Re: Favorite Bands?
 

We could have a topic called Now Playing...?

Now playing at The Cave (as my gf refers to it):

The 2nd Chapter of Acts
(one of the freshest contemporary Christian groups of the 70s and 80s)

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

Heh, I remember "back in the day" I used to post on some music newsgroups (remember those??!) As you might imagine, there were plenty of elitist idiots in places like rec.music.industrial, including me... anyway, it was pretty standard for people to include "np: (insert obscure track here)" in their sigs!

This thread has become a free-for-all. That's ok, though, since if other music freaks are like me, then they have a constantly changing rotation of about 100 "favorite" bands/songs.

NP: Danielle Dax - Ostrich ;)

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

Now playing (out in the yard): Woof and the Warped, "Dust (An Aria in the Area)" from Act One of Prairie Dogs at Dusk. Oddly, I want to dance about. It's that good. Beer-drinking opera! "Dust in the Wind" it ain't. Thank you, Rover!

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

Well, I'm with you guys...we can free our minds here! (?)

I just played some Queen, who along with ELO have a definite wuss-factor at work most always. So enuff of them...they've had their annual chance. Now, I've already played Pictures at an Exhibition today so guess what's calling? Um...Swans. My goodness, then maybe Dylan later... I'm soooo eclectic, that's, like, a rilly cool word I learned about 25 years ago.

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

I am conducting a BETA test of a "Now Playing" modification. You should see it to the left of the post, as an optional entry upon posting. Perhaps it should alternatively be labeled as "Now Reading".

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

And Reading: Against Love: A Polemic, by Laura Kipnis

Real nice modification, Dr. B.

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

Hello,
I am new here.
These are some of my favorites:
Skinny Puppy,Depeche Mode, Coil, Portion Control, Cabaret Voltaire, Joy Division, Haujobb, Gridlock, Bauhaus, the Cure, the Smiths/Morrissey, The Sisters of Mercy, Absolute Body Control/the Klinik, Naked Raygun, Fugazi, the Pixies, Big Black, Fad Gadget, Kraftwerk, TG,Suicide, Sonic Youth, Wire, and Chrome. Mainly a lot of post-punk and industrial/EBM stuff. I know that there are others but, these are the ones that I can think of right off the top of my head.

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

I am relatively new here as well. Joined in May. Have not posted until today.

My favorite bands are:

Elend
Dead Can Dance
Eden
Vas
Irfan
Lycia
Legion Within
Woven Hand
16 Horsepower
The Revolutionary Army Of The Infant Jesus
This Mortal Coil
Zoar
Love Is Colder Than Death
Dark Sanctuary
Love Spirals Downwards
Azam Ali

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

Welcome to the newbies.

Some of you all might quite like The Tiger Lillies. They do stuff like make a fun opera of all the bad little children who died around the plague in England, those who were misbehaving anyway, all to bizarre accordian, drums, other instruments and one man's falsetto vocals. Check out their Shockheaded Peter.

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

Hey AetherSanctum, you might be interested in checking out David Galas's solo cd that came out this year (since you said you enjoyed Lycia)...it's a really great cd

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

Indeed. I have sampled it on MySpace. Very cool.

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

I think the difference is more the mentality. While both intended to create musically a sort of Neo-Dadaist experience, Suicide went for the mutated Pop Art approach while Cabaret Voltaire were set more in literature such as Burroughs and Ballard. So, on a level, you're right.

I really have a warm place in my heart for distorted, low-fidelity home recordings. It's a completely different experience to listening to polished studio work, but, I feel, just as rewarding.

P.S. Something I've noticed: Noise music, however abraisive or overwhelming it attempts to be, can be accidently tuneful. Or subconsciously...

The first given example is Whitehouse, who aren't really my cup of tea. However hard they try at times, without being played at ear-bleeding volumes, feedback and sine wave drone is... curious humming noises, vaguely irritating, somewhat eerie, but not really appalling.

Secondly, Merzbow. Now this is the stuff 80% of the time I cannot listen to. However, that other 20% of the time his music can be quite hypnotic, even soothing, and although Venerology I shall never really "get", I've grown rather fond of Cycle. However relentless, if you listen carefully to this album, you'll notice that there are actually tunes there, layer ad infinitum, producing a wash (or wall, however unoriginal) of textured sound.

