"Photosynthetic" is another live recording, this time from Russia, on a Russian label. It's possibly the dullest live disc they've ever released. And this includes the completely inessential "Aetheneum" and "Homebush" from last year's box set. I can only assume that it's to be treated as a document of a night in a place they don't normally play but it was one of those occassions where the band don't connect and show little inventiveness.
"Drive By" is another matter entirely. It's a studio piece and follows the path of one of their masterpieces "Hanging Garden" : each player seems to get 2 or more tracks to allow drones and chords supplemented by faster accents. About 20 mins in and another beautifull chord progression rises out of the sound floor. Buy it now.
― phil turnbull (philT), Tuesday, 11 November 2003 08:19 (twenty years ago) link
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/world/mixingitljf.shtml
i think part 2 of this is at least as good as anything they have released commercially.
― jed (jed_e_3), Tuesday, 11 November 2003 13:57 (twenty years ago) link
― phil turnbull (philT), Tuesday, 11 November 2003 20:46 (twenty years ago) link
― phil turnbull (philT), Wednesday, 12 November 2003 01:18 (twenty years ago) link
Guardian article for anyone who is interested (almost no one).
― jed_ (jed), Saturday, 10 January 2004 00:35 (twenty years ago) link
― jed_ (jed), Saturday, 10 January 2004 00:37 (twenty years ago) link
It's spacious, but focussed. Reminds me of Talk Talk a lot. What should I get next?
― bham (bham), Tuesday, 29 August 2006 08:10 (seventeen years ago) link
as for the Necks, get "Drive-by"...their finest hour (literally speaking)...
― hank (hank s), Tuesday, 29 August 2006 12:40 (seventeen years ago) link
― jed_ (jed), Tuesday, 29 August 2006 20:41 (seventeen years ago) link
― hank (hank s), Wednesday, 30 August 2006 01:27 (seventeen years ago) link
― ryan (ryan), Wednesday, 30 August 2006 01:57 (seventeen years ago) link
― These Robust Cookies (Robust Cookies), Wednesday, 30 August 2006 05:01 (seventeen years ago) link
I didn't know about this one before the Wire's end of year list:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/release/4b4h/
Has anyone heard it?
― toby, Thursday, 20 December 2007 13:09 (sixteen years ago) link
it's good...totally different from their other stuff, but still unmistakably the Necks...back to the one-long-song format...a little less hypnotic than, say, Drive-By, but it's very twinkly/chiming/glassy...stellar as usual...
― henry s, Thursday, 20 December 2007 14:17 (sixteen years ago) link
so is anyone going to see them at the vortex in london?
― cw, Friday, 9 May 2008 09:29 (fifteen years ago) link
i'm going to see them at the city halls in glasgow.
― jed_, Friday, 9 May 2008 11:17 (fifteen years ago) link
i'm off live music but i have waited a long time to see them.
here's the current tour, starts in glasgow.
May UK Sun 11 GLASGOW, City Halls, Recital Room www.glasgowconcerthalls.com
Box office (+44) 0141 353-8000
Mon 12 NEWCASTLE/GATESHEAD, The Sage Gateshead www.thesagegateshead.org
Box Office (+44) 0191 443 4661
Tues 13 NORWICH, Arts Centre www.norwichartscentre.co.uk
Box Office: (+44) 01603 660352
Thurs 15 BRIGHTON FESTIVAL, Manic Organic at Brighton Dome www.brightonfestival.org
Sat 17 BRISTOL, The Cube cubecinema.com
Sun 18 COLCHESTER, Arts Centre www.colchesterartscentre.com
Box Office: (+44) 01206 500 900
Mon & Tues
19/ 20 LONDON, Vortex Jazz Club
EARLY SHOW - SOLD OUT
FEW TICKETS LEFT - standing only
Monday 19th MIDNIGHT SPECIAL - one set only Tickets: £9.00 Doors from 10.30 pm
Cafe/bar downstairs serving pre-gig espresso and black sambuca shots: or come earlier for dinner. Showing films by Tony Buck
www.vortexjazz.co.uk
Tickets:
Box Office: (+44) 020 7254 4097
Or - www.wegottickets.com and search on "The Necks"
Wed 21 LIVERPOOL, Philharmonic Hall www.liverpoolphil.com
Box Office: (+44) 0151 709 3789
― jed_, Friday, 9 May 2008 11:19 (fifteen years ago) link
sigh...they never seem to play in the States...
― henry s, Friday, 9 May 2008 12:51 (fifteen years ago) link
New Necks is one of my secret band/album names!
― G00blar, Friday, 9 May 2008 13:06 (fifteen years ago) link
hanging gardens is still one of the dopest records ever
― some know what you dude last summer (Jordan), Tuesday, 25 November 2008 03:38 (fifteen years ago) link
speaking of (Tony Buck), anyone heard the new Heaven And rec out on Staubgold? from what I ca tell on myspace it's pretty good. not really Necks-y but still interesting.
― sonderangerbot, Tuesday, 25 November 2008 04:21 (fifteen years ago) link
anyone going to see them in bath? tempted to make the trip...bargain for a tenner too.
― Phelan Nulty (Local Garda), Monday, 16 May 2011 11:31 (twelve years ago) link
I'd love to see them but the location and timing isn't great. This mention here isn't on the website and looks better for me; http://www.allgigs.co.uk/search/tourdates/55463/The_Necks-1.html
― mmmm, Monday, 16 May 2011 13:04 (twelve years ago) link
yeah that is better...would prob have to stay in bath by time gig is over.
― Phelan Nulty (Local Garda), Monday, 16 May 2011 15:04 (twelve years ago) link
anyone seen them live before? seems like it'd be good to have some chemical aid beforehand
― Phelan Nulty (Local Garda), Tuesday, 17 May 2011 14:11 (twelve years ago) link
I've seen them a few times, sober or on a couple of drinks, and you absolutely don't need anything to be swept away in delight or wonderment, or stop thinking at all and enjoy detached brain dancing at drones or rhythms. but if the surrounds are comfortable, seems like it'd be good is probably an entirely accurate estimation.
― special midget status (sic), Tuesday, 17 May 2011 14:21 (twelve years ago) link
Saw them last year at Big Ears 2 -- the trio, and also the three of them plus Ned Rothenberg. There was another concert involving an ad hoc group of players doing a Necks-like set, Tony Buck on drums. Highly recommended. I'd skip the chemicals, but that's just me.
― Stomp! in the name of love (WmC), Tuesday, 17 May 2011 14:25 (twelve years ago) link
xpost: and the "two sets with an intermission" duration of their shows would suit that, if you did try.
check the venue though. last time I saw them, this year, was in a jazz club where 80% of the couple of hundred capacity stand behind a railing by the bar, while a few dozen sit at dinner tables in 80% of the floorspace = prob not conducive. a few years back at ATP, they played in the afternoon sun, a meter from the harbour, where the entire audience bar 8 people* lay down on the trimmed lawn and let the piano roll through the ground = potential zomg.
*halfway through, one of these 8 hugging the stage turned around and saw the rest of us, tugged his mate's sleeve, and promptly sat cross-legged.
