Max Tundra: Mastered by Guy at the Exchange

So good - really what's not to love? I had no idea he was a Cardiacs stan, but that makes complete sense - there's surely something of the same intricacy and attention to detail in their musics. Max Tundra played somewhere round here last year and I managed to miss it, which is a source of bitter regret.

PLUS: the Silverlink remix of "Which Song" (which I first heard on Spotify, and am going to listen to right now) is militantly stupendous.

ha this is total LJ BAIT LOL

"Cabasa" is...staggering.

"parallax error" may be the better album tho. dude is on some good shit.

i feel that perhaps i understand this man better now that i've read the third policeman

The Gradual Disappearance from Food Packaging of the Lettres Ornees Typeface Since the Nineteen Sixties motherfuckers!

(met Mr Tundra at a Monsoon Bassoon gig where he happily chatted about Cardiacs and the whole-tone scale but I was and am too drunk to remember except that he is an A+ nice guy and I highly commend both his music and his radio show and also oh shit I never ate that soup)

"parallax error" may be the better album tho. dude is on some good shit.

I just ordered this the other day, I'm really excited to hear it.

Is his first album worth checking out?

yes

he's GRATE and that is no exception

i wish i knew of him sooner

I don't love Some Best Friend as much as the other two, but it was the first one I heard and I kept following the guy, so...
(may not be quite true as already thought Children At Play 12" was ace)

Longer explanation: I like it, but don't put it on often and find it a little slow. Most obvious contrasting point: no vocals. Whether this is + or - is up to you, but for me I'd love him to do some more instrumental stuff now and this is still my least favourite Tundra album, so read that as you will.

Also, a lot of the tracks are kind of sedate or understated beat-wise. It's simultaneously more real-instrumenty and yet less live/spontaneous-sounding. It sounds pretty unfocused compared to most of his stuff, it's more content to sit in loops and let them unravel slowly rather than kicking them over and running round the room with the shreds, and if you're coming from a pop/r&b/dance angle then that influence is a lot less obvious. I recommend checking out the single "Cakes" (which I was going to link to a youtube of and say "it doesn't do it justice", but apparently there isn't even a youtube) - if you don't like that, don't get the album; if you really love that, well, that's the best (uh, catchiest) bit by some way, but the rest has its moments.

tldr version: I'm suspicious of but generally agree with the rock idea that most artists' best work is their earliest, but Max Tundra is definitely an exception for me.

well true it is less GRATE. but it's still worth listening to!!

latest two albums are kinda godly.

(Cardiacs are a MASSIVE exception to that rule. It often holds, but there are some pure-at-heart music-makers, often those for whom composition exceeds novelty value, who work at their craft and improve, often coming out with more original material after they've had time to examine just what it is they do well)

(nice write-up! yeah Cakes is super)

I'm going to have to check out this "Cardiacs," since you've mentioned them a couple times now on threads about bands I like.

I feel like Pandora.

i just listened to a cardiacs song and it was awful, like zappa prog wackiness + comedy british accents + circus music + queen.

(i'm sure that will sound awesome to someone)

You listened to an early Cardiacs song, then. Possibly one that predates their first album. a) they improved SO much, b) that stuff is still awesome in its mentalist way IMO

also, Queen? PFAH.

Like, the first Youtube hit (pretty much) is for Tarred And Feathered. You may have seen that one. That is not the one to see.

that's the one

Yeah. That was when they were my age and still just as concerned with being wacky as making amazing music.

Later, stuff like this happened.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTrK0mBxoT4&feature=related

Oh, and they weren't bad live either. Both of these are performed inna garage-punk style for the BBC. They're two of Cardiacs' better songs. Wouldn't say best, but then they don't have to be. 'Signs' especially I find to be a stunner, although 'Fiery Gun Hand' is generally the crowd-pleaser.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqAJcBh3sEQ&feature=related

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8I5hXh2dbI

This, however, is probably my favourite song of all time. You have been warned.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KpEe0ztq2ck

This is not to denigrate the earlier album material. On Land And In The Sea is my joint-favourite album ever (along with the last two 90's albums), but there isn't much of it on Youtube. Fuck it, A Little Man... and Heaven Born... are both insanely good as well.

If you've run screaming after 30 seconds of Dog-Like Sparky, I don't really blame you.

