the mojo is in charm city and stay tuned to this channel for me spinning in dc…
high strung and Brian Jonestown Massacre
Originally posted by bags:We are almost neighbors. Balmer has its advantages for shows….. Smaller venues cheaper beers and its always cool to see a band in a different place. Often the crowds are more enthusiastic at Balmer, probably an effect of the cheap beer and smaller venue.
I live in Woodley Park
Originally posted by jadetree:so what are you going to do…. high strung in balmer then interpol in DC?
Originally posted by Anton Newcombe:yes
you want to see elefant as well, right?
I might go for two high strung nights, if my wife does not elope with the band on the first night, that is.
Originally posted by Anton Newcombe:i'll check with kosmette on this one… but we'll have to take something other than ned up there if i'm spinning.
Originally posted by kosmo vinyl:I wonder if anyone else will want to make it a double night affair? I think it could be cool, especailly if it is a real small venue.
another thing about the mojo…
Originally posted by Anton Newcombe:don't know yet, think I have some time to figure it out, BJM won't sell out, not by a longshot
so what are you going to do…. high strung in balmer then interpol in DC?
I might go for two high strung nights, if my wife does not elope with the band on the first night, that is.
Originally posted by kosmo vinyl:I hadnt really thought about that. You actually use vinyl? I just expect people to turn up with a bag o' cds these days, I guess soon its just going to be a hard drive….
i'll check with kosmette on this one… but we'll have to take something other than ned up there if i'm spinning.
Originally posted by jadetree:and you got your interpol ticket….. It will sell out……
don't know yet, think I have some time to figure it out, BJM won't sell out, not by a longshot
sorry I am so enthusiastic about seeing them twice I got carried away.
yaaaaaaaaay
i get to see my boys 2 nights in a row…………….i'm so excited…………
screw interpol, it's the high strung for me………….
i get to see my boys 2 nights in a row…………….i'm so excited…………
screw interpol, it's the high strung for me………….
Originally posted by poorlulu:Jeez, not them as well…….
yaaaaaaaaay
screw interpol
Originally posted by Anton Newcombe:I almost got one of their CDs last Saturday but they were asking way too much for it. I do have an MP3 which is pretty good. Instead I got a Charlene CD which is a pretty good Shoegazer type band.
So does anyone have any felt, the band they keep getting compared to?
Here's a good review of the recently re-released Spacegirl CD: Brian Jonestown Massacre
Spacegirl & Other Favorites
2003 Bomp!
Anton Newcombe is somewhat of a screwball, but he’s
also one of the most impressive musical talents of his
generation. He’s created an immense legacy in a short
period of time and most it demands to be heard. That’s
why the first CD appearance of the Brian Jonestown
Massacre’s Spacegirl And Other Favorites is an event
to be reckoned with—because it’s one of the last
remaining pieces of the Anton repertoire that has
remained unavailable, and it’s a formative part of
understanding the evolution of the genius that is
Anton, mainly because it’s some of his earliest
recordings.
Newcombe has always been somewhat Frank Zappa-like as
far as documenting virtually every phase of his
musical development (he mentions in the liner notes of
this CD that there remains 800 hours of unreleased
stuff). He’s also ruled the roost with a similarly
dictatorial style as Zappa. He says here in the liner
notes that "I had tought (sic) a few of my friends
everything I knew about music and we started playing
shows together as the BJM." This very statement reeks
of Beefheart, Zappa or James Brown single-mindedness.
But those are of course some of the greatest ever, and
Anton has always assumed that he could just waltz
right into the pantheon and stand alongside these and
other greats—and he’s gone ahead and done it. The only
comparison in contemporary music—say, the last twenty
years—is Scott Miller of Game Theory/the Loud Family,
another creative genius who’s never steered too far
from a single-minded vision. God bless ‘em both, and
they both hail from the San Fran area. Grumpus, the
Donnas, Miller, Anton, Big Midnight, Vue, the Cuts,
the Warlocks—there’s no question the Bay Area has the
best music scene in the country, and has for a few
years. The Jones-clown has been an utmost part of
that, and it all began with this album.
