Scram's capricious guide to the music, culture, kicks and oddities you might otherwise miss
Tuesday, February 28, 2006
Terrastock announcement, April in Providence
"Terrastock and its audience are part of a necessary support system,
because in a music business centered on the search for the next big
thing, someone has to dig through record catalogues to discover the
next good thing, or search the archives to rediscover the last lost
thing." - New York Times
"A gathering of true believers, somehow combining the retro-obsessed
nerdiness of a Star Trek Convention with the most open-minded and
avant-garde elements
of the indie rock underground, all gathered together under the
genre-spanning umbrella of psychedelia."
- MOCA Los Angeles
TERRASTOCK is the official festival of internationally acclaimed
underground music mag, The Ptolemaic Terrascope (now Terrascope
Online), which has provided a voice to obscure, occult, mind-altering,
and deeply heavy aural explorations since 1989. Since its inception
in 1997, Terrastock has occurred five times, on both U.S. coasts and
in Europe. The festival gathers musicians and fans from all over the
world. The bill features a mix of big and small, wildly popular and
completely obscure, old, new, noisy, and quiet.
This year's line-up of over 30 bands brings performers from four
continents, including Japanese band Ghost (who will be making this
their last U.S. performance "at least until Bush is out of office"), re-emerged 60's
brit-folk icon Bridget St. John, Paik, P.G. Six, Charalambides,
Kemialliset Ystävät, Bardo Pond, Brothers of the Occult Sisterhood,
Kinski, Lightning Bolt, and the elusive grand-daddy of psych folk
himself: Tom Rapp of Pearls Before Swine.
So why are we telling you this? Because Terrastock is and has always
been a just-eeked-out D.I.Y. happening and we need you to help us
spread the word. This is a totally non-profit venture (the bands are not even paid!) but we
must cover enormous airfare, travel and hotel expenses for over 150
performers, not to mention venue, sound and equipment needs. All of this comes from ticket sales and we need your help to get the word out and sell some tickets. Tell
all your friends, or just come yourself!
We're also selling ads in our PROGRAM BOOK and we have tables
available for VENDORS. We are very interested in sponsorship too.
Please get in touch for more info!!
When: April 21-23
Where: Providence, RI, USA
For more information and ticket purchases:
http://www.terrascope.co.uk/TerrastockPages/terrastock.html
Contact: Jeffrey Alexander :: booking@as220.org :: (401) 831-9327
------------------------------
----------------------
Terrascope Online, Secret Eye Records and AS220 present:
TERRASTOCK 6
April 21-22-23 in Providence, RI
Pell Chafee Performance Center and AS220
35 bands! 35 hours of music!
Tickets on sale NOW!
http://secreteye.org/terrastock
PHONE CHARGE: 401-831-9327
Avarus (Finland) **first-ever and EXCLUSIVE USA appearance!
Bardo Pond (PA) ** EXCLUSIVE appearance!
Black Forest/Black Sea (RI)
Brothers of the Occult Sisterhood (Australia) **first-ever USA appearance!
Charalambides (CA/MA)
Cul de Sac (MA)
Damon and Naomi (MA)
Fursaxa (PA)
Ghost (Japan) ** EXCLUSIVE USA performance! quite possibly their
last-ever!
Glenn Jones (MA)
The Green Pajamas (WA)
Kemialliset Ystävät (Finland) **first-ever and EXCLUSIVE USA appearance!
Kinski (WA) ** EXCLUSIVE appearance!
The Kitchen Cynics (Scotland)
Sharron Kraus (England)
Landing (CT)
Larkin Grimm (RI)
Lightning Bolt (RI)
The Magic Carpathians Project (Poland) ** EXCLUSIVE USA appearance!
Major Stars (MA)
Marissa Nadler (RI)
MV/EE Medicine Show (VT)
Paik (MI)
PG Six (NY)
Jack Rose (PA)
Salamander (MN)
St Joan (England)
Bridget St. John (England) ** EXCLUSIVE USA appearance!