― special midget status (sic), Tuesday, 17 May 2011 14:39 (twelve years ago) link
yeah i mostly wouldn't bother with chems either these days, once a year maybe, but seems like you could have a bit of a transcendental experience with this band!
― Phelan Nulty (Local Garda), Tuesday, 17 May 2011 14:40 (twelve years ago) link
Played Drive By at our record club last night; went down very well. Just bought Mosquito / See Through too; every time I play a Necks album for the first time in a while, I end up buying another one.
― lol sickmouthy (Scik Mouthy), Wednesday, 15 June 2011 07:03 (twelve years ago) link
http://devonrecordclub.wordpress.com/2011/06/15/the-necks-–-drive-by-–-round-10-nick’s-choice/
― lol sickmouthy (Scik Mouthy), Wednesday, 15 June 2011 13:26 (twelve years ago) link
anyone going to the gig next month at THE BISHOPSGATE INSTITUTE, whatever that is
― When a German communicates, you listen (LocalGarda), Sunday, 9 October 2011 11:41 (twelve years ago) link
I opted for the date in Oxford at "The oldest custom-built concert hall in Europe" http://bit.ly/qH8mcm
― Super Receptor (Barnaby, Hardly), Sunday, 9 October 2011 11:55 (twelve years ago) link
Anybody fancy Leeds on November 25th?
― Dios mio! This kid is FUN to hit! (Noodle Vague), Sunday, 9 October 2011 12:40 (twelve years ago) link
yeah I'm going to both the London dates.
― toby, Sunday, 9 October 2011 12:47 (twelve years ago) link
Harold Budd and Werner Dafeldecker should be great at those non-London shows, wish i could catch this tour.
― master musicians of jamiroquai (NickB), Sunday, 9 October 2011 13:36 (twelve years ago) link
Probably will go to the Bishopsgate Institute one, just making sure I am in town for the date.
― mmmm, Sunday, 9 October 2011 17:40 (twelve years ago) link
How is Mindset? Been on a serious kick but I think I prefer the more 'live' sounding, less overdubbed stuff, like Sex and Piano Bass Drum, though I've yet to hear an album by this group I dislike. Still, wondering if the new one is worth a plunge, given that I find Drive By a little too maximalist and Aether a little too sleepy. Their records are expensive in the States.
― If Assholes Could Fly This Place Would Be An Airport, Sunday, 1 April 2012 00:09 (twelve years ago) link
these dudes are nothing if not consistent -- the new one is totally gorgeous.
― tylerw, Thursday, 26 September 2013 15:10 (ten years ago) link
yes! they might be my favorite band going.
has anyone heard any of these side projects? http://www.thenecks.com/shop/other
― ryan, Thursday, 26 September 2013 15:35 (ten years ago) link
Don't know any of those but I can highly recommend Buck's project with Martin Siewert and Steve Heather, Heaven And (not listed there).
― my father will guide me up the stairs to bed (anagram), Thursday, 26 September 2013 15:38 (ten years ago) link
Can't wait to hear the new one.
― Jimmywine Dyspeptic, Thursday, 26 September 2013 16:26 (ten years ago) link
Yeah thanks for the heads-up
― Brakhage, Thursday, 26 September 2013 17:41 (ten years ago) link
What is the name of the new album?
― crowhurst, Thursday, 26 September 2013 19:04 (ten years ago) link
Open
― tylerw, Thursday, 26 September 2013 19:06 (ten years ago) link
The Wire seemed to really like it. I'm just glad it's on a US label so I don't have to pay like $28 for this one.
― Jimmywine Dyspeptic, Thursday, 26 September 2013 21:29 (ten years ago) link
Open is out today and let me repeat myself: it is totally gorgeous.
― tylerw, Tuesday, 12 November 2013 17:45 (ten years ago) link
Yeah I listened to that a bunch of times when it was streaming. It is a cool journey for sure, gotta track down more by this band. My kinda thing.
― grandavis, Tuesday, 12 November 2013 18:07 (ten years ago) link
yeah it's really good. I think it's important to listen loud. playing softly in the background you might thing it just passed on by and nothing happened.
― ryan, Tuesday, 12 November 2013 18:27 (ten years ago) link
Loud, this thing is amazing. On headphones, another experience entirely.
― I can still taste the Taboo in my mouth when I hear those songs (Scik Mouthy), Tuesday, 12 November 2013 21:44 (ten years ago) link
Have only listened on headphones, and dug it a lot. Not sure when I will get to listen to it in any other context ....
― grandavis, Tuesday, 12 November 2013 21:56 (ten years ago) link
I did turn it up loud though.
― grandavis, Tuesday, 12 November 2013 21:57 (ten years ago) link
I found Open instantly gratifying. The last one - Mindset was a tougher nut to crack, still great though.
― Damo Suzuki's Parrot, Tuesday, 12 November 2013 23:14 (ten years ago) link
this cd only thing is ludicrous. might as well have a darts player amputating his right hand.
― Legitimate space tale (LocalGarda), Tuesday, 12 November 2013 23:24 (ten years ago) link
good thing the necks are left-handed!!
― I have a friend who works at Kroger (Matt P), Tuesday, 12 November 2013 23:29 (ten years ago) link
i mean 'necks are left-handed.' they're left-handed necks.
― I have a friend who works at Kroger (Matt P), Tuesday, 12 November 2013 23:31 (ten years ago) link
I mean, it is CD only because of the length I would think, and the listening experience. I don't think it is meant to be flipped on a turntable.
― grandavis, Tuesday, 12 November 2013 23:52 (ten years ago) link
not ideal really - i'd sooner buy it digitally than on cd.
― Legitimate space tale (LocalGarda), Tuesday, 12 November 2013 23:56 (ten years ago) link
Oh, there isn't even a digital option? Whoa, that just seems like a bad idea by the label/band. Sorry, I had missed that.
― grandavis, Tuesday, 12 November 2013 23:59 (ten years ago) link
nah you can buy it digitally
― tylerw, Wednesday, 13 November 2013 00:00 (ten years ago) link
Ah cool I didn't see that on the site.
― Legitimate space tale (LocalGarda), Wednesday, 13 November 2013 00:01 (ten years ago) link
http://northernspy.11spot.com/the-necks-open.html
― tylerw, Wednesday, 13 November 2013 00:02 (ten years ago) link
Yeah, that would make no sense at all if they didn't sell it digitally.
― grandavis, Wednesday, 13 November 2013 00:03 (ten years ago) link
Feel like a cheapskate wretch for saying this, but I get Necks albums through my emusic subscription where they just get charged as single tracks i.e. £0.42 per album. They should probably sort that out but in the meantime, I'm sorry Necks - you will not get rich off me unless you play here live a little more often.
― gotta lol geir (NickB), Wednesday, 13 November 2013 00:11 (ten years ago) link
tbf guys if you promise to come and play up our end once a week i promise i will come and see you every time
― a strident purist when it comes to band-related shirts (Noodle Vague), Wednesday, 13 November 2013 00:13 (ten years ago) link
their albums are so beautifully recorded, too. snare drum sound of dreams.
