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Lo-Fi: In Search of an Honest Aesthetic (Valisian Psycle: Part VIII)

Side A
Artist Song Buy
Beat Happening
U.S. - Olympia, Washington 
Our Secret
Beat Happening (1983) 
buy on itunes
Some Velvet Sidewalk
U.S. 
Apple
International Hip Swing (1993) 
buy on itunes
The Halo Benders
U.S. - Boise, Idaho/Olympia, Washington 
On A Trip
God Don't Make No Junk (1994) 
buy on itunes
The Gerbils
U.S. - Athens, Georgia 
Sunshine Soul
Are You Sleepy? (1998) 
buy on itunes
Guided By Voices
U.S. - Ohio 
Exit Flagger
Propeller (1992) 
buy on itunes
Beulah
U.S. - San Francisco, California 
I Love John, She Loves Paul
Handsome Western States (1997) 
buy on itunes
The Olivia Tremor Control
U.S. - Athens, Georgia 
The Gravity Car
Music from the Unrealized Film Script, Dusk at Cubist Castle (1996) 
buy on itunes
Panda Bear
U.S. - New York City 

Young Prayer (2004) 
buy on itunes
Jad Fair
U.S. - Ann Arbor, Michigan 
Beverly
The Sound Of Music - An Unfinished Symphony In 12 Parts (1990) 
buy on itunes
Les Frogs
U.S. - Milwaukee, Wisconsin 
Love Me Or Die Bitch
Bananimals (1999) 
buy on itunes
The Microphones
U.S. - Anacortes, Washington 
Lanterns
Song Islands (2002) 
buy on itunes
The Unicorns
Montreal, Canada 
William, Clap Your Hands
Unicorns Are People Too (2003) 
buy on itunes
All-Time Quaterback
U.S. Seattle, Washington 
Factory Direct
All-Time Quarterback (2002) 
buy on itunes
Sentridoh
U.S. - Dayton, Ohio 
Mountain On the Hill
Free Sentridoh, Songs From Loobiecore (2002) 
buy on itunes
Franklin Bruno
U.S. - L.A. 
See It Now
Suggestion Box (1990) 
buy on itunes
Half Japanese
U.S. - Ann Arbor, Michigan 
Fire To Burn
Greatest Hits (Disc 2) (1984) 
buy on itunes
Pavement
U.S. - Stockton, California 
Box Elder
Westing (By Musket and Sextant) (1993) 
buy on itunes
Chris Knox
New Zealand 
Limited Liability
Songs Of You & Me (1995) 
buy on itunes
Party of One
U.S. - Minnesota 
6 Million Anonymous Deceased
Caught The Blast (2003) 
buy on itunes
Lou Barlow
U.S. - Dayton, Ohio 
Only Losers
Winning Losers: A Collection Of Home Recordings (1994) 
buy on itunes
Bonnie "Prince" Billy
U.S. - Louisville, Kentucky 
Madeleine-Mary
I See A Darkness (1999) 
buy on itunes
Eric's Trip
Canada 
About You
Forever Again (1994) 
buy on itunes
Side B
ArtistSongBuy
Jad Fair & Daniel Johnston
U.S. - Michigan/Texas 
