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two reelers
* Dog in the Sand *
Austria
1036 Posts |
 Posted - 09/11/2006 : 08:14:10
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great that frank plays this song at the tour. i just discovered it, i think it is really great. it is a FB-classic, somewhere in the style of the marsist. it has so many hooks. odd, direct lyrics, strange timing & classic FB chord sequences.
the lyrics are really strange. references to atomic tests and somehow overall a 60/70ties technology feeling. has anybody insights if there is a specific story behind this song ? i don't get it.
"but your person
will be bursting
like the bikini atoll..."
i only know the BBC studio session. is it quite different from the "original" b-side ?
I joined the cult of Souled American / 'cause they are a damn' fine band |
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pixiestu
> Teenager of the Year <
United Kingdom
2564 Posts |
Posted - 09/11/2006 : 08:25:41
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This song at times reminds me of 'teenage kicks'. Mainly the verses.
If your talking about the John Peel session (I think that's the one) it's not much different to the b-side. In fact they seem more or less exactly the same to me.
"The arc of triumph" |
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Cult_Of_Frank
= Black Noise Maker =
Canada
11687 Posts |
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two reelers
* Dog in the Sand *
Austria
1036 Posts |
Posted - 09/11/2006 : 09:43:15
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hmm....
i'm not sure if this song is specifically about nuclear war. there are more hints towards some kind of an alien robot (drinking antiknock, PL/1, heaven sent you). or better, a mixture between a robot and an ancient giant/monster/god (loincloth, mantra)
hell, i'm lost in this song. what is grandmother's curse, and what about lucky seven (some kind of card play?)
and btw, what does the phrase "living on soul" itself mean ?
I joined the cult of Souled American / 'cause they are a damn' fine band |
Edited by - two reelers on 09/11/2006 09:44:03 |
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Carl
- A 'Fifth' Catholic -
Ireland
11546 Posts |
Posted - 09/11/2006 : 09:43:16
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Interesting. I thought this was a cover, actaully. It's a good song.
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jose
- FB Fan -
France
140 Posts |
Posted - 09/11/2006 : 09:43:32
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really great song,-with a huge bridge- we can find catholix demo version, peel session version and the official b-side version. bTW I don't see the similarities with "the marsist", it is more melodic and less weird.
I said Pretty Please ! |
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Cult_Of_Frank
= Black Noise Maker =
Canada
11687 Posts |
Posted - 09/11/2006 : 10:44:25
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Well, I don't want to say the song at large is about nuclear war (although regrettably I seem to have entered that into the db), but there's talk of Bikini Atoll, where the first nuclear bombs were tested. There's "they're gonna atomize you". There's "your person will be bursting". And there's the one line about doing the ragnarok. Plus all the talk of the computers they used back then for military stuff. It may not be 'about' it, but there are a lot of references.
 "Now you're officially my woman. Kudos. I can't say I don't envy you." |
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billgoodman
>> Denizen of the Citizens Band <<
Netherlands
6214 Posts |
Posted - 09/11/2006 : 11:28:42
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one of my faves
this song is what fb is all about
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God save the Noisies |
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coastline
> Teenager of the Year <
USA
3111 Posts |
Posted - 09/11/2006 : 15:30:25
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This song is killer in concert. I wasn't very familiar with it before I heard him play it last month, and I was surprised that it stuck with me as much as any of the more recognizable material. The "Bikini Atoll" part really jumps out at you, especially live.
 Shiny! |
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Sam
= Cult of Ray =
Ireland
514 Posts |
Posted - 09/11/2006 : 15:53:38
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great lyrics, great driving guitar that builds up to that screaming last verse about drinking anti-knock. So many references, i find myself really interested to find out exactly what the words are.
The DB entry for this is excellent.
I love these songs that turned up on the b-sides collection.
This and "somethings i can't get used to" feel really punky. Man i'd love a few more like this with Frank and the three piece with fuzz box. The way he sings this is just so uniquely Frank. Love it. |
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The Holiday Son
= Quote Accumulator =
France
2010 Posts |
Posted - 09/11/2006 : 16:02:46
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There is not one thing I dislike about this song.
