Poll Ubu! (See What I Did There?) The Modern Dance

Oh
It was the first thing that I saw
You never see that kind of Classical Girl
Understand
It was the first thing that I saw
That was fate
It was the ballistics!
No
that was fate
It was a world
What a world!
What a world?
What a big world
But a world to be drowned in
It's just a joke man!
Another day?
Well
SUFFER
for that's the way of the west
SUFFER
Oh
Oh it's a joke!
It's a joke
Oh
It's a JOKE
That's a joke?
Hunh-unh
Well
humor me

when I saw "hedwig & the angry inch" the backing band did a killer cover of non-alignment pact

lol ubu

street waves

"Non-Alignment Pact" for me too.

I really should get that Hearpen singles box...

street waves vs non alignment vs humor me, pretty hard choice there.

my favorite Ubu album by light years, I never warmed to anything after Dub Housing except for maybe some of Ray Gun Suitcase.

I really should get that Hearpen singles box...

yeah it's pretty awesome

voted for Street Waves but Non-Alignment Pact and Modern Dance are close behind

I prefer the live version of Humor Me on Terminal Tower.
I guess I just like David's delivery more on the live one.

is the Hearpen singles box different from Terminal Tower? different music-wise, i mean ...

I'm not sure, I don't have the singles box.
Maybe they are the same?

I believe so.

I think it's Non-Alignment Pact for me as well, slightly boringly. But whenever I listen to it, a bit like The Fall's Stepping Out, it reminds me strongly of how I used to feel about things, things that through a mixture of jadedness and social assimilation I perhaps no longer feel as strongly, but wish I did.

Sorry, that's vague and perhaps rather silly, but there it is.

Put it another way - it feels like a much-needed kick up the arse whenever I listen to it. This whole album's great though.

"Non-Alignment Pact"

Second place: "Life Stinks". I think.

Their best album (unless Datapanik In Year Zero or Terminal Tower count.)

i have the tim/kerr 45 reissue box of singles and i can't even tell you how many times i've played those things over the years. and when i'm listening to it i can't imagine anything on earth as wonderful and glorious as final solution so its no mystery what i would vote for in a singles poll.

I have the Hearpen box, too. Was talking to a friend about it last night, and he sez that the version of "The Modern Dance" on the 4th 45 is not the version originally released as a single, but rather just the LP track. Anybody got the inside story?

when i'm listening to it i can't imagine anything on earth as wonderful and glorious as final solution

OTM

Funnily enough I played this album today for the first time in probably a decade! I'd forgotten how spooky, creepy and amazing Sentimental Journey is so there's my vote.

Yeah, I think I'll vote "Sentimental Journey" -- one of the band's best songs, period. Maybe one of the best songs of the 70s, nothing else really like it.

The version on "Datapanik in the year zero" on Radar was a demo, not the single.

So, unless someone has the original single, I believe they well may be the same version anyway.

Unless the "Terminal Tower" version is different...

"Non-Alignment Pact," although the intro still gives me a headache (which, I presume, is entirely by design ... which makes it all the more awesome).

Breaking with critical consensus and going for the title track. So there.

i've got a soft spot for "Life Stinks" ... Comes into my head ... probably too often!

oddly enough, i was thinking about how much i liked this album while i was at work today. such a kickass record, and so fucking weird...but, um, organically weird? it just doesn't feel put on at all to me; like it's really just the sound of some total antisocial freakazoids coming up with something beautiful and unique and iconic. don't wanna vote yet, but it's between "laughing" (the bleeplededoop fake jazz part --> catchy chorus --> rock riffin progression is seriously wowsville) and "street waves" and "humor me" (although i sorta agree that the live version is better) and of course "non-alignment pact"

so would it be totally hyperbolic of me to describe this album as a fine work of art. i mean, i'd put it on the same artistic level as any movie or painting or book that might have come out that same year (not that i can think of any at the moment). or even that decade. it feels complete to me too in the same way a good movie or book might. it has such a wonderful flow. it starts out strange and gets stranger and then ends on some sort of doomed grace note.

thinking of final solution, it's hard for me to think of a more genius expression of male adolescent masturbatory fury. and it makes me wonder how many female fans this band has ever had. maria likes them! but she's a geek from way back.

okay, after much mulling over, I've decided on "Sentimental Journey", simply because the tension it builds and releases is incredible. Absolutely remarkable.

similarly remarkable: piano/Dave duo that closes out "Chinese Radiation" ...

This is really hard but reading the 'Humor Me' lyrics just now tipped the scales in its favor for me. Scott what you said is not hyperbolic, it's OTFM.

Silly story time:

One time I was at a charity football match hosted by our local radio station.

