One of NU's finest, while he did have health issues wasn't expecting this.
OT-Steve Albini RIP
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Go Cats. Shocking and sad.
Shellac played a WNUR live set at Annie Mae Swift when I was there. The Rock Show kids were so worried about overfilling the venue (“we’ll have lines past The Arch”) that they didn’t promote it.
Maybe a dozen saw the show, including me for 15 minutes.
“A Prayer to God” by Shellac is perfect, though many who listen to it will judge me for this opinion.
Shellac played a WNUR live set at Annie Mae Swift when I was there. The Rock Show kids were so worried about overfilling the venue (“we’ll have lines past The Arch”) that they didn’t promote it.
Maybe a dozen saw the show, including me for 15 minutes.
“A Prayer to God” by Shellac is perfect, though many who listen to it will judge me for this opinion.
He was in my class (84) and saw him quite a bit. I think back now to my sophomore year and my dorm (North Allison) was quite amazing. While Albini didn't live there, Nathan Kaatrud (AKA Nash Kato) who went on to Urge Overkill and Lyle Preslar of Minor Threat both did so Albini was around quite a bit. I think Preslar was involved in early versions of Big Black with Albini.
In a way not totally shocking as I believed he had health issues. Even back then he was one of the thinnest people you'll ever see.
I am going to have to play Big Black's The Rich Man's Eight Track Tape. when I get home. There's kerosene around!
Along with his many musical accomplishments, he was also a World Series of Poker tournament winner.
Rest In Peace.
Rest In Peace.
@IGNORE2 I was so hoping that you were in this thread posting about how Mogwai and Don Caballero and especially The Wedding Present’s Seamonsters album changed your life.
Alas, just here to *****.
This thread don’t get capped because it’s a non-controversial thread that’ll be read by the <20 people on the board who know Steve Albini. And the one guy here to *****.
Do yourself a favor and dig this amazing Steve Albini-engineered production.
That hardass Albini made those foppish Brits come to Minnesota in January to make this beautiful bit of magic.
Alas, just here to *****.
This thread don’t get capped because it’s a non-controversial thread that’ll be read by the <20 people on the board who know Steve Albini. And the one guy here to *****.
Do yourself a favor and dig this amazing Steve Albini-engineered production.
That hardass Albini made those foppish Brits come to Minnesota in January to make this beautiful bit of magic.
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Such an amazing album. A WP show I saw at Lounge Ax sticks out as really the only show I saw where my ears were still ringing three days later lol.
Used to love the lounge ax. Also, @CappyNU has said nothing about controversial. He says unrelated = a capping. I just want him to admit he subjectively caps posts he is afraid of.
A Don Caballero reference! You don’t see those every day…especially on an NU message board.
Didn't know Nash Kato was a NU alum. The first time I saw Urge was at the DePaul Blue Demon room courtesy of free tix from WNUR.
Yep. We discussed it last year when UO's drummer passed away.
Looks like my old Bobb Hall "friend of a friend" was cremated.
Really bright guy, had a different view of the world. I respected him for that, we had some interesting conversations.
Lots of NU kids disliked him, especially the preppy kids. Gaunt guy in a beat-up leather jacket with punk rock buttons on it. His death hit harder than I expected.
I'm glad he was able to channel his passions, energy (and rage) into something he loved.
Really bright guy, had a different view of the world. I respected him for that, we had some interesting conversations.
Lots of NU kids disliked him, especially the preppy kids. Gaunt guy in a beat-up leather jacket with punk rock buttons on it. His death hit harder than I expected.
I'm glad he was able to channel his passions, energy (and rage) into something he loved.
I actually listened to Veruca Salt's "Blow it Out Your ***" EP this morning - an album that Albini produced as kind of a "holdover EP" between their first album "American Thighs" and their first major label album, "Eight Arms to Hold You" (produced by Bob Rock). The rawness of the records he produced can be a little hit or miss for me, but when paired correctly with music I enjoy, man, it's a fun listen.
Not really even tangentially related, but I just wanted to share.
David C. Berman, leader of Silver Jews and then Purple Mountains, will have been gone five years come August. Dude’s melancholy would have been really turnt had he made it to COVID.
