While Your Charm Is Considered Disarming: Transmission 281, 2016 June 8

This one time, I was in the same room as Tony Allen. He was part of a panel at our local Africana Center, and he was giving a "tutorial" on the drums. His kit was set up in the room and everything. It--he--had a massive sound and that is as much as I can say about that. I'm really here to share some quotes.

Having invited members of the audience to come up and play the drums so that he could explain his technique, he gave a listen to this one hipster for about 30 seconds. "You play drums?" he asked, as the dude nodded sheepishly. "For real? In a band?"

Other pearls of wisdom:

"The first time I heard Art Blakey, I asked, 'is someone playing the cymbal for him?'"
"When I said, 'I don't like to play solos,' I didn't mean 'I don't play solos.'"
"It sounds simple. It's not so fucking simple."
"When you play with me, you don't riff. I don't riff. I keep you down there. You sit."

I actually had tickets to see him play that night, albeit with a Local Wannabe Afrobeat Ensemble who shall remain nameless, but my taste for that was soured when members of said Local Wannabe Afrobeat Ensemble, during the talk, put Mr. Allen in the impossible position of having to say complimentary things about Local White Guys Who Appropriate Afrobeat. I didn't want to support that, but then again my ticket was already purchased, so I suppose I did. I am not so smart! At any rate I hope Tony took most of the money.

That's as close as I get to a Fela story, except to say that listening to his music convinced me to change my home listening habits, and in my home studio noodling, my production habits. Keep the EQ flat, let the speakers do the work, things sound best when they sound like themselves. Thank you, Fela.

BOMBAST playlist, 2016 June 8, 2100-2300:

1. "La Facon Dont La Machine Vers L'Arriere - Al Lover Remix" | The Brian Jonestown Massacre | La Facon Dont La Machine Vers L'Arriere | A Records
2. "Hurricane Malcolm" | Connie Price & The Keystones | Wildflowers (The Expanded Version) | Now-Again
3. "St. Vitus Dance" | Bauhaus | 5 Albums | Beggars Banquet - Hostess
4. "I Go Shout Plenty" | Fela Anikulapo Kuti & Afrika 70 | I Go Shout Plenty!!! | Kalakuta Sunrise - Knitting Factory | "Physical Evidence"
5. "Red Sun in June" | Causa Sui | Summer Sessions, Vol. 1 | El Paraiso
6. "Eidfjord" | Dessin Bizarre | Air Frais | Fluttery
7. "You Better Run" | Little Annie | Trace | Tin Angel
8. "Tide" | La Boum Fatale | Hamburg Elektronisch 3 | hafendisko
9. "Russian Glass" | Commodo | How What Time | Black Acre
10. "Nano" | The Comet Is Coming | Channel The Spirits | Leaf
11. "Night Games" | The KVB | ...Of Desire | Metropolis
12. "Some Velvet Morning" | Nancy Sinatra & Lee Hazelwood | Fairy Tales & Fantasies: The Best of Nancy Sinatra And Lee Hazelwood | Rhino | "Listening Parlour"
13. "Golden Lights" | The Smiths | The World Won't Listen [reissue] | Sire
14. "Panes" | Anenon | Petrol | Friends of Friends
15. "Raccoon Society" | Maxim Wolzyn & Bartellow | Cosmos #1 | SVS
16. "Some Velvet Morning" | Thin White Rope | When Worlds Collide | Munster
17. "Hullo" | Kettel | Wingtip | DUB
18. "If This Is" | Revbjelde | The Delaware Road | Buried Treasure
19. "Partys Fall" | Siouxsie & The Banshees | Classic Album Selection Volume Two | Polydor
20. "Cryin' Shames" | The Blue Angel Lounge | In Times 2006-2010 | 8MM Musik
21. "Frustration" | Fela Anikulapo Kuti & Afrika 70 | I Go Shout Plenty!!! | Kalakuta Sunrise - Knitting Factory | "Physical Evidence"
22. "A Huge Ever Growing Pulsating Brain That Rules From the Centre of the Ultraworld: Live Mix Mk 10" | The Orb | The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld [reissue] | WAU! Mr. Modo - Island

when I'm done, this calls for anaesthetic

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