Was gonna post about Cardiacs (if only because I'd put "Dog Like Sparky" pretty firmly in the "still wacky" category) but then I checked my email and saw that Cardiacs guitarist Kavus Torabi will be hosting Mr Tundra's radio show on Saturday 16th while he is on tour, and it will be good, and I will probably forget to listen because I always do. 2:30-3:30pm Britisher time, web stream at resonancefm.com. Presumably you can tune in this coming Saturday and hear a Max Tundra edition.

!!!

i really need to start listening to this show (and resonance fm more as a whole; it's responsible for ALL my favourite radio experiences) anyway, but this may finally convince me. kavus is a LOVELY BLOKE btw. i met him and it's true.

dog-like sparky has a structure that is more calculated than loopy. it's not scattergun, it's controlled madness, composed as a piece and utterly beguiling. it usually has SOME sort of profound effect on whoever i play it to. sometimes like. usually "holy fuck". it's the work of a master songwriter imo

I used to like the 0rg(anart) show on resonance until S34n 0rg4n didn't send me my ebay CDs (disclaimer: may have disappeared in post, and disappeared in post again when resent, and also every issue of my magazine subscription may have disappeared in the post). Maybe it is still going and playing some Cardiacsy things. (sulk)

(every other week it is M4r1n4 instead of S34n and as far as I know she is good people and didn't not send me any CDs and also is an ex-ILXor, so I still endorse her weeks, just not to the point of listening to them in case I tune in on the wrong week and get angry about ebay again)

when yr star attraction is a crusty old pronk band nobody likes, yr ship is not exactly gonna be tight ;-)

the main thing here is that i REALLY need to get some resonance fm down me. or i need to work there or something. i would sweep the floors there tbh

(best Resonance shows = Dan Wilson's 'exciting hellebore shew' and 'epistaxis time' and L Voag's 'Harmon E Phraisyar Show' which are both works of DERANGED AND BEAUTIFUL NOISE-COMEDY GENIUS OF THE HIGHEST ORDER)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbxzUhk7R5c

Owe you a message LJ, too tired tonight tho', did you dig on MT from the HOS Compilation CD by any chance?

Holy fuck L. Voag has a resonance show? How did I not know this?! "Kitchen" off "The Way Out" is a jam and no mistake. Don't take that frigidaire away from me!

Will check out the others, err, some time, I hope, maybe.

RIP Herra Arktinen's "Half a Map", unless it has reappeared on the airwaves without me knowing.

I think I got there via someone's comment on a Dominique Leone thread! I had to hear Dom Leone's album before deciding on my 2009 track nominations, and Max Tundra was implicated. I noticed there was a MT track on that compilation, which helped me decide to follow it up (seeing him in that company is persuasive), but I didn't listen to that track until after I'd devoured the albums.

Google Harmon E Phraisyar podcast or archive, there's some awesome stuff there (i.e. all of it). I think I marginally prefer Dan Wilson's work, dude's a true underground superstar. To the extent to which nobody knows he is.

Is Half A Map worth tracking down then?

To be honest I only heard a couple of them and can't really remember what it was like, but I do remember being pissed off that the second week I tuned in he closed with an announcement that the show was ending. Will google the podcasts at some point when it isn't past my bedtime, alas.

The Desmotabs song on the House of Stairs comp is also a jam iirc. Please add Desmotabs to my "who is ___ and what else have they done" bleatings along with Toirse O'Riordan (as mentioned upthread for being on Max Tundra bonus remix non-CD).

I assume LJ already has all the Cheval de Frise stuff ever but if not then check it out.

Will put the Desmotabs song on now!

I don't have any of that stuff. You forget I'm incredibly new to these musics! It gives me an in no way guilty sense of pride that I'm possibly the only 22 year-old alive who digs and chases down these things this hard. Look at the thread I started the other day! Unknown, vaguely Cardiacsy prog-pop that only MaresNest and I actually like Add 'R spacecadet' to the title and maybe this should all be on there! Nah, here's fine. :)

Oh, sorry, there is a Cheval de Frise track on that comp too I think, which is why I mention them. I think "Fresques sur les parois secrètes du crâne" is my CdF pick but it's all good except the last EP thing which for some reason I didn't care for. I dunno if they count as "this sort of thing" or "prog-pop" but they were first recommended to me by the person who introduced me to Cardiacs so there is definitely audience crossover. Abstract and kind of dizzying two-man post-something instrumental acoustic music <-- here is a description which does not do them any favours at all, maybe "Hella if they were arty French dudes that nobody knew anything about" would work better

Tired and probably got to go into work tomorrow no matter how much it snows so I'm off to be grumpy in bed. Happy listening!

