Currently wrapping up a little youtube surfing sesh and I feel like I never gave these guys a fair listen. Now that we are ~20 years on, can we get a reappraisal on what are their best tracks?
Anyone here see them live?
― Jersey Al (Albert R. Broccoli), Sunday, 6 January 2013 02:32 (twelve years ago)
i still get a kick out of "inland empire" and "neptune ave" ain't bad either
― pointillist not pointless (electricsound), Sunday, 6 January 2013 02:34 (twelve years ago)
I liked Laptop quite a lot at the time, I didn't realise Hartman had been in this band who took a lot of stick for sounded a little like Pavement
― 'Separate Lives', by Phil Collins & Marilyn Manson (PaulTMA), Sunday, 6 January 2013 02:35 (twelve years ago)
kind of loved that inland empire EP, never really liked much else.
― tylerw, Sunday, 6 January 2013 03:02 (twelve years ago)
i hung out with that guy last summer? maybe the summer before. anyway he had lots of depressing record company stories.
― scott seward, Sunday, 6 January 2013 03:27 (twelve years ago)
Luke Wood appears to be 'big' in the 'biz' these days
― 'Separate Lives', by Phil Collins & Marilyn Manson (PaulTMA), Saturday, 12 January 2013 14:26 (twelve years ago)
Oh, I didn't see the thread here, which is funny since I've always loved this band.
First album (Debut Album) has semi-cruddy production, which is too bad because at least one track "Shoot It Around" would have been great with a little more sonic oomph. Inland Empire and Magic Man single are good but not spectacular, and point to Great Neck a bit.
Tales of Great Neck is up there with my top albums of the 90's, and will probably always stay there. Not a weak track to be found. They toured with Brendan and Rebecca of Love Child on drums/bass around the time. I've been told they weren't very good live...never saw them myself.
There were three CD Singles that went with Great Neck, as I recall. Some worthwhile b-sides, especially this one called "Cafeteria Hawker." The demos/alt versions are interesting too. I spent *years* trying to track down the Leopard Skin Swatch single mentioned on Trouser Press, only to be disappointed.
Hartman's Laptop put out a CD on a Norwegian label at one point with some Sammy songs covered in a Laptop style. Interesting but not essential. I saw Laptop live at the Knitting Factory when he had an all-girl band (I think he billed it as six dominatrices or something like that). Pretty good show actually, more rocking than you would have expected. Talented guy who seems to have decided to put his talents into more productive things than making cult albums.
― dlp9001, Wednesday, 23 January 2013 14:53 (twelve years ago)
Putting this up here, since it's not likely that many will find it. Not like it's better than most of Tales, but pretty great song that's very overlooked. Best part is the way it smears from tales of high school malfeasance into general LI prep teen decadence near the end. Pretty sure (based on online clues) that the writer took piano lessons from the Friedmans, which fits the mood of Sammy's stuff perfectly.
http://youtu.be/JakjZ_U5k7o
― dlp9001, Wednesday, 23 January 2013 17:43 (twelve years ago)
eleven months pass...
(Live on The Word, looking like a real band and all.)
― dlp9001, Saturday, 18 January 2014 17:00 (eleven years ago)
Cracks me up to see luke wood with reznor dre and Iovine in those Beats Music promo photos. Has any alterna-era indie-to-a&r exec done better?
― da croupier, Saturday, 18 January 2014 17:34 (eleven years ago)
four months pass...