RIP LOU REED

What can I say? You either know what this man means to music or you don't care. One word from me will do: Legend.

Jesus Christ, I forgot how good this tune is!

On The Hi-Fi Part 62.5

Lou Reed (1972)/Rock N Roll Animal (1973) - Lou Reed

I've always been led to believe that Lou Reed's self-titled debut solo LP was a bunch of crap. Someone went so far as to say it was 'ineptly played.' So when this record finally got a spin in my presence I was pleasantly surprised. Lou's set free to become 70s Radio Reed. He does stormin versions of some old VU leftovers and some ace new tunes. This is another case of don't trust the rock-crit consensus. I think I like this album more than Reed's last Velvet Underground LP Loaded!

This year I was lucky enough to experience the opening of Rock N Roll Animal for the first time. Those familiar with the record know what I'm talking about. The album opens with this excellent powering guitar instrumental that eventually after 4 minutes effortlessly moves into a scintillating version of the riff to Sweet Jane. The crowd goes wild and so do I with chills goin up and down my spine. This is one of the greatest recorded rock moments. The rest of the record is just as exciting. Rock N Roll Animal is a metallic maelstrom of epic proportions. Reed even gets downright funky at the 5 and a half minute mark of a 10 minute version of the old Velvets tune Rock N Roll. This made me think that maybe it wasn't Orange Juice who were the first to funkify The Velvet Underground blueprint and that it was the main man himself who did so. The influence this record had can be heard right across the punk/post-punk milieu.

Ex Cops

Barry Divolla from Australia's Who Magazine(Aussie equivalent to USA's People) writes this week about Ex Cops. Ex Cops are some new band probably from Brooklyn. Barry says if The Chills, early REM, Velvet Underground, The Feelies, The Smiths and Galaxy 500 mean everything to you then check out Ex Cops' LP True Hallucinations. All those bands I love (the first 3 REM LPs are gold and so are their 5th & 6th) so I wont be checking out this new record. Why the fuck would I? I'll just listen to those old records. The late 60s and the 80s are a long time ago. I can't really imagine this band being anywhere near that league of bands. That league is the highest water mark in underground guitar pop/rock ever. At this late stage it's hard to imagine anyone coming close to those epochal legends.

I wanted the Murmur version of Pilgrimage but couldn't 

find it. This is just as good anyway!

Yay!

More Yay!

Jesus they were really cookin' with Craig Gannon

on 2nd guitar. This fucking rocks!

How good?

Gotta have another!

'Listen to the Byrds sing on the tape recorder.'

On the Hi-Fi

So I ended up going back to The Velvets Loaded and you know it's ok but you know compared to the first 3 ??? I'd prefer to listen to those 2 records put out in the 80s VU and Another View (another gone missing). Anyway this somehow got me onto Coney Island Baby, Lou solo and I've been diggin that. So it's all win/win really. I don't really know if people rate this Reed LP and I couldn't really give a rats toss bag. These are all top records!

Now in the unlikely to be listenin to this now category that I guess Stereolab were in a while back there. Moonshake's big good angel ep from 1993 and weren't they a funny band sort of at an intersection of post punk, post MBV and (for want of a better term) post rock. They were kinda 2 bands in one but it was that dichotomy that made them so compelling. There were so many ideas going on it was fantastic. The possibilities seemed endless but I guess something had to give and the band split in two. Callahan kept the name and continued on and I must admit I never heard those records but I think he had label mate PJ Harvey guest on a couple of tracks. Anyway Margaret Fiedler's songs on big good angel were a prototype for Laika her next project which is where I'm at now with the first ep Antenna where the claustrophobia and spaciness meet. They were a fine band. I guess I'll be diggin out the first couple of LPs soon once I stop being Oneohtrix Point Never.

Then there is like five records I've hardly got to. Today Fabulous Diamonds 3rd record came out. They called it Commercial Music, so maybe they're a comedy band after all. Sounds pretty good so far. I dunno if there are any jokes in there though. If Peaking Lights can be somewhat successful I can't see a reason why Fabulous Diamonds can't do the same. I'm thinking this is as good as the first one and oh they really have sold out, there's song titles on Commercial Music. Trip out on these groovy drones man. 

                                                        

Then there is this download from bandcamp that I have only listened to once but sounds awesome and a little spooky. It's called the Ghosts of Bush House by The Fog Signals. When I first saw that title I thought what they named a form of house music after one of the Bush Presidents? and now it's coming back into vogue?. How wrong I was. Bush House was apparently a BBC building with studios, offices and whatever. Anyway The building was quite resonant and some guy has gone and done some recordings there. Experimental gear like that Australian guy who recorded telephone wires in the outback. What was his name? I've got the cd somewhere............

The Fog Signals

Finally there's two bargain bin bewdies I've not even touched yet but can't wait to listen to. The first being Supermodified by Dave Graney & The Lured Yellow Mist.

So this is a period of Graney's career I missed I think. There are gaps baby, who was I in the early 00s? It's remixes, obscurities and retakes of tracks from the early to mid 00s as far as I can gather. Should be interesting as always. $5! Larry Emdur stylee.

I liked them when I was little! I wonder what I'll think of them now. We had the Beautiful Album on K-Tel if I recall correctly which must have been after this. Wasn't there a song Prefab Heart I loved that. Anyway who knows where I'll stand on this today? I remember tangled telephones and channels in hairdoes, all very new wave of course and appealing to preteens. New wave was great for that age.