Let's be Frank...All things Zappa!
- Thread starter Wavels
- Start date
Wavels
Well-Known Member
I am dusting off this old thread to make Zappaphiles aware of a new documentary:
http://www.wsj.com/articles/eat-that-question-frank-zappa-in-his-own-words-review-an-entertainers-story-1466709846
Eat That Question: Frank Zappa in His Own Words’ Review: An Entertainer’s Story
http://www.wsj.com/articles/eat-that-question-frank-zappa-in-his-own-words-review-an-entertainers-story-1466709846
Eat That Question: Frank Zappa in His Own Words’ Review: An Entertainer’s Story
Wavels
Well-Known Member
RockStarGrower
Well-Known Member
Fooling yourself girl, going right up your poop shoot, .I YI YI! ..."
Best part of the whole album.
Best part of the whole album.
RockStarGrower
Well-Known Member
Funny thing was, I never liked frank zappa till I heard that album and it magical. Lol
heckler73
Well-Known Member
This track is a regular feature in my "jam along" sessions.
The stuff he starts doing around 4:20 (yah...I know) is where it gets fun.
Then around 5:03 he whirls into this lick that just hooks the ear. At least it did, for me, the first time I heard it. Ever since then, I set out to master the track. I still can't play it perfect, but damn I get close...and the feeling of release after tearing through the complexity of it all is just Blessed Relief
(Is this part 1 of a Conceptual Continuity sub-thread?)
The stuff he starts doing around 4:20 (yah...I know) is where it gets fun.
Then around 5:03 he whirls into this lick that just hooks the ear. At least it did, for me, the first time I heard it. Ever since then, I set out to master the track. I still can't play it perfect, but damn I get close...and the feeling of release after tearing through the complexity of it all is just Blessed Relief
(Is this part 1 of a Conceptual Continuity sub-thread?)
Wavels
Well-Known Member
I have deduced that you play guitar?This track is a regular feature in my "jam along" sessions.
The stuff he starts doing around 4:20 (yah...I know) is where it gets fun.
Then around 5:03 he whirls into this lick that just hooks the ear. At least it did, for me, the first time I heard it. Ever since then, I set out to master the track. I still can't play it perfect, but damn I get close...and the feeling of release after tearing through the complexity of it all is just Blessed Relief
I am envious.
Great video version of this tune.
The fire is mesmerizing!
I look forward to part 2 of Conceptual Continuity sub-thread!
Thanks.
heckler73
Well-Known Member
I went and saw this concert, which featured the music of Zappa and Varese played by the Turning Point Ensemble in Vancouver, a month or so ago. All I can say is if you get the chance to hear Varese played LIVE, do your ear and right hemisphere of your brain a favour, go experience it. One cannot appreciate Varese fully until one feels it in the flesh; old recordings just don't capture the subtleties. The dynamics of the percussionists is what entertained me the most, and when one sees how Octandre is performed, it is like peering behind the scenes of a master magician's trick. The mind is blown away by how so few could create a sound so massive.
But I was in for a treat that night. John Oswald was also featured on the list, with a performance of his new work, REFUSE. Now, I didn't clue in as to who he was until I walked by the "merch" table, consisting of a middle-aged woman, smiling brightly, a handful of CDs displayed in front of her. One was the album GRAYFOLDED, which I first heard in the 90s, tripping on acid, and have on the shelf with a secret bit of reverence beside my tiny collection of important GD CDs. When I realized the connection, a light exploded in my mind and I felt this moment of my existence must have been ordained by the very Cosmos itself.
I was part of only the 2nd group of ears in the world to hear his composition, which interlaced 1960s TV themes and sprinklings of Zappa's echappees, among other things. I can only hope a recording of it can become available for others to enjoy, but again, perhaps the effect would not be the same as live?
There were TWO CONDUCTORS at one point, to maintain the poly-rhythm!!! And, of course, the obligatory sound of a siren made a cameo.
The title itself can be perceived in two ways, both with equal merit. Mr. Oswald is perhaps a secret gift to those looking for that cutting edge of weird, as it were. I feel bad, though, because I had a chance to talk with him, but was too tired to wait. Maybe next time, if the opportunity arises again?
Anyway, here's another current-day link in the chain, as told by John Oswald himself...(Is this part 2 of the CCST? Or just part 1a? ooooooh...mystery...DUN DUN DUNnnnnn)
But I was in for a treat that night. John Oswald was also featured on the list, with a performance of his new work, REFUSE. Now, I didn't clue in as to who he was until I walked by the "merch" table, consisting of a middle-aged woman, smiling brightly, a handful of CDs displayed in front of her. One was the album GRAYFOLDED, which I first heard in the 90s, tripping on acid, and have on the shelf with a secret bit of reverence beside my tiny collection of important GD CDs. When I realized the connection, a light exploded in my mind and I felt this moment of my existence must have been ordained by the very Cosmos itself.
I was part of only the 2nd group of ears in the world to hear his composition, which interlaced 1960s TV themes and sprinklings of Zappa's echappees, among other things. I can only hope a recording of it can become available for others to enjoy, but again, perhaps the effect would not be the same as live?
There were TWO CONDUCTORS at one point, to maintain the poly-rhythm!!! And, of course, the obligatory sound of a siren made a cameo.
The title itself can be perceived in two ways, both with equal merit. Mr. Oswald is perhaps a secret gift to those looking for that cutting edge of weird, as it were. I feel bad, though, because I had a chance to talk with him, but was too tired to wait. Maybe next time, if the opportunity arises again?
Anyway, here's another current-day link in the chain, as told by John Oswald himself...(Is this part 2 of the CCST? Or just part 1a? ooooooh...mystery...DUN DUN DUNnnnnn)
heckler73
Well-Known Member
Speaking of Varese...If one wants to really comprehend Zappa's mechanics, one has to dig into his sources. Unfortunately, this requires using the left-hemisphere. It requires reducing music into metrics; Little Dots (Wot m8? Is that a plug?), pitch, time signatures, keys, etc.
But along with the more mundane theory, there are the DIFT(S).
Now, you know that 'S' is up to something, and it's not an accident, either.
Duration
Intensity
Frequency
Timbre
Space (sometimes)
These were the elements Varese pondered, and that last one was crucial in the grand cartoon of Zappa's compositional technique, as he has noted several times in interviews. To that end, here is a video that discusses Varese's Deserts in that kind of nerdy detail. But have a gander, you may come away with a far more profound appreciation for those seemingly random passages of Zappa. It turns out, he wrote them that way, to paraphrase Steve Vai (OH...snap. CCST strikes again! But wait...is this a footnote or part 2a?)
But along with the more mundane theory, there are the DIFT(S).
Now, you know that 'S' is up to something, and it's not an accident, either.
Duration
Intensity
Frequency
Timbre
Space (sometimes)
These were the elements Varese pondered, and that last one was crucial in the grand cartoon of Zappa's compositional technique, as he has noted several times in interviews. To that end, here is a video that discusses Varese's Deserts in that kind of nerdy detail. But have a gander, you may come away with a far more profound appreciation for those seemingly random passages of Zappa. It turns out, he wrote them that way, to paraphrase Steve Vai (OH...snap. CCST strikes again! But wait...is this a footnote or part 2a?)
dagwood45431
Well-Known Member
That's fascinating, heckler (and it explains a lot). Thank you for posting it!