P.P.S. Speaking of which: Sonic Youth are not noise rock. They have some noisy songs. They even have a few noisy albums. But overall, not at all. Really, can't people think of better ways to pigeon-hole this band (if they must)?

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

On a totally different note, I just purchased several This Heat reissues. Great little band, and thoroughly overlooked.

Ditto Final. Since leaving Godflesh, I think Justin Broadrick has been on the creative upswing. Then again, Final was actually started in 1983...

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

I'm equally impressed with both Godflesh and Jesu...both are great projects

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

Swans, Voivod, Celtic Frost, Amebix, Articles of Faith, Dissecting Table, Dolorian, Test Dpt, SPK, IRM, Black Sabbath, Deathspell Omega, Blut Aus Nord... really too numerous to name.
Also classical composers: Luigi Nono, Helmut Lachenmann, George Crumb, Gloria Coates, Xenakis.

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

yay another metalhead

what do you think of DSO's latest album, Fas...? I haven't listened to all of it, but it seems pretty darn good. Also, BaN's Odinist should be an interesting album

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

That's a good way of putting it. It seems to me as if these are two general ways of marrying the highbrow and the lowbrow, one in which the highbrow is more obscured by lowbrow posturing and irony (the Pop Art approach) and one in which the two coexist on a more even playing field (the literary tradition of Burroughs, Ballard, et al elevating campy genre conventions to a "serious" artistic level.)

It also strikes me that Joy Division (well, more Ian Curtis) cited WSB & JGB as primary influences. I'd stick them in the same sonic universe as Suicide and the Cabs. (Gotta love that dark, lo-fi '70s sound....)

Does it seem like fewer rock bands these days take that level of inspiration from the worlds of literature and visual art? Listening to a lot of aught-rock (to coin a phrase) I can definitely hear the influence of '70s and '80s music, but that's about it.

Re: Merzbow, I recently saw that someone was selling the Merzbox online. I'm not a big Merzbow fan but I would love to have that! It's just a cool work of art. The graphics on the CDs themselves are beautiful.

Anyhoo, I've been on a big Skinny Puppy kick lately, revisiting stuff like Mind: TPI. I'll never tire of their '80s stuff, the perfect combo of industrial madness and synthy goodness. :) I think they toured recently but I passed it up... no Dwayne + new music... I would rather stay at home and watch Ain't It Dead Yet? again. :o

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

On both counts I agree.

I can reason that literature is less an influence on music because people in general are coaxed less to read, be it by environment or due to their flickering-screen addictions. The latter (I speak now of the computer) allows access to a vast back-catalogue of oft-obscure music... Made by the same folks who we before spoke of!

Even if only for the musicians, I think I would've liked '70s Sheffield. Really, however bleak, the idea of being on the edge or at the heart of something so wonderful would just be thrilling. Even only half-knowing it...

And yes, I want that box, especially considering that I've heard early Merzbow compared to Nurse with Wound. And it's, oh, so pretty...

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

Some of the old Shub Niggurath albums like Les Morts Vont Vite are pretty cool. John Zorn is one composer whose does not fill their usual stereotypes. He has played with some of the most violent jazz bands out their. Considering some of the bands I've seen listed here, I would say IAO or Absinthe are the best to try out. Sleep Chamber's old stuff like SexMagick Ritual is pretty damn good.

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

Due to this modification being a trite bit problematic, I have removed it from the site. I may opt to integrate it once again if the code is updated suitably.

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

:cool:Nile is my personal epitome of Lovecraftian death metal with Egyptological themes

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

Browsing through this thread, all I can say is alot of you have very good taste in music. I got into Ligotti via Current 93, and it's weird that not only is Ligotti in the style of other authors I like - but apparently people who like him have the same taste in music. Strange how it all works out. Anyway, a few of my favoutie bands:

Opeth
Empyrium
Negura Bunget
Nick Drake
Swans
Tenhi
Dead can Dance
Tim Buckley
16 Horsepower
Isis
Drudkh

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

Yes! Negura Bunget and Drudkh are two of my favorite black metal bands. Negura Bunget's Om was such a ####ing amazing album it's ridiculous. I only wish there was a translation available for the lyrics. Drudkh are great...though I fear they may be stagnating a bit lately. Blood In Our Wells was great, but I haven't checked out Estrangement yet.

