Henry Cow - Western Culture (1979): Thoughts, PA?
Printed From: Progarchives.com
Category: Progressive Music Lounges
Forum Name: Prog Recommendations/Featured albums
Forum Description: Make or seek recommendations and discuss specific prog albums
URL: http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=125964
Printed Date: February 23 2025 at 05:34
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Topic: Henry Cow - Western Culture (1979): Thoughts, PA?
Posted By: Frenetic Zetetic
Subject: Henry Cow - Western Culture (1979): Thoughts, PA?
Date Posted: April 05 2021 at 04:39
Yes yes, I know the reviews are all high marks, etc. This album and music are phenomenal. Does anyone else love it even in today's day and age? This is truly timeless art-as-sound for me. Maybe I'm just getting older and I've heard enough jazz now, but this is the sh*t!  Love it? Hate it? Discuss!!! ------------- "I am so prog, I listen to concept albums on shuffle." -KMac2021 |
Replies:
Posted By: Nogbad_The_Bad
Date Posted: April 05 2021 at 04:54
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It's my favorite Cow album and is top 5 all-time for me, it stands up very well today. HC generally took a long time for me to connect with and this album took the longest. Outstanding stuff. ------------- Ian Host of the Post-Avant Jazzcore Happy Hour on Progrock.com https://podcasts.progrock.com/post-avant-jazzcore-happy-hour/ |
Posted By: SteveG
Date Posted: April 05 2021 at 08:07
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Great! Even more legendary then Leg End. ------------- This message was brought to you by a proud supporter of the Deep State. |
Posted By: progaardvark
Date Posted: April 05 2021 at 08:19
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A classic and a foundation for many great artists to follow. I wish I had discovered this years ago, but came across them by following the RIO/avant trail backwards via Thinking Plague and 5uu's. ------------- ---------- i'm shopping for a new oil-cured sinus bag that's a happy bag of lettuce this car smells like cartilage nothing beats a good video about fractions |
Posted By: Mirakaze
Date Posted: April 05 2021 at 12:17
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While I think I ultimately prefer the band's debut, it's a fascinating listen and a deserved classic nonetheless, one of the best of its kind. ------------- https://mirasnelder.wordpress.com/" rel="nofollow - Freelance composer, accepting commissions | https://mirasnelder.bandcamp.com/album/altered-acuity" rel="nofollow - Bandcamp page |
Posted By: Frenetic Zetetic
Date Posted: April 06 2021 at 00:36
I'm in the minority here on PA with Gorguts and Beefheart, but this is the only other record the comes close to being able to sit at the table with Obscura and Trout Mask. It has that "everything's falling apart but forward somehow" feel that is very, very difficult to recreate. Everyone likes to joke that you just need to throw your guitar or piano down the staircase and hit record and you'll get these records, but us nerds can actually tell the difference because we've tried that approach to no avail LOL   !------------- "I am so prog, I listen to concept albums on shuffle." -KMac2021 |
Posted By: SteveG
Date Posted: April 06 2021 at 08:38
^ That's because you did it wrong. It's done by throwing drums down a flight of stairs.  ------------- This message was brought to you by a proud supporter of the Deep State. |
Posted By: siLLy puPPy
Date Posted: April 06 2021 at 09:20
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The logical conclusion of the HC avant-prog started on Legend. IMHO, the best HC and one of the top avant-prog albums ever. https://www.istockphoto.com/vector/vector-cartoon-crazy-silly-cow-illustration-gm1221800030-358286439" rel="nofollow">  -------------  https://rateyourmusic.com/~siLLy_puPPy |
Posted By: HolyMoly
Date Posted: April 06 2021 at 12:53
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It stands proud close to the very top of the RIO heap. I think the only RIO album I like better is Frith’s Speechless album. Ironically, Frith didn’t compose anything on WC, so those 2 make a nice pair. ------------- My other avatar is a Porsche It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle if it is lightly greased. -Kehlog Albran |
Posted By: Man With Hat
Date Posted: April 06 2021 at 15:29
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Top notch, essential RIO. ------------- Dig me...But don't...Bury me I'm running still, I shall until, one day, I hope that I'll arrive Warning: Listening to jazz excessively can cause a laxative effect. |
Posted By: zwordser
Date Posted: April 06 2021 at 15:50
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I've only "gotten it" on one of my three or four listens; now I can't remember for sure why... guess I need to listen again. ------------- Z |
Posted By: Frenetic Zetetic
Date Posted: April 07 2021 at 00:18
You know, we knew something wasn't sounding right when we were trying to throw the drum UP the stairs...I'll try your method on our next session!   I have a 2005 remaster CD edition on its way for the shelf. ------------- "I am so prog, I listen to concept albums on shuffle." -KMac2021 |
SteveG wrote:
Posted By: progaardvark
Date Posted: April 07 2021 at 10:23
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I usually find a clothes hamper full of spare car parts and empty cans works best. When the lid opens up in mid-flight down the stairs, the stuff starts coming out and produces a scattering of noises in various time signatures. Further, when the hamper hits the bottom, what didn't fall out of it comes out at the bottom and extends your song for at least another minute of sounds. What's nice about this method is that if you have ten hampers, all filled up at the top of the steps, you can record each song one after the other and have your album done in under an hour. ------------- ---------- i'm shopping for a new oil-cured sinus bag that's a happy bag of lettuce this car smells like cartilage nothing beats a good video about fractions |
Posted By: SteveG
Date Posted: April 07 2021 at 10:34
------------- This message was brought to you by a proud supporter of the Deep State. |
Posted By: Grumpyprogfan
Date Posted: April 07 2021 at 12:24
| Henry Cow, is not for me. I like some dissonance (Thelonious Monk, was masterful at it) but this sounds to me like they purposely compose music that is annoying. "On the Raft" is almost tolerable. The rest is more of a mess than free jazz. |
Posted By: SteveG
Date Posted: April 07 2021 at 13:16
 Hmm. Perhaps you're not drinking enough. Try vodka with a tonic.