― nerve_pylon, Wednesday, 13 November 2013 00:22 (ten years ago) link
and i guess that is what i'm losing when i buy my shitty mp3s
― gotta lol geir (NickB), Wednesday, 13 November 2013 00:28 (ten years ago) link
neato:
The Necks 18th album Vertigo is an eventful, kaleidoscopic tone poem set against a darkly shimmering background. Slowly but inexorably moving forward, it crosses many frontiers yet remains true to the mission and mood established in the opening stanzas of this cinematic 44 minute journey. A work able to be viewed either as a whole, or two symmetrical halves, Vertigo sees The Necks once again offer an excursion in sound that reflects both the light and darkness of some preternatural world.
Vertigo will be released on 30th October in North America by Northern Spy Records. It follows their acclaimed 2013 album Open, described by SPIN as ‘the most beautiful album of the year’.
In contrast to the sustained improvisations that are their live performances, The Necks' studio albums take shape by way of intricate crafting brought to bear throughout the entire recording and mixing process. “The discussion this time really began in earnest in the session itself, where we started to pursue the idea of having a drone running from start to finish, off which we could hang ideas,” said bassist Lloyd Swanton “But like all Necks albums we ended up in a very different place from whatever our initial notion of it had been.”
Maintaining a teetering tension between suspension and collapse, Vertigo draws on a diverse palette of sounds created in the studio by Tony Buck (drums/percussion/guitar), Lloyd Swanton (bass) and Chris Abrahams (piano/keyboards), featuring everything from homemade instruments, extended instrumental techniques and marathon explorations of sonic textures.
One piece, at the same time two. Monochrome, yet multicoloured. Dark, yet incandescent. Expansive and still. Melancholic and exhilarating. The Necks. Vertigo.
― tylerw, Monday, 24 August 2015 16:52 (eight years ago) link
It is pretty safe to say this is going to be very very good.
― xelab, Monday, 24 August 2015 17:03 (eight years ago) link
'vertigo' is pretty great. more rhythmically concerned and organ vibey than usual
― reggie (qualmsley), Tuesday, 8 September 2015 21:04 (eight years ago) link
Is it out now?
― xelab, Tuesday, 8 September 2015 21:22 (eight years ago) link
not officially for a little while i don't think
― reggie (qualmsley), Tuesday, 8 September 2015 21:26 (eight years ago) link
October I think. Is it two tracks? I've seen it announced and made a note to order it but not looked at details of listened. Rhythm and organs is good in my mind.
― Hey Bob (Scik Mouthy), Wednesday, 9 September 2015 09:56 (eight years ago) link
Ooh no, Australian CD release is tomorrow.
http://www.thenecks.com/news
― Hey Bob (Scik Mouthy), Wednesday, 9 September 2015 09:58 (eight years ago) link
Stoked! I listen to the last couple of albums and some recent live streams I ripped constantly. They basically just get better and better.
It is such a joy to listen to these notes accumulate over time. Or, as on Aether amd Open, dissipate over time! For me they are now old masters confidently exploring their personal subjects (piano, bass and percussives) inside an unfolding temporal landscape. When they work/play, their distinct voices are simultaneously woven together and embedded inside this amazingly flexible collective perpetual motion sound sculpture thingy called the Necks! Exciting stuff that I will be listening to gratefully for the rest of my life!
― liam fennell, Wednesday, 9 September 2015 12:16 (eight years ago) link
Great news. That press release does make it sound like 2x 20-odd min tracks, as with Mindset, which I would be happy with.
I enjoy Open, but find it a bit too sparse in places to really love. Maybe it needs more time; I really didn't get on with Silverwater at first but now it might be my favourite of theirs ...
― Steve Reich In The Afternoon (Against The 80s), Wednesday, 9 September 2015 12:56 (eight years ago) link
Yeah, Silverwater is my absolute favorite, really! Just gorgeous stuff. The unity of form created by so-apt the art/title/performance puts it above the others in the final analysis, what with all the jingly shimmering tidal waves of percussion rolling in and out. It plays paradoxically on your perception, seemingly both calm and busy at the same time. And then if you turn it up real loud you hear that there is all this stuff concealed beneath the lapping waves that are on the surface!!!
― liam fennell, Wednesday, 9 September 2015 16:23 (eight years ago) link
yeah silverwater is just after drive by for me. prefer the motorik stylings of the latter just a tad.
― ryan, Wednesday, 9 September 2015 16:38 (eight years ago) link
New one is a bit noisier/busier than Open. But these guys can do no wrong in my opinion.
― tylerw, Wednesday, 9 September 2015 19:54 (eight years ago) link
My first impression is that this is pretty damn good, that is always a good sign with a Necks album.
― xelab, Wednesday, 9 September 2015 22:00 (eight years ago) link
both halves are very strong
― xelab, Wednesday, 9 September 2015 22:02 (eight years ago) link
Just got this. One quiet listen yesterday (whilst feeling ill), and it seemed a bit abstract / delicate, albeit more ominous than Open. Was hoping for something more groovey.
Anyone else got any thoughts after spending more time with it?
― Hey Bob (Scik Mouthy), Wednesday, 7 October 2015 10:51 (eight years ago) link
First listen through this morning, and it feels like a cross between Silverwater and Mindset.
― Steve Reich In The Afternoon (Against The 80s), Thursday, 8 October 2015 09:47 (eight years ago) link
I haven't heard Mindset, but it feels almost like a throwback to Piano, Bass, Drums for me.
― Tim F, Thursday, 8 October 2015 13:44 (eight years ago) link
Yeah? I've not listened to that in an age but I remember it being way more propulsive / chaotic. maybe I need to listen to this turned up.
― Hey Bob (Scik Mouthy), Thursday, 8 October 2015 13:54 (eight years ago) link
My copy of Vertigo finally came, prepared piano and bowed bass and gongs and things like that = awesome. It is a negative/reverse image of Open, which is to say a minor key variation with the same atmospheric rubato approach. Couldn't be more different from Drive-By, ha, no grooves or rhythmic motifs to be found here at all. There's some sections with prestissimo cymbals and hammered piano notes giving a kinda polyrhythmic cushion, though. It levitates!
The second half is appropriately vertiginous with all this reverb and weird distant dragging/slurping percussive sounds and the bowed bass played in the higher registers so it sounds like a bagpipe drone or a sustained trumpet note. And then it gets more and more sinister and murky and the notes get lower and lower until the return of the prepared piano at the very end. Perfect title, concept, execution. Essential The Necks.
― liam fennell, Monday, 2 November 2015 13:45 (eight years ago) link
I'm having a hard time connecting to it, but I guess I miss what you call the "grooves." The Necks are never dull, but this is maybe the first album of theirs that tests my patience a bit. Maybe it'll grow on me.
― Jimmywine Dyspeptic, Monday, 2 November 2015 14:27 (eight years ago) link
Yeah, I can see that, they definitely are getting farther and farther and farther from the niche they carved out for themselves. This newer more experimental phase just happens to coincide exactly with all my own interests, maybe.
― liam fennell, Monday, 2 November 2015 19:49 (eight years ago) link
Listened to it this morning (it's on Spotify) and it's instantly one of my favorites by them.
― phở intellectual (WilliamC), Monday, 2 November 2015 20:08 (eight years ago) link
They can do no wrong for me, they have been consistently great for decades imo
I would recommend Andrew Hill's out there masterpiece Compulsion!!!!!! (not my exclamation marks) to people who dig The Necks, it obviously has had a big influence on them.
