Rodan/Rachels: Classic Or Dud/ Search & Destroy. (RIP Jason Noble

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Did a search and was surprised there wasn't already a thread.
Rusty = Classic!
Rachels - Selenography = classic too.

― King Eddie, Wednesday, 28 May 2003 03:17 (10 years ago) Permalink

The people I know who are into these bands are incapable of any conversation not related to secondhand shopping. Thus, DUD.

― vahid (vahid), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 03:20 (10 years ago) Permalink

rodan is a defintie dud, sounds like a tractor stuck in neutral. i always thought the rachels were only praised cause indie people didn't know anything about classical or classical style music.

― keith (keithmcl), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 03:22 (10 years ago) Permalink

Rodan sounded good at the time but they've aged really badly. Rachels still sound kinda cool but Keith makes a good point

― electric sound of jim (electricsound), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 03:24 (10 years ago) Permalink

Yeah, I gotta agree with Keith. I tried to like the Rachel's for a while before giving into my music-school-going friend who says that people are just suckered into liking them 'cause they don't know how lame and second-rate they are. Of course, he says the same thing about Tortoise, who I like lots, so maybe he's a jerk.

I have enjoyed listening to Rodan once or twice in my life, though.

― Mikael Wood, Wednesday, 28 May 2003 03:30 (10 years ago) Permalink

Rodan - ok.

Rachel's - snoozetastic.

― adam (adam), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 03:32 (10 years ago) Permalink

Rodan were pretty good. I liked 'The Everyday World of Bodies' tons and such.

Rachel's are fairly good. i have to be in the mood. I feel like such an art-ass talking about them though.

― Andrzej B. (Andrzej B.), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 04:09 (10 years ago) Permalink

Fuck y'all hatas. Rodan gives precise rendering to precocious high school poetry. From the "did post rock kill indie" thread:

The promise it held out was that it really was unmoored from tradition, opening spaces, creating alternate paths, taking the emotionallycomplex turn from hardcore, maturing almost.

The Biblesilver Changes into Shiner one-two punch still knocks me out. And the class signifiers weren't bougie at all, nor self-consciously intellegentsia middle-class, but more sortof disaffected gothy drama-poets fucking around in the lower suburbs and feeling pain. But not "oh we're so much better" pain but more like Duckie in Pretty in Pink young & horny & tryina figure it all out while feeling hemmed and limited by their surroundings. A sorta "this? this *can't* be all there is" intro-extroversion and romanticization of the everyday.

Plus you gotta remember that Rodan changed the game for so many groups, but most took off on the mathy side and left behind the hardcore chug married to lyrical baroque which they fused -- like as intensely emotional without ever courting total absurdity as anything I know. (which probably means that there are scads of metal bands out there that do it one or two better).

Rachels never turned me on really.

― Sterling Clover (s_clover), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 04:46 (10 years ago) Permalink

But Shipping News ain't bad in places.

― David A. (Davant), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 04:48 (10 years ago) Permalink

sterling, you bring up good points, but:

1) there's more than one flavor of high school poetry
2) yes, rodan begat slint. so what? doesn't mean you actually need to listen to them if you don't live in louisville, ky, circa 1993.

― vahid (vahid), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 05:48 (10 years ago) Permalink

Never heard Rodan. But I like Rachel's. Their best may well be Music for Egon Schiele in that it's the most consistent -- only four musicians, recurring themes, etc.

― jaymc (jaymc), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 13:58 (10 years ago) Permalink

I lived in Louisville, Kentucky circa 1993. Fuck all y'all.

― hstencil, Wednesday, 28 May 2003 14:11 (10 years ago) Permalink

i lived in san diego ca. 90-93 whatevah!

but seriously, i think sterling saying that "Rodan changed the game for so many groups" really discounts quite a bit of what was happening in san diego and baltimore/dc (i will concede even the first unsane record) did for "mathier" indie rock whatever that means.

