Date: Fri, 12 Apr 1996 15:01:41 -0800 From: Jens Alfke (jens@MOOSEYARD.COM) Subject: Laika & Moonshake [was: Some reviews] Nadim wrote: >Laika "the apples from the moon" (did i get that title right?) >needless to say, it is great, very ambient and moody nice vocal combos, i >cannot comment a lot about this having no background on the band and their >other work, i am interested in anyone else's opinions here. someone point me >towards any other CDs they might have. "Silver Apples of the Moon". If you want more o' that stuff, check out Moonshake -- that's the band where Margaret Fiedler (singing, guitars, samples), John Frennet (bass) came from; and Guy Fixsen produced most of Moonshake's stuff. Moonshake's releases were divided up into songs that Margaret wrote and sang, which sound increasingly like Laika, and those that David Callahan wrote and sang, which are generally less dub-like and feature his unmistakeable snarling nasal vocals. Eventually I guess Margaret and David stopped getting along and split up the band. Moonshake still exists but I didn't much care for their post-Margaret album. This is what Moonshake released: "First" EP (on Creation) Very different from their later stuff. No dub influence and Callahan's voice is uncharacteristically restrained. Quite shoegazer-ish, especially the very wonderful "Gravity". This EP is apparently quite hard to find. "Secondhand Clothes" EP (on Too Pure, as is everything subsequent) Dramatic turnaround in sound. The title track has almost no guitar, all dubstyle bass/drums. With Callahan's yowling it has a very early-PiL feel. This EP is included on the US release of "Eva Luna". "Beautiful Pigeon" single Don't have this one. The A-side is on "Eva Luna". "Eva Luna" LP (Too Pure; US release on Matador) Classic album. It took me months to appreciate, and some of the Callahan songs still grate on me, but it's extremely well done and intricately textured with lots of little bleeping samples behind the massive bass and guitar. Margaret's songs here are much darker and creepier than Laika. "Big Good Angel" EP (Too Pure; US release on Matador) Six-track EP with some of Margaret's best songs, esp. "Girlyloop" which is definitely proto-Laika with its jungle-influenced combination of fast intricate beat and dubstyle bass. Some of Callahan's songs here start to remind me of a louder and angrier XTC with their sarcastic social commentary. If you like Laika I'd suggest getting "Big Good Angel" and working your way backwards. __________ __________________ Jens Alfke jens@mooseyard.com Some outside and some indoors-- Oh my oh my oh dinosaurs ________________________ http://www.mooseyard.com Date: Sat, 13 Apr 1996 00:17:26 -0400 From: "Gil Gershman (GuerillaG/TooKranky)" (TooKrnky@AOL.COM) Subject: Re: Laika & Moonshake [was: Some reviews] Jens wrote... >"Beautiful Pigeon" single > Don't have this one. The A-side is on "Eva Luna". I do. And it's a strange Moonshake release. The A-side is just one of the many (all, really) great tracks on "Eva Luna" But the two B-sides, "beeside" (ha!) and "home survival kit" are unusual for the band. The writing credits are to "Callahan/Fiedler" - rare collaborative material! Both songs show Moonshake in surprisingly subdued form. Less angular and violent than anything on "Eva Luna". There are lyrics for all three tracks, but "beeside" sounds like an instrumental. If the fact that it's a Moonshake release doesn't already make it worth finding, the artwork (all their records have great artwork full of obscure references and puzzling icon-like pictures) does. Moonshake(Mach II)'s "The Sound Your Eyes Can Follow" shouldn't be overlooked just because of Fiedler's flashier Laika work. It's an extremely strong album. It's also an incredibly accomplished piece of guitarless-free dub-sampler based postrock. The newest Moonshake single, "Cranes", is also superb. Dave Callahan's post-Fiedler output has been just as consistently brilliant. And, despite what everyone else says, I think he has a terrific voice (for his particular style of music). But it IS an acquired taste. Hope this was of some help - and not just a waste of space. GuerillaG (who still finds time for those early Cocteau albums between breakbeat-binges...) Date: Fri, 17 Oct 1997 12:39:38 -0500 From: Jim Javenkoski Subject: Re: MOONSHAKE's end At 06:38 PM on 7/11/97, cocoboy wrote: >I've just heard that Dave Callahan broke up his band Moonshake last month. Did you actually "hear" it or did you read this in the press? To my knowledge, the only place this unfortunate news has been published is on the Silencer and MOONSHAKE Web sites. If anyone has heard or seen any other press about the break-up, then please email me. >I met Dave in March and that was obvious that he wouldn't continue >this money-loose adventure. Did you speak with him at one of the gigs in France? What did he say? >He had been rejected by Too Pure, then World Domination and C/Z. MOONSHAKE was scuttled by Too Pure in 1995 due to the debt the band had accrued. Then they signed a 3 album contract with C/Z Records, but the label has now folded. The band signed only a 1 album deal with