Spiritualized on Letterman

repeater · Post by **repeater** » Mon Aug 04, 2008 3:10 pm

Surprised no one's commented on this yet (or did I just miss it?) considering it's on tomorrow (August 5th). Hope this goes up online somewhere and thought this might be a good place for a link if anyone could provide one.

alan_cohaul · Post by **alan_cohaul** » Mon Aug 04, 2008 5:58 pm

Right on! That's about the only time i'll check out Letterman, though, hahaaa.

Post by **spzretent** » Mon Aug 04, 2008 6:34 pm

he's way better than that putz Jay Leno!

jack white · Post by **jack white** » Mon Aug 04, 2008 7:40 pm

so what's the deal here, you lie you cheat? sweet talk? BOTH?
larry sanders is my fave american talk show host.

squirrel · Post by **squirrel** » Mon Aug 04, 2008 8:36 pm

Letterman was hysterically funny in his prime...if you're into biting, cynical wit. Which I am. Sadly, he is barely a shadow of his former self. He's unwatchable.

I'm anticipating Soul on Fire.

supershonn · Post by **supershonn** » Mon Aug 04, 2008 9:01 pm

c'mon now, we all know Conan is the greatest (he was roommates with Dean from Galaxie 500 that's Conan's drum kit they used!).

thanks so much for posting this, i had noooooooooo idea.

again thank you so much.

me.

t0kdag0n · Post by **t0kdag0n** » Mon Aug 04, 2008 9:02 pm

squirrel wrote:I'm anticipating Soul on Fire.

Good call. Yeah, I think you're right though it would be fun to see him unleash a "You Lie You Cheat" on an unsuspecting audience.

supershonn · Post by **supershonn** » Mon Aug 04, 2008 9:18 pm

are they ever allowed to play 2 songs?? or is that reserved for real artists like Ashley Simpson?

Stuart X.Hunter · Post by **Stuart X.Hunter** » Mon Aug 04, 2008 9:21 pm

supershonn wrote:are they ever allowed to play 2 songs?? or is that reserved for real artists like Ashley Simpson?

I would.

Post by **spzretent** » Mon Aug 04, 2008 10:01 pm

it will be one song only and I still think Letterman is funny. Not as funny as in his prime but still worthy of tuning in now and then.

gottafire · Post by **gottafire** » Tue Aug 05, 2008 12:04 am

t0kdag0n wrote:
squirrel wrote:I'm anticipating Soul on Fire.
Good call. Yeah, I think you're right though it would be fun to see him unleash a "You Lie You Cheat" on an unsuspecting audience.

With Wig Out at the end...or into Shine A Light after a great wall of noise...THAT would be something...
although it would probably kill any hope J has of getting on chat show TV in America again

Fuck he should do that on This Morning here in the UK!! Cut back to see the horror on Phillip Schofield and Fern Britton's faces

alan_cohaul · Post by **alan_cohaul** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 12:33 am

squirrel wrote:Letterman was hysterically funny in his prime...if you're into biting, cynical wit. Which I am. Sadly, he is barely a shadow of his former self. He's unwatchable.

Yeah, Letterman used to be REALLY funny.....but maybe his writers changed or maybe Paul's completely shaved head has thrown him off his game.

I think it's more of an example of someone who should have gave up the reins to someone else long ago....he's Letterman in name, but not in spirit. Conan O'Brien is way better than both Leno and Letterman, and he'll take things to the next level, hopefully. He may have to tame down some of his humour for being an hour earlier, though, that's the only thing that I could see going wrong. He's also one of the few guys that genuinely seems like he's into the bands and the interviewees....whether he is or not, he always puts that effort in. Leno's okay, but i've never really been a huge fan....but he has the best overall atmosphere and pizazz surrounding the show, I think, and gets the better guests and/ or sooner than Conan or Letterman (correction, usually better....Spiritualized obviously being a pretty damn good band....)

bcastle21 · Post by **bcastle21** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 5:42 am

YOU LIE YOU CHEAT.

Damn that rocked...can't actually ever remember seeing anyone rock Letterman so hard...

ComeDownEasy · Post by **ComeDownEasy** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 5:54 am

OH MY GOD!!!!
that was incredible!!!!!!
I cannot wait for them to be in Dallas!!!!
This was kinda like an Ed Sullivan "now here's the british band you've never heard of.....but you will" moment for me. I am the only one I know under 30 who likes spiritualized at all.