I am listening to the CDF track already! It's kinda beautiful! Actually wait, this is the Stars Of Battledress track that follows it in the comp, didn't *gulp* notice the track changed! OK, let's rescreen that CDF...mmmmm. Am liking. Desmotabs was like some weird and brief tech nightmare thingy. In a good way!

Oh, and night! The man will tell you off for leaving early yesterday.

Ha. There's me standing here with my whole life to spare, and that's the way we all go.

I am all for weird and brief tech nightmares. Someone once told me that Sarah Monsoon Bassoon was making solo electronic music post-MB and I would v. much like to hear that. Doubt I'll get to though, not even sure I'll ever get to hear Torabi's Knife World stuff.

PS I imagine I don't actually know any more about this stuff than you do! I was going to say it's not the easiest to find out about, but then I can think of two places where I could find out about it and I don't generally read those, so I've only got myself to blame.

i liked both albums until the cutesy britishness started 2 grate, but they r still pretty awes imo, i just don't really wanna listen to em

if people are stuck for what to listen to, i would recommend the longest 4 tracks on each of the last 2 albums. all wondrous.

'until we die' is musical idyll, although 'cabasa' might be better. 'orphaned' is dazzling. 'acorns' is lovely. 'labial' is sexy as hell. 'which song' is a HIT. as is 'number our days'. and 'lysine' is about an enzyme iirc

OMG! awesome MAX TUNDRA INTERVIEW/HOUSEPARTY CONCERT!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbWcR7Adr8Y

I just got Parrallax Error yesterday its sounding brilliant after a few listens.

Funny that this thread turned into a Cardiacs discussion for a while there. I was listening to Mastered By The Guy the other day and noticed about 45 seconds into Pocket it goes extremely Cardiacs, it's a lovely moment. It's such a shame their albums are all out of print, the prices on Amazon are ridiculous.

I've come to the rapid conclusion that Cabasa and Until We Die would have had an equal shot at turning my 23 Songs Of The Decade into 24. Completely torn as to which is better. Both incredible.

And Orphaned on headphones, I discovered, is something else.

MGBATE is my favourite album of the decade. Every track blows me away. Always found it bizarre that he's not more popular.

And this is the first time you've heard him, acoulethic? What a treat..

His attention to detail and expansiveness is basically big flashing me-bait. His melodic and structural sensibilities crown it off. I think his awesomeness can be summarised in the guitar-screech about 2 minutes into Labial. Who else would do that?

The little break before the second chorus of Which Song, sounds like a reference, almost a parody to 06-07 mnml techno. Haven't seen any reviews or discussion here pick on that.

And how about when it randomly, miraculously turns into trance in The Entertainment!

How Nord Lead Three actually sounds like the Max Tundra Live Band rocking out in his garage, although it was probably slaved over to its brim for years.

The Generation Game melodic turnaround in Until We Die!

The way a xylophone and a cello buried in the mix double up the tune in Pocket as you were saying

More subtly, how Hilted brings things down just as it starts to peak

Coda of Cabasa!

etc. etc. I'm Max Tundra's biggest fan.

whole of Cabasa, in its ridiculous sublime-to-sublimely ridiculous journey, but yeah that coda is pretty much moments when you were awestruck by pop to a tee

obviously you've barely scratched the surface there

I see Mr Tundra has rejigged his soundcloud and added many remixes and cover versions in addition to an old edition of his Resonance FM radio show. (Hope I didn't miss a new one this past weekend, as the resonance stream refused to work.)

http://soundcloud.com/maxtundra

Everything there is super good, love especially the cover of "Tell It To My Heart", and the Futureheads remix

gonna have to hear these

I never remembered to listen to his show (I only ever seem to listen to Resonance in the car, for some reason), and now it seems I never will.

http://rotogravure.blogspot.com/2010/10/ego-gymnastics_04.html

Based on MT's side of things that is shabby treatment for sure.