Pere Ubu / David Thomas

[Guest Chaney]

Without understanding* quite why, I've suddenly become obsessed with owning some Pere Ubu and / or David Thomas music.

(*I remember seeing a video many years back (Urgh! A Music War) which featured Pere Ubu and the image (and shock) of the mewling David Thomas has never quite left me.)

Throwing caution to the wind, I've just ordered a copy of Monster, the five CD set of Thomas "solo" material.

Have I made an awful mistake? (Set cost me around $30 and there's one on eBay right now selling for that amount so, if I erred, it'll be simple enough to sell the set off.) (NOT an easy set to find.)

Any fans?

[Brandon Burke]

I'm a huge fan but I have harder time with the solo material. It's a little closer to the mid-80's stuff with Mayo Thomson (of Red Krayola). Of course, it shouldn't be surprising that anyone would make weird records with Mayo Thompson on board.

Anyways, if you don't have them, go with the essentials first:

The Modern Dance (1978) - A classic by any standard.

Terminal Tower (1975-80) - Compilation of early singles featuring, among other things, "30 Seconds Over Tokyo" and "Heart of Darkness".

Dub Housing (1979) - Their second full length and my favorite one by a long shot. The first three tracks are worth the price of admission by themselves.

Lastly, when that box set comes in be sure to check out his accapella cover of "Sloop John B". Very very strange.....

Edited April 6, 2004 by Brandon Burke

[BruceH]

Personally, I'd say you could've gotten yourself a copy of The Modern Dance and Dub Housing and then rest secure that you had all that you need. But if you're a huge fan or have a need to explore, then go for broke and more power to ya!

[BFrank]

I've got "Modern Dance" (original Blank 001 promo copy LP), "Tenement Years" and a solo thing called "Sound of the Sand" (w/Richard Thompson, among others) and I don't think I've listened to any of them all the way through.

I'm convinced that they're great and Dave Thomas is probably a genius, but I've never been able to "get" their music. OTOH, I really appreciate their complete "unique-ality" (how's THAT for a word?). One of these days I will sit down and spend some time with this stuff. Honest!

[Brandon Burke]

I'm convinced that they're great and Dave Thomas is probably a genius, but I've never been able to "get" their music. OTOH, I really appreciate their complete "unique-ality" (how's THAT for a word?). One of these days I will sit down and spend some time with this stuff. Honest!

It certainly helps if you're a Beefheart fan already. And I don't mean this in a Beefheart/Zappa kind of way because Zappa, whom I would also consider a genius, is too self-consciously *wacky* for me. I can't get into that silly shit, man. Songs about rubber bands and tits.....? F*ck that.

Pere Ubu, Beefheart and the Red Krayola I consider on the same level. Very out there and definitively post-modern yet they all strive to attain a level of "artiness" that postmodernism doesn't recognize. So they kind of walk the fence in my opinion.

I also would include Tim Buckley's Starsailor LP but that's his only legitimately weird record. By the way, after years of trying to "get" it, I finally had that watershed moment with Starsailor a couple of weeks ago and.......damn......

Edited April 6, 2004 by Brandon Burke

[J.A.W.]

The only Pere Ubu I have is this one:

but it's a very long time since I last played it, so I can't really comment.

[edski]

I got into Pere Ubu by way of 1995's "Raygun Suitcase", still a favorite. Their cover of "Surfer Girl" is great (yes, DT is a Beach Boys fan) and another song on the album is called "Beach Boys" (chorus: "Marchin' on the home of the blues"). From "Raygun" its a short trip to "Pennsylvania" and "St. Arkansas." Great stuff.

I would also recommend "Apocalypse Now," which is live in 1991 - sort of Pere Ubu unplugged - its a fun album, Pere Ubu at its most accessible.

The DT box "Monster" has a GREAT live album included by DT and two pale boys called "Meadville." IMHO, it is well worth the price of admission. One of the best live albums I have ever heard. Really. The two pale boys albums are great - "EREWHON" and "Surf's Up" - (yes, another great Brian Wilson cover). Plus they have a new one coming out - "18 Monkeys on a Dead Man's Chest." Should be interesting.

You can get more info at DT's official site: http://www.projex.demon.co.uk/

Enjoy!

edski

[Guest Chaney]

...

(Set cost me around $30 and there's one on eBay right now...)

Apr-05-04 20:24:56 PDT US $51.00 misroch( 888) <--- winning bid

Apr-05-04 18:07:30 PDT US $50.00 bugsr( 39)

Apr-05-04 16:59:06 PDT US $42.00 ammacinn( 264)

Mar-31-04 16:35:33 PST US $30.00 cezzio( 21)

Mar-31-04 16:34:55 PST US $27.00 cezzio( 21)

Mar-27-04 07:10:57 PST US $25.20 robbie_dinah( 410)

[Man with the Golden Arm]

Didn't expect to see this name here.

