The "Hi!" Thread - Part III
The "Hi!" Thread - Part III
Subject: Re: Hi
From: ana.ng@tmbg.org (Nicole the Wonder Nerd)
Date: 1997/01/28
Message-Id: <32ee3f2f.3269026@news.ucdavis.edu>
References: <19970120042800.XAA02906@ladder01.news.aol.com> <19970122141301.JAA03198@ladder01.news.aol.com> <32ed4607.5141458@news.ucdavis.edu> <5clbkh$5hp$1@moe.thenet.net>
Organization: University of California, Davis
Newsgroups: alt.music.moxy-Fruvous
>>Hello, everyone. I'm Nicole the Wonder Nerd, and I'll be your newbie
>>for this evening.
>Welcome, Nicole!
*sigh* I feel so loved... :)
>: Where was I? Oh yes--how I found Fruvous. Simplicity itself. I'm a
>: MAJOR They Might Be Giants fan (anyone else?), and MF often comes up
>: as a band that TMBG fans will probably like.
>
>I wouldn't call myself a major fan (though they were the favorite band of
>my best friend Stevie before I introduced him to Fruvous) but I did, in an
>odd coincidence, see them the week after I first saw Fruvous. Vastly
>different performances, gotta say. And which John is the one who looks
>utterly psychotic? I mean, *scarily* so?
That would be John Linnell (keyboards, accordian, horns). I am madly
in love with his hair.
>Okay, I've been waiting on posting this till I could tell the story in its
>entirety (read: stalling), but here goes. . .
(amazing story deleted in the interest of brevity)
Whoa. Now THAT's a cool story. I've never seen them live, let alone
chatted idly with them for hours. My friend, you are one LUCKY woman.
In fact, I think you've exceeded your quota of luck for your LIFETIME.
:)
Is the person who wrote "Nuits de Reve" the same person who sings it?
The lyrics are written in excellent, poetic French, but the singer has
one *thick* accent-- at times it's nearly incomprehensible.
(admittedly, I'm not too familiar with the Canadian accent in French)
--nicole the wonder nerd
***
"Circumstances eat themselves. The present tense has
been." --Moxy Fruvous
Visit Nicolopolis! http://wwwcsif.cs.ucdavis.edu/~carlsonn
nnicole@tmbg.org nmcarlson@ucdavis.edu ana.ng@tmbg.org
Subject: Re: Hi
From: ceecee@homer.thenet.net (colleen campbell)
Date: 1997/01/28
Message-Id: <5clbkh$5hp$1@moe.thenet.net>
References: <19970120042800.XAA02906@ladder01.news.aol.com> <19970122141301.JAA03198@ladder01.news.aol.com> <32ed4607.5141458@news.ucdavis.edu>
Organization: Thenet
Newsgroups: alt.music.moxy-Fruvous
Article Segment 1 of 2
(Get All 2 Segments)
Nicole the Wonder Nerd (ana.ng@tmbg.org) wrote:
: Hello, everyone. I'm Nicole the Wonder Nerd, and I'll be your newbie
: for this evening.
So if the plane fails, we put on our oxygen masks and then help you, the
small child next to us?
: Where was I? Oh yes--how I found Fruvous. Simplicity itself. I'm a
: MAJOR They Might Be Giants fan (anyone else?), and MF often comes up
: as a band that TMBG fans will probably like.
I wouldn't call myself a major fan (though they were the favorite band of
my best friend Stevie before I introduced him to Fruvous) but I did, in an
odd coincidence, see them the week after I first saw Fruvous. Vastly
different performances, gotta say. And which John is the one who looks
utterly psychotic? I mean, *scarily* so?
Okay, I've been waiting on posting this till I could tell the story in its
entirety (read: stalling), but here goes. . .
Damn. It's been 2 1/2 years now. August of '94.
I was chaperoning a group of Girl Scouts to Switzerland to a "world
center" where Scouts and Guides from all over the world congregate. By
far, the girls who impressed me the most with their humor, savvy,
curiosity and--hmm--elan vital, basically, were the Canadians. So I
hooked up with them and they played a bunch of "their" music for me. Lots
of quirky rock and humor stuff--BNL, Corky and the Juice Pigs, CTD, etc.
