Tom Verlaine
Tom Verlaine, ‘Warm and Cool’, 1992. Tom Verlaine was the cool but nerdy one of the Noo Yoik ‘70s Punk scene. Indeed, he was the one who found CBGBs as a venue for his band Television to play in and started that whole scene. Television split after two albums: the thrill of the New Wave had gone and the New Romantic Soundtrack to Thatcherism ruled the airwaves. Shudder.
Anyway, Tom released solo albums with varying degrees of success. This album is all instrumentals, just Tom playing various tunes on different guitars with Television’s drummer Billy Ficca playing too. Most of it was played live in the studio with the amps set low for a close-up and intimate atmosphere, even on the ‘loud’ tracks. I saw him play at the 100 Club once, just him with Jimmy Rip on second guitar. Pin-drop silence through the set as we watched two relaxed gents, sitting down, noodling and trading licks.
‘Those Harbor Lights’ slow echoey atmosphere with gently picked strings. ‘Sleepwalkin’’ bouncy with happy lick. ‘The Deep Dark Clouds’ guitar strangling. Intense. ‘Space Crash’ gentle picking. ‘Depot (1951)’ string thrumming and more intensity and splashing cymbals. ‘Boulevard’ soft and jazzy twang. ‘Harley Quinn’ is the whole of Television playing on a tight nimble exercise in well placed notes and languid rhythm. ‘Sor Juanna’ ambient and Floydian and echo. ‘Depot (1957)’ mean and moody with string rattle. ‘Spiritual’ slow bass notes and sparse guitar. ‘Little Dance’ waltzy cheapo guitar, like the Young Marble Giants. ‘Ore’ spacey effects and slow tap. ‘Depot (1958)’ floats scarily past. ‘Lore’ dark and brooding.
It’s all about the atmospherics! Muzak for a lift in a David Lynch hotel. I got my copy signed when Television reformed and visited MTV where I was working. Fan Boy…
Tom Verlaine
Tom Verlaine, ‘Warm and Cool’, 1992. Tom Verlaine was the cool but nerdy one of the Noo Yoik ‘70s Punk scene. Indeed, he was the one who found CBGBs as a venue for his band Television to play in and started that whole scene. Television split after two albums: the thrill of the New Wave had gone and the New Romantic Soundtrack to Thatcherism ruled the airwaves. Shudder.
Anyway, Tom released solo albums with varying degrees of success. This album is all instrumentals, just Tom playing various tunes on different guitars with Television’s drummer Billy Ficca playing too. Most of it was played live in the studio with the amps set low for a close-up and intimate atmosphere, even on the ‘loud’ tracks. I saw him play at the 100 Club once, just him with Jimmy Rip on second guitar. Pin-drop silence through the set as we watched two relaxed gents, sitting down, noodling and trading licks.
‘Those Harbor Lights’ slow echoey atmosphere with gently picked strings. ‘Sleepwalkin’’ bouncy with happy lick. ‘The Deep Dark Clouds’ guitar strangling. Intense. ‘Space Crash’ gentle picking. ‘Depot (1951)’ string thrumming and more intensity and splashing cymbals. ‘Boulevard’ soft and jazzy twang. ‘Harley Quinn’ is the whole of Television playing on a tight nimble exercise in well placed notes and languid rhythm. ‘Sor Juanna’ ambient and Floydian and echo. ‘Depot (1957)’ mean and moody with string rattle. ‘Spiritual’ slow bass notes and sparse guitar. ‘Little Dance’ waltzy cheapo guitar, like the Young Marble Giants. ‘Ore’ spacey effects and slow tap. ‘Depot (1958)’ floats scarily past. ‘Lore’ dark and brooding.
It’s all about the atmospherics! Muzak for a lift in a David Lynch hotel. I got my copy signed when Television reformed and visited MTV where I was working. Fan Boy…