DOES GENE SIMMONS DREAM OF ELECTRIC SHEEP?

If you follow me on instagram you’ve likely seen some of the records I post to my stories, often at night while I’m listening to them. It’s a fun to way to share music and communicate with people. Sometimes these interactions have led to wonderful conversations with strangers sending me great recommendations.

When I first joined instagram it felt like an exciting place. I remember nights staying up late hashtag searching over the pandemic, spending hours going down rabbit holes and discovering so much cool music. It’s very different now. I don’t know exactly what happened. Maybe instagram just shifted more towards commerce and the algorithm changed? I can’t even search hashtags anymore. Often times my own posts just get lost in the digital morass (how dare they?!). Friends and accounts that I follow show up less frequently. I don’t understand it. I’m sure someone reading this has a greater understanding of why this is happening. If you do and have the inclination to share your perspective in the comments, please do.

I know it’s a weird time in the world right now. There are a lot of people suffering. There is a lot of uncertainty and fear about the future. Those feelings are frequently scampering across the horizon of my mind too. I do believe it is important to share authentic joy, wonder, and amazement whenever and wherever we can though. I’ve wasted enough of my life on the opposite side of that, so when I came out the other end, it revealed how important it is to express my excitement for the things that genuinely move me. I only want to surround myself with people who feel the same way. Life is brief. It can change in an instant. So let’s cherish what he have while we have it. I also want to share the memories contained in this post before I forget them. I’m forty five now. The memory bank is still going strong but I know the day could be approaching sooner than I think, where many of these memories fade from the vault.

I may sound like an old man here but back in my day you could find great used albums for nothin’ at thrift stores. After I moved to Seattle in 1998 I discovered that thrifting about 20 miles south of the city in a town called Kent, was where it was at. The legion of thrift stores in Kent were abundant with incredible stuff, and often times had crazy sales. I still have so many albums and select pieces of beautiful furniture that I picked up there. One of my favorite pieces, a mid-century modern speckled concrete coffee table, I got for $5. If you’ve ever seen a Chromatics photoshoot of us goofing around during the Myspace era, there’s a high possibility that coffee table is in the background, supporting my turntable, Denon CDJ and Cassie CD. I still remember when I found that table. The asking price for it was $20. Way too much for me! I returned the next week and Saver’s was having one of their 75% off blue tag sales and I picked it for only $5. That coffee table has been in nearly every home I’ve had since I moved out of my parents’ house.

I also miss the feeling of picking up a record because you were intrigued by the cover. It was like a little mystery inside. You couldn’t research it on your smartphone. The risk was low… You often paid less than the price of a pack of chewing gum for it. And if the album was a dud you’d just take it back with you to donate next time you went thrifting. I don’t really thrift anymore. I got burned out on sifting through the blitzkrieg of fast fashion. But an elbow to the ribs from another picker over a vintage wool shawl at the Goodwill Bins in Hillsboro, Oregon marked the first nail in the coffin.

I was a little too young for this Newcleus album at the time it was originally released. People tend to associate this as a novelty breakdance record but I think there’s so much more going on here. I am pretty sure I swooped this at Value Village in Kent. I still love this album and usually spin the last song on side one “Destination Earth” whenever I DJ. Someone always inevitably comes up to the booth to ask what song I’m playing and I’m happy to spread the Newcleus love.

Hubert Laws “Morning Star” - You may not know this about me but I love jazz flute. Flood my stereo with it, mainline it through my veins and sprinkle some Fender Rhodes in there. I need that smoothness and I need it like an addict. Hubert Laws is the king. His rendition of Amazing Grace is so emotional and moving.

Tomita “Snowflakes Are Dancing” - When I played in The Vogue, my bandmates Casey and Devin had great taste especially when it came to 70’s electronic music. They turned me on to this one. I still play it to this day. The tagline on the cover says it all…. “virtuoso electronic performances of Debussy’s beautiful tone paintings.”

I know Kiss is problematic in many ways. I find Gene Simmons particularly vulgar. I’m not here to defend them. But I am here to be honest with you dear reader…. since pandemic days Kiss’s 1987 album Crazy Crazy Nights has become a favorite album of mine. It’s not a 10/10 but there are some unbelievably great uplifting hard rock anthems on there. When I started going to therapy one of my therapists recommended I find a song and make it my personal anthem to play when feeling down. The first song, the album title “Crazy Crazy Nights” became that for me. Five years later it still moves me just as strongly today.

“And they try to tell us we don't belong
That's all right, we're millions strong
This is my music, it makes me proud
These are my people and this is my crowd!”

Who knew Kiss could be so inclusive? Maybe that’s been a secret to their success. I also must point out that I appreciate how freakish 1987 Crazy Crazy Nights era Paul Stanley still appears today in December 2024. Possibly more shocking than he did at the time. That is one serious look even in our current era of smut supreme. I like to see what provocative looks of bygone eras faded into innocuous trends or are still genuinely shocking. A few years ago I rewatched John Waters’ “Desperate Living” again. It has always been my favorite film of his. I found the film to be even more outrageous than I ever remembered it for all the times I watched it in my early twenties. The dialogue even more brilliant, which my some of my friends and I used to frequently recite (and still can) to each other.

“TELL YOUR PARENTS I HATE THEM!!! TELL YOUR PARENTS I HATE YOU!!!”

To Kraan or not to Kraan? That is often the question in our home. During the pandemic I came across their song “Silky Way” in a Spotify playlist someone had made titled 70s Obscure Soft Progressive Rock / Symphonic Rock. (Amazing playlist btw). It’s difficult to believe this song has never been sampled. It’s become another staple of my DJ sets as it sets such a great vibe for the room. Bonus points for the Conny Plank production. “Silky Way” is one of those songs that even if you’ve never heard it, you instantly love it when you finally do. That is unless unless you are some kind of philistine. On paper Kraan is many things I am often repelled by, it’s noodley, masterful, a little spastic, even goofy at times, but there’s an earnest joy and elegance to their music that I find undeniable. I now own many Kraan albums and am president of the California chapter of the Kraan fanclub should you be interested in joining our conventicle. Zum wohl!

Change - the missing link between Chic and The S.O.S. band. Another group I was too young for at the time but I found their first album “The Glow Of Love” while I was on tour with Glass Candy in 2007 at a Half Price Books in Texas. Change is one of those groups I never tire of. I rarely want to ​Change their music from my turntable. (Sorry couldn’t resist). I’ve regularly played all their albums around the homestead for years, and will continue to do so. Change consistently puts me in a great mood. Radiohead? No thanks. I’m a Changehead.

Manuel Göttsching “Inventions For Electric Guitar” - This album was and continues to be a huge inspiration on me. I found an original copy at Forever Records in Kyoto in 2017 and almost lost my mind, because like the Tasmanian Tiger, it’s a rare one to spot out there in the wild. This record really helped reframe for me what could be created with an electric guitar. I love all Manuel Göttsching, Ashra, and Ash Ra Tempel albums. Especially the CD only ones from the 80’s and 90’s with album covers that look like they were designed in MacPaint. Don’t believe me. Here’s a link to another one of those masterpieces (not on streaming).

Scotch - one of my all time favorite Italo groups. Their music is so melodic and soulful. The b-side “Man In The Man” almost reminds me of George Michael or Todd Edwards. It’s not on streaming either but the A-side “Take Me Up” is and it’s classic. If you follow me closely on instagram you may notice that I post a pic of this single nearly every other week on my stories. That’s because I play it so much!

I’ll end on that note. I hope you enjoyed these random thoughts and memories of my crazy crazy crazy nights posting records on instagram. Until next time comrades…

Sincerely, Adam