I usually have some kind of sexy story to accompany my downloads but I don't think I have any exciting Leonard Cohen stories, Lenny isn't the sexiest man around after all. This is a really cool bootleg from 1988 at the Philharmonie, Köln. I think it's a soundboard, the quality is top notch and you get a real sense of the venue too from the acoustics. A lot of the songs feature an extra bit of 80's pazazz in the form of synths and a bit of cheese, but don't worry it great!
Ooh! I remembered a sexy story! I have got a Songs of Love and Hate book containing all the sheet music, if anyone wants me to scan and upload the pages hit me in the comments, make sure you are logged in and not anon. cause I won't be able to contact you otherwise! (UPDATE, I'VE UPLOADED IT: CLICK HERE)
Now for the recording, here's the setlist:
1. Bird On The Wire
2. Hey, That's No Way To Say Goodbye
3. Who By Fire
4. Ain't No Cure For Love
5. Dance Me To The End Of Love
6. The Law
7. Heart With No Companion
8. I'm Your Man
9. Coming Back To You
10. First We Take Manhattan
11. Avalanche - solo
12. Chelsea Hotel #2 - solo
13. The Stranger Song - solo
14. Tower Of Song
15. I Can't Forget
16. One Of Us Cannot Be Wrong
17. Everybody Knows
18. Hallelujah
19. Suzanne
20. Sisters Of Mercy
21. There Is A War 22. Introductions
23. Take This Waltz
24. Passin' Through
25. I Tried To Leave You
26. The Law
27. The Law
28. Bird On The Wire
29. First We Take Manhattan
-MISSING SONGS-
30. Avalanche
31. Tower Of Song (instrumental)
As always I've uploaded with sharebee.com so you have four download options, this is a big download that I've had to split into two parts, you can download each part from a different site, do that or you'll be waiting all day...
The actual name of this bootleg of a radio broadcast in 1982 is "A Social Gathering for the Celebration of the Anniversary of Someone's Birth", it's a stupid long name and it is credited to The Birthday Party AND Lydia Lunch even though all she does is yap a bit on Funhouse. Anyone that has read anything about The Birthday Party knows that they were a live band and their albums really don't live up to seeing them play, I was still listening to my mother singing from inside her belly when they first came to the UK so I, like many of you, have to rely on bootlegs and the great officially realised CD. There is also the incredible "Pleasure Heads Must Burn" video which I won't say much about cause I'm gonna try and find it online and post it some other time.
I first got into Nick Cave when I was 18, I remember the first time I tried playing "From Her To Eternity" I had to turn it off cause it was just noisy noise, it didn't take long for me to get a grip on myself and love it like it should be loved (A Box For Black Paul!!!). I got a shit load more Nick Cave albums before I got The Birthday Party stuff. I had "Junkyard" as my alarm clock CD for about a year, fuck knows what Hasan and Wendy upstairs thought every morning! I used to hear them getting jiggy up there, he was all "ahh, ahh, ahh, ahh" and she was all like "ooh, ohh, ohh" so I reckon they got off lightly, he could barely speak a word of English, I remember hearing her trying to explain Spiderman to him once and he had no idea what she was on about, two 40 year olds, married with no obvious form of communication, making Spiderman noises outside my door, welcome to Swansea...
Anyway, this bootleg was released in 1987 and is from a German radio broadcast in 1982, the gig was in Bremen. The sound quality is good and the content kicks ass, the setlist is pretty short but sweet as a nut:
Big-Jesus-Trash-Can Dead Joe The Friend Catcher A Dead Song Six-Inch Gold Blade Junkyard Hamlet (Pow, Pow, Pow) Pleasureheads Must Burn Funhouse (with Lydia Lunch).
I would suggest that when you click on any of the download links you shout "BLAST OFF! BLAST OFF!!!" at the top of your lungs, it will enhance your enjoyment of the recording tenfold.
