From the musical hotbed that is Olympia Washington (it really is/has been too, due likely to the presence of super-leftist college Evergreen University....we have perhaps is only rival for leftist universities within 15 miles of my home, check out the bizarro land that is Antioch University in Yellow Springs Ohio if you will.....joke: How do you know Santa Claus went to Antioch (one could also use Evergreen in this joke, depending upon one's locale)? A: He has a beard, he wears the same clothes all the time, and he works one day a year....I'll be here all week!) come former running mates of Sleater Kinney (one of my all time favorite bands) and Le Tigre among others, The Gossip, who fit to a "T" the label of a poor man's Sleater-Kinney.
The Gossip consist of vocalist Beth Ditto, guitarist Brace Paine, and drummer Hannah Blilie and have cranked out a decent career with a post-punk indie sound that touches down squarely between SK and Le Tigre. They released their debut full-length "That's Not What I Heard' in 2001 on Kill Rock Stars Records, it's probably my favorite of their releases.....it's sloppy, to be sure, but the short amatuerish tunes are no doubt entertaining, "Where the Girls Are", "Got Body If You Want It", "Hott Date".....it's odd how some bands become so much more entertaining as they become more musically proficient (The Donnas as an example), and some are best when they are at their rawest....matter of taste I guess.
Before release of album #2, the released an EP ("Arkansas Heat") which if you heard the debut is nothing new other than a TEN (!) plus minute slop epic called "(Take Back) The Revolution".....it filled in the time between the first two discs, in 2002 they released "Movement", on which they attempt to show more diversity (Ditto plays some piano), not entirely successfully. Next came a quicky live EP ("Undead in NYC"), which showed that they had some live chops and were at th very least energetic.Their best known work is 2006's "Standing in the Way of Control".....longer (3-4 minute) tracks and a cleaner, not as hard edged sound....I know some who really like this album a lot....I am not really among them, it's okay, but personally I will take their earlier slopfests anytime......I guess I can give them credit for "maturing" or "developing their sound" or whatever......by no means a bad album, but to me not up to the standard of their earlier, more amatuerish works.....the title track is a standout, as are "Fire With Fire" and "Eyes Open", which pretty much harken back to the earlier days.
Checking the Bay for any rarities, and disovered a couple of things....number one, they had a few things I didn't have, an early self-titled EP, a remix EP ("GSSP RMX"), a spilt single with Tracy and the Plastics entitled "Real Damage"....and number two, I thought they had broken up after "Standing"....they had, actually, but got back together unbeknownst to me, and since released two other albums, "Music For Men" and "A Joyful Noise", as recently as 2012.....I have not, obviously, heard either of them, but since the Bay provides a complete discography anyway, I may as well get them and put them up here. There are a couple of more post-"Standing" EP's which I didn't know of either, so I'll grab the whole thing AND post it in whatever form it comes, IF it has artwork and tagged tracks and all that great stuff, well, that is exactly how I will post them.....if not, well, I hate to say "sorry about your luck", but as always that "too much work" phrase keeps popping into my head.
I will try to listen to the stuff with which I was not familiar in the next couple of days, but if any fans of the band are reading this, any opinions about these newer discs I would like to hear......I'm amazed that I never read of thier existence or anything, maybe I just forgot about it......seems to be happening more and more lately.
THE GOSSIP EP-01 Red Hott/02 On the Prowl/03 Jailbreak/04 Dressed in Black
THAT'S NOT WHAT I HEARD-01 Swing Low/02 I Got All This Waiting/03 Bones/04 Sweet Baby/05 Tough Love/06 Got Body If You Want It/07 Where the Girls Are/08 Bring It On/09 Heartbeats/10 Cat Fight/11 Jailbreak/12 Southern Comfort/13 And You Know...../14 Hott Date
ARKANSAS HEAT EP-01 Arkansas Heat/02 Rules For Luv/03 Ain't That the Truth/04 Gne Tomorrow/05 Lily White Hands/06 (Take back) The RevolutionMOVEMENT-01 Nite/02 Jason's Basement/03 No No No/04 Don't (Make Waves)/05 All My Days/06 Yesterday's News/07 Fire-Sign/08 Confess/09 Lesson Learned/10 Dangerrr/11 Light Light Sleep
UNDEAD IN NYC-01 All This Waiting/02 Non Non Non/03 Don't (Make Waves)/04 Rules For Love/05 The Truth/06 Gone Tomorrow/07 Confessor/08 Arkansas Heat/09 Dangrrr/10 Wanna Be Yr Dog (W/The Chromatics)REAL DAMAGE EP-THE GOSSIP-01 Left Out Now/02 Sleepers/TRACY & THE PLASTICS-03 Dawn Feather/04 Save Claude
GSSP RMX (EP)-01 Listen Up!/02 Listen Up! (MSTRKRFT Remix)/03 Listen Up! (Arthur Baker's Rtny Remix)/04 Listen Up! (A Touch of Class Remix)/05 Standing In the Way of Control (Le Tigre Remix)/06 Are U That Somebody
STANDING IN THE WAY OF CONTROL-01 Fire With Fire/02 Standing In the Way of Control/03 Jealous Girls/04 Coal to Diamonds/05 Eyes Open/06 Yr Mangled Heart/07 Listen Up!/08 Holy Water/09 Keeping You Alive/10 Dark Times/11 Listen Up! (2007 Version)/12 StandingIn the Way of Control (Soul Nite Remix)LIVE IN LIVERPOOL-01 Eyes Open/02 Yr Mangled Heart/03 Swing Low/04 Are You That Someody/05 Fire-Sign/06 Coal For Diamonds/07 Jealous Girls/08 Keeping You Alive/09 Don't Make Waves/10 Yesterday's News/11 Standing In the Way of Control/12 Listen Up/13 Carless Whisper (Bonus Track)
MUSIC FOR MEN-01 Dimestore Diamond/02 Heavy Cross/03 Eighth Wonder/04 Long Long Distance/05 Pop Goes the World/06 Vertical Rythm/07 Men In Love/08 For Keeps/09 2012/10 Love and Let Love/11 Four Letter Word/12 Spare Me From the Mold/13 Pop Goes the World (James Ford Version)/14 Heavy Cross (Fred Falke Remix)/15 The Breakdown/16 Heavy Cross (Fred Falke Remix Radio Edit)/17 Heavy Cross (Burns Remix)/18 Long Long Distance (Fake Blood Remix-Original)
A JOYFUL NOISE-01 Melody Emergency/02 Perfect World/03 Get a Job/04 Move In the Right Direction/05 Casualties of War/06 Into the Wild/07 Get Lost/08 Involved/09 Horns/10 I Won't Play/11 Love in a Foreign Place/12 Perfect World (Rory Phillips Mix)/13 Move In Right Direction (Classixx Remix)
As always, going the extra mile to bring the complete picture into focus......someone tell me i the one's I don't have are any good, links probably not till tomorrow, so many of em! See ya.......