Normally Robert Christgau's writing is so unclear, but he really nails the the new Ramones documentary in the Voice. The movie's great, the only thing I still wonder is where in the world their sound came from. The film explains how intense it was for the bland mid-70s, but not why they made the particular choices they did: short, hard uncomplicated loud songs with "morbid" themes. Performance art is mentioned in the film (and by Christgau) as an analogy, but we still don't know why 4 guys from Queens who liked the Stooges and the Dolls invented this form of high-energy minimalism. They weren't from the arty set like the Talking Heads; in fact the most fascinating person in the film is Johnny, who is a Bush and Nixon-loving Republican (and who, we also learn, kept the band honed, driven, and together as a unit for 20 years). Where did his sense of style and the vision of the group come from, given that he's so non-reflective? This is not to slight the other members' contributions, but they all seem to agree at the end of the day that Johnny was the Nazi behind the Bop.
going backwards. from t rex and slade to phil spector via (brill building) bubblegum. is my impression.
Bubblegum and girl groups was one part of their sound. That's the Joey influence, I'd say. For "Pinhead" or "Commando" you have to go back to something like the Troggs? early Who and Kinks? and the Stooges, of course. Marc Bolan for the minimalism but without the sensitive boy affectations or the "boogie." Groups like Electric Eels were doing what we'd now call punk in '72. Speeding it up and making it so hard was a real innovation, though. (FWIW Johnny's the one counting 1-2-3-4 at the start of every song. )
I agree with the who, troggs and kinks influence. note all from the english invasion. joey always sang with a fake english accent. surf music is also a very important factor as per a previous discussion elsewhere on this site. the greatest musical intensity from the surf music scene came from an instrumental, wipe out. pretty minimal there. (no dick dale overkill) raw power was already out by then and would have been a more specific iggy connection. when i saw the ramones at cb's in '77 dd was doing all the counting 'em off. with a great bulging vein on his forehead. you thought his head would explode all over you.
i have to add the hollies. i just heard on a carousel on the radio.
And then there was one.
Damn. That's too bad. I've been relistening to their albums lately, it's really great stuff. And I loved seeing them back in the day (Baltimore and Houston).
cbgb nyc '77, the bank (mount vernon ny) '78, some place near rye new york that looked like an empty supermarket '79. i moved back to ny after reading a '76 new york magazine article: "...songs as fast as an amyl nitrate high."
hey ho lets go!
who thought they really meant it !?
via heyholetsgouk
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Normally Robert Christgau's writing is so unclear, but he really nails the the new Ramones documentary in the Voice. The movie's great, the only thing I still wonder is where in the world their sound came from. The film explains how intense it was for the bland mid-70s, but not why they made the particular choices they did: short, hard uncomplicated loud songs with "morbid" themes. Performance art is mentioned in the film (and by Christgau) as an analogy, but we still don't know why 4 guys from Queens who liked the Stooges and the Dolls invented this form of high-energy minimalism. They weren't from the arty set like the Talking Heads; in fact the most fascinating person in the film is Johnny, who is a Bush and Nixon-loving Republican (and who, we also learn, kept the band honed, driven, and together as a unit for 20 years). Where did his sense of style and the vision of the group come from, given that he's so non-reflective? This is not to slight the other members' contributions, but they all seem to agree at the end of the day that Johnny was the Nazi behind the Bop.
- tom moody 8-29-2004 10:25 am
going backwards. from t rex and slade to phil spector via (brill building) bubblegum. is my impression.
- bill 8-29-2004 5:39 pm
Bubblegum and girl groups was one part of their sound. That's the Joey influence, I'd say. For "Pinhead" or "Commando" you have to go back to something like the Troggs? early Who and Kinks? and the Stooges, of course. Marc Bolan for the minimalism but without the sensitive boy affectations or the "boogie." Groups like Electric Eels were doing what we'd now call punk in '72. Speeding it up and making it so hard was a real innovation, though. (FWIW Johnny's the one counting 1-2-3-4 at the start of every song. )
- tom moody 8-31-2004 12:15 am
I agree with the who, troggs and kinks influence. note all from the english invasion. joey always sang with a fake english accent. surf music is also a very important factor as per a previous discussion elsewhere on this site. the greatest musical intensity from the surf music scene came from an instrumental, wipe out. pretty minimal there. (no dick dale overkill) raw power was already out by then and would have been a more specific iggy connection. when i saw the ramones at cb's in '77 dd was doing all the counting 'em off. with a great bulging vein on his forehead. you thought his head would explode all over you.
- bill 8-31-2004 12:39 am
i have to add the hollies. i just heard on a carousel on the radio.
- bill 9-04-2004 5:17 am
And then there was one.
- alex 9-16-2004 3:22 pm
Damn. That's too bad. I've been relistening to their albums lately, it's really great stuff. And I loved seeing them back in the day (Baltimore and Houston).
- tom moody 9-16-2004 5:55 pm
cbgb nyc '77, the bank (mount vernon ny) '78, some place near rye new york that looked like an empty supermarket '79. i moved back to ny after reading a '76 new york magazine article: "...songs as fast as an amyl nitrate high."
- bill 9-16-2004 6:05 pm
hey ho lets go!
who thought they really meant it !?
via heyholetsgouk
- bill 9-16-2004 6:34 pm