Wow. My impression of the US Postal Service (which, admittedly, is entirely obtained from Cliff in Cheers) was that that never happened.

And to think, he was drunk all the time!

Pookie, sorry I haven't posted a review of your tape yet. All I can say at this point is it's really great! I just haven't had time to sit and write anything. It's a rich experience, this tape, with diverse stuff, much that I haven't heard before. Am enjoying immensely, will write more later.

Many thanks!

BAH! How have you got yours already!?

It was in yesterday's mail. It's a long way to Omaha from Iowa City. Mail travels to all points west of here by corn thrasher, I think.

In all honesty, its not THAT far.

Oh look! Its on the way.

Ha! Ain't that sweet livin' ...

Perhaps part one of the review of your tape will make up for it a little bit, Пятхъдесят Шест.

It's over twenty years since I last had to write any kind of review of anything, and that was an English Literature exam. Sitting down, listening to this tape and then giving my thoughts was almost a challenge on a par with that. Particularly since my most common thought was "I haven't a fucking clue what this is". After listen number four I've managed to get some thoughts together, though, and this is them:

Track 1
Elvis Costello's "Welcome to the Working Week". I'm fairly ambivalent about Elvis Costello. I don't dislike him, but I'm unlikely to buy anything by him. That said, I saw him do a short set a few years ago, just him, a keyboard and a drum machine, and it was brilliant. This was a good start for the mixtapr though.

Track 2
The first occurence of the phrase "I haven't a fucking clue what this is", which, from here on, will be abbreviated to "IHAFCWTI". An afrobeat type track - a genre about which I know absolutely zilch. The main things that stood out for me were the vocals, which were remarkably Bjork-like at times, and rythmn track, which surprised me by sounding very much like a drum machine. I quite enjoyed the track, but it's unlikely to lead me to buy more of the same.

Track 3
IHAFCWTI. It's jazz, a sax / piano / guitar / bass quartet, I think - Possibly the sort of thing I would expect to hear while eating a pizza. I would assume that it's the saxophonist's project, but I only know two sax players - Zorn and Coltrane - and it's neither of them. Is it?

track 4
Once again, IHAFCWTI. I would categorise it as post-punk or no-wave, I think. I can't even tell the sex of the singer - I think it's female. but it could be a strange voiced man. I didn't dislike it, but I'm unlikely to be humming it in the car on the wat to work tomorrow.

track 5
Hurrah! Something I know! Lena's Song from Angels of Light Sing "Other People". I knew what this was even before Michael Gira's voice came in, just from the guitar sound. The warmth of Gira's voice is amazing, especially when you compare it pre-Children of God Swans. Given the choice, I would almost always choose to listen to Angels of Light ahead of Swans. I would like to mention that I helped fund the recording of Sing "Other People" by buying copies of Micheal Gira's home recorded CDs off his website. If you can, I recommend that you buy a copy of I am singing to you from my room from www.younggodrecords.com. Thank you for including this track - I loved it.

track 6
Something by Pussy Galore, I think. A very recognisable guitar sound, and even more recognisable drums. I don't have an Pussy Galore in my collection any more, but I do still have a soft spot for them.

track 7
The main thing that stands out this time is what sounds like a cheap guitar played through a cheap amp. It's quite minimalist noisy rock, based on short repeated patterns. I don't know what this is, but I'm going to make a stab in the dark. Is it Dead C?

track 8
IHAFCWTI. It's fairly stripped down reggae with a nice clean sound. Mid to late 80s? I like this kind of reggae bass, so this went down quite well.

track 9
IHAFCWTI, but I reckon this is what Nirvana would have sounded like if they hadn't been Melvins fans. So so.

track 10
IHAFCWTI. It reminded me of Gang of Four, but it's not them. Interesting male / female dual vocals. It could be something from the same time as Gang of Four, but I suspect it is actually a lot more recent because of the noisy turn it takes at the end. I wouldn't mind hearing more.

track 11
IHAFCWTI. Ouch! It hurts! I couldn't even tell if it was distorted voice or distorted guitar until halfway through. It seems to be someone else's recording which has been manipulated. To be honest, this did my head in so badly I couldn't concentrate after it.

track 12
IHAFCWTI. This was quite mellow, but my head was so fucked by track 11 that I couldn't relax.

track 13
Solo guitar, I don't know who. I'll try again when my head is clear of track 11.

track 14
More reggae, quite recent I reckon. Not my kind of thing.


It'll be a couple of days before I can carry on to side two.

I'm going to have a long soak in the bath now, see if I can get this buzzing out of my head.

pookie, you've sent one off to me correct?

Shit! I knew I'd forgotten something.:o

Only joking. I sent all the tapes at the same time (the 8th).

haha! good good

Did you take a peek at the tracklist?

