The Church - any of the congregation here? (Part Two)

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Remington Steele, Oct 20, 2014.

  1. Retropsych

    Retropsych Excessive Lynne Orchestrations

    Location:
    Australia
    I think "You're Still Beautiful" is the only subpar track on GAF. Not surprising for a band that does not do subpar well. ;)
     
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  2. Record Rotator

    Record Rotator A vintage/retro-loving sentimental fool

    "Pharaoh" may be the coolest song ever written and recorded. I love this song with all of my heart. Gold Afternoon Fix was the first Church album I discovered and, to this day, I consider it superior to Starfish. I didn't realize the drums were mostly programmed until years later. The "drums" sound pretty damn great to me when listening to "Pharaoh", "Disappointment", and "Grind".
     
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  3. segue

    segue Psychoacoustic Member

    Location:
    Hawai'i
    So thankful I was around for the early US club shows, they were majestic!
     
  4. Record Rotator

    Record Rotator A vintage/retro-loving sentimental fool

    I can't even think of those two tracks as "weak".
    "You're Still Beautiful" is pretty damn unique.
     
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  5. palisantrancho

    palisantrancho Forum Resident

    I agree. That should not have been a single. I do like Metropolis, but all the other songs are as good or better, in my opinion.
     
  6. palisantrancho

    palisantrancho Forum Resident

    It is the only song that I may skip once in a while. I know Marty and Peter hated it. I'm not sure why it was a single. Some cool guitar parts and not a bad song, but I do think it's the weak link on the album.
     
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  7. Record Rotator

    Record Rotator A vintage/retro-loving sentimental fool

    I find that interesting. And very surprising, too. Though not a favorite, I always thought that song "stood out". As I mentioned earlier, I think it's rather unique; never heard another song (even remotely) like it.
     
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  8. palisantrancho

    palisantrancho Forum Resident

    I think Ploog played the drums on "Pharaoh". According to wiki he also played on "Monday Morning" and "Russian Autumn Heart". I know the entire album isn't programmed drums. That's why I think it works. "City" and a couple other songs don't sound like all electronic drums to me. Maybe someone has some info on the drumming? The majority of songs with programmed drums sounds good to me. I also never really noticed it until someone told me many years ago.
     
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  9. palisantrancho

    palisantrancho Forum Resident

    I think it sounds a lot like it could have been on Sometime Anywhere. I think I read that either Marty or Peter were embarrassed by it and thought the lyrics were silly. I could try to find the quote.
     
  10. Forget Yourself

    Forget Yourself Forum Resident

    Location:
    Massachusetts
    Not sure, but Russian Autumn Heart sure sounds like a drum machine to me....I can't remember where I read that it was primarily programmed drums on the whole album. Ploog left in the middle of the recording session.
     
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  11. AlienRendel

    AlienRendel Senior Member

    Location:
    Chicago, il
    Marty details which tracks Ploog played on in his liner notes to the reissue.
     
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  12. NearysEpiphany

    NearysEpiphany Forum Resident

    Location:
    Alabama
    I listened to the best of recently and it's great but loud so I went looking for the original CDs on discogs. Ouch. These guys' CDs fetch a pretty penny on discogs except for starfish and new gold whatever.
     
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  13. InStepWithTheStars

    InStepWithTheStars It's a miracle, let it alter you

    Location:
    North Carolina
    Try this one: The Church - Hindsight 1980-1987

    This is the best-sounding Church CD in my opinion. Has all the early singles plus hard-to-find B-sides, all with great mastering. The original CD is a fat-box case, the 1996 one is a standard width double jewel case. Both have the same mastering.

    Almost every CD released from 1996 onward runs the gamut, mastering-wise, from bad to unlistenable. The music is consistently fantastic, the mastering is consistently awful. It's a shame. The early CDs are indeed the way to go. But the prices fluctuate. When I got into the band in 2016, they hovered around $8-$15. I saw them jump up to $45, come back down to $20, jump up to $35, go back down to $30. It seems to happen at complete random. Be patient and you will find a deal. (On most of them, anyway - there are some you'll never see for less than $70, but those are mostly later releases.)
     
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  14. Alofter

    Alofter Nowhere Man

    Location:
    Marshall Michigan

    Big budget video days, and if I recall Marty absolutely hated being swung upside down by the legs. Perhaps that’s what has influenced his dislike for the song. I’ve always liked this song but can’t resist Fading Away. I will always think of the fall season, cool damp mornings and the adolescent pursuit of companionship and conquests while playing this album. Seems appropriate somehow.
     
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  15. SJP

    SJP Forum Resident

    Location:
    Anaheim
    Another vote for this one. A truly interesting and high-quality project featuring Marty Willson-Piper. Beautiful pressing so far (almost through side one).

