I think my least-hated favorite fish is sole. Sole has no eyes.

March 2, 2018 7:31 PM

It seems the Cold War is being fired back up (wait, what?), and all this revived nuclear posturing and recent events in Hawaii bring to mind 1987. That was the year Roger Waters released his second solo album, Radio K.A.O.S. [YT album, ~41m30s] -- Side One: Radio Waves, Who Needs Information, Me Or Him, The Powers That Be

Side Two: Sunset Strip, Home, Four Minutes, The Tide Is Turning (After Live Aid)

posted by hippybear (18 comments total)

The Radio K.A.O.S video EP [20m] is an interesting document, helping draw the narrative together better than just listening to the album even while leaving out my favorite track. Also worth a listen is this Radio K.A.O.S. full concert radio broadcast from Quebec in 1987. The tour never got out of North America for financial reasons.
posted by hippybear at 7:31 PM on March 2, 2018

I saw the tour in September 1987 in Dallas, and it kind of entirely blew my mind. I'm not arguing that it's a great album, but I do think the individual song construction is interesting (the late 80s song form of building ever more complicated layers is something I've long appreciated), and honestly, I've been listening to it for 30 years and I still find it a fascinating document.

Plus it has the song Home, which I think is utterly brilliant.
posted by hippybear at 7:31 PM on March 2, 2018 [1 favorite]

I just saw him in Dunedin and it was astonishingly good. Just searing, angry, political rocknroll. Every track from Animals basically sounds like musical current events reportage now.
posted by Sebmojo at 7:42 PM on March 2, 2018 [2 favorites]

"In hindsight, Waters is not overly fond of the album where, due partly with his own insecurities and the pressure he was under with the Pink Floyd dispute, he attempts to tread a more contemporary musical line: "Between Ian Ritchie [the high tech co-producer] and myself, we really fucked that record up. We tried to hard to make it sound modern." He added, "I allowed myself to get pushed down roads that were uncomfortable for me. I should never have made that record." " Comment? Big gan of Floyd Waters, but am keen to know where to start with his solo career.
posted by spaceburglar at 7:45 PM on March 2, 2018 [1 favorite]

I remember listening to a lot of Amused to Death back in the day.
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 8:06 PM on March 2, 2018

I'd just take it in chronological order. Each album takes a while to digest fully. I'll be honest, I didn't listen to his opera, and haven't heard his latest, but the first three are each worthwhile in their own right for entirely different reason.
posted by hippybear at 8:08 PM on March 2, 2018

Yeah, this record was pretty good but it was also the basis for a solid rock and roll concert. Roger had Paul Carrack from Squeeze in his band (Paul would open the show by performing “Tempted” solo) and Andy Fairweather-Low was a pretty great guitarist in his own right. At the end of the show, the first rows of the audience were allowed to rush up to the stage; I got close enough to see Roger’s eyes through the sunglasses he never removed as he closed the show with “Eclipse.”
posted by Mothlight at 8:58 PM on March 2, 2018

Yeah, I went to this concert as well. It was pretty good. At one point Waters heads over to a table on the stage and starts playing cards with a bunch of people. I don't remember much, but it was probably during a guitar solo or something. Wasn't there a phone booth as well? Ahhh, so long ago.

I had the Pros and Cons of Hitchhiking, which I liked. I didn't love it, but it had its moments.

I've found over the years that his music has too much narrative for me. I'd rather piece the parts together on my own than have the whole story told to me.
posted by ashbury at 10:10 PM on March 2, 2018

I'd rather piece the parts together on my own than have the whole story told to me.

And where the hell was Biggles when you needed him last Saturday?
posted by hippybear at 10:42 PM on March 2, 2018 [4 favorites]

And where the hell was Biggles when you needed him last Saturday?

That is the subject of a far more elaborate post, don't you think? :)

One of the most cerebral, elusive (to a non-UK'er, at least) and awesome albums to grace our needful ears.

And it was when I first found out how to pronounce the word "melee". I'd only come across it in books. Come to think of it, I'm not sure I've ever heard the word spoken other than on the album.
posted by ashbury at 11:08 PM on March 2, 2018

I saw this concert in either Worcester MA or Providence RI. The moment near the end when they kill all the lights and everything goes completely black before the single light on stage comes on was completely haunting. Maybe not his best album but an amazing show.
posted by kokaku at 12:06 AM on March 3, 2018 [1 favorite]

I attended the The Wall concert in Berlin back in 1989. It was without question the worst concert experience in my life, not even surpassed by a Jean-Michel Jarre concert that completely drowned in knee deep mud way out in marshlands.

I have held a grudge since then, but I have also bought tickets for the next time, he graces these shores, so I guess I'm willing to give him a chance.
posted by bouvin at 6:56 AM on March 3, 2018

That is the subject of a far more elaborate post, don't you think?

It's been done already, more than once.
posted by hippybear at 10:35 AM on March 3, 2018

I attended the The Wall concert in Berlin back in 1989. It was without question the worst concert experience in my life, not even surpassed by a Jean-Michel Jarre concert that completely drowned in knee deep mud way out in marshlands.

Heh; I was at both of those shows too, and had a much better time than you did. Although yeah, it did chuck it down with rain on both nights of Destination Docklands; and The Wall Live In Berlin did struggle with its scale.

To tie back to Radio K.A.O.S.: in Berlin, Waters ended the show with The Tide Is Turning instead of Outside The Wall, and I was shocked by how well it worked as a substitution. It changed the end of the cycle from bleak ("banging your heart against some mad bugger's wall") to hopeful ("a billion candles burning").
posted by We had a deal, Kyle at 1:28 PM on March 3, 2018

I like to be home with my monkey and my dog.
I like to be home with my monkey and my dog.
I like to be home with my monkey and my dog.
posted by hearthpig at 2:33 PM on March 3, 2018 [2 favorites]

I attended the The Wall concert in Berlin back in 1989. It was without question the worst concert experience in my life, not even surpassed by a Jean-Michel Jarre concert that completely drowned in knee deep mud way out in marshlands.

FWIW I had very low expectations going in and they were utterly shattered by how good it was. Doesn't hurt that his lead guitarist both looks and sounds like a young dave Gilmour.
posted by Sebmojo at 1:30 PM on March 4, 2018

I listened to that first track, "Radio Waves", on constant repeat for a while there.

HELLO MY NAME IS BILLY I HEAR RADIO WAVES IN MY HEAD
posted by hanov3r at 1:08 PM on March 5, 2018 [1 favorite]

"Between Ian Ritchie [the high tech co-producer] and myself, we really fucked that record up. We tried to hard to make it sound modern."

There's a certain irony to that, because he went on to make Amused To Death which is even more of a high-tech production. Sounds amazing, especially in headphones (Q-Sound!), but it's not exactly under-engineered.

I suspect his real complaint here is that K.A.O.S. ended up with a very strongly late-1980s sound which has kind of dated it? I'm not sure that's really a problem; the radio-announcer stuff always did make it feel like it was rooted very strongly in the 80s anyway.

keen to know where to start with his solo career.

I think Amused To Death is his best; I could never quite get on with Pros and Cons of Hitch-Hiking which always sounded to me like The Final Cut but much much more so.
posted by We had a deal, Kyle at 12:19 PM on March 8, 2018