Marty Stuart, Pitchf**k, and if this smokin’ don’t kill me…
Tuesday January 17, 2006 – 1:20 amI had a pretty fun weekend. Sarah comped me a ticket to see Otis Clay open for Marty Stuart last night (=Sunday) at the Old Town… Eric tagged along too, and I finally got to meet Sarah’s friend Mark, he was nice. The show was soooo goooood. I knew Otis was going to be awesome but I had no idea about Marty. I vaguely remembered seeing him talk about older artists on various documentaries, but had never heard his own stuff. I guess I saw the mullet and didn’t think I needed to… what a mistake that was! Remind me next time not to judge a mullethead so quickly. He was totally great. The real deal, no doubt about it. An amazing musician (mandolin mostly) and a super-crack band too. Loved every minute. There was a group of fucking assholes sitting next to us who couldn’t stop cracking up during the most inappropriate times despite our intense glares, but oh well. It wasn’t so bad that it ruined the show for me or anything. You gotta wonder what they were doing there though. Maybe they were just too drunk to give a shit, who knows.
Guess what… not that anybody cares but me, I realize that, but guess what? My foot’s a lot better now, it’s been getting noticeably better every day THANK GOD!! How long has it been, like two months already? Well I’m walking almost completely normally again if I’m careful not to wear it out too much. I think the trick was to stop wearing my Blundstones every day and start wearing comfy sneakers. Duhhh. The top part of my foot is the part that’s been hurting, so I just leave the laces real loose on that foot. I’m not blaming my Blunnies for hurting my foot ‘cuz I’ve been wearing the same style for like six years now, but they weren’t helping it get better, that’s for sure. It was pressing down on exactly the wrong place and just making it worse I think. So I’m giving those ol’ boots a rest and using some ugly-ass sneakers that I think I bought in the Eighties, ha ha. Whatever works, I don’t care.
OH that reminds me, guess what? (Yes, another "guess what".) SARAH JOINED MY GYM!! YAYYYYY!!! I’m so psyched. We probably won’t be going there *together* very often if at all, but it’s just great that we can kick each other’s asses to go at all. And I just like my gym, so I’m psyched that there’s any possibility that I’ll bump into someone I know there.
Pitchfork gave my new album a kinda shitty review today (=yesterday), but fuck it, oh well. They do make a valid point that the lyrics on this record are mostly on the very morose side, I would agree with that. But I don’t think that makes it a bad record or anything, so that’s where we disagree. Lots of people make breakup records all the time… hell, I guess I’m just lucky the reviewer doesn’t seem to have heard any of my other albums, ‘cuz they’re all the same way, they’re all breakup records just as much as this one is! What can I say, it’s just my specialty, whining about my love life. It’s what I do best, love it or leave it. At least they reviewed it, I guess if they really wanted to dismiss it they wouldn’t have posted that at all. I’m really not a fan of most of the stuff they rave about, so I guess our tastes are vastly different to begin with. I happen to think sad songs can be kinda pretty! Whatever. I guess I’m just sooo uncool, and I don’t really care.
Speaking of CDs I finally got around to selling a bunch of old CDs at Reckless the other day. I had two crates full that I’d been hauling around in the back of my van for literally two years straight!! I was just too lazy, but I found myself parked right in front of there and went in and asked if they’d look at them. They did, and of course a lot of it was crap they didn’t want (which I knew) but they took a good lil’ pile and I got eighty bucks. Sweet! I still have a crate and a half now, still in my van, so I guess I’ll be hauling those around for another two years… maybe they’ll come back in style by then and be Reckless-worthy, heheh. Or maybe I should just throw ‘em in the alley, it’ll probably save me money in the long run via better gas mileage.
