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Cardiacs - looking into the albums for beginners

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LAM-SGC View Drop Down
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    Posted: March 09 2020 at 07:24
Originally posted by richardh richardh wrote:

Originally posted by LAM-SGC LAM-SGC wrote:

Originally posted by richardh richardh wrote:

Ok I've bitten and ordered the first album on the list direct from their website. A band I've literally never heard at all , not even streaming wise.



That is the classic album that is by far the best. A lovely mix of shouty anthems, mad energy, and gentle reflection.

I'll be keen to hear what you think of it.
When I think back, I realise that Cardiacs and Kate Bush are the only artists I don't describe by comparing to other artists, I try to describe the music instead.
 

yep I'm really intrigued. This band gets name checked a heck of a lot round here. For some reason I'm thinking they are a modern version of Gentle Giant but I guess that isn't close Big smile


No, sorry, but if you are expecting a Gentle Giant type prog band you Will be disappointed because that is not what they sound like at all. Haven't you listened to any of their stuff on YouTube? Most of it is on YouTube. If you imagine a really fiddly quirky combination of Magazine, X-ray Spex, Squeeze, The Damned, and Gentle Giant then you are getting close to their sound.


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote richardh Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 07 2020 at 01:02
Originally posted by LAM-SGC LAM-SGC wrote:

Originally posted by richardh richardh wrote:

Ok I've bitten and ordered the first album on the list direct from their website. A band I've literally never heard at all , not even streaming wise.



That is the classic album that is by far the best. A lovely mix of shouty anthems, mad energy, and gentle reflection.

I'll be keen to hear what you think of it.
When I think back, I realise that Cardiacs and Kate Bush are the only artists I don't describe by comparing to other artists, I try to describe the music instead.
 

yep I'm really intrigued. This band gets name checked a heck of a lot round here. For some reason I'm thinking they are a modern version of Gentle Giant but I guess that isn't close Big smile
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote LAM-SGC Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 05 2020 at 02:41
Originally posted by Logan Logan wrote:

Interestingly, while On Land and in the Sea became my favourite Cardiacs album (along with Songs for Ships and Irons), it didn't immediately appeal. At the time I was really into A Little Man and a House and the Whole World Window. My first album was Sing to God, which I adored. It was due to hearing "Dirty Boy" that I purchased that album. "All That Glitters Is a Mares Nest" is another particular favourite of mine. In terms of songs, which is another way to test them, I adore "Big Ship".

Watching and listening to this could be an awesome experience:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmitqsDp1uw

It's one of the bands that I most wish I had seen live.

EDIT: By the way, while I had heard "Is This The Life?" on the radio before, it wasn't until quite some years later that I started to become reasonably familiar with Cardiacs. I was at a sci-fi forum before this witha small but very close-knit community, and there were a few Cradicas fans there that tutrned me onto the music. That said, knowing I tend to appreciate the abusrd and quirky, my first real knowing experiences were some of their weird early videos -- RES and Tarred and Feathered as I recall. I was intrigued, was fun, but it didn't make me a fan. It wasn't until I joined this site that I explored more and got Sing to God, and from there grew to appreciate lots of Cardiacs and related music.


As an old school fan, it took me a couple of years before I really took to Sing to God, but now I love it. That said, for a casual listen in the car, I will grab Seaside, OLAITS or SFS&I.
Because Sing to God requires a lot more from the listener, and some of the quieter parts get completely lost in the road noise.


Edited by LAM-SGC - March 05 2020 at 02:43
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote LAM-SGC Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 05 2020 at 02:26
Originally posted by richardh richardh wrote:

Ok I've bitten and ordered the first album on the list direct from their website. A band I've literally never heard at all , not even streaming wise.



That is the classic album that is by far the best. A lovely mix of shouty anthems, mad energy, and gentle reflection.

I'll be keen to hear what you think of it.
When I think back, I realise that Cardiacs and Kate Bush are the only artists I don't describe by comparing to other artists, I try to describe the music instead.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote richardh Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 05 2020 at 00:47
Ok I've bitten and ordered the first album on the list direct from their website. A band I've literally never heard at all , not even streaming wise.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Grumpyprogfan Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 04 2020 at 13:15
Thank you
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote LAM-SGC Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 04 2020 at 13:15
It comes from a gig I was at in the early 90s, when Tim, kept shouting at us very angrily, Who is him? While making faces at Jim
and insulting him. You can hear quite a bit of this banter on the live albums and in bootlegs. It was hilarious ;) And the fans used
to join in with all sorts of chants and slogans as well.
This is part of Cardiacs fan culture. The little fishies in the Pond as Tim used to call is.

Tim and Jim used to act on stage like schoolboys with Tim hating and bullying and hitting his brother Jim.

