Rock Town Hall • Rock Music Discussion

Analog Assholes, Compromises, and Pleasant Surprises

Aug 262011

Ever have one of those days when just about everything sucks from sun up to sun down? I had one of ’em about a month ago.

It all began at around 8:00 in the morning, on a day when my adorable little brats were staying overnight at my mother-in-law’s condo. I was reading an e-mail from one of my eBay customers, who purchased and recently received a Frank Sinatra Reprise reel to reel tape of the LP That’s Life. When I listed the auction, I test-played the tape, and it sounded superb. It was purchased in a lot of still-sealed reel to reel tapes. That said, the tape was not to his liking. Take a look at this shit:

When I went to play this tape, I found that it suffers from severe edge curl that results in excessive wow/flutter and dropouts. Even my Teac X-2000, which can compensate for a lot of tape issues, has troubling playing it. I know you played these tapes and found that they played well on your R2R deck, but I experienced some problems playing them on my deck. I notice that the tape suffers from edge curl on one side of the tape and, even though the dual capstan drive mechanism on my deck can compensate for some of that, it could not completely overcome it on the first tape. I can also see that there is visible tape wear on both tapes which may be responsible for the high level of hiss and static noises I hear in the left channel.

Man, did this guy need to get laid.

God, I Hate Button-fly Jeans!

Posted by hrrundivbakshi

Aug 262011

We will, we will not rock you

A few months ago, I was thrifting for a new/old pair of jeans, and I came across a pair in the right size and the right brand (which is to say: Levi’s first, Lee second, and — maybe, in a pinch — Wrangler third). Anyhow, I slapped down a fin and walked out with a decent pair of jeans in pretty good shape. A good day of shopping — or so I thought.

I got home, and to my great dismay, I realized I’d not paid sufficient attention to the crotch area of my new blue jeans — they were “button-fly” monstrosities.

Let me just rant for second. I’m a marketing guy by trade, and I understand how style can sometimes trump substance when it comes to consumer goods. But — goddammit — the zipper was invented a hundred freaking years ago for a reason. And that reason was to put the idiotic, inconvenient “button fly” out to pasture. The button fly is a thing that plainly sucks compared to the modern solution that replaced it. If I have a zipper, and I need to spring a leak, I just reach down, tug on the metal handle, and — hey now! — there are the necessary hoseworks. No fumbling with buttons, undoing belts, going half-dropped in the trou department — the zipper is just there, and it’s just plain better.

Today, I came to the bottom of my clean laundry. As always happens on such days, I was forced to don the dreaded 501 button-fly jeans. I endured them all day. But this evening — because I’m a total nerd — as I stumbled into the baffroom to drain the lizard, I began contemplating the possible Rock analogs for the button-fly jean and its sensible, more modern, clearly improved zipper counterpart.

I’m a frequent traditionalist when it comes to the Rock. But have there been bands or artists or genres, or perhaps tools of the trade, that saw clear and sensible improvement when they were supplanted by a better, more modern version or replacement? That’s the question I have. Sometimes progress is good, surely.

Now I feel bad that I called EPG out on my silly Beatles question earlier today. This is the issue on which I most eagerly seek his insight.

That goes for the rest of you, too. As always, I look forward to your responses.

HVB

The Electric Prunes’ “I Had Too Much to Dream Last Night” Progresses to Finals in Rock Town Hall’s Playoffs to Determine, Once and for All, the Best Song on the Original Nuggets Compilation

Posted by Mr. Moderator

Aug 262011

By a 2:1 margin, The Electric Prunes’ “I Had Too Much to Dream Last Night” beat The Nazz’s “Open My Eyes” in the Side 1 vs Side 4 Nuggets Divisional Playoff Series to progresses to the Finals in Rock Town Hall’s playoffs to determine, once and for all, the Best Song on the Original Nuggets Compilation.

While the rock world patiently awaits the outcome of the album’s other Divisional Playoff Series, between the Thirteenth Floor Elevators’ “You’re Gonna Miss Me” and the Count Five’s “Psychotic Reaction” (voting runs through 11:59:59 pm this Saturday, August 27), chew on this great little story that Prunes’ singer James Lowe passed along last week, when notified of his band’s inter-division showdown:

After I left the EP I engineered the next 2 Nazz albums, Nazz Nazz and Nazz III (and 4 subsequent Todd Rundgren albums after that).

Todd played me “Open My Eyes” to show me what they had done on their first album. I had never heard it. Good record. Small world!

Thanks for remembering.

jAMES

New Beatles Album Released… and, Thanks to You, It’s Terrible!

