R.I.P. Adverbs; a/k/a 4Q2!

Our grammar correspondent Lauren Epson-Dahler reports:

Here's the headline from a supposedly reliable, nominally copy-edited website today: "Economy Grows Slower Than Expected In 4Q."

Apparent even newspapers no longer know how to use the language proper.

prog-gnosis: cellos!

Steve over at Hot Rox Avec Lying Sweet Talk the other day mentioned something about a "2fs side-by-side comparison." I wasn't particularly aware that I often did that - but looking back, I can see that, yeah, I kinda do.

Anyway, here's another one. Our first track is from Cream. Despite their reputation as a blues-based rock band, on their studio albums, they often explored a proto-prog sort of sound with folk overtones, particularly when Jack Bruce took up the writing reins. Here's an example, the oddly elliptical "As You Said." Long-time readers know that I loves me some cello, and Bruce whips out the bow to play some cello in counterpoint to his occasionally Leslie'd vocal line. The song is characterized by odd chords formed by diverging chromatic lines, basically - I think the 12-string guitar is tuned to an open D or something, so basically we have a drone with odd harmonies developing organically from the melodic lines rather than chord progressions as such.

The second track - Bruford's "Gothic 17" - kind of reminds me of this first one, primarily in its cello-driven melody line that wanders into strange harmonic territories, even though we don't have the drone to steady things. However, we do go back to an insistent, blatting synth discord cluster (the bit that opens the track), which cements the track and prevents it from floating utterly away into the ether. That same hammering chord provides a basis for Jeff Berlin's farty bass soloing on the fade-out. Bruford (the band) is an odd little side note to prog, in that it began as essentially UK Mark II (with Bill Bruford and Allan Holdsworth splitting off from that band) and then quickly evolved into a more pop band with Berlin adding vocals to most tracks (as opposed to the primarily instrumental makeup of the first couple Bruford albums). Bruford then went on to the far more jazz-influenced Earthworks.

Cream "As You Said" (Wheels of Fire 1968)
Bruford "Gothic 17" (Gradually Going Tornado 1980)

a new film dynasty in the making

I'd previously written about George W. Bush's impending film career - now First Lady Laura is getting into the act. She'll be playing the Joker in yet another Batman remake.

do the mash mutato

As everyone hip several years ago knows, those wacky musical miscegenations known as "mashups" are the not-quite-latest craze having swept the nation. What will those wild kids think up next?

Well, they didn't really think up mashups either. Long ago, in the distant misty past, when people listened to music by leaning over and carefully placing a needle pierced through their ears into grooves engraved in a flat, round, spinning piece of plastic (or something like that), musicians only recently emerged from caves and still not entirely sold on the walking-upright thing had a different way of "mashing" songs together: they actually played and sang bits and pieces of different songs at the same time! A radical notion, to be sure - but here's one result: Harry Nilsson's "You Can't Do That," in which the gospels of John, Paul, George, and Ringo are simultaneously preached from a single pulpit.

Even in these digital days, there are those who carry on the outmoded, ancient practice known as "playing musical instruments." One such ensemble of codgers, fuddy-dudds, and geezers curiously calls itself "The Jennifers," even though as far as I can tell none of them is actually named "Jennifer." Here's their version of a beloved* hit single from the late sixties, once again mashed by hand with another song from the sixties, the results of which should have been called "Good Morning Wanna-Be Rock'n'Roll Starshine" but instead is more prosaically given the title of the more prominent song incorporated, "Good Morning Starshine." (Note that in the chorus of that song, the original's arcane references to some of the denser philosophical imaginings of Heidegger have been replaced by a loud guitar.)

* by which I mean "despised nearly universally"

UPDATE: I'm sure you all thought I was being coy by not mentioning the obvious, third source for that Jennifers song, right? Uh, no: I was being an idiot, an idiot who clearly has neglected certain key areas of his music collection, specifically those sections that include highly influential Stereolab CDs. D'oh! "Crest." It's not just a toothpaste anymore - it's a guitar part and vocal line! (PS: Okay, so where's the bassline in the first verse from?)

Harry Nilsson "You Can't Do That" (Pandemonium Shadow Show 1967)
The Jennifers "Good Morning Starshine" (The Covers Project 2005)

----------------
Now playing: The Jennifers - Good Morning, Starshine

fantasy vs. fantasy

Not reality-based.

mystical beastlet

Many of you probably remember the late and lamented Mystical Beast blog, whose proprietor Dana posted an intriguing range of music, sometimes featuring histories of obscure artists (often derived from Dana's own research). About a year and a half ago, Dana stopped publishing as the rest of his life had taken over more of his time. You can see one result here (scroll down).