Saw Pere Ubu a couple of times ('78?) when I was living in Akron - yes home of Devo and smelly rubber. Never really flipped my wig as I was waaaay too young to appreciate them. I "hazily" recall that The Pretenders opened for them before they were...

[Phil Meloy]

Can certainly recommend The Modern Dance & Dub Housing.

[Jazzdog]

I has having similar issues when I was getting into the Fall late last year. I grabbed a couple of albums off emusic, enough to whet my whistle on them while I sought out other stuff. Still having trouble figuring out where to go next with them, but it's a bet that paid off for me. Anyways, I only have this one David Thomas dolo cd, "Mirror man, Act one" and I bought this due to a performance by one of my hero's, a little known English folk singer by the name of Peter Hammill. Chris Cutler from Henry Cow, Linda Thompson and the great poet Bob Holman also appears. I have listened to it once or twice and it's pretty odd. Anyways, I can't tell if any of the older Pere Ubu cd's like Dub Housing are currently even available. Later works like Pennsylvania and St. Arkansas are though...I think.

[J Larsen]

One thing I'll say about the Fall is not to skip the later albums. The Infotainment Scan, in particular, is a very strong album. For the classic 80s material, Bend Sinister, Wonder and Frightening World and This Nation's Saving Grace are my favorites. I never got too into the really early stuff.

On Pere Ubu, I'm a longtime fan and will be the nth person to say that Modern Dance, Dub Housing and some form or another of the Datapanik EP (a compilation of the early singles that has been released multiple times in various formats, packaging, and with various titles) are the only truly essential recordings. The others all have their moments but are inconsistent.

[Brandon Burke]

The Fall huh.....

Well, I absolutely adore everything up until, say, I Am Curious Oranj which really sucks other than the brilliant first song ("New Big Prinz"). Many people that I know stopped paying attention once Brix joined the band because she took off some of the edge. I , on the other hand, like some of those records quite a bit.

If I had to only pick a few--and this is assuming that you aren't quite sold on the older and admittedly more 'difficult' material--I'd suggest:

This Nation's Saving Grace (1985) - Their most accesible album that's still worth a damn. Many people consider this their last 'great' record. Perverted By Language (1983) and The Wonderful and Frightening World of the Fall (1984) are great as well. Again, these are the most accessible records from the days when they were still considered a 'great' band.

From there, I'd work backwards slowly and go for Hex Enduction Hour (1982), Grotesque (After the Gramme) (1980), and Live at the Witch Trials (1979).

Of course, another, more afordable, way to figure out which period of theirs you like is to get the excellent singles comps Palace of Swords Reversed and 58489 A Sides. You can't really lose with those and each one gives you a glimpse of a different point in their long and storied past.

Edited April 6, 2004 by Brandon Burke

[J Larsen]

The first track on Hex Enduction Hour is brilliant! That is probably my most-listened to Fall song.

[Brandon Burke]

The first track on Hex Enduction Hour is brilliant! That is probably my most-listened to Fall song.

No shit. "The Classical" is definately an amazing jam. This particular era of The Fall pretty much ruined Pavement for me, especially Slanted and Enchanted.

[J Larsen]

The Classical! Thanks for saying the name - I'm terrible with song names and it was really bugging me.

I know what you're saying about Pavement - those guys didn't even try to pretend that they weren't ripping off The Fall! Can you get any more blatant than that Conduit for Sale song? Oh well, I loved Pavement back then anyway, because 1) I was from SF 2) indie rock had (IMHO) been in a bit of a rut for a year or two before that record came out and 3) I started buying Pavement records in their noise-pop era (Demolition Plot J7, etc) when they weren't quite so derivative. I always felt that Pavement got worse the poppier they got, and they got poppier from record to record.

Edited April 6, 2004 by J Larsen

[randyhersom]

I find St. Arkansas to be a very accessible and memorable Pere Ubu album. It's right up there with the compilation that's got Thirty Seconds over Tokyo for me.

[Jazzdog]

Thanks for the Fall info guys. The later album I have is The Marshall Suite, and I like it a lot. Looks like I have some more Fall cd's to buy! They are coming to town here in about a month and I plan on making it down.

Looks like I'ma have to hunt for some of this proper Pere Ubu stuff as well...

Oh and I still like Pavement, especially Slanted and Enchanted!

[BruceH]

Anyways, I can't tell if any of the older Pere Ubu cd's like Dub Housing are currently even available. Later works like Pennsylvania and St. Arkansas are though...I think.

According to CD Universe, both The Modern Dance and Dub Housing are still in print (thank God).

[Brandon Burke]

Thanks for the Fall info guys. The later album I have is The Marshall Suite, and I like it a lot. Looks like I have some more Fall cd's to buy! They are coming to town here in about a month and I plan on making it down.