Spacious Mind (Sweden)
Spires that in the Sunset Rise (IL)
Tanakh (Italy/Canada)
Thought Forms (England) **first-ever USA appearance!
Urdog (RI)
Windy & Carl (MI)
plus TOM RAPP playing Pearls Before Swine songs with members of Ghost,
Damon+Naomi
and Black Forest/Black Sea ** EXCLUSIVE appearance!
Kick-off show the previous night ("4/20", heh) with ACID MOTHERS
TEMPLE, ABUNAI! (reunion), BRIGHT, and JOE TURNER & THE SEVEN LEVELS,
and AREA C -- at AS220
cult of the week - Manuel Goettsching
title: E2-E4
year: 1984
label: Inteam
personnel: Manuel Goettsching (guitar, electronics)
tracklisting: quiet nervousness, moderate start, and cetral game, promise, queen a pawn, glorious fight, h.r.h. retreats, (with a swing), ...and sovereignty, draw
further info: www.ashra.com
cotw say…
to produce an album that is heralded as being ahead of its time is one thing, but to have this happen to an album recorded three years prior to its first release, not to mention one that is essentially improvised (!), is quite something else.
when krautrock legends Ashra Temple's guitarist Manuel Goettsching sat down one evening in 1981 to improvise an hour long piece using nothing more than a guitar and synth sequence, he probably didn't bet on creating the world's first ever trance record. but arguably, 'E2-E4' remains just that. centered around a shuffling drum machine rhythm and a syncopated, melodic bass sequence - with a variety of 'ambiences' drifting in and out of the mix - the album is both totally hypnotic and, which is essentially what sets it apart, defiantly fresh and modern-sounding. indeed, I defy anyone to claim it sounds dated. a whole half-hour has actually gone by before any guitar comes in. even then, Goettsching's masterfully understated playing perfectly suits the backing, which remains fairly static for the album's second half. avoiding even the faintest hint of a 'rock' solo, Goettsching instead plays in a jazz style, with some reviewers even drawing comparisons to George Benson.
heavily sampled by Detroit techno pioneers, and part-inspiring the nineties' explosion in European trance, you heard it here first. classic, classic, classic.
erik - http://www.cultwithnoname.com
Monday, February 27, 2006
Tagged, dag nabbit!
Four LA Things Meme
Four Jobs I've Had in My Life in LA:
Editrix, Scram Magazine
Exhibition Coordinator, MOCA
LP Shrinkwrapper, The Record Connection
Restaurant Critic, Citysearch
The Cool Ones
Double Indemnity
In A Lonely Place
Meshes of An Afternoon
Four Places I’ve Lived All Over L.A. (with food memories from each)
Beverlywood, and Mama Tina's hamentoshen
Venice, and the cookies with sprinkles free from the bakery ladies just for being cute
West Hollywood, Pioneer Chicken dinner when mom didn't feel like cooking
Lincoln Heights, pistachio-cinnamon ice cream on a hot day on Broadway
Four LA Themed TV Shows I Love to Watch:
Quincy, ME
Dragnet
Where The Action Is
The Dr. David Viscott Show, featuring Dr. D.V.'s ginormous head
Four Places I Would Vacation at in LA:
The Biltmore
With the subterranean lizard people below Chinatown
Inside a revolving 76 Ball
Hotel Green (good enough for Duchamp, good enough for me.)
Four LA based Websites I Visit Daily:
LA Observed
LA Brain Terrain
Curbed LA
Lotta Livin
Four of My Favorite Foods Found in LA:
Bean and rice burrito (no queso), Super Tortas, Hollywood
Chili en nogada, Babita Mexicuisine, San Gabriel
Glutinous rice balls in fermented rice mash, Giang Nan, San Gabriel
Four Places in LA I Would Rather Be Right Now:
Under the bell wheel, Museum of Jurassic Technology
Butterfly Pavillion, Natural History Museum
Mathematica, god damn it
Pandora's Box, 1966
Allison Anders
Rodger Jacobs
Larry Harnisch
Jonathan Foerstel
Call for Artists: Save the 76 Ball!

