― Alfred Soto (Alfred Soto), Tuesday, 15 March 2005 16:52 (nineteen years ago) link
"Vibrate" is so many leagues above anything Thom Yorke has put his name to! Even apart from that I don't see that they share any similarities at all, either lyrically or sonically.
― The Lex (The Lex), Tuesday, 15 March 2005 20:47 (nineteen years ago) link
― edward o (edwardo), Tuesday, 15 March 2005 20:58 (nineteen years ago) link
What will happen insteadSomeone will demand my headAnd then I will kneel downAnd give it to them
And I like his voice LOADS more than Thom Yorke, who I honestly have no time for. While I can understand someone saying they have similar timbre and texture, Rufus thankfully never sounds like a lamb bleating out of tune
― rentboy (rentboy), Tuesday, 15 March 2005 21:34 (nineteen years ago) link
I kind of dread the next album: I think by now it's clear that Rufus thrives on attention, and this gives him more confidence to really indulge himself, so now his PR people are doing such stellar work fuck only knows what ideas he'll carry through next.
― The Lex (The Lex), Tuesday, 15 March 2005 21:40 (nineteen years ago) link
Melody: start on the 5th and descend predictably/diatonically..E DD CC BB A.
Switch Chord to (predictable) Dm.
Melody : F EE DD AA B
Lyrics (from beat 1 of A minor chord) :
"All the times I tried to hide from,everything I was denied..."
Remember to hold your breath, plug your nosefor the nasal whine and sing out of the cornerof your mouth.
Repulsively pathetic, boring, depressing, monotonous,unoriginal and disgusting is Rufus.
-- Musicfan101 (mz...), March 1st, 2006.
the nasal bleating thing is annoying, someone so gaga over opera should pay attention to vocal technique
― timmy tannin (pompous), Wednesday, 1 March 2006 03:14 (eighteen years ago) link
― Momus (Momus), Wednesday, 1 March 2006 03:49 (eighteen years ago) link
― Myke. (Myke Weiskopf), Wednesday, 1 March 2006 03:59 (eighteen years ago) link
― Ned Raggett (Ned), Wednesday, 1 March 2006 06:10 (eighteen years ago) link
― Shoes say, yeah, no hands clap your good bra. (goodbra), Thursday, 14 September 2006 04:41 (eighteen years ago) link
spot on. it's all one long, mumbled note. I have no idea why his vocals are so admired.
he makes me want to forcibly expunge his sinus bees.
― guanoman (mister the guanoman), Thursday, 14 September 2006 06:00 (eighteen years ago) link
― Rowlando for the kidz (Sam Rowlands), Thursday, 14 September 2006 11:23 (eighteen years ago) link
― wogan lenin (dog latin), Thursday, 14 September 2006 12:48 (eighteen years ago) link
― Vichitravirya XI (Vichitravirya XI), Thursday, 14 September 2006 12:55 (eighteen years ago) link
― pisces (piscesx), Thursday, 14 September 2006 13:34 (eighteen years ago) link
Hott.
― Daniel_Rf (Daniel_Rf), Thursday, 14 September 2006 14:26 (eighteen years ago) link
― jed_ (jed), Thursday, 14 September 2006 14:31 (eighteen years ago) link
― gentoo (gentoo), Thursday, 14 September 2006 16:08 (eighteen years ago) link
― The Brainwasher (Twilight), Thursday, 14 September 2006 19:16 (eighteen years ago) link
― nabisco (nabisco), Thursday, 14 September 2006 20:17 (eighteen years ago) link
― Jamesy (SuzyCreemcheese), Friday, 15 September 2006 01:05 (eighteen years ago) link
new record, still annoying
― gershy, Sunday, 20 May 2007 23:40 (seventeen years ago) link
Classic on songs written by other people (like "What Can I Do" off the Antony and the Johnsons record or "I'll Build a Stairway to Paradise"), but I'm not a huge fan of his own songs (I haven't heard that much, though)...it might just be the production, though.
― Tape Store, Monday, 21 May 2007 00:21 (seventeen years ago) link
He's still a genius.
(Haven't picked up Release the Stars yet, plan on doing so soon)
― The Brainwasher, Monday, 21 May 2007 00:35 (seventeen years ago) link
I liked his first two records; now he's a certifiable menace. Has Neil Tennant exercised quality control on this one?
― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn, Monday, 21 May 2007 00:36 (seventeen years ago) link
Want One was great though! and Want Two was worth hearing despite the massive overreach. It's the debut I'm not into but I've only given it half a listen. He was great on Letterman last week. I don't know what he was going on about but he belted it out, whatever it was. In lederhosen.
