Perfect Sound Forever- August 2021 edition now online

[Jason Gross]

Greetings,

In the latest issue of Perfect Sound Forever <http://www.furious.com/perfect/index0821.html>, you'll find (among other things):


BAD RELIGION
Interview with Bobby Schayer by Pete Crigler
"One of the preeminent punk bands of the first wave of hardcore in the ’80s, Bad Religion had already proved themselves as lifers by the time Atlantic Records came calling in 1993. Riding the wave of punk's resurgence, the band became more popular than ever and allowed a new, younger audience to discover what longtime fans had known forever. Bobby Schayer was their drummer from 1991 to 2001 and he recounted all the highs and the lows of the band’s second decade of popularity."


THE CARPENTERS
Karen & Richard's rock & roll past by Robin Cook
"Richard and Karen Carpenter stepped into the gulf between cool and square, mellow and edgy. At their best, they balanced these aspects superbly. During their commercial height, however, they seemed to be throwbacks to an earlier, mellower, squarer era. In the 1970s, when laid-back aesthetics and hipster cred could coexist (hello, James Taylor!), they just weren't considered acceptable to like."


RON GEESIN
Composer's early days & Floyd connection by Michael Freerix
"Ron Geesin is a composer and arranger of Dadaist surrealism, with an interest in very off-beat topics. Known significantly for writing the orchestral score for Pink Floyd's Atom Heart Mother, a project that is merely a footnote in an oeuvre of unmanageability. He released plenty of records under his own name that contain songs, song collages, and field recordings, additionally writing music for a wide array of cinematic works in film and advertisement."


GOOSE LAKE FESTIVAL
Detroit's version of Woodstock by Bob Gersztyn
"This August 7 – 9, 2021 it will be the 51 year anniversary of the Goose Lake International Music Festival held in Jackson, Michigan. It is the biggest concert event to take place in Michigan to date. It was the peak of the hippie era and the festival was a celebration of the youth during the middle of the war in Vietnam with the draft and chaotic civil unrest."


JON HASSELL
Remembering the trumpeter/theorist/ethnomusicologist/visionary
As a way to honor one of the most extraordinary musicians, we assembled interviews of a group of musicians/collaborators that Hassell worked with from the start to the end of his career, an essay about his Fourth World concept, an early essay from Hassell himself about Fourth World and some related links to interviews we did with him.


HEAVY METAL IN THE 80S
Of guitar virtuosos and big hair by Cyrus Manasseh
"Although heavy metal has far from disappeared, in the '80's, it was something quite different from what it is today. It was the era of the emergence of the guitar virtuoso and when music became especially glamorous and glitzy. Especially in the later years, the concert stages for these acts filled up with pyrotechnics and spandex, which in perhaps an overblown way, returned us to the classic glam rock of the '70's."


MARY HOPKIN
Sweet folk nostalgia via the Fabs by Kurt Wildermuth
"Hopkin is revered, but she doesn't have a cult. Partly that's because in those years she didn't write her own songs. And partly it's because some of her material--or rather material apparently foisted on her by Svengali producers--was on the sugary or sentimental side. She is best remembered for her hit version of Boris Fomin and Gene Raskin's celebration of nostalgia, 'Those Were the Days.'"


KOOL HERC
When did he make hip hop history? by J. Vognsen
"Kool Herc has often used the term "Merry-Go-Round" when talking about his DJ'ing technique and what made it special. But what exactly did Herc mean by this expression and when did he first perform it in public? I don't know. But I thought it'd be useful to have an overview of the claims that have been made on the matter. What follows then is an attempt to map out and examine the different versions that already exist."


LES RALLIZES DENUDES
Psychedelic musical terrorism by Daniel Hess
"As one might expect from reading over the tumultuous existence of Les Rallizes Denudes, the music they produced has a style all its own. One that, upon first listen, may seem hard to penetrate, but opens up and is truly rewarding on repeated listens. It can best be described as having a hard shell to crack, but once you break through, you’ll discover music that comes from a darkly sweet plane of existence, that is utterly genuine in its uncompromising vision. Les Rallizes Dénudés never produced a proper studio album."


