|
(I have absolutely no idea how I'm going to make this thread not sound like the ravings of a lunatic rear end in a top hat, but I'm going to try) It is a near impossibility to explain who and/or what The Residents are, as the information provided to us by the official source must always be taken with a grain of salt for obvious reasons. To further exacerbate the situation intentionally, any information in this thread is 100% off the dome because I thought that would keep in the disinformation-heavy spirit of The Residents intact. Formed in Shreveport, Louisiana in the mid-to-late '60s later relocated to San Francisco (by way of San Mateo), The Residents have been consistently recording under the philosophy of The Theory of Obscurity which posits that an artist does their best work outside of an audience's influence/expectation. The Residents have remained anonymous for almost 50 years at this point, have never granted an interview, have never shown their faces in public and perform exclusively in elaborate costuming. CURRENT LOOK (for the new In Between Dreams show to be performed in Japan starting March 21st): For more basic information, the recently released documentary Theory of Obscurity: A Film about The Residents might not answer the questions you have, but it's a very well-rounded starter package: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6h-AhQb60H0 MUSIC: Even harder to define would be the musical output of the band (Which, if you were to collect every official release, fan club-exclusive, online sale and side-project still attributed to the band would probably hit at least 150 releases, possibly more). The Residents started off not knowing how to play their instruments and it shows - their earliest releases dabble mostly in tape collage and primitive sampling, probably best displayed on their proto-Mash Up album The Third Reich and Roll often credited as the first instance that anyone sampled James Brown on a recording: Soon after that the band would focus entirely on testing the bounds of technology, delving deep into electronics, sampling, early MIDI, digitally read punch cards, even finding commercial success in early '90s CD Rom 3-D adventure games: Freak Show and Bad Day on the Midway. Describing how the music sounds outside of the phrase "Bad Acid Trip" is futile and even that is selling it short: every album sounds completely different, absolutely alien and willfully obtuse, swinging from outright noise to space opera to disco to orchestral composition, radio plays, nursery rhymes, and everything in-between. Expect anything, everything and nothing. INFLUENCE: While we'll all probably be dead before The Residents are entered into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the influence of The Residents on culture in general should not be understated when you take into account that they're credited as the inventors of the modern narrative music video. Not only are their early videos on permanent display at the New York Museum of Modern Art, their entire body of work is in their collection, housed in the Ultimate Box set - every single release the band has ever recorded and a real eyeball mask housed in a real refrigerator. Fans include Les Claypool of Primus, Ween (who have been putting Residents eyeballs all over their posters lately), Earl Sweatshirt, Parquet Courts, Kesha, Animal Collective (who basically spent the first decade of their existence paying endless homage to the band. Listen to Eskimo and "We Tigers" back-to-back is pretty amazing), Matt Groening, Pee-Wee Herman, Talking Heads, Negativland, NoMeansNo, Flipper, etc. etc. etc I think The Blue Man Group owes them $5. THE GHOST OF HOPE: Slated to be their first album an an official working unit/band since 2008's The Bunny Boy, The Ghost of Hope represents a new phase in The Residents' career, if only for the fact that the original composer has left and has been replaced with multi-instrumentalist Eric Drew Feldman, who has worked just about anyone you can think of including Captain Beefheart, P.J. Harvey, The Pixies and Frank Black, Polyphonic Spree, FEAR, and more. Cherry Red Records posted:“My heart is warm with the friends I make and better friends, I’ll not be knowing, Yet there isn’t a train I wouldn’t take, no matter where it’s going.” -Edna St Vincent Millay The Ghost of Hope streets March 24th on CD (MVD) and special edition vinyl (Psychofon). While its contents remain a mystery, check out the intense, hyper-sexualized new music video for "Rushing Like a Banshee" here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8DjpU7ompc IDENTITY: While I'm sure as hell guilty of being one gossipy motherfucker when it comes to The Residents, it'd be cool to keep that poo poo under spoiler tags on the offshoot that a random person drops by unfamiliar and finds something intriguing about the whole thing. And if you're not 100% certain on the fact, I guarantee you the first idea you have in your head is probably the correct one. But, for curiosity's sake, the current official list of collaborators for The Ghost of Hope include: Nolan Cook Eric Drew Feldman Carla Fabrizzio Anything past that is merely rumors and speculation. Wink. caligulamprey fucked around with this message at 06:12 on Feb 28, 2017 |