Happy Talk
Daniel Johnston And Jad Fair (1988) 
buy on itunes
Smog
U.S. - Chicago, Illinois 
Not Lonely Anymore
Burning Kingdom (1994) 
buy on itunes
Neutral Milk Hotel
U.S. - Lousiana 
Naomi
On Avery Island (1995) 
buy on itunes
Mezzanines
U.S. - Champaign-Urbana, Illinois 
Grip Is Loose
Mezzanines (1998) 
buy on itunes
Bright Eyes
U.S. - Omaha, Nebraska 
The City Has Sex
Letting Off The Happiness (1998) 
buy on itunes
Bingo Trappers
Amsterdam 
White Bikini
Juanita Ave. (2001) 
buy on itunes
Elliott Smith
U.S. - Portland, Oregon 
Southern Belle
Elliott Smith (1995) 
buy on itunes
Kelley Stoltz
U.S. - San Francisco, California 
Fake Day
Antique Glow (2003) 
buy on itunes
Portastatic
U.S. - Chapel Hill, North Carolina 
Naked Pilseners
I Hope Your Heart Is Not Brittle (1994) 
buy on itunes
Sebadoh
U.S. - Dayton, Michigan 
Perverted World
III (1991) 
buy on itunes
Beck
U.S. - L.A. 
Burnt Orange Peels
One Foot In The Grave (1994) 
buy on itunes
Ween
U.S. - New Hope, Pennsylvania 
Squelch The Weasel
God Ween Satan (1990) 
buy on itunes
Simon Joyner
U.S. - Omaha, Nebraska 
Christine
The Christine EP (1999) 
buy on itunes
Dump
U.S. - Charlottesville, Virginia 
Words
International Airport (1995) 
buy on itunes
Grifters
U.S. - Memphis, Tennessee 
Arizona
Crappin' You Negative (1994) 
buy on itunes
The Apples in Stereo
U.S. - Denver, Colorado 
High Tide
Fun Trick Noisemaker (1995) 
buy on itunes
The Magnetic Fields
U.S. - Boston, Massachussets 
Sad Little Moon
Holiday (1994) 
buy on itunes
Tall Dwarfs
New Zealand 
The Brain That Wouldn't Die
Hello Cruel World (1984) 
buy on itunes
Tobin Sprout
U.S. - Ohio 
Cryptic Shapes
I Stayed Up All Night Listening To Records (1998) 
buy on itunes
R. Stevie Moore
U.S. - Nashville, Tennessee 
Records
Tra La La La Phooey! (2004) 
buy on itunes
The Vaselines
Scotland - Edinburgh 
Oliver Twisted
The Way Of The Vaselines - A Complete History (1992) 
buy on itunes
Melody Dog
U.S. 
Tommorrow's World
International Hip Swing (1993) 
buy on itunes
Half-Handed Cloud
U.S. - Knoxville, Tennessee 
Can't Even Breathe On My Own Two Feet
Learning About Your Scale (2001) 
buy on itunes
The Mountain Goats
U.S. - California 
The Last Day Of Jimi Hendrix's Life
Ghana (1992) 
buy on itunes
Daniel Johnston
U.S. - Austin, Texas/West Virginia 
Urge
Songs Of Pain: The Early Recordings Vol. 1 (Disc 1) (2000) 
buy on itunes