Looks like I'ma have to hunt for some of this proper Pere Ubu stuff as well...

Oh and I still like Pavement, especially Slanted and Enchanted!

I totally ignored their later stuff in that post but The Marshall Suite does indeed have some great songs. I remember people calling that (yet another) comeback for the Fall. How many is that now......four....five comebacks?

Also, I highly recommend that you see them when they come your way. I went to see them over the summer when they played Austin and it was fantastic. I had heard that in recent years they/he'd become really lackluster--not to mention Mark E. Smith's tendency to leave the stage after like ten minutes. Anyways, it was really very good and they played some nice surprises too including "I Am Damo Suzuki", "Mr. Pharmacist", "The Country Life" and a rousing version of "New Big Prinz" as the closer. At the end of "New Big Prinz", Mark threw his mic into the audience and, instead of everyone screaming and yelling, the crowd continued to sing with the band (who was still playing):

"Check the record,

Check the record,

Check the guy's track record.

Check the record.

Check the guy's rock record.

He...

Is....

Not....

Appreciated!"

It was a great monent and the band was very clearly jazzed by the crowd's enthusaism.

[Guest Chaney]

Thanks to all for the replies.

I decided to go the one stop shopping route and picked up Datapanik on eBay. Seems that many speak highly of this set and I figure that if it's not to my liking, I'll stand a much better chance of unloading it than I would with individual CDs. (Makes sense, no? )

[J Larsen]

If you're talking about the EP, it's a great record. If you're talking about the box set, I listen to discs one and two all the time, five (pre-Ubu demos) every now and then, and three and four rarely (Mayo Thompson era). You get all the best Ubu and a bit more. Give it time to grow on you.

[Guest Chaney]

I am referring to the box set.

[ralphie_boy]

I put on The Modern Dance last night for the first time in about 15 years. Damm, it hold's up well! I forgot how much these guys rock. Great album start-to-finish.

[Guest Chaney]

A couple of humorous bits from the Protocols section of UBU PROJEX:

In-Store Appearances

Please note the following guidelines for in-stores. These are not meant to discourage in-stores, simply to ensure that they're successful as well as being enjoyable for all concerned.

Definitions:

IN-STORE means band members make an announced appearance at a record store.

MEET & GREET means band members make "private" appearances.

Note that Pere Ubu does not do in-store performances as a full band.

1. Please remember that all in-store appearances must be approved in advance.

2. Mr Thomas gets nervous when the record store owner / manager offers free cds or merchandise. Should the record store want to make a gift the transaction shall be handled by a third party (the Record Company rep). The third party shall approach Mr Thomas discreetly, describing what gift is offered. Mr Thomas will then okay a formal presentation at which brief, formal speeches of presentation and acceptance are made.

3. The Record Company representative must do the following:

--Immediately on arrival introduce Mr Thomas to as many people as possible, pointing out interesting facts & aiding the flow of conversation. Do not let Mr Thomas stand around like a lemon.

--IN-STORE ONLY: As soon as possible Mr Thomas must be guided to a chair from which he may play his accordion & dominate the immediate space in an absolutist manner.

--Mr Thomas should not be referred to as "Dave" or touched in an overly familiar way. His name is "David." Shaking hands is all the physical contact that should be needed.

4. The record store MUST NOT play any Pere Ubu recordings for the duration of Mr Thomas' visit. It is simply too embarrassing, draws undue attention to his presence & most importantly forces him to withdraw into a protective shell of weird uncommunicativeness. This is not desirable.

5. Please remember that the first 30 seconds of arrival in-store sets the tone for the entire episode. If Mr Thomas is allowed to slip into an Outcast Lemon Mode you will have an unsatisfactory experience. INTRODUCE HIM. ENCOURAGE CONVERSATION. TAKE UP ANY SLACK. If you know a fan who wants to meet him then by all means introduce them. Mr Thomas prefers ordinary people. He wants to be approached. He wants to talk.

Mr Thomas can be the most charming & exciting personality if very simple steps are taken to avoid awkwardness. Once he gets rolling there are no problems, you can sit back, relax & observe a professional smarming his way into the hearts of all around him. The initial stages, however, are critical.

MEET & GREETs are not a problem because of the informal nature of the event.

On the road with the band...

Games & Driving

1. All games are based on "The Price Is Right" rules.

2. All traffic tickets for moving violations are the sole responsibility of the driver. Parking tickets are the sole responsibility of the driver unless he is simply following orders.

Small Town Cop Override: You are driving thru the no man's land between Croatia and Serbia. You are stopped by a Croatian Police road check who insist you passed another vehicle on a bridge which is a very serious offense in Croatia according to the Traffic Code brandished in your face. You look back. There is no bridge. You look ahead. You see the UN checkpoint and the fact that this is the last chance they have to punish you for wanting to go to Serbia. Ruling: Driver is not responsible.