C/D/S/D: Minutemen

wow awesome

no way! awesome work, morbz!

saw them on my 16th birthday in Pomona. I preferred more emo/goth stuff at the time but man did they ever bring it, no-one could deny

wow awesome

most of my classmates saw them a whole bunch of times. they gigged constantly. I never saw the Gun Club, because they never played all-ages shows, which pisses me off to no end.

if you really cared you would have gotten a fake id, or aged yourself somehow

perhaps via some sort of ray

Minutemen were one of those bands that no matter what bill they were on they would not take no for an answer. They just brought it.

One of the most interesting observations I read (or is it in the doc?) noted what a top heavy drummer Hurley was. While his peers would be all bass-snare-bass-snare, he's doing all these rolls and fills and crashes.

One of my biggest musical regrets is passing up 2 chances to see them in 1985. I was only 15 but double nickels was already a favorite, I don't know what I was thinking or what seemed more important to do those nights...

Yeah George was a very melodic drummer

xpost yeah that was in the doc. and the way he leans foward, like he's going to propel over the front of the kit - he's a trip to watch!

When I saw him a few times with fIREHOSE, he would sort of spin his forelock.

Cool!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36hSmhQdXeY

You can see him spin his hair here!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxCpF5r8QmY

okay that's rad

how can ed from ohio be old?

he looks like mark e smith with Snape's hair.

Always warms my heart reading love for the Minutemen on here. Which reminds me: I'm talking to Mike Watt on Friday! I'll be sure to link to the interview when it's up some time next month.

what's the deal with his upcoming tour macdara? any idea who he's playing with?

The deal with his upcoming tour: http://hootpage.com/hoot_ilsogno-d-m-labustagialla.html

There's a date for Dublin on 4 March (though tickets aren't on sale yet) hence my contacting for an interview. He's been a very busy man the last few years, hopefully he's happy to talk all about it!

I should check out that new album with the Italian guys on Spotify. Anyone heard it?

It's good, I've listened to most of it, need to give it another spin or two tomorrow. Definitely a mellower experience than the Third Opera.

Saw them in April 1985 in Providence, eight months before D. Boon died. Amazing night. I remember Boon using duct tape to fix a problem with his guitar — probably something you wouldn’t see The Edge do.

listening to Double Nickel On A Dime right now fyi

:D

oops i mean double nickelS on THE dime

(rookie mistake)

I never got to hear 'em until about a week or two before Boon died. :( Couldn't find their records in my time, but Muchmusic aired the videos for "King of the Hill" and "This Ain't No Picnic" on their "underground" show.

...couldn't find their records in my TOWN. But "time" works too, since I didn't find a copy of "Double Nickels" until nearly a year later.

So I spoke to Mike Watt for like an hour-and-a-half yesterday. Man I was nervous as hell - it was my first phoner, and it's intimidating meeting your heroes! - but he was totally gracious and cool, of course. Lots to transcribe but I'll post the link when the piece is done.

― double pickles on the wein (k3vin k.), Monday, July 6, 2009 10:05 PM Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

minutemen rule obv

I was informed by the devotees over on the Watt list that none of the Minutemen material actually needs a remaster. Could have fooled me.

Would certainly love to see a lot of SST stuff getting upgraded properly while the cd is still a medium. THere's a lot of very interesting material that the label released over the years that I'd like to get in best possible audio. & I think it's probably the best part of 20 years since most of it was translated to cd and the medium has advanced a lot since then hasn't it?

The all acoustic bit in their documentary was pretty amazing, and made me want to see more...

I was informed by the devotees over on the Watt list that none of the Minutemen material actually needs a remaster. Could have fooled me.

Haha! As a Wall list member myself (I think you're the only other one I've met IRL) I can say that for me it depends on the record. 'What Makes A Man...' is the one I like the least because the sound is so dry; in fact I used to work with a guy who absolutely hated it because the guitar is so trebly (though that was intentional on D Boon's part; it's the record where the guitar and bass sound most polarised).

Wall list? Gah early mornings. Obviously I meant Watt list.

So I said I was talking to Watt before his current Euro tour, and the piece went online yesterday. It's a bit of a longread.

http://thumped.com/band-interviews/mike-watt-still-jamming-econo.html

Very nice. Will read it all later

yeah good stuff, at least what i've read so far. Watt is always great to talk to -- one of my first interviews and still one of the best.

xxp to make a well-worn point I don't think any critical need for Minutemen remastering on CD compares to Husker Du.....not just for the whole Spot/SST thing but that both bands were sonically so different. Different needs.

Probably missed this already shared elsewhere on here but if it wasn't...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4W5jP_Gmrg

It was 1985. Brett & my bdays are in June. We had both just graduated from college. We had a birthday/graduation party at his mom's house on the outskirts of San Pedro. The Minutemen played. It was a great day.

Ooh, can't wait to watch that properly when I get home!

Odd to think that this band playing in someone's mom's driveway is near the end of their career, rather than the beginning. Boon would die later that year. This video is fantastic, thanks Ned.

Yer welcome!

epic.

It's takes about 17 minutes to get warmed up and work out equipment stuff, then BANG ZOOM POW

To a lot of people in 1985 (myself included), the Minutemen were one of the 2-3 best bands in the world. To have them play in your driveway ...

So this happened two months after I saw them in Providence, RI.

Awww. I still need to read that Mike Watt talking about his fave albums interview I saw recently. Finally read that thing about how he grabs some sleep before gigs on tour (with that sad initial reference in it to the vehicle crash when D Boon died).

http://thequietus.com/articles/14671-mike-watt-minutemen-the-missingmen-favourite-albums?page=7

I love the way Watt thinks, and the way he phrases things:

"The way T. Rex records were released on eight-track cartridges was also influential on Minutemen I think. The way eight-tracks were mechanically organised is they'd cut right into the songs, end them half way through, divide them up, so it was like that Wire thing again."