IED0DXM@UCLAMVS.BITNET (09/29/86)
Responding to Peter's commentary re the new Nelson LP, IED has
a bone or two to pick. First, although the U.S. version does have
two different tracks and a different cover, there is really no
evidence that the changes were entirely the record companies'
idea, is there? Both covers are clearly Nelsonian.
Next, the choice of the two alternate tracks does not
appear to have been made on the basis of pop accessibility, since all
four tracks in question belong clearly to Nelson's commercial genre.
Further, the supplement released about ten days ago
("Living for the Spangled Moment") is in no way musically
inferior to "Getting the Holy Ghost Across". One thing that
has always been distinctive about Nelson (especially in his
non-ambient work) is his consistent standard of quality.
Perhaps he simply preferred the two "Spangled"
tracks by the time the U.S. release was ready, and substituted
them willingly.
Also, Nelson has not really worked "frequently" with Sylvian, only
on a few recent tracks; his relation to Japanese music
is more extensive, and he's worked on one track ("Glow World"
from "Chimera") with Mick Karn.
Finally and most importantly, Peter, although Nelson's aesthetic and fine
craftsmanship are undeniable, any comparison such as you make
between his music and Kate's is patently ridiculous. Nelson's talent,
although great, is far narrower and more entrenched than Kate's:
"accessibility" in Nelson's case is recurrent and extremely
predictable in terms of sound and style; in Kate's case "accessibility"
is unexpected, unpredictable, widely varied in style, and
above all, DECEPTIVE.
Frankly, this kind of flippant, ill-considered
denigration of Kate's recent work on the dubious grounds that it is
somehow "easier" or less avant-garde is getting harder to take.
If those who insist that this is
so could just ONCE produce some concrete evidence for the notion,
perhaps it might gain some respect as an idea. Having gravitated strongly
toward the last LP, this writer is presently of the opinion that
"Hounds Love/The Ninth Wave" is a BETTER album than "The Dreaming".
What it lacks in shock value and the "inaccessibility" which
you folks seem to covet so blindly, it more than compensates for
in depth of meaning and musical complexity. Although "The Dreaming"
was without doubt the best record released since "Abbey Road",
even it has nearly been eclipsed by the shadow of "The Ninth Wave"
-- which latter recording is certainly the greatest piece
of popular music ever produced.
Answering Tavares's question, IED suggests you try the sheet-music
stores in London (there are a couple on the Tottenham Court Road
below the Oxford Street intersection), especially since a new
book of Kate's "complete" works is due in the music stores
momentarily.
Aside from that, however, don't count on coming up with too
much Kate-related merchandise in stores there. You might find
a poster or a postcard or two in Carnaby Street, and if you're
lucky, a few badges or a t-shirt, but they weren't common
even last November through March, when Kate's new popularity
was at its height. Your best bet is to write to some U.K.
Kate fans ahead of time, meet up with them and do some trading.
And if you do contact some fans there, be sure
you take a bunch of marbleized cassettes/LPs of "Hounds of Love"
(assuming you had the foresight to stock up on them while they
were still available). They are greatly coveted by non-U.S. fans,
and make a great KurrenTcy.
Meanwhile, IED hopes naively that every single one of you L-Hs
has been listening more earnestly than ever to the "backwards"
TracK.
Although this listener has not yet made any sense of it, he
has become confident that the message IS backwards, and is
to be understood only when listened to backwards. As Dawn Uebel
pointed out in Break-Through number 10, we were all completely
wrong about the passage which directly follows the one in question:
the words are not "We receive", nor "We recede", nor even
"Really see". In fact, when heard backwards, the words "We see you here"
stand out as clear as a bell. Unfortunately, in the longer, preceding
message, although Kate does seem to be saying something backwards,
it still makes no sense to IED. For one thing, she seems to be
repeating the nonsensical words "he knocking us", among other things,
and the word "don't" is nowhere audible to this listener.
Doug, where are you when you're needed?