― gygax! (gygax!), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 14:19 (10 years ago) Permalink

well gygax! we were all kind of listening to each other.

― hstencil, Wednesday, 28 May 2003 14:20 (10 years ago) Permalink

i think i listened to bitch magnet more than you though... ;-D

― gygax! (gygax!), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 14:23 (10 years ago) Permalink

Rusty is CLASSIC - start to finish. Long songs that actually go somewhere (perfect for long cigarette breaks at the college radio station because there are no bad words). Flipped the script on the Chicago/Louisville axis, added meat and lots of rock to post-rock. The production is different and (was) oft-copied (which may be why it sounds dated to some?). The record that made me interested in the "post-rock" Tortoise/Southern Rec thing, and I can't really listen to any of that stuff anymore aside from Rodan. Still blows my head off to this day, does the job when I'm in a certain mood and it's up loud enough. Search: the Milk and Meloncholy 7" and "Darjeeling" (reissued on the Simple Machines comp), too.

Most of Rachels on the other hand is duddy. Although Search: music for Egon Scheile which is most engaging.

― scott m (mcd), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 14:26 (10 years ago) Permalink

The production on Rusty ain't so hot. I love Bob Weston to death but dude please remember that the drummer plays the bass drum for a reason.

― hstencil, Wednesday, 28 May 2003 14:30 (10 years ago) Permalink

1) there's more than one flavor of high school poetry

Yeah and the other gives you Tori, and the other-other gives you the Violent Femmes, and the other-other-other gives you The Smashing Pumpkins (or maybe that's the same as another other) but whatever because Rodan's is spikier and with more tongue.

2) yes, rodan begat slint. so what? doesn't mean you actually need to listen to them if you don't live in louisville, ky, circa 1993.

I dunno if Rodan begat slint actually -- they have v. little in common besides some post-hoc (ahem) label.

― Sterling Clover (s_clover), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 14:37 (10 years ago) Permalink

well and that members of Rodan (as King G and the J Krew) covered a Slint song in a medley with Midnight Star's "No Parking on the Dance Floor" and "Freak-a-zoid."

― hstencil, Wednesday, 28 May 2003 16:38 (10 years ago) Permalink

June Of 44 were my favorite of all the rodan spin offs.
June Of 44 S/D?

― King Eddie, Wednesday, 28 May 2003 17:41 (10 years ago) Permalink

did i say SLINT? i think I meant the shipping news / june of 44 / million other groups... (this is my rationale for not listening to slint either).

― vahid (vahid), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 17:44 (10 years ago) Permalink

Oh fuck I thought you meant begat in the John Cage "the past doesn't influence me, I influence the past" kinda way. Of course Slint predated Rodan, by several years even. Duh.

― hstencil, Wednesday, 28 May 2003 17:49 (10 years ago) Permalink

um, of course i meant it that way. i'm just glad you, uh, caught the reference.

― vahid (vahid), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 18:07 (10 years ago) Permalink

I like Rodan's Rusty a LOT - feel like it neatly sums up a lot of what was appealing about that flavor of the Louisville/Chicago axis: hard rocking stuff that's (in some ways) unselfconcious/unconcerned with whether people call it "pretentious," interested in various ways to take the influence/inspiration of Big Black, unafraid of the prog impulse (NB when I get to talking about Tortoise this magically becomes a problem instead of a gold star), pleasant to listen to.

The Rachel's are one of the worst cases of the Emperor's New Clothes ever, and a terrible embarassment.

― J0hn Darn1elle (J0hn Darn1elle), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 19:11 (10 years ago) Permalink

I saw both Shipping News and Rachel's at the Shellac ATP a cpl of years ago, and they were without doubt two of the most boring, self-indulgent, aimless, USELESS groups I've ever seen. DESTROY w/ extreme prejudice.

― Andrew L (Andrew L), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 19:34 (10 years ago) Permalink

June of 44 are great. I recommend all their albums. Love Rodan. Rachels are pretty good IMO,havent heard any Shipping News but I have a friend who likes their 1st album and eps.