Well done Jason, I was scared they would play Soul On Fire, but with YOU LIE YOU CHEAT they're able to kinda set themselves apart from other acts, on a national level, and inform the unknowing masses of their intense trademark genius distorted wall of sound. That was absolutely incredible...

does anyone know if Spiritualized has ever done any other US talk shows like letterman, leno, or conan or anything like that?

t0kdag0n · Post by **t0kdag0n** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 6:02 am

t0kdag0n wrote:it would be fun to see him unleash a "You Lie You Cheat" on an unsuspecting audience.

Indeed.

After hearing this one live, I really started to like the idea of blind siding the Letterman audience with this blaster. "Soul On Fire" was definetly the logical bet, but what a terrific crescendo of noise for network TV!

moop · Post by **moop** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 8:23 am

guess that's one of the up-sides of the new album being in a more commerical vein... means he can unleash this kind of thing upon an audience who would otherwise never hear him.

don't suppose anyone recorded this? really wanna check it out but cant find a video of it online

evenfreer · Post by **evenfreer** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 9:04 am

ComeDownEasy wrote:
does anyone know if Spiritualized has ever done any other US talk shows like letterman, leno, or conan or anything like that?

During the 2001 LICD tour, they played "Stop Your Crying" on Leno. And they were banned for life.

True story. Leno insisted that Jase sit down on the couch after the song and say "Goodnight," with the other guests. J didn't want to, and Leno lost it. He had Jason locked up in his office, yelling at him, acting like a three-year old, while Jason calmly sat there and politely refused the chat. He even threw in some clever lines about being dishonest by saying "goodnight" during the daytime.

J got his way, but Leno signed off the broadcast by thanking the other guests, and then thanking "a band too cool" to say goodbye. Whatever.

At least watching Letterman doesn't make me physically ill. He certainly wasn't prepared for 'YLYC' though. Fantastic.

gottafire · Post by **gottafire** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 12:58 pm

evenfreer wrote:
ComeDownEasy wrote:
does anyone know if Spiritualized has ever done any other US talk shows like letterman, leno, or conan or anything like that?

During the 2001 LICD tour, they played "Stop Your Crying" on Leno. And they were banned for life.

True story. Leno insisted that Jase sit down on the couch after the song and say "Goodnight," with the other guests. J didn't want to, and Leno lost it. He had Jason locked up in his office, yelling at him, acting like a three-year old, while Jason calmly sat there and politely refused the chat. He even threw in some clever lines about being dishonest by saying "goodnight" during the daytime.

J got his way, but Leno signed off the broadcast by thanking the other guests, and then thanking "a band too cool" to say goodbye. Whatever.

At least watching Letterman doesn't make me physically ill. He certainly wasn't prepared for 'YLYC' though. Fantastic.

fantastic story, love it! Never heard that before

angelsighs · Post by **angelsighs** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 1:30 pm

That's an excellent story! Fair play to J.

So is there any way us Brits can see this performance of YLYC? I suppose it wil find its way onto youtube at some point.

Hedspace · Post by **Hedspace** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 1:34 pm

You lie you cheat
Letterman show

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4TrJox4VjZ0

JPB · Post by **JPB** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 2:13 pm

Thanks for posting - fucking great! I would love to have seen the audience reaction!

gottafire · Post by **gottafire** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 2:14 pm

That handshake thing at the end was funny as fuck!!! Jason looked quite amused by it...

solarflare · Post by **solarflare** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 3:37 pm

thanks hedspace

Post by **spzretent** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 3:49 pm

ComeDownEasy wrote:OH MY GOD!!!!
that was incredible!!!!!!
does anyone know if Spiritualized has ever done any other US talk shows like letterman, leno, or conan or anything like that?

yeah. they did Leno. Jay walked over to shake Jason's hand and Jason just looked at him like "What the hell are you doing here? Go away".

last night was great. it looked like Letterman did his homework. He bypassed Jason and went to the others in the band and then left Jason hanging but shook his hand at the end. Like he knew what he did to Leno.

