Between the City and the Deep Blue Sea

Recieving the baton

My good friend Skif passed the following questions on to me to answer. He in turn was handed the baton by another friend, Ben. I'm not sure who started this but I may well put an end to it...


1: What is the total amount of music files on your computer?

I recently went through my CD collection to grab a few tracks to have on the PC while I browse the web and email etc.

This turned into a bit of a saga as I kept coming across albums I haven’t listened to for ages, and started listening to them. I tried to think to myself: “just limit yerself to the few tracks that you really like.” But of course, with refreshed ears, every track sounded like a long lost classic and I ended up ripping loads.

I then went through my small collection of tapes and vinyl and recorded some of those onto the PC. A lot of old tapes of Pompey bands were unlistenable with all the hiss unfortunately. And so, to answer the question, I have 3365 music files on my PC. Some are WAV’s but the vast majority are WMA files. A total of 230 hours 19 minutes and 51 seconds, and 22.27 GB of hard drive space. I could probably have compressed the amount of hard drive space but I like good quality audio files.


2: The last CD you bought is:

Oooh…I really can’t remember. It was one of the following, but I can’t remember which I got first: ‘Abbatoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus’ by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds; ‘More Songs About Love and War (reissue)’ by Red Letter Day; ‘E.P. Collection’ by Cranes; ‘Vent’ by Bonemachine. .

The last new CD I listened to was Erase Errata’s ‘Other Animals’ that someone lent me last night, and I shall certainly be buying that ASAP.


3: What is the song you last listened to before reading this message?

I’ve got Windows Media Player on ‘random’ and, from the aforementioned 3365 tracks, it selected ‘The Floppy Boot Stomp’ by Captain Beefheart. It’s now playing Kling Klang’s ‘Heavydale’. I’m hoping for The Fall’s ‘Industrial Estate’ soon. If it doesn’t come I’ll have to intervene and choose it manually…


4: Write down 5 songs you often listen to or that mean a lot to you.

Unlike Skif or Ben I’m not going to choose 5 that could change if you asked me tomorrow. I have for some time been trying to work out what my all time top 10 would be. I’m up to number 6, and it’s those six I present here.

In the top 10 would possibly be Scott Walker, Red Letter Day, Dexy’s Midnight Runners, Television, Nick Cave, The Fall, Sonic Youth, David Bowie and Cardiacs. But that top 6 in reverse order goes a little like this:

6. Blondie – Hanging On the Telephone

This is in here for being just a stroke of songwriting genius. So many recent bands have tried to rip this song off, and I have even tried myself. But it’s just too well put together. Firstly, is how it starts: all the band members come in together without sounding overly complicated. You can take it all in, but still you’re deconstructing it in your head.

Then there’s the way it gets into the chorus inside 15 seconds, including a 5 second intro, without it sounding rushed. The pacing is perfect throughout the song, and at 2 minutes 25 seconds it’s short but wholly satisfying. Again, this is breathtaking: you can’t force something like this.

5. Candi Staton - You Got the Love (Erens Bootleg Mix)

Strangely uplifting and yet I always feel slightly pschopathic when I hear it! I get a calm, Patrick Bateman-esque, feeling descend on me…Not really a good thing, really!!! Everything in this track is perfectly placed, it’s uncluttered, and it’s one of the few songs I’d actually like to do a cover version of.

4. Dusty Springfield – The Look of Love

Mine and my Angel’s ‘song.’

(my Angel being my other half, and not really being called Angel…an aside here: reading ‘Party Monster’ has slightly sullied calling my Angel this due to the character of the same name in the book…)

We didn’t have a ‘song’ for ages. With our wedding looming this coming August we were a bit worried we wouldn’t have one for our first dance, and we’d end up with, ooh I don’t know… ‘I Will Always Love You’ or ‘The Greatest Love of All’ (damn – gotta stop that Whitney obsession…) or ‘Angels’ (ha ha ha!)

