EM Survey 4 (Part 15 of 19)

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

                Eclectic Music Survey #4 Results

Survey Posting                                      February 1990

Part 15 of 19 (Thru Steve Reich)


Orchestral Manoevers In The Dark

     Are they still on the go? I can't say I'm universally enthusiastic about
     their work, but some of their singles ('Electricity', 'Souvenir' and
     'Genetic Engineering', to name just three) are really good, and I
     wouldn't like to think they've split up.
          - Alan Crawford awrc%lfcs.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     Another band from Ye Good Olde Days. Made excellent singles. "Joan of
     Arc", "Maid of Orleans", "Souvenir", "Enola Gay"..went downhill at a
     rate of knots after "Genetic Engineering". Electronic, semi-lightweight
     (welterweight?)
          - Stephen K Mulrine
          smulrine%computer-science.strathclyde.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     OMD has grown nicely from simple to more complex syth songwriting. synth
     pop at its almost best.
          - del Amitri del@ab.ecn.purdue.edu

Orion The Hunter

     The group in question was (now defunct) known as 'Orion The Hunter '
     (oops, sorry). The only album released was self titled. Orion was headed
     by former Boston guitarist Barry Goudreau (as many know was the only
     original member not to play on the 3rd Stage album). I firmly believe
     that if this record had been released as the third Boston album, it
     would have probably sold more copies than 3rd stage. It is great.
     Personally, I place this album on par with Boston's first album, the
     influence is clearly present. Vocals were done mostly by Fran Cosmo,
     though the lead singer from Boston (I can't remember his name at the
     moment) did a lot of work also. (which is why it sounds a lot like
     Boston too) In my opinion the top three tracks are 1. Dreamin' (a
     definite classic along the lines of Don't Look Back) 2. Stand Up
     (reminiscent of peace of mind) and 3. So You Ran (simply great) Anyway,
     the music isn't a rehash of the tunes on the 1st two Boston records, the
     sound simply shines through. Wonderful stuff. If anyone out there has a
     copy of this (I own an old LP and a very stretched out cassette) on CD,
     PLEASE tell me where you got it. I think this was pre- CD era (1983) so
     it may have never made it that far.
          - PATRICK JEROME O'LEARY JR gt0987c@prism.gatech.edu

The Oyster Band

     The most important English folk-rock group of the 1980's. They have been
     journeying towards a more aggressive, rockish stance over their last
     three albums without losing sight of their roots. "Liberty Hall", "Step
     Outside" and "Ride" are the best albums. Fairport/Steeleye/Thompson fans
     owe it to themselves to check this band out!!!!
          - Ken Josenhans 13020KRJ@MSU.BitNet
P'Cock
Pale Fountains

     _pacific street_ was honest & fresh acoustic-based love songs. the rest
     bite.
          - del Amitri del@ab.ecn.purdue.edu

Parachute Men

     Another group I thought no one else had heard of. Their female vocalist
     has a slightly unique but very good, fairly smooth voice and their album
     "The Innocents" was one of my top ten faves of 89. Looking forward to
     their new album. Hey nobody mentioned For Against.
          - Paul Mount prm@whutt.att.com

Parliament

     george clinton along with funkedelic. ruled the funk charts in the 7Ts.
     still great stuff.
          - del Amitri del@ab.ecn.purdue.edu

Park Ave
The Alan Parsons Project

     I don't normally recommend 'best of' albums, but the 'best of Alan
     Parsons Project' is very good (if not the only stuff worth listening to
     by them).
          - Frank J. Schima francis@pawl.rpi.edu

     More guilty pleasures. For some reason _Turn of a Friendly Card_ is a
     favorite.
          - Russ Levreault RLEVREAULT@EAGLE.WESLEYAN.EDU

Steve Parsons
Harry Partch

     Did some really weird things with percussion to create some quite
     interesting music. Very hard to find these days. Trivia item: You know
     the bits of music they play on Dr. Demento to introduce the Funny Five
     songs, where you hear someone play on the xylophone and say "Number
     Five" (or whatever)? That's from Harry Partch's _Barstow_. Probably
     about as much of the lyrics of _Barstow_ as FCC regs regarding
     unsuitable language would allow one to air, too...
          - Richard Caley rjc%cstr.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     Don't be put off by his reputation as a serious 20th century American
     composer; he's amazingly accessible. I fell in love with his music when
     I was 15. Very percussive, influenced by non-western traditions: he
     threw away western musical instruments and scales and started building
     his own system of music from the ground up. Unfortunately there's only
     about four recordings you have any hope of ever finding.
          - Ken Josenhans 13020KRJ@MSU.BitNet

