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two reelers
* Dog in the Sand *
Austria
1036 Posts |
 Posted - 02/20/2018 : 15:18:37
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It was 1993 when the self-titled debut came out. The yellow album (on CD) and the orange album (LP), respectively...
Where was I, way back then? In high school, in Europe, 17 years old or so. I just had discovered the Pixies, and was really getting into them. At one day, out of the blue, I heard rumours that they have broken up (pre-internet times for me; a class mate who had MTV at home reported this to me). I felt sad, for having lost a very fresh and very passionate love. But then more rumours: The main Pixie, Mr. Black Francis, will follow up with a solo record. Exciting! But slightly frightened as well: How will it compare to the incomparable? Will I be disappointed? Every week I went to my local record store, just to be told to be patient until the album arrives, and they don't know when that will be. Ah, these pre-internet times - no spoilers, no leaking, just the beautiful excitement of eagerly anticipating the unknown...
Then it was here, and it took me by a very pleasant surprise: The LP sleeve was made of rough paperboard, not the usual smooth/laminated and glossy paper sleeve. It also had a folding flap, which I stupidly removed later on. The cover itself was fantastic, so different from the Pixies style. Very simple, but somehow much more warm and human. It had a sticker which became my motto for years to come: "DEATH TO THE PIXIES - HERE COMES FRANK BLACK!". And the best thing was the logo: The F & B, entwined to represent a man with a guitar. Ingenious, once for the form and once just for the idea to have a logo for a one-man-band. (For the old folks on this forum, you may want to remember that I made frankblack.net-T-shirts with that logo and distributed them among some of you).
What about the most important thing - the music? I probably was very nervous when I put it on the record player. When the first chords of "Los Angeles" started to resonate, all anxiety was blown away. I was immediately in love with this new thing. It was very different from the Pixies, more playful, less mysterious, in some way much more approachable. Despite being very much into loud and rough guitars and noise at that time, I was hooked to the synthie-pop sound of "Two Spaces" in an instant. I was so happy.
What other snippets or thoughts are there to share? Just two days ago, I listened to "Ten Percenter", and it really made me wish that Frank and David Bowie would have performed it together at the 50th birthday of Bowie. Imagine Reeves on the guitar, and Gail Ann Dorsay on the bass. Bowie and Frank sharing vocals 'if you wanna wile a while ..IF YOU WANNA WILE A WHILE!...JERK JERK JERK!!!' "Parry the wind, high low" - another highlight. I still think the Pixies 2.0 should do that song.
Anybody else?
I joined the cult of Souled American / 'cause they are a damn' fine band |
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Discoking
* Dog in the Sand *
Belgium
1120 Posts |
Posted - 02/20/2018 : 23:20:17
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I was eleven. I had never heard of the Pixies, nor Frank Black.
 it's educational |
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Bedbug
> Teenager of the Year <
3148 Posts |
Posted - 02/21/2018 : 05:08:26
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Great post Two Reelers.
I was a Pixies fan all through high school, got to see them live, and was burning out the cassettes listening to them non-stop. I remember we could only find the B-Sides literally on side B of the CDs, so I had these mix tapes of those. I was super bummed to hear that they had broken up. They just missed the opportunity to become "Alternative Darlings" like Nirvana, Chili Peppers, et. al. had become. If they released another album in 93 or 94 it would have gotten a huge push.
I remember hearing (maybe through Rolling Stone magazine of all places) that Black Francis was releasing an album of Beach Boy covers and calling it Frank Black. I was both skeptical and psyched on the idea. I was a freshman in college when the album came out. As Two Reelers said above, the album cover blew me away. It still does. It is the single best album cover of anything Charles has been associated with, bar none. I keep meaning to make a T-shirt of it and send the merchandising fee to Charles. Maybe soon.
When I put the tape (I still didn't have a CD player) in my car and heard the opening of Los Angeles I was disoriented. It was both awesome and offputting. I knew the Pixies were dead, and I missed that sound, but this sound was amazing too, just so different. It was very dreamlike. It was beautiful and garish, a mix of earth and space. I knew that although I was really into it I didn't get it. My favorite song would change which each listen, and sometimes I wouldn't like parts that I ended up loving a little later. The whole album is a trip.