― Carmichael, Wednesday, 28 May 2003 19:39 (10 years ago) Permalink

Saw the Rachels open for PJ Harvey sometime back. I almost fell asleep standing.

― Jeanne Fury (Jeanne Fury), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 19:44 (10 years ago) Permalink

when I get to talking about Tortoise this magically becomes a problem instead of a gold star

That's because Tortoise biteth the big one, regardless of similarity of influence.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 19:51 (10 years ago) Permalink

they are really nice fellows though, it must be said

― J0hn Darn1elle (J0hn Darn1elle), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 19:53 (10 years ago) Permalink

I think all these points about Tortoise have been said MANY TIMES BEFORE, so back to the topic at hand i.e. TRASHING RACHEL'S.

Same thing though. Hate their music, but the Rachel's are some of the nicest people I've ever known, esp. the Grimes siblings.

― hstencil, Wednesday, 28 May 2003 19:55 (10 years ago) Permalink

They are quite sweet! I was working at Touch and Go when that '95 album came out, I think it was Egon Schiele, and they named every single T & G employee in the "thanks" in the sleeve. It made me feel especially guilty for thinking that the album was the most pretentious thing ever made anywhere ever ever

― J0hn Darn1elle (J0hn Darn1elle), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 20:02 (10 years ago) Permalink

Man J0hn you and the Polish Warbride have so many affinities/similarities it's not even funny.

― hstencil, Wednesday, 28 May 2003 20:08 (10 years ago) Permalink

it's all boring

― g (graysonlane), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 20:11 (10 years ago) Permalink

who is the Polish Warbride?

― J0hn Darn1elle (J0hn Darn1elle), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 20:34 (10 years ago) Permalink

i believe she won the Santa Anita derby back in 91.

― gygax! (gygax!), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 21:05 (10 years ago) Permalink

(or maybe the t&g publicist jay scirocci scirocco (sp?))

― gygax! (gygax!), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 21:06 (10 years ago) Permalink

j0hn - further hint: I believe he played bass with you.

― hstencil, Wednesday, 28 May 2003 22:00 (10 years ago) Permalink

Being nice guys doesn't mean the music will be any good. Look at Travis & Coldplay.

― Franklin Ambrose (Franklin Ambrose), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 23:06 (10 years ago) Permalink

Thanks for the newsflash, sport.

― hstencil, Wednesday, 28 May 2003 23:38 (10 years ago) Permalink

do you have to be snarky all the time?

― electric sound of jim (electricsound), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 23:39 (10 years ago) Permalink

nope. do you?

― hstencil, Wednesday, 28 May 2003 23:46 (10 years ago) Permalink

no, not at all.

― electric sound of jim (electricsound), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 23:48 (10 years ago) Permalink

could've fooled me, Mr. Kettle.

― hstencil, Wednesday, 28 May 2003 23:53 (10 years ago) Permalink

hm.

― electric sound of jim (electricsound), Wednesday, 28 May 2003 23:56 (10 years ago) Permalink

Oh: Rob. Gotcha. This reminds me, I saw the other half of Ex-Chittle in L.A. last time I was there. I believe making this reference merits inclusion in the Big Book Of Pointlessly Obscure Chicago References.

― J0hn Darn1elle (J0hn Darn1elle), Thursday, 29 May 2003 00:21 (10 years ago) Permalink

Yeah I think you told me that in chat. Pretty amazing that you saw him, but good too. Did I tell you about how they played my parents' house?

― hstencil, Thursday, 29 May 2003 00:25 (10 years ago) Permalink

If I ever actually sat through a Rachel's album I'm sure it would rival Come On Die Young for my least favourite album ever.

― sundar subramanian (sundar), Thursday, 29 May 2003 01:19 (10 years ago) Permalink

rachel's: quite good. it may be classical for dumb indie boneheads, but it has a sense of rhythm that i rarely found in other contemporary neo-classical works (see kronos quartet, etc.). the idea might be a bit pretentious, but neither the music nor the band ever seemed to be, which made the difference to me.

saw 'em once in a barn at bard, where bob weston played bass from the soundboard and made the evil acoustical place sound magical.

