Chalkhills Digest Volume 11, Issue 4
Date: Friday, 21 January 2005
Chalkhills Digest, Volume 11, Number 4
Friday, 21 January 2005
Topics:
Thoughts
UK XTC Convention
Look Look Explained Explained
Chalkhills of Ideas
Re: LookLook Cover
A Quick Note Re Editorial Decisions and Jon Brion, Year End List
XTC covers addition
My XTC Tribute band
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---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 19 Jan 2005 15:52:48 -0000 From: "Belinda" <b.blanchard@btinternet.com> Subject: Thoughts Message-ID: <009001c4fe3e$ec87b280$536b9a51@davidfoh4tm83a> Greetings all, A few points. 1) Why has Andy Partridge never appeared on Never Mind The Buzzcocks? (For our non UK friends, it's a music quiz TV show). He would be fab especially if up against someone like Rick Wakeman. There was a rumour a couple of years ago he would be on, but maybe he saw it and thought it had either gone too banal - (with some different young famous person on with one hit to their name and a new "Greatest Hit" album to sell each week, that he/we have never heard of) - or that he really did not know enough about current music to be able to contribute. (This last point doesn't hold back most people on the show!) 2) Given the above, isn't there the space on TV for a better more in depth music quiz? TV Executives and commissioning editors are now in their forties and some are even (shock horror) fifties (and to a certain extent this is reflected in some of the programmes we're seeing - tho not necessarily reality shows which nevertheless are beginning to decline in numbers of new ones, only to stack up on day time cable channels for ever!) - and so they may be keen to consider it. A Saturday tea-time sort of slot comes to mind. Discuss! But remember, formats are everything, as Endemol the makers/creators of Big Brother will tell you. 3) The reason I don't visit the Ideas website so much is that it is difficult to navigate around everything. I mean, this very Chalkhills posting hits my inbox every so often and I can just read the points / letters etc and get on with my day, whereas the Ideas site - well you need to log in and then work out what section you want to read and try and keep up, and remember to go into it (which I rarely do remember!) and so on. It's great when there's time to spend and read things, but for news I'd hope and dare to assume that if anyone had anything important to say they'd write here first. But I'm wrong there because I did not know about the planned UK meeting until I read about it on the Ideas site by chance. So thanks Jamie Lowe for alerting us all here to it. Meanwhile, there is one and a half hours till my Look Look video hits it's sell by time on ebay. I'm grateful to all who bid! Best wishes Belinda x
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 19 Jan 2005 16:29:38 -0500
From: "Tim Kendrick" <tim63@earthlink.net>
Subject: UK XTC Convention
Message-ID: <010901c4fe6d$fbc63da0$2c01f704@Kendrick>
Hi Jamie Lowe!
Yes, I'm also going to the Swindon XTC fan gathering
at the end of September. Will be booking my flights
next week.
Hopefully a lot of other Chalkhillians will be joining us.
It should be a great time!
The last UK mini-convention I attended I also helped
organize, way back in May '98. Neville Farmer
joined us with some pics and a lot of great stories!
It was a lot of fun and I hope some of the participants in
that one will also be at this upcoming one.
Jamie posted the website in the last digest, but I'll
put it here again in case anyone missed it:
http://www.mourra.com/XTC/2005/themeetingplace.html
I also occasionally post on the Idea website, but to be honest
there are so many threads on so many different topics that I just
don't have the time to keep up with it all.
Tim
XTC SONG OF THE DAY: In Another Life
------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Jan 2005 15:02:03 -0800 From: "Pastula Aaron" <pastula12@hotmail.com> Subject: Look Look Explained Explained Message-ID: <BAY24-F3825EA8CD990E06EC30ADA2800@phx.gbl> "Speaking of Look Look vids, does anyone know the story behind the cover? The guy buried in fish parts? Was there any art direction from the band? Where did the title 'Look Look' come from?" Well, I can answer the last part, at least... I believe the year was 1992, when Andy was giving an interview on 91X in San Diego during his promotional tour of Nonsuch. He told the story of owning a dictionary of "pidgin english," in which the word 'television' was translated as "Box Belong Look Look." He thought it was a neat title for a video collection, but of course it was deemed too confusing by the record company and was shortened to "Look Look." As part of the same interview, I seem to remember him referring to the drawings for the song titles on that album as being of a somewhat similar origin; based on some kind of children's learning tool or something. AP
------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Jan 2005 20:52:14 -0600 From: "David Lake" <david@blushift.co.uk> Subject: Chalkhills of Ideas Message-ID: <000e01c4fe9b$0bd80930$c6220d18@10dbPad> >From Jamie Lowe: > > Some of them are Chalkhills defectors who have found more life in > the Idea format. I know because I had a chance to meet a bunch at > one of their gatherings last summer in Chicago and they had people > come from all over the Midwest to celebrate their friendships and > more importantly their favorite band. But for some reason many did > not get Chalkhills and greatly preferred their way of doing things. > Maybe some of their lurkers can explain? David Lake or Omnibus? As for this ponderance, I can't speak for all, but here are my thoughts. I don't see one group better than another. I started with Chalkhills, and continue with it, because it is the best site for XTC info bar none. I don't think anyone can dispute that. The Idea forum has an