You could also really feel that Frank was having fun here. As much as I love Bossanova and Trompe, it seems that Frank was maybe having a lot more fun with the Pixies being behind him. I think that would still be the case in 2018, but I digress.
When he came to NYC that summer I went and saw him. I remember some people in the crowd yelling "Monkey" and "Debaser," but he was Frank Black now, and that was awesome. It was a sick show.
His production from 1988 to 1994 is just insane. It's better than anyone else. Can you believe in those few years he turned out everything from Surfer Rosa to Teenager of the Year? It's unbelievable.
Frank Black, the one who is post Pixies but pre-Catholics, is my favorite incarnation of the man. I miss him. I wish he would have given it a longer run. All those concerts from 93-95 are priceless.
All these years later, this album is probably the one that has the fewest songs I skip on it. I would probably say that Trompe and TOTY are tied for first on my list of his favorite albums, and this album would be next, but I skip fewer songs on it than I do on those.
The excitement I felt when I heard this in 93 for the first time is still with me, and I have listened to it countless times. I can't say that about his 2.0 efforts, but I totally support him being able to make some money now finally. Sometimes I get sad seeing him perform Wave for the billionth time, wondering if he wishes he could strum a few chords of Czar.
If I were in a band that was opening for the Pixies, I would get his permission to play Tossed. I think that would both get the crowd amped and would be a great gift to the fans who love everything he's ever done.
Bad Frank Black music is better than the Beatles entire catalog plus Prince multiplied by Bob Dylan's legacy (had a lot of coffee today). And his best stuff, like Frank Black "Frank Black," is beyond description.
I'll be listening to this album today. |
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OLDMANOTY
= Cult of Ray =
United Kingdom
469 Posts |
Posted - 02/24/2018 : 12:05:40
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[/quote]
Frank Black, the one who is post Pixies but pre-Catholics, is my favorite incarnation of the man.
[/quote]
Same here - his imperial period for me. That said, I've enjoyed revisiting Black Letter Days recently, and a few tracks off FMRM too. That Frank Black is still there, just filtered through a different channel. |
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OLDMANOTY
= Cult of Ray =
United Kingdom
469 Posts |
Posted - 02/24/2018 : 12:08:02
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quote:
Frank Black, the one who is post Pixies but pre-Catholics, is my favorite incarnation of the man.
Same here - his imperial period for me. That said, I've enjoyed revisiting Black Letter Days recently, and a few tracks off FMRM too. That Frank Black is still there, just filtered through a different channel. |
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OLDMANOTY
= Cult of Ray =
United Kingdom
469 Posts |
Posted - 02/24/2018 : 12:10:04
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| Oops |
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Bedbug
> Teenager of the Year <
3148 Posts |
Posted - 02/26/2018 : 03:13:44
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quote:
Originally posted by OLDMANOTY
quote:
Frank Black, the one who is post Pixies but pre-Catholics, is my favorite incarnation of the man.
Same here - his imperial period for me. That said, I've enjoyed revisiting Black Letter Days recently, and a few tracks off FMRM too. That Frank Black is still there, just filtered through a different channel.
Good phrase, "his imperial period." I think the 93-95 FB is who he really is. He could only show us a glimpse because we couldn't handle it. He had to come back to earth with the Catholics. |
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pot
> Teenager of the Year <
Iceland
3910 Posts |
Posted - 02/26/2018 : 08:40:36
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| Amsterdam 27th Nijmegen 28th Zwolle 29th this week marks 10 years since he last played solo in Europe. After that it was all Pixies gigs. |
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Bedbug
> Teenager of the Year <
3148 Posts |
Posted - 02/27/2018 : 04:09:04
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quote:
Originally posted by pot
Amsterdam 27th Nijmegen 28th Zwolle 29th this week marks 10 years since he last played solo in Europe. After that it was all Pixies gigs.