― bucky wunderlick (bucky), Thursday, 29 May 2003 02:35 (10 years ago) Permalink

bucky - I booked that show.

― hstencil, Thursday, 29 May 2003 03:36 (10 years ago) Permalink

and it wasn't in a barn, it was in the Old Gym.

― hstencil, Thursday, 29 May 2003 03:43 (10 years ago) Permalink

Skipping 39 messages at this point... Click here if you want to load them all.

I listened to the new Rachel's album in the record shop today - I think it's called Systems/Layers... it sort of intrigued me, not quite enough to buy it although I might on a second listen. Has anyone else heard this?

― H., Wednesday, 5 November 2003 15:11 (9 years ago) Permalink

Hmmm, yes, I'm listening to it right now. It's quite good. I would say more, but I think the Pitchfork review is actually fairly OTM.

― jaymc (jaymc), Wednesday, 5 November 2003 17:29 (9 years ago) Permalink

4 years pass...

What's happening here with the Rach?

Love the sounds. Music for egon (the artist) slays.

Punkers should hear Rachels

― Fer Ark, Saturday, 3 May 2008 22:28 (5 years ago) Permalink

1 year passes...

Rachel Grimes, of Rachel's, has a solo album out now, "Book Of Leaves (For Solo Piano)". You might (not) be surprised to hear that it's a solo piano album; 14 short pieces, largely reflective, melancholic and perfectly suited to autumnal times, with a couple of more rousing jazzy sections.

― krakow, Tuesday, 20 October 2009 10:36 (3 years ago) Permalink

holy crap i listened to rusty last night

― cutty, Tuesday, 20 October 2009 10:53 (3 years ago) Permalink

i haven't listened to rusty for about 8 years. Downloading now.

― Pedro Paramore (jim), Tuesday, 20 October 2009 11:00 (3 years ago) Permalink

I'm really liking it, it fits so well at this time of year; despite being recorded in summer times (in 2008) it definitely has an autumnal feel. It's very intimate, just beautifully recorded solo piano playing, with some field recordings of birds at a couple of points, but nothing too obtrusive. Music to make my heart ache.

― krakow, Tuesday, 20 October 2009 11:23 (3 years ago) Permalink

I just got a copy of Rusty too, it's dead good.

― Neil S, Tuesday, 20 October 2009 12:31 (3 years ago) Permalink

Reading about following this solo album it turns out that Rachel's weren't named after Rachel Grimes, she wasn't even a founding member. I assumed it was, so you live and learn. Named after a car apparently instead.

― krakow, Tuesday, 20 October 2009 12:49 (3 years ago) Permalink

rusty is amazing. i also listened to hoover's "lurid traversal of route 7" last night

― cutty, Tuesday, 20 October 2009 19:19 (3 years ago) Permalink

Rusty is brilliant. I like the Rachels and enjoyed the Rachel Grimes album.

― pfunkboy (Herman G. Neuname), Tuesday, 20 October 2009 19:24 (3 years ago) Permalink

I've never heard Rodan. I was big into Rachel's, though I only caught them after the fact. I take it I should procure myself a copy of "Rusty" then?

― krakow, Tuesday, 20 October 2009 19:27 (3 years ago) Permalink

damn right

― pfunkboy (Herman G. Neuname), Tuesday, 20 October 2009 19:30 (3 years ago) Permalink

It used to be damn hard to find but in the ebay era its easy i think. I found mine in the lateish 90s in Glasgow after years of looking.

― pfunkboy (Herman G. Neuname), Tuesday, 20 October 2009 19:32 (3 years ago) Permalink

So it is OOP then? I'll give discogs & eBay a visit in that case.

― krakow, Tuesday, 20 October 2009 19:33 (3 years ago) Permalink

eMusic has it if you use that.