Classic Frank at its best. |
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Joey Joe Jo Jr. Chabadoo
* Dog in the Sand *
1079 Posts |
Posted - 09/11/2006 : 16:02:56
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One of my favorite. The "should have been A-side" of the All My Ghosts single.
My first hit "Black Doves" was heavilly inspired by this one.
J. Chicago
(still alive and well living in Paris)
++++ |
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fumanbru
* Dog in the Sand *
Canada
1462 Posts |
Posted - 09/11/2006 : 20:05:51
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ya, fantastic track. great that frank has been playing it on the solo tour. when i got the self titled catholics cd the all my ghosts ep came with it. what a bonus!! i wonder if this song is tied at all to all my ghosts.
"..Have you heard about the heavenly angels
How they came to earth and met some ladies
With whom they mated?
And their young became giants every one.."
and i was always curious to the cover art of the all my ghosts cd. the funny lookin giants walking around..
 "I joined the Cult of Frank/ cause I'm a real go-getter!" |
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floop
= Wannabe Volunteer =
Mexico
15297 Posts |
Posted - 09/11/2006 : 21:13:34
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quote:
Originally posted by Joey Joe Jo Jr. Chabadoo
One of my favorite. The "should have been A-side" of the All My Ghosts single.
My first hit "Black Doves" was heavilly inspired by this one.
J. Chicago
(still alive and well living in Paris)
++++
for my money, on this single, Humboldt County Massacre is better than Living On Soul. but All My Ghosts rules. come on. are you on crazy pills? |
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Ziggy
* Dog in the Sand *
United Kingdom
2463 Posts |
Posted - 09/12/2006 : 02:43:44
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| I think the three songs from a holy trinity of brilliant Frank Black songs. I couldn't choose one over any of the others. |
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two reelers
* Dog in the Sand *
Austria
1036 Posts |
Posted - 09/12/2006 : 04:08:44
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quote:
Originally posted by jose
bTW I don't see the similarities with "the marsist", it is more melodic and less weird.
I said Pretty Please !
ya, it has much more melody, but the sound & the "timing" are somehow similar. you know, this hacked-off-feeling ("bursting - HACK - ever bursting -HACK..." vs. "I - HACK - have seen - HACK - your face - HACK...").
and it is pretty weird too, me thinks.
I joined the cult of Souled American / 'cause they are a damn' fine band |
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Crispy Water
= Cult of Ray =
Canada
819 Posts |
Posted - 09/12/2006 : 14:57:25
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No question, this is one of the finest songs I've ever heard. I was rifling through a bin at a store one Friday afternoon in June of 2001 and found the All My Ghosts single; both Humboldt County Massacre and Living On Soul have from that very day been charter members of my Frank Hall of Fame. If you haven't heard these versions of said songs, I cannot urge you strongly enough to find them. It will never make sense to me that these were buried on a single - despite all the ostensible hyperbole I mean every word of this.
Nothing is ever something. |
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IceCream
= Quote Accumulator =
USA
1850 Posts |
Posted - 09/14/2006 : 14:23:20
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quote:
Originally posted by fumanbru
ya, fantastic track. great that frank has been playing it on the solo tour. when i got the self titled catholics cd the all my ghosts ep came with it. what a bonus!! i wonder if this song is tied at all to all my ghosts.
"..Have you heard about the heavenly angels
How they came to earth and met some ladies
With whom they mated?
And their young became giants every one.."
and i was always curious to the cover art of the all my ghosts cd. the funny lookin giants walking around..
"I joined the Cult of Frank/ cause I'm a real go-getter!"
I'm pretty sure the cover is inspired by an illustration from a 15th century manuscript about the travels of Marco Polo. I don't know anything about this manuscript, other than that Marco Polo had never actually claimed to have seen such creatures. Europeans made up creatures that Marco Polo had seen. That headless man whose face is on his chest is totally made up. Apparently, there's a name for such a creature: a "blemmyae".
