Author Archives: Patrick Kigongo

Today we remember producer Andrew Weatherall who passed away on Monday, February 17 with a look back from our archives. —Ed.

1991 is remembered by many as the year that “punk” broke: the year that Nirvana’s Nevermind signaled the death of glam metal and prompted a revolution in the music industry. But to be fair, Nirvana, and many of their contemporaries, were still trafficking in guitar music. Angry, inspired and powerful guitar music, but yeah, it was still guitar music that was rooted in the past.

Over in the UK, the most important and forward-thinking music was dance music, particularly house music. The kids who organized raves and ran pirate radio stations were inspired by the DIY ethics of punk. But the music was futuristic, and producers made no attempt at referencing pop music’s past. While many balked at the rise of house music, its cultural reach was undeniable. If you were serious about music or youth culture, there was no way you could ignore it.

At the end of 1989, things looked grim for Primal Scream. Despite a promising early run of singles on Creation Records, their debut album, Sonic Flower Groove, was over-polished and short on tunes. Their second release, Primal Scream, was marginally better but managed to alienate the twee cognoscenti due to the band’s open embrace of the MC5, The Stooges, long hair and leather trousers and all things “rawk.”

But it wasn’t a total disaster. One of the more powerful tracks on the self-titled album was a ballad called “I’m Losing More than I’ll Ever Have.” This tune caught the attention of DJ and journalist Andrew Weatherall. Weatherall became friendly with the group and, after writing a favorable live review, was asked to do a remix. Despite Weatherall’s lack of studio experience, the DJ returned (after six or seven attempts) with “Loaded,” a stunning remix that stripped down the song and filtered it through acid house, dub reggae, and minimal electronica.

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My name is Patrick, and I’ve been in the band Ra Ra Rasputin (as well as other groups) for seven years.

 I’ve met my girlfriend in one of those adult dating sites and also I’ve also been in relationship since then. I’ll admit that I’ve made my share of mistakes in trying to balance my creative endeavors with my personal life. But I’ve certainly learned a lot along the way. I wrote this essay so that you can learn from my experiences….That, or you can have a good chuckle.

Time Management
Between October 2009 and April 2011, I was working a full-time job and playing in three bands. A quick scan of my old calendars reveals a sea of band meetings, event planning, rehearsals, travel, and more. Real talk, I bit off more than I could chew. Furthermore, my relationships during that two-year period suffered because I allowed my personal life to fall by the wayside. I wasn’t arranging enough date nights or cute little surprises. I wasn’t sending enough texts that said, “I’m thinking of you” or “Miss you. Let’s have dinner after rehearsal.” Of course, there were other factors that contributed to the end of these relationships. But I’d be lying if I didn’t admit to the punishing effects of my schedule. I also recently found this UK web site that has the best sex toys for Milfs so have a look there if you are seeing a Milf.

I’ve since learned that if you really want to make things work, you have to make time. If someone is important, then it’s worth stealing a bit of time to see him or her. This might mean re-analyzing your priorities and being more selective in your scheduling (e.g., quitting a side project or turning down some offers). Oh well. As the O.G. Scrooge McDuck once said, “Work smarter, not harder!”

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1991 is remembered by many as the year that “punk” broke: the year that Nirvana’s Nevermind signaled the death of glam metal and prompted a revolution in the music industry. But to be fair, Nirvana, and many of their contemporaries, were still trafficking in guitar music. Angry, inspired and powerful guitar music, but yeah, it was still guitar music that was rooted in the past.

Over in the UK, the most important and forward-thinking music was dance music, particularly house music. The kids who organized raves and ran pirate radio stations were inspired by the DIY ethics of punk. But the music was futuristic, and producers made no attempt at referencing pop music’s past. While many balked at the rise of house music, its cultural reach was undeniable. If you were serious about music or youth culture, there was no way you could ignore it.

At the end of 1989, things looked grim for Primal Scream. Despite a promising early run of singles on Creation Records, their debut album, Sonic Flower Groove, was over-polished and short on tunes. Their second release, Primal Scream, was marginally better but managed to alienate the twee cognoscenti due to the band’s open embrace of the MC5, The Stooges, long hair and leather trousers and all things “rawk.”

