Ivan Ivan's mixes of
     "Disco Dancer" are killer). No offense, boys, but maybe it's time to
     devolve *musically* too?
          - Lazlo Nibble lazlo@ariel.unm.edu

     I used to think Devo had no reason for existence (I liked them though)
     until I heard a few songs that actually seem to have a meaning (some are
     well- hidden). I consider Devo to be one of the more innovative bands
     for its time, and also an example of why Punk and New Wave were two
     totally different things.
          - Bill White bwhite@oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu

     loved "Q:Are we not men? A: We are Devo!"
          - Chris Koenigsberg ckk+@andrew.cmu.edu

     The spud boys! The last album was a bit disappointing, although it took
     quite a while for "Shout" to grow on me. Could it be time for a change?
     Industrial Devo perhaps?
          - Stephen K Mulrine
          smulrine%computer-science.strathclyde.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

Al Di Meola

     Chick Corea and Stanley Clarke's Return to Forever originally had Bill
     Connors as guitarist, who left. They replaced him with Al DiMeola, who
     plays real fast but lacks sublety.
          - Chris Koenigsberg ckk+@andrew.cmu.edu

     Expert acoustic guitarist with prediliction for Spanish- sounding
     figures.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

     _Dinner Music of the Gods_ is a hell of a song.
          - Russ Levreault RLEVREAULT@EAGLE.WESLEYAN.EDU

Diamonda Galas

     what exactly *should* a voice sound like? she screams, she rants, she
     read passages from the bible and plays distorted guitar and piano. kinda
     cool.
          - del Amitri del@ab.ecn.purdue.edu

     great voice, great Satanic songs.
          - Chris Koenigsberg ckk+@andrew.cmu.edu

Manu Dibango

     African drums.
          - Chris Koenigsberg ckk+@andrew.cmu.edu

Dissidenten

     Dissidenten is a German band from West Berlin. They usually collaborate
     with musicians from other continents. I have their album "Sahara
     Elektrik", recorded in Morocco with the Moroccan trio Lem Chaheb.
     Energetic, dance-oriented, non-trivial. I saw them live in Denmark two
     years ago, this time with Algerian musicians, and I wasn't disappointed
     ! Check them out !
          - Hans Huttel  hans%lfcs.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

DJ Doktor Megatrip
DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince

     Does this count as music?
          - David Caldwell macs!dfc@bikini.cis.ufl.edu

     I know Jeff only from the video for "I Can Take Mike Tyson". Pretty
     funny stuff.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

     Their rap is quite different and more jazzy. Very good
          - Hussein Yahia hussein@bora.inria.fr

DJ Prince Ice

     Made some good mixes of Hip House.
          - Hussein Yahia hussein@bora.inria.fr

Dominique
     The singing nun? Blecch, should be restricted to girl scout campfires.
          - John Gateley gateley@m2.csc.ti.com

Double Fantasy

     The only group I have heard that can actually sound like Tangerine
     Dream. Do others feel this way? Some of the drum beats sound exactly
     like something Franke would come up with. Needless to say, I really like
     the group. Recommendations: _Food For Thought_
          - Steven Seidman sseidman@polyslo.CalPoly.EDU (The MIDIman)

Double Trouble and the rebel MC

     Initiators (among others) of Ska House. We like their "Keep Rock'in".
          - Hussein Yahia hussein@bora.inria.fr

Geoffrey Downes

     Ex Buggle and Asia person. What's his album 'The Light Programme' like?
          - Alan Crawford awrc%lfcs.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     I have a tape of his "New Dance Orchestra" release, and it's really
     pretty good instrumental stuff. Liked him better with Buggles though.
          - Lazlo Nibble lazlo@ariel.unm.edu

     Keyboardist for Buggles, Asia, and Yes for one album, "Drama"
          - Christopher Waldemar Bochna cb2w+@andrew.cmu.edu

Will Downing

     I found "A love supreme" fantastic and terrific.
          - Hussein Yahia hussein@bora.inria.fr

Downy Mildew

     watch out for these guys. male & female singers over intense guitar pop.
          - del Amitri del@ab.ecn.purdue.edu

Dr. Derelict

     London Acid House groove.
          - Hussein Yahia hussein@bora.inria.fr

Duran Duran

     Actually, their first two albums were fairly good music. Not great, but
     at least listenable. Then came their third album, which I couldn't stand
     and which got them *lots* of airplay. Bletch.
          - Richard Caley rjc%cstr.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     dull synth disco.
          - Chris Koenigsberg ckk+@andrew.cmu.edu