― xelab, Monday, 2 November 2015 20:33 (eight years ago) link
anyone at cafe oto last night? hadn't seen them live before and it was incredible. just three wildly brilliant musicians playing off each other.
― doing my Objectives, handling some intense stuff (LocalGarda), Saturday, 14 November 2015 10:50 (eight years ago) link
Bugger me, these guys are actually playing in Southampton next Thursday. Nobody plays in Southampton.
― Poacher (Chinaski), Saturday, 14 November 2015 10:54 (eight years ago) link
It is quite heartening to see on their tour itinerary that they have also played at such other cultural metropolises as Halifax, Exeter, Cork and Gateshead in recent years!
― xelab, Saturday, 14 November 2015 15:17 (eight years ago) link
Feel pretty #blessed that they've made the trip across the ditch to New Zealand a few times; some of my favourite live shows. Slowly digging into the new one, and cheers xelab for the Compulsion!!!!!! tip! Closest thing I've seen to the Necks recently was Nik Bärtsch's Ronin (ECM, etc); attended a jazz festival in Shenzhen and played a side-show opening up a new jazz club beside the Pearl River Brewery's new beer museum on a party pier(?????).
― etc, Saturday, 14 November 2015 15:44 (eight years ago) link
btw i found out this week you can buy all the albums digitally from this norwegian site:
http://www.subradar.no/artist/necks
― doing my Objectives, handling some intense stuff (LocalGarda), Saturday, 14 November 2015 15:53 (eight years ago) link
US TOUR
3/21 – Blue Whale – Los Angeles, CA – Angel City Arts3/22 – Goethe Institute – Boston, MA – Non-Event3/23 – Philadelphia Art Alliance – Philadelphia, PA – Ars Nova Workshop3/24 – The Whitney Museum of Art – New York City, NY3/25 – The Whitney Museum of Art – New York City, NY3/26 – The Stage at KDHX – St. Louis, MO – The New Music Circle3/27 – Constellation – Chicago, IL3/28 – The KMAC Music Series (Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft) – Louisville, KY – The Kentucky Center for Performing Arts - Todd Hall3/29 – The North Door – Austin, TX – Epistrophy Arts3/30 – Match Houston – Houston, TX – Nameless Sound3/31 – Big Ears Festival – Knoxville, TN – Tony Buck with Zeena Parkins*4/01 – Big Ears Festival – Knoxville, TN – Chris Abrahams solo*4/02 – Big Ears Festival – Knoxville, TN – The Necks**set times for Big Ears subject to date change – keep an eye on the schedule! http://www.bigearsfestival.com/
― Brakhage, Tuesday, 26 January 2016 18:33 (eight years ago) link
http://northernspyrecords.com/shows/
― Brakhage, Tuesday, 26 January 2016 18:44 (eight years ago) link
Bummer no SF show.
― One bad call from barely losing to (Alex in SF), Tuesday, 26 January 2016 19:46 (eight years ago) link
Houston!
― ryan, Tuesday, 26 January 2016 20:31 (eight years ago) link
Philadelphia show was REAL good and also sold out. Bass player Lloyd Swanton in particular seemed overjoyed once they started levitating about 10 minutes in! A lot of fun and also curiously exhausting because of the amount of energy flying around the room at the peak, which consisted of a clamorous tornado-crescendo lasting about 20 minutes.
― liam fennell, Thursday, 24 March 2016 12:40 (eight years ago) link
seeing them next week and couldn't be happier about it.
― ryan, Thursday, 24 March 2016 13:12 (eight years ago) link
sunday, sameglad to know the show was energetic!
― La Lechuza (La Lechera), Thursday, 24 March 2016 13:17 (eight years ago) link
this sounds promising: http://40.media.tumblr.com/65184fa41408fc98d83df9beab3c0ac6/tumblr_inline_o2yc3vPxs51ryacpf_500.jpgThe Still are a cast of international musicians who congregate in Berlin and create hypnotic, perfectly-tensioned instrumental music that has earned them a cool cult following on the underground gig scene there. Experimental drummer/percussionist Steve Heather and fellow Australian Chris Abrahams (The Necks) on piano, Canadian Derek Shirley on double bass, the wonderfully-named German guitarist Rico Repotente, and Thomas Meadowcraft on organ/revox are the core members, with an occasional expanded version with horns. The mood is set for minimalist, unhurried grooves and soundscapes.http://seriesaphonos.com/
― tylerw, Thursday, 24 March 2016 14:18 (eight years ago) link
that'll be good shit.
not really Necks related but Nik Bartsch doesn't have a thread and occupies similar territory to them, his latest one Continuum is very good.
― calzino, Thursday, 24 March 2016 14:46 (eight years ago) link
I like just about everything put out on the Tonus Music label, where Nik Bartsch got his start. Check Don Li, Mik Keusen, and Sha's Banru if you're into the Nik Bartsch/Dawn of Midi minimal vibe.
― Unyielding Dispair Architects, LLC (Sanpaku), Thursday, 24 March 2016 18:12 (eight years ago) link
saw them in LA on monday, they were a-m-a-z-i-n-g
― donna rouge, Thursday, 24 March 2016 18:19 (eight years ago) link
This live performance from a year ago is mesmerizing
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFpWd1V__SI
― Steve Reich In The Afternoon (Against The 80s), Thursday, 24 March 2016 19:37 (eight years ago) link
Continuing the aside, Nik Bartsch's Mobile Extended has a few US sets coming up. Nowhere near me, alas.
May 01 Portland, OR Albetra AbbeyMay 05 Troy, NY EMPAC- The Curts R.Priem Experimential Media and Performing Arts CenterMay 06 New York, NY The Rubin Museum
― Unyielding Dispair Architects, LLC (Sanpaku), Friday, 25 March 2016 22:17 (eight years ago) link
I honestly can't believe I forgot about the 2 shows in NY this week. Disgusted with myself.
― Oblique Strategies, Sunday, 27 March 2016 22:25 (eight years ago) link
i heard that ppl stood a reasonable chance of getting in via the standby line but i couldn't make it either night
― adam, Sunday, 27 March 2016 23:59 (eight years ago) link
chicago show last night was sublime, warm & bubbly. i was sitting in front of tony buck and it was interesting to see how their sound comes together and where all the noises come from. at one point he moved a brush about an inch in either direction on the snare for 35 min straight. 35 min! he also rolled some bells around with his feet. i also thought it was interesting how gently he used the bass drum. anyway they played 2 longish sets and if they are in your area, you should definitely go.
― La Lechuza (La Lechera), Monday, 28 March 2016 13:35 (eight years ago) link
seeing them Wednesday in Houston. havent been this excited for a show in a long time.
― ryan, Monday, 28 March 2016 13:42 (eight years ago) link
"the curves of the desire imprisoned somewhere, in a space with an implacably rectilinear geometry. But it's also a pink sky pastel, something of our sexual, epileptic and short-lived world." pretentious as fuck, but ace French drummer Sylvain Darrifourcq describing his acoustic chamber jazz trio Axel Erotic - In Love With album. It is only remotely similar to The Necks in the sense that it is improv, albeit with no piano - more like Dawn Of Midi I suppose, but it is still very good.