But the song that utterly gripped me was "King of Spain," copied from the
indie tape. I begged to copy it but we're in EBF, Nowheresville, no
copying equipment. "Fine. I'll buy it when I get back to America." It's
not available in America. Colleen commences wailing. . .borrows the tape,
scribbles out the lyrics, listens to it nonstop for the next few days, and
figures she's never going to hear it again.
After I shepherded my girls back to London and put them on the plane home,
I took off around the British Isles, traipsing through Ireland, Scotland,
and then back to England for 2 1/2 weeks. Great fun--I've never met such
unbelievably friendly people as the Irish! I arrived in Edinburgh, having
planned my time there to coincide with the 3-week-long Fringe Festival:
basically the world's biggest party. :) Something like 10,000 performers,
ranging from ballet and opera down to street jugglers. Music, comedy,
drama, art of every type. . . I braced myself, sat down to peruse the
program of what all was going on, boggled with the prospect of trying to
choose from among it all. And while scanning the "rock musicians"
section, there it was: Moxy Fruvous. A "late addition."
No. This was a joke. This couldn't be. God was laughing up his sleeve
at me. Their plane was going to crash. They would be sold out. I'd have
to mug someone for a ticket.
I didn't have to mug someone for a ticket.
I found myself, heart pounding, dizzied with adrenaline, still having a
hard time grasping it, seeing their show that very night. This was
basically just about when Bargainville was going platinum in Canada, but
of course no one had heard of them in Scotland, so it was a small venue,
very intimate, and they were utterly hamming it up. I was besotted.
Their European bookings dude, Andrew, was apparently standing right behind
me as I screamed my fool head off; afterwards, in a delightfully thick
accent, he informed them that I was "their biggest fan" and we all chatted
briefly; they had a radio program to do and had to dash off. Could I at
least, please please please, get an album before they went? Um .. sorry,
they didn't have any with them that night.
Argh.
So I went back the next night and sat outside, waiting for them to arrive,
but had to leave for a play across town before they got there.
Argh again.
The next day was Fringe Sunday in the Park--1000 performers or so in half
a dozen tents, performing snippets of their performances; 150,000 in the
crowd, wandering around; eating too much fudge, reveling in the panoply of
life, the bizarreness, the glorious sunshine (with which I was blessed
throughout my entire UK visit!), and trying to pretend to myself that I
was doing nothing but killing time until Fruvous did their set. I was
delighted with them all over again and scampered up to the security (heh,
such as it was) after the set--"can I get a CD?" "You'll have to ask the
band, we don't sell them." Well, can I go back? "Do you know them?"
Of course I know them! Lemme back! (Heh.) So I dashed back, found Jian,
Dave, and Murray, and begged them for a CD. They didn't have any with
them.
As it hath been said, Argh.
"But we'll put you on the guest list for tonight. . .will that do?"
That'll do.
So that night, Murray came to talk with me and if I hadn't already been
cemented into Fruphoria, that would have done it. . .just chatting
casually with him before the show. Then Andrew led me up to the front
seat (where there were a couple of girls who knew the band from Toronto,
very cool enthusing with them) and I sat antsily through the Rheostatics
(I'm sorry, but NO ONE can hold my attention while I'm waiting for a
Fruvous concert, thankyouverymuch) and had my third inFrusion of music.
After the show, Andrew was goodnaturedly manning the CD station, I
*finally* got my CD. . .and then realized, "it's over??" He laughed at
the look on my face and said, "G'on, go say g'bye to the guys." Mad dash
for the backstage, yelling to the techies, "Andrew said I could!"
After that, I sat on Murray's butt to give him a massage (hey, he started
it!), following which he informed me that I "had to meet the other guys,"
so I hung out with them in the pub for a few hours, trying to think of
anything vaguely non-idiotic to say. When we were kicked out at 3 a.m., I
started the trek across the city to my hostel, the buses long since
stopped their runs, the city quiet and dark, and was accosted by two drunk
men inviting me back to their flat for coffee and sandwiches. Only in
Edinburgh. . . They saved my butt the next morning, getting me out of the
city before the BritRail strike invalidated my train out (Scottish men,
second only to the Irish in terms of chivalry and generosity!). . .but
that's another story, and--to quote the Neverending Story--shall be told
at another time.
