the reformed Telescopes - classic or dud

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So you know the Telescopes, early post-MBV pioneers who released a number of tunes that were popular with people like me back in the day. Ah, the nostalgia - I remember sweaty gigs in the Camden Falcon, hanging out with some mad american guy from Arizona, and so on.

Then they split up.

And then they reformed. Apparently they have a new direction, and there is some controversy over whether it is any good or not. On the other Internet, I heard their new direction compared to having your brain drilled open and filled up with bees - which sounds like my kind of thing.

Is this an accurate description of their sound?

― DV (dirtyvicar), Thursday, 9 March 2006 12:35 (twenty years ago)

Oh, oh, oh, they are great. They are wonderful. I started a Telescopes thread a while back which had some discussion of the new stuff towards the end. I expressed reservations at the time, but the last couple of times I saw them they were amazing. And yes, it is an accurate description.

― emil.y (emil.y), Thursday, 9 March 2006 12:37 (twenty years ago)

The description of the new direction sound does sound interesting I must admit.

I didn't know they'd actually split up?

What is this other internet.

― Pashmina (Pashmina), Thursday, 9 March 2006 12:40 (twenty years ago)

Yes. It is a good description. They fill up a large desk with various bits of almost scientific looking gear (some of which may be filled with bees) and then BRING ON THE WUB at such volumes that thought, sensation, pain becomes totally irrelevant, and all is wub.

It is very much my thing. It is a good kind of noise, an envelopping, soothing, humming, oceanic kind of noise that makes you want to curl up and meditate. Not the annoying kind of noise that just gives you a headache.

― Fish is Biodegradable! (That Means It Rots) (kate), Thursday, 9 March 2006 12:40 (twenty years ago)

I saw 'em a good two years ago, maybe three, in a pub in Cardiff. It was pretty decent ambient noizzzzze, prob would be wholly improved by a proper PA

― DJ Mencap (DJ Mencap), Thursday, 9 March 2006 12:56 (twenty years ago)

It is a shame they are not mentioned on the Wikipedia Burton-on-Trent page.

You do it.

― PJ Miller (PJ Miller 68), Thursday, 9 March 2006 13:42 (twenty years ago)

early post-MBV pioneers?????????

― Russell Dixon (Skinny), Thursday, 9 March 2006 13:43 (twenty years ago)

"early post-MBV pioneers" = "1st gen shoeys", I think?

― Pashmina (Pashmina), Thursday, 9 March 2006 13:52 (twenty years ago)

Pashmina...spot on...'though they were better than RIDE...

― Russell Dixon (Skinny), Thursday, 9 March 2006 13:54 (twenty years ago)

early post-MBV pioneers?????????

yeah, they were making music inspired by "Isn't Anything" back in 1989.

― DV (dirtyvicar), Thursday, 9 March 2006 14:12 (twenty years ago)

They weren't better than Ride, either...

― flowersdie (flowersdie), Thursday, 9 March 2006 15:07 (twenty years ago)

early ride, no. ride post that terrible album when they went retro-rock, yes. (not that that's saying much)

― Pashmina (Pashmina), Thursday, 9 March 2006 15:08 (twenty years ago)

Even Slowdive were better than Ride...

― Russell Dixon (Skinny), Thursday, 9 March 2006 15:10 (twenty years ago)

Slowdive were great, though! Catch the Breeze is one of the few shoegazer rekkids I still listen to with any regularity.

― Pashmina (Pashmina), Thursday, 9 March 2006 15:13 (twenty years ago)

Chuck and I decided last night that Ride's Today Forever e.p. is the best shoegazer record, ever. In fact, maybe the best record ever. Fact.

― Fish is Biodegradable! (That Means It Rots) (kate), Thursday, 9 March 2006 15:14 (twenty years ago)

(Well, actually, it would be fact, if that wasn't already Sugar Sugar by the Archies.)

― Fish is Biodegradable! (That Means It Rots) (kate), Thursday, 9 March 2006 15:15 (twenty years ago)

Medicine actually were the best 'shoegazers'...Slowdive were 2nd best...The Pale Saints were at the back of the class...

― Russell Dixon (Skinny), Thursday, 9 March 2006 15:18 (twenty years ago)

Ha ha, have you been reading mine other thread? I'm writing a column about Medicine for Plan B at the moment!

But man... hush about the Pale Saints, I love them. The Comforts of Madness is such a great lost record... (lost to me at least as I've no idea where my cassette of it is.)

― Fish is Biodegradable! (That Means It Rots) (kate), Thursday, 9 March 2006 15:20 (twenty years ago)

Search & Destroy: the Shoegazer Genre.

― Dayglo Redd (Ken L), Thursday, 9 March 2006 15:24 (twenty years ago)

If we're talking education analogies, most of the shoegazers would be in the bottom set tho', surely?

― flowersdie (flowersdie), Thursday, 9 March 2006 15:44 (twenty years ago)

The Telescopes: Classic or Dud?

Jeremy, they were loads better than Ride. And I liked Ride.

Kate, can you email me? (Take out the 'nospam' and it'll work.) About some people we both knew. You may not be able to help, but maybe so.

― emil.y (emil.y), Friday, 10 March 2006 00:20 (twenty years ago)

They released some good singles but could never really stretch it over an album. 'Taste' is appalling (excepting the excellent 'Perfect Needle'), while the second album tried unsuccessfully to merge drone with weak baggy beats. Ride weren't much better, to be honest.

― flowersdie (flowersdie), Friday, 10 March 2006 09:30 (twenty years ago)

Actually the best of the 'Shoegazers' were...Papa Sprain...although they more related to the 'Dreampop' of A.R. Kane and the Cocteau Twins... ;)

― Russell Dixon (Skinny), Friday, 10 March 2006 09:37 (twenty years ago)

For soem reason HMV had a big Ride display the other day.

― PJ Miller (PJ Miller 68), Friday, 10 March 2006 09:49 (twenty years ago)

Maybe not the place to ask this, but did that Sonic Youth documentary that Ride were doing the music for ever get shown?

I had a few early Telescopes records but found them all mildly annoying, I think. Quite liked the title 'To Kill A Slow Girl Walking' though.

― NickB (NickB), Friday, 10 March 2006 09:58 (twenty years ago)

All the Telescopes albums are drone-rock fundamentals. Classic all the way, including the current stuff. My only "meh" vote goes to the Unisex album that came out in between old Telescopes and nu-Telescopes.

― The Equator Lounge (Chris Barrus), Friday, 10 March 2006 18:28 (twenty years ago)

I saw them live a lot and bought 'taste'. I remember writing in my diary on the day I formed my first band, something along the lines of 'We wrote four songs but they were all shit. The rest are striving for hashed Clash songs, and it's only me that's looking for The Perfect Needle'. Pretentious little twat. Classic song tho.

― Zora (Zora), Saturday, 11 March 2006 00:24 (twenty years ago)

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