    [​IMG]
    Atlantæum Flood ‎– One Day
    Label:
    Schoolkids Records (2) ‎– SMR-058
    Format:
    Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo
    Country:
    US
    Released:
    12 Nov 2019
     
  16. Retropsych

    Retropsych Excessive Lynne Orchestrations

    Location:
    Australia
    Im in reverse. I recently relistened to the 2 Isidore albums back to back and the second one did much more for me, and I have better recollection of its tracks, reinforcing my previous impressions of the relative merits of both albums.

    "Life Somewhere Else" is definitely a better album than a weak Church album (a rare species) like "Magician Among The Spirits" .

    I always some when I hear that line in "Oh My Sky" Take off your pants and pretend you're in France" :p

    Steve can sure as hell be funny when he wants to be
     
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  17. Record Rotator

    Record Rotator A vintage/retro-loving sentimental fool

    I appreciate our differing opinions/tastes in music, but, for me, personally, the first Isidore album is an absolute classic - quite a bit better than the second album, Life Somewhere Else, which is indeed very good in its own right.

    But, yeah, Steve is quite the lyricist! Gotta love him!
     
    Last edited: Feb 21, 2020
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  18. TheOtherDude

    TheOtherDude Forum Resident

    Location:
    Austin, TX
    Agree that Life Somewhere Else is better than the first Isidore album, but MATS is a weak Church album? I realize it's not to everyone's taste, and admittedly not one that I listen to as much as some of the others. But I still consider it one of my favorites probably because there's nothing else in The Church catalog quite like it. When I'm in the right mood for MATS, it never fails to impress me.
     
  19. c-eling

    c-eling They're made of light,We never would have guessed

    Patience....
    Took quite awhile for me to track down a US Arista Of Skins, one finally popped up a few days ago so I grabbed it.
    Seance, try and grab the old Canadian Disque Americ manufacture-error/glitch free.
    Looking for the US-S/T Capitol LP without a promo punch has been tough :laugh:
     
    Last edited: Feb 21, 2020
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  20. AlienRendel

    AlienRendel Senior Member

    Location:
    Chicago, il
    re-listening to the 1st Isidore album now, after not hearing it for a long time. I like the music, but had forgotten how hard it is to listen to. Everything is so compressed - it just sounds flat & crispy.
     
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  21. InStepWithTheStars

    InStepWithTheStars It's a miracle, let it alter you

    Location:
    North Carolina
    Yeah, the production on that is brash and keening as hell. (Fittingly, it was released in the US on "Brash Records".) Steve's vocals are so sharp. The "air" around his voice feels like a knife. It took me a long time to get past that and actually appreciate the music, but I'm glad I finally did, because it's, well, I've already said my peace about that album. :)
    Yes, buying the Church is all about patience. When I started, all of the Aristas were $10 and Seance was the grail at a whopping $17. Overnight they jumped up to $25 with Seance at $40. I waited and waited and they dropped back down to $15 and $20 for Seance (which is when I nabbed my copy). You also never know when some random eBay seller might put the Arista Blurred Crusade up for $10. It's all about being vigilant and jumping on it when it comes up. It's like a really slow game of Whack-A-Mole, except with CDs instead of moles and somebody flipped the M in "mallet" upside down. :D
     
    Last edited: Feb 21, 2020
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  22. Record Rotator

    Record Rotator A vintage/retro-loving sentimental fool

    The songs themselves are so cool, though - way better than any songs on the second album. "Transmigration", "Refused On Temple St.", and "Life Somewhere Else" are all fantastic.
     
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  23. TheOtherDude

    TheOtherDude Forum Resident

    Location:
    Austin, TX
    Listening to Isidore again as well since it's been a long time. There are some good songs like Refused on Temple St and Nothing New that I had forgotten about, although I still prefer the second album overall. And yeah, as noted the production is terrible. Steve's vocals especially sound compressed, sibilant and just grating. Maybe that's why I haven't pulled this one off the shelf for a few years.
     
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  24. Record Rotator

    Record Rotator A vintage/retro-loving sentimental fool

    Of course "Life somewhere Else" isn't off the Isidore debut album. Sigh! However, I still consider that first album to be a classic.
    "Transmigration", "Refused On Temple St.", "Musidora", "Sanskrit","Nothing New" and "No Passage" are all superb.
     
    Last edited: Feb 21, 2020
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  25. InStepWithTheStars

    InStepWithTheStars It's a miracle, let it alter you

    Location:
    North Carolina
    I recite the speech at the beginning of "CA Redemption Value" to warn people that I'm a weirdo. It works pretty well - I still only have about 6 or 7 friends.
     
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