Edited by LAM-SGC - March 04 2020 at 13:19
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote LAM-SGC Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 04 2020 at 13:09
The answer to "Who is him?" Is this:
"He's Jim, he's Jim"
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Grumpyprogfan Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: March 04 2020 at 12:46
Originally posted by LAM-SGC LAM-SGC wrote:

Cardiacs website is notoriously slow at times in my experience but 100% trustworthy and reliable, five days is nothing really, just drop them a friendly email.
To drop this friendly email I have to answer the following question. "Are YOU a Siberian spambot? If not then answer this.. Who is him?" Do you know the answer to this?
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote LAM-SGC Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 27 2020 at 15:10
Originally posted by Grumpyprogfan Grumpyprogfan wrote:

I would classify them as carnival music. I have liked what I heard but they are an acquired taste. You need an open mind to absorb their sonic palette.


To be fair, all music that isn't in your everyday diet is an acquired taste.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Grumpyprogfan Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 27 2020 at 14:10
I would classify them as carnival music. I have liked what I heard but they are an acquired taste. You need an open mind to absorb their sonic palette.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote LAM-SGC Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 27 2020 at 13:56
Cardiacs are not a prog band nor are they a punk band nor are they rock band, according to Tim they are a pop band, and according to The Organ magazine, who minted tbe term, they are a pronk band, and I agree with that Pronk-Pop I would say, some of their music is such gentle beautiful indie pop and some of it is mind-blowing pronk noise, but all of it is the best music I've ever heard in My life.
If it isn't already obvious, Cardiacs has been my fav band since the late 80s,I'm very knowledgable about them and saw them live dozens of times.
But most importantly for me, like many other fans have said, and still say, they gave me a whole new insight into what music can and perhaps should be, they opened my eyes to what is possible. In other words they ruined music for me, in a good way. To this day, 32 years later, everything is still measured in my ears and soul against Cardiacs.   
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote LAM-SGC Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 27 2020 at 13:45
Cardiacs website is notoriously slow at times in my experience but 100% trustworthy and reliable, five days is nothing really, just drop them a friendly email.

eBay and other sales websites really seem to be full of highway robbers asking fantasy prices for Cardiacs albums, tbh I don't know how they get away with it.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Grumpyprogfan Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 27 2020 at 13:12
So where can I buy "Sing to God I&II" CD at a decent price? I ordered it directly from the bands website five days ago and have had no correspondence whatsoever. Wayside music does not carry it. Don't want to spend a small fortune on a used copy.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote twseel Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 27 2020 at 10:03
I've got a slightly different view; Sing to God has the most impactful tracks and moments, A Little Man has the most prog appeal and wildest arrangements, HB&EB has the most consistent energy (though it is a grower). The others are a modest cut below I think.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote LAM-SGC Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 27 2020 at 09:27
Originally posted by Logan Logan wrote:

I must admit, I still don't have The Seaside in my collection. I've been meaning to rectify that for years.


WADDAFUGG!!!!

So you've never heard their mental ska song A Wooden Fish on Wheels and NWV in their correct album context?

I'm sure there must be a helpline you can ring for such trauma. ;)

Edited by LAM-SGC - February 27 2020 at 09:28
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Logan Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 27 2020 at 09:20
I must admit, I still don't have The Seaside in my collection. I've been meaning to rectify that for years.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote LAM-SGC Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 27 2020 at 09:18
Forgot to say Logan, that while OLAITS is generally considered the best of the three classic period studio albums, my favourite is easily The Seaside.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote LAM-SGC Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 27 2020 at 09:12
Absolutely! As for Ships and Irons, that is my joint fav along with HB&EB. It was the first album I bought new on vinyl when it came out in 91, the same year the original version of HB&EB was released, and so that was the second new album I bought. The first albums I heard though were Toy World and Seaside on a cassette a friend made for me in about 1988. And I first saw them in 89.

EDIT: just looked at that old cassette, and I remembered incorrectly,it is in fact all of OLAITS, most of Toy World, and about half of The Seaside. Bearing in mind that a few from Toy World later appeared on The Seaside, in better versions, most notably the amazing Nurses Whispering Verses.
I personally can't stand the STG version of NWV, I think they ruined it.

Edited by LAM-SGC - February 27 2020 at 09:23
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Logan Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 27 2020 at 09:02
Interestingly, while On Land and in the Sea became my favourite Cardiacs album (along with Songs for Ships and Irons), it didn't immediately appeal. At the time I was really into A Little Man and a House and the Whole World Window. My first album was Sing to God, which I adored. It was due to hearing "Dirty Boy" that I purchased that album. "All That Glitters Is a Mares Nest" is another particular favourite of mine. In terms of songs, which is another way to test them, I adore "Big Ship".

Watching and listening to this could be an awesome experience:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmitqsDp1uw

It's one of the bands that I most wish I had seen live.

EDIT: By the way, while I had heard "Is This The Life?" on the radio before, it wasn't until quite some years later that I started to become reasonably familiar with Cardiacs. I was at a sci-fi forum before this witha small but very close-knit community, and there were a few Cradicas fans there that tutrned me onto the music. That said, knowing I tend to appreciate the abusrd and quirky, my first real knowing experiences were some of their weird early videos -- RES and Tarred and Feathered as I recall. I was intrigued, was fun, but it didn't make me a fan. It wasn't until I joined this site that I explored more and got Sing to God, and from there grew to appreciate lots of Cardiacs and related music.

Edited by Logan - February 27 2020 at 09:18
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