Cardiacs - Sing to God

With regard to the point upthread about Tarred and Feathered on youtube, it's the video that turns people off, not the song. If you are turned off by the song then Cardiacs are probably not for you. It's quite possible to be open minded about the music but just hate the whole band image projected in that video. An friend of mine who was into Gong, Here & Now etc told me she "hated" Cardiacs but it turned out that all she knew was that video. She became a fan after listening to On Land And On The Sea.

It's strange then that the madcap performance in the video, which could be considered repellent and alienating, is what I and many others would consider the "classic" line-up. By the time STG was recorded they were down to just two of those 6 members and rarely played live. This was a band that was once noted for it's live shows. After what 1991(?) they never played without backing tapes again sadly. One view is that by this point they had became a studio vehicle for Tim Smith + one other virtuoso guitarist rather than a working band.

....not to diminish the achievements of that period of the band. Saw some great gigs and Heaven Born, STG & Guns are the greatest things ever, no question.

i've never heard this album but am curious what is "lol" about quiet as a mouse?

It's just a little interlude. It would be like voting for an 'intro' song..

Please listen to Sing to God though (but in high quality, not these YouTubes).

yeah I was kinda getting tired of typing it all up and I almost just omitted it since it's not really a song but figured someone would call me out on it

There's a really good fan-made video of Quiet As A Mouse on Youtube. It will give you nightmares forever.

'The Duck And Roger The Horse' is one of my absolute favourite Cardiacs songs btw. Controlled insanity, much better than the already-good 'Tarred And Feathered' - it's got the most amazing push-pull dynamic, as has been said, and it grooves!

All five albums are unutterably brilliant but I'd actually describe A Little Man as MARGINALLY the weakest of them. It's still extremely good and does everything it wants to do, but a) Is This The Life is a bit pants and b) the other albums are more intense, more far-side-of-consciousness, more intricately composed. But yeah, A Little Man is going for a different sort of vibe - a more plangent, emotionally direct one, and it does it superbly.

Guns poll would be amazing and I have no idea what to vote for (ok I do but it's close)

Oh and R.E.S. (Little Man version especially) is an all-time Cardiacs jam, that song is basically their blueprint and their realization all in one package

RES is currently my three-year-old daughter's favourite song. almost every day, she asks for the 'doole oodle doodle oodle doodle oddle doo' song. we then have to play it six times in a row while she dances manically and sings along to the 'that's the way we all go' bit.

you can't imagine how happy this makes me.

Could poll the what, six different released recordings of RES.

btw if I'm Eating In Bed was on ALM... instead of Is This The Life I would probably not have said that a couple of posts ago. amazing song, would've been one of the strongest on the album

eating in bed IS on A Little Man...

Only on certain versions! It was displaced from its spot in the running-order on the CD version wasn't it?

And yeah, to have a young child obsessed with the whirligig joyride that is RES is surely a magnificent thing...

xp on my cd it's track no. 3

On my version it's a bonus track! Ah well, more's the splendour then...

It was not on the original album/cassette but has been added to every CD version. Quite rightly too. I mean, it's not just a great track but thematically it fits with the rest of the album like a glove.

'The Duck And Roger The Horse' is one of my absolute favourite Cardiacs songs btw. Controlled insanity, much better than the already-good 'Tarred And Feathered' - it's got the most amazing push-pull dynamic, as has been said, and it grooves!
All five albums are unutterably brilliant but I'd actually describe A Little Man as MARGINALLY the weakest of them. It's still extremely good and does everything it wants to do, but a) Is This The Life is a bit pants and b) the other albums are more intense, more far-side-of-consciousness, more intricately composed. But yeah, A Little Man is going for a different sort of vibe - a more plangent, emotionally direct one, and it does it superbly.

I agree about "Duck", it's so out there that there really is no parallel, gotta love that tune, I'm just not sure how the uninitiated would handle that tune. If you like it I suppose you found yourself a new favorite band.

I would say Heaven Born and Ever Bright is the weakest, mostly because the production is so flat. No bass at all, just a lot of instruments in a small space.

Cosign the above yet HBAEB has March and Helen & Heaven which are my two favourite Cardiacs tracks.

I always loved "Anything I Can't Eat" and "For Good And All"; if the production was like any of their other albums they'd sound MASSIVE

Just listened to "Faster Than Snakes With a Ball and Chain" today; I don't know if that was going to make their "new" album but it kind of made me a little teary-eyed remembering around 2006 when I honestly thought that they were going to release something very soon

I was going through old cassette tapes at the weekend and came across a compilation of Cardiacs rare bits, remembered a live version of I'm Eating In Bed iirc, Tim announces it as a 'new song', then somebody, either Tim Quy or Bob chips in with 'we've still got the box for it' :-)

these guys are like the UK Cheer Accident...also hear a bit of Alex Harvey's spirit if not sound in this.