Did not see the above post nor did I know about the extra stuff that happened. But now i do recall that comment Leno made at the end of the show.

simonkeeping · Post by **simonkeeping** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 4:52 pm

thats pure class! thats a big big tv show and they made it sound all dirty. I can imagine people being upset by that noise, confused, and maybe even angry. I would have predicted they'd play Soul on Fire but they are obviously enjoying the power of the live show and wanted to prove they are still on it.
genius

Shinesalight · Post by **Shinesalight** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 5:16 pm

That was brilliant. Doggen was really giving it some welly as well. Letterman's handshake gag was pretty cool. So, to put it into perspecrtive, which star guests were on the show...who were the boys mingling with in the green room? I presume the show's organisers must have known which song they were going to play? Really surprised they went for You Lie You Cheat. I suppose that would of worked pretty well on Ross over here though. However, Parky or Wogan wouldn't have known what had hit them!

porkchop · Post by **porkchop** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 5:20 pm

I was at the taping of the Leno show back then. And yeah, J didn't wanna talk and Leno resulted in immature cracks at the band. Even when recording the commercial spot, said who was gonna be on that nights show.."with some band from england." What a tit. Great version of stop your crying though.

porkchop · Post by **porkchop** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 5:30 pm

Thankfully, none of the letterman band "sat in" for this one. In the 90s, there was some weird policy where only a few guest band members were aloud to play and paul and his band would fill in the gaps...usually the bass and drums where assed out. So glad they let the whole band play. Imagine the Ramones with just Joey and Johnny..

dselevan2 · Post by **dselevan2** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 6:52 pm

That was funny as hell

Post by **sunny** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 7:28 pm

Very cool! Funny... and another great performance. Like someone said, it's cool how animated they all are. Such a great line up this-like a proper, proper band now. I miss them, the gigs here seem so far away in the future.

simonkeeping · Post by **simonkeeping** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 9:35 pm

Ive been thinking about the fact that for alot of people this is the first time they will have heard or seen the band and they are going to have been switched onto them through this performance. Its so exciting to think theres kids out there hearing this sound for the first time.

squirrel · Post by **squirrel** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 9:54 pm

Honestly, this performance would not have sold me. At all. While I like it alot, it is nothing close to what it was that made me fall in love with the band in the first place.

I don't know who the lead guest was, but Steve Coogen was the second guest, the guy widely rumored to be responsible for luring Owen Wilson back into "hard drugs" prior to his suicide attempt. He came off like a complete asshole.

gottafire · Post by **gottafire** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 9:59 pm

Maybe we'll be getting an influx of new board members then. This is definitely interesting times for Spiritualized in terms of commercialism, I think. A & E is by far their most accessible first listen album. I just hope that 'new' fans are open minded enough to love the old stuff too.
Jason definitely made the right choice as far as choosing to play YLYC over Soul On Fire.

bcastle21 · Post by **bcastle21** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 10:00 pm

that was an ass-kicking performance and it will for sure turn on people to this incantation of spiritualized...and that's a great thing.

squirrel · Post by **squirrel** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 10:05 pm

A & E is by far their most accessible first listen album.

Interesting. Maybe to a mainstream listener, thanks to Sweet Talk and Soul on Fire. Otherwise, to discerning listeners I view it as perhaps the most *inaccessible* of the Spiritualized records. I'm a little late the board party on this record, so I don't know. Maybe I'm alone on that one.

gottafire · Post by **gottafire** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 11:07 pm

squirrel wrote:
A & E is by far their most accessible first listen album.
Interesting. Maybe to a mainstream listener, thanks to Sweet Talk and Soul on Fire. Otherwise, to discerning listeners I view it as perhaps the most *inaccessible* of the Spiritualized records. I'm a little late the board party on this record, so I don't know. Maybe I'm alone on that one.

So you really think if you were to play The Individual or Cop Shoot Cop or 200 Bars to someone who had never heard them before ever, they'd be instantly hooked...as opposed to say, Borrowed Your Gun or You Lie You Cheat(Which in itself isn't that accessible, but more so than any other rocker on any previous album)?

TheWarmth · Post by **TheWarmth** » Wed Aug 06, 2008 11:35 pm

Well, my buddy at work saw it last night. It was his first exposure to Spiritualized and he said he was "disappointed" and that the performance was "flat," whatever that means. Maybe I built them up too much, but I guess what I'm saying is that I'm not sure the Letterman performance is going to turn on a whole bunch of people to Spiritualized. Then again, this is just one person's opinion, so hopefully there are others out there new to the band that dug it.

Post by **spzretent** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 12:06 am

to coin my Scottish friends phrase

"that wasnae flat!"

That was as ferocious as you get on late night tv.

redcloud · Post by **redcloud** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 12:18 am

squirrel wrote:I don't know who the lead guest was, but Steve Coogen was the second guest, the guy widely rumored to be responsible for luring Owen Wilson back into "hard drugs" prior to his suicide attempt. He came off like a complete asshole.

