Mr. Musicface
-
Posts
2,350 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Events
Posts posted by Mr. Musicface
-
-
Yeh, I bet they sometimes have SEX too! (Hey, where do you think baby musicians come from?)
No offence zero, but I bet I have better stories I can't reveal about some of the brokers and traders I used to work with years ago. I'm sure any industry where the flow of money "elevates" people from real-world morality or responsibility does.
- M.
-
I think the biggest shame is that these labels are assumed to be exclusive, and that there's an implicit assumption that certain characteristics flow to artists that get put into certain slots on the tree: "jambands play well but write sh!tty songs" or "indie rockers have great songs but they can't play worth a sh!t." It's a bunch of bull if you ask me. The guys in Fembots or Royal City (both "alt-country" bands I guess to perpetuate the cliche) write amazing songs but can play the ass off their instruments when they want to. John Popper from Blues Traveler is known to the world as a scary-fast harmonica player, but he's written some absolutely GORGEOUS songs IMHO (check out "Sweet Pain", "Yours", "Pretty Angry", lots of others).
Associating yourself with a scene as an artist, or being associated with a scene by your fans is initially great 'cus it gives people an entry point to understanding what you do. But then it's hard to get over the cliches and labels that get applied and understand that there's great diversity within every "scene" or "style" or whatever the hell you want to call it. GTB and others associate themselves with a scene 'cus it might be one aspect of what they do and it might be one aspect of who their friends in the community are.
Think about this: if Dave Matthews had been buddies with Perry Farell rather than John Popper and Trey in the early nineties, DMB might have easily ended up on Lollapalooza rather than HORDE - not too much of a stretch to see them on a bill with Jane's Addiction, Violent Femmes, Fishbone, etc. especially back then. Now, whatever you think of Matthews, this would have certainly had implications for the scene 'cus a lot of younger folks in the last 10 years have gotten interested in jam music 'cus they heard "Crash" on the radio. Good or bad is arguable, but things would have been different.
- M.
-
Everybody knows it's all about the post-irony.
Hah exactly, it's like the scene from that Simpson's episode at the Hullabalooza music fest:
Disaffected Youth #1: Here comes the cannonball guy. He's cool.
Disaffected Youth #2: Dude, are you being sarcastic?
Disaffected Youth #1: I don't even know anymore.
-
What's the title of the Sloan tune surprised I didn't pick up on that before.
"Coax Me" - here's lyrics and TAB if you're interested:
http://www.angelfire.com/mi/Grenfell/guitar/coaxme.txt
Great song.
- M.
-
Actually CB you made me re-read Booche's comment and it reminded me of something re: fashion and guigsy's comment about "dirty hippies" etc. Last summer I took my wife to the May CTMF. Now, my wife is no fashion slave, she gets most of her clothes from places like Ex Toggery or Winners, but she dresses fairly conservatively and professionally. When we were driving home I asked how she had enjoyed the show, she said fine but something like "next time I'll have to go shopping first for some more appropriate clothes". I asked what she meant 'cus as usual I'm oblivious about such things. She said she was getting definite "looks" from the hippie-attired ladies in particular 'cus she was wearing her leather jacket with slacks and boots (it was cold that weekend remember.) She pointed out that "every scene has a uniform, no matter how much they talk about acceptance or anything goes." It hadn't really occurred to me before but as I say I'm sort of a doofus when it comes to that stuff so I probably just never noticed, but since then I definitely have.
Anyway, the point is again basically backing up with guigsy was saying that the lack of acceptance or open minded-ness goes to more than just musical taste, and it definitely goes both ways. Those of us who are mainly there for the music may not always notice it, but I can say from that experience that I did.
- M.
-
Hey, check it out, I haven't been here in weeks and lo and behold there's a Rush thread just waiting for me!
