[hat and beard]

Suntanama (the band Keith Connelly plays guitar in) is another one to throw on the suck pile. The vocalist sounds almost like Eddie Vedder (yuck!).

I haven't heard Coachfingers yet. Are they any good?

[Iain]

I quite like the Coachfingers record. I think it's Jason Meaghers thing but I still don't know which one he is so that doesn't really mean all that much. It's straight ahead rock pretty much.

[Iain]

Here is a review from Popmatters which sums it up pretty well I think:

Surreal Zappa-esque Foolery
No one should buy No Flies on Frank because it’s a NNCK side project. Though the two bands share one core member (Jason Meagher) and two contributors (Dave Shuford, David Nuss), very little about the Coach Fingers’ first full-length can be attributed to the long-running improvisatory collective. For one thing, NNCK is nothing if not serious; Coach Fingers is one long, country-flavored giggle from start to finish.
Consider standout cut “Wakachu the Walrus”, a Dada-esque rampage through Molly Hatchet’s riff book cut with Lewis Carroll’s brand of whimsy. Wakachu is clearly one of a long line of Southern rock bad boy heros, the sort of troublemaker you might plausibly locate in a Lynyrd Skynryd song. He’s a gin-drinking, card-playing, coyote-fighting good ole boy, who admits in the song’s best lines, “Trouble seems to fit me like a hand inside a glove / It’s like pulling up to a two-ton bridge when you know you’re hauling three”. He’s probably got a tattoo or two, and he’d be a total stereotype, except that he’s a walrus.
That sort of disconnect—between the classic rock lines and the surreally disconcerting imagery—is what makes Coach Fingers such a great ride. As you’d expect, given the personnel, the quality of musicianship is quite high. Still, there’s a complete lack of self-importance here. The epically swamp-boogie-ish “Lost in the Cornmaze with the Id and the Odd” is propelled mostly by a chorus of kazoos.
There’s a sense of high intelligence at play here—a giddy silliness that, along with certain 1970s-leaning guitar lines, may remind you of Zappa (possibly the “Frank” of the title). Still, the Coach Fingers are also pretty effective when they straighten up, too, as on the lovely, very country “Miranda”. This tune, an oblique tale of a drifter, a sheriff, and a missing girl named Miranda, is lushly orchestrated by Meagher’s brother Sean, full of plaintive harmonica, strings, steel guitar, and righteous gospel piano, yet it seems like the simplest, most affecting song on the record.
By contrast, “The Drop Off”, which follows, is just the opposite, a crazy country prog romp where Edgar Winter’s keyboards bang along next to a maniacal banjo. Time signatures, tempos, keys, and moods are all in flux… just when you’ve gotten a handle on the head-pounding verse, you stumble across a sweeping Beatles-psyche chorus. It’s completely nuts, way too crowded and overstuffed with ideas, but weirdly compelling anyway.
No Flies on Frank is a long drunken drive down some seriously twisted country roads. Bring a friend, some weed, and a case of the giggles, and if you don’t end up in a ditch, you’ll have a hell of a time. - Jennifer Kelly

[Toilet & Bowels]

isn't angelblood the metal thing involving nnck members? anyway i quite liked what i've heard of suntanama. i seem to remember miighty flashlight being rubbish though... anyone care to back/correct me on that one?

[Пятхъдесят Шест]

Originally Posted by Toilet & Bowels

isn't angelblood the metal thing involving nnck members?

Yes. Seek this one out.

 

I think its only available from Printed Matter. And once you buy something from them, they don't stop sending all kinds of stuff.

[pokkeherrie]

I listened to some Coachfingers songs on their myspace last week or so. It wasn't bad, but not really my thing.
I didn't know Angel Blood were NNCK related. I caught a glimpse of them at ATP in 2004 and thought it was pretty lame to be honest... but I only saw about 2-3 minutes so that's a bit short to judge them on.

[o o o]

Originally Posted by Toilet & Bowels

i seem to remember miighty flashlight being rubbish though... anyone care to back/correct me on that one?

i don't think miighty flashlight has anything to do with nnck... from memory, it's the solo thing of a guy who played with the silver jews, royal trux, and others, and used to be in rites of spring (?)... well, maybe he collaborated afterwards in some way with nnck...
i have one album (maybe the only one he released?) and i actually quite like it, if i remember right (i haven't listened to it in some time).

edit: well, here are two MP3s (cannot listen to them at the moment, so I cannot comment, but I know it's nothing like nnck):

http://jadetree.com/mp3/Miighty_Flashlight-Hala.mp3
http://jadetree.com/mp3/Miighty_Flashlight-ballet.mp3

[demonrail666]

Shit, they've got me.

[Bunbury]

has anyone bought and/or listened to Nine For Victor?
is it any good and/or should i buy it?

thanks.

[Iain]

YES. Nine For Victor is ace! It's sounds quite different to the live recording of Victoriaville though. It's practically unrecognisable almost. It's not the full set I don't think, it sounds a lot better and it's been shuffled around I think. It is really ace though. It's not my favourite by them though...that would be either Sticks and Stones... or Intonomancy.

[atari 2600]

Originally Posted by pokkeherrie

i wasn't referring to the stage antics either, but just when you see them playing their instruments and doing what they're doing. it sometimes takes about 10-15 minutes to get in to it, but then they can suddenly hit you with an amazing groove or wonderful rhythm.