What? Coogen was great! I think US audiences still struggle with English humor. Honestly, Coogen was being Coogen. The problem is Letterman's ego is so big his guests can barely get a word in. Also, I think the talk show in the US is very different than in the UK. For one, in the US they rarely talk about anything substantial. It's all just superficial icing on the cake and you could see Coogen toying with Lettermen but DL was lost and didn't pick up on his humor. In the UK the host would have played along and the banter between the two would have been two-sided.

Spiritualized were great though and I agree that it was groovy to see them burn things up a bit.

flamingrev · Post by **flamingrev** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 12:22 am

I saw it, I liked it, and I am 100% sure that the performance is not going to lead to any sort of new influx of fans. It was good, but that wasn't going to clue people into what is great about Spiritualized. I don't know if any one song can, but it ain't that song.

Post by **MODLAB** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 12:30 am

"It's my first night"

classic and brilliant on both parts.

t-7hours=newlife,
M

Horrorflick · Post by **Horrorflick** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 1:11 am

where the hell is the video? I can't find it on youtube...

alan_cohaul · Post by **alan_cohaul** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 1:22 am

evenfreer wrote:
ComeDownEasy wrote:
does anyone know if Spiritualized has ever done any other US talk shows like letterman, leno, or conan or anything like that?

During the 2001 LICD tour, they played "Stop Your Crying" on Leno. And they were banned for life.

True story. Leno insisted that Jase sit down on the couch after the song and say "Goodnight," with the other guests. J didn't want to, and Leno lost it. He had Jason locked up in his office, yelling at him, acting like a three-year old, while Jason calmly sat there and politely refused the chat. He even threw in some clever lines about being dishonest by saying "goodnight" during the daytime.

J got his way, but Leno signed off the broadcast by thanking the other guests, and then thanking "a band too cool" to say goodbye. Whatever.

At least watching Letterman doesn't make me physically ill. He certainly wasn't prepared for 'YLYC' though. Fantastic.

Really? Heh, that's funny. That's yet another cog in the music industry--who you know and who you blow. Going by that story, if I was around Jason, I just would have said, "eh, yeah it may suck, but it's just a 'goodnight', you know, it's no phony interview or anything. No harm in it". Part of the success of anything in life is knowing when to pick your battles, though.....sometimes the littlest things end up being the BIGGEST things. But that's just going on surface value....maybe Leno detested the band beforehand or Jason heard Leno say some not so nice things, so he figured that he wouldn't pretend to get along for the TV cameras. It sounds like there's more to that story than meets the eye.

As far as "You Lie, You Cheat", i'm sort of baffled by that choice.....since they decided to rock and "Songs In A&E" isn't a rocking album except for a few songs, and YLYC is certainly the heaviest of the rockers. As people have been less than keen on "Amazing Grace" for the same reason, i'm wondering if people won't look back in hindsight and say, "well, that was a bad move for promoting the album". "Soul On Fire" or "Sweet Talk" may have been better....even "Gotta Fire", because it's likable and upbeat and catchy, kind of rocking, but not misrepresentative of the album. "Gotta Fire" would have been my choice, personally, it covers a better middle ground of what the album bridges.

Promotionally, it wasn't the greatest choice, because especially an audience as big as Letterman's (well, what's left of it, heh), you want to put the side forward that potential new fans will like, in style, the closest to it. I could see alot of new fans buying the cd for that song and then wondering what "all these gospel songs are doing on here!?". You want something that eases them into listening to the rest of the album, not pushing the anomaly from the album.

twentysixdollars · Post by **twentysixdollars** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 2:37 am

alan_cohaul wrote: As far as "You Lie, You Cheat", i'm sort of baffled by that choice.....since they decided to rock and "Songs In A&E" isn't a rocking album except for a few songs, and YLYC is certainly the heaviest of the rockers. As people have been less than keen on "Amazing Grace" for the same reason, i'm wondering if people won't look back in hindsight and say, "well, that was a bad move for promoting the album". "Soul On Fire" or "Sweet Talk" may have been better....even "Gotta Fire", because it's likable and upbeat and catchy, kind of rocking, but not misrepresentative of the album. "Gotta Fire" would have been my choice, personally, it covers a better middle ground of what the album bridges.

Promotionally, it wasn't the greatest choice, because especially an audience as big as Letterman's (well, what's left of it, heh), you want to put the side forward that potential new fans will like, in style, the closest to it. I could see alot of new fans buying the cd for that song and then wondering what "all these gospel songs are doing on here!?". You want something that eases them into listening to the rest of the album, not pushing the anomaly from the album.

