Mr. Moderator

Mr. Moderator

When not blogging Mr. Moderator enjoys baseball, cooking, and falconry.

Mr. Mod Makes Unexpected Visit to The Back Office

 Posted by
May 242007
 


Late last night Mr. Moderator unexpectedly dropped in on The Back Office. To his dismay, the place was in utter chaos.

“Papers were scattered on the floor, the staff was browsing the Financial Times Weekly site for the latest on the FTSE, and a distinctive oder hung in the air,” said Mr. Moderator, when seen at the San Diego Airport tonight. “I was dismayed, to say the least,” he continued.

The staff quickly got things in order, and then a late-night business meeting followed. The team engaged in a vigorous session of thinking outside the box, “blue-skying,” and other high-level business mumbo-jumbo. “Significant developments” and “Clear objectives” resulted from the meeting. A full report is expected in the morning, and affiliates will be contacted shortly thereafter.

The most significant development is that you will soon be seeing a banner ad for eMusic. If you’re not familiar with the program, it’s a monthly subscription service that allows a set number of downloads at a reasonable rate. Details will follow along with the ad itself, but the introductory trial offer is a pretty good way to test it out, if you’re so inclined. You can cancel any time before the intro period is up for no charge and all that jazz. I’m sure others out there have checked out this service or similar ones already.

Rock Town Hall’s taking on an ad does not mean you should expect a page full of ads, many of which having nothing to do with rock ‘n roll. That looks bad and is annoying to navigate, if nothing else. We believe eMusic is a worthwhile service and potential tool for your rock learning. Thanks.

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Hear Factor: Geo Asks “What’s It All About?”

 Posted by
May 192007
 

Townsman Geo check in with his Hear Factor experience!
To start with, I misread the first artist and am surprised to hear The O’Jays kick off the mix with a duet between a hyperkinetic drummer and a noisy, simplistic guitar doing an instrumental. Oh, “The Jay Jays.” I see.

When the second song kicks in, I notice that it, like the first, has an untethered, uncompressed noisiness that I like. The Comet Gain song, “Record Collector”, reminds me of the verse to the Buzzcocks’ song, “Harmony in my Head”, but it never quite gets to the payoff the Buzzcocks’ chorus delivers. It does have an amusing dead stop in the middle, that starts back up with music so totally different after the break that I would’ve sworn it was one of those Pink Flag segues where a new song kicks right in and eventually you can’t hear the end of the first without hearing the start of the second in your mind’s ear.

I’ll admit that although I have heard the Plastic Ono Band Album, I haven’t rigorously explored every second- or third-tier rock band that has come down the pike. I know “Itchycoo Park” and I’m sure I’ve heard Ogden’s whatever it is, but I’m barely familiar with the Small Faces beyond that. I expect “Almost Grown” to be the Chuck Berry tune that I believe The Animals covered, but instead it’s an organ driven, nearly instrumental soul groove. I always think of McLagan as a piano player, but I remember back to his autobiography that he’s also played a lot of organ. Pretty nice.

So three songs in, and I’m trying to place the “theme” of the set as well as the source. I see Big Star and Velvet Crush down the list and I figure this to be some kind of rough power pop collection sprinkled with some English antecedents. I wonder why Mr. Mod aimed this one at me since it’s not something I quite despise, but I guess I do have a studied disinterest to this stuff. It doesn’t appall me, but even at its nearly best, it often doesn’t grab me, more admired than loved.
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Critical Downgrade: Husker Du

 Posted by
May 192007
 


Is it time we give Husker Du a critical downgrade? Does anyone listen to their albums anymore, whether old heads or young? It seems they’ve gone from being this all-important band in underground rock in the ‘80s to a mere footnote to more influential bands that would follow in their wake: Nirvana and The Pixies. The Pixies, for cryin’ out loud, seem to have eclipsed Husker Du in critical acclaim and influence on indie rock bands! Bob Mould spinning techno records at a DC disco these days has eclipsed his hard-earned legacy in Husker Du! Now, non-fan that I’ve always been, I thought even the best Husker Du songs sounded like well-intentioned punk-pop mush, but come on, these guys ruled the roost! Now they’re a footnote to the history of The Pixies? Let’s examine.
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Endurance: The Richard Lloyd Interview