Jaco Pastorius
     Brilliant, self-destructive, jazz bassist. Fancied himself the best
     bassist in the world.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

PDQ Bach

     parody of Bach. great stuff.
          - del Amitri del@ab.ecn.purdue.edu

Dave Pegg

     Bass player for Fairport Convention since 1971 and Jethro Tull since
     about 1979. Reportedly he's a workaholic who reorganized Fairport so
     he'd have something to do in the spare time between Tull albums and
     tours.
          - Ken Josenhans 13020KRJ@MSU.BitNet

Perfect Disaster

     the creme de la creme guitar/vocal songwriting for non-boppers. spaceman
     3-ish, but less droning and more variety.
          - del Amitri del@ab.ecn.purdue.edu

Pet Shop Boys

     dance music. arrangements which put other bands to shame.
          - del Amitri del@ab.ecn.purdue.edu

     The songs tend to sound the same, but they do have some good songs every
     once in a while.
          - Chris Chavez ccmchris@pollux.ucdavis.edu

Anthony Phillips

     Was in the first incarnation of Genesis, but felt artistically
     restricted; he quit after the first album to return to college and study
     music there. A few years later, he began to release solo albums; these
     vary greatly in content and style, from all-acoustic, all-instrumental
     works (most of the "Private Parts & Pieces" albums) to pop albums
     ("Sides") to electronic symphonies ("1984", released in 1982). Most of
     them are pretty good.
          - Anton C Shepps (Tony)
          rochester!moscom!telesci!ashepps%ll-xn.UUCP@cs.wisc.edu

Phuture

     "Acid Tracks" was supposedly the first ever acid house track. Good
     stuff.
          - Stephen K Mulrine
          smulrine%computer-science.strathclyde.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     Pretty generic-sounding (to me anyway) acid house . . .
          - Lazlo Nibble lazlo@ariel.unm.edu

Pierre's Fantasy Club

     The video "The Evil Acid Baron Show" credited them on the cover and I
     suspect it may have been the first track on the tape. Wish I knew for
     sure though.
          - Stephen K Mulrine
          smulrine%computer-science.strathclyde.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

Pink Floyd

     My favorite band, even though their listeners are prone to fanaticism.
     Great music with lots of feeling behind it. I don't care if everyone
     does listen to it.
          - John Gateley gateley@m2.csc.ti.com

     Psychedelic pioneers who eventually toned down the radical nature of
     their sonic approach to focus on bitter lyrical broadsides at authority
     and society in general.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

     They wrote a lot of good music. It's too bad they get the same songs
     overplayed on the radio. I haven't heard anything by them since Roger
     Waters left.
          - Frank J. Schima francis@pawl.rpi.edu

Pixies

     A very exciting band from Boston.  I love the "Doolittle" LP.  One of
     two U.S. bands on the 4ad label.
          - James Martin <martin@cpsc.UCalgary.CA>

     A band from Mass. with both female and male singers, in a style almost
     similar to the sugarcubes, with really hip disonant, tinny guitar riffs.
     "Surfer Rosa", I like better than their new one, with "This Monkeys Gone
     to Heaven", because the songs have simpler roots, simply not thought
     about as hard as the new one. Not to say the new one's not good, it
     definitely shows more diversity in styles of the band. Could it be they
     go to/went to Berklee school of music in Boston? I bet.
          - Paul Harding guru@pnet51.orb.mn.org

     If the Dead Kennedys were the punk band for the Reagan era, then the
     Pixies are the punk band for the Bush era. Guitar...bass...drums...
     vocals that are as much screamed as sung... fast pace... And they look
     like such normal people on stage! For a first dose, try "Doolittle".
          - John Willmore jaw@esl.ESL.COM

     and harmonies.
          - Valerie valerie@athena.mit.edu

Robert Plant

     I like a lot of his stuff ("Heaven Knows" -- that is Plant, isn't it?)
     and his stuff before that; I think he has a unique style that doesn't
     get old after listening to it for awhile.
          - Bill White bwhite@oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu

