gail and dawn played some stellar platters for archer prewitt & band: mark greenberg and chris manfrin
the clientele featuring pam berry
"(I can't seem) to make you mine" (johnny kane)
dawn: how great would it be if you didn't say anything?
mark: we can do facial things that the tape recorder won't pick up. it's nice. it's a really sweet melody.
cf: you know who it is? you've seen 'em.
archer: the clientele?
cf: with pam berry singing.
archer: I thought this might be the clientele. hence, I like it.
mark: we're not allowed to say "velvety" with each one, right?
archer: it's very smooth and melancholy. nice straight vocals with very nice harmonies. kind of sounds like an old smiths song on hatful of hollow.
mark: velvety. I like it. quite velvety in its aloofness.
the aislers set
"attraction action reaction" (suicide squeeze)
archer: beat happening? sounds vaguely like françoise hardy but more indie.
dawn: come on you guys, make it more exciting than this.
mark: it's kind of velvety.
archer: is she playing all the instruments? is she singing all the vocals?
cf: she usually is.
archer: sounds great. very groovin' and intricate and complex. and sort of hobbling along to this funky beat. and simultaneously ethereal and plain in its vocal delivery.
mark: love the sleighbells!
archer: leaves you wanting more.
pipas
"wells street" (long lost cousin)
archer: magnetic fields? sounds like early smiths.
mark: meaning it's belle and sebastian.
archer: kind of early smiths. another song with good reverb going on, but this one's got a burning drum machine on it. every song has had nice blank vocals on it. yeah, I like this.
chris: there's so much reverb on the vocal, it's like she fell down a well. she's trying to keep herself going with her casio.
archer: yeah, I like reverb. sounds fantastic. nice and short.
the montgolfier brothers
"une chanson du crépuscule" (vespertine)
archer: ooh, sounds like it's got some mellotron on it.
mark: the last one did too, right?
archer: I don't think so.
mark: midi.
archer: yep, this is midi mellotron...
mark: ...and midi glockenspiel. no. 62 on the roland orchestra module.
archer: this is bauhaus. this sounds like feline-era stranglers.
cf: it's the montgolfier brothers, from manchester, england.
mark: yeah, I thought they were english. sounds aluminum groupish.
archer: it's got a good robot voice on it. another short one.
kirsty maccoll
"autumngirlsoup" (v2)
archer: this is pipas again?
cf: it's the late, great kirsty maccoll.
archer: it sounds great.
mark: there's a theme of reverb.
archer: beautiful voice. I'm liking the lyrics so far. interesting, odd backup sounds, overdub sounds. gorgeous.
archer: we're not going to be worth printing.
mark: we're boring and nice. we don't care enough to be bitchy.
cf: maybe I'm not playing enough bad music.
archer: yeah, I like everything.
blectum from blechdom
"the fancy torture chamber" (right time right place)
[silence]
cf: well, that doesn't sound like anything else.
archer: is this autechre? sounds like the streets of new york.
dawn: idm. are you familiar with the new phrase "intelligent dance music'?
cf: it's for people who don't dance. guys like mike wolf.
archer: I think it's interesting as musique concrète type of thing, but I'd prefer it without a beat.
mark: I'm waiting for it to kick in. I want the middle eight. I want harmonies.
archer: I don't think I'd listen to it more than once.
david candy
"listen to the music" (jetset)
archer: love it.
mark: [to cf] you do like reverb, don't you!
archer: who is this?
cf: it's the ian svenonius project. he collaborated with some english gents.
archer: wow, sounds hot. I saw the makeup in chicago, I liked it. but I never
listened to their albums. it's very james brown.
mark: it's like the kinks at the bottom of a well. as much reverb as they use...
dawn: I like the way you guys aren't talking to each other, you're talking into the mike.
mark: it's the background to a peter sellers movie. definitely.
chris: all these people are spelunkers on weekends.
erin mckeown
"didn't they" (signature sounds/tvt)
chris: except for this one.
archer: squirrel nut zippers?
cf: good guess, but no.
mark: does she wear little cocktail dresses and pretend it's the '40s? that's a new thing, that I-want-to-be-billie-holiday thing.
cf: do you think she can sing?
mark: yeah, but that's a different conversation. I know a lot of people that can sing, but I'm not listening to it on my stereo.
dawn: would you like to name some names?
smith garrett band
"country time" (where it's at is where you are)
archer: beachwood sparks?
cf: no, they're called the smith garrett band. they're also british. a lot of british bands are playing country rock now.
dawn: anglophile.
archer: that sounded good.
mark: what's the difference between the beachwood sparks and the black crowes?
cf: the black crowes date celebrities.
mark: that's the only difference.
the would-be-goods
"vivre sa vie" (matinee)
archer: is this april may? april march? I never heard her. I only read reviews.
cf: no, it's the would-be-goods, yet another british band.
archer: it sounds great. I want all the bands on this tape.
mark: the rock part sounds like another song we've heard.
archer: it has a zombies songwriting feel to it.
the foots
"it's about time" (lost and lonesome)
archer: sounds kinda spinanes-y, doesn't it, mark?
cf: they're australian.
dawn: sounds like containe.
archer: sounds good.
chris: it does sound like containe. fontaine.
archer: I love it, it's great. sign me up.
kings of convenience
"toxic girl" (astralwerks)
archer: I've been wanting to hear what they sound like. everybody says simon & garfunkel but this doesn't sound like simon & garfunkel.
mark: well, men with lisps sound like belle and sebastian. they cornered that market.
archer: not only can they sing, they can play their instruments.
dump
"pop life" (shrimper)
archer: this is "pop life'? sounds great.
dawn: velvety.
archer: who is it?
chris: stunned.
cf: dump.
mark: doesn't sound like his voice.
cf: are you guys prince fans?
mark: I liked the movie purple rain.
cf: he made more than one movie!
mark: I liked under a blood red sky. apple dumpling sky...
cf: under a cherry moon?
mark: sheila e. was the star of that movie. big time. she was huge. it was at a time when she was wearing this body thing that excluded one leg and she was doing these huge timbali solos and every time they shot sheila e. she was 12 feet tall. great movie. stirring film.
archer: that's hot.
the pines
"a hundred doors" (long lost cousin)
chris: back in the well. actually this sounds more like an oil tank, an oil reserve tank.
mark: a silo.
archer: the mamas and the papas.
mark: but the male voice would have been mama cass's voice.
wendy and bonnie
"let yourself go another time" (sundazed)
mark: is the band that sang "green tambourine"?
archer: this is great. sign me up. I saw this today, I thought it looked like a good cover. I almost bought it cause it looked good, now I'll buy it cause it sounds good. the drums are rocking.
mark: big fadeout too. excellent. thanks for inviting us over to listen to records. CF