When I was in the last couple of years of school I had a few favourite tapes: Biggie Smalls; The Pharcyde; Smiff 'n' Wesson... I was the blackest white man in my school, probably why everyone called me bent and hated me and why I hated them, but there was one other tape, it had Doolittle on one side and Surfer Rosa on the other, it was my favourite tape. I listened to this tape almost every day for I don't know how long, I couldn't get enough of it and I didn't know why, one second it was quiet, then it was loud, then he was screaming like a girl; I had no idea what he was on about but there was just something that kept pulling me back. I didn't have track names, I didn't know their names, I'd never seen their CD's in the shops, it was like a super tape sent from a far off place (in reality Simon Dark gave it to me, and later recorded over Surfer Rosa with a pop punk compilation containing The Queers that he said was much better, it certainly wasn't better but it was ok at the time).
This was around 1996, long after the Pixies had broken up, when I was 17 I discovered the HMV super sale and bought every Pixies album in one go and became a pathetic fanboy, over the next few years I bought all the singles, 3 copies of Death to the Pixies in different versions on CD, bootleg vinyl, a rare white label and searched eBay for years before I found a VHS bootleg recording of one of their gigs. I got into Frank Black solo too, and went to see him, he played some Pixies songs and I was chuffed but it wasn't enough. Then the rumours started, could it really be true? Were they really getting back together? It couldn't be! Could it??? When I got my ticket for Brixton I literally danced around my pad singing "I'm gonna see the Pixies! I'm gonna see the Pixies! I'm gonna see the Pixies!" a la the scene in Wayne's World where they get their cheques when they sell out.
There was a long wait between buying tickets and the actual gig so I started looking for new bootlegs and found this fine specimen, its their first gig on the comeback tour at Fine Line Music Cafe and it kicks ass, the crowd are absolutely rabid, its worth listening to just to here everyone cheer when Charles sings "Rock me Joe", it sent shivers down my spine. Damn, this is a long boring story...
I don't know where I got this recording, it was years ago, if you recorded it and are pissed off that I have posted it then chillax, you should be proud not angry cause the sound quality is awesome, here's the setlist:
Bone Machine Wave of Mutilation U-Mass Levitate Me Broken Face Monkey Gone to Heaven The Holiday Song Winterlong Nimrod's Son La La Love You Ed is Dead Here Comes Your Man Vamos Debaser Dead No. 13 Baby Tame Gigantic Gouge Away Caribou Isla De Encanta The Holiday Song In Heaven > Wave of Mutilation (UK Surf) Where is My Mind? Into the White
If you haven't seen the Pixies documentary called loudQUIETloud yet then either go to pitchfork.tv THIS WEEK where it is playing for free or buy it or download it or whatever floats your boat cause it's a really good watch, I give it 10/10
Buy Pixies albums on Amazon, the Boxing Duck! gets a percentage of whatever you spend so get your hands in your pockets!
Come one, come all to the Casiotone for the Painfully Alone MEGAPOST! I've got all bases covered here: an interview to read, photos to look at and a live recording to listen to, dare I say that this is the best CFTPA blog post in the history of geekery?
First up is an e-mail interview with the man himself, Mr. Owen Ashworth...
~
THE PRETENTIOUS QUESTION If I was going to compare your early albums to a film movement I would say they were kind of like Dogme 95, very much a small operation, constrained by a self imposed set of aesthetic guidelines. What film movement would you compare your more recent, wider sound to and why?
I cannot answer this question honestly and still feel okay about myself.
THE PITCHFORK QUESTION (THE TWOHEADEDBOY QUESTION) Actually, I don't know enough big, silly words to create a question that requires a dictionary to decipher. If you had two heads, what kind of personality would your conjoined twin have?
I would hope that he would be a pretty cool guy who was interested in seeing the same films and wanted to sleep when I wanted to sleep. Oh my God I completely assumed that my conjoined twin would be a dude. How chauvinistic.
THE PERSONAL QUESTION There is a kind of sombre, almost moribund thing going on in a lot of your songs, although they aren't really depressing they have that feeling about them. Have you experienced depression and do you use your music as a way to get it out?
I have certainly experienced depression, although I wouldn't consider myself to be a depressed person. I'm not convinced that depression is a driving force behind my songwriting, though. My mom listened to a lot of Willie Nelson and Otis Redding and stuff when I was growing up, and I think my tastes formed very early. I have always just preferred sad songs. Those were always the kinds of songs that I was interested in writing because those were always the kinds of songs that I was interested in listening to.