At the disco afterwards, the DJ was handing out spot prizes to dancers. Usually they do this to get rid off the stuff they're not going to play (again) and can't sell off. Usually disco-lite and easy listening stuff. Except I noticed that this time he had "Modern Dance" Pere Ubu and I was like "Ooh" and threw a few moves. But this got handed to a little girl who ran back to her Mum and Dad who cooed "Ooh, lovely, I like disco music!"

Peter Laughner lives!

xpost: I have the original Hearthan 7" single of "The Modern Dance"! And the original vinyl LP! And Datapanik In The Year Zero! I shall play all three versions of "TMD" when I get home this evening.

(Wiki says that only the original 7" has the recurring "doll squeak" noise, but my memory says that the 7" and LP versions were identical. Well, perhaps they were only near-identical.)

that early version of TMD was on the Max's Kansas City compilation album and it is great. same album also has a demo version of Suicide's "Rocket USA".

This is between Street Waves and Chinese Radiation for me.

^ this but I voted "Street Waves" because it's one of the Top 10 rock songs of all time

went with Street Waves for similar reasons

Oh yeah I totally voted street waves. Last time they played in my town, David said "maybe we should play street waves?" almost rhetorically, between songs, which elicited a healthy "YEEESSSS!" from me in the audience. They complied, of course.

Ah, the Hearpen single A-sides for Street Waves and Modern Dance are not on "Terminal Tower"

http://www.ubuprojex.net/historical.html#tt

have to be boring and go with "Non-Alignment Pact"

Re Terminal Tower: iirc, the rationale was that since those songs appeared on The Modern Dance (LP), there wasn't any reason to include them on the clean-up comp.

The bit about the "Datapanik" CD box admits that Street Waves is a remix on the "Modern Dance" album.

Yeah, that's mentioned on the notes to The Modern Dance as well. Huh. Just listened to the Hearpen Box and album versions back to back and they sound absolutely identical. If the mix is different, it's too subtle for me to pick up on (esp through the haze generated by bad MP3s and earbuds).

Well, the one on Terminal Tower lacks the background vocal chant (what the hell is he saying, "Maker Maker"?) and is clearly a different performance.

It's "mantra mantra" or something, right?

It's "merdre merdre" - a corruption of "merde", as used by Jarry's original Ubu Roi.

I always thought he was saying "murdra", like a corruption of "murder". [shrug]

And do you mean the one on Datapanik? Cuz it ain't on Terminal Tower, right?

I don't have Datapanik. I have Terminal Tower. And the chant is missing.
I've always thought it was a demo version. I like the album version more fwiw.

It's called "Untitled" on Terminal Tower.

It WAS on the original vinyl release of Terminal Tower, which I bought on Twin/Tone in the 80s. And that was not the same version as on the Singles Box, cause I remember when I bought the singles box and played it I was all "wha--???"

But maybe the whole difference is just the absence or presence of the merdre-merdres?

oops xpost

street waves

No, I just listened to the "untitled" Terminal Tower version (which I'd forgotten about -- it's been years since I owned a copy of that record). It's entirely different. Suppose it could be a remix of the same basic tracks, but I dunno. Bass part is the onlyt thing that sounds unchanged. Anyway, still dunno which version was originally released on the 7".

On the opening night of Ubu Roi (December 10, 1896), with traditionalists and the avant-garde in the audience, King Ubu (played by Firmin Gémier) stepped forward and intoned the opening word, "Merdre!" ("Shittr!"). A quarter of an hour of pandemonium ensued: outraged cries, booing, and whistling by the offended parties, countered by cheers and applause by the more forward-thinking contingent. Such interruptions continued through the evening. At the time, only the dress rehearsal and opening night performance were held, and the play was not revived until 1907.

http://www.artandpopularculture.com/Merdre%21

has there been a new one after "why i hate women?". what i heard of that album wasn't very thrilling.

Luv this album. "Street Waves" is that dream Velvets/Beefheart fusion that all those mid-70s Ohioans tried to achieve

Peter Laughner lives!

Yes! If he lived, this band would have had a much different career path. They needed somebody like him to balance out DT's artsy-fartsy tendencies.

dog latin are you talking about the album of songs for the stage production?

Yes I am. The album's called '"Long Live Pere Ubu!"'. It's had a fairly mixed critical reception so far, but I think it's awesome. Obviously very Dada, absurdly disturbing in only the way David Thomas can. Some tracks are just ambient soundscapes with Thomas (as Ubu) burping and belching all over them. Others are experimental synth/percussion things that somehow still manage to etch their atones into my brain. There are even a few (almost) straight-up punk tracks with rousing choruses. Apparently the input Thomas had over the music was to string together 20 decaying apple macs in his front room in Brighton, and then set up some kind of automatic phone line so that when the band were rehearsing on the other side of the pond, he would just dial a number and go "That, play that!". All the band would be able to hear would be hissing and clicking and maybe a car going past the house, but they'd play anyway and Thomas wouldn't seem to mind too much.