You sound so sad.
And rightfully so.
I think the last solo show I saw him at was 2010? At Le Poisson Rouge. EDF switched back and forth from keys to bass. |
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pot
> Teenager of the Year <
Iceland
3910 Posts |
Posted - 02/27/2018 : 05:11:00
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quote:
Originally posted by Bedbug
quote:
Originally posted by pot
Amsterdam 27th Nijmegen 28th Zwolle 29th this week marks 10 years since he last played solo in Europe. After that it was all Pixies gigs.
You sound so sad.
And rightfully so.
I think the last solo show I saw him at was 2010? At Le Poisson Rouge. EDF switched back and forth from keys to bass.
Not about FB not playing or touring much solo anymore, I got to see plenty of him on his last couple of tours. I'd like to go back and live in Holland again for a while though, Scotland has nice hills but it's been pretty miserable the past few years, politically. |
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Bedbug
> Teenager of the Year <
3148 Posts |
Posted - 02/27/2018 : 05:34:35
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I enjoy Pixies 2.0 AND it makes me sad. It's complicated.
What does Scotland need? What's going wrong? |
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pot
> Teenager of the Year <
Iceland
3910 Posts |
Posted - 02/27/2018 : 06:51:16
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quote:
Originally posted by Bedbug
I enjoy Pixies 2.0 AND it makes me sad. It's complicated.
What does Scotland need? What's going wrong?
I take it you're not from this land.
I think a better question would be: what's NOT going wrong?
Scotland needs rid of Westminster tory rule for starters. And coffeeshops..
Where do I start? The political landscape of the UK is going through a somewhat tumultuous period at the moment. |
Edited by - pot on 02/27/2018 06:51:49 |
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Bedbug
> Teenager of the Year <
3148 Posts |
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Bedbug
> Teenager of the Year <
3148 Posts |
Posted - 02/27/2018 : 07:13:10
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quote:
Originally posted by pot
quote:
Originally posted by Bedbug
I enjoy Pixies 2.0 AND it makes me sad. It's complicated.
What does Scotland need? What's going wrong?
I take it you're not from this land.
I think a better question would be: what's NOT going wrong?
Scotland needs rid of Westminster tory rule for starters. And coffeeshops..
Where do I start? The political landscape of the UK is going through a somewhat tumultuous period at the moment.
I have no frame of reference for Scotland. I'll have to look you up if I ever visit. I assume I won't find you in a coffee shop?
Is the coffee shop problem like a Starbucks thing? Or like an annoying Brooklyn hipster thing? Or something else? |
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Bedbug
> Teenager of the Year <
3148 Posts |
Posted - 02/27/2018 : 07:14:27
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And hey everybody! What about more thoughts on the 25th anniversary of "Frank Black"?!
I want to read you! |
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pot
> Teenager of the Year <
Iceland
3910 Posts |
Posted - 02/27/2018 : 07:34:42
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quote:
I have no frame of reference for Scotland. I'll have to look you up if I ever visit. I assume I won't find you in a coffee shop?
Is the coffee shop problem like a Starbucks thing? Or like an annoying Brooklyn hipster thing? Or something else?
The literary works of Irvine Welsh provide a good starting point for research.
By coffeeshops I mean Amsterdam style coffeeshops. I suppose you might find a few annoying hipsters in these places.
Normal boring coffeeshops are very popular in Scotland though. People love to spend up to £5 on a designer latte. I personly don't see the point unless it's beer and/or comes with a side menu of ketama and blueberry haze.
So anyway, something else about 25 years of Frank Black. |
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Bedbug
> Teenager of the Year <
3148 Posts |
Posted - 02/27/2018 : 13:29:22
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| People have strong feelings about coffee |
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Stevio10
* Dog in the Sand *
United Kingdom
1118 Posts |
Posted - 02/28/2018 : 02:51:20
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Re: the imperial period. Do you guys think FB leaving 4AD coincides with this?