     Early stuff is okay, but they got popular.
          - John Gateley gateley@m2.csc.ti.com

     Great production and mixes on all their albums, but are much to busy
     with soul-searching on their latest album to be any fun. At their best
     when exploring the dark realms of glamour.
          - Wingerde van FJ fjvwing@cs.vu.nl

     Haircut band.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

     I like a very few of their songs (only one comes to mind -- "Hungry Like
     the Wolf"); but they (like other "pop" bands) seemed to be too concerned
     with duplicating previous success. IMHO (completely unsubstantiated),
     when bands become successful, they tend to do that because they now have
     an interest in preserving the money they just made.
          - Bill White bwhite@oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu

     liked em on their first album before teenage girls discovered them. I
     think they have had it. Time for a career.
          - Paul Mount prm@whutt.att.com

     Suprisingly the first two albums are good. Damn, there goes my street
     cred...
          - Richard Caley rjc%cstr.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     Teenage popular music at best, trash at worst.
          - Frank J. Schima francis@pawl.rpi.edu

     Yet another early '80s band that gets no respect even though they did
     some very cool stuff when they were hitting it big. RIO is one of the
     classiest spins of the decade, surely.
          - Lazlo Nibble lazlo@ariel.unm.edu

Bob Dylan

     Everybody Must Get Stoned.
          - Chris Koenigsberg ckk+@andrew.cmu.edu

     Great songwriter, but couldn't sing his way out of a paper bag. Dylan's
     songs are best when performed by someone besides Dylan.
          - Richard Caley rjc%cstr.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     He should probably get an award for longevity if for nothing else. His
     voice may be annoying at times, but he writes some of the most
     intelligent lyrics I've ever heard. "Blonde on Blonde" and "Blood on the
     Tracks" are especially good.
          - rmiller@sbcs.sunysb.edu

     I like him more as I get older. When he started I couldn't get past the
     whiny voice and harmonica. But I always loved the covers of his songs by
     The Byrds, Peter, Paul & Mary, Gordon Lightfoot and The Turtles.
          - Paul Maclauchlan moore!paul@uunet.UU.NET

     Jeez, what's left to say? Probably the greatest writer in pop history,
     but frustratingly inconsistent in the later years. As seminal as Elvis
     was in his time.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

     Some good songs, despite his singing. He's a good song writer but his
     music is too slow for me in general.
          - Frank J. Schima francis@pawl.rpi.edu

Eagles

     I enjoyed their sound until Joe Walsh joined.
          - Paul Maclauchlan moore!paul@uunet.UU.NET

     Successors to the Byrds/CSN style of So. California folk rock. Lots of
     desert and cowboy imagery in a more or less pared down rock sound, at
     least for the '70s. Later evolved into a more grandiose outfit with
     "Hotel California", which one is guaranteed to hear once a day on the
     radio here.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

Sheena Easton

     Good looking (and so is Shiela E). Shiela E's music is better, Sheena
     Eastons is just pop.
          - John Gateley gateley@m2.csc.ti.com

     Her "101" is terrific!
          - Hussein Yahia hussein@bora.inria.fr

     Nice voice and thanks to the 'Lover in Me' video we now know: nice body.
     Her attempt at singing '101' was pathetic, she can't scream from
     heartache. Needs a good team arround her.
          - Wingerde van FJ fjvwing@cs.vu.nl

     Scottish siren.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

Easy E

     The shocking Rap of NWA. Very good singer and rapper.
          - Hussein Yahia hussein@bora.inria.fr

Echo and the Bunnymen

     Another band on my "to listen to" list.
          - John Gateley gateley@m2.csc.ti.com

     OK, but monotonous.
          - Chris Koenigsberg ckk+@andrew.cmu.edu

     Their "Ocean Rain" from 1984 is one of the best albums of the decade. I
     bought it just after a very heavy exam and I have been fond of it ever
     since.
          - Hans Huttel  hans%lfcs.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     Very sad to see them go. It's about all I can say...
          - Valerie valerie@athena.mit.edu
Julia Ecklar

     Mostly unknown outside filk circles, she has tremendous vocal power and
     versitility. I'm surprised some big-time label hasn't hired her for
     background vocals, at least; her talent is impressive.
          - Tom Gryn TAG2@PSUVM.PSU.EDU

The Edge

     Monotonous guitarist for U2.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

     U2's guitar player. Slow playing, lots of echo.
          - Chris Koenigsberg ckk+@andrew.cmu.edu