Comment:

The Valisian Psycle: An ongoing series of mixes inspired by (and in Tribute to) Valis; a means of saying "thank you" for his tireless promotion of present-day psychedelic music and for the numerous psychedelic publication recommendations he has made during the time I have come to know him.Lo-Fi: In Search of an Honest AestheticBy Jonathan Maier07/01/99"In hindsight, the 1980's seems to have been a decade flavored by both its prosperity and a sort of unintended decadence. So when the 1990's opened with a mild recession, that "excess" of the 1980's received a thorough backlash at the hands of a resurgent cultural and political movement. These were the environmentalists, who gained new life and tried to change the face of American culture away from the escalating use of the 1980's and back to the cry of conservation. Also during this period of change and transition, the digital revolution invaded many levels of the culture, including the popularization of the now ubiquitous compact disc in place of vinyl records and cassettes.That transition from analog to digital recording and playback technology brought about a change in the sound, or the aesthetic, if you will, of most popular music. Increasingly drum-machines, sophisticated synthesizers and samplers, and MIDI began to replace human performers. However this transition was not as rough and controversial as the change in tide from spending to thrift. In fact, this digital musical revolution went quite smoothly--and the pop, country, hip-hop, and other musicians of the day enjoyed more success than ever. At the same time this digital recording and reproduction technology made recording sound cleaner and crisper than ever before. To the general public, these changes went either unnoticed or embraced. But to some discerning musicians and audiophiles, this trend was disturbing. Smaller artists were being lost to an elite oligarchy of record labels and well-known studio musicians. `Real' musicians were being replaced with digital instruments played by computers, and even the sound of music was becoming cold...antiseptic. This was music taken too far by technology, just as the prosperity of the 1980's was taken too far by its decadence.Therefore just as a social reaction sprang forth in the form of environmentalism, a musical reaction sprang forth as well, although with much less fanfare. Dozens of individual artists around the globe created this little revolution by shunning studios, big record labels, and digital instruments altogether. In fact, they recorded only from their own home--their own living room, garage or basement. This music falls within the umbrella of "lo-fi," a reaction to the excessively "hi-fi" music of the 1980's and 90's, a reaction to the dishonest aesthetic of big budget recording artists, controlled by marketers and increasingly narrow niches of popular music.During the early 1990's these lo-fi musician--for they are truly musicians, and not mere recording artists--were noticed in their individual locales, and small labels began to recognize them and publish their music, most often on cassette, although sometimes on vinyl records and even occasionally on CD. The music of these early lo-fi releases stands as creative and unassailable as any new and innovative movement in the history of music.Bringing back the song as the heart of the musical endeavor...bringing the listener into the musician's very living room...that emotive, story-telling personal connection...that often-experimental, uninhibited, and sometimes spontaneous flash of genius...that transcendence of the culture of greed and shallowness...that is lo-fi. That is lo-fi music....lo-fi, an honest aesthetic."And, here we have the second of three double-disc stylistic explorations. How this musical journey brought me to this, I can not say for certain. But, nonetheless, I hope you enjoy!
image for mix

Feedback:

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ofthaltned
Date: 2/3/2007
Wow. Thoroughly fantastic - quite possibly my favourite in this series so far, and that's saying a lot.
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hemizen
Date: 2/3/2007
Keep them coming Chris, we love our Valis and the music.
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anthony lombardi
Date: 2/3/2007
i echo alex on this one -- probably my favorite so far (& with a series as gripping as this, that's saying alot). absolutely love the NMH (one of my favorite songs from maverick genius jeff mangum), beck, elliott smith, pavement, unicorns, beulah, magnetic fields... etc etc etc, the list goes on & on, everything here is a winner
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the bohannons
Date: 2/3/2007
You are awarded the bohannon blue ribbon for this first class tribute to the esteemed Valis. Bonus points for the inclusion of the Grifters.
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Mark Petruccelli
Date: 2/3/2007
Yeah, this is truly killer (and I know so much more on this than on the balance of the series) Great notes as well.
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Rob Conroy
Date: 2/3/2007
My hat is off to you for compiling this mix. It's unbelievably comprehensive and definitive.
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Looks brilliant (if a little over-annotated!). Love the inclusion of Bingo Trappers. Juanita Ave. is a lo-fi masterwork. Very nicely picked tracks from Elliott Smith and Pavement, too.
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sammyg123
Date: 2/4/2007
Utterly astonishing. I've been visiting Valis' blog site every day for the past couple of weeks to see what delights are on offer. Amazing stuff.
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Curtis_Burns
Date: 2/4/2007
I'm with Sammyg, "utterly astonishing" Chris. Love the Chris Knox, Tall Dwarfs and (Bloomfield NJ's own ;-]) R. Stevie especially. Hail Musicgnome! Hail Valis!!
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Dom1
Date: 2/4/2007
Know very little here, but as ever this is one more outstanding entry in a seemingly endless series of both you & Valis' favourite genre! I salute you - if I ever make it across the pond I'll try my damndest to spend a day with you trawling thru the record bins.
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valis
Date: 2/5/2007
Beautiful. Perfect.
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jonpoi
Date: 2/5/2007
Nice package, again. Neat cover.
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blasikin
Date: 2/6/2007
Low recoding fidelity but the highest fidelity to true music. I'd love to give this little weasel a spin.
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Salman1
Date: 2/8/2007
Fucking brilliant series.
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Saveloy
Date: 4/12/2007
This looks completely wonderful. Huzzah!

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