I remember reading how he was due to perform on a TV show around 95(ish) but he didn't have a band.
He bumped into Mark Mulcahy of Miracle Legion who suggested he use his band. It went well so he thought he should play with those guys again. The guys from Miracle Legion (minus Mr Ray who eventually left for Edinburgh) recorded COR with FB and Portrait of a Damaged Family with Miracle Legion both released in 96. Miracle Legion then split.
I digress but I got the impression the FB solo was a one off but they did one more anyway (TOTY) then went their own ways and FB asked to leave 4AD.
I may be wrong but I believe at this point he wanted to escape his Pixies past (including Joey?) with the new label, record, band allowing him to do this. I would have preferred he stay with 4AD personally, American records or Sony wasn't the best match and the sound of those 1st 2 solo albums were never recreated again.
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danjersey
> Teenager of the Year <
USA
2792 Posts |
Posted - 03/01/2018 : 15:00:12
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quote:
Originally posted by Bedbug
People have strong feelings about coffee
When I think of coffee and Frank Black I hear "I'm drinking anti-knock" |
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Cult_Of_Frank
= Black Noise Maker =
Canada
11687 Posts |
Posted - 03/02/2018 : 04:09:06
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quote:
Originally posted by Bedbug
quote:
Originally posted by OLDMANOTY
quote:
Frank Black, the one who is post Pixies but pre-Catholics, is my favorite incarnation of the man.
Same here - his imperial period for me. That said, I've enjoyed revisiting Black Letter Days recently, and a few tracks off FMRM too. That Frank Black is still there, just filtered through a different channel.
Good phrase, "his imperial period." I think the 93-95 FB is who he really is. He could only show us a glimpse because we couldn't handle it. He had to come back to earth with the Catholics.
Yeah, I liked that too. I will adopt that terminology from now on. On the other hand, there is no yellow album.
 "If we hit this bullseye, the rest of the dominoes will fall like a house of cards. Checkmate." |
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Cult_Of_Frank
= Black Noise Maker =
Canada
11687 Posts |
Posted - 03/02/2018 : 04:16:07
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And 25 years ago, I had heard of neither Pixies nor Frank Black. It would, in fact, be 6 years later that I first heard either, with my friend and former forum member speedy_m making me a mix CD of Pixies music. It took 3 spins before Caribou all of a sudden grabbed me. And then Ed is Dead, and then Motorway to Roswell, and a few more spins for all the rest. But those three spins were quite spaced out (as I really didn't think I liked it the first time through) and between spin 3 and 4, when I finally had started to latch on to 2-3 songs and was shocked to have seen my opinion completely reverse that a second mix with Frank Black's imperial period music was given. And that was love at first spin. Freedom Rock. The second half of Speedy Marie (it was a couple times later that I decided to look up the song title/track and realize that the first/second half were the same song). I remember asking why he didn't give me the Frank Black to start with. I loved them both, but Emperor Frank Black is ruler of this moon, boy.
"If we hit this bullseye, the rest of the dominoes will fall like a house of cards. Checkmate." |
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Bedbug
> Teenager of the Year <
3148 Posts |
Posted - 03/14/2018 : 05:16:00
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That's really interesting that FB grabbed you right away but 1.0 didn't.
I wonder how many people actually heard a non-Pixies Charles song before they heard a Pixies one? |
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coastline
> Teenager of the Year <
USA
3111 Posts |
Posted - 05/12/2018 : 06:51:10
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quote:
Originally posted by Bedbug
That's really interesting that FB grabbed you right away but 1.0 didn't.
I wonder how many people actually heard a non-Pixies Charles song before they heard a Pixies one?
"Los Angeles" was my introduction -- by way of MTV. I liked the song and the video. Then a friend turned me on to "Head On" and I got into the Pixies and bought all their CDs. Solo FB love came awhile later.
Peak Frank, for me, came around the time I joined this forum in the mid-2000s, roughly from "Honeycomb" to "Bluefinger."
One of my favorite memories from that period was when the forum's billgoodman and I decoded "Bluefinger" as being entirely about the Dutch artist Herman Brood.