A few years back I discovered Elvis Costello, and quickly went out and bought a lot of his stuff. Looking back some of it is great, but some of it is down right awful. Still a very skilled lyricist, and I too thought this was perfect to start the tape off with.


This song just makes me feel good. Samba beat, from Brazil. DJ Dolores, I don't recommend much else from her.


This comes from an Ethiopian music compliation (a series actually) that features all sorts of gems. This one comes from Mulatu Astatqe. It may or may not be featured in the film Broken Flowers. A world away from Zorn and Coltrane, respectively. I'm puzzeled by why this makes you think of pizza?? Though I now crave it.


Neither post-punk, nor no-wave, at least in my opinion. I guess we'll bunch these guys into what they call free-folk. Whatever, eh? Wooden Wand & the Vanishing Voice. I included it because its short, and I enjoy the (female) vocals. I like this band greatly. I think they are playing ATP?


I too have a great appreciation for all things Micheal Gira. I should thank you for funding such an awesome record. I could have put any song by him on here and it would make sense. Last year I met him in a used book store here in Omaha, of all places. Incredibly nice guy. Yet to have lived up to his promise of playing a show here though. I already own I Am Singing to You From My Room.


This is Alright from their album Right Now! Very loud record.


Judging from their live show, you are probably right about the cheap guitar and cheap amp. This would be Mouthus. I really like the hidden beat in this track, its fun to hear after a few beers. I can see the Dead C connection. This is pretty standard for them however...


Would you believe this song was recorded in the early 70s? From The Burning Spear. One of my all time favorite songs. Yes, the bass is nice, but the real worth of this song is in Mr. Spears guitar work. Almost psychdelic, makes me want to dance, or sing. Or something.


Interesting how you described it. Dayton, Ohio's finest: Guided by Voices. This was one of the first bands I obsessed over, while getting into indie rock. I don't listen to them a whole lot anymore, but this song was sung to me once by someone, leaving me blushing, and wanting to get sick. Either way.


You'll probably know the band after I type it, as they are quite well known. They got their start around the time Gang of Four were popular, and are still a functioning band. They are one of my favorite bands, and they are Dutch. The Ex. I could recommend about 8 records of theirs to you. This one came from their last, Turn. Blueprints for A Blackout is a good place to start, if you feel moved to.


I'm not sure if I should feel bad or just laugh. A little bit of both to be honest. I figured this would be the most controversial track on the tape, but there is some charm to it...under all the noise. Its from Russian electronic duo The Podryvaniem Boys. There is a lot of stuff going on in this tune, besides a throbbing beat there is also taped recordings of a cosmonaut warning Moscow of a failing spacecraft, quite possibly the Salyut 7 tragedy. This coupled with the classic Russian tune Kalinka. In case you are not familiar with Kalinka, as I realize not everyone is Russian, its an upbeat folkish song about snow, trees, and begging for love (so very Russian). My family has played it at weddings on more than one occasion. Dancing insues. Калинка, калинка, калинка моя!!!


I hope you didn't listen to the previous song with headphones on. Yikes. I figured something mellow was needed next. Argentine songstress/actress/guitarist brings you the next song. The vocal stylings here are the high point for me, at some points it sounds like three of four different singers. It translates to 'save yourself if you can'. Oddly some Spanish speakers I know can't make out a word of this.


This comes from the same region of the world as The Podryvaniem Boys, but is much different in style and just about everything. Dasha Nupreisova of Kazakhstan strums this tune. It sounds like a guitar but its actually a domba, which wiki tells me was an early version of the balaika. I think this was recorded sometime in the 30s. A friend of mine has learned to play this on guitar though. Its a lovely piece of music.


DC hardcore band Bad Brains show they can double it up with this song. When I recorded this song to the tape, it was the first time I had listened to it in a very long time.

Ok, I'm done. And sorry about the buzzing, really.

.longest

Post

Ever

All apologies for forgetting to scan gmku's cover art in when I reviewed his mixtape. Very remiss of me. If I could be sure my second tape was going to him, I'd include a loll pop in the parcel.

Wake the Dead outer cover:



Wake the Dead inner cover:



note the nice fish.

Twiggy photo credit: Richard Avedon
graphic elements: anonymous advertisement illustrators for Spin postcard and BMG music club

Well, I've recieved my tape today. The maker of this tape is Glice. It looks as though I got my wish. And there are several reasons it would appear this tape was custom made for me. Review pending.

And Pookie, it seems as though you had the wrong address for me, which may have contributed to the delay. It was off by one number. I'll PM you later with the correct address.

Sorry!!

I think I got your address from the front of the envelope you sent. I obviously mis-read.

Glad you got it though.

I'm sure it was my fault Don't worry about it.

I sent the correct address via PM, in case my hand writing is that bad again.

Also, posted my second tape the other day.