It's the single. You can quarrel with the choice of it as a single, but you can hardly fault a band for playing what is, after all, its newest single on a tv talkshow appearance.

alan_cohaul · Post by **alan_cohaul** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 2:58 am

Even as a single, it doesn't represent the album well, IMO. It represents "Amazing Grace" better....for the average Spiritualized newbie or casual fan, I imagine that people are probably thinking that it's some return to or continuation of the rawer "Amazing Grace" sound. I'm talking about less the less obsessives....believe it or not, I do know people that were fans of Spiritualized that aren't so much anymore due to the album not being LAGWAFIS or something, hahaa. I know quite a few that sort of lost interest around LICD.

At this point, i'd probably be more interested to ask Jason "do you want to win over new fans? Or are you content with the ones you have?". But I do give him and the band alot of credit in that if they do more of the same, they probably run the risk of either being too samey, but if they deviate too much, then it's too off track. I say that because I know that some people just want him and the band to redo LAGWAFIS into eternity and as cool as I think that is, that album is special because it's it's own thing, you know?

But I do think that a Letterman spot is big and prestigious enough to say that it's at least some attempt to reach a wider audience, otherwise why do it? We already know how great the band is, it's just preaching to the choir. I'm not really sure YLYC was it. Perhaps i'm overanalyzing, but I just want them to truly connect with new fans the way that he and Spiritualized already connect with all of us, "Soul On Fire" would have made much more of a connection, emotionally, plus, it might be the last single, but Spiritualized are still unknown to the majority of music audiences, and "Soul On Fire" is still new to alot of people. But of course, i'm probably biased, because I think that "Soul On Fire" IS the best song on the entire album, regardless of the moods or slight variances in song styles.

"Gotta Fire" would have been a little groovier for a wider audience to get into, I think; YLYC is much more abrasive, almost art noise rock n' roll in a way, and I don't think that the core or essence of "Songs In A&E" and what I like it for to separate it from Spiritualized's other releases in my collection--is abrasive art noise rock n' roll. YLYC shouts when the other songs politely make their identities known; both figuratively and sonically. It's great to rock the Letterman crowd, but the thing about rock songs is that people can get into them easily and then forget them as easily. Immediacy is a pretty tricky mistress.

dselevan2 · Post by **dselevan2** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 6:13 am

I have several TV performances DVDs and VHS, they tend to play the, "rockers" I think that is what people want from a rock band. Come Together was probably the song they played on TV the most. I'm not surprised by the choice at all.

My favorite line ever was, "do I really have to answer that question?"

Who has the Leno footage, that sounds pretty good.

Stuart X.Hunter · Post by **Stuart X.Hunter** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 8:25 am

alan_cohaul wrote:Even as a single, it doesn't represent the album well, IMO. It represents "Amazing Grace" better....for the average Spiritualized newbie or casual fan, I imagine that people are probably thinking that it's some return to or continuation of the rawer "Amazing Grace" sound. I'm talking about less the less obsessives....believe it or not, I do know people that were fans of Spiritualized that aren't so much anymore due to the album not being LAGWAFIS or something, hahaa. I know quite a few that sort of lost interest around LICD.

At this point, i'd probably be more interested to ask Jason "do you want to win over new fans? Or are you content with the ones you have?". But I do give him and the band alot of credit in that if they do more of the same, they probably run the risk of either being too samey, but if they deviate too much, then it's too off track. I say that because I know that some people just want him and the band to redo LAGWAFIS into eternity and as cool as I think that is, that album is special because it's it's own thing, you know?

But I do think that a Letterman spot is big and prestigious enough to say that it's at least some attempt to reach a wider audience, otherwise why do it? We already know how great the band is, it's just preaching to the choir. I'm not really sure YLYC was it. Perhaps i'm overanalyzing, but I just want them to truly connect with new fans the way that he and Spiritualized already connect with all of us, "Soul On Fire" would have made much more of a connection, emotionally, plus, it might be the last single, but Spiritualized are still unknown to the majority of music audiences, and "Soul On Fire" is still new to alot of people. But of course, i'm probably biased, because I think that "Soul On Fire" IS the best song on the entire album, regardless of the moods or slight variances in song styles.

"Gotta Fire" would have been a little groovier for a wider audience to get into, I think; YLYC is much more abrasive, almost art noise rock n' roll in a way, and I don't think that the core or essence of "Songs In A&E" and what I like it for to separate it from Spiritualized's other releases in my collection--is abrasive art noise rock n' roll. YLYC shouts when the other songs politely make their identities known; both figuratively and sonically. It's great to rock the Letterman crowd, but the thing about rock songs is that people can get into them easily and then forget them as easily. Immediacy is a pretty tricky mistress.