This is an open invitation to artists who love the 76 Ball.
As you may know, Texas oil giant ConocoPhillips has purchased Union 76, and has been quietly pulling down the beautiful orange and blue 76 Balls and replacing them with ugly flat signs in red and blue. The ball's original designer, Ray Pedersen, is behind our petition and boycott campaign to Save The 76 Ball, as are nearly 1000 petition signers. Our campaign has received coverage on the BBC, LA Business Journal, Brandweek, OC Weekly and KIRO radio Seattle.
ConocoPhillips refuses to talk with the media about this issue, so you can bet they won't respond when we ask them to confirm or deny the rumors that the removed 76 Balls are being SMASHED INTO TINY PIECES. Since they are so secretive, I feel it's up to the artists of the world to show what's happening through the magic of pen, ink, Photoshop, etc. This is your chance to show what the powers that be don't want us to see--just like Goya, Gericault and Picasso!
If you'd care to contribute an image to the campaign, I would love to share it with the world on our website, along with a bio and link to your website. We got 51,000 hits over the past month, and I'm continuing to alert the media, so this could be a cool way to show your work off to gearheads and design fiends.
Please pass this on to anyone you think might be interested. Any help or suggestions you can offer would be greatly appreciated.
best regards,
Kim Cooper
Editrix, Scram Magazine
and chief troublemaker, Save The 76 Ball
http://www.savethe76ball.com
Saturday, February 25, 2006
L.A. Radio Wackiness
Also: over on Franklin Avenue, Mike is sharing some vintage printed radio surveys for KFWB and KHJ.
Thursday, February 23, 2006
Best Living Songwriters poll
Here's my picks (and I am sure I'm forgetting someone I'll regret); if you vote, please list yours on the comments below:
1) Alex Chilton
2) Arthur Lee
3) Barry Mann/Cynthia Weil
4) Brian Wilson
5) Carole King/Gerry Coffin (sic!)
6) Colin Blunstone/Rod Argent (they forgot Chris White, but I ain't blowing a write-in on one Zombie!)
7) Ellie Greenwich/Jeff Barry
8) Jeff Mangum
9) Jimmy Webb
10) Joni Mitchell
11)