Plastic People of the Universe

     As of yet unheard (by me) Czech(?) group continually harassed by
     authorities for playing jazz rock that didn't uphold the Communist
     Party's pleasantness. Reorganized in a slightly different lineup as
     Pulnast, or something that sounds like that.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

The Pogues

     One of the few folk acts that I like. I saw them on TV not so long ago.
     The other 7 (!) band members did their best to explain that they weren't
     just a bunch of drunken Irishmen. In fact they sounded like a rather
     sensible lot. Then Shane MacGowan was interviewed, and he started out by
     saying that "Hell, I've been drinking since 10 o'clock. Maybe I'm a
     little relaxed, well I guess I am. But I ain't drunk"...
          - Hans Huttel  hans%lfcs.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     Totally drunk Irish band that seamlessly blends punk to Irish folk.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

The Pointer Sisters

     Groovin' act that started as novelty '40s-style trio and went on the
     record modern ballads and love songs.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

The Police

     I didn't like the Police when they were at the height of their
     popularity. But since that has settled down, I've listened to their old
     music and I like it. I know that sounds prejudiced against popular music
     but that attitude saved me from the Bee Gees.
          - Frank J. Schima francis@pawl.rpi.edu

     New wave power trio that helped popularize reggae in the U.S. with
     "Roxanne". Consistently tight power pop for six or seven albums.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

     One of the most definite sounds of any band I listen to. I like their
     later stuff more than their earlier, because I think they lost some of
     the silliness and developed more.
          - Bill White bwhite@oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu

     One of the penultimate bands of the edge/wave scene, ca. '77-83. Sting
     solo just as good if not better.
          - Lazlo Nibble lazlo@ariel.unm.edu

     The best trio since the Kingston!
          - David Caldwell macs!dfc@bikini.cis.ufl.edu

Sanford Ponder
     Did a couple of synth-music albums for Private Music; the first was
     _Etosha_ and the second was _Tigers Are Brave_. Good, but not
     outstanding.
          - Richard Caley rjc%cstr.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

Pop Will Eat Itself

     Started somewhere between mild punk, short addictive songs which all
     sounded pretty much alike, developed into a heavy rock/rap combo with
     only the occasional throwback to mildness. Claimed they sold out and
     seem to be proud of it, but that doesn't seem to be bad.
          - Kevin Martin sigma@pawl.rpi.edu

Baden Powell

     Boy Scouts (?) :-)
          - David Caldwell macs!dfc@bikini.cis.ufl.edu

     Sliding along on the crest of a wave...
          - Richard Caley rjc%cstr.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK


Prince

     A musical chameleon. I respect his varied musical style and musical
     ability (he plays all his instruments on his albums). Maybe one day I
     will break down and buy an album of his.
          - Frank J. Schima francis@pawl.rpi.edu

     Funkster who's not afraid to rock out. Sex and God share the spotlight
     in his funkutopian vision of freedom for all and a dirty good time.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

     Genius. It's that simple.
          - Wingerde van FJ fjvwing@cs.vu.nl

     Probably the most versatile and creative guy in the biz right now,
     always has something to play that's worth listening to. Still think 1999
     and PURPLE RAIN are his best though.
          - Lazlo Nibble lazlo@ariel.unm.edu

     What is all the fuss about, anyway?
          - Russ Levreault RLEVREAULT@EAGLE.WESLEYAN.EDU


Jamie Principle

     From Acid House to ... : we don't know how to call the current London
     Dance Music Style. Interesting anyway.
          - Hussein Yahia hussein@bora.inria.fr

Propaganda

     Another brainchild of ZTT - also produce by Trevor Horn, just like FGTH.
     "A Secret Wish" was my favourite album until I heard Ministry. They had
     a few hits in the mid-80s when I payed no attention to the charts
     whatsoever.
          - Stephen K Mulrine
          smulrine%computer-science.strathclyde.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     Great ZTT band, solid sounding stuff with a little industrial edge to
     it.
          - Lazlo Nibble lazlo@ariel.unm.edu

