Mixed By [Studio] – Mission Of Burma, Rick Harte*, Tony Volante. Producer – Richard W. Tape [Manipulations], Loops, Mixed By [Live Mixes] – Martin Swope. Send 'Mission Of Burma' Ringtones to your Cell. Learn How (Live) [Bonus Track] Lyrics. Mission of Burma Lyrics provided by SongLyrics.com.
I used to think of Howe Gelb as a Bob Dylan for my generation (or at least a John Prine). His lyrics are always literate and clever, and he staked a claim on the alt-country turf when the geography of that genre had yet to be mapped. Jason and the Nashville Scorchers released their debut EP (with its rocking revision of 'Absolutely Sweet Marie') in 1982 (the same year the Kinmans re-emerged as the Rank and File). These were no doubt an influence on Gelb. Howe ever, Giant Sand is always all over the map, and now I think of Gelb as more of a Willie Nelson type.
He's no generational spokesman but an accomplished singer-songwriter, and as a player he crisscrosses the borders between the lands of Jazz and Country, sometimes emerging from a wormhole into a musical DMZ. November brings a new Giant Sand album, Blurry Blue Mountain, and with it the announcement from Fire Records of a reissue campaign to round up all the Giant Sand releases from the past 25 years, a disparate discography that wanders from one record label to another, with lineup changes reflecting death, divorce, and desertion. 'Giant Sand is a mood,' quoth Howe, and sometimes he's in the mood to do other things that aren't quite Sandy.
Collaborations under the names of OP8, Friends of Dean Martinez, and AZ Amp and Alternator, as well as solo Howe Gelb records, have appeared over the years. Some (if not all) of these diversions will be rekindled by Fire Records through this ambitious and auspicious reissue campaign. All told it will encompass thirty CD's, plus vinyl picture discs. First up for re-release are the first three: Valley of Rain, Thin Line Man, and Storm, a Giant Sand LP that was originally issued by Fire Records in 1988. A pedal steel guitarist was playing with the Sand at that time. Check out the barnstorming 'Three 6ixes', the tale of a young man who beats the devil (without a fiddling contest). Read about Howe's favorite Giant Sand songs.
And buy - it's a wistful and mature (but playful) collection of new songs, plus Howe revisits his own 'Thin Line Man'. Giant Sand: Three 6ixes. Blogger tells me that I passed 300 posts somewhere back there, and it's only taken me the better part of five years to do it. I couldn't have stuck with it this long without my loyal readers, especially those daily comments from 独懸賞金ム and 分海賊なら. You guys are 男性の為が!!! Apropos of nothing, here's a poem what I hath recently wrot: Well, the Spaniard sported an unsightly 'stache As he sweltered in the slum And the thirst unspoken to the sickened and scared, But the soap was salving, son. Abandon the bum - he slandered the scum!
In a county pub, Beelzebub Was besmirching every s'more He can't stand how it stung As he crammed down a crumb It tastes bland, but it's fun When it lands on the tongue The Nectarine No.9 featuring Jock Scot: Rocket No.9. Melvins - Youth of America Mission of Burma - Youth of America (courtesy of archive.org) All the Saints - Youth of America (courtesy of Southern Shelter) Regarding his dystopian punk/motorik masterpiece, Greg Sage wrote, 'The song YOA itself is out of a dream I had about the future. A time where people 'over breed' themselves to the point that even the most simple thing had become the highest level of competition. The dream had such a sense of realism and intensity to it that I went overboard with the recording to symbolize it.' Buy and other Wipers records.
Were the 1980's really that bad (see 8/19/10 below)? There's good music to be found in any decade, if you know where to listen.
There are always forward-thinking musicians creating visionary sounds. Predictions of the future that were made in the past can be amusing when they're inaccurate (like the Jetsons, jetpacks, or Disney's Tomorrowland), but they're startling when they come true. Prognosticators, weathermen, and fortune tellers never have to admit they're wrong: they can always blame the future for failing to live up to their predictions.
The early 1980's, in particular, were actually a great time for music. After the first wave of punk dismantled rock convention, post-punk addressed the burning question, 'What next?' One dedicated student of post-punk created to point out the magnitude of musical invention in that year alone. In his book Independence Days, Alex Ogg describes 'a cadre of groups who wanted to phase-jump to a new universe of sonic possibility.' Ogg argues for 'shifting the common perception of 'year zero' to 1978 or 1979 and the dawn of post-punk rather than the established reading of 1976.'
Last month, I saw the band on the closing night of the Athens Popfest. Unlike our poor boy who believed in chance, the men of Raymilland fully grasped the intricacies of the modern dance.
They absorbed the lessons of Father Ubu and took off for parts unknown, leaving a cosmic trail of datapanik in their wake. Raymilland was one of the openers for Mission of Burma. Having finally seen MoB, I realize that the horrible truth about Burma is their greatness. Have we failed to live up to the future that they predicted for us? Buy the Raymilland compilation. Listen to Mission of Burma's set from Popfest.
Buy the Moving Parts Wrong Conclusion. The Moving Parts: Max Ernst (1978). The Jim Jones Revue arose like a phoenix from the ashes of Thee Hypnotics.
The JJR played four songs on this summer, including one from their brand new album, Burning Your House Down (which comes out this week). If you usually avoid the type of performers featured on Daytrotter, do yourself a favor and make an exception.
Or you can listen on. I generally eschew 'A meets B' comparisons, but if Little Richard or Jerry Lee Lewis fronted the MC5 or the New York Dolls - or if the members of NRBQ were into truckstop speed rather than wacky tobacky - the resulting musical maelstrom would sound a good bit like the Jim Jones Revue. The JJR will be hitting a few major American cities this month: Sept 14 NYC; Sept 15 Chicago; Sept 16 Seattle; Sept 17 Portland; Sept 19 SF; Sept 20 Santa Cruz; Sept 22 San Diego; Sept 23 LA; and Sept 26 New Orleans.
Then they return to Europe. You lucky bastards. Although I haven't been blogging lately, I read music blogs every week. I was right pleased to be mentioned in three of my favorites:,. Last Days features the Underneathica theme song (circa 1981), so grab that mp3! It's nice to be remembered by your peers. Ib (of SibLINGSHOT) wrote a comment on his blog about the sad state of popular music in the 1980's.
I was immediately reminded of the brilliant Prolapse song 'Deanshanger', with Scottish Mick rabidly denouncing the era: 'D'you remember the 1980's? The music was CRAP! The clothes were CRAP! The news was CRAP! The hair was CRAP!'
Lucky life was only for the rich and greedy/ Unhappiness reigned supreme among the needy/ The papal visit promised much but didn't deliver/ I'm glad it's all over, wrapped up in a box and put under the bed. Smith surveyed the music scene with a jaundiced eye in 1980's 'C&C Mithering': You think you've got it bad with thin ties/ Miserable songs synthesized/ or circles with A in the middle/ Make joke records, hang out with Gary Bushell, join round table/ 'I like your single!' 'Yeah, great.' - a circle of low IQ's. Watch a fan-made video, or listen to it here. The hottest thing from the North to come out of the South.
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