__________________________________________________
If all you see is violins, then I make a plea in their defense. |
Edited by - coastline on 05/12/2018 06:52:06 |
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benji
> Teenager of the Year <
New Zealand
3426 Posts |
Posted - 05/12/2018 : 11:43:33
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It was exactly (approximately) 25 years ago that I first heard Frank, but actually as Black, when one of my older (and wiser) sisters bought Surfer Rosa and Doolittle home on cd. I was an impressionable 13-year old at that stage, and suffice to say, they blew my mind. She also had Pod, and that slotted in that group nicely. I'd get up early in the mornings so I could go into the lounge specifically to listen to these records over and over again.
My introduction to FB was seeing the Headache video on TV. Didn't grab me initially, but the pills in the video stuck with me, and I also hadn't made the connection with the Pixies at that point either.
It was a few more years until I embraced the solo stuff, with The Cult Of Ray being the first ever CD I purchased.
It's interesting to relive the days before the internet made accessing information about these bands so easy.
To complete the collection, I bought University by Throwing Muses on cassette solely based on a review in a local music magazine, totally unheard. Didn't know of the connection at all, and interestingly, my sister had a copy of Hips & Makers as well but I'd leave the room every time she played it as I hated it with a passion - it was acoustic rubbish music to my untrained ears.
It was a few months later than I made the connection between Kristin Hersh and Throwing Muses, and then onto The Breeders and the Pixies and Frank.
Ah, my god that was an amazing time in my musical life.
all i can say, thank god for polio! brian |
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Bedbug
> Teenager of the Year <
3148 Posts |
Posted - 05/15/2018 : 00:30:06
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quote:
Originally posted by benji
It was exactly (approximately) 25 years ago that I first heard Frank, but actually as Black, when one of my older (and wiser) sisters bought Surfer Rosa and Doolittle home on cd. I was an impressionable 13-year old at that stage, and suffice to say, they blew my mind. She also had Pod, and that slotted in that group nicely. I'd get up early in the mornings so I could go into the lounge specifically to listen to these records over and over again.
My introduction to FB was seeing the Headache video on TV. Didn't grab me initially, but the pills in the video stuck with me, and I also hadn't made the connection with the Pixies at that point either.
It was a few more years until I embraced the solo stuff, with The Cult Of Ray being the first ever CD I purchased.
It's interesting to relive the days before the internet made accessing information about these bands so easy.
To complete the collection, I bought University by Throwing Muses on cassette solely based on a review in a local music magazine, totally unheard. Didn't know of the connection at all, and interestingly, my sister had a copy of Hips & Makers as well but I'd leave the room every time she played it as I hated it with a passion - it was acoustic rubbish music to my untrained ears.
It was a few months later than I made the connection between Kristin Hersh and Throwing Muses, and then onto The Breeders and the Pixies and Frank.
Ah, my god that was an amazing time in my musical life.
all i can say, thank god for polio! brian
I remember some of my non-FB fan friends saying that that Headache video was corny.
They're not my friends anymore. |
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rivum
= Cult of Ray =
Canada
265 Posts |
Posted - 05/17/2018 : 05:26:29
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I first heard of pixies from a sampler from local radio station CFNY in Toronto which has planet of sound on it.
obviously once you hear that you need to hear more... |
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Superabounder
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1041 Posts |
Posted - 05/18/2018 : 17:20:44
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Great posts all of you...what great memories. My first FB exposure: Doolittle in my final years of college. Pixies highlight was seeing them during Trompe Le Monde tour - that album was my favorite due to the powerful guitars and the interplay between Charles' and Joey's guitars. I couldn't believe it when the Pixies broke up. Sometime after I remember reading an article about Frank recording an album on a computer. That was a new thing. I was in wonder about how he could do that and imagined unlimited tracks for recording. When I finally got the album it blew me away. Like others mentioned the artwork was so beautiful and warm. The songs were so richly produced. I loved it. I saw that first tour and enjoyed the concert. When Teenager came out somehow I was turned off at first - maybe because of the cover art and how fat Frank had gotten! For some reason I skipped the freaking concert and I think it took me a while before I really listened to the album but after I finally got it I was in love and listened to it more than any album ever. The tour for Cult of Ray - that was one of my all-time favorite concerts. There was a stretch of about 10 songs in a row that absolutely completely mother-effing rocked and he didn't stop at all between songs. One ended and the next began immediately and everyone in the hall was going wild. Gives me shivers just thinking back on how excited I was and how fantastic they sounded. Ahh, and then shortly after I found this lovely forum and lurked around for years.