# ? Feb 27, 2017 21:43 |
|
|
# ? Mar 28, 2024 22:56 |
|
A selection of live performances: From the Plains to Mexico (Cube E): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oc08SGxeTl8 Burn Baby Burn (Wormwood): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3-m0QX3Gpg This is a Man's Man's Man's World (13th Anniversary): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6_KtS1O6_I The Car Thief (Demons Dance Alone): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0o0ONwUu7os 44 No More (Shadowland): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgQe2pS9EpQ Migration (The Mole Show): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eDpGgDZUyWA Music Videos: The Third Reich and Roll: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ve0XrTiFiwo Hello Skinny: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvJiyOPmsJs One Minute Movies (an excerpt from The Commercial Album): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTJJb1UqjuA Gingerbread Man: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hr-I6-gxecg And, of course, The Residents dancing with Conway Twitty: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQyoLInWa40
|
# ? Feb 27, 2017 22:27 |
|
This is a good thread. I have nothing to contribute other than to say that my dad used to play Residents records around the house when I was younger, so they've built up an almost larger-than-life status in my mind. Truth be told I find the mythos to be more intriguing than the music itself but when it's all said and done, they're one of the very few acts out there that will be able to say they did it their way, 100%. You have to respect the hell out of that, though I fear we may never get a definitive history from any of the members when it's over. So is the prominent theory that Google supplies me w/r/t their identities (Homer Flynn, et all) generally accepted as truth? It's kind of fun to think of them now as a bunch of old farts dicking around with recordings for 50 some odd years but it also wouldn't surprise me if I found out that they rotated in other musicians as needed. Theoretically they could keep the act going forever that way. edit: Should have read the wiki first but like you said, it's hard to get a good grasp on what's legitimate and what's not NiceGuy fucked around with this message at 05:45 on Feb 28, 2017 |
# ? Feb 28, 2017 05:41 |
|
NiceGuy posted:Truth be told I find the mythos to be more intriguing than the music itself The Weatherman: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxFDYRk9vlU Caring: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JM9qC68f74 NiceGuy posted:So is the prominent theory that Google supplies me w/r/t their identities (Homer Flynn, et all) generally accepted as truth? It's kind of fun to think of them now as a bunch of old farts dicking around with recordings for 50 some odd years but it also wouldn't surprise me if I found out that they rotated in other musicians as needed. Theoretically they could keep the act going forever that way. That's most definitely the reason why they've spent the last decade going on and on about death - these are dudes who are now in their 70s and most definitely feel like time is running out. GOSSIP BULLSHIT: I also feel like they're actually starting to desire the recognition they honestly deserve. I think that's why they decided to give themselves the names Randy, Chuck and Bob, why they all started accounts on social media (THE LEAD SINGER OF THE RESIDENTS HAS A TUMBLR. WHAT THE gently caress), why the majority of Shadowland was toured extensively in exotic, European vacation-y spots. The official word as far as I know is that The Residents are in fact designed to go on forever with zero end game in sight. My dumb theory: I wouldn't be surprised if they're looking into hologram tech to have not just his presence still there past death, but expanding its use to incorporate CG effects to really get loving crazy - having the dude morph into a 20-foot-tall Satan and poo poo. It doesn't have to be just recorded footage of Tupac rapping, it can be ANYTHING.
|
# ? Feb 28, 2017 14:56 |
|
Homer Flynn gave an interview on Rob Crowe's podcast and that's how I found out about the Residents. I haven't really branched out from Duck Stab, Eskimo, and some of Commercial Album though, I will check out Demons Dance Alone.
|
# ? Feb 28, 2017 17:13 |
|
Really like the Residents, it's great to see this thread. I'll also have to check out Demons Dance Alone and would like to recommend 'Not Available' to anyone who hasn't heard it. I wanna say it's like nothing I've ever heard before in music but you can apply that to a bunch of Residents albums so I'll just say it's my favorite of theirs.