― calzino, Monday, 25 July 2016 20:35 (seven years ago) link
had incredibly high expectations going to see them last night, hoping for something spare & fragile & precious, and instead got this gorgeous shimmering jumble, ideas gradually refined through repetitions, everything turning into a radiant blur that left me feeling like a well-stroked cat
tony buck was v pleasingly understated and cliche-free, not seen anything like that before
― ogmor, Wednesday, 9 November 2016 14:11 (seven years ago) link
excerpt from new one: https://soundcloud.com/editionsmego/the-necks-timepiece-excerpt-soma025
― tylerw, Friday, 18 November 2016 17:28 (seven years ago) link
Not onboard for this. I think I've mostly been responding to the gestures towards dub in earlier Necks albums, so for me its all about that bass.
― Distribution of all possible outcomes (Sanpaku), Friday, 18 November 2016 20:23 (seven years ago) link
Whoa, awesome, thanks Tylerw!
Well, I love colorful rhythm clatter and chiming sounds, so I couldn't be happier. Good song title, too, for music with stut t e r y staccato bass figures that sound like a pocketwatch winding down!
― liam fennell, Monday, 21 November 2016 19:14 (seven years ago) link
Got home from work to find the Necks boxset had arrived. That's this evening sorted.
― Duke, Wednesday, 23 November 2016 19:59 (seven years ago) link
New record 'Unfold' available now. Sounds ace after a couple of listens; a 'gorgeous shimmering jumble' to borrow ogmor's phrase. 'Blue Mountain' is the standout for me so far.
― Steve Reich In The Afternoon (Against The 80s), Friday, 10 February 2017 16:21 (seven years ago) link
Going to see them again soon, a few weeks. Looking forward to it so much! The show I went to brought out all kinds of people I rarely see at shows and it made me think of their rather broad appeal.
― weird woman in a bar (La Lechera), Friday, 10 February 2017 17:02 (seven years ago) link
ugh, i'd love to see them. new one is great — when I first put it on, I was kinda like "ok this is the necks", but by the middle of it I got the "holy shit how are they even doing this" feeling.
― tylerw, Friday, 10 February 2017 17:05 (seven years ago) link
Gonna get there so early so I can sit right near Tony. They're playing for 2 nights!
― weird woman in a bar (La Lechera), Friday, 10 February 2017 17:09 (seven years ago) link
they've definitely built up a cult audience over the years. it was a very bald crowd when I saw them
― ogmor, Friday, 10 February 2017 23:15 (seven years ago) link
No reason why male pattern baldness should stop anyone enjoying this kind of sublime improv:p I love the new one already and like Tylerw on my first listen I had doubts + I was thinking are they turning into some average ECM plodders, but then realised it is absolutely wonderful.
― calzino, Saturday, 11 February 2017 11:08 (seven years ago) link
Wow, Blue Mountain is glorious. What a band.
― The shard-borne beetle with his drowsy hums (Chinaski), Saturday, 11 February 2017 14:27 (seven years ago) link
I think the first two tracks are amongst the best ever Necks as well, that organ on Overhear gives it a trance/gospel quality. Wonderful stuff.
― calzino, Saturday, 11 February 2017 14:34 (seven years ago) link
Shades of "Vuh" in Overhear. But I think the involving stasis of Timepiece is the most arresting.
― Noel Emits, Saturday, 11 February 2017 17:55 (seven years ago) link
Well quite by happy chance I caught them -- for the first time ever -- last night here in SF. Stellar show.
― Ned Raggett, Monday, 20 February 2017 02:17 (seven years ago) link
so has anyone else seen this band play with a guest musician? at the second night of the chicago shows (the one i went to), joshua abrams (natural information society, among many others) sat in for the second set and it was really interesting to watch another person integrate into the necks sound-world, which seems very tightly sealed from the other sets i've seen them play (2). he played one of these https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sintir
― weird woman in a bar (La Lechera), Tuesday, 7 March 2017 21:31 (seven years ago) link
They played with Ned Rothenberg at the first Big Ears, iirc. It was billed under their four names rather than Necks + NR. (I wish the festival still had previous years' schedules archived so I could check that.)
― scattered, smothered, covered, diced and chunked (WilliamC), Tuesday, 7 March 2017 21:44 (seven years ago) link
he's a saxophone player right? how was it? the set with abrams was significantly more heavy on the groove side of things (he's a bass player most of the time iirc) if memory serves there were even some riffy moments. i think i enjoyed the pure Necks set slightly more bc they are like a snowglobe band -- you enter their world and then stay there for a while to daydream.
― weird woman in a bar (La Lechera), Tuesday, 7 March 2017 21:52 (seven years ago) link
As I recall the set, it was very much Rothenberg entering Necksian trance-space, long lines and patterns. I don't know enough about him to say if that's his territory to start with.
― scattered, smothered, covered, diced and chunked (WilliamC), Tuesday, 7 March 2017 22:07 (seven years ago) link
not much use to me by the looks of it, but maybe relevant to some of your interests:
Sat 29th: Cheltenham, UK - Cheltenham Jazz Festival Sun 30th: Bray, Ireland - Bray Jazz Festival MAY Mon 1st: Brighton, UK - St Luke's Church Wed 3rd: London, UK - Jazz Cafe Sat 6th: Glasgow, UK - Glasgow Tectonics - The Necks with BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra Sun 7th: Glasgow, UK - Glasgow Tectonics - Eddie Prévost's Spirals with members of The Necks Mon 8th: Rijkesvorsel, Belgium - De Singer Tue 9th: Paris, France - La Dynamo Wed 10th: Prague, Czech Republic - Palac Akropolis Thu 11th: Olomouc, Czech Republic - Jazz Tibet Club Fri 12th: Ustí Nad Labem, Czech Republic - Národní dům
― Django Chutney (Noodle Vague), Saturday, 1 April 2017 16:09 (seven years ago) link
I'm photographing Tectonics again this year and really looking forward to finally seeing The Necks, never managed to catch them before.
― NWOFHM! Overlord (krakow), Monday, 3 April 2017 09:36 (seven years ago) link
somehow i can't warm up to the necks. whenever i try the repetitive music bores to death me after about five minutes. maybe my attention span is just too small.
― it's the distortion, stupid! (alex in mainhattan), Tuesday, 4 April 2017 13:24 (seven years ago) link
"bores me to death"
― it's the distortion, stupid! (alex in mainhattan), Tuesday, 4 April 2017 13:25 (seven years ago) link
more like alex in geirhattan
― Django Chutney (Noodle Vague), Tuesday, 4 April 2017 13:34 (seven years ago) link
I was blasting out the Sex album in the kitchen last summer, and I overheard my last neighbour, in his garden saying to his girlfriend "[something something] weird cunt [more mumbling] shit fucking music!". He was a HGV driver and I told him it would be ideal driving music, but he didn't listen to my advice!
― calzino, Tuesday, 4 April 2017 14:34 (seven years ago) link
listening now -- interview + performance w/ the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra -- sounds cool. www.abc.net.au/classic/content/2017/05/02/4662103.htm
― tylerw, Wednesday, 3 May 2017 21:14 (six years ago) link
This is terrific (no surprise).