― Neil S, Tuesday, 20 October 2009 19:42 (3 years ago) Permalink

I've never heard of a remaster but there's always cd's on ebay so I'm guessing it's not been OOP it was just hard to find in UK record shops.

― pfunkboy (Herman G. Neuname), Tuesday, 20 October 2009 19:43 (3 years ago) Permalink

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/RODAN-RUSTY-CD-NEW_W0QQitemZ110441769609QQcmdZViewItemQQptZMusic_CDs?hash=item19b6d7aa89

― pfunkboy (Herman G. Neuname), Tuesday, 20 October 2009 19:43 (3 years ago) Permalink

hmmm vinyl
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/RODAN-Rusty-sealed-Vinyl-LP-Slint-Polvo_W0QQitemZ230367575533QQcmdZViewItemQQptZMusic_on_Vinyl?hash=item35a2fa3ded

I should get it on vinyl sometime but shipping vinyl with the current exchange rates is really expensive now.

― pfunkboy (Herman G. Neuname), Tuesday, 20 October 2009 19:45 (3 years ago) Permalink

please note rodan sounds nothing like rachel's

it's angry and confrontational. BRUTAL!

― cutty, Tuesday, 20 October 2009 19:46 (3 years ago) Permalink

Both excellent to me.

As for Rachel's being 'classical' for indies who didn't get classical - so fucking what? Music For Egon Schiele sounded better to these ears than wAGNER OR rOSSINI or any of that pud that i've wasted too much time trying to appreciate

I remember seeing Rodan at the time and dismissing them as an ersatz Slint.
Years later ,I actually listened to that Rusty album.Listen to 'The Everyday World Of Bodies' should be the soundtrack for the Exorcist. It is Good Morning Captain's evil twin

― Fer Ark, Tuesday, 20 October 2009 20:07 (3 years ago) Permalink

It is Good Morning Captain's evil twin

awesome.

― cutty, Tuesday, 20 October 2009 20:09 (3 years ago) Permalink

THE RAIN. HAD A SOUND.

― cutty, Tuesday, 20 October 2009 20:10 (3 years ago) Permalink

Aye, I wouldn't be expecting Rachel's similarities at all. I've read a wee bit about Rodan, just never really heard them.

Thanks pfunk, that eBay CD link looks like a reasonable choice to me.

― krakow, Tuesday, 20 October 2009 20:52 (3 years ago) Permalink

love rusty. usually bust it out every year or so.

― ( - _ - ); (Alan N), Tuesday, 20 October 2009 21:02 (3 years ago) Permalink

Shameful to admit this, but when a girl I had a major crush on played me Music For Egon Schiele in 1996 my mind was pretty much blown by the idea of current bands making this kind of music. Oh to be young again.

― & other try hard shitfests (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Tuesday, 20 October 2009 21:03 (3 years ago) Permalink

If a girl had played me Music for Egon Schiele in 1996, I would've had a crush on her. (Actually, I think I heard them for the first time in 1996 on a mixtape from a girl I had a crush on.) (And in 1997 one of the first conversations I ever had with a girl I would go on to date for two years was about Rachel's.) (And in early 1999 I developed an instant crush on a girl I met in Rome just because I saw a dubbed cassette in her dorm room with Rachel's on one side and Michael Nyman on the other.)

― M. Grissom/DeShields (jaymc), Tuesday, 20 October 2009 21:23 (3 years ago) Permalink

I think all of these girls were also into, like, Nick Bantock books.

― M. Grissom/DeShields (jaymc), Tuesday, 20 October 2009 21:27 (3 years ago) Permalink

2 years pass...

RIP Jason Noble. Thanks to aerosmith for passing along word.

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/jasonnoble/journal

http://www.thelouisvillepaper.com/2012/07/04/jason-noble/

― Ned Raggett, Saturday, 4 August 2012 19:07 (10 months ago) Permalink

Bummer. Thanks for the music. RIP.