In many ways, the Jonestown is analogous to the
Jefferson Airplane. Remember, both groups lived
communally in a big house in the middle of the
Haight—one in the sixties, one in the nineties. So if
that’s the case, Take it from the Man was After
Bathing at Baxter’s and that last one they put out was
Bark. And this one is, at best, Takes Off or maybe
Early Flight.
Bomp, the band’s label, has always been supportive of
Anton, releasing virtually everything the Jonestown
produced. Anton has gone from full-blown mod madness
(Take It From The Man) to fractured acoustic hymns
(Thank God For Mental Illness) and most of it has been
on the Bomp label… except this, which amounts to the
first BJM album, originally released on the San Fran
indie Candy Floss… although as Anton explains in the
liner notes, it is the Brian Jonestown Massacre in
name only, since Anton often plays all the
instruments, with occasional embellishments from
friends. There is no personnel listing on the album
and I guess none is needed. The original vinyl record,
which has been long gone, actually came out after
Methodrone, their "official" first album. So this is
actually the first Jonestown album.
Not only do you get the original album, but you get a
lot of odds and ends—excluding what I consider the
greatest Brian Jonestown song ever, "Good Morning
Girl," which is promised on the CD label but
unfortunately never comes. But otherwise it’s all
here: the great celestial hovering classic, "Thoughts
of You," which was a prime influence on Abunai among
others and was originally from some obscure singles
collection in the mid-nineties that the tech nerds who
were making $50-an-hour at the time had money to buy.
The Jonesclown of course hails from Silicon Valley, so
everything connects. One of my favorites is the
absolutely epic "Hide and Seek." The version here is
one of three that are known to exist—this song is
famous for being the one where Anton does his Sonic
Youth imitation. Is there any doubt he totally blows
them away in the same way Malcolm Yelvington outslayed
Elvis or the Other Half beat the Stones? It’s totally
true, and it’s only the most obvious example of how
Anton can totally take his influences and better them
at their own game—which is truly the mark of musical
genius. This song features acidic guitar lines that
are all over the road by the third verse—but still
harmoniously contained in yet another one of Mr.
Newcombe’s little symphonies.
Among the other extra tracks are "Never, Ever,"
another obscure single, in which rattling tambourines
mingle with celestial guitars. Here Anton milks
another one of his biggest influences, the Spacemen 3,
and once again tops those Brits at their own game.
There’s also always the prevalent influence of
original space cadet Syd Barrett and Anton is the only
one making music today who understands and appreciates
the value of the original psychedelic movement, which
was nothing less than the Renaissance of rock 'n'
roll. Whereas the Spacemen only had one good idea,
Anton has many—even if many of them are borrowed.
"Ashtray" for instance is an up-tempo purge that
sounds like U2 but of course is rendered with much
more mayhem and abandon.
As for the original Spacegirl album, it begins with
"Crushed," a droning opus based on a heavy riff that
opens with a wall of feedback that sounds like the
revving up of an engine. It’s more or less an exorcism
with maddening guitar work and Anton moaning the
snotnosed honky blues. "That Girl Suicide," a whirling
riff based on a hay-baling rhythm, with its use of
controlled feedback for anthemic purposes and
boundless VU-like energy, accomplishes the psychic-sex
marriage that Sonic Youth’s music only hints at.
"Deep in the Devil’s Eye and You" starts with the
exact same burst of feedback as "The Ghost" by the
Donner Party before swinging into the "I buried Paul"
fade-out of "Strawberry Fields Forever" and then
taking on a life of its own. How does this twisted
minstrel conceive this stuff? That’s what I want to
know. What this strange, hypnotic song exemplifies
most of all is Anton’s brilliant usage of the
studio-as-instrument a la Brian Wilson. He states in
the liner notes that upon meeting producer Naut Humon:
"My plan was to learn how to use the studio as an
instrument and make a recording of my life." It’s an
ambitious undertaking but the man is on a mission.