― 20-lol pileup (WilliamC), Wednesday, 3 May 2017 23:42 (six years ago) link
yeahhhh, at points it almost sounds like the necks meet bernard hermann
― tylerw, Thursday, 4 May 2017 14:45 (six years ago) link
You can watch the whole of the Necks performance (w/ orchestra) at Tectonics Glasgow here:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p05274dq
― Bernie Lugg (Ward Fowler), Monday, 8 May 2017 18:00 (six years ago) link
This is so how I expected. 1 id, 1 ego, 1 superego is enough.
― No one is THAT ackbar (Sanpaku), Tuesday, 9 May 2017 01:49 (six years ago) link
Geoff Dyer goes in
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/04/magazine/my-obsession-with-the-necks-the-greatest-trio-on-earth.html
― Ned Raggett, Wednesday, 4 October 2017 20:04 (six years ago) link
are we allowed to comment on this piece?
― scott seward, Wednesday, 4 October 2017 21:50 (six years ago) link
Comment away! (The Lab in SF, which Dyer talks about throughout, is where I saw them earlier this year.)
― Ned Raggett, Wednesday, 4 October 2017 21:53 (six years ago) link
i changed my mind. i choose not to comment.
i should check and see if the necks are on spotify. i never see their CDs anywhere.
― scott seward, Wednesday, 4 October 2017 22:05 (six years ago) link
I couldn't stand The Colour of Memory 20 years ago, and also can't stand reading him on The Necks either. Sorry, I know this is a pretty lame "hot take" or whatever. I will shut up now.
― calzino, Wednesday, 4 October 2017 22:20 (six years ago) link
It is the inverse of writing that makes you want to listen to good music in that it puts you off instead.
― calzino, Wednesday, 4 October 2017 22:30 (six years ago) link
well, me anyways. I'll stfu and go away now.
― calzino, Wednesday, 4 October 2017 22:31 (six years ago) link
I detected, so far back in the mix it seemed to have leaked through the inadequate sound proofing of a neighboring sound system, the faint bleed of funk
calzino OTM
― prelude to abjection (Sanpaku), Wednesday, 4 October 2017 23:08 (six years ago) link
yeah, see, i was trying to be nice. i don't know the writer's work. but it reads like an extra-long blog post and makes me wish that editors still existed.
― scott seward, Thursday, 5 October 2017 12:50 (six years ago) link
i mean you could cut it in half and have a good editor work with that writer and you could make it a LOT better. also i'm just sensitive to sweeping statements about jazz. stuff like this:
"Now the claim made frequently on behalf of free playing is that everyone solos all the time."
this is just not anything i have ever heard anyone say. free playing is great! everyone solos all the time!
maybe i'm just too critical.
― scott seward, Thursday, 5 October 2017 13:00 (six years ago) link
Yeah, the nearest thing I can think of to his "everyone solos all the time" is Joe Zawinul's comment abt Weather Report - "“We always solo, we never solo“ - and I'm sure even a nitwit like Geoff Dyer would recognise that they were not a 'free playing' group.
― Ward Fowler, Thursday, 5 October 2017 13:13 (six years ago) link
There were two recent longform pieces by Adam Shatz on Mal Waldron + Craig Taborn which I thought were great. And they made me want to listen to the artists again, without getting too pseudy, with an added appreciation of them of sorts or summat like that! I think a good editor would tell Dyer to not be such a bad writer or just give up the game!
― calzino, Thursday, 5 October 2017 13:56 (six years ago) link
i thought that craig taborn thing was too long too. and tried too hard to make him this inscrutable and mysterious genius. he likes indie rock! but he makes jazz! who is he really?? i guess the music i had heard of his in the past never seemed that mysterious to me.
i am all for people wanting to hear jazz after reading something though. and i did read the whole thing. but it was really long. and it just seemed like he led the modern jazz life and that is not usually that exciting a life to read about.
― scott seward, Thursday, 5 October 2017 14:19 (six years ago) link
I think Taboorn + Maldron are inscrutable and mysterious geniuses, or is that genii? Fuck knows, I'd be a sorry excuse for a music critic - so I'll shut up!
― calzino, Thursday, 5 October 2017 14:33 (six years ago) link
you don't have to shut up. i wasn't trying to shut you up. that was just my reaction to the taborn piece.
― scott seward, Thursday, 5 October 2017 14:51 (six years ago) link
I don't understand how anyone could find Craig Taborn's music mysterious or hard-to-embrace unless they were actively trying to do so. Mal Waldron I've never really dived into, but what I have heard is...a 1950s jazz player who gets a little adventurous sometimes? I mean, half the time he's playing standards anyway. I guess if you're a piano player Mal Waldron is doing some otherworldly shit, but if you're just a listener he's...fine.
The Necks, I don't really get. I kind of prefer their latest album because the pieces are 15 minutes long instead of an hour, but honestly most of their stuff could be on ECM without scaring anybody.
― grawlix (unperson), Thursday, 5 October 2017 15:09 (six years ago) link
I'm suffering from an OD of "hot takes" here, Unperson! You should check Maldron's The Call out.
― calzino, Thursday, 5 October 2017 15:29 (six years ago) link
i've been listening to this album a lot lately:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=170rAzlx1X4
― scott seward, Thursday, 5 October 2017 16:13 (six years ago) link
he made lots of excellent records in the 70's. the stuff he did with steve lacy is really cool if you like steve lacy. i like that album with gary peacock a lot too.
― scott seward, Thursday, 5 October 2017 16:15 (six years ago) link
Waldron was the first release on ECM iirc, got that one
― The Walter Mittyville Horror (Noodle Vague), Thursday, 5 October 2017 16:20 (six years ago) link
Hard Talk. i like that one. live. euro dudes + lacy. i dunno, he's on/made a ton of good records past the 50's. there is a lot to listen to.
― scott seward, Thursday, 5 October 2017 16:21 (six years ago) link
Free At Last absolutely rules, and yep it is ECM no1!
― calzino, Thursday, 5 October 2017 16:32 (six years ago) link
The Questhis twin piano trio w/ Archie Shepp - Three For FreedomImpressionshis plays Satie
These are some of my favourite things!
― calzino, Thursday, 5 October 2017 16:35 (six years ago) link
i heard tony buck has a solo album out -- has anyone heard it? i am curious about it but not enough to spend money just yet.
― weird woman in a bar (La Lechera), Thursday, 5 October 2017 16:44 (six years ago) link
i looked up their individual stuff and they have all played with 50 groups i've never heard of. it's a big little world out there. i'm not that up on 90's/2000's stuff though.
― scott seward, Thursday, 5 October 2017 16:47 (six years ago) link
(and 90's/2000's australia would be a big black hole for me as far as this kind of thing goes...)
― scott seward, Thursday, 5 October 2017 16:51 (six years ago) link
there is always something new to discoverthat's why we're here :)
― weird woman in a bar (La Lechera), Thursday, 5 October 2017 16:57 (six years ago) link
i would welcome recommendations for necks side projects (esp tony buck-based) ones if anyone has them
heard tony buck has a solo album out -- has anyone heard it? i am curious about it but not enough to spend money just yet.
Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus was good
― shackling the masses with plastic-wrapped snack picks (sic), Thursday, 5 October 2017 16:59 (six years ago) link
Peril was his "main" band for a good while there
― shackling the masses with plastic-wrapped snack picks (sic), Thursday, 5 October 2017 17:00 (six years ago) link
huhcheck him out! old 1991 neckhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IX2pjZIUJHc
― weird woman in a bar (La Lechera), Thursday, 5 October 2017 19:32 (six years ago) link
Ach, I like Geoff Dyer. I get why that phenomenological transcribing of music might be regarded as pointless and superfluous but as it stands, i think he does it well. Some of the passages about Monk in But Beautiful are extraordinary.
― The shard-borne beetle with his drowsy hums (Chinaski), Friday, 6 October 2017 16:50 (six years ago) link
he can obviously write it just needed a good editor. take this paragraph out, shorten this, move this up, move this down. that's how i felt reading it anyway. usually i don't feel that way reading the NYT even at this late date. someone on my facebook loved the first paragraph so much. that's why i clicked on it.
― scott seward, Friday, 6 October 2017 17:38 (six years ago) link
I totally mourn the loss of good editors, but in Dyer's defence that verbosity and perfromative lack of self consciousness are part of his shtick so it didn't grate on me too much.
― The shard-borne beetle with his drowsy hums (Chinaski), Friday, 6 October 2017 18:57 (six years ago) link
Given both the details of today's Pitchfork review and the truly abysmal 90s cover art, safe to say this is the first Necks album I am not champing at the bit to hear
I'll still buy it, of course
― Paul Ponzi, Monday, 13 August 2018 13:27 (five years ago) link
the cover art is the best thing about it imo
― ANU (sisilafami), Monday, 13 August 2018 15:15 (five years ago) link
this is very nice so far! Not read p4k or looked at the album cover yet tho! How much thrills 'n' spills you expect out of this Necks album shouldn't be judged out of isolation from how you much you liked their last 19 albums!
― calzino, Monday, 13 August 2018 21:05 (five years ago) link
i hate the guitar
― ANU (sisilafami), Monday, 13 August 2018 21:34 (five years ago) link
hm, i had hoped the era of guitar on necks records ("chemist"-era?) had passed... it always felt a bit corny and out-of-place to me
― umsworth (emsworth), Monday, 13 August 2018 21:42 (five years ago) link
I left it playing in the kitchen and had to go out, and when I come back, it was after the guitar bit. And rewinding back didn't seem right. i'll try it another day!
― calzino, Monday, 13 August 2018 22:01 (five years ago) link
see what you were driving at now, definitely not a classic vintage of Necks!
― calzino, Tuesday, 14 August 2018 09:13 (five years ago) link
This isn't quite the bummer I expected it to be, but that middle section definitely sounds like it could be any number of boring modern 'krautrock' inspired bands. Really liked the first 20 minutes, though, even if it is a bit Necks 101
― Paul Ponzi, Tuesday, 14 August 2018 16:38 (five years ago) link
Anyone check out this collab with Underworld?
― change display name (Jordan), Wednesday, 6 March 2019 16:56 (five years ago) link
Yeah the Underworld fans like it, at least.
― lukas, Wednesday, 6 March 2019 17:08 (five years ago) link
There's a touch of 'jazzy house' to it that's perhaps just this side of corny, but on the other hand it's cool to hear rhythmic Necks again. And I like how it starts fully electronic, brings them in, then slowly transitions to fully acoustic and eventually to rubato Neckisms.
― change display name (Jordan), Wednesday, 6 March 2019 17:31 (five years ago) link
https://thenecksau.bandcamp.com/album/three
it must be great being in the necks, just like, vrrrrrrrrooooooommmm
― j., Thursday, 13 February 2020 03:35 (four years ago) link
the consuming rattle of the opener, “Lovelock,” dedicated to the memory of Damien Lovelock, former frontman of The Celibate Rifles, is a weightless and atmospheric threnody that ruminates in the quiet and overwhelming moments of grief
aww
― Fantastic. Great move. Well done (sic), Thursday, 13 February 2020 07:33 (four years ago) link
Album streaming today; enjoying it immensely so far!
― Steve Reich In The Afternoon (Against The 80s), Friday, 27 March 2020 14:58 (four years ago) link
New album is great and their prettiest album in years and years, albeit hardly groundbreaking - as hinted by the Underworld collaborations they’ve returned to a “classic” Necks sound: the ringing piano chords and circular bass of “Bloom” reminds me of Drive By; “Lovelock” is all whispery ambience and rustle somewhere between Silent Night and Aether, and is closest to the live style; “Further” is a return to the Sex / Aquatic sound by way of Journey in Satchidananda.
― Tim F, Saturday, 28 March 2020 03:58 (four years ago) link
oh that sounds good. have had some reliably great live experiences with them in the last couple of years but I think 'open' was their last essential recording,
― umsworth (emsworth), Saturday, 28 March 2020 07:52 (four years ago) link
Yeah if Open was the last album you really liked then you will definitely enjoy this.
― Tim F, Saturday, 28 March 2020 08:35 (four years ago) link
i really like this
― budo jeru, Saturday, 28 March 2020 19:20 (four years ago) link
I enjoyed Body quite a lot, actually, it felt like something genuinely different for them. That said, I've not listened to it anywhere near as intensely as my favourites by them over a similar length of time, perhaps because it lent itself far less to ambient / atmospheric 'use'.
Got Three yesterday, and gave it a half listen last night. Chemist is probably my second favourite thing they've done, so I'm looking forward to exploring what they do with a similar format again.
― Hey Bob (Scik Mouthy), Friday, 3 April 2020 07:57 (four years ago) link
I liked Vertigo quite a bit, but never ended up connecting with Unfold or Body. I think they are back on track with this one, though. Glad they've ditched the guitar
― Paul Ponzi, Friday, 3 April 2020 13:56 (four years ago) link
'Unfold' seems to get a bit ignored, but I thought was the some of best music they've recorded in years, esp 'Blue Mountain'. New one is great, though, isn't it!
― Steve Reich In The Afternoon (Against The 80s), Friday, 3 April 2020 14:31 (four years ago) link
It really is. This and Alabaster DePlume have been the soundtrack to my quarantine!
― Paul Ponzi, Friday, 3 April 2020 14:36 (four years ago) link
God this last track sounds like an unreleased late Talk Talk jam.
― Hey Bob (Scik Mouthy), Friday, 3 April 2020 18:56 (four years ago) link
Enjoying this a lot. First track is really clattery - almost gamelan; second is eerie as hell - piano led and pure atmosphere, like the desert at night.
― Vanishing Point (Chinaski), Sunday, 5 April 2020 19:02 (four years ago) link
Wrote a review of this that will go up on Tuesday. Second track sounds like a cross between Miles Davis's "He Loved Him Madly" and Tangerine Dream's Zeit. I like it a lot.
― but also fuck you (unperson), Sunday, 5 April 2020 19:10 (four years ago) link
it's weird. you always make me listen again and again to this band. talk talk and tangerine dream's zeit, some of my favourite music. but though i understand the comparisons, there is a feel of late talk talk in the last piece and there is a hint to zeit in the second i don't think the necks have anything to do with those bands and their music. they take little snippets and repeat them for 20 minutes and more, they turn around and around, their music negates progression, it just circles around itself. it does not point anywhere. there is no horizon in it, just self-centeredness. like minimal music which was so hip in the second half of the seventies. but in the end it was just what the name says, it was music with very little creative input which was then inflated by repetition. not my cup of tea at all. though this has been the time i was the closest ever to like the necks.