FYI: This is what the non-Goo refer to as "jamming the note." Meanwhile, the Goo bray on: "this is so wacky...it must be genius...I better pay attention to this...oh, and they are so like, organic, dude." And their thought bubble says: "hey, we kind of sound like them, maybe we could listen to their stuff and learn some tricks."

I feel I'm risking being misunderstoood here, so maybe I should elucidate a bit further.

Let's say six or seven very cool, artistically-inclined people get together to jam.
Since none have outstanding musical ability, they all kinda play what they think is cool: and all at the same time.

Over time though, they develop some rapport with one anothers' instrumentation and some interesting non-cacophonous sounds do develop somewhat, but since everyone's ego is so huge and they don't want to learn to work together to write a real composition, (that would be like a total drag, dude, because we're like, you know, making spontaneous art and stuff) there's only so far this type of musical experiment can go really.

Although, I will also agree that sometimes, there are some amazing sounds; I chalk this up to them having played together for so many years. Although playing intruments in non-standard, frenetic, and percussive fashion is hardly new.

Imagine early Camper Van Beethoven without the musical talent or knowledge, songs or instrumental compositions, wit or lyrics. Imagine if they all would have just decided to say "fuck it" and never would have written any of their classic indie tunes, instead settling for being smugly self-satisfied.

Although I've always been an admirer of expressionism in all of the arts, I've also always maintained, however, that one must be grounded by some sort of discipline to possibly ever truly be free to explore the full range of one's expressiveness.

[atari 2600]

bullshit...
"lacking foreceful egos"...

that's drivel...

it's their fucking egos that refuse to acknowledge that their art would be better served if they learned music a bit more...it's their egos that keep them from sacrificing the time to learn

[atari 2600]

Although I've always been an admirer of expressionism in all of the arts, I've also always maintained, however, that one must be grounded by some sort of discipline to possibly ever truly be free to explore the full range of one's expressiveness.

[atari 2600]

The sick ones are the people so ignorant that they have time for dreck like NNCK. I'm quite well, thanks.

Thanks for the false sentiment.
You know, peoples' opinions and tastes are formed by the "alterna" media too.

The Nick guy whose review you posted does at least have some bits in there that are actually informative though; he sounds like he gets it. He's not as bad as many reviewers for this band.
But then he just gets carried away because it's his job to spiel and hype.

(as if to say)
Don't resist the programming now, kiddies: NNCK are an exciting, happening Brooklyn/NYC collective that are ultra-cool and if you don't think so, well, then you aren't cool.

It's like a beer commercial...give me a fucking break.

[Iain]

I understand what you are saying but it doesn't entirely sit right with me. Of course they have egos, I think that is obvious and there is definitely a tension within the band at times that makes them interesting.

I don't think they are talentless musicians by any stretch of the imagination. Whether they started out with much musical aptitude or not I think they definitely have 'chops' now. Some of them have played, and some still do, in bands which have a more traditional song stucture. Eg Coachfingers, Suntanama and Angkor Wat.

Also I think you're exaggerating the "nnck are cool and hip and you're not cool if you don't dig them angle". Sure there's a fair amount of gabble about them here, on other forums and certain online zines but on a wider scale they aren't exactly a name to drop. Sure, the 'alterna media' creates hype the same as the more mainstream music press but I think you are underestimating people a little. Sure there are people who listen to stuff because they think they 'should' or because it is 'hip' but, in my experience, those people are actually in the minority.

Furthermore to say someone is 'ignorant' for listening to nnck or any band is just plain moronic.

[atari 2600]

no time

[atari 2600]

dustbin-fodder

[atari 2600]

I couldn't even begin to explain the manner of the ways I get "out there" musically with what I listen to, but I'll list a bit...

Give me the improv of genius musicians:
I'll go with Dolphy.
I'll enjoy some late Trane. Although mid is best, by far.
I'll go with Lennie's later solo piano.

I also enjoy all sorts of very far-out avant-garde music.

I'll take the cream from the No Wave cup, and send the rest of it back.

I'll even venture into some of Brötzmann's ensembles or take a dip in the Instant Composers Pool instead.

[tesla69]

I haven't read through this whole thread just the last coupel pages and have to respond to

"Let's say six or seven very cool, artistically-inclined people get together to jam. Since none have outstanding musical ability,"
ifyou're stating the NNCK guys have no musical ability you are just 100% WRONG. Matt Heyner is one of the most in demand young standup bassists in the downtown NYC scene, I've seen him play in half a dozen different free music lineups and the man can fucking play (in fact he's playing tonite at the stone with Matt Lavelle and Ryan Sawyer). I've also seen him play electric bass, guitar and drums on other bands with more than acceptable proficiency. I've seen the other guys on in other bands play their gear with more than simple proficiency.

"seem to remember miighty flashlight being rubbish though"
he's a fine songwriter but acoustic singer/songwriting it is not my thing.

NNCK are not a rocknroll band. Its not boogie dance pop narcotic music. It requires serious listening. Its not background music for video games or driving gto the mall. Some people don't like it. That's valid. I've got a couple of their albums but none of them hold up to the deep consciousness wedge of their live sets...

I first saw NNCK in 98 BTW...

[atari 2600]

What other reason could there possibly be?

Yeah, I might go see 'em live.

Simply because they would be better live than probably 90% of the shit that comes through here.