This self-titled LP is a 1981 compilation of tracks taken from a few sources. I guess this was an effort to bring Canadians into the fold because the only country that released this record (or cassette) was Canada. I suppose you could call it an apology for forcing us to pay a premium for import copies of Metamatic. Four tracks are taken from Metamatic, and I am not sure of the provenance of the other tracks, but some are b-sides. I haven't bothered to figure it out. It's a good introduction to his music.
Before Ultravox! (later, just Ultravox) became a vehicle for Midge Ure, the group was fronted by John Foxx. With Ure, there was a noticeable change of direction. I prefer the pre-Ure Ultravox, but that is a story for much later.
Foxx's music is synthesizer-based, electronic post-rock with a bit of punk thrown in. It's no secret that Gary Numan was heavily influenced by Foxx's music, though Gary seemed to throw a bit more melody, or maybe just more warmth, into his music. This, also, is a story for much later.
This record sports a fabulous cover image with tracks that are equally engaging, though some might think the music cold and unforgiving or perhaps just simply too robotic. For me, these are points to be placed in the plus column. This is a perfect description:
"On Metamatic, Foxx cultivates a curious air of disinterest that never
seems truly bored, but is much more extreme than even his unarguably
distant vocal style for Ultravox! It holds up as one of the peaks of
the early-'80s fascination with emotionless, Kraftwerk-inspired synth
pop."
I own the original UK pressing of this record, because it was never released in Canada on any format. How stupid are Canadian record companies? The record has a really good cover image too.
This is another Foreigner record from my youth with two tracks that are very well known in classic rock circles: Head Games and Dirty White Boy. It's probably equal to the previous efforts. I used to own a copy of Foreigner 4 on vinyl, but I was forced to sell it because it sucked. It's a lesser record in so many ways.
This record is another item from my youth. If I were out shopping for records today, I would not buy it, or any other Foreigner record, even if they were $1. I can still appreciate some of their songs, but the band simply does not hold my attention, other than in the arena of nostalgia. Two tracks are very well known: Double Vision and Hot Blooded. These tracks stand up today as classic rock standards, I suppose.
Don't give up too quick You only get one line, you better make it stick If we give ourselves to every breath Then we're all in the running for a hero's death
This is probably the best record released in 2020. I agree with Allmusic that the band's first release is bette, but this is an excellent record. Evidently the band chose the name Fontaines without knowing that another band ahead already chosen that name, so they added the D.C. for Dublin City.
This is a US pressing of Foghat's debut record. I wouldn't call myself a fan, and I am not sure where I got this record, but I do like some blues-rock, and some of these songs--a mix of covers and originals--are quite good. I suppose this record has more cache among the classic rock set, but since I have only really ever been half in that camp, this is not a required item for my collection. In fact, I might be one to put on the sale block one day. I could probably get a couple of bucks for it.
I was a casual fan of CCR, nothing more. When this record came out, I immediately hated The Old Man Down the Road, but I didn't mid the title track. I hear La Bamba in the opening riff of Centerfield, and maybe that was intentional? Until today, I assumed that this was Fogerty's first solo record. I was stunned to find out that this was his third. Today I learned.
The first Foetus record I owned was credited to Scraping Foetus off the Wheel on the jacket, so I assumed that was the band's name. I filed it in the S section of my collection. Little did I know (we were in the pre-internet dark ages) that the act was really Foetus and that other names used for the act were You've Got Foetus On Your Breath, Foetus Corruptus, The Foetus All Nude Revue, Foetus Eruptus, Foetus Über Frisco, Foetus in Your Bed, Foetus Under Glass, Foetus Over Frisco, Phillip And His Foetus Vibrations, Foetus Inc., The Foetus Of Excellence, Foetus Art Terrorism, etc? Really, though, this is a one-man act by Australian J.G. (Jim) Thirlwell (AKA Clint Ruin, or The Quincy Jones of the Avant Garde). As noted on Discogs:
"He composed everything and recorded all instruments himself, handling the entire production, even drawing illustrations and designing artworks, but for each album, he would invent a new 'band' with a word 'foetus' in a deliberately profane/offensive name."
I have the UK pressing of the third Fetus release. The first two records are very expensive and probably hard to find.
Any lingering question as to the direction that FM was taking in the mid to late 80s was put to rest with this record. The band even covered a Beach Boys tune. The lead-off track--Magic (in Your Eyes)--is a finely-crafted pop song. I can't really complain, but the rest of the record does not fair so well. Dream Girl and She Does What She Wants are insipid. I miss the early prog-jazz-space influences. I probably bought this because I had everything else the band had recorded, so why not?