------------- This message was brought to you by a proud supporter of the Deep State. |
Posted By: dr wu23
Date Posted: April 07 2021 at 13:52
^Definitely not drinking enough..... I like Legend better ....but RIO/avant is not everyone's cup of tea. ------------- One does nothing yet nothing is left undone. Haquin |
Posted By: Grumpyprogfan
Date Posted: April 07 2021 at 14:21
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^I dig a lot of RIO/Avant. Zappa, Mirthkon, Mike Keneally, French TV, Miriodor, Mr. Bungle, ni, Piniol. You sure copious amounts of alcohol will change my mind? 
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Posted By: dr wu23
Date Posted: April 07 2021 at 14:33
It usually changes or at least screws up my mind on just about everything.... I'm a fan of French tv but the last thing I bought was This Is What....how are the last 4?? ------------- One does nothing yet nothing is left undone. Haquin |
Posted By: HenryCowgirl
Date Posted: April 07 2021 at 14:49
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Maybe it's just because I'm kind of obsessed with HC right now, but I've been listening to this album a lot lately! I never have any idea what a composition on this album is going to do next but i'm always pleasantly surprised because it always sounds cool. I think my favorite track off the album - and maybe my favorite Henry Cow track - is Gretel's Tale. The crazy piano is cool but what really does it for me is the woodwinds around :30-1:00 in, the rhythm, tone, and way the different instrument's lines move around each other is so interesting and enjoyable to me.
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Posted By: nick_h_nz
Date Posted: April 07 2021 at 15:46
Welcome to the forum. Nice first post! ------------- https://tinyurl.com/nickhnz-tpa" rel="nofollow - Reviewer for The Progressive Aspect |
Posted By: jamesbaldwin
Date Posted: April 07 2021 at 16:02
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It's a great album but, in my opinion, the maserpiece of Henry Cow is In Praise of Learing. ------------- Amos Goldberg (professor of Genocide Studies at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem): Yes, it's genocide. It's so difficult and painful to admit it, but we can no longer avoid this conclusion. |
Posted By: Frenetic Zetetic
Date Posted: April 08 2021 at 00:12
I had to make a gurgle sample because everything was one take, but you're correct. That sorted the mix right out! What a difference!
Noted! I'll try using aluminum bins as well. Extra dissonance/resonance against concrete steps. The less you mic up, the better. One overhang from an adjacent rooftop should provide the perfect level of natural reverb against passing cars and neighborhood animals/kids, etc. Henry Cow rules .------------- "I am so prog, I listen to concept albums on shuffle." -KMac2021 |
Posted By: Frenetic Zetetic
Date Posted: April 08 2021 at 00:14
The fact that you JUST joined, have this username, and found this thread are stupendously serendipitous to me. Welcome to PA! I love your time stamp references because this album is still new to me, and those are parts I was totally going to reference in this thread. Fantastic intro post, welcome again! ------------- "I am so prog, I listen to concept albums on shuffle." -KMac2021 |
Posted By: Guldbamsen
Date Posted: April 08 2021 at 00:19
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It’s a classic for a very good reason. ------------- “The Guide says there is an art to flying or rather a knack. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss.” - Douglas Adams |
Posted By: Lewian
Date Posted: April 08 2021 at 04:28
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I love a lot of avant/RIO stuff but Henry Cow have a tendency (to my ears) to come over as too intellectual for the sake of being intellectual. I do find them interesting and am able to appreciate and occasionally enjoy their music, but they have far less emotional appeal to me than much of Frith's solo work, Art Zoyd, or Univers Zero, say. Western Culture is probably their most intellectual, "constructed" album, harder for me than others, although there isn't much between them. And surely it has its moments (actually I've got to say it starts very cold but becomes more engaging as it goes on). |
Posted By: Larks in Aspic
Date Posted: May 04 2021 at 11:08
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It is probably their most consistent album. Perhaps the only reproach I have is that some improvisations do not develop very well. ------------- F for whoever reads this. |
Posted By: The Anders
Date Posted: May 04 2021 at 12:56
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It's only their second album that doesn't sock. |