tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44621789473301226782024-02-19T12:54:50.145+01:00Rock Is Dead - some albums to considerDenis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-2954772867062691642015-01-15T17:20:00.000+01:002015-01-15T18:31:18.483+01:00Interview with Sour Jazz<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<style type="text/css">P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { </style>I already <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/08/sour-jazz-american-seizure-2009.html">wrote about Sour Jazz</a>. A band
with the unique combination of being good, contemporary and
shockingly unknown. Lately I had a pleasure to converse with the
people pulling its strings – Cowboy Mark Rubenstein and the World
Famous Mr.Ratboy. In fact, that conversation turned out to be so
pleasant, that I'll let it hang here for a while before writing a new
post – so enjoy the read and see you in few months!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6MDiB4MtXcdiZsyP3S6FGVs7A9DWQugLEsg3EL0dyj_F9pQYvP2cJPzznunInWRdKtcwj3k4ItWs9aUqvdHrnUGJjIL9ocYkrLNgY7EAmrW3lGaR1R5QwegW1MviT7-7UnHSgsvgxVKo/s1600/Sour_Jazz_band_photo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Sour Jazz band photo, Left to right: Mr.Ratboy, Splat Action, Mr.Popular, Cowboy Mark." border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6MDiB4MtXcdiZsyP3S6FGVs7A9DWQugLEsg3EL0dyj_F9pQYvP2cJPzznunInWRdKtcwj3k4ItWs9aUqvdHrnUGJjIL9ocYkrLNgY7EAmrW3lGaR1R5QwegW1MviT7-7UnHSgsvgxVKo/s1600/Sour_Jazz_band_photo.jpg" height="266" title="Sour Jazz band photo" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">SOUR JAZZ. Left to right: </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Mr.Ratboy, Splat Action,
Mr.Popular, Cowboy Mark.</span></td></tr>
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<i>Let's start big: What's the meaning of life according to Sour Jazz
and you personally? Seriously.
</i></div>
<b>MR RATBOY:</b> The meaning of life might be to discover the
meaning of life. I haven’t figured that out yet but what I do know
is life is short and if you’re not careful it can become quite dull
pretty quickly. One of my goals is to avoid this happening to me.
<br />
<b>COWBOY MARK:</b> Bumbling your way towards the grave, making
some horrible mistakes along the way, making some beautiful mistakes
as well, and learning equally from both. I kind of like the epitaph
on Malcolm McLaren's headstone -- "Better a spectacular failure,
than a benign success."<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>Do I get it right, that the band's line-up didn't change after the
initial auditions period and the departure of Sami Yaffa?</i>
<br />
<b>MR RATBOY:</b> You are absolutely right<br />
<b>COWBOY MARK:</b> For the most part, yeah. The four of us have
remained intact from the go, but we've augmented the lineup with
various people at various points. Jim Duffy has played keyboards on
at least a few tracks off each album, and Steven Moses has
contributed his trombone bits in the same way. Jim Jones played a bit
of guitar on the last album, 'American Seizure,' and our producer,
Daniel Rey, joined us on second guitar when we toured that album in
Europe.<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>Who's where doing what at the moment? I know Mr.Ratboy is in Tokyo
and Mark is into art-direction and design in NYC. The rest of the
group? Is Splat still in Brooklyn? Mr.Popular? What are the day-time
jobs and how do you feel about what each of you is doing besides the
music?
</i><br />
<b>MR RATBOY:</b> I have been living in Japan for over 10 years.
Currently I work in an Embassy in Tokyo. Even though it might seem
quite different from what I was doing earlier, the size of the egos I
have to work with nowadays is about the same as in the music
business.<br />
<b>COWBOY MARK:</b> Splat is in Silver Spring, Maryland, which is
not very far from Washington DC, and Mr Popular is in north-eastern
Ohio. So, yeah, the three of us are still living in reasonable
proximity to one another. Close enough that, if one of us dies a
sudden and tragic death, the other two would be able to make it to
the funeral with fairly minimal hassle. It'll be slightly
inconvenient, though, if Ratty dies first.<br />
For myself, my proper career is as an Art Director... still a
creative pursuit, but a bit more solitary than Sour Jazz, which is
infinitely more of a collaborative effort. There's something about
the collaborative creative process that still excites me.<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>Mark, besides design – do you actually draw/paint?
</i><br />
<b>COWBOY MARK:</b> I wish I could say yes, but... no. I have the
ability, but lack the time. I see works by artists like Otto Dix,
George Grosz, Raoul Hausmann, John Heartfield, Egon Schiele, Dali,
and think, yeah, I'm not gonna bother. The greats leave me riddled
with insecurity.<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>I know that a friend of yours is responsible for the cover
artworks of Sour Jazz albums, which I consider their integral part in
fact. Are there more of his works accessible online?
</i><br />
<b>COWBOY MARK: </b>We grew up together, Wax and I, and have been
best friends from a very young age, so involving him with Sour Jazz
has always been incredibly important to me. He is also insanely
talented... we give him a general idea of what we're looking for, and
he's always been able to run with it and produce brilliant results.
As an Art Director myself, I never underestimate the importance of an
album's design, so I'm really pleased to hear that you like how the
music and artwork fit together.<br />
Do you know an old adage that says you can't judge a book by
looking at the cover? Early on, Rat and I had a great discussion
about how we both believed you could judge an album by the cover, and
we both felt strongly that our album covers shouldn't do that. And I
think we've succeeded there. I once read a review of either our first
or second album in which the reviewer said something about looking at
the album cover when it arrived for him to review, and he immediately
wondered why anyone would bother sending him a cheesy jazz album to
review. He mentioned that it sat in the corner for months, being
ignored, before he finally took the album out and gave it a spin and
was absolutely shocked that the music was nothing like the album
artwork suggested. I remember Rat and I being quite proud of that!<br />
As for Wax's work online, yeah, he has two batches of work
online... <a href="http://www.drawger.com/houseowax/">http://www.drawger.com/houseowax/</a> is updated regularly, and
his general portfolio is at <a href="http://www.houseowax.com/">www.houseowax.com</a>.<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>What is the story behind the fancy guitarist photo “I Live On A
Street Called Rock & Roll” from the “Dressed to the Left”
booklet?
</i><br />
<b>MR RATBOY:</b> One of my friends had taken this photo somewhere
in Africa. I immediately thought this person was much more sincere
than some of the professional musicians that were pretending to be
broke artist types in the East Village. This guy is the real thing,
he probably doesn’t even know it but he truly lives on a street
called Rock & Roll.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5zWz5SMRnfA3ZJ4JrC72hLJKVfZ7QoKloOT7wBtwqQmZdtTEU-XtQxpsMPFsCHzfinNKVRjYJRd5Znqj_YibHu9Hbec8Y0LO5bAAK-zST2hPutKXoxIyC-GhGtCyfDwel6BMpiCO0mgM/s1600/SJ_RnR_street.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Interview with Sour Jazz at www.rock-is-dead.info" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5zWz5SMRnfA3ZJ4JrC72hLJKVfZ7QoKloOT7wBtwqQmZdtTEU-XtQxpsMPFsCHzfinNKVRjYJRd5Znqj_YibHu9Hbec8Y0LO5bAAK-zST2hPutKXoxIyC-GhGtCyfDwel6BMpiCO0mgM/s1600/SJ_RnR_street.jpg" height="396" title="Interview with Sour Jazz at www.rock-is-dead.info" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">That very picture</span></td></tr>
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<br />
<br />
<i>What “one year of Sour Jazz” is like, what does it consist of?
Or four years if that should be the modular unit?..</i><br />
<b>MR RATBOY:</b> Musically it consists of absolutely nothing, a
big black hole, a perfect void. Socially, it means a million e-mails
shared about anything and everything: music, books, jokes, personal
parts, aging…Whatever, we’re friends. Every four years we try to
get out of this routine, get together for real and record something.
That’s when playing music creeps back in the picture. We do not
always succeed in reviving the Sour Jazz corpse, we’ve been trying
for a couple of years now, unsuccessfully.
<br />
<b>COWBOY MARK:</b> There's no paradigm, really. It can vary, and
it does vary. In broad, general terms, we'll record an album, crawl
back to our caves and lick our wounds, then tour it after it's been
released. After the tour, it's straight back to our caves. This is
probably why we're still a band, whatever that means... when we do
get together, it's quite a special event... never a slog, never a
chore, never anything less than spending time with very dear friends.<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>Along with Serj Tankian and Electric Six, within less than the
last decade, Sour Jazz gave me the hope that something both original
and worthy still can be done within rock-n-roll music. I grew up on
the British hard/progressive sound of the 1970's, but this new hope
is coming mostly from the States in fact. How does it feel from your
side of the speakers?</i><br />
<b>MR RATBOY:</b> Everything coming out of my speakers is old.
There has to be new interesting music out there but I’m just not
into looking for it anymore. There’s so much older stuff that needs
my attention, I got no time left for the youngsters. Since buying a
trumpet last Summer, I’ve been listening to a lot of jazz, Yusef
Lateef is someone that will keep me busy for a long time.<br />
<b>COWBOY MARK:</b> I'd love to believe that something both
original and worthy can still be done within rock music, but I'm not
convinced, because I'm not hearing it. The modern problem is, every
kid with a computer in his bedroom now has a recording studio, mixing
facilities, and a means of distribution and promotion. On one hand,
that could be a positive thing. The reality, though, is that there's
now far too much out there... no filter, and very little, if any,
quality control, means that you have to wade through mountains of
shit in hope of finding one tiny jewel. So, yeah, originality and
worthiness might be out there, somewhere, but unless a trusted friend
puts it under my nose, I haven't the time or energy to hunt for it.<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>I don't know much about it, but when thinking of rock music in the
US, it is Detroit, LA, Seattle and the South (as one big phenomenon)
which come to mind first. Any other regions with “the sound” in
the States? Mark, still nothing going on around NYC since you last
answered that question?</i><br />
<b>MR RATBOY:</b> Being in Tokyo, I cannot answer this question<br />
<b>COWBOY MARK:</b> Historically, yeah, I know exactly what you're
referring to, but it doesn't exist any longer, apart from tired
marketing ploys. Regional distinctions, musically speaking, began
dying in the early 1980s, with the introduction of nationwide cable
television and radio. Suddenly, the kids in Nevada were being exposed
to the exact same music as the kids in Cincinnati and Brooklyn and
Alabama, which had a homogenizing effect. When the input is the same,
so is the output.<br />
NYC? If there's anything going on here, I'm either unaware of it,
or far too old for it.<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>Mr.Ratboy, what is the rock music scene in Japan? From what I
imagine, it is the whole different universe, isn't it? Names, trends,
genres, emotions; contemporary or within a historical perspective –
would appreciate any details.</i><br />
<b>MR RATBOY:</b> The music business in Japan is hopeless, just
like the political scene. There might be an underground scene but
it’s so deep below the surface that I don’t have the energy to
dig it up. Anyway, most of the underground groups I was exposed to
were either, silly, derivative, noisy or plain awful. In Japan, the
entertainment business is one huge machine that provides the audience
with a limited amount of idols that will play all the roles required.