By the way, "Living on Soul" is an excellent song. I love the key change. Some key changes sound jarring and forced (eg. Oasis' "All Around the World"), but the key change featured in "Living on Soul" sounds very natural. I didn't even realize that the song starts in B and ends in D until I figured out the chords for the song on my guitar. After the chorus, the song retreads into a 2-chord riff that had previously been used at the beginning of the song; I know that's a standard practice for pop songwriting, but FB does it masterfully. In other words, the song flows well. |
Edited by - IceCream on 09/15/2006 12:00:14 |
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pixiestu
> Teenager of the Year <
United Kingdom
2564 Posts |
Posted - 09/14/2006 : 14:54:44
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Wow, I never even noticed the key change!
"The arc of triumph" |
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Superabounder
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1041 Posts |
Posted - 07/26/2007 : 18:13:18
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I cannot get this song out of my head lately. Frank sounds like he is having so much fun singing the "I'm drinking anti-knock" verse. Has anyone figured out any more ideas on the meaning? Anti-knock apparently is the chemical added to gasoline to raise the octane number according to a google search. Man, just brings me back to why I originally loved Frank: powerful, creative guitars, lyrics that not only sound cool, but have so much depth (unknown to me in this case) behind them, and a passionate delivery. The references to old programming languages, nuclear testing, gasoline additives, and throwing in "chop chop" in another song leaves me speechless.
I'd rather be anywhere or doing anything |
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coastline
> Teenager of the Year <
USA
3111 Posts |
Posted - 07/26/2007 : 18:54:56
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My favorite thread on this entire forum is the other one for this song -- http://forum.frankblack.net/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=17558&SearchTerms=mantra. I wish I had something to add to it, but I'm still baffled about who or what is singing/narrating the song. Anyway, what a great song. It brings me back to that night in Omaha last year when he did it solo acoustic. Chilling.
Oh, and I miss Dean. A lot.
 Please pardon me, for these my wrongs. |
Edited by - coastline on 07/27/2007 03:11:46 |
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windupbird
- FB Fan -
127 Posts |
Posted - 07/26/2007 : 20:16:26
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Great song and great entry in the Discopedia - I didn't know the MTA/Charlie story, that's a good one. The vocals in the middle part are just amazing (as is the rest of the song). I'm glad I finally got to read the lyrics, I would've never guessed ragnarok. I thought it was something like "I do the Rodney Rock", as in 'Rodney on the ROQ" (Rodney Bigenheimer the DJ). Not that it makes any sense or anything, it's just what my mind was hearing.
Hey, wait a minute, maybe there should be an FB song about Rodney... Hmm. |
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Ford Prefect
- FB Fan -
USA
26 Posts |
Posted - 07/27/2007 : 00:27:30
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I've been really getting into this song, too. Unfortunately, I think it suffers from a rather poor recording and weak/by-the-numbers middle eight section. The verses, however, are brilliant-- perfect Frank Black. Especially the way he sings the "anti-knock" and "ragnarok" lines.
My favorite version is probably the Christmass acoustic recording.
Do you like worms? |
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Ziggy
* Dog in the Sand *
United Kingdom
2463 Posts |
Posted - 07/31/2007 : 03:55:13
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In my more youthful days, I misheard a line as being
"I do a mental, and I knob everyone" |
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vilainde
>> Denizen of the Citizens Band <<
Niue
7443 Posts |
Posted - 07/31/2007 : 05:44:26
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quote:
Originally posted by Ford Prefect
My favorite version is probably the Christmass acoustic recording.
I just listened to all the versions I had on my PC and I have to agree. The way he sings the bridge is stunning.
The live version from the Best Of is pretty cool too. I like the guitar part on it, the notes on the chorus sounds a bit like a keyboard, reminds me of Devo or something.
Denis
"Can you hear me? I aint got shit to say." |
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the "living on soul" appreciation thread
