underrated instrument: xylophone

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Could be no misuse, could be no extravaganza - whenever xylophone comes into pop - its great!
(How American Analog set is built up around the sound of the xylophone...)

― Rush Rhees (Rush Rhees), Friday, 14 May 2004 18:39 (twenty-two years ago)

Aslo, vibraphone

― NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS REMIND YOU THAT ZERO IS ALSO A NUMBER (ex machina), Friday, 14 May 2004 18:46 (twenty-two years ago)

Vibraphone is the best instrument ever! Smacking them shits once and letting 'em ring out is like the most viscerally pleasing thing EVAR!

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Friday, 14 May 2004 18:49 (twenty-two years ago)

S: Lionel Hampton!

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Friday, 14 May 2004 18:49 (twenty-two years ago)

not pop, but Steve Reich to thread.

also, Emperor Tomato Ketchup era Stereolab.

― Dan Selzer (Dan Selzer), Friday, 14 May 2004 18:51 (twenty-two years ago)

S: Milt Jackson!

― oops (Oops), Friday, 14 May 2004 18:52 (twenty-two years ago)

What are we actually talking about here? Xylophones, vibraphones, or marimbas?

― jaymc (jaymc), Friday, 14 May 2004 18:52 (twenty-two years ago)

Tre post-rock.

― Mark (MarkR), Friday, 14 May 2004 18:52 (twenty-two years ago)

Thumb pianos beat all though really.

― oops (Oops), Friday, 14 May 2004 18:54 (twenty-two years ago)

Watching THREE members of Tortoise play the vibraphone AT ONCE on "Ten-Day Interval" is one of my all-time favorite live-music experiences.

― jaymc (jaymc), Friday, 14 May 2004 18:54 (twenty-two years ago)

All plinky plonky instruments are the greatest things in the world. See Drumming and "DJ'ed" for details.

― noodle vague (noodle vague), Friday, 14 May 2004 18:54 (twenty-two years ago)

Two mallets in each hand for the Tortoise dudes?

― Mark (MarkR), Friday, 14 May 2004 18:55 (twenty-two years ago)

Sarah calls xylophones/vibraphones/glockenspiels/etal "bells." Does anyone else do this? Is it a regional thing? Or is she just weird?

― NA (Nick A.), Friday, 14 May 2004 18:55 (twenty-two years ago)

Sarah's crazy, dude.

― Mark (MarkR), Friday, 14 May 2004 18:56 (twenty-two years ago)

That's what I thought. I try to explain that they're not bells. She even played glockenspiel, and she still calls them bells. What the fuck.

― NA (Nick A.), Friday, 14 May 2004 19:00 (twenty-two years ago)

Actually, not that many xylophones in rock. Stereolab is mostly using vibraphones. Zappa did use to use xylophones (and marimba). They have a much more percussive sound, and usually make me think of the circus. Therefore: neat.

― dleone (dleone), Friday, 14 May 2004 19:00 (twenty-two years ago)

It starts with an X. It gets bonus points just for that.

― dave225 (Dave225), Friday, 14 May 2004 19:02 (twenty-two years ago)

S: Mike Dillon of Critters Buggin, Malachy Papers, Hairyapes BMX, (apparently also) Polyphonic Spree, etc. Dude fucking WAILS on xylophones/vibraphones/marimbas etc. When I saw Hairyapes BMX, he had that shit through a distortion pedal; first time and probably last time I've seen anyone play xylophone in a METAL STYLEE.

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Friday, 14 May 2004 19:04 (twenty-two years ago)

I used to work with disabled kids. On a training course once this woman showed us the BIGGEST CHIME BAR YOU'VE EVER SEEN. It was at least a yard long. The idea is that deaf kids can lie on it or feel the vibrations coming off it. When she hit the thing there was this rich warm throb that filled the room, buzzed right through your chest. I swear I wanted to steal it. Awesome.

― noodle vague (noodle vague), Friday, 14 May 2004 19:06 (twenty-two years ago)

How much does a Vibraphone cost?

― NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS REMIND YOU THAT ZERO IS ALSO A NUMBER (ex machina), Friday, 14 May 2004 19:08 (twenty-two years ago)

Magnetophone!!
Oh, wait ...

― Barry Bruner (Barry Bruner), Friday, 14 May 2004 19:10 (twenty-two years ago)

Cool thing about the vibraphone is you call them "vibes".

― Mark (MarkR), Friday, 14 May 2004 19:12 (twenty-two years ago)

Tim Buckley and Throbbing Gristle both used vibes.

― sexyDancer, Friday, 14 May 2004 19:22 (twenty-two years ago)

Vibraphones are expensive.

I think there is some precedent for the "bells" thing...I'm not sure why, but I seem to remember in high school band/orchestra that the xylophone part would often be labeled "bells".

Tom Waits has had some great xylophone and marimba parts over the years.

Playing four-mallet stylee is really fucking hard.

S: Gary Burton

That is all.