The same day, a popular “artist” could be seen in a variety of
different settings. The morning news, a dozen commercials, a soap
opera, a quiz show, a music video channel, a manga exhibition, a
political debate…it’s endless, once “artists” access this
level, they become like a virus, it’s impossible to get rid of
them. As far as the music they play is concerned, it’s all similar
since it’s all written by a few selected composers/producers who
have been rehashing the same ideas for decades. It’s depressing.<br />
One current Band I do like is Ra:IN<br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rain_(Japanese_band)">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rain_(Japanese_band)</a><br />
My all-time favorite Japanese band is RC Succession
<br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RC_Succession">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RC_Succession</a><br />
<br />
<br />
<i>And what about the records prints? I was always wondering how
the famous "Japanese Release" phenomenon was born? Those
rock and metal rarities necessarily packed with tons of extra
material.</i><br />
<b>MR RATBOY: </b>I’m not sure how the “Japanese pressing
phenomenon” started but I do know that, with the advent of CDs it
has lost some of its shine. At the time of LP’s, the quality of the
Japanese pressings were far superior to the other copies of the same
record. We’re talking about not only the vinyl, but the cardboard
cover being much thicker and nicely printed. With the added bonus of
the “OBI” ( the vertical strip of paper with the name of the
band/title in Japanese) you ended up with a pretty desirable item
that cost a lot more than a regular LP. CDs being digital, they all
sound pretty similar and the cover being a tiny piece of paper folded
in a plastic case, there’s not much left to differentiate a
Japanese CD pressing from a cheaper US or Euro version. Nowadays, the
Japanese labels always insist on having bonus tracks on their
releases, it has kept the interest going for the Japanese pressings
of non-Japanese bands but the extra material is not always worth the
extra money the CD costs…It depends on the bands, really, some
older bands did sit on a wealth on quality unreleased studio
recordings, and it’s always nice to get some of that stuff along
with the regular album.<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>What I would really like to talk about is how is it to be a
rock-n-roll band these days and where is all this crap going? How
does the industry work? What are the options for the kids starting a
band today? I know you've chosen yours, but I also believe you were
in a somewhat different position (from many perspectives) when
forming Sour Jazz...</i><br />
<b>MR RATBOY:</b> Music is a great passion and hobby but a
terrible day job. Unless you “make it”, the money is bad, at
least for the musician. Everyone involved will get paid before you,
producers, managers, publishers, engineers…You’ll only get paid
if there’s some money left after they take their share. You will
run into a million people who will pretend that they know what is
good for you and will attempt to put you on the right track. To try
to succeed you will have to compromise and will lose the focus you
had when only you and your friends were involved. Along with the
focus you’ll lose your enthusiasm, naiveté and probably the
friends you were playing with when you started. If you’re lucky,
you’ll end up with a lousy job.<br />
When this band was formed we already knew all that, so first we
made sure we enjoyed each other’s company before playing a single
note. We didn’t really know what we wanted to sound like but we
sure knew what to avoid. After Sour Jazz started sounding like
something we could be proud of, we soldiered on and didn’t let
anyone distract us from our original goal. Today, we still are
friends and when we manage to get together, we still sound good, to
me that’s invaluable.<br />
Our non-existent touring schedule coupled with our reluctance to
take part in the social media phenomenon has rendered us invisible. I
personally don’t care since I’m proud of the music we have
produced so far and hopefully will continue to produce. Some days, I
do believe we deserve a Wikipedia page but I’m definitely not going
to be the one starting it!<br />
<b>COWBOY MARK:</b> The records that I've always loved the most,
and the gigs that I've enjoyed the most, were all performed by
artists doing what they did simply because they had to. I'm drawn to
artists who produce only because they have it in themselves to do so,
and need the release despite any potential lack of platform or
success, critical or commercial. I'm excited by the individual, the
one-offs, the artists venting some nameless something that's deep
inside of them, whether it's Jerry Lee or Nina Simone or Bo Diddley
or Ian Hunter. So, yeah, the only option for kids starting bands
today is to honor your instincts, honor your gut, and respect the
song.<br />
How does the industry work these days? For the most part, we exist
completely outside of the industry, but I do know that the industry
is quite different this week than it was last week, and will change
into something else entirely next week. When Sour Jazz started, it
was still very much a matter of going on tour to promote a new album.
Now, you put out an album to promote a tour. As a musician, you earn
your living by selling t-shirts on the road.<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>Thinking about it - this industry thing is there for merely a
hundred years, and twice less in its current form. Still the music
itself is pretty much timeless - J.S. Bach and The Beatles share
shelves in the same stores and keep selling. The larger and larger
amounts of "a product" keep being added to those shelves
and all the media every year, making it harder to find the worthy
things, but somehow I refuse to believe the music will eventually get
mixed and blurred into the uniform, tasteless but easily digestible
grey mass. Optimists think that the Internet and the new
technological revolution will bring arts into focus (it's worth
noting that the Beatlemania would've been way less plausible without
the television for one). What would be your guess on the shape of the
music and associated business at the next milestone, maybe decades
from now? And do you see the hope for the musicians to break the
current system? In which way?</i><br />
<b>COWBOY MARK: </b>I wouldn't even like to guess, really! My
instinct is that music will become even more disposable in the
future, and far less valued. But there will always remain a minority
of people for whom music is almost a religion, and these people will
continue to collect and consume with passion. I'd like to see the
album make a big comeback... playlists seem to be the new albums now,
which I find to be a flimsy substitute. I understand and sort of
appreciate the personalization of the whole playlist concept, but I
miss the lacking artistic statement.<br />
As for the music business, the music industry, I can't imagine
what it will evolve into in the coming years and decades. I suppose I
wouldn't be surprised if it completely stops being a business. Or, if
it does remain a business, I can see it resting completely in the
hands of the musicians themselves, with the musicians themselves
reaping any financial rewards. For Sour Jazz, though, none of us have
the time or the energy or the inclination to dedicate ourselves to
the business side of things. We'd much rather deal only with the
production side of things -- the writing, arranging, recording -- and
let the record label deal with the rest.<br />
In short, I guess most musicians will have to keep their day jobs!<br />
<b>MR RATBOY: </b>That a very difficult question…The business as
we know it last century is dead, that’s for sure. People used to be
ready to pay for their entertainment but the internet has changed all
that. People now expect to get EVERYTHING for free, I don’t blame
them but it has somewhat destroyed the music business as we knew it.
Not a bad thing, really, it didn’t do much for the musicians
anyway. Now musicians have to work harder to promote themselves and
constantly adapt to the new tools available for them. As long as they
can keep up, they might be able to keep interest for their music
alive. The internet also gives them a direct way to connect with the
fans and to sell them all kinds of crap (ringtones!) without having
to use middle-men. I guess it can work for some people. The problem
is that today’s musician spends an awful lot of time on his PC,
describing his every move, meal, thought or fart, and the music
suffers from that. With this new system, it looks to me that the
minute the artist stops promoting himself, he starts disappearing…
I hope I’m wrong but the music is now secondary to the popularity
(how many “friends/hits/clicks”) one can achieve on the net. For
that reason I don’t believe that much of today’s music will
become timeless. I’m not really complaining about it, it’s just
not a game I’m willing to play and personally I’d rather
concentrate on the music and create cool stuff that sadly no-one will
ever hear. I’m not trying to make money with music anymore but I
still think that the best source of income for a musician is the
money he gets for performing live. A lot of bluesmen realized that in
the 60’s & 70’s (Chuck Berry!) and they started playing as
much as they could without concentrating much on the recordings. Even
the Rolling Stones do it these days, they tour without any new music,
they do not need it, people just want to see them play the old stuff
so they oblige. Dylan might be the ultimate example of that attitude.<br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLb-d1nHRKRof4fMvR4jmbGsmV7s8FXVjeuWHmG-IiZeioLZaKfRgnX99ZIa0DjfT2ZCRou1f8gXsUUVBZd70wRseqv2QzapNhLcBb8qh2fFVcH3Dcvxwe6v3dewmLTYI_ghzo6V3M-Ko/s1600/SJ_on_stage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Mr.Ratboy and Cowboy Mark of Sour Jazz live on stage" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLb-d1nHRKRof4fMvR4jmbGsmV7s8FXVjeuWHmG-IiZeioLZaKfRgnX99ZIa0DjfT2ZCRou1f8gXsUUVBZd70wRseqv2QzapNhLcBb8qh2fFVcH3Dcvxwe6v3dewmLTYI_ghzo6V3M-Ko/s1600/SJ_on_stage.jpg" height="300" title="Mr.Ratboy and Cowboy Mark of Sour Jazz live on stage" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">The strings of Sour Jazz</span></td></tr>
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<br />
<br />
<i>And a chicken-egg question: is it the records or the gigs that
come first for you? Regardless of what happens more often - what do
you value most?
</i><br />
<b>COWBOY MARK:</b> We began as a live band who recorded, but
quickly became a recording band who occasionally tours. For me,
personally, I prefer recording to touring, because the studio is much
more about the creative process than the road is. Recording is about
creating, while playing live is about re-creating. Without that
creative process, and the collaborative nature of it, I can't see
much appeal to being in a band. I love the experience of transforming
rough ideas into lasting pieces of music, often in the course of
hours or a few days. And I especially love how a big part of that
process, for me at least, still very much remains a mystery to me
even after all these years.<br />
<b>MR RATBOY:</b> The recordings last forever, most gigs are
quickly forgotten by all the parties involved. For me, it’s
definitely the records.<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>Although you've been partially answering this kind of questions
before, I'd still love to ask each of you to list what you believe to
be the truly outstanding rock albums. Records that you feel possess
more than a personal appeal alone, one-of-a-kind LPs. As many as
you'd choose to name, with or without your commentary.
</i><br />
<b>MR RATBOY:</b> Stooges “Funhouse”/ Lou Reed “Berlin”&
“Coney Island Baby”/The Modern Lovers’ first album/Iggy pop
“New Values”/ The Only Ones’ first album/Pere Ubu “Modern
Dance”/Any Bo Diddley album/Chris Spedding “Hurt”/Rolling
Stones “Black & Blue”/Graham Parker “Stick to Me”…There
are too many to mention really<br />
<b>COWBOY MARK:</b> 'Funhouse' by The Stooges... just about
anything at all by Chris Spedding or Willy DeVille or Jerry Lee
Lewis... 'Tender Prey' by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds... 'Here Come
The Warm Jets' by Eno... for the most part, though, I tend to focus
on artists, as opposed to albums. 'Funhouse' is so distilled to
primal basics, I can't imagine anyone not responding to it one way or
another. 'Here Come The Warm Jets' is quite special, in that it's one
of the few albums that I always approach as a whole, never for one or
two or three individual songs. The first album I ever bought was
'Desolation Boulevard' by the Sweet, and I still listen to it
regularly.
<br />
As far as non-rock is concerned, I've been listening to a whole
lot of old Jimmy Smith albums lately. For contemporary stuff, I
pretty much only listen to my friends' bands -- The Jim Jones Revue,
The Flaming Stars. My absolute favourite discovery from the last year
or so is an album titled 'See,' by a gentleman named <a href="http://petewilliamsmusic.com/">Pete Williams</a>. A
very classy affair... great songs, great performances, great
production.<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>In a similar fashion, would you care to recommend some records
based on my personal preferences
(<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/06/the-list-of-recommended-rock-albums.html">http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/06/the-list-of-recommended-rock-albums.html</a>)?
Not necessarily within the rock-n-roll scope. Mr.Ratboy, anything in
particular from Gentle Giant?
</i><br />
<b>MR RATBOY:</b> Gentle Giant “Free Hand” & “Interview”/
Simon Dupree and the Big Sound/Crawler “First album”
(1977)/Harvey Mandel “Feel the Sound” &
“Shangrenade”/Pavlov’s Dog “At the sound of the Bell” &
“Pampered Menial”/Ted Nugent “First Album”.<br />
I visited your website again, we have lot in common. I'm a big
Rainbow Rising fan (Dio!) and I also always thought that Magician's
Birthday & Demons and Wizards were joined at the hip. I would put
Salisbury on your list, that was my first Uriah Heep album and it
still blows my mind today. How about Nazareth's Loud & Proud?
