Issue 24- December ‘99
*******News***************
The Lassie Foundation USA will be touring the mexican northwest otherwise known as the american southwest before the criminal act known as the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo. Never the less, the Lassie Foundation USM will be coming to Arizona and Texas over the following dates: Jan 13-17. Some of these dates may be with the chinese of Fine China and hopefully Duraluxe. Regardless, the Foundation will be bringing the rock somewhere outside of the Center of Modern World (southern California) so please come out and support the rock n roll. If you drive farther than 100 miles and can prove it to the band, we'll buy you a beer or a soda. If you drive farther than 101 miles, we will by you two. If you drive farther than 102 miles, we will give you some free stickers in addition to the 2 bevarages of your choice. 200 miles or more, a free t-shirt.
Thanks for all the support all of you have given us for the last few years. We are sorry that our releases are always years and years apart. We are doing the best we can to get new music out and still try to play live in southern California. We wish all of our fans and friends and family a wonderful holiday over the next 45 days. We love you and wish that every prayer and dream may come true.
Lastly, I mention this as no offense to any one of different beliefs or ideals or lifestyles, but as an encouragment to all of us, to follow Christ as best you can.
yours, the foundation
campuzano (11/22/99)
In other news....
* The El Rey EP is done and will be
released within the next couple of weeks. I will send out a notice
when it is available and will send out ordering information along with
it.
*There had been talk of the Lassie
Foundation doing an unplugged show in December with the Violet Burning,
but the Lassie Foundation will not be playing with them.
*There will be new pictures on the
website at http://www.rollanet.org/~johnston within the next few weeks.
They are pictures campuzano took in the Lassie Foundation's studio, so
keep an eye out for them.
-alyssa johnston
**************************************
Record Review - U2 The Unforgettable
Fire (1984)
by Wayne Everett
OK, yeah, being
a U2 fan in 1999 ain't that cool, but the tide always seems to turn around.
New wave of the 80's seems to be beginning to have a retro-influence, and
U2 made their mark on the Boy(1980), October(1981), and War(1983) albums.
In 1984 they were on the brink of worldwide explosion with their epic brand
of idealistic rock-your-pure-intentions pop music.
They had primed the college rock world
simultaneously with the pop world for their ascension to the rock 'n' roll
throne. The Unforgettable Fire was not the record the world wanted
to hear.
Sure, there's the
celebratory "Pride(In the Name of Love)" which sufficed radio program directors
and solidified U2 as the premier earnest-rock band in the world.
But that's just one piece to this fragmented (compared to 1987's The Joshua
Tree and others) and beautifully
experimental album.
"A Sort of Homecoming"
begins the journey through landscapes wrought by atmospheric guitar and
rolling bass. Co-producer Brian Eno (Bowie's Lodger, Low, and Heroes,
among others) makes his spacey presence known--not in the avant-garde instrumentalism
of his solo work (perhaps an exception is "4th of July")--but in the stretching
of U2's musical limits, as in the
conversational "Promenade" and the
improvisation "Elvis Presley and America". Daniel Lanois, as co-producer,
holds down the fort as the band rips out songs like "Wire" and the
title track. The Unforgettable Fire rules when it combines elements
of big-chorus resolve with haunting, unsure instrumentation and desperate
lyrics ("The Unforgettable Fire", "Bad", "MLK"). It wasn't until
maybe 1990 or so that this kind of atmospheric experimentation became cool
(read My Bloody Valentine, Lush, Cocteau Twins, Slowdive, etc.).
For all of U2's uncoolness now, it's refreshing to hear a record that tried
to push the envelope just a little at the potential expense (at that time)
of their entire career.
Standout Cuts: "A Sort of Homecoming",
"The Unforgettable Fire", "Promenade", "Bad", "Elvis Presley and America"
*************************************
Links
ANNIE- http://listen.to/glamrock
Battered Fish- http://www.powerup.com.au/~battered
Dumpster- http://www.powerup.com.au/~dumpster
Havalina Rail Co. Website- http://www.havalina.home.ml.org
Nzine- http://come.to/nzine
Official Lassie Foundation Website- http://www.rollanet.org/~johnston
Sukafoi- http://come.to/latemag
The Redcrown Republic http://327.com/redcrown
Three Twenty-Seven http://www.327.com/
Toupee Records- http://www.ozemail.com.au/~toupee
If anyone has any contributions for
the newsletter, send them to johnston@rollanet.org
Send any comments to: johnston@rollanet.org
Contact the band at theLassief@aol.com
Send any links with a site explanation
w/ a subject of "LINKS" to johnston@rollanet.org
Please e-mail address changes or to
unsubscribe to johnston@rollanet.org
Thanks to: Eric Campuzano and Wayne Everett
Merry Christmas!
Until next month....alyssa johnston