"Kid’s Garden," which eventually cropped up on the
Mental Illness album, once again resorts to Syd
Barrett disorientation while "When I Was Yesterday"—on
which Newcombe played every instrument—is a
barnstorming riff featuring an embryonic outer-coat of
thorny guitars that cut like thickets. Perhaps the
starkest track is the semi-title cut, "Spacegirl,"
which is just Anton trilling "let me love you" to a
hypnotic backdrop of almost raga-esque flourishes. It
sounds like Donovon more than anything. I should also
mention that Anton is the king of the long fade-out,
and this song is yet another example of how he learned
the lesson of "You Can’t Always get What You Want"
well (as "Straight Up and Down" already proved). He’s
also the master of the fade in, which is what
"Spacegirl (Revisited)" amounts to—mainly the same
riff creeping up on us again. Gotta love a man who
phrases his albums, even his first album,
thematically.
Then there’s the matter of "Good Morning Girl"… you
wait for it, and it never comes. That’s the joke, I
guess, and the joke is on you. Anton…the bastard! He
does it every time.
—Joe S. Harrington
July 2003
=====
For more information about the Brian Jonestown Massacre or the Committee to Keep
Music Evil please feel free to visit : http://www.brianjonestownmassacre.com -
http://www.bomp.com . http://www.homestead.com/the_real_bjm_website/pagetwo.html
or
to sample our music (free mp3's stupid):
http://www.brianjonestownmassacre.com/mp3.php
Spacegirl & Other Favorites
2003 Bomp!
Anton Newcombe is somewhat of a screwball, but he’s
also one of the most impressive musical talents of his
generation. He’s created an immense legacy in a short
period of time and most it demands to be heard. That’s
why the first CD appearance of the Brian Jonestown
Massacre’s Spacegirl And Other Favorites is an event
to be reckoned with—because it’s one of the last
remaining pieces of the Anton repertoire that has
remained unavailable, and it’s a formative part of
understanding the evolution of the genius that is
Anton, mainly because it’s some of his earliest
recordings.
Newcombe has always been somewhat Frank Zappa-like as
far as documenting virtually every phase of his
musical development (he mentions in the liner notes of
this CD that there remains 800 hours of unreleased
stuff). He’s also ruled the roost with a similarly
dictatorial style as Zappa. He says here in the liner
notes that "I had tought (sic) a few of my friends
everything I knew about music and we started playing
shows together as the BJM." This very statement reeks
of Beefheart, Zappa or James Brown single-mindedness.
But those are of course some of the greatest ever, and
Anton has always assumed that he could just waltz
right into the pantheon and stand alongside these and
other greats—and he’s gone ahead and done it. The only
comparison in contemporary music—say, the last twenty
years—is Scott Miller of Game Theory/the Loud Family,
another creative genius who’s never steered too far
from a single-minded vision. God bless ‘em both, and
they both hail from the San Fran area. Grumpus, the
Donnas, Miller, Anton, Big Midnight, Vue, the Cuts,
the Warlocks—there’s no question the Bay Area has the
best music scene in the country, and has for a few
years. The Jones-clown has been an utmost part of
that, and it all began with this album.
In many ways, the Jonestown is analogous to the
Jefferson Airplane. Remember, both groups lived
communally in a big house in the middle of the
Haight—one in the sixties, one in the nineties. So if
that’s the case, Take it from the Man was After
Bathing at Baxter’s and that last one they put out was
Bark. And this one is, at best, Takes Off or maybe
Early Flight.