You can probably guess what I think of Tenhi by my avatar.

yay I'm glad the number of metalheads is growing

also, Nile are not the best representative of H.P. Lovecraft in metal. Catacombs or The Axis of Perdition maybe...there are a ton of metal bands that write lyrics steeped in Lovecraftian mythology

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

I agree, Negura's "OM" is just an incredible piece of art. They played in London earlier in the year & I didn't find out about it until it was too late :(

If we're on the subject of metal.. another of my favourite bands is Neurosis. Anyone heard their new album yet?

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

I checked out Negura Bunget, and what I've so far heard is impressive.

On a different note, anyone ever had a combined love-hate effect with an album or band? I can safely say that Xiu Xiu gives me exactly that...

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

Salutations!
I am mainly into Doom Metal and dark acoustic music.
If you like slow but powerful crushing tunes I can recommend you the music of WARNING (UK), REVEREND BIZARRE (FINLAND) or THE GATES OF SLUMBER (USA).

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

And what about Bonnie "Prince" Billy...I haven't seen him mentioned. I personally think he's such a good songwriter, and he has a pretty scary face...
He's been performing with David Tibet as well.


http://youtube.com/watch?v=Y9d5j-QJIGU

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

On another note, I've been listening to a great deal of Talking Heads lately, primarily from their Eno period.

Although it's far from my favourite song of theirs, the concept behind "The Overload" is a great one: Playing a song in the style of Joy Division without having heard them. And they're startlingly close to the mark...

Also, Nocturnal Emissions and Thee Majesty. Very nice, very weird.

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

Hey - Silent One - that's a really good question - related to the LoveHate

If you've ever experienced early Tangerine Dream albums I frequently have that ZAP of WOW this is awesome followed by DAMN this is so annoying! The endless electronic bleeps and bloops can get tiresome over 20 minute songs but there are those moments of wonder and to think that this was from the early seventies!

Early Velvet Underground - so daring and yet Nico's vocals on the first album make me want to claw open my ears and puncture my eardrums so nothing so awful can ever make their way in again. That clash between Reed and Cale for Pop versus Art rock often took terrible tolls.

Maybe this needs to be a separate thread....

alec...

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

I really don't mind Nico. But frankly, "European Son" is boring. Yes, I said it.

In the case of Xiu Xiu it's also the vocalist. When you hear an interview with the man, he's surprisingly balanced and - dare I say it - normal, with a few quirks. But my god, on record he sounds like he's about to commit seppuku. Or worse... And even when he doesn't, the lyrics persistently drift into skin-crawl territory.

Also, very early Residents (Baby Sex, The Warner Bros. Album) confuses me to no end. Not in the sense of whether they take themselves seriously (not by any means), but whether I should take it seriously. I know I probably shouldn't, but there's something so alien about it...

Some music used to elicit the same effects in me but no longer does. House-era PTV, for instance, which I now tolerate and even like (although one should monitor one's P-Orridge intake).

Finally, regardless of rave reviews, I am still perplexed by Homotopy to Marie. I love Nurse with Wound, but I simply so far have been unable to grasp this album. The volume inconsistencies and general "emptiness" are my two key gripes. Perhaps a full listen will sort things out...

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

Currently 'tis all about Elvis Costello and the Attractions, The Monochrome Set and Lloyd Cole and the Commotions. Poignant pop.

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

In regards to Homotopy to Marie...

it was one of the more difficult albums for me to get into. Initially, I didn't enjoy it at all and only kept it (the World Serpent CD version) for the booklet's artwork which I still rank highly amongst Stapleton's visual art.

An odd phenomenon has occurred: all of the NWW albums I despised during my initial dip into NWW's discography, esp. the early ones, are now my absolute favorites, including HTM.

If anyone cares for a suggestion, I'd recommend perhaps attempting a couple "deep listening" sessions with NWW albums and after that, just play them in the background in order to become passively familiar with the music. Once you've become comfortable with the music on a passive listening level, then I suggest giving it another "deep listen" preferably alone and either on a decent stereo system or headphones. It is with this practice that I "discovered" several NWW albums, and usually several months after my initial purchase.

I'm sure these sound like drastic measures to some and to that I can only reply that NWW is not for everyone. However, I love the challenge of listening my way into difficult pieces of music and by no means do I think that everything Stapleton has recorded is a work of genius.

I know others have made similar remarks, but I feel compelled to say that I'm often pleasantly surprised at the diversity displayed in these discussion threads.