I was just the other day digging out my copy of "Introducing Lemon" (not Cheer Accident's most celebrated album but "The Autumn Wind is a Pirate" is a jam) and thinking maybe LJ would like it. Or their more manic stuff, too, granted...

Might declare this a Skin Graft Records listening night.

skin graft was so great, cheer accident always manages to never quite fit in with anything though, it made sense in one respect that they were on skin graft but at the same time they seemed apart from the rest

Yea, that's a good call, Cheer Accident are most likely LJ's type of thing, if you're listening Frodo, let me know if your dropbox link is still working, I'll stick some in for you to check out.

http://www.dominiqueleone.com/images/dirty-boy.jpg

uh oh i only have 3 days left to wrap my head around this record

i can do this

oh! re-up the link etc and hit me w/ doubloons :)

lots of cheer accident on spotify but it'd be nice to have some mpfreez

also good luck zoiderpress

I always loved "Anything I Can't Eat" and "For Good And All"; if the production was like any of their other albums they'd sound MASSIVE

'Anything I Can't Eat', 'Core' and my fucking god 'Snakes-A-Sleeping' are all-time Cardiacs brain-exploders for me. whole album has an amazing sound, all coiled and metallic and feedbacky and electrifying

Just listened to "Faster Than Snakes With a Ball and Chain" today; I don't know if that was going to make their "new" album but it kind of made me a little teary-eyed remembering around 2006 when I honestly thought that they were going to release something very soon

they did! and it was utterly great. even if I now realise 'Ditzy Scene' is a bit of a macroscopic retread of 'Don't You Ail, Flash The Sea To Steam'...

The sound of Heaven Born and Ever Bright sounds absolutely A-OK in my book! Is Christian Hayes to thank for the amazing guitar sounds? Quite superb.

the guitars do indeed sound great, but it needs more jim. my favourites from that one: home of fadeless splendour, she hides behind the shed, goodbye grace, anything I can't eat. a fine album, but just pales a bit by comparison.

still haven't voted in this. can't bring myself to commit.

found mint vinyl copies of "songs for ships and irons" and "on land and in the sea" at a record fair today, very pleased with meself.

I really think they screwed up the mix on the mid-nineties reissue of HB&EB, though. Everything's cranked up to the point that the levels are almost constantly in the red, meaning it's actually quite painful to listen to in it's entirety. I've considered blowing £30 on the earlier Rough Trade issue that sometimes shows up on ebay just to hear the difference, as apparently it's considerable.

On the whole I do like the heavier sound of the album though. It's almost like a cross between Cardiacs and Panixphere, the pissing-about thrash band that Tim, Bic and others used to gigs as in the early 90s.

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

top 3 otm!!

new ILM record for 'highest number of amazing songs with 0 votes in a poll'

Bah, I knew I should've voted Insect Hoofs, but I went with Sparky.

yeah Insect Hoofs is probably the best song without a vote. but it's close.

got a couple of smartasses here i see

shall...shall we beat them senseless?

i'm just surprised that 17 people on ilm have this record

went with gun hand in the end. it's just so bloody perfect. but now I feel bad for eat it up worms hero, bell clinks, bell stinks, angleworm angel, a horse's tail, etc...

Pretty lame ilm

Alright guys, I acquired this album the other night so I could finally dive into the Cardiacs. Maybe the fact that I even have to ask this means the band may not be right for me, but is there any sort of helpful entry point or rock to cling to as I dive in? I've listened to the whole thing twice, but its so damned packed and overwhelming that its been easy to just let it all wash over me. Its obvious you guys are hearing something in this, but I'm not sure I have a way in just yet.

It'll take a good while to chew on, especially if it's your first exposure to the band. It's kind of an exhausting listen because of it's length, scope and sound.

I'd guess that certain songs will present themselves as more approachable at first: Manhoo, Dog Like Sparky, Bellyeye. If you have a natural appetite for their kind of music it'll keep drawing you back, it's not the ideal first record in my book but it's probably a good overall litmus test.

lolol mares nest what is with your display name?? love it.

:) I was looking for some RWR music and got this generically generated google result and it tickled me.

Yeah as much as I love the album I don't know if StG is the best starting point; I guess you have to take each disc seperately, as it is basically two different albums. Disc 1 I would say is more accessible

Okay 10 songs, any album, any side project as an introduction, have at it.