Bomp, the band’s label, has always been supportive of
Anton, releasing virtually everything the Jonestown
produced. Anton has gone from full-blown mod madness
(Take It From The Man) to fractured acoustic hymns
(Thank God For Mental Illness) and most of it has been
on the Bomp label… except this, which amounts to the
first BJM album, originally released on the San Fran
indie Candy Floss… although as Anton explains in the
liner notes, it is the Brian Jonestown Massacre in
name only, since Anton often plays all the
instruments, with occasional embellishments from
friends. There is no personnel listing on the album
and I guess none is needed. The original vinyl record,
which has been long gone, actually came out after
Methodrone, their "official" first album. So this is
actually the first Jonestown album.
Not only do you get the original album, but you get a
lot of odds and ends—excluding what I consider the
greatest Brian Jonestown song ever, "Good Morning
Girl," which is promised on the CD label but
unfortunately never comes. But otherwise it’s all
here: the great celestial hovering classic, "Thoughts
of You," which was a prime influence on Abunai among
others and was originally from some obscure singles
collection in the mid-nineties that the tech nerds who
were making $50-an-hour at the time had money to buy.
The Jonesclown of course hails from Silicon Valley, so
everything connects. One of my favorites is the
absolutely epic "Hide and Seek." The version here is
one of three that are known to exist—this song is
famous for being the one where Anton does his Sonic
Youth imitation. Is there any doubt he totally blows
them away in the same way Malcolm Yelvington outslayed
Elvis or the Other Half beat the Stones? It’s totally
true, and it’s only the most obvious example of how
Anton can totally take his influences and better them
at their own game—which is truly the mark of musical
genius. This song features acidic guitar lines that
are all over the road by the third verse—but still
harmoniously contained in yet another one of Mr.
Newcombe’s little symphonies.
Among the other extra tracks are "Never, Ever,"
another obscure single, in which rattling tambourines
mingle with celestial guitars. Here Anton milks
another one of his biggest influences, the Spacemen 3,
and once again tops those Brits at their own game.
There’s also always the prevalent influence of
original space cadet Syd Barrett and Anton is the only
one making music today who understands and appreciates
the value of the original psychedelic movement, which
was nothing less than the Renaissance of rock 'n'
roll. Whereas the Spacemen only had one good idea,
Anton has many—even if many of them are borrowed.
"Ashtray" for instance is an up-tempo purge that
sounds like U2 but of course is rendered with much
more mayhem and abandon.
As for the original Spacegirl album, it begins with
"Crushed," a droning opus based on a heavy riff that
opens with a wall of feedback that sounds like the
revving up of an engine. It’s more or less an exorcism
with maddening guitar work and Anton moaning the
snotnosed honky blues. "That Girl Suicide," a whirling
riff based on a hay-baling rhythm, with its use of
controlled feedback for anthemic purposes and
boundless VU-like energy, accomplishes the psychic-sex
marriage that Sonic Youth’s music only hints at.
"Deep in the Devil’s Eye and You" starts with the
exact same burst of feedback as "The Ghost" by the
Donner Party before swinging into the "I buried Paul"
fade-out of "Strawberry Fields Forever" and then
taking on a life of its own. How does this twisted
minstrel conceive this stuff? That’s what I want to
know. What this strange, hypnotic song exemplifies
most of all is Anton’s brilliant usage of the
studio-as-instrument a la Brian Wilson. He states in
the liner notes that upon meeting producer Naut Humon:
"My plan was to learn how to use the studio as an
instrument and make a recording of my life." It’s an
ambitious undertaking but the man is on a mission.
"Kid’s Garden," which eventually cropped up on the
Mental Illness album, once again resorts to Syd
Barrett disorientation while "When I Was Yesterday"—on
which Newcombe played every instrument—is a
barnstorming riff featuring an embryonic outer-coat of
thorny guitars that cut like thickets. Perhaps the
starkest track is the semi-title cut, "Spacegirl,"
which is just Anton trilling "let me love you" to a
hypnotic backdrop of almost raga-esque flourishes. It
sounds like Donovon more than anything. I should also
mention that Anton is the king of the long fade-out,
and this song is yet another example of how he learned
the lesson of "You Can’t Always get What You Want"
well (as "Straight Up and Down" already proved). He’s
also the master of the fade in, which is what
"Spacegirl (Revisited)" amounts to—mainly the same
riff creeping up on us again. Gotta love a man who
phrases his albums, even his first album,
thematically.