     So when's this new album going to be released? It better be up to the
     excellent standards set by 'A Secret Wish' and 'Wishful Thinking'! Their
     best track, IMHO, is 'Duel' but I also like their cover of the Velvet
     Underground's 'Femme Fatale'. Anyone know if the latter is available on
     CD anywhere (the Japanese 'Dr. Mabuse' 3" CD, fr'instance)?
          - Alan Crawford awrc%lfcs.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

The Prophet L- Cee

     I love their "Prophecy": they rapped on a Soul to Soul beat!
          - Hussein Yahia hussein@bora.inria.fr


Psychic TV

     genesis p orridge is a chameleon. where is the money this week?
     sometimes industrial, sometimes acoustic, sometimes house music. pays
     your money & takes your chance.
          - del Amitri del@ab.ecn.purdue.edu

Public Enemy

     On the strenth of "Fight the Power", I'd say they're a band to look out
     for.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

     The BEST rap group. Period. Chuck D. is the most amazing voice in music
     today and their tracks are put together with such amazing abandon -
     producer Hank Shocklee deserves sainthood. Now.
          - Jon Drukman jsd@GAFFA.MIT.EDU

Pyewackett

     In the early 1980's they rivalled The Oyster Band for prominence in the
     English folk-rock world, but like Steeleye Span they could not write
     good original material and when they tried to do so their career
     faltered. Sensibilities more similar to Pentangle than to Steeleye; no
     electric guitars. "The Man In The Moon Drinks Claret" is the best album.
          - Ken Josenhans 13020KRJ@MSU.BitNet
Queen Latifah

     the new queen of hip hop rap. strong bass lines & rappin.
          - del Amitri del@ab.ecn.purdue.edu

Queen

     "Bohemian Rhapsody" is among the strangest songs I've ever heard.
          - Bill White bwhite@oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu

     Any news on all their CDs being released domestically? $16-$20 is just
     too much to pay. I definitely want to get A NIGHT AT THE OPERA and A DAY
     AT THE RACES on CD.
          - Neil Ottenstein OTTEN@UMCINCOM.BitNet

     Any of their old music. Their last album disappointed me though.
          - Marylynn Orzeckowski discg1!istda11@bpa.bell-atl.com

     Pomp rock at its finest. Totally overblown in their heyday, haven't the
     slightest what they're up to now.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

     The first three albums have some of the finest and most intelligent HM
     ever recorded. "A Night at the Opera" is the definitive Queen album.
     After this they went downhill into blandness rapidly, "Jazz" being the
     exception. Their recent stuff is atrocious.
          - Iain Smith & Jonathan Habrovitsky
          jhabrovi%computer-science.strathclyde.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

     They have many good songs, but some of their best music doesn't get
     played on the radio very much (remember 'Bicycle').
          - Frank J. Schima francis@pawl.rpi.edu

Trevor Rabin

     I have his latest solo album and I like it a lot. He has an ability to
     write catchy guitar riffs. I think the direction he has taken Yes is
     good, its kind of a change in style for them. I know many Yes fans think
     that's blasphemy, but I really liked the last two Yes albums with Trevor
     Rabin (though I do like the older stuff more).
          - Frank J. Schima francis@pawl.rpi.edu

     One of my favorite guitarists. Alas, much of his best work, both with
     the South African band Rabbitt and solo, is out of print, and frankly I
     don't think his time with Yes really allowed him to show off his full
     talents much. Did you know this guy not only plays guitar and sings, but
     also can play bass and keyboards as well? His first 3 solo albums were
     almost true "solo" albums; Trevor played all instruments except drums on
     them.
          - Richard Caley rjc%cstr.edinburgh.ac.uk@NSFNET-RELAY.AC.UK

Raze

     Very good house music.
          - Hussein Yahia hussein@bora.inria.fr

Red Hot Chili Peppers

     Obnoxious, in-your-face funk from blondes.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

Lou Reed

     He's another of those "haunting" music/lyrics types. I think he's
     getting better as time goes on.
          - Bill White bwhite@oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu

     The grandfather of punk? Came to attention in the seminal Velvet
     Underground espousing heroin and nihilism with some kind of raga grunge.
          - sco!martyst@ucscc.UCSC.EDU

Steve Reich

     Who might this gentleman be?
          - Geir Stenstud geirs@ifi.uio.no
--
-Dave 	datta@vacs.uwp.wisc.edu
	....uwm!uwpvacs!datta
	uwpvacs.UUCP!datta@cs.wisc.edu