 Posted by
May 162007
 


I reached soon-to-be former Television guitarist and solo artist Richard Lloyd at his hotel in Hamilton Ontario, Canada, as he and The Sufi Monkeys, were about to kick off a brief tour of Ontario and select US cities, winding their way to Philadelphia’s Khyber on Thursday, May 17 and ending up back home in New York City at the Knitting Factor on May 19.

Within minutes of his gradual emergence from what sounded like a Nosferatu-like awakening, it became clear why a mic has rarely been set before him by any hands other than his own. The guy wouldn’t shut up. Better to have all that energy and bullshit pent up for his guitar solos, I’m sure some of his collaborators have thought, but this guy’s on the verge of something big, and it’s time we let him have his say.

Today, Central Park SummerStage series is set to announce the appearance of Television on June 16. Lloyd has announced that this will be his last show with the band so that he can dedicate his energies to the fall release of a new album, The Radiant Monkey. Meanwhile, in February, Lloyd reissued his 1985 album Field of Fire in an expanded edition that includes a second CD on which he re-recorded and remixed much of the original release. I had hoped that this rare do-over would be part of an enlightening and nerdy discussion to suit the fantasies of our Townspeople, but instead I was treated to a torrent of intergalactic mumbo jumbo and would-be provacative macho cock-talk. KISS’ Gene Simmons pulling that crap on NPR’s Terry Gross is high-brow water-cooler talk. A cult guitarist pulling similar crap on a plain old dude whose intentions are good is one of life’s little regrets.

Everything I say is a joke…

[In a croaked whisper…]
Richard Lloyd: I’m a little under the weather as far as my voice is concerned. It’s sort of par for the course that I would develop a chest cold and a sore throat in front of 11 days straight of singing. It’s part of my karma. It’s kind of a cosmic joke that’s played on me. You know, my vocal teacher – one of them – used to tell me that I should quickly run into a recording studio and sing, because I would have a husky, sexy voice. Even though I would lose my top notes, I would gain a few bottom notes as I sing my ballads and love songs. [hacking cough]

Rock Town Hall: If you get to a point when you need to stop to save your voice, just say the word.

RL: That was about 5 minutes before you woke me up… I’m kidding. Everything I say is a joke… I’m vertical now. This is better. Fluids will move.

RTH: Can you tell me about your new album coming out in the fall, The Radiant Monkey?

RL: You’re not allowed to say that. You haven’t got permission. You can say the letters R-M. I’m serious, don’t print that. Just say R-M. You can say that I told you you’re not allowed to say it. That’s different than saying it. It has to do with my ad campaign, which is all teasers, to begin with. So if you blow it, it’s like the punchline.

RTH: I’m going to be tracked down.

RL: No, you’ll just interfere with my plans for conquering earth.

RTH: I also read that coming up in May will be your last appearance with Television.

RL: No, in June. What are you reading, for godsakes?

RTH: Your website. It said this would be announced on May 15th…

RL: June 16th! I know what’s on my website. It’s not May. It’s June.

RTH: Can there be a Television without you?
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Is There a Drummer in the House: Bo Diddley Beat Edition

 Posted by
May 162007
 

Have you ever played with a drummer who, try as he may, just can’t get the Bo Diddley beat? Yes, I’m thinking about Bo as news came out today that he suffered a major stroke. The Bo Diddley beat without Bo is rarely the same, but a world without Bo altogether will one day be weird.

Getting back to the topic at hand, what’s the secret to the Bo Diddley beat? How do some do it so well…

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