Then there’s the matter of "Good Morning Girl"… you
wait for it, and it never comes. That’s the joke, I
guess, and the joke is on you. Anton…the bastard! He
does it every time.
—Joe S. Harrington
July 2003
=====
For more information about the Brian Jonestown Massacre or the Committee to Keep
Music Evil please feel free to visit : http://www.brianjonestownmassacre.com -
http://www.bomp.com . http://www.homestead.com/the_real_bjm_website/pagetwo.html
or
to sample our music (free mp3's stupid):
http://www.brianjonestownmassacre.com/mp3.php
some of our fall dates:
> 9/25: ECHO, LOS ANGELES
> 9/29: CASBAH, SAN DIEGO
> 9/30: CLUB CONGRESS, TUCSON
> 10/2: RED EYED FLY, AUSTIN
> 10/3: RUDYARDS, HOUSTON
> 10/4: RUBBER GLOVES, DENTON
> 10/6: THE SOCIAL, ORLANDO
> 10/7: COMMON GROUNDS, GAINESVILLE
> 10/8: THE EARL, ATLANTA
> 10/9: THE END, NASHVILLE
> 10/10: SOUTHGATE HOUSE, NEWPORT
> 10/11: TBA, COLUMBIA, MO
> 10/12: OFF
> 10/13: EMPTY BOTTLE, CHICAGO
> 10/14: LAGER HOUSE, DETROIT
> 10/15: TBA, BUFFALO
> 10/16: KHYBER, PHILADELPHIA
> 10/17: MOJO, BALTIMORE
> 10/18: NANCI RAYGUN, RICHMOND
> 10/19: BLACK CAT, DC
> 10/20: MIDDLE EAST, CAMBRIDGE
> 10/21: MAXWELLS, HOBOKEN
>
=====
For more information about the Brian Jonestown Massacre or the Committee to Keep Music Evil please feel free to visit : http://www.brianjonestownmassacre.com - http://www.bomp.com . http://www.homestead.com/the_real_bjm_website/pagetwo.html or
to sample our music (free mp3's stupid): http://www.brianjonestownmassacre.com/mp3.php
> 9/25: ECHO, LOS ANGELES
> 9/29: CASBAH, SAN DIEGO
> 9/30: CLUB CONGRESS, TUCSON
> 10/2: RED EYED FLY, AUSTIN
> 10/3: RUDYARDS, HOUSTON
> 10/4: RUBBER GLOVES, DENTON
> 10/6: THE SOCIAL, ORLANDO
> 10/7: COMMON GROUNDS, GAINESVILLE
> 10/8: THE EARL, ATLANTA
> 10/9: THE END, NASHVILLE
> 10/10: SOUTHGATE HOUSE, NEWPORT
> 10/11: TBA, COLUMBIA, MO
> 10/12: OFF
> 10/13: EMPTY BOTTLE, CHICAGO
> 10/14: LAGER HOUSE, DETROIT
> 10/15: TBA, BUFFALO
> 10/16: KHYBER, PHILADELPHIA
> 10/17: MOJO, BALTIMORE
> 10/18: NANCI RAYGUN, RICHMOND
> 10/19: BLACK CAT, DC
> 10/20: MIDDLE EAST, CAMBRIDGE
> 10/21: MAXWELLS, HOBOKEN
>
=====
For more information about the Brian Jonestown Massacre or the Committee to Keep Music Evil please feel free to visit : http://www.brianjonestownmassacre.com - http://www.bomp.com . http://www.homestead.com/the_real_bjm_website/pagetwo.html or
to sample our music (free mp3's stupid): http://www.brianjonestownmassacre.com/mp3.php
i was out spreading the gospel of bjm this weekend… a guy was bemoaning who bored he was with the new dandy worhals and i suggested he tried bjm instead. couldn't stick around to findout if he liked bjm or not…
Originally posted by kosmo vinyl:Hows the beer selection?I'm a dark beer drinker and it can be a real pain finding a good dark beer in some places,other than Guiness.
another thing about the mojo… at the swinging neckbreakers show earlier in the year, i was still spinning records at 3am. nudge nudge wink wink.
