azzo

DeRank ™: 4,56

DeAge™ : 6954 days • Here since 27 may 2007

Richard Hell and the Voidoids Blank Generation

23 nov 08

Voto:

@ Mr. Goodkat: the first two by Verlaine (the eponymous one and Dreamtime) are definitely worth buying (you should be able to find them for a few bucks). With Fred Smith on bass and Jay Dee Daugherty on drums, they only suffer from coming after the two unbeatable albums by Television...

Richard Hell and the Voidoids Blank Generation

21 nov 08

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@Mr Goodkat: now let's not exaggerate, at most I’m the idol of my neighborhood :-). I just meant to say that there are some aspects of my playing that come from Verlaine. As I was saying, "that" Little Johnny Jewel, as well as the solo from "Breakin' in my heart" from the first solo album, are among the things I've listened to the most and that have stuck with me. For example, one thing I love is that Verlaine seems to get "trapped" in a loop of notes and he uses it more than necessary, seemingly unable to get out, but then he emerges beautifully. This kind of seemingly absurd repetition is something I often use too. Of course, I don’t emerge well, and not beautifully.

Richard Hell and the Voidoids Blank Generation

21 nov 08

Voto:

Errata corrige: I'm absent-minded, I meant to say Little Johnny Jewel.

Richard Hell and the Voidoids Blank Generation

21 nov 08

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@Super: Verlaine indeed is quite stiff live; I saw him with Santa Patti and he spent the first part of the concert sitting in the back, only warming up with Rock'n'roll Nigger! In my guitar hero ranking, however, he holds one of the top five spots, and what I learned from Marquee Moon performed live at CBGB'S is one of the fundamental lessons of my playing. I could waste adjectives, from piercing to lyrical to, indeed, psychotic. When I saw the dirty one, I was left with more of his solos (dirty, bad, and abrasive) than Quine's. Whose qualities I don't doubt, but he engages me less. A bit of Ribot, a bit of Fripp, other very technical guitarists, moreover with a more distinctive sound. It might be that I'm quite mediocre...

Bruce Cockburn Circles In the Stream

20 nov 08

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Silly ones, this is instead a hell of a record, for those who appreciate the genre; for others, it might also be a real pain in the ass, but in the realm of singer-songwriter music, it’s truly a great album (though listening to eleven of his albums seems like a really tough task). Maybe not a 5, but a solid 4 definitely fits.

Richard Hell and the Voidoids Blank Generation

20 nov 08

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Mmh, and instead the old Azzo, Quine has never fully convinced. Yes, technically impeccable, but the soul? Verlaine is on another planet. Forgive my assertiveness, but I was in the third row at the Live in Italy of the filthy one, and the doubts have lingered.

Meat Puppets Too High to Die

19 nov 08

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Once in a while, forgive me Pixies, I don’t quite agree. In the sense that I’m on Alessio's side, not in the controversy, but in the fact that the Meat Puppets never really did it for me. I tried, fruitlessly, to get into them back then; maybe I should give them another shot now. But they were at the bottom of the list of all the other bands of the time (I might talk about one of those in my next piece, but I’ll leave that as a surprise). On the other hand, it’s true that they always had a very interesting rhythm section, which influenced the subsequent bands, even though it was greatly surpassed by that of the Minutemen. The review, however, is good.

The Replacements Sorry Ma, Forgot To Take Out The Trash

18 nov 08

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Great, ça va sans dire (can someone tell me how to write the umlaut on the u of Hisker Du?). Generally speaking, I agree with Alessio, Warehouse is a bit like white, good songs by Mould and Lennon, less so by Hart and McCartney (with due exceptions, of course). Besides, Hart’s songwriting on that album is very McCartney-esque, maybe too much. And finally, isn’t Hart’s best song the 2541 written by the Huskers? P.S.: sorry if I veered off topic, but as you've gathered, I love the Huskers more than the Replacements...

The Velvet Underground Bootleg Series Volume 1: The Quine Tapes

18 nov 08

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Beautiful, even though there are a few too many "cazzi" in the review for my taste. Are we really sure it’s the best live in the history of the Velvet, without Cale in the lineup? Alright, I’ll give it a try, and if it’s not true, I’ll come and pull your feet while you sleep :-)