Another nice Roger Glover production...<br />
<b>COWBOY MARK:</b> For starters, you only have one Sour Jazz
album on that list... probably an oversight on your part, though,
yeah? Really nice to see 'Wonderful' by Madness on there... 'Drip Fed
Fred' with Ian Dury was such a fitting and beautiful final chapter to
Dury's life. If you haven't heard their follow-up album, 'The Liberty
of Norton Folgate,' I can recommend it. And seeing a couple ELO
albums on your list, if you haven't got all of Roy Wood's albums,
especially the ones with Wizzard, you need them!<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>I'm striving to keep The List balanced, so the only thing I
can say in my pathetic defense is that Sour Jazz has roughly the same
percentage of studio discography represented as Led Zeppelin. (I do
proudly own all of your studio CDs though!) For the same sake of
balancing Salisbury and many other Heep's albums from the 70's are
not listed - but they are incredible indeed. Loud 'n' Proud is great
too - the first side especially, although I generally prefer later
Nazareth, but it always amazed me how much their neighboring releases
could differ. Didn't know it was produced by Glover - reminds of Sin
After Sin which stands out so much to me out of the whole Judas
Priest discography. And thank you for all the suggestions - many
titles I wasn't aware of - quite exciting!</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Mr. Ratboy, I did enjoy the solo album of yours available from
sourjazz.com while researching for this interview, but didn't find
much information on it. I figured you did the writing, vocals and
most of the instruments - is that correct? Who else was involved and
in which roles? Any details on the recording process and/or
particular tracks?</i><br />
<b>COWBOY MARK: </b>I designed the packaging for the vinyl
version!<br />
<b>MR RATBOY: </b>I sang, played all the guitars, bass and EML
synthesizers. Screamin’ Joe Rizzo played drums. The guests included
Steve Wynn (Dream Syndicate) on vocals, Phast Phreddie Patterson on
sax, Stellan Wahlstrom on harmonica and Jim Duffy on keyboards. I
hope I didn’t forget anyone, it’s been a long time. I wrote all
the music and the lyrics were mostly by Mark Phelan with a couple of
things by Chris Barry. The only cover was “A Gift” by Lou Reed.<br />
It’s funny you mention my solo album, I have a few songs I wrote
for an aborted band here in Tokyo that I’m thinking about recording
solo. If I ever find the energy, there might be new Mr. Ratboy solo
songs available soon…<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>And is it already the time to reveal some details on the new Sour
Jazz album?
</i><br />
<b>COWBOY MARK:</b> It's in the works, and eleven or twelve tracks
have been partially recorded, but I wouldn't like to guess when it
will be finished and released. There's a vague plan for a 2015
release, but that's going to require a bit of cooperation that's been
difficult to get. I can tell you, though, that Daniel Rey is
producing it.<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>Really happy to hear that and looking forward - count to see me in
the line on the release date! Thank you so much for the interesting
conversation and hope to keep seeing Sour Jazz in the
limelight!</i><br />
<b>COWBOY MARK: </b>You'll hear it before the release
date, I can promise you!<br />
<br />
–--<br />
You can find much more (including free music downloads and their
previous interviews) at <a href="http://www.sourjazz.com/">The
Official Sour Jazz Website</a>.<br />
<br />
Also see <a href="http://www.theemarkives.com/">http://www.theemarkives.com/</a>
for Mark's design work.
Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-14824864043234519842014-05-27T16:12:00.000+02:002014-05-27T16:12:18.834+02:00Led Zeppelin II, 1969<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDEnFiGxBYfLVHSWqBgRwcEfrHIi3fOt83gL9XGYO4RZPSIT7XEqmlYGjaOUS2_yxzcyBEssZcMgTX5MyG5O1YU2W-6BeSrnPUYpb4YwQXFP8_5NexM_ULaF6m134Ojx8Q4wX8wzNlr6Q/s1600/Led_Zeppelin_Led_Zeppelin_II_album_cover_1969.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin II album cover, 1969" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDEnFiGxBYfLVHSWqBgRwcEfrHIi3fOt83gL9XGYO4RZPSIT7XEqmlYGjaOUS2_yxzcyBEssZcMgTX5MyG5O1YU2W-6BeSrnPUYpb4YwQXFP8_5NexM_ULaF6m134Ojx8Q4wX8wzNlr6Q/s1600/Led_Zeppelin_Led_Zeppelin_II_album_cover_1969.jpg" height="198" title="Led Zeppelin II, 1969" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">01 - Whole Lotta Love<br />02 - What Is and What Should Never Be<br />03 - The Lemon Song<br />04 - Thank You<br />05 - Heartbreaker<br />06 - Living Loving Maid (She's Just a Woman)<br />07 - Ramble On<br />08 - Moby Dick<br />09 - Bring It On Home</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
It's probably the time to stop apologizing for the irregularity of these posts – they happen when they happen, so - to the topic:<br />
<br />Clearly I'm not going to say anything new on this. Led Zeppelin is a milestone in the history of music. I've just made a quick check and it didn't come as a big surprise that every single track of their nine studio albums has its own article on Wikipedia. They are the ultimate rock band from the debut album's cover to the disbanding after John Bonham's death. In every little bit. <br /><br />Between myself and me, I mark three distinct sections within their discography – a 3 albums each, chronologically. This first group (conveniently numbered) is the youngest and the fastest and could be as well represented by any other record on The List – but let it be LZII. Maybe I chose this particular album because of the strange attractiveness of its cult opening track, or maybe due to the perfect balance of fast and gentle pieces, or maybe for that transition from Heartbreaker to Living Loving Maid, or for <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0109446/quotes?item=qt0214697">the quote</a> from the times when Hollywood still knew how to make movies... <br /><br />Being as well their most accessible batch to listen in my humble opinion, all three first Zeppelins are a single phenomenon which I don't think anyone can afford to miss. It is life itself, bottled into the disc's sleeve. Vibrant, breathing and running out of breath; yelling, screaming and whispering. Recall it, feel it, press play. <br /><br />Gotta go now – time to ramble on. The usual links worth of exploration below <br /><br />
<a href="http://ledzeppelin.alexreisner.com/2.html" rel="nofollow">Full album's text at Alex Reisner's</a> <br />
<br />
Wikipedia: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Led_Zeppelin_II">Album</a>|<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Led_zeppelin">Artist </a><br />
<br />
<br />
And something special the next time. Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-89643977401765901402014-03-04T00:26:00.000+01:002014-05-27T16:17:04.959+02:00Wayne Kramer - Citizen Wayne, 1997<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUfBHA7k977wnMajktA4xIOBYY95xMUCwzGVONpNt1pYKpyvJf4-pqJ-TFPeUBc-UrNY2TFLXbJJz9StNrL5YA1JoOxsk1cwVcgVLveWXWbCGZaRWUrhkqlFRbCDFEUfiCNFPYFK9e0vE/s1600/Wayne_Kramer_Citizen_Wayne_album_cover_1997.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Wayne Kramer - Citizen Wayne album cover, 1997" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUfBHA7k977wnMajktA4xIOBYY95xMUCwzGVONpNt1pYKpyvJf4-pqJ-TFPeUBc-UrNY2TFLXbJJz9StNrL5YA1JoOxsk1cwVcgVLveWXWbCGZaRWUrhkqlFRbCDFEUfiCNFPYFK9e0vE/s1600/Wayne_Kramer_Citizen_Wayne_album_cover_1997.jpg" height="199" title="Wayne Kramer - Citizen Wayne, 1997" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">01 - Stranger In The House<br />
02 - Back When Dogs Could Talk<br />
03 - Revolution In Apt. 29<br />
04 - Down On The Ground<br />
05 - Shining Mr. Lincoln's Shoes<br />
06 - Dope For Democracy<br />
07 - No Easy Way Out<br />
08 - You Don't Know My Name<br />
09 - Count Time<br />
10 - Snatched Defeat<br />
11 - Doing The Work<br />
12 - A Farewell To Whiskey</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
In <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/06/hello-world.html">the very first post</a> I had a stupidity to claim I’ve got something to say. Not in comparison with him - the one who has something to say indeed. And it looks like I’m gonna be using more of his words than mine today.<br />
<br />
Some musicians come with a title - Britain awarded us with enough Sirs alone. The title sticking to this American is Brother. Brother Wayne Kramer. Since the debut MC5 record till now and onwards.<br />
<br />
Straight away with the opening riffs of Stranger in the House you feel something different going. And then there is poetry throughout and on top of it all. Need to hear it, really.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
As for myself, I hear the great revolutionist behind his sounds, and Citizen Wayne is all about revolutions to me. Not just musically, but also as a reflection of his whole life story. Not just the third track - the whole thing. <br />
<br />
We’re having a revolution<br />
In apartment 29<br />
Someone brought bazookas<br />
Someone’s chilling wine<br />
…<br />
We’re having a revolution<br />
And we’re having it right now<br />
There will be blood and bullets….<br />
<br />
Rough, partially surreal, sincere, like an open wound. The album overall and the genius ending of this track in particular. I’d love to write more, but all the words coming to mind are only other quotations from Brother Wayne Kramer:<br />
<br />
My brothers and I rolled out from Detroit<br />
Down to Chicago to join in the fight<br />
Kinda shit that we did all the time<br />
Play for the people and don’t make a dime...<br />
<br />
Nuff Said. You know what to do.<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayne_Kramer_%28guitarist%29">Wayne Kramer on Wikipedia </a><br />
<br />
And let it be <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2014/05/led-zeppelin-ii-1969.html">Led Zeppelin</a> next time.<br />
<br />
<br />Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-27907053057333184402013-12-15T13:29:00.000+01:002014-03-04T00:27:05.975+01:00Dio - Holy Diver, 1983<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzZ4pJa8IfrMx9wTVDpGatD7YwKYdvsBMr8tC1gJV-w-Gjz_Vu4QySjSfcjT72z6kD5i54izk8laC44FdTmAfIRzagAk-2M0rCxYqTVHbFH-S6KSV-Ck7Zt3Z3V8S1mKGz4IO9dA6e5oI/s1600/Dio_Holy_Diver_album_cover_1983.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Dio - Holy Diver album cover, 1983" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzZ4pJa8IfrMx9wTVDpGatD7YwKYdvsBMr8tC1gJV-w-Gjz_Vu4QySjSfcjT72z6kD5i54izk8laC44FdTmAfIRzagAk-2M0rCxYqTVHbFH-S6KSV-Ck7Zt3Z3V8S1mKGz4IO9dA6e5oI/s200/Dio_Holy_Diver_album_cover_1983.jpg" height="200" title="Dio - Holy Diver, 1983" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">01 - Stand Up And Shout<br />
02 - Holy Diver<br />
03 - Gypsy<br />
04 - Caught In The Middle<br />
05 - Don't Talk To Strangers<br />
06 - Straight Through The Heart<br />
07 - Invisible<br />
08 - Rainbow In The Dark<br />
09 - Shame On The Night</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Strength is not a function of size, and he wasn't tall. But the strong one he is. Ronald James Padavona, known to most of us as just Dio (meaning “God” in Italian) – the man this world has lost only few years ago; the man to stay remembered for how he enriched the rock music.<br />
<br />
Brought up on opera records, a self-taught vocalist with a strength of a million. It was his voice to support me whenever things were getting really bad, his strength I could always rely on. It was him to replace Ozzy in Black Sabbath, him to become a landmark voice of Rainbow, him to record some of the greatest parts for <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/09/roger-glover-and-guests-butterfly-ball.html">The Butterfly Ball</a>… Progressively moving towards heavier and heavier sound along the career, he didn't record a single soft song with his band of the same name Dio for the first 13 years since this debut in 1983 till the closing track of The Angry Machines in 1996.<br />
<br />
So let me offer to your attention what I find to be the best Dio's album – Holy Diver. Not too much sense in going through the tracks – they're all brilliant if you ask me. From Stand Up And Shout to Shame On The Night. Rainbow In The Dark is quite an anthem. And on and on… Just note the line-up: Jimmy Bain, former of Rainbow; Vinny Appice whose rhythms always build up around Dio’s part, constructing one whole together; and of course Vivian Campbell - the one to replace Steve Clark in <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/07/def-leppard-high-n-dry-1981.html">Def Leppard</a> few years after.<br />
<br />
Here is the quote from RJD himself on the time of recording:<br />
“It was a good time to be in that band. It was perfect for us. Everything just fell into place. The ethic in rehearsal was amazing. The effort in the recording was just as good. Everybody wanted it to be great. We really believed in what we were doing and couldn't wait to get that product out and have people hear it."<br />
<br />
Thus I advise you to get to it and enjoy – it's a wonderful heavy album. And note Murray on the cover – the band's mascot to appear on every early record's front.<br />
<br />
And just to embed a piece of YouTube – here is the original promotional video for the title track (quite funny visual by today's standards – 80's – what can you do...):