12) Ray Davies
13) Roky Erickson
14) Steve Earle
15) Peter Perrett (Only Ones)
17) Scott Miller (Game Theory/Loud Family)
18) Brute Force
19) John Parker Compton (Appaloosa)
20) Deniz Tek (Radio Birdman)
Wednesday, February 22, 2006
Brute Force, Monday night in NYC

Gramercy Park South Brutegig!!
Monday, February 27, 8PM
at the famous Players Club
16 East 20th Street
http://www.brutesforce.com/
Monday, February 20, 2006
cult of the week - The Creepers
title: Rock 'n' Roll Liquorice Flavour
year: 1987
label: Red Rhino Records
personnel: Marc Riley (vocals, guitar, drums), Eddie Fenn (drums, guitar, piano), Phil Roberts (bass, vocals), Mark Tilton (guitar), Simon Taylor (guitar), Mike Gallagher (saxes), Jon Langford (guitar), Dick Taylor (guitar), Eric (accordian)
tracklisting: liquorice flavour, sweet retreat, cheshire life, rosalyn, derbyshire, tearjerker, fillet face, 'cept for you, fan club, act your age, bastard hat, curl up and dye
further info: http://homepage.ntlworld.com/s.bending/creepers/index.html
cotw say…
guitarist Marc Riley had his very own music industry baptism of fire by managing to remain a member of The Fall for a whopping 4 years. his post-Fall outfit, The Creepers, gradually grew in confidence with each of their five albums before finally calling it a day on this, their final, but greatest effort.
comparisons with The Fall are inevitable, but - with the exception of 'Fan Club' - unfounded as The Creepers' sound(s) is far removed, if still resolutely 'Northern'. Riley & Co. explore a far wider palette of sights and sounds on 'Rock 'n' Roll Liqourice Flavour', all of which are very palatable. in between excellent, melodic punky (not punk) songs such as 'Cheshire Life' and 'Curl Up and Dye', you'll find the honky tonk drinking song piano of 'Sweet Retreat', eighties indie ('Tearjerker'), avant folk ('Bastard Hat'), something approaching goth ('Cept for You') and a neat cover of The Pretty Things' 'Rosalyn'. the cool metronomic drums, sinister riffs, distorted stylophone and bizarre spoken monologue of the album's standout 'Derbyshire' warrants a special mention. Riley's versatile voice adjusts perfectly to every setting on the album, with the band duly following suit. accordian is used to particularly great effect.
a fine album, with barely two tracks that are the same. liqourice allsorts indeed!
erik - http://www.cultwithnoname.com
Sunday, February 19, 2006
LA event announcement: Report from the Ghost City, 2/24-25
The Disembodied Theater Corporation brings you an evening of dispatches, news, songs, and fragments from the Ghost City: the skeletal remains of industry, railways, and graveyards that stand as remnants of a lost society. Filmmaker Ross Lipman joins this odd assortment of media artists, musicians, and performers in presenting a haunting assemblage of ruins, rants, and shards of memory that paint a collective portrait of dystopia.
Featuring new works by:
Jewlia Eisenberg (of Charming Hostess)
Rebekah Greely (of WACO)
Steve Gregoropoulos (of WACO, Lavender Diamond)
poet Jen Hofer
Nora Keyes (of the Centimeters)
filmmaker Ross Lipman
Heather Lockie (of Listing Ship, Eels)
soprano Claire McKeown
filmmaker Lee Anne Schmitt
pianist Anna Simpson
Laura Steenberge (of Listing Ship)
Joe Tepperman (of Ego Plum Ebola Music Orchestra)
THE DISEMBODIED THEATER CORPORATION
is a newly created performance group founded by filmmaker Ross Lipman to realize temporary manifestations of non-filmic cinemas
THE VELASLAVASAY PANORAMA
is an exhibition rotunda and garden dedicated to the production and exhibition of the 360 degree panoramic landscape painting, widely popular some 150 years ago and nearly forgotten today, along with the presentation of other 19th Century inspired entertainments.
Friday Feb. 24th & Saturday Feb. 25, 8:30 p.m.
The Velaslavasay Panorama
1122 West 24th Street, Los Angeles
http://www.panoramaonview.org/upcomingevent.html
reservations: corpusfluxus@oblivio.com
featuring:
NO WAY OUT BUT ONWARD
An adventure in psychogeography through New York's High Line
PowerPoint performance written and narrated by Ross Lipman
Suite for Bass, Viola, and Trombone by Laura Steenberge
with Heather Lockie and Joe Tepperman
Photos by Leigh Evans, Ross Lipman, Nina Mankin
The High Line is the abandoned freight rail that runs through the west side of Manhattan. Recently designated the future site of an undetermined public space, it for the moment remains a haunted paradise above the city--a verdant wasteland inhabited only by occasional taggers, wanderers, and police. In October 2004 a ragtag group of us ventured up to explore. As we were to learn, it's a space with its own internal logic, interacting with its visitors in a way unique to each.
Terry Melcher - S/T CD (Collectors Choice)
Mott the Hoople - Family Anthology double CD (Angel Air)

Thursday, February 16, 2006
Tarantella - Esqueletos CD (Alternative Tentacles)

Lost Sounds S/T CD (In The Red)
Angels of Light & Akron/Family CD (Young God)
Angels of Light & Akron/Family CD (Young God)
Wednesday, February 15, 2006
Appaloosa S/T CD (Collectors’ Choice)

Tuesday, February 14, 2006
V/A Thai Beat A-Go-Go Volume 3 CD (Subliminal Sounds)

Monday, February 13, 2006
cult of the week - Smalts
title: Werktitels
year: 1982
label: Plurex Records
personnel: KJ Boterbloem, W Dekker, F Van Manen, P Mulder, R Ootes, I Schalkx
tracklisting: werktitel 7, werktitel 5, werktitel 1, werktitel 8
cotw say…
jollyfied name to the contrary, Minny Pops were one Holland's premier synth/ wave gloom merchants. centered around the baritone of Wally van Middendorp, the Pops' Joy Division-esque sound was unmistakable, if occasionally an acquired taste. the sole EP from two-member side project Smalts, (almost) dropped the vocals altogether for a series of intriguing musical soundscapes.
rather than churn out a series of derivative, sub-par Eno experiments, 'Werktitels' contains some very interesting music indeed. drums and percussion are used to great effect throughout, with plaintive synths used to create semi-melodic drones that give the EP a fairly 'folky' feel that's most prevalent on 'Werktitel 5'. 'Werktitel 1', however, is undoubtedly the standout, perhaps because the remaining tracks are so criminally short. a seriously cool layered, live percussion loop fades in, synths soon following with a tongue-in-cheek melody that sounds like it's been lifted straight from a b-movie horror soundtrack. spacious production gives the EP an ethereal quality that keeps it in considerably lighter territory than one might imagine.
a neat series of pieces that remains as unclassifiable as it is interesting.
erik - http://www.cultwithnoname.com
Saturday, February 11, 2006
Book Soup podcast