Do I win the award for "Most long-winded"? Sorry. . I just love telling
that story, especially to other Fruheads. And now, I must needs dash
myself off to work, so's I can pay for the Fru-trips I'll be taking to see
them this spring. Thanks for starting this thread, Chris (it was you,
wasn't it?); it's delightful to see some activity on this group even when
nothing new's coming out for a month yet and there aren't any concerts
going on. Cheers!
Colleen
Colleen Campbell o/~ lost in Fruphoria o/~ ceecee@thenet.net
"Hey! You callin' my girl straight?!?" - Jason
Subject: Re: Hi
From: laffdept@aol.com
Date: 1997/01/29
Message-Id: <19970129014701.UAA06257@ladder01.news.aol.com>
References: <32ee3f2f.3269026@news.ucdavis.edu>
Organization: AOL http://www.aol.com
Newsgroups: alt.music.moxy-Fruvous
X-Admin: news@aol.com
Hi! I've been lurking on this newsgroup for the past 9 months and have
been posting more recently as I get a little braver...so I'll post my
little history with the Fru4:
I sang back-up in a nyc band called Garage Ensemble (an eclectic 14-piece
violin/cello/rock band) back in 1994 and we had the honor of playing after
Moxy at CB's Gallery downtown. The entire night was being recorded for a
radio "pilot" that these producers were trying to sell, so we had
extensive sound-checks during the day. I remember the guys coming in as
we were trying to get every mic in place, and I remember how cute they
were!
We cleared out after soundcheck for dinner and didn't return to the club
until 45 mins before our set. As we walked in, my friends Lauren & Keren
and I stood at the back of the club with our mouths hanging open as these
incredible four singers made the most beautiful harmonious sounds. We
three girls were also doing acappella work for hire and we KNEW how
difficult it was to find the right sound and pitches.
After they played, and as we set up, I ventured over to Murray (guess I
couldn't resist the long blond hair) and told him they were incredible.
He signed me up on their mailing list immediately.
Two months later, I was in Montreal for the Just For Laughs comedy
festival and had heard that they were playing it. The first day I ran
into Murray again, reminded him of the gig, and hung around the guys all
weekend. Been fast friends ever since! I've turned on many of my friends
to this group (as you know--it's not hard!) and they and I cannot wait for
the new disc to come out.
no longer Sad Today,
Victorria
Subject: Re: Hi
Date: 29 Jan 1997 12:48:57 -0800
From: Jason A. Reiser
Newsgroups: alt.music.moxy-fruvous
References: <19970120042800.XAA02906@ladder01.news.aol.com>
<19970122141301.JAA03198@ladder01.news.aol.com>
<32ed4607.5141458@news.ucdavis.edu> <5clbkh$5hp$1@moe.thenet.net>
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Okay, fine. Everybody else is doing it, so here goes…
BTW - is anyone archiving these? Might make an interesting addition to a
web site (cough, cough… Chris O’M?)
I was at Skidmore College, doing a very late night/early morning radio show
on the college radio station, WSPN 91.1 FM from 3AM to 6AM on
Wednesday mornings with my friend leah. This was probably sometime
around September or October of ’94. One of leah’s friends told her about
Moxy Früvous, but had not, for some reason, taken the initiative to tie her
down and force it on her. Well, somewhere around 4:00am on a Wednesday
morning, she decided that we should take a look for this CD. I was cueing
something up (I want to say it was some old Lou Reed or Tom Waits or
something cool… but I can’t remember. Good chance on both of those
though) while she was off looking through the Rock M section. She came
back into the booth looking none too pleased that the CD was already
missing. The station had some problems with CDs walking away in the
pockets of its DJs, but I thought I’d go look through the F’s - having no idea
who or what a Früvous was anyway.
Well, sure enough, someone had filed our new copy of Bargainville under
instead of B. I brought it back to the on-air booth and presented it to leah,
more pleased that she’d be pacified by this gesture than anything else…
nothing’s worse than spending hours in the early morning with someone
who couldn’t find the music she was looking for… you’d be grumpy too.
So I sat back to relax while she cued up King of Spain and began playing it
back over the studio speakers. We both kind of looked at the speakers as if
they were possessed - and she set the song up to play on-air. We listened to
that first song as we played it to the one or two people listening that morning
(okay, it’s not that bad… but even with 250k watts, people are mostly asleep
at 4 in the morning,) and we were both immediately hooked. We played
something else next, followed immediately by Video Bargainville… and a
third Früvous tune soon after. I bought the only copy of the album that I
could find that weekend.