|
# ? Feb 28, 2017 20:53 |
|
Astrochicken posted:Homer Flynn gave an interview on Rob Crowe's podcast Note to self: write something about Snakefinger in the thread soon. FalsePriest posted:'Not Available' They actually released an extended version a couple years back with seven extra minutes of music that was originally cut for time. Having the original burned into my brain for decades, the new bits really throw me for a loop every time I hear it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8E-7SrAU1Nw
|
# ? Feb 28, 2017 21:30 |
|
FUN FACT: When I originally said The Residents have never given an interview that's actually a half-truth. The original composer of The Residents (currently recording under the name Charles Bobuck) granted his first ever interview (after splitting from the band last year) earlier this month for Hardy Fox's Hacienda Bridge newsletter (100% worth checking out). Here's the interview in full:quote:Charles and I are relaxing on his covered porch. It is raining but it is a warm rain. I have a blanket over my lap. He is in shorts as he usually is. Charlie had opened a bottle of Pinot Noir, carefully smelling the cork before pouring measured amounts into our glasses. He then lectured me for five minutes over its merits while swirling the glass in circles.
|
# ? Feb 28, 2017 21:53 |
|
That was a fascinating read, thanks for that.
|
# ? Mar 1, 2017 02:55 |
|
Regarding some of the spoiler chat... When they had that gigantic sale/auction a few years ago with the refrigerator that held their entire creative output, there was a mystery prize for 500 K or 1 Mil or whatever the sum was. My pet theory was that the mystery prize was that you *became* a Resident, or at least got complete control over their catalog. I could easily see Homer Flynn (it's a pretty safe assumption he's been in it for the long haul. Just listen to an interview with him and an interview with Randy back to back...) getting a nice chunk of change and saying "Thanks, it's your problem now!" leaving you to decide how the band was going to continue, or if you just wanted to reissue the back catalog for all time. When I saw the 40th anniversary show (World Of Weird) tour, it did a THING to me. The entire show was based on how long they've been doing this, and how it's not going to last forever. Randy talked about Chuck wanting to leave and do his own thing with his husband on a chicken farm, and how that's totally ok. There was also a bit that I don't believe was scripted, where Randy kept checking his phone during instrumental passages and told us mid-way through the show that his cat was at the vet, and he was waiting for updates from his friend on his cat's condition. After seeing a few reunion tours or bands that just keep chugging going "Yeah, we can totally play cuts from our debut album 30 years ago, no problem!" it was especially chilling to see a band as opaque as The Residents talk about how it can't go on forever, and eventually people will leave and be replaced so they can continue making music as "The Residents", whatever that may be.
|
# ? Mar 1, 2017 03:31 |
|
Noise Machine posted:Regarding some of the spoiler chat... This reminds me of how there have been discussions at certain points, apparently, where the members of KISS would find new people to keep the brand going after Gene and Paul die/stop (whichever happens first). Except in this case it feels less ghoulish, probably because while I'm sure the Residents like making money off their ventures, and it's probably a priority, they'd rather be remembered for being interesting and good.
|
# ? Mar 1, 2017 03:44 |
|
Guys, I highly suggest you subscribe to Hardy Fox's Hacienda Bridge newsletter (via hardyfox.com). Real honest-to-goodness behind the curtains poo poo likequote:The original design for The Residents "look" was that they didn’t have feet. Walking seemed very plebeian. Even rolling seemed a better option than feet, though no design for wheels was ever close to being implemented. For many years a front curtain was a requirement for Residents shows so that the group could already be on the stage when the curtain opened sparing the embarrassment of walking.
|
# ? Mar 1, 2017 17:41 |
|
Noise Machine posted:Regarding some of the spoiler chat... Noise Machine posted:There was also a bit that I don't believe was scripted, where Randy kept checking his phone during instrumental passages and told us mid-way through the show that his cat was at the vet, and he was waiting for updates from his friend on his cat's condition.
