S & D: one man bands

Message Bookmarked

Bookmark Removed

does anyone hold a candle to Hasil Adkins?

― fritz, Saturday, 30 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

and would you want to?

― fritz, Saturday, 30 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I am in love with Chan Marshall

― Ron, Saturday, 30 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Is there not a one man band who posts around here who just put out a new album that I'm listening to now?

― Keiko, Saturday, 30 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Atom & His Package! <- He's cool.

― A Nairn, Saturday, 30 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

durutti column

― electric sound of jim, Saturday, 30 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Quintron back in the drumming days was great (c.f. Internal Feedback 001-011). Not quite as big on the organ stuff, though some of it was fun.

John Fahey, RIP, could carry quite the load on his old shoulders.

And The Mountain Goats are revered highly in these parts.

― doug, Saturday, 30 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

To answer the original question - yes, I believe his name is the Legendary Stardust Cowboy.

― dave q, Saturday, 30 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

R. Stevie Moore, though I know that wasn't exactly the category we were looking for. Masters of the Obvious, though they're not a one-man operation any more. Peter Stampfel, on a good day.

― Douglas, Saturday, 30 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Search: Prince!!!!!

― Andy K, Saturday, 30 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I like Cex, but I wouldn't go out of my way to see him.

― j.lu, Saturday, 30 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

burzum!! birchville cat motel!! gate!! i just woke up so all i can think of is headachey noise!!

― your null fame, Saturday, 30 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Leo Sayer

― Arthur, Saturday, 30 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

allen clapp plays everything on his new solo album, comes off sounding a lot like elton john.

― keith, Saturday, 30 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Ultra Vivid Scene, man!

― Alex in NYC, Saturday, 30 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

SEARCH: CHAKI

― chaki, Saturday, 30 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

the lonesome organist

― arch ibog, Monday, 1 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Jon Brion.

― Mickey Black Eyes, Monday, 1 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Jon Brion = dating Mary-Lynn Rajskub = 2nd luckiest man on earth

(did I mention I'm in love with Chan?)

― Ron, Monday, 1 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Search: Aphex Twin, Chris Knox

― o. nate, Monday, 1 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

ive seen Jon Brion just totally ruin other artist's shows by being a "guest" on stage then just totally taking over, noodling like an idiot on whatever instrument he decides to play. its funny how he goes around boasting how he's a "multi instrumentalist" when he totally sucks at most of them. by his logic, we're all great multi instrumentalists. i've seen him do this more then once, the guy has no class. totally self indulgent and tasteless with his playing.

― chaki, Monday, 1 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

once again, an edifying list.

Continue the conversation in any direction you all see fit, of course, but I'm looking for some traditional one man bands for an article I'm writing. For this purpose, I'm defining one-man-band as a simultaneous multi-instrumentalist - one who plays several instruments at the same time live. The more instruments the better. Homemade instruments welcomed. Crazy mixed-up individualists on a collision course with all your preconceptions? Surely!

The ones I've found so far are Jesse "Lone Cat" Fuller, Driftin' Slim, Joe Hill Louis, Dr. Ross, King Louie, Bob Log III, The Lightning Beat Man.

― fritz, Monday, 1 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Lonesome Organist does this, I believe, though I've never seen him. And the last time I saw Peter Jefferies, he was singing, drumming, and playing keyboards all at once.

― doug, Monday, 1 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Jon Brion is definitely pompous, overly self-indulgent, and needs a filter, but I think some of his playing as session guy has been pretty good. His Chamberlain arrangements are quite gorgeous, and his guitar-playings not too slouchy either. And there's absolutely no truth to the assertion that he's not a good instrumentalist--a cursory listen to the albums he's been on should put that claim to rest. Having said that, he's a tremendous blow-hard live, and I haven't quite figured out why no one's told him that yet.

― Mickey Black Eyes, Monday, 1 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

i guess i jumped the gun when i said he's a sucky player. he has a great ear for sound and all that but man.. he played over skerrik's sax THE WHOLE SHOW

― chaki, Monday, 1 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

multiple instruments, including homemade = Rahsaan Roland Kirk

Chaki - what Skerik performance are you referring to? I heard he had been touring with Les Claypool but that was a bit ago.

― Ron, Monday, 1 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

critters buggin at the temple bar in la. late 2001 i think

― chaki, Monday, 1 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Don Partridge, yr real actual trad one-man-band with a bass drum on his back & cymbals between his legs. He had a couple of hits in the late 60s with "Rosie" & "Blue Eyes", the latter being a great little 45. His LP from around the same time is worth seeking out too.

― harveyw, Tuesday, 2 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-four years ago)

nine months pass...

http://www.boblog111.com/images/helmet.gif

― Horace Mann (Horace Mann), Friday, 24 January 2003 15:51 (twenty-three years ago)

Henry Thomas

― Amateurist (amateurist), Friday, 24 January 2003 18:00 (twenty-three years ago)

(A Mann Called Horace -- doesn't it hurt? to excrete those prickly pieces of poo?)

thread wise:
DAVID MOSS - a one-man-band man, mostly - vocal improvisation + drums are his main thing, but he plays other instruments as well. 'speaks in tongues' too

― t\'\'t (t\'\'t), Friday, 24 January 2003 18:51 (twenty-three years ago)

Jack Muldurian, does he count?