<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/KD3iFZeAaVA?feature=player_detailpage" width="480"></iframe>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.darklyrics.com/lyrics/dio/holydiver.html" rel="nofollow">Full album's text at DarkLyrics</a> <br />
<br />
Wikipedia: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Diver">Album</a>|<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dio_%28band%29">Artist </a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2014/03/wayne-kramer-citizen-wayne-1997.html">Wayne Kramer</a> next time.Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-68406575461820074852013-11-11T20:02:00.000+01:002013-12-15T13:30:17.494+01:00Animusic - Part 1First of all, I would like to thank both of you, my loyal readers, for the patience and tolerance shown so far. And then, after a notable pause, goes not yet another album, but that very visual intermission mentioned <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/10/manfred-manns-earth-band-angel-station.html">the last time</a>.<br />
<br />
Since the day I've learned of it about ten years ago, the Animusic project did influence me significantly as a visual artist. Now, revealed by a memory flash, it just seemed unknown and cool enough to share over both of my blogs (laziness rules). <br />
<br />
They have released 2 films back then and are working on finishing the third one now after the successful kickstarter campaign. <br />
<br />
Pipe Dream is probably the most fascinating piece in these collections of bizarre awesomeness. Trying to think about it - I guess it is seeing the sounds before they appear, that makes the experience and impression that unique and strong.<br />
<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/hyCIpKAIFyo?feature=player_detailpage" width="480"></iframe>
<br />
Check out their website <a href="http://www.animusic.com/">www.animusic.com</a><br />
<br />
And a couple of insights into the graphics involved are coming in <a href="http://www.the-working-man.org/2013/11/animusic-part-2.html">the second part</a> at <a href="http://www.the-working-man.org/">www.the-working-man.org</a><br />
<br />
The great and mighty <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/12/dio-holy-diver-1983.html">Dio</a> next time.Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-79777011933968435962013-10-13T19:43:00.000+02:002013-11-11T20:04:26.453+01:00Manfred Mann's Earth Band - Angel Station, 1979<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK3Li-4FgPqdBBEdbARYbxEZzP6rQnkmgPKsVaxsJuKHn52QC7g1gB5ZDVmq-qwSnoZeINPiuyaR0c2uxmq0ZZaqnyQDJW2WdklDu8VLqTMFbruJpt09XdE82s1hzTIxBPLXlZeWlZZ9U/s1600/Manfred_Manns_Earth_Band_Angel_Station_album_cover_1979.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Manfred Mann's Earth Band - Angel Station album cover, 1979" border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK3Li-4FgPqdBBEdbARYbxEZzP6rQnkmgPKsVaxsJuKHn52QC7g1gB5ZDVmq-qwSnoZeINPiuyaR0c2uxmq0ZZaqnyQDJW2WdklDu8VLqTMFbruJpt09XdE82s1hzTIxBPLXlZeWlZZ9U/s200/Manfred_Manns_Earth_Band_Angel_Station_album_cover_1979.jpg" title="Manfred Mann's Earth Band - Angel Station, 1979" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">01 - Don't Kill It Carol<br />
02 - You Angel You<br />
03 - Hollywood Town<br />
04 - Belle" of the Earth<br />
05 - Platform End<br />
06 - Angels at My Gate<br />
07 - You Are - I Am<br />
08 - Waiting for the Rain<br />
09 - Resurrection</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I am only the working man (as my <a href="http://www.the-working-man.org/">other blog</a> suggests) and yes - fitting sixty-something hours into a five-days working week under a decent flu does slow me down with posts a bit. Nevertheless, here goes (just as was promised <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/09/gas-huffer-one-inch-masters-1994.html">the last time</a>) something more classical.<br />
<br />
I guess the people are right and it is Nightingales and Bombers which should be considered Manfred Mann’s shiniest record. But may be because Spirits In The Night is actually a cover and was known too well to me before getting to hear the album, or may be because Angel Station just sounds more unusual, I am choosing it to represent Manfred Mann and his Earth Band in my <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/06/the-list-of-recommended-rock-albums.html">List of Recommended Rock Albums</a>.<br />
<br />
This LP is a surreal and gentle riddle. A puzzle set in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M._C._Escher">Maurits Escher’s</a> space, just like the brilliant artwork suggests (not that easy to find the proper credits, but I would guess it should be shared between Martin Poole and John Shaw). <br />
<br />
Don’t Kill It Carol - the opening track - is the essence of strange beauty. Fastest piece of the album, very poetic in the text and arranged with that synthesized sound of 1970’s, which would totally lose its appeal in the following 1980’s. This mixture produces a cognitive dissonance of a sort - a feeling that carries throughout the tracklist. As if a noir film director would have shot a love story set in the rich cumulus cloudscape. And then the whole thing sounds surprisingly <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/07/about-being-pop.html">pop</a>.<br />
<br />
Well, this is Manfred Mann - The Great Experimentator with a track record in pop, rock, electronic and jazz fusion. One person understanding and feeling the Music and the Universe through it. In case you’re not familiar with, tonight’s Wikipedia references at the post’s end are particularly worthy. I find the album article especially interesting with the insight into the structural aspects of the Angel Station (which I can at least loosely try to understand thanks to the <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/09/how-music-works.html">magic film on how music works</a>).<br />
<br />
Was thinking of throwing in more epithets to describe this MMEB’s masterpiece, but though even have found them, I'd rather suggest you just press play and listen to the record. In no rush, lights dimmed and with maximum comfort achievable wherever you are at the moment.<br />
<br />
A sort of <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/11/animusic-part-1.html">visual intermission</a> next time.<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B9ASsLQqS5MXTm1PZFIzMWF5OHM/edit?usp=sharing"><br /></a>
<a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B9ASsLQqS5MXTm1PZFIzMWF5OHM/edit?usp=sharing">Manfred_ Mann's_Earth_Band_Angel_Station_lyrics_1979.txt</a><br />
<br />
Wikipedia: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angel_Station">Album</a>|<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manfred_Mann%27s_Earth_Band">Artist </a><br />
<br />
<br />
P.S. Went on listening to Masque after Angel Station while writing this - the Mann is really good.Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-23078011636918216782013-09-29T11:43:00.000+02:002013-10-13T19:43:58.696+02:00Gas Huffer - One Inch Masters, 1994<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikEUoYDmdaSKX1o8b6r9EAdjyT2G7tu9kOxvC12bVA0uPF4GT9T9vWHZ_dgS8fbXQaV-evXnnDsnqZJ3aHICHgsRZboHu2637Lx8EyZhqn9Srw2u2LLzIhFAgxQOhhMOvtmyIgpQ7sNpg/s1600/Gas_Huffer_One_Inch_Masters_album_cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Gas Huffer - One Inch Masters album cover, 1994" border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikEUoYDmdaSKX1o8b6r9EAdjyT2G7tu9kOxvC12bVA0uPF4GT9T9vWHZ_dgS8fbXQaV-evXnnDsnqZJ3aHICHgsRZboHu2637Lx8EyZhqn9Srw2u2LLzIhFAgxQOhhMOvtmyIgpQ7sNpg/s200/Gas_Huffer_One_Inch_Masters_album_cover.jpg" title="Gas Huffer - One Inch Masters, 1994" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">01 - Crooked Bird<br />
02 - Mr. Sudbuster<br />
03 - More of Everything<br />
04 - Stay in Your House<br />
05 - 14th & Jefferson<br />
06 - Walla Walla Bang Bang<br />
07 - Appendix Gone<br />
08 - Chicken Foot<br />
09 - What's in the Bag?<br />
10 - Hand of the Nomad<br />
11 - Quasimodo '94<br />
12 - No Smoking<br />
13 - Action/Adventure<br />
14 - Goat No Have</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Now when Lemonade for Vampires has arrived and I became a happy owner of Gas Huffer's complete studio discography (not too easy thing when you live in Europe), I can confirm that One Inch Masters is the best of their albums to me. Melodic diversity and overall quality of the material are the points which make this record stand out most significantly in the band’s body of work.<br />
<br />
Gas Huffer is <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/07/new-bomb-turks-scared-straight-1996.html">another artist</a> I've got introduced to through my Prague's favorite <a href="http://www.maximum.cz/">Maximum Underground</a>. A garage/punk quartet from Seattle – the mother-town of grunge music. They possess both the great energy and tons of irony blending into the sparkling songwriting - “goofing around” as they put it themselves.<br />
<br />
Formed in 1989 and disbanded in 2006, GH is one of those groups which never went through a lineup change. There is something very right in it. <br />
<br />
The frontman Matt Wright wouldn't probably get a prize for his vocal talents alone, but that charismatic energy he's putting into the performance generously compensates for all possible lacks. I mean, Mark Knopfler also doesn’t have that much of a voice and still he sounds.<br />
<br />
Sincerely brilliant record. What’s In The Bag?, 14th &Jefferson, Stay in Your House, Crooked Bird... - the whole tracklist is outstanding indeed. How many songs do you know about the contents of a bag or discarding an appendix in general? And then how many good ones? These are the ones.<br />
<br />
Guess it’s too late to order, but for every album release prior to the 6th album they were creating a comic book which included the lyrics as well. (The bassist Joe Newton is also known as a deputy art director for Rolling Stone magazine by the way). Without those at hand, I managed to scratch together only few tracks’ lyrics from the record - thus would appreciate anyone willing to share some texts.<br />
<br />
And just in case someone would care to check on my humble opinion, here goes the rest of them sorted by the level of personal appeal:<br />
<br />
One Inch Masters, 1994 - see above.<br />
<br />
The Inhuman Ordeal of Special Agent Gas Huffer, 1996 - Tiny Life is a gem.<br />
<br />
Lemonade for Vampires, 2005 - more serious, still wild.<br />
<br />
Just Beautiful Music, 1998 - a touch softer, as the cover suggests.<br />
<br />
The Rest of Us, 2002 - no, it’s not a compilation.<br />
<br />
Integrity, Technology & Service, 1992; Janitors of Tomorrow, 1991 - the two first albums from Empty Records are punkier and noisier than later work - not exactly my style, but I imagine might be the opposite for someone else.<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B9ASsLQqS5MXUDZia3M3eXZhMTg/edit?usp=sharing">Gas_Huffer_One_Inch_Masters_lyrics_incomplete.txt</a><br />
<br />
Wikipedia: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Inch_Masters">Album</a>|<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gas_huffer">Artist </a><br />
<br />
<br />
Next time - <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/10/manfred-manns-earth-band-angel-station.html">something more classical</a> from <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/06/the-list-of-recommended-rock-albums.html">The List</a>.Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-55314716924699788772013-09-15T17:35:00.001+02:002013-09-29T11:47:00.229+02:00How Music WorksHow Music Works with Howard Goodall is an exciting journey through the fundamentals required for understanding music with a brilliant guide. Four episodes of the show cover the key aspects: Melody, Rhythm, Harmony and Bass.<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/xw9eef99aSI?feature=player_detailpage" width="480"></iframe>
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ZZJPnAer7EM?feature=player_detailpage" width="480"></iframe>
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/KwRHu8T1lCs?feature=player_detailpage" width="480"></iframe>
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/fIWEGYDG-Ig?feature=player_detailpage" width="480"></iframe>
<br />
The only similar show I know is Understanding The Fundamentals of Music by Professor Robert Greenberg.<br />
<br />
Next time: <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/09/gas-huffer-one-inch-masters-1994.html">Gas Huffer</a>. Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-60078037315684154432013-09-08T12:38:00.000+02:002013-10-13T19:46:07.060+02:00Roger Glover and Guests - The Butterfly Ball and the Grasshopper’s Feast, 1974<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVgRIVTK6bARYq07WOuAQ58_JF3NuBZqPzA5nblJbFeYt46ebXEG4oK7IGdk727z6LztWY0d4Az6QDcbizCTsJA-nK23CybExxl8r7iKu7SShv4CBHMiKQlypukSnl-A7DPaKH5vUwp1c/s1600/Roger_Glover_Butterfly_Ball_album_cover_1974.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Roger Glover and Guests - The Butterfly Ball and the Grasshopper’s Feast album cover, 1974" border="0" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVgRIVTK6bARYq07WOuAQ58_JF3NuBZqPzA5nblJbFeYt46ebXEG4oK7IGdk727z6LztWY0d4Az6QDcbizCTsJA-nK23CybExxl8r7iKu7SShv4CBHMiKQlypukSnl-A7DPaKH5vUwp1c/s200/Roger_Glover_Butterfly_Ball_album_cover_1974.JPG" title="Roger Glover and Guests - The Butterfly Ball and the Grasshopper’s Feast, 1974" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">01 - Dawn<br />
02 - Get Ready<br />
