IDM Mailing Archive

On Mon, 4 Nov 1996 11:56:42 GMT ROWLAND ATKINSON proferred the following assessment of FSOL: Dead Cities:

quoted 2 lines Its very good. Hard to decide whether the book is worth the extra

> Its very good. Hard to decide whether the book is worth the extra > even if it is amazing to view.

Sorry, Rowland, but . . . Wasn't hard for this purchaser. I decided it is a cynical marketing ploy. 12.99 for the normal ed. as opposed to 16.99 for the special ed. means one is forking out 4 quid for the "privilege" of owning 196 diminutive pages of what is essentially glossy visual vacuousness. But then again of course it is the "exclusivity" that draws us in rather than the "extras". There! That's set the feline quadruped among the bone-nosed rats with wings.

quoted 2 lines I actually love the hardness of the few tracks. While Lifeforms pretty

> I actually love the hardness of the few tracks. While Lifeforms pretty > much wanked itself over two full length discs

Are you saying it was toss? ;)

quoted 2 lines this is much more certain of where it is going and there is a genuine

> this is much more certain of where it is going and there is a genuine > development to the tracks, some of them surprisingly emotive.

I beg to differ. The experience of listening to Dead Cities was for me akin to that of having a shower in a plastic mac (not a customary practice for me, by the way). There was the perceptible sensation of something resembling warmth/feeling and certain pleasurable elements "out there" but it just didn't penetrate through to the soul; like registering "intellectually" that something satisfying was present in the immediate environment but at the same time being conscious of an obstructive layer forbidding full access to satisfaction. Try it. You'll see.* Frustrating. alan/beyondthebristolsound (*I recommend Dannimac -- heheh)

quoted 4 lines On Mon, 4 Nov 1996 11:56:42 GMT ROWLAND ATKINSON proferred the

> On Mon, 4 Nov 1996 11:56:42 GMT ROWLAND ATKINSON proferred the > following assessment of FSOL: Dead Cities: > > Its very good. Hard to decide whether the book is worth the extra > > even if it is amazing to view.

On Tue, 5 Nov 1996, A.R. Lockett wrote:

quoted 6 lines Sorry, Rowland, but . . .

> Sorry, Rowland, but . . . > Wasn't hard for this purchaser. I decided it is a cynical marketing ploy. > 12.99 for the normal ed. as opposed to 16.99 for the special ed. means one > is forking out 4 quid for the "privilege" of owning 196 diminutive pages of > what is essentially glossy visual vacuousness. But then again of course it > is the "exclusivity" that draws us in rather than the "extras".

I dunno 'bout that... I think a marketing ploy would be what they did with FSOL ISDN. They put better tracks ("Kai" & "Amoeba") on the re-issue, the re-issue had *more* text and pretty pictures, and it was cheeper...! Now doing that after qualifying the import ISDN as "limited" was a ploy. I think record company nastyness had something to do with that, though, they wanted ISDN to be limited to 100,000 copies and they 'weren't allowed' (see their web page for that stuff)... Dead Cities is less of a ploy because the tracks are the same on both editions, which doesn't require buying *both* to get *all* the tracks. (However, there is one track on the Wipeout playstation disc that's not on anything else to my knowledge, that one's called "Landmass.") Furthermore, you get a 194-page book with lots of computer graphics and stuff. Oh yeah, and once again it's limited to 10,000 copies. So it's not much of a ploy 'cause you're getting plenty of stuff for your money... not to mention the music (which i can't really discuss 'cause i only have "My Kingdom" so far 'cause mostly all the mail-order record stores sent out Dead Cities late 'cause they came late from the distributors.)

quoted 15 lines I actually love the hardness of the few tracks. While Lifeforms pretty

> > I actually love the hardness of the few tracks. While Lifeforms pretty > > much wanked itself over two full length discs > Are you saying it was toss? ;) > > this is much more certain of where it is going and there is a genuine > > development to the tracks, some of them surprisingly emotive. > I beg to differ. The experience of listening to Dead Cities was for me akin to > that of having a shower in a plastic mac (not a customary practice for me, > by the way). > There was the perceptible sensation of something resembling > warmth/feeling and certain pleasurable elements "out there" but it just > didn't penetrate through to the soul; like registering "intellectually" that > something satisfying was present in the immediate environment but at the > same time being conscious of an obstructive layer forbidding full access to > satisfaction. > (*I recommend Dannimac -- heheh)

Heh... interesting thoughts... but what's a plastic mac...? 8> no@h (who'll buy FSOL from the stores from now on 'cause it's faster and cheeper) . . . . . . ...