Some interesting points but I believe your coming at it from the one angle.

I disagree that YLYC shouts...I think there is some very subtle and gentle unerlying themes; revenge, redemption and the allowance of another to do you harm but in time learn from there mistakes. Aint no better way!

Yes, it's loud and abrasive but at the start it seems to sound like a slow wagon pulling into the city from a dusty dumpstore town. Then those drums...sit up and take notice!

I doubt compared to the extremties of other bands that Spiritualized main purpose is to shift units...if it was JP & co would have been doing Usher-esque body-popping years ago. I don't think that Spiritualized management would have went cap in hand to Letterman; rather they would have been asked to perform. In other words and to reference your point; I don't think this was seen as an opportunity to gain anything. They (i'd imagine) enjoy playing live...they'd get paid for doing so and therefore why not? This is not being cynical...this is just about ticking a box...as this is what they do.

A connection with people can be made in so many ways and it's probably better to divide the people watching than it is too pander to the masses. SOF, ST & BYG would have been sensible choices had they desired too but perhaps the kid sitting with his parents; as they broke into the final 30secs of freeform noise would have a big smile on his face. Even that 30secs is very structured as is the rest of YLYC...to me it's just a distorted pop-song.

Anyway, I think the whole performance is eye-catching; from the way the band is positioned, to the song (lyrics) itself through the understated (but gargantuan) delivery of the song to the amiable good-humoured smile at the schoolboy handshake. I'd say classy...however they'd all look much better decked out in Boateng tailoring.

Best,

Stuart

swinny · Post by **swinny** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 11:53 am

Great performance, and with enough of the "essentials" to maybe pique the interest of anyone who liked it...the over-the-top music and the subtlety of the backing singers was a good mix, and a decent indication of the depth of their music. End of the day - its the single, with a vaguely high-profile video (in terms of having a name behind it) - of course they are going to play it.

...and as much as I love Soul on Fire, I think it would have been the wrong choice, as I can see ya average viewer thinking "oh look, ain't that quaint, another brit band that sound like Oasis".

Post by **sunny** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 12:10 pm

All in all I agree with Stuart on this...

However, I must say that I find this thread very depressing and off track. It is no longer about the music but has evolved into a criticism of Spz business sense. From my personal point of you I find it very peculiar when a fan base starts speculating about issues of marketing, sales and reaching a wider audience. This issue is one of business and a pretty fucking tedious and complicated one at that. That's why artist frequently (or mostly) try to appoint other people to deal with it (such as managers, laywers, PR campaigns). In my day to day life I would never publicly debate a stranger's financial choices or make suggestions to them of how they could increase their income or get a promotion or whatever. Someone else's business choices are non of my business! I find it very weird how quickly people are ready to comment on the financial affairs of musicians. It's like a free for all...I don't like it and I think it's totally inappropriate. Of course we all want the band to do well and for more people to discover them... but come on, now we're questioning what songs he should perform?! Nonsense I say!

jmb066 · Post by **jmb066** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 1:48 pm

At first I was hoping for Soul On Fire or Sweet Talk to try and win over the audience. I asumed the NBC network would dictate that type of thing, however once they started playing You Lie, You Cheat there was a part of me that was thrilled Jason is playing what he enjoys and does not care about the push of a wider audience. Dont forget he is excited to plug in and play, acoustic mainlines worked best with the fans it was a reward for listening for the last 15 years. I think a lot of us lost The Verve after BSS and I personally like that Spiritualized is big, but not too big to follow the game and worry about financial success vs. success with integrity. I love that there is only a precious few that love Spiritualized for the sound J makes, and if we wanted coorperate rock we would be on the Coldplay board not here.

Post by **spzretent** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 3:40 pm

Is it just me or did the backup singers temper the noise enough to make it palatable for late night network tv. Seems the tied the whole song together.

I would like to think of myself as a rather advanced Spiritualized fan so I dont care what they played.

Maybe they were going for the gospel-death metal demographic?

squirrel · Post by **squirrel** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 3:45 pm

What? Coogen was great! I think US audiences still struggle with English humor.