03 - Saffron Dormouse And Lizzy Bee<br />
04 - Harlequin Hare<br />
05 - Old Blind Mole<br />
06 - Magician Moth<br />
07 - No Solution<br />
08 - Behind The Smile<br />
09 - Fly Away<br />
10 - Aranea<br />
11 - Sitting In A Dream<br />
12 - Waiting<br />
13 - Sir Maximus Mouse<br />
14 - Dreams Of Sir Bedivere<br />
15 - Together Again<br />
16 - Watch Out For The Bat<br />
17 - Little Chalk Blue<br />
18 - The Feast<br />
19 - Love Is All<br />
20 - Homeward</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Roger Glover - one of <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/06/deep-purple-machine-head-1972.html">those legend-makers</a> and bass-playing songwriters (McCartney, Sting). This album – overlooked, underrated and pretty much forgotten – stands out of his work for me so much, that I rather associate his name with The Butterfly Ball first than even with Deep Purple. It is a musical created by some of the biggest rock names after a children's book based on a poem from nineteenth century. If that doesn't sound intriguing enough, here are some of those names:<br />
<br />
David Coverdale of Deep Purple and Whitesnake<br />
<br />
Ronnie James Dio of Dio, Black Sabbath and Rainbow<br />
<br />
Michael Giles of King Crimson<br />
<br />
Glenn Hughes of Deep Purple, Black Sabbath and Phenomena<br />
<br />
Eddie Jobson of Curved Air, Roxy Music and <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/08/jethro-tull-rock-island-1989.html">Jethro Tull</a><br />
<br />
John Lawton of <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/06/uriah-heep-demons-and-wizards-magicians.html">Uriah Heep</a> and Lucifer’s Friend<br />
<br />
Micky Lee Soule of Elf and Rainbow<br />
<br />
<br />
Can you imagine Ronnie James Dio singing a little froggy's part? Those, familiar with his Elf years probably should, but those coming from his metal side might not. It's charming.<br />
<br />
Love Is All seems to be the only track widely recognized. Although a very good song to me, I perceive it as a version of All You Need Is Love by you know who. Personal favorites are rather Old Blind Mole and Sitting In A Dream. Then go Behind The Smile, Sir Maximus Mouse, Watch Out For The Bat and Little Chalk Blue.<br />
<br />
There was a wonderful CD reprint in 90's (could be the one from 1995) in a cardboard sleeve and with quite interesting liner notes – not the copy I own though (mine is a veteran CD from 1989 with some history attached, including quite an effort from my father to obtain it around 14 years ago and that little IT-slavery he got me into in return for a record :)<br />
<br />
Anyway, recalling some of those notes and things read/heard elsewhere, I can't stop thinking of this Deep Purple turmoil background Glover must've been going through those years: leaving the band due to that Blackmore thing – arranging a new band with Dio during the Butterfly Ball sessions – Blackmore leaving DP and getting Dio to his newly formed Rainbow instead – Glover producing Rainbow... Still in the middle of it, beaten by the oil crisis of '73 but powered by a lot of talent The Butterfly Ball and the Grasshopper's Feast was born. A record emitting light and celebrating life in its various styles and genres. Filled with enthusiasm and devotion, where songs were conceived right in the studio and just before recording.<br />
<br />
Transparent and gentle. As if artwork by Alan Aldridge alone wouldn't make it worth owning.<br />
<br />
An animated feature film has been planned as well, however didn't happen due to aforementioned crisis. Here is what has left: <br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/G2yMwuLy53c?feature=player_detailpage" width="480"></iframe>
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.rogerglover.com/discography/the-butterfly-ball/the-butterfly-ball-lyrics/">Butterfly Ball's lyrics at Roger Glover's official website</a><br />
<br />
Wikipedia: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butterfly_Ball">Album</a>|<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Glover">Artist </a><br />
<br />
Next time: <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/09/how-music-works.html">How Music Works </a><br />
<br />Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-85465863842547422242013-08-31T18:03:00.000+02:002015-01-15T16:47:19.506+01:00Sour Jazz - American Seizure, 2009<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTL9JHfck5LmpO0IwPtw8xtbtela4LkddSKls6-L9EtQ7RM1z0e_hm1f829PhIfs3tAKJtvmZ9BQlk7H-08VYZI1x8bKBH4Ngh0w6ltvF8Z0-LuGToPJJ2mAWJhL8qiTeeIYA4apmDFAc/s1600/Sour_Jazz_American_Seizure_album_cover_2009.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Sour Jazz - American Seizure album cover, 2009" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTL9JHfck5LmpO0IwPtw8xtbtela4LkddSKls6-L9EtQ7RM1z0e_hm1f829PhIfs3tAKJtvmZ9BQlk7H-08VYZI1x8bKBH4Ngh0w6ltvF8Z0-LuGToPJJ2mAWJhL8qiTeeIYA4apmDFAc/s200/Sour_Jazz_American_Seizure_album_cover_2009.jpg" height="200" title="Sour Jazz - American Seizure, 2009" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">01 - Masquerader<br />
02 - Fun Dumb Daze<br />
03 - Cigarettes & Coughy<br />
04 - Bad Times Coming<br />
05 - Black Maria<br />
06 - Action!<br />
07 - Without You<br />
08 - Monsieur Flop<br />
09 - Nippon Twist<br />
10 - Mrs Popular<br />
11 - Little Hands</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<a href="http://www.the-working-man.org/2013/08/cgvfx-showreel-2013.html">My new visual effects showreel</a> is being presented today. A piece of music I dared to choose to accompany it comes from American Seizure – an album by a contemporary New York rock band Sour Jazz, which occupies its place on <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/06/the-list-of-recommended-rock-albums.html">the list of recommended rock albums</a> for a reason. Thus I'd like to use this occasion to share few words about them. <br />
<br />
What happens to punks when they grow up? The whole concept sounds like oxymoron, but something does. Some just end, some refuse, some keep getting younger, some start blogging and some keep writing music. Real music. <br />
<br />
How does American Seizure sound? Pretty much like the cover looks. Sour Jazz's visual representation seems to fit their music quite well in general. Cardboard sleeve of the CD gets worn out on the edges fast, but even through it's rough matte finish it already gives you an idea that you're holding something different in your hands. Words that come to mind trying to describe the sound are “funky” and “haiku”. Well, quite modernist haiku probably... Tito & Tarantula would be another association – partially in sound, a lot in visual. <br />
<br />
Not too fast, not too slow. With keyboards and saxophone. Energy without yelling. RHYTHM in capitals. Lazy charismatic vocals. Guitar gorgeously showing off. <br />
<br />
If, like me, you grew up in a city – they'll make you feel nostalgic about your hometown. They love the city and they are taking me for a walk with them on almost every track. This resonance could be purely personal, but it's strong enough to be shared here. Other personal preferences from this record are Masquerader, Action! and Cigarettes & Coughy. <br />
<br />
Apparently they are releasing a studio CD once in four years – so let's hope. <br />
<br />
They are good. And shockingly, they are happening right now. <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2015/01/interview-with-sour-jazz.html"><strike>I don't know them</strike></a>, I am doing this on my own stupid initiative, but I am urging you to try them out and, if you'd happen to experience similar kind of delight - spread the word. It's a shame they still don't even have a Wikipedia article. Really. <br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.sourjazz.com/">Sour Jazz's official website</a>. Some free music downloads there among the other bits. <br />
<br />
Last thing: I'd appreciate the lyrics, if anyone has it – googling wasn't so efficient for me yet...<br />
<br />
Next time: <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/09/roger-glover-and-guests-butterfly-ball.html">The Butterfly Ball </a><br />
<br />Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-85261541193772954492013-08-25T15:17:00.000+02:002013-08-31T18:20:11.162+02:00Rush - Test for Echo, 1996<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtT1S8-GdkUEGsxGZ39Rqulsmw5G2roXOiBx1xCrWEGjrt1MedFXjFEyytvu2-whtRlZ422oEtDDZsb_04DqwYvA0cv6OmDSss6v9gal0zv3IaQJ5uA3H0n1MELCLqNOrnvzEZK8cLM1Q/s1600/Rush_Test_for_Echo_album_cover_1996.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Rush - Test for Echo album cover, 1996" border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtT1S8-GdkUEGsxGZ39Rqulsmw5G2roXOiBx1xCrWEGjrt1MedFXjFEyytvu2-whtRlZ422oEtDDZsb_04DqwYvA0cv6OmDSss6v9gal0zv3IaQJ5uA3H0n1MELCLqNOrnvzEZK8cLM1Q/s200/Rush_Test_for_Echo_album_cover_1996.jpg" title="Rush - Test for Echo, 1996" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">01 - Test for Echo<br />
02 - Driven<br />
03 - Half the World<br />
04 - The Color of Right<br />
05 - Time and Motion<br />
06 - Totem<br />
07 - Dog Years<br />
08 - Virtuality<br />
09 - Resist<br />
10 - Limbo<br />
11 - Carve Away the Stone</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Here we go. Vertigo... <br />
<br />
Given you don't live in Canada, how many Canadian bands do you know? Given now the positive number, chances are Rush is on the list. They are big, and they are good. And there are definitely things outstanding about them. <br />
<br />
A trio to start with. A progressive rock trio to amplify the challenge of potential shortage of hands. Good thing – it's really not about the quantity. Alex Lifeson, the founding member, deals with guitars – all kinds of guitars – he's good at it. Frontman Geddy Lee takes on the bass and keyboards responsibilities, vocals aside. Neil Peart – a drummer. Only? Not really, since he is the person responsible for Rush lyrics since the time he joined the group (which is pretty much the time the group exists). Only 1.5 lineup changes since 1968, both happened before the second album out of 19 so far. And on top of this all - they are the artists (sadly enough, not that frequent epithet in popular music, but it is theirs rightfully). <br />
<br />
Band's discography comes in stages. First there was hard rock mixed with classical progressive sound of the time. Surprisingly, not my favorite period though. Then came electronics around 80's. Not the electronics-electronics, but surely something which can be opposed to good old yell-drums-n-guitars within the rock music. And yet later, around the change of millenia, Rush's sound deviated again into pretty much the mixture of their previous experiences. Test for Echo was released at the border of these last two periods and incorporates the best of both worlds in my humble opinion. <br />
<br />
A wonderful record, balanced with energy of faster pieces, emotional strains and melodism. A record where Geddy shows to the full extent one thing I value him as a vocalist most for: insinuation – ability to subdue the strongest emotions in the voice, only to make them stand out more through this suppression. Listen to it – it's like a man torn apart by the feelings of unbearable strength, but directing his last powers not to let anyone see. Something I was once taught a man should be. <br />
<br />
And being a visual artist, another thing I appreciate is that Rush traditionally devote more time and thought to the look of their albums than would be expected from a rock'n'roll band. Test for Echo not being an exception. <br />
<br />
As usual – hope you'd give it a try and find pleasing. Next time – <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/08/sour-jazz-american-seizure-2009.html">Sour Jazz</a>.<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B9ASsLQqS5MXdmxCVjFEQkJfbjQ/edit?usp=sharing">Rush_Test_for_Echo_lyrics_1996.txt </a><br />
<br />
Wikipedia: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Test_for_echo">Album</a>|<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rush_%28band%29">Artist </a><br />
<br />
<br />Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-7103171310025432672013-08-17T17:34:00.001+02:002013-08-25T15:19:26.071+02:00Jethro Tull - Rock Island, 1989<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfk81DukASb0wlKEPx1aFlB0XIk3op-IE130F0HtMFKQITPh_6rsg0VAuMnmTLOdz8zGmcUPA67Sgx9wp2gEDK_7nGysdbxJBJgvaVoftQlF8Vukrk8IEl0w1qO3AjyaqrUjJWOe8Wo44/s1600/Jethro_Tull_Rock_Island_album_cover_1989.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Jethro Tull – Rock Island album cover, 1989" border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfk81DukASb0wlKEPx1aFlB0XIk3op-IE130F0HtMFKQITPh_6rsg0VAuMnmTLOdz8zGmcUPA67Sgx9wp2gEDK_7nGysdbxJBJgvaVoftQlF8Vukrk8IEl0w1qO3AjyaqrUjJWOe8Wo44/s200/Jethro_Tull_Rock_Island_album_cover_1989.jpg" title="Jethro Tull – Rock Island, 1989" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">01 - Kissing Willie<br />
02 - The Rattlesnake Trail<br />
03 - Ears Of Tin<br />
04 - Undressed To Kill<br />
05 - Rock Island<br />
06 - Heavy Water<br />
07 - Another Christmas Song<br />
08 - The Whaler's Dues<br />
09 - Big Riff And Mando<br />
10 - Strange Avenues</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I really like it when Jethro Tull play hard rock. They have some special kind of grace about it. Locomotive Breath, Something’s on the Move, This Is Not Love... And Rock Island, although not really a hard rock record in my understanding, still lets you taste this side of Mr.Anderson and friends more than usual. Enough to feed the hungry.<br />