I'd rather be anywhere or doing anything |
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fumanbru
* Dog in the Sand *
Canada
1462 Posts |
Posted - 05/19/2018 : 17:50:58
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Threads like this bring back so many great memories of this forum and Frank’s music. In 1992, while backpacking through Europe at age 20 my friend introduced me to Wave of Mutalation UK surf. I liked it right away....my buddy told me I should go get Surfer Rosa. So when I got back home I went to the record store and bought Surfer Rosa and also noticed Frank Black’s first sol album in the new releases. I rotated between both CD’s. I loved Los Angeles right away! And loved the video. And then I saw a TV interview with Frank and thought this guy is so cool and funny. I really took me a while to get into Surfer Rosa. I remember it sounded so strange and different at the time. I had mainly been listening to grunge, classic rock, and Metallica And then I bought Doolittle a month later and fell in love with it. ....then Boosanova....then TOTY! TOTY brought my appreciation of Frank’s music to a completely new level. I have been listening to Frank’s music for 26 years and it still brings me so much joy. Yippie-iye-aye!
 "I joined the Cult of Frank/ cause I'm a real go-getter!"...long live snitz!! |
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Bedbug
> Teenager of the Year <
3148 Posts |
Posted - 05/19/2018 : 17:56:21
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I love reading everyone's posts.
More please.
Can this forum really be the only place on the internet that is discussing 25 years of "Frank Black" ? |
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fumanbru
* Dog in the Sand *
Canada
1462 Posts |
Posted - 05/19/2018 : 18:16:40
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Probably! ....But Crispy Water from this forum introduced me to a group on Facebook- Pixies and Frank Black Francis that I have started checking out more recently. It is pretty active and has some pretty good stories and a fair amount of love for Frank’s solo material.
"I joined the Cult of Frank/ cause I'm a real go-getter!"...long live snitz!! |
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fumanbru
* Dog in the Sand *
Canada
1462 Posts |
Posted - 05/19/2018 : 18:24:47
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quote:
Originally posted by coastline
Peak Frank, for me, came around the time I joined this forum in the mid-2000s, roughly from "Honeycomb" to "Bluefinger."
One of my favorite memories from that period was when the forum's billgoodman and I decoded "Bluefinger" as being entirely about the Dutch artist Herman Brood.
__________________________________________________
If all you see is violins, then I make a plea in their defense.
I remember that Coasty! That was awesome! I was just looking for that thread but no luck. Maybe it was deleted?
"I joined the Cult of Frank/ cause I'm a real go-getter!"...long live snitz!! |
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Stevio10
* Dog in the Sand *
United Kingdom
1118 Posts |
Posted - 05/20/2018 : 09:15:17
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Must have been late 97 or early 98 when I was in high school, one night I had a dream I was in my local record shop and saw Death to the Pixies CD. I presume I had seen this CD before in real life but had never to my knowledge heard the Pixies before.
I put the cd back and looked at some others. After some browsing I decided I would then buy the Death to the Pixies album but in Another Toe fashion, it was gone!
I awoke the next morning with the dream fresh in my mind and had a keen sense of determination to set that wrong right. I went to my local record store and bought Death to the Pixies.
I remember the first time I listened to it, I was confused, it went by so quickly and this strange music didn't make a lot of sense. But by the 3rd and 4th listens I was hooked.