― walking towards the sun since 2007 (alex in mainhattan), Sunday, 12 April 2020 20:38 (four years ago) link
disagree but very good post
― Paul Ponzi, Sunday, 12 April 2020 20:51 (four years ago) link
They were supposed to play in town this weekend :( Last time I saw them I was surprised to see so many people I never see out at shows. They have a solid fan base!
― weird woman in a bar (La Lechera), Sunday, 12 April 2020 23:49 (four years ago) link
'Bloom' is a stunner
― change display name (Jordan), Tuesday, 14 April 2020 15:27 (four years ago) link
Yeah, "Bloom" and "Further" are outstanding. I've had a hard time connecting with "Lovelock," however. It's nice and I like it when it's playing, but it's the only one where when it's on I feel like I can safely leave the room for a minute to check the mail or grab a snack and not really miss much.
― Paul Ponzi, Tuesday, 14 April 2020 16:33 (four years ago) link
I've been taking a walk everyday, and each day I listen to a different bootleg of a live Necks show (mostly from Soulseek, and some ripped from videos on youtube). It's a really great way to zone out.
― Pataphysician, Tuesday, 14 April 2020 16:42 (four years ago) link
Oohhhhh, did not expect 'Further' to be Alice Coltrane/Pharoah Sanders-esque spiritual hat jazz in 5/4. This album owns.
― change display name (Jordan), Tuesday, 14 April 2020 19:21 (four years ago) link
The clattery percussion is mind bending, I wonder if it's just free or even recorded without listening to the main track
― change display name (Jordan), Tuesday, 14 April 2020 19:32 (four years ago) link
Never before have I looked at the track time and thought 'thank god there are still seven minutes left in this track'
― change display name (Jordan), Tuesday, 14 April 2020 19:33 (four years ago) link
If you want to read my review, here it is.
― but also fuck you (unperson), Tuesday, 14 April 2020 19:45 (four years ago) link
Very, very sweet new record. (Also, great review, Phil.)
― Skateboard R Deluxe Throwback Edition (Raymond Cummings), Wednesday, 15 April 2020 02:02 (four years ago) link
"Further" definitely the standout of the three for me
― weird woman in a bar (La Lechera), Wednesday, 15 April 2020 15:18 (four years ago) link
also looool i just looked to see where i was in the song and it was just about 7 min left -- the 13-something minute point must be really good!!
― weird woman in a bar (La Lechera), Wednesday, 15 April 2020 15:30 (four years ago) link
haha
― change display name (Jordan), Wednesday, 15 April 2020 15:32 (four years ago) link
New Necks! Travel, out February 24th.
https://thenecksau.bandcamp.com/album/travel
Really wish they'd re-release Unfold, even if just on CD.
― Maxmillion D. Boosted (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Tuesday, 6 December 2022 16:52 (one year ago) link
'imprinting' sounds like a caravan through purgatory i'm feeling it
― ꙮ (map), Tuesday, 6 December 2022 17:17 (one year ago) link
Listening to the album now. Each track is surprising and yet utterly The Necks.
― raven, Sunday, 11 December 2022 12:35 (one year ago) link
loving this new one
― obsidian crocogolem (sleeve), Friday, 24 February 2023 17:27 (one year ago) link
Not done yet, but so far I like the first two soooooo much better than "Imprinting" (but maybe it will be better in context).
― Doctor Madame Frances Experimento, LLC", Friday, 24 February 2023 20:02 (one year ago) link
Oh this is where people talked about Three! Thought that one was their strongest since Open.
― meat and two vdgg (emsworth), Friday, 24 February 2023 23:03 (one year ago) link
So I'm basically listening to Travel every day now, especially in the morning. I like this so much better than the last two, but I've been meaning to revisit Three, which I don't think I gave a fair chance after being so utterly disappointed by Body. I'm nuts about this new one, though.
Weird to read people don't like "Imprinting." That might be my favorite!
― Paul Ponzi, Sunday, 26 March 2023 14:08 (one year ago) link
Love this album. It feels like it touches on a lot of different great aspects of their previous work. First two tracks very Drive By, then “Imprinting” kind of reminds me of Silverwater, and then “Bloodstream” is like Aether if they had decided to cut straight to the noisy ending. It’s all very pretty.
― Tim F, Monday, 27 March 2023 06:58 (one year ago) link
feel like "Signal" is a hard act to follow
magical track
― corrs unplugged, Monday, 27 March 2023 07:45 (one year ago) link
like their previous release
― maf you one two (maffew12), Monday, 27 March 2023 18:32 (one year ago) link
whoops
like their previous release that came out on vinyl, it's one track per side with no given order. So feel free to play the CD's first track last.
― maf you one two (maffew12), Monday, 27 March 2023 18:34 (one year ago) link
It's a good one for sure, bless The Necks <3
― change display name (Jordan), Monday, 27 March 2023 18:52 (one year ago) link
i've been going back to aether and open lately. so beautiful. hmm maybe today is the day i get the new one.
― ꙮ (map), Thursday, 7 September 2023 18:30 (seven months ago) link
i need to remember about this band the next time i reach for something new too
― Piggy Lepton (La Lechera), Thursday, 7 September 2023 21:10 (seven months ago) link
i got the new one! it's great. travel if you're traveling through purgatory? very evocative.
― ꙮ (map), Friday, 8 September 2023 20:45 (seven months ago) link
Turns out this new album is incredible (who would have thought otherwise?)Tossing up making the 3hr return trip to see them tonight but honestly what a small price to pay.
― H.P, Thursday, 29 February 2024 01:05 (one month ago) link
is Travel the new one or is there a newer one? I can't actually remember if I have it / have heard it - but I absolutely loved Three
was thinking it was time to see them again but didn't get around to their Sydney shows
― Kraal Disorientation Chamber (emsworth), Thursday, 29 February 2024 01:41 (one month ago) link
(you should go!)
― Kraal Disorientation Chamber (emsworth), Thursday, 29 February 2024 01:44 (one month ago) link
Travel! I'm just late to the party.
I'm on my way there now. Brissy's putting on a good show these three weeks. Necks, boris, Tim hecker back to back!
― H.P, Thursday, 29 February 2024 07:13 (one month ago) link
I think Necks heads would dig Activator by Gerycz Powers Rolin, which appeared last month.
― fetter, Thursday, 29 February 2024 07:48 (one month ago) link
I saw them in Melbourne a few weeks back - brilliant as ever.
― Tim F, Thursday, 29 February 2024 07:52 (one month ago) link
It truly is something how many layers they produce from three people playing live
― H.P, Thursday, 29 February 2024 12:04 (one month ago) link
never sure seeing this thread title if this thread is about The Necks or if there's some band I haven't heard of called New Necks
― Kate (rushomancy), Thursday, 29 February 2024 13:55 (one month ago) link
They will always be nummy num krautjazz goodness
― Maresn3st, Thursday, 29 February 2024 14:08 (one month ago) link