<br />
Opening with Kissing Willie, the original side A is the faster one. I might be alone in this, but in places find it reminiscent of some late Dire Straits (like The Bug). The title track, closing the side, makes the whole album’s statement - just like the sleeve artwork. I don't know how much of the intention was there (reminds of Jan Anderson’s comment on Aqualung’s conceptuality), but one theme which I see going through the record and its every song is loneliness. A solitude of one kind or another. And the record really explores all various shapes, tastes and sizes of ot.<br />
<br />
The tempo and loudness tend to slow down overall in the second half of the album, with Strange Avenues sounding already like a residue. Time to confess here: I used to perceive this song as a weak and a touch boring one while admiring Rock Island’s hard sound, till a friend noted it’s the best track of the LP to him. So then I finally heard it - I mean really heard. It’s a truly strong one - simply unrealistic emotional strain packed into a piece of whisper. Beautiful. And very sad. ...looking like a record cover from 1971...<br />
<br />
Take a closer look at the lyrics (back to the overall album now) - as usually with Tull - it’s real poetry. And if I may suggest another worthy record from this period - it would be Catfish Rising.<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B9ASsLQqS5MXRTlqTjhabGhEaGc/edit?usp=sharing">Jethro_Tull_Rock_Island_lyrics_1989.txt</a><br />
<br />
Wikipedia: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_Island_%28album%29">Album</a>|<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jethro_Tull_%28band%29">Artist </a><br />
<br />
<br />
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Next time - <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/08/rush-test-for-echo-1996.html">Rush</a>.Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-60768914709697988112013-08-11T13:32:00.000+02:002013-08-17T17:34:53.303+02:00I know that no one cares...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTVS1vyXjPTwgqau9GEUqkOXXtAcD4Wr4kQSm5U-SPnNGVAjEkYLY09yiA2P7A_TzBy3yeznwdKVudA1omvkikYJOVaE4ohuwvYGXQXOiUeD4q93I4scP8Lf7iXIrviOIgSozqGFnsCXkT/s1600/prof_g.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Professor of Occultism and Demonology - an image by Denis Kozlov www.kozlove.net" border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTVS1vyXjPTwgqau9GEUqkOXXtAcD4Wr4kQSm5U-SPnNGVAjEkYLY09yiA2P7A_TzBy3yeznwdKVudA1omvkikYJOVaE4ohuwvYGXQXOiUeD4q93I4scP8Lf7iXIrviOIgSozqGFnsCXkT/s200/prof_g.jpg" title="Professor of Occultism and Demonology" width="200" /></a></div>
<br />
...But I just started another project <a href="http://www.the-working-man.org/">www.the-working-man.org</a><br />
<br />
It is a blog intended to be covering my professional interests like computer graphics and art education. It’s going to serve as my homepage for a while either, redirecting from <a href="http://www.kozlove.net/">www.kozlove.net</a> and showcasing some imagery I am doing both as an artist and a professional. I guess that's why they call me, They call me the workin' man...<br />
<br />
<br />
So now, after quoting Rush, I am glad to announce that <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/06/the-list-of-recommended-rock-albums.html">The List of Recommended Rock Albums</a> (which I still consider the principal part of my attempts to be useful here) just got updated. More than doubled in length, to be precise. It started becoming biased in a sense that some bands are receiving notably more coverage than the others, which I was initially trying to avoid. However, there are reasons for such disbalance and if a record feels worth marking as a gem - I believe it should be. On the other hand again, listing the complete discographies even for the greatest artists doesn’t feel right either - <br />
thus I’m rather trying to pick a representative album for a certain period in such cases.<br />
<br />
Anyway, there was never a claim for justice or objectiveness neither for the rock music picks I am posting here, nor for the Universe in general - so let it live till the next edit. Let me know.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk_biS7HMbnjV9dy_l47B9emH566A4pbU1n21uqKy3EJWoGr2vuaEkPCqql-rntq0JSSbHp5DWFXAj3La2W_lPZXHeoHilAMnl6HmUw0Oii4icyn6g9o6W2AVew9mhq1XG4oRmZi0TPfkY/s1600/umbrealla_g.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="An Umbrella - image by Denis Kozlov www.kozlove.net" border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk_biS7HMbnjV9dy_l47B9emH566A4pbU1n21uqKy3EJWoGr2vuaEkPCqql-rntq0JSSbHp5DWFXAj3La2W_lPZXHeoHilAMnl6HmUw0Oii4icyn6g9o6W2AVew9mhq1XG4oRmZi0TPfkY/s320/umbrealla_g.jpg" title="An Umbrella" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An Umbrella</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_OI5Y0uATZDbB-bx0iXfQkSFtPPTT6yGUAAZsdYkLZmiURFRhHaVsu7kWKAHHAKGlanIoPRSS-rHYYu46VyNtJgTvH827mEJ1aREFY8ccLplKkMJ4M9K38OuoYHnDi6kaB5-iOwBHsTx_/s1600/snail0001_g.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="French Horn - an image by Denis Kozlov www.kozlove.net" border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_OI5Y0uATZDbB-bx0iXfQkSFtPPTT6yGUAAZsdYkLZmiURFRhHaVsu7kWKAHHAKGlanIoPRSS-rHYYu46VyNtJgTvH827mEJ1aREFY8ccLplKkMJ4M9K38OuoYHnDi6kaB5-iOwBHsTx_/s320/snail0001_g.jpg" title="French Horn" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">French Horn</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />
Thank you for your attention:)<br />
Chances are, next time I’ll be writing on <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/08/jethro-tull-rock-island-1989.html">Jethro Tull</a>.Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-60367848370977765622013-08-05T11:46:00.003+02:002013-08-05T11:48:35.327+02:00Serj Tankian - Elect the Dead, 2007<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBLnCkNRaRsebKTQVEuTOMZflcEBO1Q9lVsdnju9JmaYP1wbocrxSidToX7DnNwaT2t_5kgjWggxvE-rV_8QI4De-KVAta0LO0RgC6d6yxNHoptmTeTmWFigXS0aJXRY0zWqumxNXF1OI/s1600/FinalElect_The_Dead.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Serj Tankian, Elect the Dead album cover" border="0" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBLnCkNRaRsebKTQVEuTOMZflcEBO1Q9lVsdnju9JmaYP1wbocrxSidToX7DnNwaT2t_5kgjWggxvE-rV_8QI4De-KVAta0LO0RgC6d6yxNHoptmTeTmWFigXS0aJXRY0zWqumxNXF1OI/s200/FinalElect_The_Dead.jpg" title="" width="200" /></a></div>
I shouldn’t have liked this album. First solo release from a System of a Down’s vocalist - one of those bands I never really cared about even without much listening to. All I did was put on headphones and pressed play, following a friend’s recommendation. Interesting thing is that both back then, while listening and already starting to understand the whole beauty of deadman’s elections, and right now, when every note and beat are almost known by heart - I still realize with crystal clarity that I couldn’t have liked this album.<br />
<br />
How did he do it? A person with definitely outstanding and one-of-a-kind vocalism, strong cultural roots (Have you seen <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjiqC5I8K20">his duo with father</a> by the way?), courage and opinion - he mixed up the sounds as if accidently. No - rather as if experimenting in cross-species incompatibility on racoons, seals and ostriches. And that adds on top of a heavy experimental underground genre. Sounds like too much to me, but altogether it screams - fast, loudly, sarcastically and ...charmingly beautifully. With lyrical inserts, broken of overtempering.<br />
<br />
The Cowardly Lion of Oz could’ve probably saved a trip given this record instead. And although Imperfect Harmonies - Tankian’s second studio album - has lost a lot of this beautiful bravery to me, and even Harakiri (latest so far) only did a partial job of recovering, still I’m looking forward to his new releases.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9sShnfsoPadYscpfO1KnWO0GwPXHqqDrDPG505I64ByuLfGR4K_wEBr3OvMQ09RkCl_AAMBtBUsytQpLWqSR17zF-8gAs2udEw5ECWAv_VxAB6qmTCuAUSmCtH7zQfog7sfVqCpoqPWM/s1600/Elect_the_dead.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Serj Tankian - Elect the Dead alternative cover" border="0" height="176" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9sShnfsoPadYscpfO1KnWO0GwPXHqqDrDPG505I64ByuLfGR4K_wEBr3OvMQ09RkCl_AAMBtBUsytQpLWqSR17zF-8gAs2udEw5ECWAv_VxAB6qmTCuAUSmCtH7zQfog7sfVqCpoqPWM/s200/Elect_the_dead.jpg" title="" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-56dd3ef8-4ddd-3d2b-64b3-95bb88522e56" style="line-height: 1; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
Alternative cover for you not to miss it accidentally.</div>
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</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjssV2fk2uoZXG1-D7ng3GTNznLBXovw7zDb_4Zj8tuJ5lQKT1nAxD8p4O9Rtrea-DrLu-4Dcx9rGEcisJUMRKpI-WTWYqnv1VwU3SyUQzOeenmH6C_C7G4RuJKmaW_PNcFWn2q-cXL10/s1600/Elect_the_dead2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Serj Tankian - Elect the Dead special edition cover" border="0" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjssV2fk2uoZXG1-D7ng3GTNznLBXovw7zDb_4Zj8tuJ5lQKT1nAxD8p4O9Rtrea-DrLu-4Dcx9rGEcisJUMRKpI-WTWYqnv1VwU3SyUQzOeenmH6C_C7G4RuJKmaW_PNcFWn2q-cXL10/s200/Elect_the_dead2.jpg" title="" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And another one.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Wikipedia: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elect_the_Dead">Album</a>|<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serj_Tankian">Artist </a>Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-6526707256150070582013-07-30T12:22:00.000+02:002013-09-29T11:39:22.292+02:00New Bomb Turks - Scared Straight, 1996<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhArrSuWxQOniaQhKCbGeo-MUxTJaiJodWD-jEYl2vvZwiAg3R6GqzrPY9w3tQ9t3oS5YMpdMrqW2DKe58Vgzaepks26nbJ_aTeqlReI6hovVl3EVTdnp3_rbhUtaFNv8Q914CDn7D6P0/s1600/New_Bomb_Turks_scared_straight.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="New Bomb Turks - Scared Straight, 1996 album cover" border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhArrSuWxQOniaQhKCbGeo-MUxTJaiJodWD-jEYl2vvZwiAg3R6GqzrPY9w3tQ9t3oS5YMpdMrqW2DKe58Vgzaepks26nbJ_aTeqlReI6hovVl3EVTdnp3_rbhUtaFNv8Q914CDn7D6P0/s200/New_Bomb_Turks_scared_straight.jpg" title="" width="200" /></a></div>
I do have a music dealer. His name is Max and he runs a shop in downtown Prague called <a href="http://www.maximum.cz/">Maximum Underground</a>. He's a nice person who patiently bears with me occupying his headphones and talking nonsense most of the time. It's a pleasantly weird little place, so please support them by stopping by if in the area.<br />
<br />
It is thanks to Max I am getting introduced to many records I wouldn't have a chance to be introduced to otherwise. This was exactly the case with New Bomb Turks.<br />
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Warning first: neither of their following two albums managed to impress me – one partially, another one at all. But Scared Straight is The Album. Lightning fast, sometimes feeling like being run in a fast forward by the overdriven guitars, it might slightly conceal however doesn't lose a melody for a single second, sparkling with bold vocal modulations here and there. Energy filler and spirit raiser, I find its track list composed at a relatively uniform and quite high level with my personal preferences peaking around the middle – somewhere from Jukebox Lean to Look Alive Jive.<br />
<br />
The kicks you'd get from this LP are very different from the kicks packed into the albums I tried to describe so far. It's a pure call for action, a demand for it – someone kicking you in the back to set your bones in motion when you desperately need this but keep hesitating somehow. Scared Straight possesses the spirit of classical rock-n-roll inside the contemporary punk package. Not a proper goodnight record for sure.<br />
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Give it a try.<br />
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Wikipedia: Album|<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_bomb_turks">Artist </a>Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-33227545579438347292013-07-20T15:49:00.000+02:002013-07-20T15:55:50.394+02:00Def Leppard - High 'n' Dry, 1981<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje7pQg2GOuaniADiJTRzG6RqjcTwMgXtqk1w8pvBl5Az4c_gnQQLlY7zWz6Ag1-sPodQ4P1mg866ih7jTTTYouecTUXEAJ1iEJco8GtV8edBWQWyeZIUBIjXSLznE9sHyvcRggqHnWX-c/s1600/Def_Leppard_-_High_'n'_Dry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="199" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje7pQg2GOuaniADiJTRzG6RqjcTwMgXtqk1w8pvBl5Az4c_gnQQLlY7zWz6Ag1-sPodQ4P1mg866ih7jTTTYouecTUXEAJ1iEJco8GtV8edBWQWyeZIUBIjXSLznE9sHyvcRggqHnWX-c/s200/Def_Leppard_-_High_'n'_Dry.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
The way I see it, there are bands growing up during their careers and there are bands aging. (Clearly with all possible scenarios in between) For a long time I perceived Def Leppard strictly as a growing up kind, who literally started as kids and were absorbing life's lessons from album to album. And this way I should have probably begun with Slang – another <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/06/the-list-of-recommended-rock-albums.html">listed</a> album of theirs, which I personally perceive as a peak in their recording history.<br />
<br />
