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Thanks for the HIP tour!

Looking forward tp listening to this DD podcast finale. When will it be posted?

Promo`SM 🌟

Tin Machine presaged Grunge by three years, but Bowie still hasn't gotten the credit for it, even though many of those bands covered his songs, most notably, of course, Nirvana.

Nice to see the Bathhouse studio looks beautiful

GHTTH4E

Your call that Man Machine Poem was organic is spot-on: I believe they wrote it in 10 minutes or so. I used to think the "drip drip drip" was a cancer metaphor, too, but it wasn't, at least not when it was written, which was before his wife's diagnosis, according to the Hip's biography. Which is a little confusing, because when a reporter asked about it on CBC as if it was a cancer metaphor, he didn't deny it. Could have been he was just following the edict, "If you think that's what the songs about, that's what it's about." Madeline Kahn, reflecting on when she was a child, said, "I wanted to be the music," which is that reference.

fab

The only full-length Hip album I don't like, beyond Morning Moon, Last Recluse and The Depression Suite. All the ways Bob Rock helped on World Container -- keeping songs tight, letting their influences shine, encouraging Gord to write 'love' lyrics without being obtuse -- are overwhelmed by a million poor mixing decisions here, including at least half a dozen egregious ones. Even on the three songs I like, you have the weird volume bump at the beginning of the album, the haunted house background vocals in recluse and the overuse of fake strings on Suite. Those songs are good enough that it doesn't ruin them, but blech. (Gord's posthumous album with Rock, on the other hand, is tremendous.) In your ruminations about Bob Rock, you have to keep in mind Gord and Bob loved each other.

Thanks for the catharsis

I remember a reviewer saying this one was like someone trying on an old pair of pants that don't quite fit anymore. That's about how I feel about it. It's very similar to the last album in that there's only one song up front I really like (Gus), but I quite like the back half of the album.

Your fear at being hated by Hip fans is amusing, because for two albums now your median opinion of the album is above the average Hip fan, I think. I find some value here, the last four songs save the album, Dire Wolf is one of my favourites, but I think the album doesn't even really start until Good Life. (I think the three bonus tracks are all better than the three weakest songs on the album. Problem Bears in particular is great.)

Hey Pete, should I not bring my PRS? lol!

Doiron (dwar-anh), not Dorian.

Diff'rent strokes, etc., but it blows my mind that all three of you liked it less than Henhouse. Definitely tops period for me.

I can second Pete's sentiments- it has been a pleasure to be involved with the project, appreciate some great tunes, and meet cool peeps!

My favourite way to listen to The Hip is in my car that has a premium sound system. And Nautical Disaster is a great song!

Was interested in the newbies' take on this one in that I think this is -- by far -- their most overrated album. I love Ahead by a Century, of course, and really like the last two tracks. But the rest of the album alternates between songs that sound like they're not done (Butts Wigglin', Apartment Song) and songs I like live (Don't Wake Daddy, Springtime in Vienna) that sound inert on the album. Was kind of hoping that people coming at it cold would agree with me. Alas. :)

"promo sm"

Hmmm interesting

Regarding bad fans: during this tour in Saint John, N.B., Gord very angrily chastised the crowd: "Every. item. thrown. on stage. is a STITCH out of your mother's Caesarian section!" With the caveat that Gord write opaquely enough that, as he says, the song means whatever you think it means, here are few inspirations that you wondered about that they have talked about. The cops go into the crowd line is because that happened to them. It's in one of their old newsletters. Nautical Disaster is often thought of as a Dieppe raid thing, but Gord said he was inspired by the sinking of the Lusitania. Gord said he wrote Inevitability of Death because he thought it would be funny to hear a radio DJ introduce it in a peppy voice. One of the guys on the 'cast cites song interpretations from online I've never heard before, and as you can tell I'm kind of in to them. I'd love to know his sourcing. I think a lot of your guesses about musical inspirations are big reaches, though it's interesting to hear the comparisons. Their influences don't really shine through until World Container. Totally in agreement that it's their best album to this point but would be better without Emergency and Impossibilium.

Your garbage bag tree description is correct. He's said that in an interview. As you know by now, Gord often uses the same phrase or ideas on the same album.

I think Gems makes more sense when you get deeper into the discography. You didn't mention that there is in fact a longer "complete" version; it's on the deluxe release from 2021.