Here's an interesting tape! There are hardly any tapes of rehearsals from the Red House. In fact, I think this is the only one I have, though there is discussion at one point of another night's tape, so maybe that's floating around. The Red House may not have been the best of times for LOOB. Or maybe it was? I don't remember, at that point in my life I was a walking drug store, and a snapping turtle. I know people thank me all the time for good times they had at the Red House! Hopefully that extends to the band.
This tape starts with what I think is the seed of a new Hubie song....actually, now I know what this is! When we first lost the Rocky Point studio, we did an acoustic rehearsal on Frank's porch, with crickets chirping...and the DAT machine recording! (I was actually hoping to find a dub of this rehearsal, but to no avail!) During that rehearsal Hubie & company improvised this little ditty. Hubie must have been listening to it or something, because now a year and a half later, he brings it back.
***UPDATE*** - Hubie just emailed me and informed me this is an unfinished song called "Rides On Me"! Mystery solved!
After a beautiful little jam between Hubie, Lawrence & myself, Ted joins the fun and we slip into a completely different theme. Hubie plays some lead, this is way cool! (I'm listening to this as I type, excuse me). Hmmmm. Nice. Ok. We then do a little arranging on "No Excuses". Actually we do a lot of arranging, and I'm giving you the abridged version; if anyone wants the full half hour we spent on "No Excuses", email me.
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| THE PERFECT MACHINE |
You probably have noticed by now, dear listener, that LOOB had a lot of songs. And they had a lot of different KINDS of songs. It wouldn't be much of a stretch to make the comparison to The Beatles or Duke Ellington in terms of scope and versatility. It wouldn't be much of a stretch....but it still would be a stretch!!! Nevertheless.....you couldn't accuse Life Out Of Balance of staying in just one box, we had all kinds of songs. Soft songs, loud songs, funny songs, sad songs, dance songs, whatever you call the types of songs Mike wrote, we even did barbershop harmony, at least that's what I've read.
Still......I don't think LOOB had ever seen the likes of "The Perfect Machine"! LOOB....or any other band! Your ear may take an adjustment.....but, try as you might to resist it, you will soon succumb to the charms and unique pleasures of the perfect....machine. After a preliminary rendition of this Lawrence classic, we ditch the arrangement and lyrics, and do an entirely new version. At one point, we are producing such musical heat that we blow a fuse and lose the power, all the music cutting out suddenly and dramatically. Just so you know, it's not your machine. It's the Perfect Machine.
Steve tended not to rehearse with us and would learn new material on the fly, at the gigs. Imagine his surprise when we whipped this one out.
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| Steve at the Red House....but not on this tape! |
We wind up the rehearsal with a "Dog Days" (distortion on original tape, sorry people) with Hubie wailing out. We also rehearsed a song of mine, "In Harmony", that I never remember doing with LOOB! The tape cuts and we're just learning it so it's not worth posting, but.....now I know we did that song!
I'm not sure if this is late 1992, or early 1993. I think "Perfect Machine" was played at a January 1993 show - haven't digitized that yet, but upon listening I'll be able to tell if that was pre - or post - this rehearsal as we throw out the "round" break and add the "knock knock" break on this tape.
Unlike most of our rehearsal tapes, where we run through songs once, sometimes twice - this tape has us really arranging and doing grunt work on new material. It's not the tape I would start with if you are unfamiliar with the band.
The Red House, late 1992, early 1993
Rides On Me -> Jam
No Excuses
The Perfect Machine
arranging The Perfect Machine and knocking out the power
The Perfect Machine jam -> end
The Perfect Machine /
arranging The Perfect Machine
arranging The Lonely One
The Lonely One
The Lonely One
working on vocals
Dog Days
Hubert Poole - guitar, vocal, percussion
Lawrence Krauser - electric piano, synth, trumpet, vocal, percussion
Ted Schreiber - bass, vocal, percussion
Michael Goodman - drums, vocal, man with an opinion
recorded by me on i don't remember what. Whatever it was, I distorted the hell out of some of the songs. As a rule, most tapes I "engineered" sound like doody, be they from 1986 or 1993. Some examples of my incompetent work can be found here and here.
the distortion is on the original cassette, sorry.
mp3
http://www77.zippyshare.com/v/YJndGklI/file.html
flac
http://www77.zippyshare.com/v/Fz1FxpBG/file.html
http://www77.zippyshare.com/v/ep9coqkP/file.html