However, I'm choosing to save that for another post and to sing anthem for youth rather than wisdom today. I guess it took me to pass a certain stage in my own ongoing growing up to suddenly reevaluate their early records as a quintessence of energy and sincerity – essentially the youth. And the brightest of the earliest has always been High 'n' Dry to me.<br />
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Second out of three first albums - the Pete Willis era, who was the main songwriter at the time and got fired during the recording of Pyromania (first out of two lineup changes Def Leppard had ever had). The sound of albums following Pyromania has changed a lot, but out of these first three High 'n' Dry is my sure preference. The reason being melodism: while being far from the “most melodic album” nomination in general, it would definitely win it out of the early Leppard records. While at the same time preserving the energy and that charming touch of naivety showing through unbreakably strong band’s voice.<br />
<br />
Starting in an action manner and finding a comfy pace of fast and slow songs interleaved down the playlist, the sound of High 'n' Dry is becoming perceived both hard and smooth at the same time. And be sure to get a release featuring Me & My Wine as a bonus track – the guys were in the perfect spot to write and sing about hangovers.<br />
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Wikipedia: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_%27n%27_Dry">Album</a>|<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Def_Leppard">Artist </a>Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-65472770420860414952013-07-14T11:56:00.000+02:002013-07-20T15:55:39.338+02:00Iommi, 2000<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqEObgdPy_jxWsu7M2GKTSr1JyoN0DPxbbuP54syURZ-2Q6O8W_UJZWqdiOeDNU3PlNVnAsXX9BORCLwomrvPSC33aDonhy-TiRV4hCpsl1ZoY9sKKb89CRk6huB5WU3VfUjyZ7LTxJKc/s1600/Iommialbumcover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqEObgdPy_jxWsu7M2GKTSr1JyoN0DPxbbuP54syURZ-2Q6O8W_UJZWqdiOeDNU3PlNVnAsXX9BORCLwomrvPSC33aDonhy-TiRV4hCpsl1ZoY9sKKb89CRk6huB5WU3VfUjyZ7LTxJKc/s200/Iommialbumcover.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
And this is how it was. In the year 2000, after 5 years in the making, probably pretty tired of all this Black Sabbath reunion hustle, Tony Iommi, the god and father of heavy music, a person playing his own signature line of equipment, released his first solo album. (Okay, okay - first official...) With a modestly humble cover design, self-explanatory title, respectably clerical image on a photo and impressive list of friends, most of whom most likely grew up on his music.<br /><br />Long story made short, it is tracks 1, 7 and 10. This is something I tend to tell people when passing the record or hear from them when getting it back. So why is it on <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/06/the-list-of-recommended-rock-albums.html">THE LIST</a> then? Well, there is something into it. Atmosphere, spirit – cannot find the exact word, but something very respectful, still something different for each piece – a very pleasant form of unified variety.<br /><br />Don't get me wrong – those songs which might be perceived as a background are anything but crap! In fact, the vocalists' line up provides a very careful selection of artists worth being introduced to. But then listen to The Three. Ritual, maniacal laughter of the opening title – the fastest track on the disc. Then Flame On, coming over as a storm, as a wall of emotions too strong to be held inside. Not really fast, but with some kind of a tribal voodoo rhythm, forcing heart to synchronize. And in the very end, just right after Ozzy has said his word, comes the climax moment performed by Billy Idol. First part of the song, deeply moody and atmospheric on its own, turns out to be merely a warm-up for the burst of the second part, which in order is changed into the final slow-down, making sure your inner whatever is swept clean after the hurricane. For me personally it was truly lucky to get acquainted with Mr. Idol from this side rather than his classical works first.<br /><br />Two more albums followed in 00’s, both featuring Glenn Hughes as a vocalist. But with all the respect and sympathy, neither of them managed to get me close to the emotions of this first release.<br /><br />By the way, check out Tony Iommi's biography – it's really worth it.<br /><br /><br />Wikipedia: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iommi_%28album%29">Album</a>|<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Iommi">Artist </a><br /><br />Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-15029586932133619922013-07-06T18:46:00.000+02:002013-07-06T18:46:27.312+02:00About being pop...
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It is easy to notice that a lot, if not
most, of the albums gathered in <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/06/the-list-of-recommended-rock-albums.html">THE LIST</a> are quite pop in a sense
that those might not be the subtlest and most extravagant or
sometimes even not the most expressive works of a respective artist.
Rather those are the records possessing the quality to appeal easily
to a wider range of listeners – being more pop. And I think it's
worth explaining my position here.</div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I do believe that “pop” in this
meaning is not a bad thing at all. Of course, there are other
meanings like being purely commercially driven for instance, which is
a topic for a whole different conversation. But the ability of an
artistic product to move the masses is a huge achievement, requiring
a talent of a further level imho. And thus I put this ability among
criteria to enter the list; among things valuable. You do not
necessary devaluate yourself by being more understandable! On the
contrary, communicating sophisticated ideas and subtle emotions in an
accessible way is a solid mark of a real talent, potentially
bordering with genius. Just like Shreks and onions, art can have
layers – so put it there – as many layers of subtext as you wish
or can, but make the front one strong, clear and appealing – at
least to make it heard.
</div>
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<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Just like <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samsara_%282011_film%29">Samsara</a> – a movie called a
triumph of cinematography for a reason. It says so much about so many
things so deep, important, but overdiscussed till the loss of public
interest or attention; and yet does it in a form so right for
cinematography but so unusual to the most of us, that it would've
been a sure failure if it wasn't so beautiful and so CLEAR. At least
in its front layer.</div>
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<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Just like <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_rockwell">Norman Rockwell</a>.</div>
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Just like Led Zeppelin.</div>
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</div>
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So be deep, be good, be purple if you
choose, but be popular.</div>
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</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
With two remarks:</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
1)I'm absolutely NOT saying EVERYTHING
should be easy going. I'm a strong believer of diversity as a greater
good. And we desperately need works harder to grasp as the only means
possible to grow and evolve, to learn feeling and thinking deeper.
It's just that as well I see a danger of refusing things pop only on
the basis of its popularity – which has a strong scent of snobbery
and decadence – intellectual elite's other best friends.</div>
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<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
2)And of course not all the records I
dare to recommend here are of that magic multi-layered kind – some
are just what it says – a good rock record. ...Or I simply did not
see through it – hopefully yet.</div>
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</div>
Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-77826822751899906362013-06-29T14:58:00.000+02:002013-06-29T14:58:11.915+02:00Electric Six - Switzerland, 2006
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Electric Six did happen to become an
accidental discovery for me. Shuffle did its job of starting Pink
Flamingos only to be switched to normal playback after few seconds.
And it were the following tracks which managed to turn one happy
accident into the deep interest for the band.</div>
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<br />
</div>
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Six people: dedicated vocalist, two
guitars, bass, drums and keyboards – you could play pretty much
everything with such lineup. And this is exactly what they do –
with musical irony and lyrical sarcasm, Detroit's optimism of a dying
city and a kind of talent that seems unrealistic for the popular
music of the 21st century. Although being rejected by the musicians
themselves, my favourite definition of the genre they're playing is
„disco metal“. And the place they've taken on my shelf is right
next to Queen.</div>
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Switzerland – their third and my
debut album. All other musical merits aside, it happens to be the
most „rocky“ item in Electric Six' discography, thus becoming the
perfect candidate for an introductory role (since the rest of
repertoire, brilliant which it is, might request a little warm-up
from a die-hard oldschool rocker).</div>
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<br />
</div>
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Openning with The Band in Hell – a
song in the best traditions of Tito & Tarantula and From Dusk
Till Dawn. Have you ever been thrown overboard? Well, you're gonna
recall it. By the way, the Southamerican topic is almost
symmetrically supported at the end of the LP in Germans In Mexico.
Fast songs have quite uniform distribution in the tracklist: I <span lang="en-US">Buy
The drugs, Pulling The Plug on the Party, aforementioned Pink
Flamingos and a gastronomical rejoicing Slices of you – all worthy
and melodic.</span> Other titles like Mr. Woman, Infected Girls,
<span lang="en-US">Rubber Rocket and</span><span lang="ru-RU">
</span><span lang="en-US">Chocolate Pope clearly state what this
record is all about. Love.</span></div>
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<br />
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
I wish This Song Was Louder.</div>
<br />
Wikipedia: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Switzerland_%28album%29">Album</a>|<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_Six">Artist </a>Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-82184864066613181022013-06-23T17:10:00.002+02:002013-06-23T17:10:29.015+02:00Deep Purple - Machine Head, 1972
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At the age of 16 I used to be a zealous
purist of the seventies' progressive rock movement. I was barely
beginning to discover the greatest rock discographies, and from
within that yet undiscovered abundance could afford a luxury of not
liking Deep Purple. Feeling respect, but by no means affection –
finding their songs too chopped compared to the fluent melodism of
<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/06/uriah-heep-demons-and-wizards-magicians.html">Uriah Heep's golden line up's </a>sound. Plus a touch of a teenage
snobbery was involved to be completely honest. But that's not the
point – the point is that even back then Machine Head moved every
single muscle of my weird soul and I considered it exceptional at the
very least. And by the way, for a long time I wouldn't believe that
the cover art was produced in a precomputer age.</div>
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The record sounds rather a greatest
hits compilation than a studio album. No, seriously - <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highway_Star_(song)">Highway Star</a>,
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maybe_I%27m_a_Leo">Maybe I'm a Leo</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pictures_of_Home">Pictures of Home</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Never_Before">Never Before</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoke_on_the_Water">Smoke on the Water</a>,
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lazy_(Deep_Purple_song)">Lazy</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Truckin%27">Space Truckin'</a> – all on the same album?! Juicily heavy,
without a single slow three-hankie but with a plenty of marvelous
guitar and organ sections, recorded by likely the greatest line-up of
one of the greatest bands from the Known Universe – it's a freaking
work of art! Once in Berlin I happened to see a “best of '72”
compilation CD, which (out of about 20 tracks) included 2 titles from
Machine Head.</div>
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</div>
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So would it come as a surprise there is
a Wikipedia article for each song and a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Re-Machined:_A_Tribute_to_Deep_Purple%27s_Machine_Head">tribute album to the <i>album</i></a>?