advantage of nearly instant feedback and that attracts, breeds and fosters additional fans who warm to the kind of companionship that can bring. The Idea forum, from what I understand, is much more open than most forums in that there is a freedom, nearly unmoderated, that each of the members use with a certain level of responsibility. Kind of like an adult cocktail function with an occasional dirty joke. Much of the activity there doesn't even revolve around XTC. It's more of a place to hang out and catch up on things. I enjoy my time spent there equally with what I get from the Chalkhills digests and the wealth of info in the site itself. I am not a huge poster in either site, but have come to meet some great people from both. I'm sure that there are many that prefer one sites advantages over the other, but in my eyes, the XTC community would be lessened without one or the other. XTC is the hub. Where the spokes go from there, who knows? Dave Lake forumname: Blushift digestname: Dave
------------------------------ Date: Wed, 19 Jan 2005 21:16:04 -0800 (PST) From: Steve <ste7phen@yahoo.com> Subject: Re: LookLook Cover Message-ID: <20050120051604.48961.qmail@web53304.mail.yahoo.com> Ian D.wrote: > Speaking of Look Look vids, does anyone know the > story behind the > cover? The guy buried in fish parts? Was there any > art direction from > the band? Where did the title 'Look Look' come from? I personally do not know the story, but would like to take this opportunity to guess... Cold fish... looks like a special someone. (not a guy to me) It isn't even Winter! Another Steve
------------------------------ Date: Thu, 20 Jan 2005 08:07:29 +0000 From: "Simon Knight" <hazchem25@hotmail.com> Subject: A Quick Note Re Editorial Decisions and Jon Brion, Year End List Message-ID: <BAY13-F807A8F3F0555881F1BD33B8810@phx.gbl> Hey Everyone, Thanks to the people who offered suggestions regarding the editoral decisions question i asked back in early December. I've been recording 1400kms from my home (the studio was in Brisbane) for the last 7 weeks or so too involved in the process of creating an album to have had time to check my email or chalkhills, so sorry to those waiting for a reply, I'll work through the answers in the next few days. And take it from me... the recording and music business experience has made me bitter after just ONE record. Try to explain to a producer why you think 'drum loops are the 80's reverb of the 2000's', or that you don't want pitch correction because you actually like the way Lou Reed sounds and don't care if his notes are technically off, and that sometimes accidents, even though they're 'accidents' produce results that are better than what you originally wanted. Everything's a bloody compromise. (At least it took Andy 6 albums to write "Funk Pop A Roll" - I'm ready to write "Banality Killed The Video Star"). Just reading through the digests and wanted to point out this statement Ben Gott made: >Aaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh! I'm psyched! (The XTC connection, for those who >are wondering, is that a Jon Brion-produced XTC album would be SOLID >FREAKIN' GOLD.) Actually there's a bigger connection than that... I remember reading an interview with John Brion many years ago where he said his love for unusual antiquated synthesizer instruments started when he was trying to get away from the 80's keyboard sound and was reading the credits to Skylarking and wondered what on earth a Chamberlain was, so hunted one down and the rest is history. And yeah, i'd love him to produce XTC too but the choice is up to the guys I suppose. Hell, I was hoping for a Michael Nyman collaboration for Apple Venus. Quick picks of last year: - Finn Brothers - Everyone Is Here Mangetic Fields - I Forbidden Planet - Taniwha Rufus Wainwright - Want Two Hidden Cameras - Missiasauga Goddam Bigger Lovers - The Affair Never Happened (And Here Are 11 Songs About It) Mull Historical Society - This Is Hope Elliott Smith - From A Basement On A Hill Ken Stringfellow - Soft Commands Divine Comedy - Absent Friends The Honeydogs - 10,000 Years Ed Harcourt - Strangers The Lucksmiths - Naturaliste Splitsville - Incorporated Overrated: the Arcade Fire, Wilco The 'I Know I Should Love This But... Meh' Award: Brian Wilson's Smile I Know You Critics Are Desperately Looking For The Next Big Thing But You've Got To Be Shitting Me Award: Fiery Furnaces Still the good music far outweighs the bad.
------------------------------ Date: Thu, 20 Jan 2005 22:12:17 +0000 From: bsherman3@comcast.net Subject: XTC covers addition Message-ID: <012020052212.18932.41F02CC1000A51C0000049F42205886360CC020E039D0A089C0D@comcast.net> Hi: The Chalkhills FAQ mentions that the Trash Can Sinatras covered "Senses Working Overtime" and "Love On a Farmboy's Wages" on a limited-edition concert single. I thought I'd mention that these tracks are also available on their compilation CD "On a B Road", which is available at their website (http://www.trashcansinatras.com). So those XTC covers completists can grab it if they want. The covers are from live performances so the sound quality is less than pristine. Thanks -Bill Sherman
------------------------------ Date: Thu, 20 Jan 2005 17:25:25 -0600 From: "Terry Eason" <terry@terryeason.com> Subject: My XTC Tribute band Message-ID: <20050120232507.D027E2B11BA@smtpout-2.iphouse.net> I'm doing a XTC/Dukes cover band and we're playing at First Avenue ( http://www.first-avenue.com/ )in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA on Wednesday January 26th (That's next week!). We're being billed as "The Dukes of XTC" at the moment, but I think the name will change to "Generals and Majors" at some point (I was too late to change it for the club's calendar listing). My Website is at: http://www.terryeason.com/ Thanks! Peace, Terry
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