SD, Mike Mitchell and I saw White Hills at Subterranean last Friday night. As always, they were face-meltingly awesome. Their heavy acid psych trip is just so rapturous that you really must see it live to truly understand its power.
The fact that they put out three to six records each year and they are all super limited in quantity both excites and infuriates me. Because man am I hooked. SD and I will probably go and see this trio every time they come through town (which is often).
Dave W., the guitarist, was really channeling some insane Eddie Hazel vibe for a stretch of the set. And bassist Ego Sensation is a rocker chick that isn't just crushworthy - she is deserving of total devotion.
I have often expressed a desire to create a blog dedicated to the female bass players out there. Well, whenever I witness Ego Sensation wrapped in a fog from the smoke machine, wearing red velvet hot pants and platform boots just riding an endless groove - I want to pay tribute to just how bitchin' she is, I want the world to know just how bad ass she is. If it were appropriate for the venue, I would lay roses at her feet at the end of the performance.
At the merch table, they are always the most friendly people. I tell Ego that I want to create a shrine for her on the web.
She comes back with "Well, why not? You don't have the time?" - like she has heard this line before.
And I have to admit, "No, I lack the skill. I just don't think I would do you justice".
This post is my attempt to try. Ego Sensation is just that - she is moving in all the right ways. White Hills is worthy of your time. Check them out.
I have been reading Lee Renaldo's published journals from the 1980s (titled "jrnls80s", natch) and I came across this entry and it just stuck with me. Here it is in its entirety:
5 October 1988
Barcelona, 4 am
To Cody
Well Cody I don't know if there'll be any way to explain to you what kind of stuff it is yr dad does for his living. I'm sure that at the very least it's not like anything yr friend's dads do! Yr half-way across the globe, three and one half years old. Meanwhile, yr 32 yr old dad is gesticulating on stages across Europe, letting anarchy (and occasional brilliance-ahem!) run wild for unbelieving audiences. Tonight felt like 1983 and our first European tour, when yr mom was with us, all over again. Songs were not played well, mishaps abounded, but a general tone and ferocity emerged, a SERIOUS and DANGEROUS fun, which I know was not what the crowd expected from a travelling band. They expected polish and song, they got Confusion and maelstrom instead. And they were glad. This was not/is not a normal band. Each night is a roll of the dice. It feels good to be more wild and less professional for a change. It's a great change, yeah. But how can you know? Will you ever see me in this insane state? By the time yr old enough to come along and really experience Sonic Youth, and retain the memory, will it still be there for you to see? I wonder. This is what yr father does, son. Something not describable in terms of skill, or profession. Let's just call it performers and performance. It's the only word which takes the variety into account. Let's call it Hell Breaking Loose. Let's call it Out To Pasture. We can't always call it music, but we can usually call it Sound. Let's call it Volume, let's call it Sex/Noise. Let's call it Empty and Full all at once.
I wish you were here tonight, in Spain w us instead of back in NYC. I wish you could see what yr dad is doing with his life. The marks he's making. A night like tonight is really what it's all about. A new experience, for everybody. Not just a buncha songs. When this all ends I don't know where I'll be. It's not a fear I'll address here, now. I just wish you could know what yr dad is doing. It's pretty cool, I think, to have a dad doing this. I wish that I did. I hope you'll think so.
Well Cody would have been about 27 when the Youth finally hung it up so I would like to believe that he got a feeling for what his old man was all about.
G$ called me today. He is so excited about the CHIRP Record Fair. It has been the main thrust of our daily conversations for at least the last two weeks and it is still a week away!
Not that I am any different - I am over the moon! I thought it might be a good idea to look at what I collected (and how much I spent) @ last year's fair prior to going in.
This might have to be a multi-part analysis because I purchased 44 records(!) last year. I spent $255 in the process.
What strikes me first is that this is proof positive that most of the dealer's prices are more than fair - that comes out to $5.80 a record if you average it.
The more pressing question - one year later - how do I feel about what I scored?
Let's just get the easily defined and unassailable classics out of the way first, shall we?
Tribe Called Quest: Low End Theory 2LP reissue (new) - $10.00
PJ Harvey: 4-Track Demos (new) - $10.00
James Gang: Rides Again - $3.00
Ramones: Leave Home - $4.00
AC/DC: Highway To Hell - $5.00
AC/DC: If You Want Blood - $5.00
AC/DC: Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap -$5.00
AC/DC: Flick of the Switch - $5.00
Van Halen: self titled debut reissue (new) - $10.00
Cat Power: Moon Pix (new) - $12.00
Black Sabbath: Sabbath Bloody Sabbath - $8.00
Ozzy Osbourne: Blizzard of Oz - $5.00
Well I am set for AC/DC for a while, that is for sure. By my judgement that accounts for 35% of the records procured and 45% of the money spent. I got a lot of new stuff in this category as well so I spent a little more than average but I got no complaints.