― Horace Mann (Horace Mann), Friday, 24 January 2003 18:53 (twenty-three years ago)

D: Nickalicious

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Friday, 24 January 2003 19:10 (twenty-three years ago)

Does, like, almost every electronic artist or DJ count?

― donut bitch (donut), Friday, 24 January 2003 23:45 (twenty-three years ago)

Jake Austen's great zine Roctober just published an encyclopedia of one man bands. Highly recommended:

http://www.roctober.com/roctober/roc34.html

― Mr. Diamond (diamond), Saturday, 25 January 2003 07:03 (twenty-three years ago)

destroy kleenex girl wonder bobby conn pedro the lion !!
search mirah casiotoneFTPA destroyer .

― Aaron A., Saturday, 25 January 2003 07:11 (twenty-three years ago)

Search: Kleenex Girl Wonder, esp. "Ponyoak"

Destroy: Nine Inch Nails

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Saturday, 25 January 2003 19:02 (twenty-three years ago)

six years pass...

Lotta these dudes popping up the past few years - Dan Sartain, Possessed By Paul James, Bloodshot Bill, Scott H Biram, the list goes on and on. I dig the 'sound' (ie very reverent to Hasil, more attitude than songitude, but generally pretty raucous and fun) but it's hard to separate the wheat from the, err, not wheat (too drunk to try to spell 'chaffe' or whatever - what the hell is 'chaffe' anyway?)

so, S&D anew, please. It's been six years.

― If Assholes Could Fly This Place Would Be An Airport, Saturday, 20 June 2009 22:50 (sixteen years ago)

Abner Jay ftw.

― ian, Saturday, 20 June 2009 22:51 (sixteen years ago)

eight years pass...

Just saw this tweet:

One-man bands (which seem to have disappeared) were disparagingly called 'slum orchestras'. Early 20th-century postcard by Reg Carter. pic.twitter.com/aqTxQdoKwi
— TheLondonSoundSurvey (@LondonSounds) December 19, 2017

...and was thinking, yeah, this is a thing that definitely existed when I was a kid, but which seems to have disappeared entirely these days, in its traditional form at least. The best video I can find is this one, a guy who calls himself "the first and only one man band in India"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=psbMiRz2v1Q

So where are the one man bands? Is it time for a revival?

― mfktz (Camaraderie at Arms Length), Tuesday, 19 December 2017 09:50 (eight years ago)

Don’t know why I never mentioned the two-man one-man band I once saw in Edinburgh, a couple called Pete and Andrea.

― Burru Men Meet Burryman ina Wicker Man (James Redd and the Blecchs), Tuesday, 19 December 2017 11:25 (eight years ago)

that tour Thomas Dolby did about a decade ago where he played everything "live" but just looped everything until he'd built the whole song from the ground up was pretty amusing. I'd bet there are a number of people doing this but I can't think of any

― frogbs, Tuesday, 19 December 2017 13:44 (eight years ago)

what about that 1 guy

― bob lefse (rushomancy), Tuesday, 19 December 2017 13:58 (eight years ago)

he's fine but that's not what really what I'm talking about

― frogbs, Tuesday, 19 December 2017 14:04 (eight years ago)

there are a fair number of people who play live by building their own loops, or at least there were a couple years ago. i've seen a couple people like that without really trying.

― bob lefse (rushomancy), Tuesday, 19 December 2017 14:20 (eight years ago)

I thought we had already reached peak live looping and that it's on the downslope.

Anyway the guy really carrying the torch for all-live looping (not just playing some instruments over tracks) is Binkbeats.

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

― change display name (Jordan), Tuesday, 19 December 2017 15:38 (eight years ago)

I was hoping for a little less live looping (which I love, especially this but it's covered enough elsewhere) and more people with drumkits on their backs.

― mfktz (Camaraderie at Arms Length), Tuesday, 19 December 2017 16:17 (eight years ago)

Just saw The Suitcase Junket (i.e. Matt Lorenz) play in an intimate setting, using a tube-amped dumpster guitar, broken bottles, twisted forks, dried bones, gas cans, shoes, saw blades, a toy keyboard and more. He did some weird whistling in which I swore he had to have been using a mouth organ or something, but he demonstrated his technique for all of us and there were no tricks. You can here it in this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RymjvQ0IFaE

― Jazzbo, Tuesday, 19 December 2017 16:40 (eight years ago)

**hear**

― Jazzbo, Tuesday, 19 December 2017 16:41 (eight years ago)

two years pass...

oh hey
BBC Radio: The True Story of Abner Jay
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/b04yftl1

― Fuck the NRA (ulysses), Monday, 2 November 2020 20:42 (five years ago)

Abner Jay ftw.

Otm

― brimstead, Monday, 2 November 2020 22:16 (five years ago)

Bob Log III -- go on, stick your boob in his scotch.

― scampo-phenique (WmC), Monday, 2 November 2020 23:47 (five years ago)

You must be logged in to post. Please either login here, or if you are not registered, you may register here.