|
# ? Mar 2, 2017 00:49 |
|
caligulamprey posted:5 million dollars. Then that only adds evidence to my theory
|
# ? Mar 2, 2017 15:58 |
|
Billboard has a decent write-up detailing plans for the future, including: Several videos released for the album tracks. Two more albums in the works A year of touring I hope they end up figuring out how to pull off The Ghost of Hope as a touring show. Having a fourth tour in a row being a retrospective (Greatest hits?) seems a bit much. Hit me with that new poo poo, yo.
|
# ? Mar 7, 2017 21:32 |
|
I went to a Shadowland show last year, alone. It was one of the most chilling experiences of my life, I felt like I was in a waking nightmare.
|
# ? Mar 13, 2017 03:21 |
|
Randy Rose has apparently become his own completely separate entity apart from The Residents, insisting he has nothing to do with the current line-up, live shows or even the album itself: NotDead: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AmslJI3FvuM WhatTheFuck!: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzgMvadja9E I'm curious to see where this leads. I think it ties into Chuck - even though the Randy, Chuck And Bob narrative has come to a close, Chuck continues to release music under that name, so it makes sense that Randy's out there, too. Who know's what the gently caress is up with Bob, though. Blast Fantasto posted:I went to a Shadowland show last year, alone. It was one of the most chilling experiences of my life, I felt like I was in a waking nightmare. EDIT: There's a song about The Residents/music anonymity on the new Magnetic Fields album! Neat surprise. caligulamprey fucked around with this message at 04:28 on Mar 14, 2017 |
# ? Mar 13, 2017 23:15 |
|
My friend and I had before the Shadowland show, and my mind couldn't really look at Randy without going nuts, but if I tried to look at the backdrop I thought it was going to come to the front of the stage.
|
# ? Mar 14, 2017 03:56 |
|
If you're not opposed to , The Ghost of Hope has leaked all over the webternet. Initial reaction: this is one of the best things they've ever done. Hoooooooooooly poo poo. gently caress.
|
# ? Mar 18, 2017 21:35 |
|
Goddaaaaaaaaaaaaaaamn that's fuckin' dope. In Between Dreams setlist: 1. JELLY JACK 2. LOSER = WEED / PICNIC IN THE JUNGLE 3. GOD'S MAGIC FINGER 4. BABY SISTER 5. INSTRUMENTAL 6. THE BLACK BEHIND 7. THE MAN IN THE DARK SEDAN 8. FROM THE PLAINS TO MEXICO 9. THE MONKEY MAN 10. TEDDY 11. MAN'S WORLD 12. TRAIN VS ELEPHANT 13. RUSHING LIKE A BANSHEE 14. SIX MORE MILES EC1. INSTRUMENTAL EC2. DIE! DIE! DIE!
|
# ? Mar 22, 2017 06:16 |
|
Demons dance alone is.. shockingly different than what I'm used to from them. Somehow or other it's just what I needed right now because I can't stop listening to it. The car thief is stellar.
|
# ? Mar 22, 2017 18:28 |
|
The Theory of Obscurity documentary is now available to stream for free via Amazon Prime!
|
# ? Mar 23, 2017 15:04 |
|
Pre-orders for the limited edition vinyl just went up: https://www.psychofonrecords.com/product/residents-ghost-of-hope-vinyl/quote:The Ghost of Hope vinyl “Die-Hard Lenticular Set” includes the following: 2x one-sided clear/red split vinyl with clear front-and-back cover foil sheets, held in a folded double 12″ clear pic disc cover. The vinyl feature lenticular “Flip Flop” labels on both B-sides of the records. The Die-Hard package will be priced at €99,99 and is strictly limited to 100 numbered copies. And that is not all…The lenticular set comes with the special Ghost of Hope Bonus Package, which includes a very large 25x25cm (10″) 3D-animated lenticular stickerplate with the cover art from the Ghost of Hope…PLUS a one sided Glow-in-the-Dark 7″ vinyl with ‘Train vs Elephant’ as a Bonus Track. The Bonus Package, like a ghost late for a haunting, will arrive at your door separately (free of charge) from the vinyl at a later date... quote:The Ghost of Hope vinyl Collector’s Edition is a 3 color splatter vinyl with red black and grey over white, held in a red innersleeve and hand-numbered. The Collector’s Edition also comes with a 6 postcard set! Limited to 200 copies and priced at €34,99. MVD will distribute plain black vinyl and CDs to US stores starting tomorrow!
