PHATJ wrote:
Proposed album sequence (I haven't actually had a chance to listen through this yet, but I'm going to this afternoon).
01. Pendulum
02. Army Reserve
03. Let it Ride
04. Marker In The Sand
05. Cold Confession
06. Unemployable
07. Lightning Bolt
08. Infallible
09. Yellow Moon
10. Man of the Hour
Hidden Track: 10 Billion Years
I'm going to make this playlist but with Amongst the Waves instead of Lightning Bolt.
Fuck yeah man! I'm just starting to listen through it now.
It's a confluence of things. Releasing a "brawny" album after two straight albums of murky introspection, the increased media profile (Vh1 Storytellers, first concept music video since 98, Rolling Stone cover, TV spots), and their transition to "legacy" band status.
Anders wrote:I do not have a «neoliberal assessment of geopolitics», so please stop writing that I do.
tragabigzanda wrote:
The Avocado era was unique because it was the first time they were without a label. They ultimately did a distro deal with J Records, but had to take on the management of all these massive expenses internally. It wouldn't have been a smart time for a boundary-pushing album, and given the other changes in their lives, I can easily see why a classic rock record was a smart move for them.
I don't know; I really doubt they were in financial trouble, or needed to hew closely to a formula. They recorded in Seattle, and likely paid for their entire recording budget (and then some) with a few of the 2005 shows they did. They weren't really in a different position than most bands without a major label, many of whom don't have the cash flow that PJ has. I just honestly think they wanted to be the biggest band in the world.
tragabigzanda wrote:
The Avocado era was unique because it was the first time they were without a label. They ultimately did a distro deal with J Records, but had to take on the management of all these massive expenses internally. It wouldn't have been a smart time for a boundary-pushing album, and given the other changes in their lives, I can easily see why a classic rock record was a smart move for them.
I don't know; I really doubt they were in financial trouble, or needed to hew closely to a formula. They recorded in Seattle, and likely paid for their entire recording budget (and then some) with a few of the 2005 shows they did. They weren't really in a different position than most bands without a major label, many of whom don't have the cash flow that PJ has. I just honestly think they wanted to be the biggest band in the world.
Makes a lot of sense.
Plus, I recall most of (in not all of) the "money grab" perception coming from the Target deal and those private corporate gigs. And all of that came after S/T, didn't it?
tragabigzanda wrote:
The Avocado era was unique because it was the first time they were without a label. They ultimately did a distro deal with J Records, but had to take on the management of all these massive expenses internally. It wouldn't have been a smart time for a boundary-pushing album, and given the other changes in their lives, I can easily see why a classic rock record was a smart move for them.
I don't know; I really doubt they were in financial trouble, or needed to hew closely to a formula. They recorded in Seattle, and likely paid for their entire recording budget (and then some) with a few of the 2005 shows they did. They weren't really in a different position than most bands without a major label, many of whom don't have the cash flow that PJ has. I just honestly think they wanted to be the biggest band in the world.
I don't think they have ever been in financial trouble. But the logistics of handling your own arena tour, CD/vinyl production, merchandise production, all the details that come with that -- staff, liability, deliverables, etc -- was until that point handled by Sony/Epic, and invoiced to the band as a bottom-line cost. It was complicated and probably fairly difficult, and they needed, above all else, to make sure that the fans were going to buy tickets to shows.
I think Alive and Jeremy and Animal and Better Man made sure of that long ago.
This is an honest question, and something I didn't know; do major labels book tours for their acts? Like, did Epic book all of PJ's tours prior to 2004? I would have assumed that PJ's management always did that.
Last edited by digster on Fri February 12, 2016 6:52 pm, edited 1 time in total.
tragabigzanda wrote:
The Avocado era was unique because it was the first time they were without a label. They ultimately did a distro deal with J Records, but had to take on the management of all these massive expenses internally. It wouldn't have been a smart time for a boundary-pushing album, and given the other changes in their lives, I can easily see why a classic rock record was a smart move for them.