Yes, but not me. I was raised on Monty Python and The Pink Panther. It has nothing to do with English humor. I do find him funny, but I still think he's an ass and that he was ass on Letterman. The two are not mutually exclusive.

squirrel · Post by **squirrel** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 3:51 pm

gottafire wrote:
squirrel wrote:
A & E is by far their most accessible first listen album.
Interesting. Maybe to a mainstream listener, thanks to Sweet Talk and Soul on Fire. Otherwise, to discerning listeners I view it as perhaps the most *inaccessible* of the Spiritualized records. I'm a little late the board party on this record, so I don't know. Maybe I'm alone on that one.
So you really think if you were to play The Individual or Cop Shoot Cop or 200 Bars to someone who had never heard them before ever, they'd be instantly hooked...as opposed to say, Borrowed Your Gun or You Lie You Cheat(Which in itself isn't that accessible, but more so than any other rocker on any previous album)?

To hardcore music fans? Yes, I think The Individual or Cop Shoot Cop or DEFINITELY 200 Bars would be more appealing than Borrowed Your Gun or You Lie You Cheat. To the mainstream music fans, no.

So I watched the performance again, and it's better the second time. Doggen's guitar is inaudible after the intro...it's Jason who is tearing it up. And I like that. But still...that is not going to win over new fans. I would have gone with Soul on Fire if the goal was to convert people.

squirrel · Post by **squirrel** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 3:59 pm

swinny wrote:Great performance, and with enough of the "essentials" to maybe pique the interest of anyone who liked it...the over-the-top music and the subtlety of the backing singers was a good mix, and a decent indication of the depth of their music. End of the day - its the single, with a vaguely high-profile video (in terms of having a name behind it) - of course they are going to play it.

...and as much as I love Soul on Fire, I think it would have been the wrong choice, as I can see ya average viewer thinking "oh look, ain't that quaint, another brit band that sound like Oasis".

Oasis is not that much a part of the vocabulary of the average Letterman viewer in 2008. And it's not as if Oasis invented the brit pop with a booming chorus sound anyway.

The issue is that Jason's rockers come off as a bit generic to the unannointed. You need to be there in the flesh and feel the bassline, the resonance, and the fury to get it.

gottafire · Post by **gottafire** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 4:23 pm

To hardcore music fans? Yes, I think The Individual or Cop Shoot Cop or DEFINITELY 200 Bars would be more appealing than Borrowed Your Gun or You Lie You Cheat. To the mainstream music fans, no.

Shite

squirrel · Post by **squirrel** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 5:12 pm

gottafire wrote:
To hardcore music fans? Yes, I think The Individual or Cop Shoot Cop or DEFINITELY 200 Bars would be more appealing than Borrowed Your Gun or You Lie You Cheat. To the mainstream music fans, no.
Shite

No, really. Musically, Borrowed Your Gun and YLYC are songs we have all heard a million times. At least I have. I'm not saying that I don't like them, but The Individual, CSC, and 200 Bars are songs that were fresh and still sound fresh. It's much more interesting music to me...sonically, musically, lyrically, artistically, viscerally. Those three songs are quintessential Spiritualized to me. And they were each immediately appealling.

I think you and I might have different ideas about what makes Spiritualized great.

dselevan2 · Post by **dselevan2** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 5:51 pm

I agree with the person who said who cares about the business. Sunny I think. I could seriously care less if there are new Spiritualized fans. That just means I have to deal with a bunch of bratty kids when I want to see them play. That would be pretty cool if he got someone into Rocky Erickson with that shirt he's always wearing!

And thank God they are switching it up. I hate to say it, but Come Together and Broken Heart over and over and over and over and over and over and over in 1997-1998 made for some BORING TV/VIDEO. I hope they keep switching it up.

Post by **sunny** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 6:28 pm

dselevan2 wrote:I agree with the person who said who cares about the business. Sunny I think. I could seriously care less if there are new Spiritualized fans. That just means I have to deal with a bunch of bratty kids when I want to see them play. That would be pretty cool if he got someone into Rocky Erickson with that shirt he's always wearing!

And thank God they are switching it up. I hate to say it, but Come Together and Broken Heart over and over and over and over and over and over and over in 1997-1998 made for some BORING TV/VIDEO. I hope they keep switching it up.

Phew! Thanks...I was beginning to feel pretty alone in my opinions. There is plenty of musicians on this board- surely I am not the only one who has had the experience of constantly being 'advised' by well meaning others, close and distant, on how one should sell or market ones music?
It seems like everyone and their dog has an opinion, whether it has been asked or not.

In my life this has been an ongoing issue... even when I have clarified that I am not interested in selling my music at all and have in fact only ever played 3 songs to three people in total- not much of an indication of any ambition on my part...and yet, friends of mine who are solicitors, accountants, doctors, bakers, builders or whatever- don't ever get all these opinions about their careers or hobbies trust on them. I don't know why artists can't be spared all this 'well meaning' interference. I find it claustrophobic and creatively inhibiting.
But hey, maybe this is just a sore issue for me...

squirrel · Post by **squirrel** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 7:10 pm

Some of us find marketing strategy interesting. What's the big deal?