|
# ? Mar 24, 2017 00:14 |
|
Last night was the official listening party which included a performance by The Residents billed pretty specifically as not being a concert, but the band adding texture to the album as it played. Looks like a loving dope concert to me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PiFess79N4g
|
# ? Mar 31, 2017 16:00 |
|
Well goddamn! The entire performance was shot professionally and up in its entirety on YouTube! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLZhbzgRwS8
|
# ? Apr 1, 2017 00:32 |
|
I'm hoping that this is the format of the tour. It would be a very Residents thing to release an album with sparse arrangements, only to play it on the road as "No, THIS is how it should sound" with the real arrangement only heard live. Probably just a pipe dream.
|
# ? Apr 1, 2017 16:26 |
|
Noise Machine posted:I'm hoping that this is the format of the tour. It would be a very Residents thing to release an album with sparse arrangements, only to play it on the road as "No, THIS is how it should sound" with the real arrangement only heard live. Probably just a pipe dream. In Between Dreams was put together at the last moment. The Residents knew they would be touring, but the offer to play Japan was floated to them before they had even started planning what the tour would be - they'd already put plans for a Ghost of Hope tour on the back burner because they felt it would need enough of a stage production that they'd want to sit down in a city for multiple shows like Cube-E. IBD was created as a weird hybrid of the Randy, Chuck and Bob trilogy (even recycling the projection prop from Shadowland) with a little bit of Ghost of Hope thrown in AND instrumental segments pulled from the next album they're already writing/recording. The tour doesn't start until November in Europe, plenty of time for them to shape it into something else entirely. Initially this San Francisco show was billed as an album release party including the band adding "live texture" to the CD as it plays, but it kind of morphed into what's in the video: a re-worked album with every band member present and guest vocalists, to boot. I wonder if it's a dry run for a minimalist Ghost of Hope touring show. I really dig the vibe the band has during this, though. What initially seems like nervousness from The Singer (he does fumble throughout the first track) eventually reveals itself to be more of an entirely different character - this weird, imposing Grim Reaper death spectre that just stands there looming, completely still and terrifying. Or maybe it's just weird that he isn't running around the stage in clown shoes, screaming about blowjobs and waving a giant dildo around. Either way, I love it. caligulamprey fucked around with this message at 17:49 on Apr 1, 2017 |
# ? Apr 1, 2017 17:46 |
|
My first touch with The Residents was Wormwood live recording in its entirety in the Finnish national broadcasting network radio just before the turn of the millennium. That sounded hella cool. Went to Eskimo, Commercial Album, the first couple of records from there. But somehow it has been the Wormwood that really stuck with me.
|
# ? May 26, 2017 23:12 |
|
Lunsku posted:My first touch with The Residents was Wormwood live recording in its entirety in the Finnish national broadcasting network radio just before the turn of the millennium. That sounded hella cool. Went to Eskimo, Commercial Album, the first couple of records from there. But somehow it has been the Wormwood that really stuck with me. Nothing much has been going down Residents news-wise, but Secret Records is teasing a new Residents release that never got a release on vinyl. Pre-orders up on June 16th with a possible late July release. I picked up their 13th Anniversary in Holland reissue a couple weeks back and it's really pretty and sounds excellent. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGMB2BHNR_o
|
# ? May 28, 2017 18:21 |
|
Secret Records just put up the pre-sale for their Snakey Wake release, which has never been released on vinyl. Side 1 is the studio recording and side 2 is the live performance. Two color variants, hand numbered with a download card limited to 200 copies each (another limited edition press of 300 will be coming out on Cyan blue vinyl courtesy of MVD, not numbered, no download). https://secretrecords.bandcamp.com/
|
# ? Jun 2, 2017 07:07 |
|
Ween keeps putting Residents on their posters and I love it very much. I still need to get my San Francisco show posters on my wall, including: close-ups of Eyeballs, tophats and giant ejaculating penisesesessss:
|
# ? Jun 2, 2017 16:56 |
|
Picked this up, thanks. How did you feel about the quality of the live LP they've got available? I'm assuming you bought it?