Happy listening,

.

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

I can definitely do that.

Listening to DJ Olive's Sleep now, very pleasant experience. Great music for... sleep.

On a totally different note: Psychic TV's Those Who Do Not, a.k.a. Live in Reykjavik, is a very interesting album. Two versions of "Thee Full Pack", one the ambient-tinged bit, the other the "off the deep end" section, both excellent performances. Also, a very strange early take of "Twisted" which leads into the second take on "Oi Skinhead!" (as if we really needed two)... which, bizarrely, is not directly after it in the album order, but on the same track as "Unclean".

I said interesting, not sensible.

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

The thing about Homotopy to Marie is that you should skip Astral Dustbin Dirge. The track is not on the original release of the album, and nor should it be—skipping it or getting the vinyl version makes for a much better listening experience.

Current favourites: the new SleepResearch Facility album, Deep Frieze, which has a cold, glacial feel not unlike Thomas Köner's Permafrost. Just solid 'mbient, really. Also, Lunar Aurora's Glück would be a black metal masterpiece without the stupid samples.

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

somebody mentioned doom metal on the previous page, and this has been the one subgenre of metal I have not been able to get into. I guess mostly because I'm a thrash and black metal guy (and of course I know the argument of metal's roots are basically in the doom metal realm)...that being said I have taken steps to look into Reverend Bizarre's latest album as well as Hour of 13 and Warning.

Primordial's latest cd came out not too long ago. as I expected, it's another awesome slab of metal. I'll get to see them live for the first (hopefully not the last) time when I fly to Dublin on Saturday. "Excited" doesn't even begin to describe how I feel.

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

But I actually like doom metal...

On a totally different note, Björk's "Cocoon" is one of my favourite songs. I don't have a real, specific reason, save for, perhaps, this warm, alien quality it has. Most of Vespertine is like that, actually. Very... Quirky. Interesting.

Force the Hand of Chance. Entrancing album. Ditto Dreams Less Sweet.

Also listening to this curious 1990 European industrial compilation entitled Mjölnir. (Ironically, mostly Italian bands...) Quite atmospheric and terribly satisfying.

Anyone else heard any of Einstürzende Neubauten's early cassette releases? The best known of these is of their first show at the Moon Discothek, Berlin in 1980. Surprisingly rockish, but still very unusual.

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

I never grow tired of listening to Kate Bush. It's difficult to pick a favorite record -- I love them all, for different reasons -- but, in the end, I think I have to go with Never for Ever, since it's the one I reach for the most. The quiet moments ("Delius," "The Infant Kiss") are hair-raisingly chilling, while the raucous ones ("Violin," "Breathing") are blooming mad. The Dreaming is a fantastic album as well, especially the song "Leave It Open," which ends with the quavering, distorted repetition of the line, "We let the weirdness in." And how!

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

i just want to suggest to any doom metal fans that they check out the orthodox amanecer en puerta oscura album on southern lord...they are easily the best spaghetti western lounge jazz doom band going. no ####e, man. also the first thrones album alraune (yes that is a hans heinz ewers reference) is more or less totally necessary for my continued existence.
having said that, i will confess that lately mostly i listen to country music and your more romantic classical music. townes van zandt anyone? david allan coe's first few on columbia? debussy's preludes and/or nocturnes? saint saens organ symphony?

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

i forgot to mention that everyone on this list should if possible own a copy of the shadow ring's lp lindus. it is undeniably creepy and melancholy and beautiful. the lyrics are perfect, the sound is vintage bbc sound effects via an old am transistor radio. totally otherworldy. can't think of enough good things to say about it. i cried the first time i heard it. also, everyone who mentioned nww is right...my personal favorite will always be salt marie celeste, but really it is all worth listening to, that mr. stapleton guy is keyed into something very important. who knows what that is, but he's got it in spades. i feel like he should be designing buildings, really. who here wouldn't want to live in a stapleton home?

Re: Favorite Bands?
 

The album that will forever be linked for me with not only Mr. Ligotti's work, but also that of Ramsey Campbell's, is Aphex Twin's "Selected Ambient Works vol. II". Atmospheric, yes. Creepily atmospheric, oh very much yes. But, most importantly, the music (two frikkin' CD's worth) is indeterminately creepy, dreamy, haunting, and (very nice for reading AND writing) lyricless.

Also, some of Autechre.