Sir Lockett spake thusly:

quoted 9 lines Wasn't hard for this purchaser. I decided it is a cynical marketing ploy.

>Wasn't hard for this purchaser. I decided it is a cynical marketing ploy. >12.99 for the normal ed. as opposed to 16.99 for the special ed. means one >is forking out 4 quid for the "privilege" of owning 196 diminutive pages of >what is essentially glossy visual vacuousness. But then again of course it >is the "exclusivity" that draws us in rather than the "extras". > >There! That's set the feline quadruped among the bone-nosed rats with >wings. >

That you did! I'll add my own vegetarian leopard to the ensuing chaos: The aesthetic of the book is identical to that of the music. One is the other-sensory analog(ue) of the other. Visual and aural, but the trippy-collage/morph style so distinctive of FSOL is nearly identical in both media. So - if one appreciates the music, then one would probably appreciate the book. Especially if one is synaesthetic. Zenon M. Feszczak Synaesthete

I am beginning to warm up to Dead Cities. Every time I get pissed about some scrambled up Dead Can Dance section, I think about track 4 (We Have Explosive). It is noisy, heavy and wonderful. --------------------------------------------------------------------- "Stop thinking, and end your problems" -- Tao Te Ching Home Page, featuring Reagan on Black Velvet, the EMP Compilation CD, samples of my music, etc http://soli.inav.net/~kent/ Kent Williams kent@inav.net CADSI 2651 Crosspark Road Coralville IA 52241 (319) 338 6053 (home) (319) 626 6700 x 219 (work) (319) 626 3489 (fax)

On Tue, 5 Nov 1996, Kent Williams wrote:

quoted 3 lines I am beginning to warm up to Dead Cities. Every time I get pissed

> I am beginning to warm up to Dead Cities. Every time I get pissed > about some scrambled up Dead Can Dance section, I think about > track 4 (We Have Explosive). It is noisy, heavy and wonderful.

Too true! The rest of the disc hasn't been incredibly thrilling yet, but We Have Explosive is great. Wasn't this released as a single on vinyl before, or was it CD as well? I'd like to hear other mixes. -s [OnNow: Everything but the Girl vs. Drum 'n' Bass] ---- ,+'^'+, sage@3Sheep.COM . finger for public key. sasha eysymontt * 93 A3 9C 49 EB E9 0D 0E B5 F6 C3 57 58 D3 12 CE `+,.,+' Sed quis custodiet ipsos custodes? --Juvenal

quoted 3 lines I am beginning to warm up to Dead Cities. Every time I get pissed

> > I am beginning to warm up to Dead Cities. Every time I get pissed > > about some scrambled up Dead Can Dance section, I think about > > track 4 (We Have Explosive). It is noisy, heavy and wonderful.

quoted 3 lines Too true! The rest of the disc hasn't been incredibly thrilling yet, but

> Too true! The rest of the disc hasn't been incredibly thrilling yet, but > We Have Explosive is great. Wasn't this released as a single on vinyl > before, or was it CD as well? I'd like to hear other mixes.

'Tis on the Wipeout XL seedy which came out a while ago.. . . . . . . ...

quoted 1 line 'Tis on the Wipeout XL seedy which came out a while ago..

> 'Tis on the Wipeout XL seedy which came out a while ago..

What's the story on this Wipeout XL disc? (Other than it sounds like the s/t to a video game.) US release? Tracklist? A web search reveals nothing. --Mark

quoted 2 lines the discs to get *all* the tracks. The only way to get "Landmass," as

> the discs to get *all* the tracks. The only way to get "Landmass," as > far as i know, is to buy the Playstation game, or settle without it.

I've got the game, and I'd have to say that Landmass is my favorite track in the game. It's really not much more than the good parts of Lifeforms (the album as a whole) mixed together to form a new song. Some 303 noodling about, that FSOL-ish "bleep" sound every once in a while, and general texturing. Blends very well into the background as you take corners at speeds that would crush most people from the G-forces. Quite lovely. :-) -- guyjr@cc.gatech.edu | I.D.M.- That stage in sleeping when your feet are a.k.a., Guy Elden Jr. | moving faster than your eyes.

Pleasantly surprised to hear FSOL's more serene and reflective side, as evinced in the inductive choral and piano sections. This record has more personalities than Sybil. You're never alone with a schizophrenic. Zenon M. Feszczak Zenon M. Feszczak Zenon M. Feszczak with assistance from Zenon M. Feszczak and funded by a grant from Zenon M. Feszczak produced by Zenon M. Feszczak in honor of Mott the Hoople?