And then about 12 months ago I cooked my Angel a candle-lit dinner and whacked on some cheapo ‘Easy Listening’ compilation we’d bought for the Sinatra tracks. And on came ‘The Look of Love’ as I was half-drunkenly professing my undying love. We looked at each other and truly it was a look of love. And the realisation that this song was perfect.

3. Chris Issac – Wicked Game

I don’t think I know any other Isaac tunes. And I’m sure some fashionista types will deride me for such a mainstream choice at number 3 in my all time list. But, again, it’s uncluttered and minimal and perfect. The emotion is overpowering to me and the production is spot on: the shuffling ‘brushed’ drums, the impeccably crystal clean guitar lines, and that wonderful soaring voice with the most exquisite reverb. The whole thing is haunting and, while I’ve always liked the song, it’s use in ‘Wild At Heart’ cemented my love for it. The only negative thing about this song is the video: even David Lynch directing it doesn’t save it from being too throwaway for the song it represents.

2. Joy Division – Love Will Tear Us Apart

A seminal track. It is rare for a bands most well known track to be it’s best but I think this claim could be made in respect of Joy Division.

(although ‘Transmission’ – recently heard on Coronation Street! – runs it close for me…or the 12” mix of ‘She’s Lost Control’, which is the one heard in ‘24 Hour Party People’…has anyone else noticed, too, that Rowetta of ‘X-Factor’ fame is actually in that film and credited as herself?)

Joy Division were easily the best band of the punk era. They always get labelled as ‘new wave’ or ‘post punk.’ They may have ‘matured’ into this by the time of ‘Closer’, but the scene changed so quickly that the ‘punk era’ only lasted for about 2 days. I can’t be bothered with all of those sub genres. They are for me a punk band from the punk era.

They were always different though. Their first release in June 1978, ‘An Ideal for Living’ E.P (under the name of Warsaw), consists of 4 seemingly convential punk tracks. Well, certainly opener ‘Warsaw’ (naming a song after your band is never a good thing really!) is pretty straight forward. But then comes ‘No Love Lost’ with it’s spoken word section panned hard left in the mix, it’s lack of verse/chorus structure, it’s long intro…

Then we get their first 2 tracks under the name Joy Division on the ‘A Factory Sample’ compilation in January 1979. ‘Digital’ and ‘Glass’ have that unmistakable JD sound; or should I say that Martin Hannett sound? The bass famously starts to carry the melody (a great influence on ‘baggy’ and dance music generally) for example. The rythms are just plain odd, and Ian Curtis starts to find his voice.

‘Love Will Tear Us Apart’ is a relatively conventional song but it bears the hallmarks of these early tracks. It’s lyrics are harsh and uncompromising; universal and yet very specific. There can’t be anyone in a long-term relationship, no matter how great it is, that can’t relate to lines like “When routine bites hard”, or “Why is this bedroom so cold? You Turn away on your side.” A classic in every sense.

1. Aphex Twin – Windowlicker

If I ever create a track as perfect as this I’ll die a happy man. Aphex Twin is always praised for his beats programming. Here they aren’t as prominent as usual and there seems to be a ‘less is more’ approach. And fuck me does it work! The ‘glitching’ when it occurs is more effective for it, and as usual there is an abundance of production ideas. Only the most hard-nosed electro-sceptic would deny there is a great melody in here, and the effect of those ‘breathy’ vocal samples is at once cheesy, mocking, and unsettling. The distorted end part of the song is much more effective than the overt guitar of ‘Come to Daddy.’ No lyrics of course but then I’d feel uncomfortable putting any song with lyrics up as my all time greatest song: how can one song express in words all of the emotions that music satisfies? Whenever I hear this track I feel inspired, and whatever mood I’m in it is the one track I can guarantee will be exactly what I need to hear at that time. Which is surely all you can ask of a song?


5: Who are you going to pass this stick to? (3 persons) and why?

Not sure. Maybe no one.

posted by LMT @ 12:28 PM