Five years younger than Albini, and the two probably could have made their own Magnolia Electric Company if they had ever chosen to work together. Given Berman’s longtime relationship with Chicago’s Drag City Records, I’m surprised they didn’t.
That said, the latter day Berman work is lush, beautiful, and appropriately foregrounds that baritone and especially those lyrics. Earlier Berman is lower-fidelity but just as powerful.
I wish Silver Jews had a better band name. Maybe the stuff can all be remembered under the name Purple Mountains, because both were all just DCB (who, incidentally, was a proud silver-bearded Jew at the time of his suicide).
My 15-year-old son mostly listens to SoundCloud rap, but he and his friends have recently discovered Nick Drake. (I remember first hearing Joni Mitchell’s Blue, between Pavement and Guided by Voices and Built to Spill listens, and just being completely floored.) At some point I think a whole bunch of kids from GenZ/Alpha generation will discover DCB.
I’ve been on a weeklong DCB kick. (I thought I’d resurrect a post-suicide thread, but that must’ve been Rant Board material.) It’s always one of the best weeks of the year.
He had so many fine moments, so many beautiful lyrical turns, but the most famous is “In 1984, I was hospitalized for approaching perfection.”
I’m pretty sure I played both “Buckingham Rabbit” and “Smith and Jones Forever” while taking summer Rock Show slots.
But this is “Random Rules”, DCB’s most iconic moment.
It’s a great song.
Take care of your friends. Be kind to your neighbors. Smile at strangers. The world is a scary place for a whole lot of people.
(The DCB thread from the time of his death has been lost with the Rant Board archives.)
David C. Berman, leader of Silver Jews and then Purple Mountains, will have been gone five years come August. Dude’s melancholy would have been really turnt had he made it to COVID.
Five years younger than Albini, and the two probably could have made their own Magnolia Electric Company if they had ever chosen to work together. Given Berman’s longtime relationship with Chicago’s Drag City Records, I’m surprised they didn’t.
That said, the latter day Berman work is lush, beautiful, and appropriately foregrounds that baritone and especially those lyrics. Earlier Berman is lower-fidelity but just as powerful.
I wish Silver Jews had a better band name. Maybe the stuff can all be remembered under the name Purple Mountains, because both were all just DCB (who, incidentally, was a proud silver-bearded Jew at the time of his suicide).
My 15-year-old son mostly listens to SoundCloud rap, but he and his friends have recently discovered Nick Drake. (I remember first hearing Joni Mitchell’s Blue, between Pavement and Guided by Voices and Built to Spill listens, and just being completely floored.) At some point I think a whole bunch of kids from GenZ/Alpha generation will discover DCB.
I’ve been on a weeklong DCB kick. (I thought I’d resurrect a post-suicide thread, but that must’ve been Rant Board material.) It’s always one of the best weeks of the year.
He had so many fine moments, so many beautiful lyrical turns, but the most famous is “In 1984, I was hospitalized for approaching perfection.”
I’m pretty sure I played both “Buckingham Rabbit” and “Smith and Jones Forever” while taking summer Rock Show slots.
But this is “Random Rules”, DCB’s most iconic moment.
It’s a great song.
Take care of your friends. Be kind to your neighbors. Smile at strangers. The world is a scary place for a whole lot of people.
(The DCB thread from the time of his death has been lost with the Rant Board archives.)
Good stuff. DCB was definitely a talented guy that left us way too early.
I have a pretty good Pavement anecdote for you. I'm pretty middling on Pavement - don't dislike them in any way and can listen to them, but never got truly into them. However, Bob Nastanovich lived here in Des Moines for several years. He's a big horse racing guy and he worked as a chart caller at Prairie Meadows - the local racetrack. Well, about 7-8 years ago, there was a season or two where he was in my bowling league. Super nice guy - one of those guys that you meet and you feel like you are friends with him immediately. I chatted with him several times - actually more about horse racing than music - and saw him at a few local shows a handful of times.
He ended up leaving his job at Prairie Meadows and moved out to Tennessee a year or two ago.