ANGUS MACLISE
The Velvet's forgotten avatar by Mike Jinji Sunya Wood
"Angus MacLise, in his art, music, and spiritual life, sought the universal, the essence, the primal. Often his music was no more elaborate than the Woodpecker’s sound, using drone, percussion, chant, spontaneous guitars, or guests in his lessons. His lessons were probably meant more for himself and his friends than for a wider audience. While some of his music could be heard on bootlegs and soundtracks during his short life, most of his music was recorded on tapes, made inside and outside of wherever he was living. He joined in loose informal jams with a very early Velvet Underground."


ANTHONY MOORE
Interview: Henry Cow years by Jason Gross
"In the first part of our encounter with guitarist/keyboardist/songwriter/composer Mr. Moore, he talked about his now re-released album Out (Drag City), his early '70's solo albums and the first two wonderfully odd albums he did as a part of Slapp Happy. Moving the story up a bit, we proceeded to discuss the next period in his life and work, which included the band's collaborations with Henry Cow (Desperate Straights and In Praise of Learning, both from 1975) and a look back at his work in tape experiments."


NINE INCH NAILS
Interview with Charlie Clouser by Peter Crigler
"Nine Inch Nails was one of the biggest bands of the ’90’s. Trent Reznor’s take-no-prisoners attitude singlehandedly won over a whole generation with hardly any effort. The music spoke to people who felt disillusioned and alienated. The band was a revolving door of fantastic musicians, but the 1995-2002 lineup was the steadiest and heaviest. Included in that lineup was keyboardist Charlie Clouser. From playing in one of the most insanely popular bands of the ’90’s to becoming one of the most renowned soundtrack composers of the 21st century, it’s been quite the ride for Clouser."


TERRY RADIGAN
Country songwriter's divine debut by Kurt Wildermuth
"Most people have never heard of this CD of guitar-based pop-rock by Terry Radigan, a New York City singer and songwriter (not necessarily singer/songwriter). If people heard it, they might love it, like it, or at least acknowledge its merits. For example, lately I've returned to Radigan after not playing it for maybe a decade, and my domestic partner, a supremely astute listener who has nothing at stake when it comes to this music, became intrigued."


THE RAINCOATS
Interview with bassist/artist Gina Birch by David Gavan
"The Raincoats were subject to the same social forces as Scritti Politti. While Odyshape (1981), with its norm dismantling lyrics, is a mind-stretching experimental album - one that's earned similar levels of respect as esteemed '81 offerings such as This Heat's Deceit or The Durutti Column's LC - the superbly eclectic jamboree bag of an album that is Moving (1984) effectively atomised the Raincoats. Gina Birch has stated that the band was sundered by its increasingly disparate influences."


VINYL ANACHRONIST
Dispatches from the Lossless Wars by Marc Phillips
"The electronics industry, not to mention the entertainment industry, is buzzing with the news that Apple Music Lossless Audio will be available--at no extra cost--to all subscribers, probably by the time you read this. All 75 million tracks will now be offered via lossless files using proprietary new tech from Apple. That should instantly make the current leaders in streaming sound, Qobuz and Tidal, very nervous. Right?"


BUNNY WAILER
RIP, the last Wailer singer by Eric Doumerc
"Neville O'Riley Livingston was born on 10 April 1947 in Kingston, Jamaica. He was the son of Thaddeus Livingston, a carpenter and craftsman who lived in Trench Town who also had a rum bar, next door to Bob Marley's family... Bunny Wailer's music encompassed the whole continuum of Jamaican music, from roots to dancehall, including jazz and soul music and was the embodiment of the great Jamaican musical tradition."


YOUTUBE PUNDITS
The new online music gurus by Jim Rader
"YouTube had changed in the five-year interim: far fewer free movies, but far more free music, especially rock. The first YouTube indie rock guru I chanced upon was Captain Beefart, the first vid that hooked me Vacant Lots' second album, Departure, which offered distinctive lo-fi production and a novel spin on The Velvet Underground's White Light/White Heat, though Galaxie 500's "Fourth of July" might've inspired Departure's "Make the Connection," whose laconic recitation is apparently about the end of the world: 'Eyes wide awake / watching life disappear.'"


We also have a Spotify playlist with most of the artists above here:
<https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5TnVJS3L3iI2OSPoFnGcHf?si=e9cc19f291a94b68>

We're always looking for good writers and/or ideas so let us know if you have anything to share.

See you online,
Jason