― tremendoid, Monday, 21 May 2007 01:36 (seventeen years ago) link
I think, when he's on form, he's a fucking amazing melodicist (and a very good singer, obv.) and he's got just enough control alongside his camp to keep his arrangements just the right side of audacious (i.e. impressive rather than pompous).
I also think he hit an unarguable melodic peak circa Want One, and that Want Two was a serious step backwards, totally over-reaching. The new one gains some control back, definitely, and some of the arrangements are amazing, but there's nothing quite as melodically spectacular as the first four tracks on Want One. This is only off a couple of listens, though.
Expect to see choice phrases from this post in a Stylus review near you later this week...
― Scik Mouthy, Monday, 21 May 2007 08:29 (seventeen years ago) link
Perversely (of course) I think Want Two is his best work, certainly the record of his that I play most.
Not quite sure about the new one yet; veering perilously close to writing about His Privileged Life at times and while some of the bitching about previous/failed lovers is quite entertaining he cuts deepest on the America-as-lover-extended-metaphor ballads, e.g. "Leaving For Paris" and especially "Not Ready To Love" which is a quite stunning marriage of Fairport Convention and Art of Noise (both R Thompson and N Tennant making their influence felt). The one with Sian Phillips going mad at the end is also pretty fab.
― Marcello Carlin, Monday, 21 May 2007 08:34 (seventeen years ago) link
enjoyed but wasn't blown away by Judy at Carnegie Hall last year, though I'm certainly thrilled I got to go. haven't found my way into the new one yet; first half-listen sounds good.
― Matos W.K., Monday, 21 May 2007 09:15 (seventeen years ago) link
Richard Thompson vs the horn section on "Slideshow" = stunning. Things start tailing off for me after that, though. I think he overdoes the trick of starting relatively downbeat/unadorned/vulnerable, piling on the orchestral layers, and ending on a note of triumphal resolution, having turned so many musical corners that the end of each track bears scant relationship to its beginning. Don't get me wrong, it's a *great* trick - but it's also somewhat overplayed. I like the dissatified-nomad-in-exile qualities which "Going To A Town" sets up and "Tiergarten" develops, and I don't miss the more overtly campy playfulness which punctuated previous albums.
― mike t-diva, Monday, 21 May 2007 09:25 (seventeen years ago) link
It's as if he's trying to convince himself that he's happy.
Musically, though, Richard T is man of the match - I noticed those little Derek Bailey scribbles in "Slideshow"...
― Marcello Carlin, Monday, 21 May 2007 09:32 (seventeen years ago) link
Very interesting point. (All those bolted on Garland-esque triumphal flourishes - do we necessarily believe them, even if RW might want us to?)
...and, yeah, big love for Want Two, which marked the point where it all came together for me and RW. (I admired Want One, but I *adored* Want Two.)
― mike t-diva, Monday, 21 May 2007 09:34 (seventeen years ago) link
wait, richard thompson plays on this?
― derrrick, Monday, 21 May 2007 09:36 (seventeen years ago) link
He should do a Randy Newman and just farm his songs out to someone who can actually sing.
― Billy Dods, Monday, 21 May 2007 09:39 (seventeen years ago) link
Classic moment at Electric Picnic last year:
"I tried to dance, To Britney Spears/ I guess I'm gettin' on in years But I still look pretty good huh?!! HAHAHAH!"
He's got a fantastic voice.
― I know, right?, Monday, 21 May 2007 09:45 (seventeen years ago) link
No, it's terrible, and ruins some excellent songwriting, but I don't think this discussion is going to go very far.
― Billy Dods, Monday, 21 May 2007 10:00 (seventeen years ago) link
i hate his voice so much it makes me want to scratch my skin off
and get a load of this interview :( i just feel like DOES HE HAVE TO TRY THAT HARD TO BE CUTE. I MEAN HE MIGHT AS WELL HAVE JUST ANSWERED "OH AND I'M SOOOOOO WITTY!" IN RESPONSE TO EVERY QUESTION
http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2008/12/rufus_wainwright.html
Name: Rufus WainwrightAge: 35Neighborhood: ChelseaOccupation: Singer-songwriter, performing tomorrow evening at the McGarrigle Christmas Hour at Carnegie Hall.
Who's your favorite New Yorker, living or dead, real or fictional? -Some gorgeous woman I once saw hailing a cab while walking out of her apartment on Fifth Avenue facing the park.
What's the best meal you've eaten in New York? -I’m not saying this to be nice: my boyfriend’s Wiener … schnitzel. [Ed. note: He loves this joke.]