Jason is in the music business. You might not be, but he most certainly is.

supershonn · Post by **supershonn** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 7:14 pm

In my life this has been an ongoing issue... even when I have clarified that I am not interested in selling my music at all and have in fact only ever played 3 songs to three people in total- not much of an indication of any ambition on my part...
But hey, maybe this is just a sore issue for me...

[/quote]

see, and i was trying to make this 4 people!

and yes, americans still associate british music with Oasis. i know it's pretty sad but true.

Post by **sunny** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 7:20 pm

squirrel wrote:Some of us find marketing strategy interesting. What's the big deal?

Jason is in the music business. You might not be, but he most certainly is.

No need to be condescending. I am in fact in the music business...as a sound engineer.

I am not saying it's a big deal to Jason (why would I speak for someone else), just to me. I was just wondering if anyone else on here felt the same as me? I'm not having a dig at anyone else's opinions or interests- but I just happen to have a different view on this because of my own personal issues and experiences.

Post by **sunny** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 7:22 pm

supershonn wrote: see, and i was trying to make this 4 people!

I promise- I will get my shit together and send you something. However, very weirdly the 4th position has just been taken, haha-so you'll have to be number 5!

squirrel · Post by **squirrel** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 7:34 pm

sunny wrote:
squirrel wrote:Some of us find marketing strategy interesting. What's the big deal?

Jason is in the music business. You might not be, but he most certainly is.

No need to be condescending. I am in fact in the music business...as a sound engineer.

I am not saying it's a big deal to Jason (why would I speak for someone else), just to me. I was just wondering if anyone else on here felt the same as me? I'm not having a dig at anyone else's opinions or interests- but I just happen to have a different view on this because of my own personal issues and experiences.

I'm sorry if you interpretted that as condescending. I didn't intend it that way. I was just being matter of fact about it.

So you're a sound engineer. Did you happen to attend the Williamsburg Hall of Music show?

Post by **sunny** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 7:46 pm

Sorry- I guess I am being over sensitive, haha! It's unlike me, but it does happen on occasion.

I live in London, so no I didn't have a chance to get overseas for the gigs... although I would have loved to!

squirrel · Post by **squirrel** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 8:11 pm

Just curious. I had a conversation with a sound guy over a cigarette mid-show that included our gripes with the mix that night. He seemed like a very knowledgable Spz fan, so I thought he might be on the board. For the record, the sound the next night at Terminal 5 was phenomenal. Which was all backwards from what I was expecting. I had heard the sound was poor at Terminal 5. Not the case at all.

Stuart X.Hunter · Post by **Stuart X.Hunter** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 9:15 pm

dselevan2 wrote:I agree with the person who said who cares about the business. Sunny I think. I could seriously care less if there are new Spiritualized fans. That just means I have to deal with a bunch of bratty kids when I want to see them play. That would be pretty cool if he got someone into Rocky Erickson with that shirt he's always wearing!

And thank God they are switching it up. I hate to say it, but Come Together and Broken Heart over and over and over and over and over and over and over in 1997-1998 made for some BORING TV/VIDEO. I hope they keep switching it up.

1+1=3!!!

Dave I aint having a pop at you, moreso a gentle tickle but the green vinyl (the first) thread...
Deep breath and let's all sing from the same Songs in A&E Hymn book...

You excite me in the strangest fashion sometimes Dave. How's the music getting on by the way?
I remember you posted a song on here...Song for Tara (apologies if incorrect)
My grandpas auld faithful dug was called Tara...she was a beaut!

Anyway, back to this thread and the marketing issues of the day; I've got a shipment of old 5 pence pieces arriving down the docks at 4am (covert operation) anyone interested?

Furthermore...i'm gonna go out on a limb here right now and say that YLYC is my favourite Spiritualized track ever right now...can't wait for the single to come out as it's winging it's way to my soon to be ex wife.
It makes perfect sense with the inclusion of Sweet Talk.
Yes, yes, yes a bit handbags at 5 paces but at least she gets to turn off duffy and amy crackhouse for a bit.

Another thing (was going to create a new thread for this) does anyone like Suede? Christ on crutches they were both a great singles and album band. I think now (after listening again to Coming Up) that this was the perfect death knell for BlightyPop...what d'ya fink?

Best,

TheDarkKnight