Actually, I've never been so much into guided by voices (though I do consider Yo La Tengo one of the very best American bands, and ICHTHBAO a near-perfect album- if those pretty voices and sweet tunes don't get to you, you must be heartless), but now that I know...under the stars was done by Steve Albini, I may have to check it out. A Steve Albini production can be the best thing in the world for an album. Some very, very good albums have been done by Steve, who "records" and "engineers" things not to be "intentionally crap", but to be intentionally as abrasive and challenging as possible; he'll never let you escape from the drums, no sir. I call the effect of him being behind the board the "Albini lurch"- things he's produced sound queasy somehow, manic-depressive. In their own way, Steve Albini productions have the most extreme clarity and sonic cleanliness of any pop/rock music. Albini as a person is also misrepresented. He is only a prick when he needs to be, i.e. when his strongly (even rabidly) held aesthetic principles are under attack. I've met him, and he was definitly one of the most gracious, unassuming, and down-to-earth "rock" type people I've ever met. He's also quite cute- he looks a lot like George Stephanopolous without the bad hair. Has anybody ever seen George Stephanopolous and Steve Albini in the same room? Hmmmm..... Some Albini classics: Rid of Me - PJ Harvey (her best album and permanently in my top 10) After Murder Park - The Auteurs (again, Albini gives a band their best album) Seamonsters - The Wedding Present Surfer Rosa - The Pixies Secret Name - Low SIGN IT: -2 or 3 Things I Know About Chris Section 5: Word Use Pupil uses three given words in one sentence. Example: Disco/Hope/Apocalypse: "When the apocalypse comes, I hope I'm at the disco." 1. Merchant/Bread/Buy 2. Wake/Up/Bitch 3. Slap/Slap/Slap 4. River/Fish/Boat +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the reborn Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list mail "sinister@majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo@majordomo.net". WWW: http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "tech-heads and students" +-+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +-+ "jelly-filled danishes" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+