This was the first time I've taken this material on the road--albeit only ten miles from home--and I found that it was quite emotional to read these highly charged paragraphs out loud, and to connect with people who feel so passionately about the music. I felt energized at the time, exhausted next morning.
The bookstore annex was packed with a kind and attentive audience, including KXLU's Peter Choyce, Black Dahlia scholar Larry Harnisch, historic preservationist John Arroyo, This is Burning Man author Brian Doherty and Craig Ceravolo.

I read excerpts spanning the whole of the book, and finished by playing a recording of Jeff playing "Little Birds"--which I was surprised to discover almost no one in the room had heard before. I think everyone was pretty stunned by it. Then I took some questions and signed folks' books. The bookstore was happy, because 25 people bought 30 books. And I signed another couple dozen, in case you want to stop by Book Soup soon and get one for yourself.

My sweetheart Richard documented the evening with photographs and in this podcast, where members of the audience share their experiences with Aeroplane and what it continues to mean to them.
I hope we'll have another podcast to share from the Vroman's reading on March 25, but in the meantime, if anyone reading this would like to make their own MP3 podcast along this theme, please host it for free on ourmedia.org and email me (at amscray @ gmail . com) when it's live. I will put links to your podcasts up on the webpage dedicated to the book.

Thursday, February 09, 2006
Real Kid Allen 'Alpo' Paulino, RIP
Just heard that Allen 'Alpo' Paulino, founding member of the one of the
greatest rock'n'roll bands ever, the Real Kids (and an early member of
the mighty Cheater Slicks, co-leader of the Primitive Souls and an
on-again/off-again Nervous Eater), died today in Boston. Not sure of
what happened yet but Carl Biancucci of the Classic Ruins told me Alpo
went to bed with a cold and never woke up. Alpo was one of my heroes for
the past 25 years and releasing the Primitive Souls EP and meeting Alpo,
Billy Borgioli and John Felice in the mid-90s were two of the highlights
of my life. Alpo was a great guy - a smart-arse but charismatic and
charming as hell, and ly impossible not to like. I never saw the
original Real Kids play - never had the chance to see one of their
reunion shows even - and now I never will.
Anyway, let's hope Alpo's death does not go unnoticed by the rock world
at large (esp. Mojo, Uncut etc). If all he'd ever done was play bass on
that first Real Kids record he would've been one of the greats to be
sure... My favorite Alpo moment on record though is his b/vocals on the
live version of 'Bad To Worse' on the 'Grown Up Wrong' album - he sounds
like his hearts about to burst. That's about as thrilling as rock'n'roll
gets in my book.
Wednesday, February 08, 2006
Baffling Amazon.com pan for Lost in the Grooves

Reviewer: | Craven Moorehead (Key West) - See all my reviews |
Saint Etienne After-Party in NYC
Monday, February 06, 2006
Judy Henske & Jerry Yester - Farewell Aldebaran CD (Radioactive)

