tropicalports:The guitar-led, thin-sounding rock of NYC's seminal art-punk band Television had many acolytes--from the lovelorn poetry of Australia's Go-Betweens to the more commercial sound of New Wave poppers the Knack. This live double CD, originally released on cassette in 1982, showcases the band at their most experimental and wired. Obvious standouts include the intricate, almost Coltrane-esque guitar duel between bandleaders Tom Verlaine and Richard Lloyd on an incredible 15-minute version of "Little Johnny Jewel," plus an equally lengthy and tormented reading of "Marquee Moon." Sound quality is extremely variable, but the spirit of the originators of the New York punk loft scene shines through, even on a relatively ordinary rendition of the Rolling Stones' "Satisfaction." Raw, dreamy, and ripe for rediscovery. --Everett True
An excellent companion to Marquee Moon The first Television album is all tension and restraint -- beautiful guitars slashing at each other over Verlaine's wavery voice and a thumping rhythm section. "Marquee Moon" is the sound of a world class garage band, and one of the great guitar bands of all rock music playing majestic music, nearly losing control at each curve, but catching themselves before they fell apart.
This album strays at every opportunity. It's loud and indulgent. The playing is sometimes ridiculously sloppy, but when the band gets it right, as with the 15 minutes of "Little Johnny Jewel," it's as breathtaking as anything on "Marquee Moon."
I still prefer the studio versions of every song on this album to the live ones, but this is the perfect companion to "Marquee Moon." Even though the album was recorded after "Marquee Moon" was released, it works well as a backdrop for that album. Compared to the insane experimentation here, the solo on the studio version of "Marquee Moon" sounds tame and structured. The full-blown feakout of "Friction" is compressed into a tight single in the studio.
Which isn't to say the album doesn't stand on its own. As a double live album with low quality sound, it doesn't have much going for it in principle, but the guitars are fantastic. Very raw, very loud, and a lot of fun. Any fan of rock music owes it to themselves to buy "Marquee Moon" first (THAT'S the essential album), but this works well for those of us who can't get enough of a good thing.
This album Blows up in the cd player AC/DC blows out another crapfest album with 2 good songs. Thats their trademark now. Probally why it tkes them 10 years to making an album!
Maddness pure unadulturated madness This cd is the biggest piece of crap I ever bought it is just such extreme f*ck*ng noise, havoc, and madness pure unadulturated madness I love it!!! Thank you god or whoever for The Plot To Blow Up The Eiffel Tower. TPTBUTET f*ck*n' rock the way it is supposed to be done.
tropicalports:The 1997 film Austin Powers did more than create a new sound-byte lexicon for radio personalities and strip-club commercials. It also took nostalgia to a new comic plateau. Almost every element of Mike Myers's composite title character is rooted in some obscure enigma from the annals of swinging-'60s film. Powers's fashion-photography fetish and his vamping sidekick, Vanessa Kensington (Elizabeth Hurley), for instance, are obvious nods to Blow-Up, the first English film by Italian director Michelangelo Antonioni. Likewise, much of the music on this soundtrack would find campy camaraderie in the music of Austin Powers. The true quality of these performances, then, is a matter of context. Herbie Hancock's original compositions--much more pop-friendly than his previous work--are either supple or dated, depending on your perspective. One thing's for sure, though: the contributions by the Yardbirds (featuring Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page), and Tomorrow (featuring a pre-Yes Steve Howe) sound as scorching today as they did decades ago. --Matt Hanks
Herbie Hancock knows what he's doing For those of you who are fans of old Blue Note and Verve records, the music in this film will really groove for you. Hancock is a great composer, and the music not only fits into the film, but stands on its own tremendously. And the song by the Yardbirds is built around a catchy riff that foreshadows Jimmy Page's later work with Ledd Zeppelin. This is an all-around great set of music.
Drum Machine? Really, they use the drum machine, but it actually sounds great. Because of that, and the fact that it was recorded so long ago (1999? 2000?), it sounds a bit different from the modern Metric style, but it's still so great. They also explore genres like jazz ("Raw Sugar") and a lot of the album has a bit of hip hop in it.
This album Blows up in the cd player AC/DC blows out another crapfest album with 2 good songs. Thats their trademark now. Probally why it tkes them 10 years to making an album!
Fantastic I randomly stumbled upon Williamson and am extremely glad I did. If you are at all a fan of ambient electronica (or any other kind of electronic music for that matter), this is a must have. Every song is put together very well. The album is an absolute treat for the ears. I've been listening to it solid for about three days now. I'm a student and it provides a perfect background to writing papers.
Creative, dynamic, clever. These guys are good. On a pure sound front they're pretty noisy with a lot of repetitive backing highlighted by a never ending assaultof new sounds created by god knows what. Then they add chanting, multiple singers, crazy horns (basically a sort of jazzy wail that interrupts the lyrics from time to time) and a little bit of spoken word. Oh, and sometimes the album goes full jazz for about two minutes with just the horns and drums (violent emotional jazz at that). I think the word I'm looking for here is 'eclectic' and I mean that in an entirely positive way. Highly recommended to all true hipsters, retro mod femmes, and people who generally like good music. (and by the by, if you get the chance go see them live, they're out of San Diego and play fairly often around the area)
Maddness pure unadulturated madness This cd is the biggest piece of crap I ever bought it is just such extreme f*ck*ng noise, havoc, and madness pure unadulturated madness I love it!!! Thank you god or whoever for The Plot To Blow Up The Eiffel Tower. TPTBUTET f*ck*n' rock the way it is supposed to be done.