Max Eider

     ex 2nd guitarist fo the jazz butcher does some lounge-y sarcastic love
     songs. a good purchase.
          - del Amitri del@ab.ecn.purdue.edu

Einsturzende Neubauten

     this is industrial. straight up. pounding on highway overpasses with air
     hammers. cutting sheetmetal. screaming in german. not as annoying as it
     might sound, these guys and brilliant.
          - del Amitri del@ab.ecn.purdue.edu

Hanns Eisler & Bertolt Brecht

     Brecht wrote "Mack the Knife", contender for all-time coolest song.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

Elements

     If I recall correctly, this is the duo of Danny Gottlieb and Mark Egan,
     both formerly of the Pat Metheny Group. Guess which jazz group they
     sound most like....
          - Richard Caley rjc%cstr.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

Danny Elfman

     Fascinating, isn't it, how the same guy can be responsible for both the
     Batman soundtrack (some of the best pseudo-classical music I've heard in
     a long time) and the weird stuff Oingo Boingo used to do? If nothing
     else, he wins big points for musical diversity?
          - Richard Caley rjc%cstr.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     His current Oingo Boingo work is kind of lame, but his BATMAN sound-
     track was a very enjoyable listen.
          - Chris Chavez ccmchris@pollux.ucdavis.edu

     TWISTED boy, from Boingo to his soundtracks. PEE-WEE'S BIG ADVENTURE and
     BATMAN and MIDNIGHT RUN are all so completely different but they all
     kick ass in their own different ways. Movie Music Man for the '90s,
     watch it.
          - Lazlo Nibble lazlo@ariel.unm.edu

Eloy
     So, someone besides me has heard of them! Words fail! Plannets/Time to
     Turn are among the best albums I have heard. Metromania is.... well....
     manic. RA, unfortunatly, contains too many re-hashed earlier ideas. The
     imports ( to the UK ) by Heavy meatal International some of Rodney
     Mathews' best covers.
          - Richard Caley rjc%cstr.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

Emerald Web

     California based duo, playing electronic and flute music in the "New
     Age" genre (whatever that is :-). Their album _Catspaw_ is highly
     recommended, and impossible to find since Audion/JEM went bankrupt.
          - Richard Caley rjc%cstr.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

Kieth Emerson

     Classically-trained keyboardist known for stealing riffs from classical
     biggies. Originally in the Nazz (the Nice?) and went on to found...
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

     I've lumped these three together since no matter whether it was Keith
     Emerson by himself, with the Nice, or with either ELP, it was still
     basically the same sort of music. Heavy on the synthesizer and organ,
     stealing every piece of classical music that wasn't nailed down, and a
     whole lot of fun to listen to.
          - Richard Caley rjc%cstr.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     One of the greatest keyboardists around, good concerts.
          - John Gateley gateley@m2.csc.ti.com

Emerson Lake & Palmer

     Another guilty pleasure. I wish their CD re-releases were better
     mastered.
          - Russ Levreault RLEVREAULT@EAGLE.WESLEYAN.EDU

     Art rock writ larger. The darker side of Yes.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

     Fantastic!!!! Emerson on KBs, Palmer on Drums, all that classical
     stealing ... uh .. I mean influence.
          - John Gateley gateley@m2.csc.ti.com

     great group. Loved "Tarkus", "Pictures At An Exhibition".
          - Chris Koenigsberg ckk+@andrew.cmu.edu

Emerson Lake & Powell

     A mistake.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

     Not too bad, Powell was interesting in the ELPo concert.
          - John Gateley gateley@m2.csc.ti.com

The Enid

     A very unusual type of band. Their sound could be described as
     "classical with heavy guitar and traces of opera"! They had constant
     arguments with their record companies & eventually formed their own
     label. They split 2 years ago. Best albums that I've heard are "In The
     Region of the Summer Stars" & "The Spell".
          - Iain Smith & Jonathan Habrovitsky
          jhabrovi%computer-science.strathclyde.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

Brian Eno

     Always liked MUSIC FOR AIRPORTS as BGM . . .
          - Lazlo Nibble lazlo@ariel.unm.edu

     Electronic-dependant weirdo who ranges from extremely airy sound
     collages to grinding, crunching rock. Has played in Roxy Music and the
     short-lived 801, and with Fripp and Byrne.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