And could it be you haven't heard it yet?</div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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Wikipedia: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Machine_Head_%28album%29">Album</a>|<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deep_Purple">Artist </a></div>
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Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-8805721119913396902013-06-16T21:16:00.000+02:002013-06-23T17:25:51.958+02:00Uriah Heep - Demons and Wizards, Magician's Birthday, 1972<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS4o17bkv9LLvJM2CLMEEwRl4QdXNxTOqYlciAc567v7dT8frz2uFDb5kDZ23kiOI8WAHzgvynRgcEeYGROfMBWIQGbP9o-ZqWnHbphbryTMB7Ns1ULYr1WrqPlUt1eoRJ_14gkf57-ds/s1600/Demons_and_Wizards.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS4o17bkv9LLvJM2CLMEEwRl4QdXNxTOqYlciAc567v7dT8frz2uFDb5kDZ23kiOI8WAHzgvynRgcEeYGROfMBWIQGbP9o-ZqWnHbphbryTMB7Ns1ULYr1WrqPlUt1eoRJ_14gkf57-ds/s200/Demons_and_Wizards.jpg" width="200" /></a>These two are one. You can tell it just
by looking at the magnificent cover artworks painted by Roger Dean
(also famous for his Yes and Asia covers). Then you check the release
dates - only six months between two greatest albums Uriah Heep have
ever put together. They were pushed hard, but they managed with honor
- the newly formed lineup of unearthly gifted musicians which will
forever stay the golden one, and which was not going to last long. In
few years Thain would join the 27 club; the bottle would take over
Garrick; star sickness over Hensley; even Kerslake would try his luck
with Ozzy; and Box would be desperately searching for powers to save
the ship, of which only the flag remains above the waterline. But all
that was only going to happen later, right now they are in 1972, in
the very middle of progressive rock blossoming over the United
Kingdom and the rest of the Known Universe. </div>
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And then you hear them... One after
another, one as the continuation of another. Albums. And musicians.
Opening with a delicate acoustic fingerstyle of The Wizard it
immediately starts building up melodies in layers, twisting and
overlapping within each song, still never obscuring the melody itself
- clear and fluent. Faster and heavier with Traveller In Time and its
a little bit surrealistic bridge in the end to the eternal action hit
Easy Livin'. Poet's Justice takes off the tension a bit, leading us
to the ending of the original side A - Circle Of Hands, which
actually took me a while to appreciate. Nevertheless this ballad is
exactly when Byron's voice makes me shiver and Thain reminds that
bass guitar is an instrument indeed. </div>
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<br /></div>
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</div>
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</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;">
Moving on to side B, Rainbow Demon
probably did more for my artistic career than quarter of art
instruction books I've ever read. I still ultimately adore the
character, the image painted so thick, vividly and subtle at the same
time with Ken's pen and David's voice. Measured and powerful - just
stepped out of Warhammer universe – he... </div>
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<br /></div>
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</div>
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Guess that was enough bullshit for you
to realize Uriah Heep are my favorite band. Thus it would be fair to
deprive you of suffering further lines and discover the rest on your
free will.
</div>
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</div>
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<br />
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<br /></div>
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Wikipedia: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demons_and_Wizards_%28Uriah_Heep_album%29">1st Album</a>|<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Magician%27s_Birthday">2nd Album</a>|<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uriah_Heep_%28band%29">Artist </a></div>
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Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-15185326859625469522013-06-05T23:08:00.000+02:002014-05-27T16:18:35.216+02:00The list of recommended rock albums<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
So here goes THE LIST, which is the essence of this so-called website. It will be going through constant changes and adjustments, but at least from now on it is published. With time and despite laziness I'll be trying to share my notes, reasons and impressions for each album included. Let me know if you'd happen to find some use in it.<br />
<br />
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<span lang="en-US">Adam West - </span>Longshot
Songs <span lang="en-US">F</span>or Broke Players 2001-2004<b> </b>
</div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Asia - Arena</div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Axxis – Back To The
Kingdom<br />
Bad Religion - The Process Of Belief<br />
Beatles, The - Help<br />
Beatles, The - Revolver<br />
Beatles, The - Sgt. Peppers’s Lonely Hearts Club Band<br />
Beatles, The - Abbey Road<br />
Black Sabbath - Never Say Die!<br />
Black Sabbath - Heaven and Hell<br />
Black Sabbath - Born Again<br />
Black Sabbath - Seventh Star<br />
Black Sabbath - Forbidden </div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Blue Van, The – Man Up<br />
Chess </div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Cooper, Alice – Brutal
Planet</div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/06/deep-purple-machine-head-1972.html">Deep Purple – Machine Head</a><br />
Deep Purple - Bananas<br />
<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/07/def-leppard-high-n-dry-1981.html"></a><a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/07/def-leppard-high-n-dry-1981.html">Def Leppard - High 'n' Dry</a></div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Def Leppard – Slang</div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/12/dio-holy-diver-1983.html">Dio – Holy Diver</a><br />
Dio - Strange Highways<br />
Dire Straits - Communiqué<br />
Dire Straits - Brothers in Arms<br />
Dire Straits - On Every Street<br />
Dream Theater – Images
And Words</div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Electric Light Orchestra -
Time<br />
Electric Light Orchestra Part II - Moment of Truth<br />
<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/06/electric-six-switzerland-2006.html">Electric Six – Switzerland</a></div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Electric Six - Kill<br />
Emerson, Lake and Powell<br />
Grabage </div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/09/gas-huffer-one-inch-masters-1994.html">Gas Huffer – One Inch Masters</a></div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Genesis – From Genesis
To Revelation<br />
<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/09/roger-glover-and-guests-butterfly-ball.html">Glover, Roger - The Butterfly Ball and the Grasshopper’s Feast </a></div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Green Day – American
Idiot</div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Hangmen, The - Cacklefest<br />
Hangmen, The - We’ve Got Blood on the Toes of Our Boots<br />
Humpers, The - Euphoria, Confusion, Anger and Remorse<br />
Idol, Billy - Cyberpunk</div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Idol, Billy – Devil's
Playground</div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Iggy And The Stooges –
Raw Power</div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/07/iommi-2000.html">Iommi</a></div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Jethro Tull - Aqualung</div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/08/jethro-tull-rock-island-1989.html">Jethro Tull – Rock Island</a><br />
Kiss - Revenge</div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Kiss - Carnival of Souls </div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Kiss – Psycho Circus</div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2014/03/wayne-kramer-citizen-wayne-1997.html">Kramer, Wayne – CitizenWayne</a></div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Lake of Tears – Black
Brick Road</div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Lawton, John – Heartbeat<br />
<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2014/05/led-zeppelin-ii-1969.html">Led Zeppelin II</a><br />
Led Zeppelin - Houses of the Holy<br />
Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti</div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Led Zeppelin - Presence<br />
Madness - Wonderful</div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/10/manfred-manns-earth-band-angel-station.html">Manfred Mann's Earth Band – Angel Station</a><br />
Meat Loaf - Welcome to the Neighbourhood<br />
Meat Loaf - Bat Out of Hell III: The Monster Is Loose<br />
Monster Magnet - Powertrip<br />
Monster Magnet – 4-Way
Diablo<br />
Motley Crue - Too Fast for Love<br />
Motley Crue - Saints of Los Angeles<br />
Nazareth – Exercises</div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Nazareth – No Mean City </div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/07/new-bomb-turks-scared-straight-1996.html">New Bomb Turks - Scared Straight </a><br />
Offspring, The </div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Queen – Sheer Heart
Attack<br />
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Queen – A Night at the Opera</div>
</div>
Queen – Made in Heaven<br />
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow<br />
Rainbow - Down to Earth<br />
Rainbow - Stranger in Us All<br />
Rush - 2112<br />
Rush - Counterparts<br />
<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/08/rush-test-for-echo-1996.html">Rush – Test For Echo</a></div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Santana – Supernatural<br />
<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/08/sour-jazz-american-seizure-2009.html">Sour Jazz - American Seizure </a></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span lang="en-US">Sting – </span>Ten
Summoner's Tales<br />
SuperHeavy<br />
Supersuckers - The Sacrilicious Sounds of the Supersuckers<br />
Supersuckers –
Motherfuckers Be Tripping'</div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/08/serj-tankian-elect-dead-2007.html">Tankian, Serj – Elect The Dead</a><br />
Throw Rag - 13 Feet and Rising </div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
Tito & Tarantula –
Little Bitch</div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/06/uriah-heep-demons-and-wizards-magicians.html">Uriah Heep – Demons and Wizards</a></div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/06/uriah-heep-demons-and-wizards-magicians.html">Uriah Heep – Magician's Birthday</a><br />
Uriah Heep – Firefly<br />
Uriah Heep – Conquest<br />
Uriah Heep – Sea Of Light<br />
Webber, Andrew Lloyd - Jesus Christ Superstar<br />
White Stripes, The -
Elephant</div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
White Stripes, The - Get Behind Me Satan<br />
ZZ Top - XXX<br />
Wolfmother </div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
</div>
Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4462178947330122678.post-27842533397684042182013-06-03T23:34:00.000+02:002013-06-23T16:43:50.146+02:00Hello World<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I have a good reason to start a blog - Greed - strong desire to increase the income as effortlessly as it might seem. And for sure I know it won't work out. So what? Looks like I have something to say anyway.
<br />
<br />
Rock is dead. Nothing to listen to. No light in the end of the tunnel. All good records were issued in the previous century and are known by heart by now. Some of those guys are still alive, though just pretend to be kicking. Young punks... I cannot tell the difference between them. And the saddest thing is that's mostly true.
<br />
<br />
Mostly. So long live rock. N'roll.
<br />
<br />
The problem is I'm not a teenager anymore (big issue, I know - still working on it). Which means I don't need music to show off, stand from the crowd or declare my unique and perfectly subtle taste. But I still need it as a drug, and these days mostly as a drug. I don't care that much how do they look, what do they play or where are they from anymore, I just need them to get me high. And I like rock. And rock is dead.
<br />
<br />
All my statements are completely subjective, usually intentionally unproved, hopefully provocative and most likely wrong. I know nothing about music, I just get my kicks from some of it. Neither I know anything about those musicians. But still there is my rock'n'roll. My stories. Don't take a word seriously - try to enjoy instead.
<br />
<br />
And instead of trying to review records (the World can survive without extra flow of expressed disappointment) I'd rather try to <a href="http://www.rock-is-dead.info/2013/06/the-list-of-recommended-rock-albums.html">recommend</a> - to write only about albums which I consider one of a kind - and to explain why.
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I would have given a lot for a person who would name me the albums I will like. So if somehow my taste would seem close enough to yours - there is a chance you might find the crap I'm going to post useful and get some fun out of it. There might be even a slight decrease in the universal entropy - who knows.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ3qtD8385ucS7eX3Wl2SfZu3D3ouoCFzCUUa5Dv3x_hPEFNOigy0czwqvSZz7X6ecRDPU4qcAxKfkyi06UJD7M8S6rXTbD-HTZmXFX-dHv8eM3icjyL53jEgxuWIeMqxUFfSXEfxGOhw/s1600/rid_bg_v000.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The whole story in one picture..." border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ3qtD8385ucS7eX3Wl2SfZu3D3ouoCFzCUUa5Dv3x_hPEFNOigy0czwqvSZz7X6ecRDPU4qcAxKfkyi06UJD7M8S6rXTbD-HTZmXFX-dHv8eM3icjyL53jEgxuWIeMqxUFfSXEfxGOhw/s400/rid_bg_v000.jpg" title="The whole story in one picture..." width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This whole story in one picture...</td></tr>
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Denis Kozlovhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07406391692819839722noreply@blogger.com0