Until this evening, all of my posts had been written on my
laptop as I waited to be hooked up to an internet provider and figured out how
to set up a blog. As I walked Lady this
morning, I started to think about a blog title and a user name.
My blog title came easily – A Year In The Life. Short, sharp and concise with an obvious play
on one of the greatest tracks ever recorded. But a user name refused to come. Back home I did a quick search on my
title. Damn! There was a 1980s TV mini-series and spin off
with that title so I think about another title over breakfast. How about 2013: A Music Odyssey? Nice one.
No one will have thought of that.
And my user name could be Stan.K, a clever play on the famed DJ Murray the
K Kaufman and Stanley Kubrik. Feeling
pleased with myself I go to work taking another two albums from the weekend
bargain bin.
(67) Gang Of 4 – Hard
By the time this was released, the band had been reduced to
a three piece comprising founding members and mainstays, Andy Gill and Jon King
and Sara Lee, who had only joined for the previous album. (Lee would go to sustain a long career in a
variety of roles but to most of us she’ll always be remembered for being the
bass player in The B-52s on the Cosmic Thing album and in the Love Shack
video.) Hard, like its predecessor, marked
a significant move away from the uncompromisingly brutal political neo-funk of
their classic early albums Entertainment! and Solid Gold towards a sound
incorporating disco, 80’s dance and the vaguest hint of new romanticism. At times the band’s sound is practically
indistinguishable from that of New Order
and I suspect this might have played a role in their subsequent split. (They have reformed twice since.)
(68) Chris “Klondike”
Masuak & Klondike’s North 40 – Workhorse
I didn’t even know this existed until I saw it in the
bin. Masuak is an Australian guitar hero
having been a member of Radio Birdman, The Hitmen and The Screaming Tribesmen
among others. This is second album with
the North 40 and they turn out to be a roockin’ three piece. Like a number of great guitarists, Masuak doesn’t overdo the
soloing but makes them count spectacularly when he does, especially on The
Dreamer and Submarine.
I then continued to explore my catalogue.
(69) Earth – Angels
Of Darkness, Demons Of Light I
I chose this for three reasons. It’s instrumental, I wanted to decide whether
to retain this on the iPod (yes) and I needed to make a decision about buying the
second volume (yes). Earth is the
vehicle for guitarist Dylan Carlson, a long time mate of Kurt Cobain. Their albums, or at least the ones I’ve
heard, consist mainly of very slow, long and grinding drones, none more so than
on Earth 2: Extra Slow Frequency Edition an album utterly unlike any other. This
album continues a process begun over the last couple of albums of introducing
other instrumentation such as violins and cello but it is utilised very subtly.
Song titles and tracks are almost irrelevant in this context; try using
headphones to catch the full effect as the soundscape emerges around you.
(70) Graham Parker
& The Rumour – Squeezing Out Sparks
Sometimes life isn’t fair. Possessed of a band and
songwriting skills the equal of Elvis Costello and the Attractions, Graham
Parker should have at least enjoyed the same initial level of success. Today, it seems inconceivable that both acts
were laden with the “New Wave” tag when what was being offered was best pub
rock England ever produced. Squeezing
Out Sparks is the band’s finest moment.
It boasts a terrific first up one-two punch of Discovering Japan and
Local Girls and almost never lets up except for You Can’t Be Too Strong, a song
about abortion. Their best known single
Protection is on this as well, although its B-side, a wonderful cover of The
Jackson 5’s I Want You Back was not included on the original vinyl release or initial
CD pressings. Apparently, Parker and
Rumour play themselves in the new comedy Life At 40 struggling to sell albums
for the company run by Paul Rudd’s character.
Art imitating life?
Back home I start to put my plans into effect. I try to adopt the user name of Stanley.K,
but its taken. So is Stan.K, which I wasn’t that keen on anyway. I try 2013: A Music Odyssey and it too is
taken. Just for the record, I try my
original idea and naturally that fails.
How about a combination? 2013:A Year In The Life is rejected until I add
“Of A Music Fan”. Eureka!
Now for a user name.
In a perfect world no one would have thought of Neil.Springsteen but I
dismiss that thought and don’t even try.
Then I start to think. Why not
combine diametrically opposed acts which evoke different music forms and eras? I start on various combinations which
fail. In desperation I look at the back
end of my alphabetically arranged CD collection and then I see it. What if I use Otis [Redding] the King of
Southern Soul and [Sonic] Youth, the Godfathers of today’s alternative music
scene? (I could also argue for reggae
superstar [Big] Youth but Sonic Youth makes my point far more effectively. ) I
type in the combination – Eureka. By the
time all the previous day’s blogs are posted, it’s late and even the night
session of the tennis has ended. I
retire for the night content.
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