Sometime in the spring when Wood was released, I had a chance to hear it at
the radio station, but never got around to getting my own copy until I saw
them live. Leah was visiting me in NYC, and I had planned on going to the
10/25 show at Wetlands since it was close by, thinking it might be pretty
cool to see these guys live on stage. Well, both leah and I were terribly sick
with the flu, and she begged me not to go, but we were already out
somewhere, so I got us on the right train headed downtown, and we
managed to get there while the opening act, Guster, was still playing. Wish
I’d seen more of them too…
More than anything else, I remember being amazed at the energy these guys
have on stage. And their stage presence… hamming it up big time. Dave
came SO close to knocking over two guitar stands as he was dancing around
like a madman on the tiny stage. I listen to Bargainville now, and though I
love it, I have to laugh too… it just feels like a stripped down babyfaced kids
version of the guys we see live whenever we can. And I also remember not
feeling sick anymore. Unfortunately, I still _was_ sick, but I just felt SO
much better while dancing around in front of the stage.
If I remember correctly, this was also the concert where Jian said that the B
album was available for the first time - and of course, the same venue where
I purchased it for the first time.
Talking with them after the set was also a kick. I think it’s great when
performers come out and talk with their fans, but there are so many who feel
like they’re better than that, or they’re just too starstruck to care. Not too
many people hung around to talk to the guys, so when Jian finally came out
alone, he was talking to two or three people who it seemed he’d met at some
point before. I hung back a little, and we made eye contact… he stepped
forward, shook my hand and said something like, "Hey, I don’t think I know
YOU. I’m Jian." I was more taken aback by the fact that he seemed almost
apologetic for not knowing who I was, or perhaps just happy to meet another
fan who appreciates what the band is doing.
If anyone hasn’t had the opportunity to see Moxy Früvous live, you have to
find a way to do so. I don’t care if they’re not nearby, or if finances are a
problem… just find a way. I mean, I dunno… sell your children, live a less
lavish lifestyle, use the albums as a drug to hook friends of yours who have
cash, and then mooch off of ‘em… just find a way.
And make sure to stick around and talk with them if you can. They’re still
human, and sometimes the conversation will go great, and sometimes you
might wonder why you bothered… but that’s just the point. You’ll quickly
realize that they’re very real, very human, and really a wonderful group of
individuals who take such joy in entertaining us. And if you ever get to a
show on the late side, and the good spots near the stage are all filled up, look
for one near the backstage door - especially if they’re opening for another
band. On more than one occasion I’ve found myself talking with the guys at
a table that just happened to be right by the backstage entrance.
Well, that’s it for now boys and girls. Make room in your CD collections
for one more - scheduled for release in March ’97 in both Canada and the
US.
- Jason
Jason A. Reiser
jreiser@ecoutez.com
http://www.ecoutez.com/jason/
"You’re always with me, always keepin’ me laughing. I think I found
something there that keeps me whole." - Trina Hamlin
Subject: Re: Hi
From: Tootles
Date: 1997/01/29
Message-Id: <32F010CE.46F9@skidmore.edu>
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Organization: Skidmore College--In the land of the Ice and Snow
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Jason A. Reiser wrote:
>
> Okay, fine. Everybody else is doing it, so here goes…
>
> BTW - is anyone archiving these? Might make an interesting addition to a
> web site (cough, cough… Chris O’M?)
I wish i'd thought of that. I could actually *have* a Moxy Fruvous web
site.
> I was at Skidmore College, doing a very late night/early morning radio show
> on the college radio station, WSPN 91.1 FM from 3AM to 6AM on
> Wednesday mornings with my friend leah.
I wonder what it is about Skidmore that attracts FruFans and potential
FruFans. I met Leah through the radio station myself, though this was
last year, and Jason I know has graduated. (I've never met Jason, BTW,
just have a mutual friend and, apparently, similar musical tastes. :-})
I had just announced through the college newsgroups that I was going to
play Wood (which I had just received from the Fruvous Quill) and asked
Leah (the station's Production Manager at the time) if she had any sound
effects I could use to intro it when the time came.
Isn't it strange how a band can bring people together like this?
'later,
jeff gilson.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
A long December and there's reason to believe
that this year will be better than the last
-Counting Crows