― Jordan (Jordan), Friday, 14 May 2004 19:22 (twenty-two years ago)

Vibraphone is the best instrument ever! Smacking them shits once and letting 'em ring out is like the most viscerally pleasing thing EVAR!

search stark reality. good vibes, man.

― christhamrin (christhamrin), Friday, 14 May 2004 19:23 (twenty-two years ago)

here's your answer:

Main Entry: glock·en·spiel
Etymology: German, from Glocke bell + Spiel play

― hstencil (hstencil), Friday, 14 May 2004 19:25 (twenty-two years ago)

glock
55 votes

A light weight pistol made from composite materials and steel, some models also available in a ported compenstated version.

― Jordan (Jordan), Friday, 14 May 2004 19:29 (twenty-two years ago)

Yes, Mark: each guy in Tortoise had two mallets.

― jaymc (jaymc), Friday, 14 May 2004 19:31 (twenty-two years ago)

I wish I had swiped some of the xylophones/glocks I used to play in 4th grade....

― NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS REMIND YOU THAT ZERO IS ALSO A NUMBER (ex machina), Friday, 14 May 2004 19:33 (twenty-two years ago)

Playing four-mallet stylee is really fucking hard.

NO SHIT.

That dude Mike Dillon I mentioned above really fucked me up in my mind when he played on a hybrid vibe/drumkit where he played melodic/chordal stuff with two mallets in his right hand and hihat and snare with his left (w/ Malachy Papers [whose bass-player played an 8-track like it was a turntable or somesuch, all kinds of wrreeoooouuurww wikki wikki shit etc]).

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Friday, 14 May 2004 19:36 (twenty-two years ago)

Yes, Mark: each guy in Tortoise had two mallets.

But were they using two mallets PER HAND, i.e. four mallets.

Nick, that's just rude of him. Even better than Kennwood Denard's thing where he plays hi-hat and snare with his right hand, keyboards with his left (or vice versa, he has keyboards on both sides of the kit) and sings.

― Jordan (Jordan), Friday, 14 May 2004 19:40 (twenty-two years ago)

I've seen the Tortoise guys use two mallets per hand.

― hstencil (hstencil), Friday, 14 May 2004 19:43 (twenty-two years ago)

on vibraphones, I mean.

― hstencil (hstencil), Friday, 14 May 2004 19:45 (twenty-two years ago)

http://www.allaboutjazz.com/gallery/kluter/burton5.jpg

― Jordan (Jordan), Friday, 14 May 2004 19:46 (twenty-two years ago)

Jerome Cooper's "Unpredictability of Predictability" LP has got some bitchin' balaphone on it.

― sexyDancer, Friday, 14 May 2004 19:54 (twenty-two years ago)

Do yourself a favor and hunt down some ragtime on xylophone. Seven or so years ago, I saw the percussion ensemble Nexus do a ragtime piece, and I swear, it was jaw-dropping. Blazingly holy shit-fast xylophone work.

― Ernest P. (ernestp), Friday, 14 May 2004 20:28 (twenty-two years ago)

my brother bought a vibraphone last year, that fucker weights a hell of a lot.
i miss colorblind james.

― zappi (joni), Friday, 14 May 2004 20:36 (twenty-two years ago)

The difference between a vibraphone and a metalophone? You turn the vibraphone off. Vibraphones are electric, for those who don't know.

― Dan Selzer (Dan Selzer), Friday, 14 May 2004 21:31 (twenty-two years ago)

is tortoise live more exciting than tortoise on record? this is a serious question.

― dan (dan), Friday, 14 May 2004 21:51 (twenty-two years ago)

Bobby Hutcherson needs to tear up the shit with some stupid pop and rock groups already.

― Øystein H-O (Øystein H-O), Friday, 14 May 2004 22:43 (twenty-two years ago)

"Love My Way" by ye olde Psychedelic Furs features some ass-whuppin' xylophonin'.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Saturday, 15 May 2004 00:24 (twenty-two years ago)

In 1976 a band called Starbuck had a major hit with "Moonlight Feels Right" which featured a truly nice xylophone solo. Unfortunately there were also some pretty lame synths that haven't improved with age.

― jim wentworth (wench), Saturday, 15 May 2004 01:27 (twenty-two years ago)

All I remember about seeing Nexus was a concept piece they did about taking the sound of a single cymbal hit and extending it over ten minutes (lots of bowing, harmonics, etc.). It was cool, but I was very tired and zzzzzz.

― Jordan (Jordan), Saturday, 15 May 2004 04:04 (twenty-two years ago)

tortoise considerably more exciting live

― cinniblount (James Blount), Saturday, 15 May 2004 05:35 (twenty-two years ago)

S: Gone Daddy Gone. A solo that xylophone players of all abilities can play and cherish.

― Hammy (hammy), Saturday, 15 May 2004 06:07 (twenty-two years ago)

Vibes & flute in unison has to be one of the most pleasant aural experiences.

― Jez (Jez), Saturday, 15 May 2004 13:22 (twenty-two years ago)

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