As the months went by I picked up all the albums and it was on hearing Bossanova I had a strange feeling of hearing Is She Weird before, turns out my brother used to listen to that album a lot when I was a kid.
Anyway, I first gained knowledge that this Black Francis dude had a solo career at the time of the release of the first Catholics album. I was reading some music mag and there was a shitty review giving it 2 stars I believe but with the knowledge there was new music to explore I put it on my list to get at some point.
After a break up with a then girlfriend I thought I would treat myself to Frank Black and the Catholics as a way to cheer myself up, from the same record shop. Do You Feel Bad About It was my go to song for getting through that period.
I went from Pixies straight to Catholics without knowing of the first 3 solo albums. It was quite the musical shift! I liked it and stuck with it.
During the time between Catholics self titled and Pistolero I caught up on FB, TOTY, CoR and Breeders material.
I bought Pistolero the day it came out from that same record shop and it was awesome hearing Bad Harmony, I Switched You, I Want Rock and Roll, I Think I'm Starting to Lose it etc. Man what a great rocking album that was!
By the time DITS came out I was at college in Glasgow (moving from a remote part of Scotland where bands rarely tour) and I got to see Frank for the first time in 2002.
DITS for me is the FB masterpiece. Maybe he has done better records but this was current for me, I wasn't looking back at something I hadn't witnessed. I was witnessing this band evolve and mature into a very different beast and seeing them live in a venue of 3 or 400 when Fight Club had recently come out and the buzz about the Pixies was reaching fever pitch was the gig of a lifetime.
They played the songs live better than it sounded on the album. You could hear a pin drop during Stupid Me it was that intense. Then the thrill of hearing a then unknown new song, The Black Rider followed by Mr Grieves. It was fantastic and I still believe the Catholics can play any Pixies track just as good.
But back to DITS, going from Catholics self titled to Pistolero is quite an assured stretch of a band getting comfortable but going from these 2 to DITS is off the scale in grandeur. The closing moments of Dog in the Sand finishes in a tone of relief and gratitude knowing that they pulled it off gets me every time. I've Seen your Picture is the best vocal delivery I've ever heard FB do, it's just so good.
I got to see them again in 2003 then the Pixies in 2004 and again in 2005. Although it's great seeing the Pixies, I miss that feeling of wondering what the next Catholics album will bring. DITS to the excellent BLD/DW then the great SMYT were the peak period for me. Though there wasn't such a sea change from Pistolero to DITS from DITS onwards, the quality of the songs stayed the same.
I never got to see FB solo again after those 2 Catholics shows but thats ok, I got to see that band at their peak.
When FB has Joey and EDF he can't go wrong.
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fumanbru
* Dog in the Sand *
Canada
1462 Posts |
Posted - 05/21/2018 : 00:17:39
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These stories are great! Thanks Stevio. Frank has so many different periods in his musical period it is so cool to hear how people go from one period to the next. With such a long period of Pixies reunion shows I have a feeling that FB&C’s and his solo work has gained a lot more fans. I agree with you Stevio that FB&C’s do an amazing job with the Pixies covers. I hope one day they do some more live shows....and I’m still hoping one day for a TOTY reunion tour!
"I joined the Cult of Frank/ cause I'm a real go-getter!"...long live snitz!! |
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Bedbug
> Teenager of the Year <
3148 Posts |
Posted - 09/14/2018 : 10:26:45
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I've been listening to this album a lot lately. It's so good I can't even say, yet there are still parts I'll skip once in a while.
Los Angeles - this song is still one of my favorites, period. The intro and outro are my favorite parts, but the guitar in the middle part sounds like a chain saw cutting my skull in half. I still remember how disorienting it sounded the first time I put the tape in the tapedeck. Frank is unreal. Would have been crazy to hear Kim and Joey and Dave on this too.
I Heard Ramona Sing - I still can't understand the sounds from the musical intro to this song. The guitars sound like hollow tubes of ice. It's such a spacy sound, but the song itself is so down to earth, just about a dude discovering his love for his favorite band. Frank is a master and this is a classic on par with anything.