It's funny 'cus I think the subject line of the post says it all - as a long time Rush fan, I can honestly say I don't know any Rush fans who aren't also old D&D players and/or Lord Of The Rings readers, huge Star Wars fans, able to quote entire Monty Python sketches and Simpson episodes, etc, etc, etc. In other words, nerds or geeks (a truly geeky argument is one over how these words aren't completely interchangeable, but let's not go there for now.) I think Rush appeals to the same sort of geekiness that Dan Brown from CBC talked about in a recent commentary, check it out if you're interested:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/viewpoint/vp_browndan/20040907.html
Dan doesn't talk about Rush specifically, but the appeal is the same. Rush's music is unapologetic in every aspect, from Geddy screaming "WE ARE THE PRIESTS OF THE TEMPLES OF SYRINX" to the fact that their epic instrumental "La Villa Strangiato" has eleven separately named sections and a subtitle (which is, incidentally "An Exercise In Self Indulgence") just to emphasize how gawddamn EPIC it really is. And actually, it's the over-the-top-ness of the band that makes them fun. If you just listen casually to Rush, you think "what a bunch of pretentious wankers!" but if you pay careful attention, there's a tonne that's extraordinarily playful and even humourous in their music and lyrics. They also play a lot on themes that some of us were able to latch on to at an early age. When I first heard songs like "Subdivisions" and "Red Lenses" when I was growing up in Scarborough in the 80s, damnit those songs were about ME! It's the fact that not everyone cares to bother to find this side of the band that makes the people who love them REALLY love them. It's the essential appeal of a lot of culty type bands or anything I suppose, including the hardcore type fans that Phish, The Dead, etc. attract.
Rush, whether or not folks here realize, share a lot with those bands that are most beloved here - in terms of there being people who "get" Rush (or Phish or The Dead or INSERT CULT-Y BAND HERE), and then there's the rest of the planet.
Peace,
Mr. M.
-
im just kinda thinking out loud here as i read this, and i guess it seems like its the same thing that keeps the 2 genres apart, and its not even related to the music.
Ding-Ding-Ding!!! Give the man a prize! Or as it was once put in the great Sloan lyric:
If I drink concentrated OJ
Can I think Consolidated's okay
It's not the band I hate, it's their fans
Three cans of water perverts me
Peace,
Mr. M.
-
Hey folks, missed this show 'cus I've been in Vancouver for the last week and a bit, but caught them at Darien - smokin'! I've seen Rush about 12 or 13 times since 1986 and they are definitely at their peak as performers at the moment. Alex's guitar sound has never, EVER been better, and Neil proves again that he is definitely the greatest hard rock drummer alive, and possibly ever.
Oh and MarcO:
As the former guitar player for Toronto, I resent that.
Don;t it make ya feel like dancin'?
"Don't It Make Ya Feel (Like Dancing)" was by the Headpins. Toronto did "Your Daddy Don't Know", "Girls Night Out" and "Head On".
Come on dude, at least get your cheesey 80s girl-lead Canadian bands right. ::
Peace,
Mr. M.
-
Dear friends,
It's difficult to believe that it has been more than 3 months since the passing of my dear friend Matthew Osborne. Since the phone call from Chris Patheiger late on the night of Friday April 23rd telling me of the sad news, there has been an amazing whirlwind of activity to honor a man so many of us saw not just as a musical friend and colleague, but as a role model.
Matt was a fellow traveler from before the beginning of the Uncle Seth story. The associations with me, Jeff Jones and former Seth bassist Ian Torres go back to the early nineties when Ian and Matt were schoolmates at Wilfred Laurier University in Waterloo. Through Ian and other mutual friends we came to know this awesome musician, a near-force-of-nature on guitar with a voice that was simply gold. We were lucky enough, as were many others, to share stages with Matt in various musical guises throughout the last 12 or 13 years. Jeff asked Matt to be a part of the first Uncle Seth line-up back in 1999. Although he declined the offer to be a member, he was more than willing to open our very first show and many others, and play with us at jam nights held in a church basement in Markham. It was at these jams that Matt became close to former Seth singer Jenn Kee, current singer Tara Thompson, and others in the band.
Matt's incredible talents were surpassed only by the generosity of his spirit. He chipped in on bass on when we were short staffed, jammed on guitar and harmonica, sang a gorgeous duet on Bruce Cockburn's "Lovers In A Dangerous Time" with Tara at a many shows, and lent his voice to our CD on the song "If I Laugh". Simply put, if we asked him to do it and he could fit it into his schedule, he always would. Very often there wasn't a lot of money involved in these activities, and although Matt made his living as a musician and didn't have a day job to fall back on like most of us, a lack of funds never put him off. It was always about friendship and music with Matt, nothing else. He was special to everyone who was ever a part of this band, and to some of us he was more special that words can explain.
