His 'rock' or pop albums are kinda unmatched. Insignificance and Simple Songs are superb. He isn't winking at you, too.

Bad Timing and The Visitor are also shockingly great. Both sorta take me by surprise every time I listen to them (major thanks to Mr. King for gifting me The Visitor years ago).

I've probably listened to 25% of his output and truly loved nearly everything I've heard. Couldn't hang with the Brice-Glace (sp?) album, but I don't think I was ready when I got that album--need to revisit.

Isaac wrote: Sat Jan 18, 2025 8:18 am Couldn't hang with the Brice-Glace (sp?) album, but I don't think I was ready when I got that album--need to revisit.

Nah, it's a buncha "weird" dudes in Chicago trying to take This Heat "seriously" - it's not great and doesn't hang with the other cool shit everyone involved would release.

I can't think of a Jim O'Rourke solo album I've really enjoyed, but Gastr was great, Loose Fur had some superior jams, and I agree that he gave Sonic Youth a whole extra decade before they called it quits. Not Crap!

I'm all gooney for SY. It started there. NC.

penningtron wrote: Sat Jan 18, 2025 7:35 am

akosinski wrote: Fri Jan 17, 2025 8:30 pmAlso love that he just basically said “i’m done” and walked away. sold all of his instruments. gonna go be a hermit.

Unless I missed something (haven't heard an interview from him since 2020.. some lockdown series with Ken Vandermark) he stays active in Japan. It's not guitar stuff though.

To a greater point yeah he probably could have stuck around producing Interpol records or something but he went in a different direction.

He's been very active the whole time with his Steamroom stuff, which is lovely.
When it comes to the non-songwriter stuff (which I like very very much, especially the spite songs), I think it clicked more for me when I realised I could just let it be pretty and enjoy it, i.e. the synth and composition stuff it isn't particularly weighty or difficult in a way that I had projected onto him due to his reputation.
He has helped recently with some awesome archival things, like with Roland Kayne's work.
And, like Keith Fullerton Whitman, he has just been so generous with his knowledge of obscure or previously little-known music, to the benefit of so many. That Tone Glow interview rules.

I very much like the song "Halfway to A Threeway". Not familiar with his other songs. Listened to some Gastr last year, interesting stuff.

https://steamroom.bandcamp.com/

Some of these have been released on LP. I have this one, it's great:

penningtron wrote: Sat Jan 18, 2025 7:35 am

akosinski wrote: Fri Jan 17, 2025 8:30 pmAlso love that he just basically said “i’m done” and walked away. sold all of his instruments. gonna go be a hermit.

Unless I missed something (haven't heard an interview from him since 2020.. some lockdown series with Ken Vandermark) he stays active in Japan. It's not guitar stuff though.

To a greater point yeah he probably could have stuck around producing Interpol records or something but he went in a different direction.

i may have misunderstood what I heard during the few interviews i heard with him and Grubbs early in 2024 to go alongside the new Gastr del Sol record that came out. I thought he said that he sold all of his stuff and I assumed he was done, but maybe it was just done with guitar playing.

Yeah, he mentioned he didn't really play guitar anymore in that Vandermark conversation which kinda bummed Ken out.

He's still playing.



I believe he plays guitar on some of his partner Eiko Ishibashi's recent soundtrack work too.

Did you know he grew up working class?! I did a report on his production work in my high school music theory class around the Yankee Hotel Foxtrot/Sonic Youth days.

I’m not as interested in his indie rock production work now, but all the records mentioned here are very good, and that second Storm and Stress record he did is one of a kind. That ambient record he did is a semi-recent best. For a long time at work I would get on his steamroom bandcamp, pull up something random, and then not want to kill myself for a precious few moments. Love it.

His interviews used to confound me - tf you mean you’re not a player - WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU’RE NOT INTO EXPRESSION - but as time goes on I find myself just now catching up to ideas he was working through 20 years ago.

I’m biased, but I think he’s a total genius, not crap. It doesn’t matter if you or I like any given record he made. It will make sense to you or it won’t, but he’s already on to something else.

Also, I started learning pedal steel for a lot of reasons, but mostly because of this song:



Also, people complain about his glitchy stuff, ok - but there’s something about the way he hears treble that comes out pretty special when he’s behind a Buchla or whatever. Any time I listen to his stuff I’m always on the lookout for high pitched ringy stuff - I feel he has a certain characteristic taste in that range.