Lazy Farmer - S/T CD (Sunbeam Records)
Lark Pien's art blog
cult of the week - Duffo
title: Bob the Birdman
year: 1981
label: PVK Records
personnel: Duffo (vocals), Rob Adams (drums), Sev Lewkowicz (keyboards, vocals), Dick Middleton (guitar), Tim Wheatley (bass guitar)
tracklisting: bob the birdman, slave of marakeesh, daddy is a mushroom, le posuer, walk on the wild side, elephant man, (i am) the fly, new york is the moon, crazee man
cotw say…
the post-punk era is of course littered with mysterious, unclassifiable individuals. so, what to make of someone who has made well in excess of a dozen albums, spent a period signed to Beggars Banquet, and yet remains a relative unknown - or least virtually forgotten?
'Bob the Birdman' was already Australian Jeff 'Duffo' Duff's fifth album. his fifth. musically, Duffo's album has a somewhat uncomfortable feel, largely due to the fact that it sits between genres. something like Bowie crossed with Andrew Lloyd-Webber, the album consistently leans towards musical theatre thanks to the use of strings and colourful, expansive production (synths are used to give the album a 'spacey' feel). usually it works, making songs like 'Bob the Birdman' and 'Le Posuer' genuinely affecting, and others such as 'Elephant Man' at least highly distinctive. however, some may find the album too Broadway to stomach. Duffo also dabbles in reggae ('Slave of Marakeesh') and disco on his utterly bizarre take on 'Walk on the Wild Side' - in equal parts hilarious and horrific. and before you ask, no, '(I am) The Fly' is not a cover of the The Wire classic, but a fine ballad in its own right.
generally more renowned for a series of publicity stunts and the occassional practical joke played on unsuspecting journalists, it's high time that Duffo's considerable body of work was reappraised.
erik - http://www.cultwithnoname.com
Sunday, February 05, 2006
Bob Pfeifer popped in L.A. wiretap case

Link
Friday, February 03, 2006
Edwin Letcher Goes Everly Crazy!
The Everly Brothers It’s Everly Time CD (Collectors’ Choice)… This is a killer diller album, the first in a whole string Don and Phil recorded for Warner Brothers. They had a somewhat better track record on the independent label Cadence, but hit the ground running for the WB. And while their audience might have quit buying the records in the same gigantic quantities, the boys never slacked up any on their end. The songwriting team of Boudleaux and Felice Bryant were responsible for half the songs on this effort and their work stacks up well against past glories like “Wake Up Little Susie” and “Bye Bye Love.” All the material is strong, with Don’s “So Sad (to Watch Good Love Go Bad)” one of my faves on this set. (Edwin Letcher)
The Everly Brothers Roots CD (Collectors’ Choice)… This was the last studio album Don and Phil did with Warner Brothers. The boys and the label heads pulled out all the stops and put together a wonderful country-rock record. Unfortunately, there just weren’t very many folks clambering for such an animal, and this became yet another well-intentioned and executed project that went nowhere. The lads did a couple Merle Haggard songs, and covered Jimmie Rodgers, Glen Campbell, Ray Price and George Jones. Ron Elliott of the Beau Brummels was heading in the same neo-country direction and supplied a couple songs as well as some guitar and production work. There are some orchestral, almost psychedelic touches sprinkled throughout that add an otherworldly quality to the material and give it a nicely cohesive feel, even though the album mixed state-of-the-art ’68 rock with clips of the Everly Brothers’ act circa 1952. (Edwin Letcher)
Thursday, February 02, 2006
Irving Fields Trio - Bagels and Bongos CD (Reboot Sterephonic)

Inaugurating a label dedicated to spotlighting great Jewish contributions to avant-pop is this frisky, Latin-tinged set of Hebraic instros. While piano trills are more prominent than the titular hand drums, it’s a fun set of cocktail music sure to pique the interest of your inner Esther. Pick hit: “Havannah Negila.”
Petra Haden Sings: God Only Knows
And on the reinventing the Who tip, check out "My Generation" as an ASCII movie, by artist Yoshi Sodeoka. (thanks, Richard!)
Wednesday, February 01, 2006
Pazz & Jop Poll
Lori Burton -- Break Out (Rev-Ola)
buy the album
Bridget St. John - Songs for the gentle man (Cherry Red)
buy the album
Haden, Petra - Sings: The Who Sell Out (Bar/None)
buy the album
Dino Valente - S/T (RPM)
buy the album
The Moon's a Harsh Mistress: Jimmy Webb in the Seventies (Rhino Handmade
buy the box set (out of print, expensive)
see also:
Archive/ Live At the Albert Hall 1972
Letters, released April 2006
El Mirage, released April 2006
& So, On, released April 2006
Words & Music, released April 2006
Land's End, released April 2006
Paul Williams - Someday Man (Collectors' Choice)
buy the album
One Kiss Can Lead to Another: Girl Group Sounds, Lost & Found (Rhino)
buy the box set
Foster, Josephine - Hazel Eyes, I Will Lead You (Locust)
buy the album
Barracudas - S/T (NDN)
buy the album
Appaloosa - S/T (Collectors' Choice)
buy the album