Flying Lizards, Fourth Wall

By Matt Keeley

The title of the most important (only?) Flying Lizards fan page is “They Were a Very Different Band,” which sounds about right. They’re most famous for their deconstructed cover of “Money,” featuring a disaffected, posh-sounding English woman demanding money while speaking the lyrics over prepared piano and the sound of a bass guitar being hit with a stick. The single was recorded for a grand total of 26 pounds. Basically, the band wasn’t ever meant to be a band.
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Gargoyle Sox and That Song

By Less Lee Moore

Anyone who’s discussed music with me at length knows about the box of dusty old tapes I’ve kept since I was a teenager. Back in the day, when my music taste was heavily informed by WTUL New Orleans, I would spend hours taping songs from the radio. In fact, I didn’t buy a whole lot of albums at that point because buying blank tapes gave me more bang for my broke teenaged buck.
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The First Synthpop Song, Part Three

By Less Lee Moore

In the July/August 2008 issue of Popshifter, I attempted to answer the question, “What was the first synthop song?” Not being able to resolve the quandary quite so easily in one article, I delved further into the issue in our September/October issue.
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The First Synthpop Song, Part Two

By Less Lee Moore

In the July/August 2008 issue of Popshifter, I attempted to answer the question, “What was the first synthop song?”

Having arrived back at the old “Popcorn vs. Chicory Tip” quandary once again, I figured I’d better find out more about both.
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The First Synthpop Song, Part One

By Less Lee Moore

Read Part Two here.
Read Part Three here.

Although I usually consider the search for the Pop Culture Holy Grail to be a quest for a tangible object, this time around it was something more esoteric.
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My One-Night Stand With Kevin Ayers

By Hanna

Ayers, Nico, Cale, Eno

Kevin Ayers, both as a member of Soft Machine and as a solo artist, is one of the most respected musicians alive today. Because of his easy-going good-humor and extensive back catalogue of avant garde music, he has been revered by music lovers for decades. Similarly, his collaborations demand respect and admiration, and confirm his position as a mainstay of what is considered intelligent music. His work with John Cale, Andy Summers, Ollie Halsall, and Mike Oldfield are examples of his eminent good taste in other music as well as his own.
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Peter Godwin’s Porn Purgatory

By Hanna

“I only subscribe to porn mags
for the articles, honest!”

“The internet is for porn,” as the song goes, and so when I went looking for the allegedly raunchy video for the Peter Godwin song “Images of Heaven,” I imagined it would be easy. The song was popular at the time it was released, and still much-loved judging from blog entries about it. Plus, the artist and director are both still alive. However, recent clampdowns on footage of a pornographic or otherwise graphic nature on YouTube and other hosting sites actually meant that it would not be easy at all.
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