     Roxy Music's electronic noise/synth player. Went out on his own and did
     great stuff. "Here Come the Warm Jets", "Another Green World", "Taking
     Tiger Mountain by Strategy", and "Before & After Science" are my
     favorites - they're all rock-oriented. He's done lots of weirder stuff
     since.
          - Chris Koenigsberg ckk+@andrew.cmu.edu

Enya

     Both her albums _Watermark_ and _Enya_ are excellent. Sorta mixture of
     Celtic music and synthesizer-based New Age. Trivia bonus: her full name,
     in Gaelic, is Eithne Ni Bhraonain. No wonder she goes by "Enya" on all
     her albums...
          - Richard Caley rjc%cstr.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     Got out of Clannad in time to avoid BBCism. Sounds like elevator music
     but it gets to you.
          - Richard Caley rjc%cstr.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     Try playing both her albums after another. They have their moments but
     are rememebered as a blurr of Muzak.
          - Wingerde van FJ fjvwing@cs.vu.nl

     Two wonderful albums, very mellow but strong. Nothing mushy here just
     plain relaxing music. Added lyrics to New_Age music :-).
          - David Caldwell macs!dfc@bikini.cis.ufl.edu

     Very nice, and soothing new age. Watermark is one of my favorite albums.
     Pleaseant piano, and light string sounds. The music just kind of flows.
     Recommendations: _Watermark_
          - Steven Seidman sseidman@polyslo.CalPoly.EDU (The MIDIman)

     Very relaxing, new-age type music. Good to meditate with, also good to
     go to sleep with, but not boring. I wish I knew what the lyrics meant.
          - Bill White bwhite@oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu

     Very very *nice* stuff. If you like the idea of nice you prolly like
     Enya.
          - Lazlo Nibble lazlo@ariel.unm.edu

     Wonderful voice.
          - Russ Levreault RLEVREAULT@EAGLE.WESLEYAN.EDU

Erasure

     First albums were good, each gets progressively worse (Is that why they
     call it progressive? :-) ).
          - David Caldwell macs!dfc@bikini.cis.ufl.edu

     One of Britain's biggest exporters of synth-pop, and one of the only
     bands of that sort to survive the 80s. The guys in Erasure are
     homosexual, but none of their lyrics reflect that -- in fact, they try
     to be very universal with their lyrics, so that everyone can relate. If
     you like synth-pop in general, you'll like Erasure.
          - Anton C Shepps (Tony)
          rochester!moscom!telesci!ashepps%ll-xn.UUCP@cs.wisc.edu

     Their best stuff, IMHO, always seems to be on the B-sides . . . "Like
     Zsa Zsa Gabor", "Sweet, Sweet Baby" . . . too prolific on the releases
     for their own damn good, too!
          - Lazlo Nibble lazlo@ariel.unm.edu

     Vince Clark's tunes are fun but Andy Bell has one of the most irritating
     voices in the business..shame..
          - Stephen K Mulrine
          smulrine%computer-science.strathclyde.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

Eurythmics

     A great example of linear droop. In The Garden was great, each sucessive
     album a little worse.
          - Richard Caley rjc%cstr.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     Credit for trying to be innovating. Credit for very often succeding in
     their efforts. Wonderfull vocals.
          - Wingerde van FJ fjvwing@cs.vu.nl

     Dave Stewart and Annie Lennox. The remnants of another band, the
     Tourists. Stewart handles the production and some guitars while Lennox
     provides superbly soulful vocals and stage presence.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

     disco group, but did a good soundtrack for remake of "1984".
          - Chris Koenigsberg ckk+@andrew.cmu.edu

     Gone through more shifts in mood and style than I can believe. From the
     Tourists in 1978/79 (?) to We Too Are One today, a fine experience.
          - Kevin Martin sigma@pawl.rpi.edu
     Good stuff, sometimes it just doesn't click with me, but I especially
     like that song "Love is a stranger" of the first album.
          - John Gateley gateley@m2.csc.ti.com

     I never liked them very much. One of their albums a few years ago had a
     rock and roll feel to it and wasn't too bad though.
          - Frank J. Schima francis@pawl.rpi.edu

     I think they got steadily worse with time; my favorite song of theirs is
     still "Sweet Dreams" (love those cows in the video), perhaps because its
     meaning is unclear.
          - Bill White bwhite@oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu

     SWEET DREAMS and 1984 are still faves. Not too vehement about the newer
     stuff, though.
          - Lazlo Nibble lazlo@ariel.unm.edu
--
-Dave 	datta@vacs.uwp.wisc.edu
	....uwm!uwpvacs!datta
	uwpvacs.UUCP!datta@cs.wisc.edu