So what’s my OkCupid news of the day? Well, I made the acquaintance of another musician who’s been really fun to talk to. He’s a bit older and a whoooole lot more experienced in the business than I am, so it’s just been fun to compare notes and trade stories. He’s the only other working musician I’ve met on there, and I think he got spooked away from there already so I guess it’s lucky I met him at all. We’re just e-mailing a little now. He’s really funny and has a great attitude. He called me an ASSHOLE right to my virtual face, for starting to smoke again. He’s right!! I am an asshole for doing that, an asshole and a dumbshit. So by saying that, he’s being a friend, and I probably wouldn’t tolerate being called that by anybody else for some reason. I know damn well it’s going to kill me if I don’t stop fuckin’ around… it’s the only thing I do that really will kill me for sure, barring any unforeseen accidents or whatever, god forbid. I have to quit, I have to! have to! have to quit right now!!! It’s gonna kill me if I don’t, I know this.
Time to go to bed, I’ve got rehearsal in the morning! Fun. I have to remember to bring my notebook this time so I’ll know what the fuck to work on. We were a little aimless about it last week but this time we have to buckle down for that show on Sunday. It’s gonna be good, too. My pals Grimble Grumble got added to the bill so that’s yet another reason y’all should attend. It’s a bit of a steep cover for a Hideout show but man, it’s for Gary and we gotta take care of our own.







January 17th, 2006 at 6:42 am
marty is way cool, kind of buddy miller with a better voice. i like "the pilgrim" the best, if your public library stocks it.
January 17th, 2006 at 1:01 pm
I really like Marty Stuart’s recent gospel album. And I’m jealous as fuck that you got to go to the show! I assumed that it was gonna sell out with just old town members, so I didn’t even try to get a ticket. A pleasant reminder to try to try!
ps. that pitchfork guy wrote his review like a jerk. I’m not just saying that as a fan of the record, and I could ramble, but I guess I don’t think of the lyrics and self-effacing or even that extremely loathing. It’s exactly the sort of nagging thoughts, regrets, and grievances that trickle through my mind when my heart blows up in my face. Umm, I guess what I’m saying is to me it speaks to a mood and a moment, rather than some sort of pathological profile.
pps. longest comment ever?
January 17th, 2006 at 2:14 pm
awh, you always post the bad reviews.
you should post the good reviews, too!
January 17th, 2006 at 6:30 pm
Pitchfork have certainly been meaner…have you checked out their reviews of Liz Phair’s last two albums??? I mean, these reviews were scathing, but morbidly interesting.
All the same, I don’t think Edith’s album deserved a rating of 5.8…it’s a solid album any artist would be proud of.
i agree that most of the stuff they rave about is shite…they’ll rave about an artist one day and give their subsequent album a low rating and trash them to boot…oye ve! toodles.
January 17th, 2006 at 8:46 pm
i just read the pitchfork review and i agree that they were out of line. you could just as easily criticize the reviewer for being a bad writer, making ad hominem attacks instead of critiquing the music. anyway edith, i love your music and i think it’s quite meaningful, especially to me.
January 17th, 2006 at 9:06 pm
Thanks y’all… it really doesn’t bug me though, I just thought I’d give my take on it. I like to be whiney, they like to be snotty, so we’re all doing what we do best. I really appreciate y’all’s nice comments but… can we talk about Marty instead? Or my foot? Heheh. Anything.
January 17th, 2006 at 9:22 pm
I’ve been obsessing over "It’s A Game" for the last few weeks, so I was really disappointed when I saw the PF review. But what can you do? The sad thing about it is that many people will just glance over 5.8 rating and just assume the record is mediocre, which to me, clearly isn’t the case.
Not sure if you’ve seen this review yet:
http://www.brainwashed.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4260&Itemid=0
Glad to hear your foot’s doing better!
Cheers
January 18th, 2006 at 10:58 am
Reviews. I’m not posting them in full very much on my site anymore, just interviews, and putting little blurbs from reviews on the actual album-info page. I used to post fuckin’ *everything* but it just seemed a little anal, and I’d rather speak for myself anyway.