― Arvo Pärt Chimp (Neil S), Saturday, 4 August 2012 19:09 (10 months ago) Permalink

rip

― call all destroyer, Saturday, 4 August 2012 19:52 (10 months ago) Permalink

RIP. Loved Rodan, liked some things by Rachel's and Shipping News too, didn't even know about Per Mission until reading Ned's second link so I think it's time to change that.

― still small voice of clam (a passing spacecadet), Saturday, 4 August 2012 19:54 (10 months ago) Permalink

Devastated by this, so very sad. didn't even know he was poorly, poor jason :(

― mod night at the oasis (NickB), Saturday, 4 August 2012 19:56 (10 months ago) Permalink

feel like i want to shut myself away in my bedroom and blast some fucking rodan

― mod night at the oasis (NickB), Saturday, 4 August 2012 19:58 (10 months ago) Permalink

though bible silver corner would totally do me in right now

― mod night at the oasis (NickB), Saturday, 4 August 2012 20:01 (10 months ago) Permalink

FUCK

― mod night at the oasis (NickB), Saturday, 4 August 2012 20:02 (10 months ago) Permalink

oh no! RIP

― Algerian Goalkeeper, Saturday, 4 August 2012 20:45 (10 months ago) Permalink

Wow. Knew he fought cancer three years ago or so. Hope he had a good life during that extra hard-won time. Sad.

― Josh in Chicago, Saturday, 4 August 2012 22:48 (10 months ago) Permalink

Sad news.

― djh, Sunday, 5 August 2012 17:22 (10 months ago) Permalink

Geez, heard about this yesterday. "Rusty" was a major record for me, really blew me away when I heard it. Sad of course, gonna listen to "Rusty" right now.

― grandavis, Monday, 6 August 2012 17:30 (10 months ago) Permalink

Man, shit. Some brilliant stuff in that career.

― emil.y, Monday, 6 August 2012 17:34 (10 months ago) Permalink

https://www.facebook.com/JasonNobleBenefit

― Ned Raggett, Friday, 10 August 2012 14:22 (10 months ago) Permalink

2 months pass...

listening to the Rachel's for the first time, wow, really gorgeous music

― rap game klaus nomi (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Tuesday, 16 October 2012 16:13 (8 months ago) Permalink

yesterday was Jason's birthday, and Greg King uploaded a great anthology of Jason Noble onstage banter from in between Rachel's songs/shows

link is here

http://www.actualblood.com/

― the tune was space, Tuesday, 16 October 2012 16:31 (8 months ago) Permalink

Only just discovered this tragic news.
Still remember Rodan live and loved Rachel's too.
Very sad.You made some great music Jason.

― Jessie Fer Ark (Mobbed Up Ping Pong Psychos), Tuesday, 16 October 2012 18:45 (8 months ago) Permalink

5 months pass...

Bring it

http://www.touchandgorecords.com/news/detail.php?id=588

― Ned Raggett, Tuesday, 2 April 2013 20:23 (2 months ago) Permalink

Ha, I was way harsh on this thread. I don't remember what this band sounds like tbh.

― EveningStar (Sund4r), Tuesday, 2 April 2013 20:37 (2 months ago) Permalink

These bands, even.

― EveningStar (Sund4r), Tuesday, 2 April 2013 20:38 (2 months ago) Permalink

2 months pass...

And stream is up

http://pitchfork.com/advance/125-fifteen-quiet-years/

― Ned Raggett, Monday, 3 June 2013 14:58 (2 weeks ago) Permalink

Memories flooding back of sitting on the stage at the Edinburgh Venue watching them play a set that was the 3 tracks from the peel session, Tooth Fairy & Every Day World of Bodies.
Still one of the best shows I've seen.

― Oblique Strategies, Monday, 3 June 2013 16:19 (2 weeks ago) Permalink

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Rodan/Rachels: Classic Or Dud/ Search & Destroy. (RIP Jason Noble - August 2012)