Congratulations, and hopefully little Tabor will have a nicer world to live in.

all laid out in black and white

One problem with a lot of current comic strips is that too many of their artists seem unable to actually draw. For example: the comic strip below - which I rendered entirely by myself - exquisitely and exactly renders a detailed impression of each image mentioned in the captions (click to make huge):

because Valentine's Day is for lovers

an encore presentation of...Excerpts from Dick Cheney's Diary



12/27: As I went to pick up the morning paper, I noticed the cutest little puppy rolling around on my lawn. I picked up the little feller and decapitated him with my bare hands, drinking down the blood from his skull in one draft. Anyway, just then I noticed a young boy in tears. "Mister, why'd you kill my new puppy? My mommy just got it for me for Christmas!" I felt sorry for him, so I said, "Hey kid! Catch!" and hurled the puppy's head at him full-force. It was pretty funny the way he doubled over in pain and fell vomiting into the street. And it's not my fault what happened next: I've told the goddamned bus company to slow down on my block so I can see the driver salute as he drives past. It's such a shame when a young life goes to waste. But I'd already eaten breakfast, so I swept the kid's mangled corpse into the sewer.

1/3: You know what my favorite song ever is? "Muskrat Love." That one always makes me cry like a little girl.

1/19: An amusing incident at dinner this evening. Eating my porterhouse, I ran into a particularly tough sector of steak. Well, I refused to back down and give in to the damned steak...after all, back in my Wyoming youth I had a reputation for having the toughest teeth around - and in college, when a buddy of mine lost his car keys (let's just say he'd had a bit too much "youthful indiscretion"), I bit the doorhandle off his Maserati so he could get in. Well, anyway, I'm gnawing manfully away at the steak, and finally, after crunching through some bone, I swallowed the ungrateful hunk of meat. It was then I discovered that I'd accidentally bitten off my own thumb. Thankfully, the surgeons available to serve the office of Vice President of the United States of America are the best anywhere. They found a new, real thumb for me right away (ha! I guess my fingerprints won't match anymore), sewed it on, and everything's good as new. Of course, I had to send the surgeons to Gitmo afterwards - otherwise those damned journalists would never shut up about it. "Where'd you get the thumb, Mr. Cheney sir?" Whine, whine, whine.

2/6: W. called me into his office last week, yipping away about Jesus again. I thought I'd have some fun with him, so I told him I'd heard a rumor that Heaven's streets of gold needed repaving, and I knew just the guys who'd do a great job on them, hint hint. Sure enough, he took the bait - and this afternoon, one of my Halliburton buddies told me: $100 billion no-bid contract to repave all the streets in Heaven. Ka-ching!

2/18: Lynne was feeling a bit frisky last night, so instead of our usual game of "Hide the WMD," we played a new game - which I called "ICBM." She was a bit frail though - age will do that to a body - and it's really too bad I broke her hip. I'll miss her - but mercy dictated that she had to be put down. Back of the head, center of the skull. This time, I didn't miss.

quack-peddled myths

I'm trying something new: I've made a new mix, this time drawn from recent acquisitions (purchases and other) and, as usual, posted a listing of its contents at The Art of the Mix. I've also, though, posted its contents here for a limited time. (My only caution is that this site doesn't work well with Firefox - you'll have to use IE as far as I can tell.)

slooshy this me droogies

My car listening recently has been a CD-R I'd burned of various mp3s originally posted on various websites. Hearing Campag Velocet's "Drencrom Velocet Synthemesc" (from The White Noise Revisited, spinoff site from the late and lamented Spoilt Victorian Child), something sort of half-clicked. It took me a few minutes to figure it out (the song drones through seven and a half minutes, so I had time), but eventually, I realized something about the guitar tone in the latter part of the song was very similar to the guitar sound in a track by the Loud Family (one of my favorite bands ever), "Marcia and Etrusca."

So when I got home and listened to "Marcia and Etrusca," I realized not only was I correct, but there were many more similarities as well...enough to make me wonder whether (unlikely as it seemed) Campag Velocet had heard the LF track. Probably just coincidence...and the natural result of being influenced in part by intensely gazing at one's footwear - but the drum parts, the drone structure, even the lengths of the two tracks are similar.

Campag Velocet "Drencrom Velocet Synthemesc" (Bon Chic Bon Genre 1999)
The Loud Family "Marcia and Etrusca" (The Tape of Only Linda 1994)

damn you Trader Joe's!

I have become addicted to The Ginger People's Ginger Chews. (No, that's not an obscure psychedelic album from the '60s.) I love ginger, and the chews have just enough, uh, chewiness (and a bit of sugar) to push them over the line from "interesting" to "uh-oh, I'd better stop eating these damned things..."

leaked Bush speech highlights

"We now have conclusive evidence that Iran is harboring the quart of strawberries."

that gum you like is coming back in style

Finally!

"a little nostalgia for the old folks"

I was listening to some Jonathan Richman yesterday, and it reminded me of a little dustbunny-covered item buried at the bottom of Monkey Typing Pool's file drawers. Probably ten or more years ago, one day I was home sick with a cold or sore throat clotting up my voice, and I realized I could do a better Jonathan imitation than I usually could. (Not that I wake up each morning checking the status of my voice's ability to imitate Jonathan Richman.) So naturally, I had to write a Jonathan Richman -like song to test this hypothesis. Even though I couldn't sing, even more than usually.

The results can be heard by clicking on this link which, through the miracle magic of modern technology, demonstrates the transformation of the sound of a twenty-dollar Radio Shack cassette player into a blindingly shiny digital soundfile.

Monkey Typing Pool "Breakfast"