Posted by hrrundivbakshi

Aug 242011

Yeah, yeah. The White Album should’ve been edited down to a single disc. Ho-hum, Yellow Submarine was padded out with awful George Martin instrumental garbage. Yawn, Let It Be was an EP at best.

Here’s a question for Beatles fans with BALLS: can you assemble a Beatles album — 10 tracks minimum, using only official album and single tracks on which at least half of the band played — that you would never listen to? One that you would actively dislike, and dissuade your friends from buying because it sucked so much? What would be on that suckiest Beatles album to never be released?

I look forward to your responses — especially yours, EPG.

HVB

Critical Ratings Downgrade

Posted by cliff sovinsanity

Aug 242011

The concept is rather simple. Which critically acclaimed album is overvalued and therefore in need of a rating downgrade? I ask for only 1 album per Townsperson. In this case it will be for ’70s rock. I plan to roll out other genres and variation in the future, such as ’80s College, Dylan, etc. For this exercise you are free to use AllMusic.com, Rolling Stone Album Guide, Trouser Press Record Guide, or whatever resource material in your library as long as it rates albums up to 5 stars.

No easy targets. It would be too simple to pick on some band or artist that you don’t care for personally. Given the chance I could bore you all with personal dissection of why Steely Dan’s 5-star rating of Countdown to Ecstasy at AllMusic.com is jazz noodling nonsense. Too easy. The challenge is to pick an artist/band you actually tolerate.

Once and for All: Round 2, Side 2 (The 13th Floor Elevators) vs Side 3 (Count Five) Divisional Playoffs

Posted by Mr. Moderator

Aug 242011

As ongoing Nuggets Divisional Series showdown between Side 1’s “I Had Too Much to Dream Last Night” (The Electric Prunes) and Side 4’s “Open My Eyes” (The Nazz) plays out (voting is open through August 24th at 11:59:59 pm!), it’s time to open the battle between the inner sides in this effort to determine—once and for all—the Best Song on the Original Nuggets LP.

This divisional battle pits The 13th Floor Elevators, whose “You’re Gonna Miss Me” narrowly edged out The Remains’ “Don’t Look Back” and The Seeds’ “Pushin’ Too Hard,” against runaway Side 3 winner “Psychotic Reaction,” by The Count Five. One team, I mean, song enters this round in peak form, having had to earn every vote it accumulated, while the other stormed through the competition with among the purest fuzztone riffs in rock history. Voting runs through 11:59:59 pm on Saturday, August 27. Then, on Monday, August 29 we begin the championship showdown!

SHOWDOWN (choose one): What's the BETTER song between the division winners of sides 2 and 3 of the original Nuggets?

The Count Five, "Psychotic Reaction" (72%, 33 Votes)
The 13th Floor Elevators, "You're Gonna Miss Me" (28%, 13 Votes)

Total Voters: 46

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Once and for All: Round 2, Side 1 (The Electric Prunes) vs Side 4 (The Nazz) Divisional Playoffs, Featuring Anecdotes from The Electric Prunes’ James Lowe!

Posted by Mr. Moderator

Aug 222011

It’s showtime! Round 2 of the Nuggets Divisional Series (NDS) gets underway with a SHOWDOWN between the winners of albums sides 1 vs 4.

The Electric Prunes’ “I Had Too Much to Dream Last” night lived up to its top-seed status by outlasting a tough Side 1 field that included The Standells’ “Dirty Water,” The Knickerbockers’ “Lies,” and The Strangeloves’ “Night Time.” This stomping psychedelic classic, in my opinion, outdid the mighty Rolling Stones in that legendary band’s efforts at recording a “turned on” classic.

The Prunes’ scene-setting album opener will go up against The Nazz’ “Open My Eyes,” which jumped to an early lead against the compilation’s least-gripping songs and easily outdistanced a late challenge from The Premiers’ “Farmer John.”

Efforts to reach “Open My Eyes” composer Todd Rundgren were unsuccessful, as he could not risk missing his hair salon appointment for touching up his blond highlights, but James Lowe, lead vocalist and autoharpist of The Electric Prunes responded to Rock Town Hall’s questions regarding the creation of his band’s masterpiece. No joke! Check out his excellent anecdotes…after the jump! And vote for the winner of our first NDS match-up!

SHOWDOWN (choose one): What's the BETTER song between the division winners of sides 1 and 4 of the original Nuggets?

The Electric Prunes, "I Had Too Much to Dream Last Night" (Side 1) (62%, 41 Votes)
The Nazz, "Open My Eyes" (Side 4) (38%, 25 Votes)

Total Voters: 66

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