In one sentence, what do you actually do all day in your job? -Presently I’m orchestrating an opera, which means that basically every day is a board meeting with the dead. I do most of the talking, of course, still, I pay serious attention to notes.
Would you still live here on a $35,000 salary? -No way; this city is for the rich. Mind you, things could change very soon.
What's the last thing you saw on Broadway? -August: Osage County — Estelle Parsons is a living legend.
Do you give money to panhandlers? -Yes, and always to someone singing or playing music. That could be me one day!
What's your drink? -Tap water.
How often do you prepare your own meals? -I can’t prepare my way out of a paper bag.
What's your favorite medication? -Clorox bleach, good for foot fungus. I’m a real blast, trust me!
What's hanging above your sofa? -A Robert Wilson painting.
How much is too much to spend on a haircut? -A life.
When's bedtime? -Usually after The Rachel Maddow Show or, if I’m adventurous, Amy Goodman on Democracy Now, which ends at 2 a.m.
Which do you prefer, the old Times Square or the new Times Square? -Every day I pine for the old Times Square, and I just got a tiny whiff of it in the late eighties. It must have been amazing.
What do you think of Donald Trump? -He should make friends with some decent architects.
What do you hate most about living in New York? -All those insane apartments going up everywhere that look like they should be in Toronto.
Who is your mortal enemy? -The Bravo Network. Bar-lowerer extraordinaire. And what an ironic name!!
When's the last time you drove a car? -Last weekend. I tend to "weekend."
Who should be the next president? -First things first.
Times, Post, or Daily News? -Times, but I only look at the pictures.
Where do you go to be alone? -My piano bench.
What makes someone a New Yorker? -Everyone in the world is a New Yorker!
― Surmounter, Tuesday, 9 December 2008 22:43 (fifteen years ago) link
i'm not really sure why i'm reacting this way to rufus today but there it is.
― Surmounter, Tuesday, 9 December 2008 22:46 (fifteen years ago) link
I rebought Lewis Furey's second album - 'the Humours of...' - over the weekend to replace an unreturned loan; everyone should hear that and the even better S/T debut - Rufus certainly has, but he's like Jeff to his Lewis' Tim
― sonofstan, Tuesday, 9 December 2008 23:19 (fifteen years ago) link
Estelle Parsons is in August: Osage County?!?!
― jaymc, Tuesday, 9 December 2008 23:21 (fifteen years ago) link
Oh wait, I was thinking Estelle Harris, haha. Estelle Parsons is a good choice.
― jaymc, Tuesday, 9 December 2008 23:23 (fifteen years ago) link
i was thinking of estelle getty
― rox qua rox (roxymuzak), Tuesday, 16 December 2008 03:55 (fifteen years ago) link
Yes, I have this exact same reaction.
And to say something nice about him: once walked past him in a street in Glasgow and he was quite handsome.
― what U cry 4 (jim), Tuesday, 16 December 2008 04:00 (fifteen years ago) link
he really must hang out on streets a lot
― rox qua rox (roxymuzak), Tuesday, 16 December 2008 04:07 (fifteen years ago) link
Oh, Rufus, dear Rufus, the one who got away! I was 20 minutes away from interviewing him over the summer, before getting pulled into a meeting and having to hand my questions over to someone else. It still hurts.
― mike t-diva, Tuesday, 16 December 2008 10:42 (fifteen years ago) link
i thought until just now that "california" said "i fell for a straight girl"
haw
― rox qua rox (roxymuzak), Wednesday, 17 December 2008 02:07 (fifteen years ago) link
LOL @ THIS from his shop!
http://hifidelity-rufuswainwright.11345.com/detail.php?item_id=351603
http://hifidelity-rufuswainwright.11345.com/art/items/detail/RW_BUST.jpg
― rox qua rox (roxymuzak), Sunday, 28 December 2008 02:44 (fifteen years ago) link
Ivy Nichols has been sculpting for over 15 years and is one of the most prolific sculptors in the United States today. She has worked on literally hundreds of sculptures including both one off commissions for individuals and pieces intended for the retail market. She was the lead model maker for a line of reproductions of the stone products that were originally designed by noted architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Ivy has also been commissioned to create large public sculptures for public institutions and resort destinations.
― buzza, Sunday, 28 December 2008 02:48 (fifteen years ago) link
I have a collection of busts. A Wainwright bust would be especially hawsworthy amongst these.
― rox qua rox (roxymuzak), Sunday, 28 December 2008 02:48 (fifteen years ago) link
bustymuzak
― buzza, Sunday, 28 December 2008 02:49 (fifteen years ago) link