|
# ? Jun 3, 2017 00:15 |
|
Giga Gaia posted:Picked this up, thanks. How did you feel about the quality of the live LP they've got available? I'm assuming you bought it? Oh yeah, forgot to mention about the Snakey Wake release: the first 200 orders come with a free patch! They're down to about 30-ish at this point.
|
# ? Jun 3, 2017 02:32 |
|
Nice. Hopefully they have one available when I get paid next. Couldn't justify dropping that much money on both albums in one early morning haze.
|
# ? Jun 3, 2017 13:55 |
|
caligulamprey posted:Man, I completely blanked out on Rob Crow, dude's a huge Residents dork. He also does a sweet cover of Snakefinger's Man in the Dark Sedan (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ceBpKXKCsc). This is great, thanks. It's also the only exposure i've had to anything exclusively snakefinger related. Maybe it's the music video but i get a very early, early devo vibe from the original.
|
# ? Jun 3, 2017 17:20 |
|
Got my record today; sounds and looks great. Forgot the patch was in it when it fell out at me. A fine purchase. Secret Records ships really fast too. Both times hitting my doorstep a day after I got the tracking code email. Thanks again for the heads up on them. Are you going to partake in the archive eBay auction Cryptic has going on? Giga Gaia fucked around with this message at 23:14 on Aug 23, 2017 |
# ? Aug 23, 2017 23:11 |
|
Finally found that old Documentary on The Residents with Penn & Teller (Penn was a manager for the band in the 80s) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vT4CzFRFp5U
|
# ? Aug 23, 2017 23:51 |
|
Giga Gaia posted:Are you going to partake in the archive eBay auction Cryptic has going on? Anyone else interested in looking to see how loving dedicated Beatles fans are, Check out the Cryptic eBay page here! Cool poo poo in the pipelines: quote:
San Francisco radio station KALW did a 2-hour special with Homer Flynn called "The Residents go to the Dogs," Where they discussed in detail the history of Santa Dog and the various reinterpretations they've done over the years, including the debut of Santa Dog '17, due out later this year as a 7' by Psychofon. You can listen to that here: https://archive.org/details/KALWHomerFlynnInterview Klanggalerie is re-releasing Title in Limbo, the collaboration between The Residents and Renaldo and the Loaf as a two CD set which will include the infamous 4Daze demo tape for the first time ever: http://klanggalerie.com/gg200-2. They're also doing a release of I Murdered Mommy, the soundtrack to the aborted video game the band was designing until the Adventure Game format died. Cherry Red Records will be reissuing more vinyl including albums that have never been released on the format - The Gingerbread Man and Bad Day on the Midway being two examples given. Those releases will be exclusive to the official Residents mailing list, which you can sign up for here: http://eepurl.com/cApg2T Holy moly, being a Residents fan can be exhausting.
|
# ? Aug 24, 2017 00:30 |
|
The Residents are now crowdfunding (?) two new albums via PledgeMusic. The first one called I AM A RESIDENT! invites fans to record their own Residents cover and submit it for the chance to show up on the album proper, along with INTRUDERS, a collection of all new material. Digital downloads, vinyl packaging, slipmats, posters, socks, all sorts of dope poo poo ahoy: https://www.pledgemusic.com/projects/theresidents The $15 nets you both albums on digital download. Also they buried the lead in the Golden Ticket description: US tour starts in April! caligulamprey fucked around with this message at 23:21 on Oct 4, 2017 |
# ? Sep 25, 2017 18:02 |
|
|
# ? Mar 28, 2024 22:56 |
|
Surprising absolutely everyone and no one, Hardy Fox has come out as the original main composer of The Residents. Why?
|
# ? Oct 4, 2017 17:57 |