The second category that I am going to create is Personal Favorites. These artists might not get a lot of radio airplay but I am personally very big on them and so I was stoked to pick up these titles on vinyl even though I own them in other formats.
Concrete Blonde: self titled debut - $2.50
Pailhead: No Bunny/I Will Refuse 12" - $3.00
Pailhead: Trait - $4.00
The Zulus: Down On The Floor - $3.00
Le Tigre: self titled debut - $20.00
I definitely overpaid for the Le Tigre record but I knew the dealer and he and I have some unfinished business. Spending a little dough at his table was the right thing to do for reasons that will become apparent in a future post.
The next category is the Junk Drawer. Adventurous! Eclectic! Risky! The Junk Drawer selections are where I speculate. I try to have fun with it.
When these forgotten or oft overlooked LPs pay off they become among my very favorites. When they don't, well then the junk drawer gets a little fuller. No one really suffers from that.
Pigface: Spoon Breakfast EP - $0.00
DJ Spooky: Haunted Battle Breaks - $2.50
Sheila E.: The Glamorous Life - $2.00
The Wild Angels: Original Soundtrack - $5.00
Star Wars: OST 2LP - $2.00
The Black Hole: OST - $2.00
Beats International: Dub Be Good To Me 12" - $3.00
Run DMC: You Be Illin' 12 - $3.00
Various Artists: Dusty Fingers Vol. 15 - $5.00
L.L. Cool J: Six Minutes of Pleasure 12" - $3.00
Primal Scream: Movin' On Up 12" - $3.00
Bob Seger: Smokin' O.P.s - $4.00
Beat Street: OST Volumes 1 & 2 - $2.50 each
Some fun stuff in this category really. I might not have purchased the Primal Scream 12" if I had found the dealer selling Screamadelica first.
Some year when I am pressed to find my brother a birthday present I may bequeath to him the Beat Street records. We have him on tape at an early age rapping the theme to that movie that is like a family heirloom it is so priceless.
I didn't have to pay for the Pigface EP because the dealer threw it in with the overpriced Le Tigre & the insignificant Lou Reed record.
The Star Wars and Black Hole soundtracks were in amazing shape for such a low price and Black Hole came with a comic book!
But, if pressed to say what makes it to the top of the Junk Drawer pile I would have to say LL Cool J and the Beats International.
The next category is a bit of a cop out but any avid collector will recognize what happens when you hit a binge moment. Here are some records that I can't fairly judge because I have yet to play them.
James Chance: The Definitive Collection 2LP (new) - $15
Jimmy Smith: Got My Mojo Workin' - $2.50
Nick Gravenites & Michael Bloomfield: Steel Yard Blues - $4.00
I think I played a few cuts off Steel Yard Blues over at G$'s house the same night of the record fair but I can't remember anything about it. The James Chance record is still in the shrinkwrap. It will probably be decent.
The last category is the stuff that underwhelms for one reason or another. I was gonna call this group "meh" but that might be construed wrong by my future DJ partner.
Lou Reed: self titled debut - $10.00
Tangerine Dream: White Eagle - $5.00
Haunted George: Where's Charlie Jones EP (new) - $6.00
Operation Ivy: Unity - The Complete Collection (new) - $15.00
Screaming Blue Messiahs: Gun Shy - $4.00
Herman Brood and His Wild Romance: Cha Cha (live) - $10.00
Various: Electric Breakdance - $2.50
I had never seen Lou Reed's solo debut so the cover was striking to me. It is so watered down and listless that I left it with G$ that same night. There is no reason to return to it.
Trocc pulled the Tangerine Dream record out of my box and remarked that it was their only title he couldn't get into. That must have poisoned the well because I listened to it straight through and couldn't find a way in.
I was really surprised that I couldn't find a toe hold into the Haunted George. I kept switching the speeds and decided it sounded equally nauseating at both. I really liked the Pile O' Meat record so I might give it another try.
I actually really like the Screaming Blue Messiahs' Gun Shy. I just happened to forget that I ALREADY OWN IT on vinyl. First person to comment on this post can have my duplicate!
The Operation Ivy record skips like crazy even though it is brand new and doesn't appear to have any flaws.
SO - the final verdict? Still pretty happy with my haul! Still pretty excited about CHIRP Record Fair!