Con-Test features the return of Nash the Slash to FM. Nash's solo career stalled after 1984, so I guess his return makes some sense. Instead of returning to the sound of the early years with Nash, the band forges ahead into really commercial territory.
The video for Just Like You is interesting in that you can hear Phasors on Stun on the car radio before Just like You commences. However, that's as much looking backwards as we get, because this is really a commercial record, and it is no where near as good as the previous FM releases or Nash the Slash's solo records. I would say that there are some OK pop songs om this record, but that's really not what I want from an FM record.
I suppose City of Fear could be regarded as a transitional album, though that is probably something that is easier to say in hindsight. After all, there was a five year gap following the release of this record. Yet, there is an undeniable move towards a more pop sound. It's not too bad, yet I can't help comparing it with the earlier stuff, which is probably not wise. Still, I guess you could say that this record marks the end of the great FM period.
The third outing from FM is a bit of a lesser effort compared with the first two, though still enjoyable. This album contains a fairly faithful cover version of the Yardbirds' Shapes of Things. If you want the real FM experience, find the first two releases. If you like those, you will like this. I don't own any FM recordings on CD, for whatever reason.
This record was released under two different titles, Direct to Disc as well as Head Room. The band has a different lineup from the first record, with Ben Mink replacing Nash the Slash.
Each side contains one long suite. Side A contains Headroom, a piece with five parts: Tyra, Reflections One, Reflections Two, Real Rime, and Scarberia. If you have lived in Toronto, the last segment's title will mean something to you. Side B contains Border Crossing, broken into four segments: The First Movement, The Second Movement, The Third Movement, and The Fourth Movement.
To me, this record sounds a bit more like space rock than prog, but I guess the two genres are ultimately the same.
There have been many direct to disc recordings. The process avoids the use of tape, as the title suggests. Instead, the music is mixed live and recorded directly to a master disc. Because only a limited number of pressings could be made from one master disc, these were always produced in limited quantities. I assume that the 2013 CD edition was mastered from a vinyl copy. I suppose if there are any further vinyl copies, those would likely be mastered from this CD generation, but who knows if that will happen.
Wikipedia notes both the advantages and disadvantages of the direct-to-disc method: "Technically, direct-to-disc recording is believed to result in a more
accurate, less noisy recording through the elimination of up to four
generations of master tapes, overdubs, and mix downs from multi-tracked masters. The method bypasses problems inherent in recording tape: tape hiss, wow and flutter.
From the musicians' point of view, the advantages of direct-to-disc
recording are a greater immediacy and interaction among the players."
And: "Although the spontaneity of performance is preserved, no overdubbing
or editing is possible. It becomes more challenging for the musicians,
engineers and producers, whose performances will be captured "warts and
all." In the event of aborted sides, expensive lacquers are wasted and
cannot be used again. According to Robert Auld of the Audio Engineering Society: "It was a notoriously difficult way to record; the musicians and all concerned had to record a complete LP side without any serious musical or technical mistakes.
Some artists maintain that musical instruments may drift out of tune:
It is not possible to keep instruments in tune for the length of the LP
side." [source]
Someone actually paid $100 for one of these on Discogs. I find that hard to believe.
FM is a Canadian prog rock band, partly notable for including Nash the Slash (until 1977, though he returned a couple of times). The first real concert I ever saw was Prism, another Canadian band. There were two acts supporting the band: The Pumps and FM. I remember the concert very well and I remember smelling marijuana, something I don't think I had ever smelled before then. My cousin even smuggled some home-grown Mary Jane into the venue in his sock, which he, and his friend, enjoyed. I passed on the offer, which was probably a good idea, because both reported that the ganja had no effect whatsoever.
The first record, Black Noise, contains probably the best-known FM track, Phasors on Stun. That's a Start Trek reference for the non-geeks. Phasors on Stun is a fabulous song. Bizarrely, this record was not released immediately. The label hung onto it and released it after the second album, known as Direct to Disc or Head Room. But, I think most people consider this to be the first record from the band. This record is clearly the best thing the band ever did.
Evidently, Sédatifs En Fréquences Et Sillons translates to sedative in frequencies and furrows. This EP contains three tracks, as follows:
"De cercle en cercle, ressasser et se perdre dans l'illusion née de
la production de distractions et multiplier la statique environnante!"
("From Circle to Circle, Rehash and Get Lost in the Illusion Born of
Production and Increase the Static Distractions Surrounding!") – 14:34
One could probably argue that the principle of diminishing marginal returns applies to many artists as they reach album number three, but in this case, I would argue that the third record is a bit better than the second, but it's not as good as the first. The following track is very good and sounds like classic Flock.