Hey, I got the High Strung and I love it.
So, is there one, maybe two, seminal BJM albums I should pick up? I'm definitely in for the Black Cat show (although that night there's Pernice Bros in B'more also, Superchunk and Washington Social Club upstairs at the Black Cat *and* Interpol & Elefant at 9:30.
Holy shit.
Hey, isn't the backstage awfully small?
So, is there one, maybe two, seminal BJM albums I should pick up? I'm definitely in for the Black Cat show (although that night there's Pernice Bros in B'more also, Superchunk and Washington Social Club upstairs at the Black Cat *and* Interpol & Elefant at 9:30.
Holy shit.
Hey, isn't the backstage awfully small?
bags take the bag off of your head, the asphyxiation is causing brain damage……
you are confusing September and October.
Most of the things including WSC and Pernice are September. The high strung and BJM is October.
As for BJM albums, they are all rather good, if sometimes a little hard to crack. All the albums can be downloaded from the bjm site though. Strung out in heaven is a good place to start.
general song highlights for me are:
Wasting Away
Fucker
stolen
who?
you are confusing September and October.
Most of the things including WSC and Pernice are September. The high strung and BJM is October.
As for BJM albums, they are all rather good, if sometimes a little hard to crack. All the albums can be downloaded from the bjm site though. Strung out in heaven is a good place to start.
general song highlights for me are:
Wasting Away
Fucker
stolen
who?
Mansion in the Sky from Bringing it All Back Home Again
Open Heart Surgery from Bravery Repetition & Noise.
Stars (can't remember which album) is good, but not as good as the Dandy Warhols version.
Open Heart Surgery from Bravery Repetition & Noise.
Stars (can't remember which album) is good, but not as good as the Dandy Warhols version.
Anton Newcombe <antonnewcombe@y…>
Date: Wed Sep 10, 2003 12:02 am
Subject: anybody bother going to rainbow quartz and….
downloading the high dials?
seems to me to be a fuck of alot more productive than
bitch'n and moanin bout would
of,could've,should've…don't you think?
on a lighter note: i promise to pick something else
to upload on the site tomorow.
lot's of new-news to share…we are playing songs like
a new low in getting high,vaccume boots and hide and
seek this trip.rick sounds great and it's good to have
him back.i can really speak for everyone when i say we
are so excited to meet everyone on this trip.
stand by…..
anton alfred newcombe
yes,
that's the rick.
it's going to be fun.
anton alfred newcombe
— besmart73 <mlkte@e…> wrote:
>
>
> Rick? As in Rick Maymi? this would great if so.
>
Date: Wed Sep 10, 2003 12:02 am
Subject: anybody bother going to rainbow quartz and….
downloading the high dials?
seems to me to be a fuck of alot more productive than
bitch'n and moanin bout would
of,could've,should've…don't you think?
on a lighter note: i promise to pick something else
to upload on the site tomorow.
lot's of new-news to share…we are playing songs like
a new low in getting high,vaccume boots and hide and
seek this trip.rick sounds great and it's good to have
him back.i can really speak for everyone when i say we
are so excited to meet everyone on this trip.
stand by…..
anton alfred newcombe
yes,
that's the rick.
it's going to be fun.
anton alfred newcombe
— besmart73 <mlkte@e…> wrote:
>
>
> Rick? As in Rick Maymi? this would great if so.
>
The High Dials are great. And from Canada.
Originally posted by walkman:Anton just signed them to his "committee to keep music evil" label.I think the release may be live.
The High Dials are great. And from Canada.