THE "WHO ARE YOUR INFLUENCES?" QUESTION Your music doesn't really sound like anyone else's to me, are you influenced by other bands or by something else entirely? (Sub-questions) - Who are your all time favourite bands? - Any new bands you really like?
I think the Stax Records house band, MGs, are maybe my favorite band ever. Also, the band that backed up Neil Young on Harvest. I think they were called the Stray Gators. I would love to own both of those bands like baseball franchises.
The Sly & The Family Stone albums There's a Riot Goin' On and Fresh, The Geto Boys' "Mind Playing Tricks On Me," The Magnetic Fields' early albums, Vince Guaraldi's music for the Peanuts Christmas Special, The Carter Family, Smog, Willie Nelson, Otis Redding, Young Marble Giants, Suicide, The Shangri-La's, and Bruce Springsteen have been huge inspirations at different times.
The Donkeys from San Diego are like the MGs and the Stray Gators of the 21st century. Like baby stray gator mg's.
THE BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN QUESTION I love your cover of Philadelphia, in fact, I like it more than the original. I find The Boss is a good way to distinguish between true music lovers and people that are in it for the looks, you have passed the true music lover test with flying colours! What are your favourite Springsteen albums / songs and what would you say to get people to realise that he is the man?
I actually really like a lot of the new album, Magic. I think "Girls In Their Summer Clothes" is particularly lovely. The three classic Springsteen tapes that have been played and played and warped over time in my car stereo are Born In the USA, Nebraska, and a greatest hits collection that I bought used at an Anacortes book store for $2 five years ago. It seems like Nebraska is always the record that converts the non-believers. The low-tech production values are less jarring to jaded "punk" sensibilities. I've heard a few people ask "Wait, are all of his songs this good?" after listening to Nebraska for the first time.
THE QUESTION OUT OF NOWHERE What motivates you to maintain such a killer beard? Is it a psychologic mask against the modern world? Is it for the chicks? Is it just to keep your chin warm?
I find it much easier to have a beard than to not have a beard. It actually requires work to not have a beard. I'm following the path of least resistance.
THE TECH GEEK QUESTION I'm a Mac geek, other people are guitar geeks, some, God forbid, are even mobile phone geeks. What is your favourite equipment? (computer, software, instruments, pens, paper) (Sub question) Can you play a bunch of instruments, or are you a keyboard and computer specialist?
I like my Korg EM-1 drum machine a lot. It's great for writing and sketching out ideas. All of the drum machine sounding sounds on Etiquette came from that machine. I use a lot of Korg stuff, actually. I have two different Korg samplers that I bounce sounds between. Lately everything has been going through a Fender Twin Reverb amp.
I've played bass and drums in other bands, but I mostly stick to keyboards these days. I don't really use computers to make music. I prefer keyboards and modules and amps.
THE LAST QUESTION ABOUT UPCOMING RELEASES (HOPEFULLY CONTAINING SOME EXCLUSIVE, NEVER BEFORE READ INFO) What are you working on at the mo? Can we expect a new album any time soon and if so, will you be expanding your use of analogue instrumentation even further? Any new song titles you'd like to tease us with?
I just finished working on the music for Laurel Nakadate's movie Stay The Same Never Change. That kept me really busy for a long time. I'll be away on tours for the next few months, but when I get home, I'll get back to work on the next album, which is about half done. I consider it bad luck to discuss the specifics of creative projects before they are finished. I generally don't even like playing new songs live before the records are finished. I'm keeping all of the song titles to myself for now. I can tell you that there will be some pianos and drums and organs as well as some electronics and samples. So, far, this is my favorite sounding Casiotone record.
~
Sooooooooo, after walking around in the rain for well over 30 mins I found the magical hidden venue that is Tommy's Bar in Cardiff, the place to be for dweebs, scruffs, indie kids, nerds, Lisa and her buds and me tonight (actually last night and a few hours ago). I'll get the boring stuff out of the way: there was always the chance that I'd miss the last train home and I did, a million thanks go out to Lisa for giving me an old style very comfy blanket and some "middle-class squash", a rare taste of the high life for me! There were some good support bands, especially The Voluntary Butler Scheme which is one guy who played guitar, uke, kazoo, keyboard, drum, cymbal, tambourine and bells all by himself, check him out...