I don't know; I really doubt they were in financial trouble, or needed to hew closely to a formula. They recorded in Seattle, and likely paid for their entire recording budget (and then some) with a few of the 2005 shows they did. They weren't really in a different position than most bands without a major label, many of whom don't have the cash flow that PJ has. I just honestly think they wanted to be the biggest band in the world.
I don't think they have ever been in financial trouble. But the logistics of handling your own arena tour, CD/vinyl production, merchandise production, all the details that come with that -- staff, liability, deliverables, etc -- was until that point handled by Sony/Epic, and invoiced to the band as a bottom-line cost. It was complicated and probably fairly difficult, and they needed, above all else, to make sure that the fans were going to buy tickets to shows.
I think Alive and Jeremy and Animal and Better Man made sure of that long ago.
Too-shay. But I think that having to take a more active role in the admin of their brand seems to have sucked the creativity from their music.
That's an interesting thought. And it's entirely possible that had something to do with it. I'm just not sure how much more active their role is now as it was back when. I don't know how all that works. You could be right.
theplatypus wrote:It's a confluence of things. Releasing a "brawny" album after two straight albums of murky introspection, the increased media profile (Vh1 Storytellers, first concept music video since 98, Rolling Stone cover, TV spots), and their transition to "legacy" band status.
good post that was bottom paged. good gist of pramg.
tragabigzanda wrote:
The Avocado era was unique because it was the first time they were without a label. They ultimately did a distro deal with J Records, but had to take on the management of all these massive expenses internally. It wouldn't have been a smart time for a boundary-pushing album, and given the other changes in their lives, I can easily see why a classic rock record was a smart move for them.
I don't know; I really doubt they were in financial trouble, or needed to hew closely to a formula. They recorded in Seattle, and likely paid for their entire recording budget (and then some) with a few of the 2005 shows they did. They weren't really in a different position than most bands without a major label, many of whom don't have the cash flow that PJ has. I just honestly think they wanted to be the biggest band in the world.
I don't think they have ever been in financial trouble. But the logistics of handling your own arena tour, CD/vinyl production, merchandise production, all the details that come with that -- staff, liability, deliverables, etc -- was until that point handled by Sony/Epic, and invoiced to the band as a bottom-line cost. It was complicated and probably fairly difficult, and they needed, above all else, to make sure that the fans were going to buy tickets to shows.
I think Alive and Jeremy and Animal and Better Man made sure of that long ago.
Too-shay. But I think that having to take a more active role in the admin of their brand seems to have sucked the creativity from their music.
That's an interesting thought. And it's entirely possible that had something to do with it. I'm just not sure how much more active their role is now as it was back when. I don't know how all that works. You could be right.
A friend of mine works for Sony Legal, and has worked with the band for many years (he gets a thanks in the PJ20 book and doc). He says that all the reissue stuff is driven by Jeff -- he sorts through the tapes, artwork, and memorabilia, puts together the packages, and gets the band on-board with the whole thing. I bet the new releases are more of a full-band effort, but don't know for sure.
You wanna ask your friend when we're getting the next reissue, please.
PHATJ wrote:
Proposed album sequence (I haven't actually had a chance to listen through this yet, but I'm going to this afternoon).
01. Pendulum
02. Army Reserve
03. Let it Ride
04. Marker In The Sand
05. Cold Confession
06. Unemployable
07. Lightning Bolt
08. Infallible
09. Yellow Moon
10. Man of the Hour
Hidden Track: 10 Billion Years
I'm going to make this playlist but with Amongst the Waves instead of Lightning Bolt.
Fuck yeah man! I'm just starting to listen through it now.
Okay, after listening through and hearing each song transition, I've tinkered with the song order. I think I like this better than my first attempt. The flow seems to work a lot better.
01. Pendulum
02. Unemployable
03. Army Reserve
04. Lightning Bolt
05. Infallible
06. Cold Confession
07. Yellow Moon
08. Marker in the Sand
09. Let It Ride
10. Man of the Hour
Hidden Track: 10 Billion Years
Last edited by PHATJ on Fri February 12, 2016 8:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.
