Taking Sides: Liliput vs. Pere Ubu

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Or, 'Face-Off'. Extremely rare phenomenon where bands exchange identities halfway through their careers!

― dave q, Tuesday, 15 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I listen to Liliput (I KNOW some of the letters are supposed to be capitalised but I can't remember which ones OK?) far more, but there's no way anybody is going to convince that me Switzerland is cooler than Cleveland, or indeed anywhere, except maybe Canada. I have a Swiss grandfather, which kind of embarasses me as they all get fat on chocolates bought with Nazi money, but then, he emigrated before WW2, so that's OK then. He's from the same town (Chur) as HR Giger, who described said place as "Having the most alcoholics, invalids and mental cases of anywhere in Switzerland", which I think is kind of cool.

― dave q, Tuesday, 15 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

'Sonic identities', I mean

― dave q, Tuesday, 15 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Great topic - although I just can't add enough weight to the Lilliput side to make them even close to balancing the (crocus) behemoth that is Pere Ubu. i.e. Pere Ubu. Hands down, no contest.

― Dave225, Tuesday, 15 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

And whereabouts did this switch take place? If anything, I think these two converged on the same identity.

― David Raposa, Tuesday, 15 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Sorry to not answer your question, but don't you think L's "Die Matrosen" is an ahead-of-time fusion of deep house and Eurovision? If only they had shitcanned the whistling. I hate whistling.

― dave q, Tuesday, 15 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Deep house & Eurovision? You must be listening with the BASS turned up to 20; I can see the Eurovision bit, though (IF you don't discard the whistling).

Still waiting for an answer, by the way. Liliput (damn that capitalization) started off as "punk", and then proceeded onto trickier pastures - somewhere between the Raincoats & the Pop Group, but eight miles higher. Pere Ubu started off tweaking the rock music (blah blah "Summertime Blues" blah blah), but didn't they wander off into other strangeness, too? I know Cloudland finds them in the mood for a melody, but that doesn't jive with Liliput's reverse trajectory. Unless you're saying that the Tim/Kerr & Thirsty Ear years (years I'm not that familiar with) find Dave Thomas getting back to the basic basics.

― David Raposa, Tuesday, 15 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Liliput, because a) they never made a bad record, b) they never made a record that wasn't actively great, and c) they're So! Much! Fun! I admire and love Ubu (and the Two Pale Boys/Pale Orchestra), but sometimes they're hard work. None of that with Liliput.

― Douglas, Tuesday, 15 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

i do not think i have heard pere ubu , but lilliput makes me feel like a sprightly little elf .

― anthony, Tuesday, 15 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

See, I don't really think of their early stuff as 'punk'. Or at least I didn't until I realised I had to come up with an answer. Seriously, what punk band sings about toads?

― dave q, Tuesday, 15 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Is it any different than singing about sniffing glue? And is that song REALLY about a toad?

― David Raposa, Tuesday, 15 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Nighttoad, nighttoad, you are so big / Nighttoad, nighttoad, you are so sick(?) - hmm...

― David Raposa, Tuesday, 15 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I'm still not sure where halfway through the Ubu career is. I want to say between Dub Housing and New Picnic Time, but maybe everything from the late 80s on is this half.

Anyhow, I've been mulling over the idea that they "exchanged identities" today, and the only way I figure it makes any sense is that David Thomas' weird whooping noises started increasing in frequency at the same time the various Kleenex/LiLiPut singers slacked off with the kewl crazy vocalizing.

― Benjamin, Tuesday, 15 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

fourteen years pass...

http://www.factmag.com/2016/05/18/marlene-marder-kleenex-liliput-dies/

At 61. guitarist and more

― curmudgeon, Wednesday, 18 May 2016 16:56 (nine years ago)

Always liked her guitar-sound. RIP

― curmudgeon, Wednesday, 18 May 2016 17:46 (nine years ago)

kleenex : classic or CLASSIC

― curmudgeon, Wednesday, 18 May 2016 17:47 (nine years ago)

Strange "Taking sides"

― Mark G, Thursday, 19 May 2016 06:17 (nine years ago)

Sad news. This band made the best music for anger.

― It certainly is punk of the Church of England to think that way (tangenttangent), Thursday, 19 May 2016 09:35 (nine years ago)

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