Dear Friends,
To answer the question from the title of yesterday's blog, "Will this week end well?" I have to say yes. It ended fairly well. I will elaborate further below....
*****
Sometimes you just want to crawl away and go out into the woods and disappear. Not in a bad way, but more in a way that it would be nice to just unplug completely and let the forest remind you of who you are. A cleansing of the soul, perhaps, or just a way to reinvigorate your brain and body.
Four-day weeks often seem like they are longer than the standard work-life algorithm. I was tired when I got home last night. Dog tired, as they say, which is one of the idioms I discussed with my students this week.
My students and I had a decent day, but they were wired for sound for most of the afternoon and no matter what I tried, they would not calm down. Finally, I just kind of said fuck it and got them up and moving around. They weren’t any quieter, but the energy seemed more manageable.
My energy level was low, but I’m okay with it. Dreams of a pup tent in the forest with maybe an audible creek nearby sustain me. I am one with something, somewhere.
*****
Today we say goodbye to Shelton. I am not feeling good about his death, still, but the pain is more of an ache. This life should have guys like Shelton in it and around. It makes me sad that I will never see him again and today I will go and grieve with my friends and his family.
Long may his memory keep those who loved him feeling glad to have been part of his world.
*****
News from the east has been encouraging, which is nice. Rhondi seems a little happier and she’s been able to talk to Doug. He’s off the ventilator and they are helping get closer to being more fully in the “stable” zone.
I’m actually feeling like I might get to see him again and that makes me feel pretty good. It was looking very likely that I might not for a few days and I can’t start counting on a visit, but as I mentioned, I am hopeful. He’s a fighter.
*****
Another Eastside Records recommendation, Fly Ashtray’s Clumps Takes A Ride is a record I revisit every couple of years.
This one has stuck with me mainly for one reason and that is this: I always wanted to do a band like Fly Ashtray but never have. Over the last few days since I decided to write about this one, I have been thinking a lot about why this never happened for me. I came up with a few ideas that I would like to share here.
First of all, this is a sneaky good record with lots of cool riffs. The first song to really capture my attention was “Soft Pack.” It’s such a catchy bit of indie rock. There is a certain softness to the song that I really love. The main guitar riff itself has a little grime to it, sure, but when I listen to it, I imagine a group of people making this song and being pretty darn pleased with themselves.
There is a noisiness going on here on Clumps Takes A Ride that I really like, too. This is a band that was doing its own thing and that’s what made me want to do something similar. Which brings me to my earlier ideas.
When I first got this record, sometime in 1992 or 1993, I was in the process of getting Hillbilly Devilspeak together. I wanted to do the heavy thing, too, but I was really in love with the more indie rock stuff, as well. I had my HD bandmates, but I didn’t really know the right people at the time to make a more indie-style band.
I had the riffs, though. Tons of them. I still write a lot of very lo-fi, early 90s indie rock style guitar riffs. I’m a pretty mediocre guitar player, but I come up with things that my ears like. Maybe I could make a band like this now, but even then, I always end up doing heavier or more punk rock projects.
The weirdness of Fly Ashtray really appealed to me and still does. They had the kind of sound I wanted to make, but also the weirdness that I crave, as well. They were really kind of the best of both worlds.
IN the middle of the CD are some other songs that I fully dig, too. “Crows” and “It Doesn’t Matter” are kinda great and I’m also forgetting “Hypoblast.” All three of those float my boat. At almost an hour long, Clumps Takes A Ride really does have a little something for everyone.
“Hoafie Woafie” is a nice, heavy-ish kind of noisy riff, too. It’s got some guitar parts that make it sound like the song is worried about the crisis in the Northern Hemisphere or some other made-up shit like that.
Skipping along to the “Theme from ‘Bad Head Park’” is pretty rad, too, and damn it, I skipped over “Ostrich Atmosphere.” Fuck. This could get ridiculous with going back and forth and talking about all the songs that I love on this record. Every time I dust this one off, I find another reason to love it.
Another favorite thing of mine when it comes to Fly Ashtray is that my buddy, Matt Spastic, is also a fan. In fact, he’s the only other person that I’ve ever gotten to really discuss Fly Ashtray with and that makes me smile. I think he got to see them once, if I’m not mistaken, so I kind of hate him for that, too.
Clumps Takes A Ride is the only CD of theirs that I own. I should probably rectify that at some point. There is some crossover with the band, Uncle Wiggly, who I also adore. I do have two or three of their discs, so I’m covered, I suppose in some ways.
If you like the weird indie stuff, check this record out. If you don’t like it, I’ll take it off your hands.
*****
See you tomorrow.
AI likes Fly Ashtray.
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