Thanks that sounds great will be picking it up when I can find it

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

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

Anyway, I gave my copy of the Hearpen singles box set a listen (why is it called that, when every label has it as Hearthen, and every sleeve as well, apart from one front cover has it as Hearpan (or thereabouts))

Anyway, I can exclusively reveal that the version of "Modern Dance" sounds exactly like "Final Solution".

DAMN IT!!!

Hearthan I mean

Get your Ps and Thorns right

I found out why:

http://www.ubuprojex.net/pix/hrlogo.jpg

The Story of Hearpen Records

David Thomas made Hearpen Records in 1975 to put out Pere Ubu records. The name derives from an anglo-saxon word for harp. The p is a transliteration of the anglo-saxon thorn, a letter that was pronounced th. HEARTHAN (pronounced hay-are-than, rhymes with van) gradually gave way to HEARPEN (pronounced hay-are-pen) as the label's name. The logo got designed on a day it was HEARTHAN. A rule evolved that written the name is Hearpen while integrated into a design it becomes Hearthan. Hearpen is the favored pronunciation in all cases. Confusion was the foundation on which our business grew.

Shame there wasn't much love for Chinese Radiation, it's just so sad and the crowd noises are just so unexpected.

This is such a classic but on the whole I like Dub Housing more. I really like New Picnic Time too especially how he sings "It's me again"on The Fabulous Sequel, it's such a perfect start to the album.

Didn't realise "Humor Me" was so popular!

So I mentioned the mispressing to the shop I bought it from (online), and they have others and are shipping me it straightaway, don't even want the wrong-un back!

Which is brilliant of them!

Didn't realise "Humor Me" was so popular!

It's one of the great final tracks.

That box:

The replacement arrived (a while back), and I recorded it onto CD, but I still can't make out any 'doll-squeak' noises.

Still, I'd forgotten how great all of it is. (Except Final Solution, which is just dumb apart from the music, really)

I played it to the kids, they .. mmmm, listened...

Final Solution rules, u crazy.

yeah that is nutty! NUTTY!

So.... is it worth me catching these guys in February?

Yeah, you should go. I've seen them twice in the last six years, both shows were great, but I'm a pretty big fan.

final solution is one of the greatest songs of the 20th century.

Buy me a ticket to a sonic reduction

So.... is it worth me catching these guys in February?

I hated the Ubu Roi play they did a while back, but the audio of it is f'ing great. Seeing them next week (songs from the play and The Modern Dance) and v much looking forward to it, as they've been extremely enjoyable whenever I've seen them.

Will report back.

Yeah I'm a huge fan of the "Long Live" album but I've heard the live version is a bit lacking. Maybe they've honed it a bit? Here's hoping.

Shame there wasn't much love for Chinese Radiation, it's just so sad and the crowd noises are just so unexpected.

If Thomas was telling the truth, those audience sounds were recorded at a legitimate Grand Funk concert.

God now all I want to hear is Chinese Radiation.

U.S. dates expected at all?

final solution is one of the greatest songs of the 20th century.

This should be repeated.

word.

final solution is one of the greatest songs of the 20th century.

― scott seward, Friday, 22 January 2010 17:08 (2 hours ago)

They played Final Solution last night!

This was an amazing gig - just the songs from the excellent audio of Bring Me the Head of Ubu Roi, and Modern Dance. David Thomas on fine form.

Makes up for the dreadful play of Ubu Roi I saw them do a year or so ago.

Took the girls to/from Swimming, was playing "The Modern Dance" album..

Alice: Is is supposed to have that noise?

By the time we came back, Chinese Radiation was just starting, and Amber decided it sounded like The Killers' "All these things that I've done". Then David Thomas started singing, and they both decided it sounded a lot like it.

Just the start-off, mind.

The applause in "Chinese Radiation" just gets to me every time I hear it

(or rather, David Thomas' unhinged yelping as he's swept away in the round of applause)

I've been singing "Laughing" all day every day for the past 2.5 weeks but I still think I'd prob vote for CR

So, unless someone has the original single, I believe they well may be the same version anyway.

I do now.

It is a different noise. "Twiww" as opposed to "Dink"

tried to see them play last weekend but waited too long to show up at the venue... no advance ticket sales. heard they were pretty great, too. ah well.

"Street Waves" owns