On Friday August 6th at the Silver Dollar Room in Toronto, we will do our best to pay tribute to a great soul. The Matt Osborne Memorial Concert will start at 8 pm, and will feature a few of Matt's many, many musical friends. Along with Uncle Seth, acts will include the kramdens, Linda M, The Friendless Youngsters, Mike Freedman (of Special Ed & The Musically Challenged), Atlas Stucco, Marion Berg, Mary Anne Epp, Chris Patheiger, Patrick Ang, Art From The Ruin, Angie Nussey, Jeff Allan Greenway, Sandy Stubbert, and a "super group" consisting of former Seth members Ian Torres & Jenn Kee, along with drummer Baron Evans and guitarists Jeff Jones & Mike Freedman.
Tickets for the show are now on sale at:
All proceeds from the show will go to the "The Matt Osborne Musicians Trust Fund", a trust set up to assist up-and-coming musicians.
This will be quite a night. I hope you can join us.
Take care,
Jay Moonah from Uncle Seth
a.k.a. Mr. Musicface
-
I choose to spoil my ballot, the process is flawed, this contest is FAKE!
So what, like a Liberal Leadership Convention you mean?
Sorry Joni, I love ya but ya gots ta go.
- M.
-
Jeez... well, I'm not happy about it, but I'm gonna go with B.B.
-
-
Welcome back man!
- M.
-
Gots to go with Fleck again.
- M.
-
I'll be there!
- M.
-
Wow, congratulations!
Peace,
Mr. M.
-
Any pictures forthcoming?
A couple of folks were wandering about with cameras, yeh I'd love to see some pics too if there are any around!
- M.
-
Bye-bye Bela.
-
Seems to be back to normal now. Still, that was a scary couple of hours.
- M.
-
Actually, my girlfriend is quite a bit younger than me and has a different comparison perspective: She thinks the new films do compare because she feels the acting and dialogue wasn't good in the original three movies either.
Well she's right about the acting at any rate. All I have to say is this:
But I wanted to go to Toschi station to pick up some power converters!
Exactly.
- M.
-
Actually that's interesting 'cus the original title of Chapter VI a.k.a. the third of the original movies was supposed to be "Revenge of the Jedi", but Lucas changed it 'cus the idea of revenge didn't fit with his concept of the Jedi as warriors of justice. The fact that "Revenge" is used for the Sith as a contrast makes perfect sense.
Did anyone else see most/all of the Clone Wars cartoons? A quite interesting way of linking the movies, although I'd really like to sit down and watch all 20 in order. I expect they'll be out on DVD before the movie is released.
Peace,
Mr. M.
-
uncle seth members actually lasted there all day staying somehow straight enough to deliver great music
In fairness, the real strategy (which seemed to work) was to stay all day so we could be there long enough to GET straight again by the end!
(And for the record, if anyone's interested the 7.7% Danish Faxe Festbock won out over the 7.0% Holstein Festbock as the new Mr. Musicface Festival Can 'o Choice. Stronger and tastier, that's what you want when you're working with limited space people!)
- M.
-
Hey thanks for the praise for Uncle Seth Steve! I want to say for all the guys in Uncle Seth that we TOTALLY dug Buterflies & Zebras as well. Sorry we had to take off before you finished, although for what it's worth I had said to the others in the band "hey I wanna stay for a least a bit of these guys, if they're boring we'll leave", and then once you guys started we stayed for almost an hour and we finally said "well hell we'd better go" but you guys certainly were NOT boring by any stretch! I was totally digging the projection thing and you guys were getting some amazing sounds. I really hope to see you again sometime.
Real Gone Daddies were also excellent, it kicked our asses to have to follow those guys 'cus they are obviously killer musicans as well. I agree the mix was generally pretty good, although I would have liked to hear a bit more of the guitarists in this band.
There were a number of other things that caught my ear during the day, although frankly I can't remember the names of a lot of the bands. We did meet some great folks and had a great time! HUGE thanks once again to Rob for setting up the whole deal - amazing job man!!!
Peace,
Mr. M.
-
yes, but in Monty Python, doesn't he say "'tis but a flesh wound"
Good call Douglas - wow apparently you're almost as big a geek as your brother-in-law.
- M.
Dish The Dirt 2
in Soundboard
Posted
Hey thanks man! Not too much out of the ordinary happening - 'been working and travelling a lot this summer, so my extra curricular web use took at bit of a hit over the last month or so. Also felt I needed to reflect a bit after organizing the memorial show for my buddy Matt - that took a lot more out of me than I had thought it would. I've been lurking from time to time but just didn't have the energy to devote to any serious conversation on the skank - insofar as the word "serious" applies to what all goes on here with you freaks.
But I'm back, baby!
- M.