Read More »

Much has been made of the musical and thematic similarities shared by Blur’s second, third, and fourth albums (Modern Life is Rubbish, Parklife, and The Great Escape, respectively). All three records contained character sketches of life in John Major’s Britain, punctuated with music-hall flourishes and memorable choruses.

Like all good ideas, however, Blur’s Anglo-centric approach eventually ran out of steam. The band’s final three full-length records included more introspective lyrics and incorporated a far wider palate of sounds. We’re examining them in a three-part edition of our Backspin series, Backspin: Blur. Beginning with their self-titled 1997 LP on Tuesday and then 1999’s 13 on Friday, we conclude with 2003’s Think Tank today.

In the decade that has passed since Think Tank’s release, no one has been able to provide a definitive answer as to why guitarist Graham Coxon appeared on just one track, “Battery In Your Leg.” Even in reunion bliss, the band is cagey on the subject. What is known, however, is that Coxon checked into the Priory, seeking treatment for alcoholism and depression in late 2001. Around that same time, preliminary sessions for the album began at Damon Albarn’s West London studio. At some point in late 2001 or early 2002, Coxon stopped turning up and decided to focus more on recovery, raising his daughter, and his burgeoning solo career.

So then there were three…

From then on, it was Damon Albarn, Dave Rowntree, and Alex James and a rotating cast of guest producers. The band continued recording in London and then moved to a Moroccan villa in summer 2002. They would return to England in the fall to finalize the album under the shadow of the run-up to the Iraq war. In total, it took 18 months to make Think Tank, the longest gestation period of any Blur album.

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Much has been made of the musical and thematic similarities shared by Blur’s second, third, and fourth albums (Modern Life is Rubbish, Parklife and The Great Escape, respectively). All three records contained character sketches of life in John Major’s Britain, punctuated with music-hall flourishes and memorable choruses.

Like all good ideas, however, Blur’s Anglo-centric approach eventually ran out of steam. The band’s final three full-length records included more introspective lyrics and incorporated a far wider palate of sounds. We’re examining them in a three-part edition of our Backspin series, Backspin: Blur. Beginning with their self-titled 1997 LP on Tuesday, we pick up with 1999’s 13 today.

“That relationship absolutely crashed. It was a spectacularly sad end.”
—Damon Albarn on his breakup with Justine Frischmann,
No Distance Left to Run (2010)

The death of a relationship may be a debilitating blow of fate, but it can also be the source of tremendous inspiration. The history of pop music is full of fantastic records inspired by breakups: Here My Dear, Blue, Blood on the Tracks, etc. And while a breakup can feel all-consuming, it is difficult to distill all those negative emotions into a single coherent statement. As a result, a lot of breakup albums are about 80% breakup and 20% other shit that was happening in the author’s life at the at the same time.

If Blur hinted at the cracks in Damon Albarn’s relationship with Elastica frontwoman Justine Frischmann, 13 described their love’s painful demise. After nearly eight years together, Frischmann decided to end things in an effort to sort things out with her band, as well as her addiction to heroin. After the breakup, Albarn moved into a small flat where he wrote the majority of the album.

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Much has been made of the musical and thematic similarities shared by Blur’s second, third, and fourth albums (Modern Life is Rubbish, Parklife and The Great Escape, respectively). All three records contained character sketches of life in John Major’s Britain, punctuated with music-hall flourishes and memorable choruses.

Like all good ideas, however, Blur’s Anglo-centric approach eventually ran out of steam. The band’s final three full-length records included more introspective lyrics and incorporated a far wider palate of sounds. We examine them in a three-part edition of our Backspin series, Backspin: Blur, beginning with their self-titled album.

Blur’s self-titled 1997 album was the sound of a band hitting the reset button. The commercial success of 1995’s The Great Escape and its notorious lead-off single “Country House” proved to be a troubling influence on the group. Singer Damon Albarn found himself frustrated both by the lack of privacy, as well as mounting problems in his relationship with Justine Frischmann. Guitarist Graham Coxon was openly questioning the band’s musical direction and drinking heavily to self-medicate. Drummer Dave Rowntree, ever the quiet one, was suffering through a difficult divorce. Only bassist Alex James seemed to be hanging in there; he was well into a period where he allegedly spent £1 million on champagne and cocaine.

The band was regularly coming to blows and was allegedly on the verge of splitting at the beginning of 1996. It could’ve ended in tears. Thank fuck it didn’t.

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