Hang On To Your Ego - One of the few FB songs I skip a lot. I dig it. I dig the Beach Boys. And I thought the original idea of doing a whole covers album was great, but... I can live without more of this. Then again, FB covering ANYTHING would be better than anyone else playing anything else.
Fu manchu - A lot of fun still, but maybe not as mindblowing as ome of the others. His voice on this is very good. "Occidentally tic tac" is a favorite lyric of mine, and I should also mention it under the Daily Frankisms thread.
Places Named After Numbers - One of my favs from this album. The intro is perfectly odd. And this is one of FBs most beautiful songs I think. It makes me think of lost love. A great, great song.
Czar - One of the rockingest songs on the album, and from the Imperial Era. I like some of the live versions better, but this song kicks butt every which way. But help me somebody with all the John Denver references?
Old Black Dawning - Another classic from this album. Just a fun fun song, great intstruments, fun story, and more energy than anything in the 2.0 era.
Ten Percenter - My favorite thing about this song is what I perceive to be the sardonic parody within it. Reminds me of Freedom Rock and others from CoR as well.
Brackish Boy - So this is supposedly a long lost 1.0 song too? Why can't 2.0 play it in 2019? This song rules, and has so much potential for live performances. "Pineappled!"
Two Spaces - I feel like this one was a prematurely born song that belonged on TOTY. Probably not my favorite, but sometimes it gets stuck in my head for days.
Tossed - One of my favorites from the album. I dont' need to hear the lyrics. This rules. Such a sick, solid, psycho jam. Such fun energy coming out of this. Great song to drive to too.
Parry the Wind, High, Low - For years this was my favorite from this album. The tempo change, the story, the unknowableness, the chorus, the FB screams. Doesn't he introduce it in one show with, "Hey, who wants to hear a song about UFOs?" Frank is the Law.
Adda Lee - This song is such a mystery to me, because for 25 years it has made me really sad every time I hear it, and I don't know why. It's defintely one that seems too short, but then again maybe that's why it's so good. Great lyrics
Every Time I Go Around Here - I used to skip this one for years. Now I'm way more into it. But it does seem like a precursor (good forum word) to the FMRM days. Great song. Love the pauses.
Don't You Rile 'Em - Pure Rock and Roll FB style. Man I love this song. What an ender. Is it his best ender? I'll have to ask in another thread won't I?
This album is amazing. Thanks Frank for making it.
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Jason Bravo
- FB Fan -
USA
90 Posts |
Posted - 09/15/2018 : 18:40:52
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Maybe this isn't the right place to post this but, this version of Ling on Soul caught my attention! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aaJlY5ohg-E
Frank Black and the Catholics at the beginning stages absolutely ruled!! The drums are crazy good...I'm sure some have heard before, but it is ridiculously awesome/ |
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speedy_m
= Frankofile =
Canada
3581 Posts |
Posted - 09/17/2018 : 08:48:47
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quote:
Originally posted by Cult_Of_Frank
And 25 years ago, I had heard of neither Pixies nor Frank Black. It would, in fact, be 6 years later that I first heard either, with my friend and former forum member speedy_m making me a mix CD of Pixies music. It took 3 spins before Caribou all of a sudden grabbed me. And then Ed is Dead, and then Motorway to Roswell, and a few more spins for all the rest. But those three spins were quite spaced out (as I really didn't think I liked it the first time through) and between spin 3 and 4, when I finally had started to latch on to 2-3 songs and was shocked to have seen my opinion completely reverse that a second mix with Frank Black's imperial period music was given. And that was love at first spin. Freedom Rock. The second half of Speedy Marie (it was a couple times later that I decided to look up the song title/track and realize that the first/second half were the same song). I remember asking why he didn't give me the Frank Black to start with. I loved them both, but Emperor Frank Black is ruler of this moon, boy.
"If we hit this bullseye, the rest of the dominoes will fall like a house of cards. Checkmate."
just being chronological, probably |
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Topic |
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25 years of Frank Black
