Music News, Reviews, and Gossip on Idolator.com » Jesus And Mary Chain

Don’t Throw Those Cassingles Out Yet

Lucas Jensen — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 02:30:00 +0000

Everybody’s seen those fancypants record players that have the USB cords, wherein you can back up your favorite LPs into inferior-sounding digital files for maximum convenience*. But what of those cassettes that you’ve been stashing in some shoeboxes in that back closet, right behind the Rubbermaid tub of Christmas ornaments that never even makes it out for Christmas because you stopped buying trees a few years ago when you and your wife separated because, I mean, what’s the point of even trying anymore? What about those guys? The cassettes, I mean.

Never fear. Alesis has a solution for you tape hoarders: The Alesis TapeLink USB, which, for a mere $299 (insert surprise-y face emoticon here), can back up your tapes digitally. The idea of converting crappy-sounding cassettes to 192 rip mp3s is a bit laughable from an audiophile perspective, but I have quite the tape collection, seeing as, up until last year, I only drove busters with tape decks in them**. Here are some of the things I wouldn’t mind backing up:

• hilarious four-track projects of mine, which were only mixed down to tape, if only to laugh at them;
• practice sessions from a bunch of bands I’ve been in, if only to laugh at them;
• Jesus and Mary Chain’s Darklands, which I have only ever had on cassette—the tape noise is part of how I hear this record;
• lots of hair metal;
• local band gems—Five-Eight’s first cassingle and Lethal Compulsion, a 1992 or so death metal band made up of fellow students at Auburn High School (sample song title: “Cadaverosity of Chaos”); and
• tapes of my grandparents and parents talking to each other that they sent back and forth while my parents lived in Brazil (my grandmother had a stroke around the time I was born, and I never heard her speak more than one or two words at a time).

How about you out there? What cassettes would you back up? And doesn’t $299 seem a tad pricey? Isn’t there an easier way to do this then a standalone unit?

One Last Gasp for Audio Cassettes, Hooked Up to the Computer [NYT]

* I’ve been meaning to do this since my domicile was caught in a perfect storm of stereo failure, leaving me with no tuner or record player.
** Now I drive a buster with a temperamental CD player in it that doesn’t like two types of discs: CDs with music on them and/or CDs that people might want to hear.

Even Nostalgia Couldn’t Save The Download Festival

Dan Gibson — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 07:00:00 +0000

Seems the hodgepodge lineup presented at the Download Festival’s Sunday stop in Los Angeles provided air-conditioned entertainment to only a few thousand people, even though it was filled with retro-ish acts that usually drive people to these things, like the Jesus and Mary Chain and Gang of Four. Will these somewhat inexpensive, multibrand-supported shows be permanently replaced with free shows promoting one brand exclusively? Even I might be convinced to sit through Yeasayer to hear my emo faves Brand New (above). [LA Times]

(Somewhat Cool) Old Guys Added To Download Festival

Dan Gibson — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 04:15:00 +0000

The lineup for the American versions of the Brit’s Download Festival were a bit underwhelming. The Brits get KISS, Judas Priest, and Motorhead tonight, and the three dates stateside have Ghostland Observatory and Mute Math? This week, the San Francisco and Los Angeles dates were improved slightly with the addition of the Jesus and Mary Chain and Gang of Four (the Shrinkwrapped version), to go along with the totally underrated Brand New and a bunch of bloggo faves like Yeasayer. The LA date is even indoors. Tough break, Philly — you guys still have the Killers. [Download Festival]

The Jesus And Mary Chain Wanna Riot (But May Be Too Full Of Ennui To Start One)

Jess Harvell — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 10:00:59 +0000

The shrill signature of the Jesus And Mary Chain is once again ringing in the air thanks to the recent reunion and Stephin Merritt’s album-length mash-note to the band’s classic early records, kicking off my yearly JAMC binge a little earlier than usual. (Maybe its the surf residue around their guitars, but I tend to think of the pallid Reid brothers as purveyors of summertime sounds.) The announcer at the beginning of this 1985 U.K. TV appearance mentions the infamous, press-aggrandized “riots” that greeted their earliest gigs, but the dutiful kids in the audience merely bop their ’80s ponytails in place, perhaps because the astounding torpor radiating off the stage has paralyzed them. Seriously, some bands rev up their stage show by having their frontman leap into the audience; the JAMC has Jim Reid grab the mic and list back and forth a little bit, the perfect visual embodiment of their too-something-to-give-a-fuck vibe. [YouTube]

Coachella Lineup Revealed: You Can Schedule Your Return Flight For Sometime Sunday Evening

Maura — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 08:54:58 +0000

Thanks to cat dirt sez’s screen-capturing abilities, you’re looking at the poster that briefly appeared on the Coachella festival’s official Web site earlier today. It’s causing us to ask a lot of questions: Is the Jesus and Mary Chain reunion the big one that was supposed to be kept under wraps until later this week? Is there a worse band name than Fair to Midland? And are Rage Against The Machine fans really going to be that into Lily Allen and the Happy Mondays?

cat dirt (temporary) exclusive: 2007 coachella poster [cat dirt sez]
Earlier: Idolator’s wall-to-wall Coachella coverage

Listening Station: Jesus And Mary Chain Singer Vies For Sainthood

Brian Raftery — Fri, 12 Jan 2007 02:26:17 +0000

The new MOJO magazine CD features a track by former Jesus and Mary Chain singer Jim Reid, who covers the Saints’ classic “Stranded.” We like it, but man, this guy is completely ripping off Black Rebel Motorcycle Club!

~~Jim Reid – I’m Stranded~~ [MP3, link expired]
Jim Reid [MySpace]