In Appreciation Of...Half Japanese "Heaven Sent"

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Anybody else on this board ever heard and appreciated "Heaven Sent," Half Japanese's HOUR LONG song that, in my book, stands second only to Charmed Life in their catalog? Post-Velvets guitar riffs rising and falling, rising and falling, rising and falling, rising and falling as Jad Fair rambles about feelings and vampires and ice cream cones, using effects to mutate his voice into perverse shapes - it's like he's pulling a Van Morrison and a Gibby Haynes at the same time. I really don't know how they made it work but I used to listen to this song A LOT back in college, recently threw it back on, and was surprised how I never got restless once. I don't like the 9 song snippets that follow it on the album, but is there anyone else here willing to testify to the glory of this track. Kicks Astral Weeks' ASS (though not Moondance's, but I'm a pop dork).

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Monday, 1 December 2003 02:16 (twenty-one years ago)

no i never even heard of it! & theyre sorta my favourite band. is it new?

― duane, Monday, 1 December 2003 02:42 (twenty-one years ago)

uh guess not unless you were in "college" (that's university right?) like last week...maybe you were tho

― duane, Monday, 1 December 2003 02:43 (twenty-one years ago)

it came out in 1997 on Alternative Tentacles. WELL worth checking out.

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Monday, 1 December 2003 03:12 (twenty-one years ago)

If it reminds me of any other song I've ever heard its probably the Live '69 version of the Velvet Underground's "Ocean."

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Monday, 1 December 2003 03:17 (twenty-one years ago)

we played it alongside hovercraft [unrest] once at the college station, one in each channel, and periodically talked over it about what was going on and gave station breaks and stuff.

― mig, Monday, 1 December 2003 21:47 (twenty-one years ago)

correction: it's on emperor jones (or is it trance syndicate? i always get those labels confused), not alternative tentacles.

i think this thread has inspired me to put this album on tonight or tomorrow.

― Andrew Calaman (Andrew Calaman), Monday, 1 December 2003 22:24 (twenty-one years ago)

it's emperor jones. my bad.

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Monday, 1 December 2003 22:34 (twenty-one years ago)

i would say something but my eyes fell out in the shock of there being a Half Japanese thread on ILM. all i can mumble to myself is "heaven sent is probably the best for the lineup with Gilles V. Rieder and John Sluggett, but the very best is the first period with both Jad and David Fair."

― jack cole (jackcole), Monday, 1 December 2003 22:52 (twenty-one years ago)

all i can mumble to myself is "heaven sent is probably the best for the lineup with Gilles V. Rieder and John Sluggett, but the very best is the first period with both Jad and David Fair."

well, of course. it's no charmed life or half gentlemen/not beasts, that's for sure.

― Andrew Calaman (Andrew Calaman), Tuesday, 2 December 2003 01:06 (twenty-one years ago)

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