Watching Owen at work was a real treat, I'd assumed that he made his music with a computer but he's all about the knobs, knobs and buttons and sliders, it was amazing. There are a bunch of live videos on youtube but it's really not the same, I know nothing about making music but one can't help but be knocked over by seeing a dude twiddling and pressing and sliding things resulting in all these incredible electronic noises that sound just like the albums, I tell you he doesn't keep still for a second, he was sweating like a pig (sorry Miss Piggy) by the middle of the set. He was joined on stage by Jenny Herbinson for a good few songs, Scattered Pearls wouldn't have been the same without her, that's fo sho. I won't ramble on about the songs cause you can listen to them and make your own mind up, lets just say that he played all the ones I wanted and even threw in Graceland at the end when someone asked for it, what a bloody thoroughly good chap!
I thought I'd taken some killer shots but they aren't all that really, deffo worth checking out though (click photo to go forward, hover over the bottom to see thumbnails)...
~
The recording is pretty bloody good, the sound is great, the songs are great, everything is great, the setlist is great, great.
Cold White Christmas
Nashville Parthenon
White On White
Streets Of Philadelphia
Scattered Pearls
White Corolla
Ice Cream Truck
Old Panda Days
Love Connection
Casiotone For The Painfully Alone In A Green Cotton Sweater
Bobby Malone Moves Home
New Years Kiss
Young Shields
Calloused Fingers Won't Make You Strong, Edith Wong
THE FALL! THE FALL! THE FALL-AH! BOOTLEG! BOOTLEG! BOOTLEG-AH! DOWNLOAD! DOWNLOAD! DOWNLOAD-AH! I got into The Fall completely by accident, I had a couple of albums on my iPod and during a bus trip of madness set the thing to random and Powder Keg came on, a few weeks later they played Newcastle and I went to see them, that night Mark E. Smith slipped on the ice and broke his hip (or leg or something), not one to be easily beaten he played the rest of the tour in a wheelchair. That was a few years ago, since then they have become possibly my favourite "band" (see...). After a rumoured gig in Swansea that never materialised and a cancelled gig in Cardiff I finally got to see them again a few days ago. Ive pretty much listened to them for about 42hrs a day every day for a couple of months waiting for the potentially diabolical live performance (also I e-mailed their manager and he said I could probably shoot some promo photos of them, but that didn't happen so we won't mention it again, WILL WE?!).
The gig was pretty cool, I think I was waaaaaay to excited for it to live up to my expectations. There isn't really much I can say, its The Fall innit, MES was his usual self, twiddling knobs, dismantling drum kits, pressing keys, getting tangled up in mic cables, rummaging through papers, completely ignoring the audience, facing the back wall, everything that we love about the guy. I was front row, slap bang middle of the stage and for much of the gig was close enough to actually bite Mark right on the winky, but that would've been really flipping mental. The highlight was when he pulled his mic cable which made a mic stand fall over and hit me right in the throat, the low point was when the bloody Sunday curfew prevented them from playing Blindness, a song I've REALLY wanted to hear live for a couple of years! They did play Wings which made up for it I suppose...
I went backstage and met MES after the gig and asked him to sign my Fall lyric book, I asked him to put "I'm better than them and I think I'm the best", he didn't seem to know it was one of his lyrics and instead put "from Alan's friends", he was pretty mean, his wife seemed very nice though.
Sounds like hick wap huh? Sounds like a load of mick wap ha? Over. Over. Over. Over.
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I usually have some kind of sexy story to accompany my downloads but I don't think I have any exciting Leonard Cohen stories, Lenny isn't the sexiest man around after all. This is a really cool bootleg from 1988 at the Philharmonie, Köln. I think it's a soundboard, the quality is top notch and you get a real sense of the venue too from the acoustics. A lot of the songs feature an extra bit of 80's pazazz in the form of synths and a bit of cheese, but don't worry it great!
Anyway, this bootleg was released in 1987 and is from a German radio broadcast in 1982, the gig was in Bremen. The sound quality is good and the content kicks ass, the setlist is pretty short but sweet as a nut:
