BLURT / Ted Milton vs. The Fall/Contortions/EtronFouLeloublan

!

(I have one track by them, its a minute long and is called "Hep")

I saw an album of theirs in Cheapo Cheapo (rusty bike on the front), back in the day. Was too scared to actually buy it! But I did get the Amaud Schaubroek Live album instead.

The Armand Schaubroeck live album? I heard that was a major inspiration for Boulder's UNLEASHED IN THE MIDWEST live album.

Kill me now, as worlds of pleasure collide in this thread...

Saw Blurt do a revelatory show on Saturday at the Union Car Park in Southwark. I'd heard the Live in Berlin LP, but that's about it, and I knew new next to nothing about the band themselves, so I was amazed to see that saxophonist/vocalist Ted Milton has the appearance of a thick-fisted club bouncer. I'd envisaged something closer to svelte Robert Longo types. He was a real personality though, with nice little dance moves, and reacted in good spirit about falling off the side of the stage between songs. But the highlight for me was the guitarist, who I'm now amazed to disover is Steve Eagles, ex-Satan's Rats! He had some cool percussive tricks, awesome inventive rhythms, and together with the drummer, just a perfect level of 'economy', if you like. What a great show! They had a new single out too...

Oh, and I also discovered that priot to Blurt, drummer Jake Milton used to play with Eastern prog hippy dudes Quintessence! Talk about change of scene...

From Quintessance to Satan's Rats in only one remove!

Filled with WIN!

The fish needs a bike, the fish needs a bike!

MY MOTHERRR!!!!!

Blurt are playing in Vienna tomorrow night – should I go?

Went to see them last night, for the first time. Played for 90 mins, of which 25 was unequivocally very good, and 65 was not-as-good versions of the very good stuff.

PS very much doubt Blurt are playing in Vienna tomorrow night, unless they've found some space on the filled-to-the-brim Eurostar. Check with venue first.

Unusual pop fact: Ted Milton used to be very good friends with Eric Clapton and Keith Richards.
From Clapton's autobiography: "Ted was the most extraordinary man. A poet and a visionary...he was the first person I ever saw physically interpreting music...to enact it with his entire being, dancing and employing facial expressions to interpret what he was hearing. Watching him, I understood for the first time how you could really live music, how you could listen to it and completely make it come alive, so that it was part of your life. It was a real awakening."

very much doubt Blurt are playing in Vienna tomorrow night, unless they've found some space on the filled-to-the-brim Eurostar. Check with venue first

thanks for the concern, however the venue owner is a friend of mine and he has already informed me that the concert is on. also you might not be aware of this but ted milton does not fly.

I was not aware of that. Fair enough.

I just picked up a complete Etron Fou Leloublan 3 CD set, containing all 5 of their albums. What a weird band, they were part of the Rock In Opposition movement but I guess they were representing the comedy side of avant prog (along with Samla Mammas Manna), rather than the hairshirt Henry Cow / Univers Zero end of it. It's a pretty rare example of a prog band actually getting better through the 80s.

I used to know Ted Milton's son. Pleasant chap.

Hmmm what label is the Etron Fou compendium on?

It's on Musea, this one : http://www.progarchives.com/album.asp?id=5196

Dammit. 'Fish needs a bike' has been stuck on my head all morning.

Haha, play it a few times to get it out! I only recently (few years ago) discovered that track which led me to the brilliance of Blurt. Other bands like the Contrarians just don't combine the same level of skronk and hook.