The point that a lot of the reviewers seem to be missing — especially the ones who hate it, ha ha — is that I’m a reasonably happy person who happens to have enough creativity to come up with songs that aren’t necessarily literally true. When they complain about what *I’m* talking about, they’re referring to the wrong gal; I’m not exactly the same person as the protagonist in the songs. I get no credit for having an active imagination. Guess what, I was never cheated on, there was never any other woman in the song "Emergency". Whoah, I made that up! Does that make it a bad song? I’m also writing about other things, like when I use a bunch of computer terminology whilst tricking you into thinking it’s a love song, like on "Good to Know" or "Stars Fading”… I did the same thing on "Albany Blues" from the first album. It’s called using one’s imagination to fill in details so they’ll make dramatic sense to the listener. The album is not a journal, it’s a bunch of fictional songs, with a blend of both real and made-up feelings and details. They’re stories, they reflect a tradition of brokenhearted songwriting that I really love. If I were truly so brokenhearted I’d be so damn depressed I’d never be able to sing about it. If you want to believe the album is only about one thing and it’s literally true and you want to identify with that character, please do, if that’s what makes sense to your ears. But it’s unfair for people to attack me personally based on those songs — I’m a perfectly healthy person, and if the songs make you feel anger towards the singer, if you need to attack me to make yourself feel better about your own situation, then who’s the one who needs therapy?
January 18th, 2006 at 11:37 am
Brian Howe used to be my managing editor and is a good man. For over two years, he proved himself a great writer and quite knowledgeable. However, he seems to be a little too Pitchforky in his cutting tone on this review than he used to be a year ago. I haven’t heard the album just yet, so I can’t debate whether he’s wrong or right, but I’m doubting it’s as average as he makes out. I can’t believe he said "unattractive desperation" with all the new wave and intelli-emo (ha, I just made up a new sub-genre) bands flooding everyone’s buzz lists – especially Pitchfork’s. He also focuses more on disagreeing with the way the album’s subject is, as a person, rather than dedicating the attention to the art on the album. Oh well – he’s still a good guy and a fantastic writer. The only thing I can say is to shrug it off and wait to see what the other publications say about it. Sorry that was so long.
January 18th, 2006 at 12:41 pm
I would rather listen to Edith Frost records than Clap Your Hands Say Yeah anyday.
January 18th, 2006 at 1:56 pm
If you like something and the critics don’t, they are wrong and you are right and the reverse is also true.
January 18th, 2006 at 5:30 pm
That site consistently gives shitty reviews to great records and champions complete shit. Most of the reviewers are more interested in maintaining their indie-cred, than actually listening to good music and writing intelligently about it. Most of their reviews are about the author. Please, please, please don’t let the bastards get you down. It would really suck if that kind of criticism is in the back of your mind when you’re composing new tunes. As a big fan I would hate to hear you sound like the kind of stuff that they cheer.
January 18th, 2006 at 5:53 pm
I couldn’t possibly, even if I really wanted to. The lyrics were a dealbreaker for him, and for some other reviewers too, even the anti-Pitchfork site Tuning Fork. Different strokes. Some people want to shake me by the shoulders and other people want to hug me as if I’m some wounded creature… both reactions are equally wack IMO because they’re both going under the same assumption, that everything I sing about is literally true. Or maybe not, maybe this guy IS complaining about the protagonist and not me, maybe he just didn’t feel the need to make that clear, and now I’m taking *him* too literally. What’s hilarious is that I said I didn’t want to talk about it anymore but I can’t shut the fuck up! And one day I’ll say yeah, I take all these lyrics from my own e-mails and things I’ve said, it’s pretty personal stuff, and the next minute I’m saying it’s all made up. Don’t listen to me, people! Or do. It’s quite clear that I’m full of shit half the time, but fuck if I know which half.
January 18th, 2006 at 7:29 pm
Tuning Fork..?
Link? I try google, to no relevant avail.
January 18th, 2006 at 7:35 pm
tuningforkmedia.blogspot.com
It’s not even all that anti-PF really, they’re just kinda two sides of the same coin from what I can tell. I’m not following that one, just found it through a Google Alert ego-search.
January 18th, 2006 at 7:47 pm
Cool, thanks. It’s kind of interesting…
January 18th, 2006 at 10:15 pm
Pitchfork is reliable in the way Option magazine was in the 90′s / which is to say Not Very. i mean, they’ve made a religion out of Radiohed, no? a competent band, certainly, but they also sound like David Gates fronting post.Waters Pink Floyd…