1997.10.22 - Ultra - by Herbert Struyf

Rob Crow

Association Alphabet

He is the true Melody Maker. He's a Robert Pollard without the Genesis fixation. He's a Lennon&McCartney without the Yoko&Linda. Considering the number of songs he has released with Heavy Vegetable, Thingy, Fantasy Mission Force or as himself, Rob Crow's head must be continuously buzzing with ideas for songs and melodies. Expose yourself to the bliss of a mathpop mini-symphony like "Cotton Swab", to the lo-tech Minor-Threat-with-synths of "I.C.B.P.B.A.A." or the spoof P-funk human beatbox hiphop of "Hi I'm Rob" and you'll understand why his songs and his voice always make us dizzy with pure uncut joy, no matter if they are about Jackie Chan or waves of depression. You'll want to go out and buy all the records by all the bands he's in. You'll spend a lot of money but you won't care. Just do it.

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a is for atari vs. casio & aqua kitty
atari vs. casio... i don't quite understand this one. are there atari keyboards or casio video games in belgium? if so i would really like to know about it as i am a collector of both old shitty casio keyboards and atari 2600 games. if you could even tell me about belgium versions of 2600 games or even ones that didn't come out here i'd be real interested. aqua kitty will return in one final installment: "mondo aquakitty: a compilation of the further and final unabashed adventures of heavy vegetable".
b is for beatles & belgium & james brown & body
beatles: one down three to go. belgium: i really want to visit. james brown is 200% more punk than green day. body = music.
c is for george clinton & chan vs. lee & conspiracy theories & creedle
george clinton is150% more punk than green day. jackie chan is more an acrobat/stuntman/physical comedian, while bruce was more of a vicious street fighter. (i appreciate a comic over a bully any day). conspiracy theories: janet and michael jackson are the same person (ever see them in a room together?). creedle are nice guys. pretty good band. fun to play with.
d is for disco music & denver delmonte lucas
disco music: there is always some of ANY kind of music that is good. denver delmonte lucas is a very close friend whom i miss very much. i encourage you to search out powerdresser records.
e is for embarassing moment & eclecticism & eno
every thing i do is one elongated embarassing moment. i dont know everything about eclecticism. i been getting into brian eno's earlier stuff lately, but there is no excuse for that u2 crap.
f is for fantasy mission force & fave vegetable & faking it
fantasy mission force will probably do a full length soon. fave vegetable = brian wilson. i don't understand the concept of faking it.
g is for gainsbourg & ginger
i've been trying to find this great french documentary on gainsbourg and bardot, but i dont know what it's called. i love the comic strip. ginger: i'd pick mary-anne over her any day.
h is for home-taping-is-killing-(the)- music-(industry) & heroes & hiphop
die music industry die. heroes is a great bowie song. i'm a big fan of tribe called quest, de la soul, and biz markie.
i is for internet & interviews & independence
it is MUCH easier too answer mail this way (rob@theexperiment.com). interviews make me feel like a big shot (just kidding). there is no such thing as independence in a world where there is a weapon pointed at you from the moment you are born.
j is for jungle & japan & junkfood
jungle: not a big techno fan. i'd also love to visit japan. i never really got into junkfood until i stopped drinking. at least it's better than some stupid religious 12 step program.
k is for klezmer & calvin klein
klezmer is a little too fake for me. my friend whose computer i'm using has c.k. ads all over the walls and stuff. i wear boxers myself.
l is for love songs & lo-tech & live performances
love songs are good if they're done by black flag or ween or the shaggs or something. lo-tech = my whole life. live performances: i'd play at least once a day if i could.
m is for mancini & minor threat & money
mancini can be pretty good or he can suck. minor threat is one of my all time favorite bands. i love anything ian does. money: i dont have any.
n is for nail
jason of thingy has one extremely long nail.
o is for opera
pea hicks is in new york right now doing his opera
p is for politics & pigs
fuck politics. fuck the pigs.
q is for quantum physics
i'm in a band called physics and one time we played with twice as many members and called it quantum physics
r is for recycling & remixing & retro
i'm all for recycling. i want to have a o.y. remix record. retro usually means boring.
s is for solo & san diego & serial killers & singing & surfing
everyone hated my solo record. san diego is a lame fucking town. serial killers: ted bundy is my current interest. singing is one of the only things i honestly enjoy doing. surfing: i always fell off the board, but i love to bodysurf. travis of heavy vegetable was world bodysurfing champion once. it was pretty funny. all the other guys were all trying to look all cool in their expensive swimming gear and stupid sunglasses, while travis was just this dork in swimming trunks.
t is for mark trombino & tattoos & trainspotting
i owe mark trombino a huge debt of gratitude. i dont have any tattoos, but i might get powerdresser waves. trainspotting = pretty good movie, better book.
u is for useless & underwear
my whole attempt is useless. i've been trying to find x-wing rouge squadron underwear in my size.
v is for vampires & video-killed-the-radio-stars
i think the original nosferatu was the only vampire movie that doesn't suck. video-killed-the-radio-stars: i wish.
w is for work
i still need a real job.
x is for x-files & x-ray spex & x generation
x-files are only o.k. if it's not about some guy with a power. x-ray spex were o.k.. generation x sucked.
y is for yoda & yo la tengo
ilove yoda and all, but i wish he didn't have the same voice as grover. elea likes yo la tengo, but they've never really jazzed me
z is for zorn
i think new york flat top box is my favorite song of john zorn.