WorldDom U.K. and that was to market *Dirty & Divine* in Europe. Further, there are still no less than *ten* MOONSHAKE remixes collecting dust in London and Seattle, respectively. In 1995, the following artists remixed these tracks: LOOP GURU: "Right To Fly" SEEFEEL: "Right To Fly" SCANNER: "We're Making War (Filter Block remix)" Apparently, the tapes are buried somewhere in Paul Cox's desk at Too Pure. At least that is what he confessed last time I spoke with him. =) Further, seven more remixes of tracks from *Dirty & Divine* were commissioned by C/Z Records in 1996: RICH COSTY: "Exotic Siren Song" LUCID: "The Taboo" ROBIN GUTHRIE: "Cranes" ROBERT HAMPSON: "Nothing But Time" JOHN McENTIRE: "Cranes (Tortoise Shell Jungle mix)" TODD NICKOLAS: "Aqualisa" (instrumental) There are actually 4 different ROBERT HAMPSON remixes but probably only two of them, including an instrumental, will be released. So, there are at least 10 and perhaps more remixes that are being embargoed by Paul Cox and Daniel House. Would anyone care to finance the purchase of these tracks? The *Dirty & Divine* remixes can be had for a mere $5,000. =) >I'm sure he'll come up with a new project. Dave is a genius. When I spoke to Callahan a few weeks ago, he said that he is considering returning to grad school, possibly at the Royal College of Art in London. However, his plans may change... Then at 10:25 AM PST on 7/11/97, Jens Alfke wrote: >Maybe he and Mig could join Laika... Yeah, Mags and Guy would no doubt welcome Dave with open arms. The last I knew, Mig had been drumming for MOOSE since he left MOONSHAKE in 1995. Can anyone confirm if Mig is still playing with them? Date: Wed, 10 Jun 1998 19:57:45 -0700 From: Daniel House Subject: Moonshake Just for the record (no pun intended) C/Z Records has NOT folded. I just read that the label had on Jim Javenkowski's site, and I thought it proper to clear this particular matter up. We had a deal with BMG which went South, and that DID put a crimp on the overall health of the label, but we are still going....and there will be a release of the Moonshake re-mix EP later this Summer. Date: Thu, 18 Jun 1998 11:00:47 -0400 From: Margaret Fiedler Subject: Re: Moonshake (revisited) > Speaking of rare Moonshake, is their first EP available anywhere? > = > Bruno Sorry for the delay in getting back to this, but the answer is no. I thi= nk it was deleted within a year or less of its release (May 1991). Creation= never paid me any publishing royalties, and only started sending artist royalty statements in the last two years that always say 0 sales. Wonder= why they even started bothering. Date: Tue, 30 Jun 1998 20:13:19 -0500 From: "James S. Javenkoski" Subject: Origin of "Moonshake" At 01:39 AM PST on 6/22/98, Gordon McEwen wrote: >I noticed in an article that Can have a track called "moonshake" >and wondered if there was any connection with, well, Moonshake. Indeed, there is. This question is best answered with a quote from Callahan: "We ripped it off a song by CAN, they're an old German group, and CAN ripped it off an old Japanese novel called the same thing, as well. So, it has been passed on like a baton through the decades." Incidentally, the song Dave refers to was released as a 12" single in 1973 backed with the album's title track "Future Days" (Liberty/ United Artists 35596A). Does anyone happen to know the copyright date and author of said novel? Margaret, do you have any tales of taxonomy to add here? Were there any other monikers the band considered back in 1990-91? Date: Fri, 17 Jul 1998 09:21:44 -0400 From: Margaret Fiedler Subject: stuff (long) Moonshake were named after the track on Future Days. Dave actually wante= d to call the band Skyscraper, but John and I favoured Moonshake. Mig hadn= 't yet joined. Date: Wed, 2 Sep 1998 10:05:04 -0500 From: Jim Javenkoski Subject: Re: moonshake "remixes" cd At 11:27 AM CDT on 8/31/98, Audio Pig Doug wrote: >just saw the following on KUCI's top 30 list for august: > > 25) Moonshake - Remixes (C/Z) > >...is this finally released, or is this one o' those impossible-to-find >promos of an item that we won't see until 1999? jim j.? Believe it or not, the *Remixes* compilation *is* finally out. The 7-track CD and 6-track vinyl EP were officially released on Tuesday, 11 August on C/Z Records, distributed by Proper Sales & Distribution of New York. Then at 12:40 AM EDT on 9/2/98, Lurker Steven wrote: >...The Robin Guthrie mix of "Cranes" is my favorite. This track previously appeared on two other CDs: 1. CMJ compilation, *Certain Damage Volume 74* (CMJ CD-074), released on Tuesday, 18 June 1996 2. C/Z promotional 1-track CD (with exclusive artwork, 500 copies) released in July 1996 >Don't know why Mark Clifford's remix isn't on the >CD, though...I thought he remixed a track as well He did, but his 1995 remix of "We're Making War" (or was it "Right To Fly", Mark?) from *The Sound Your Eyes Can Follow* is still buried in Paul Cox's desk at Too Pure, along with a SCANNER's Filter Block remix of "We're Making War" and a remix by LOOP GURU. According to both Mark and Robin, they were never paid by Too Pure for their work. So, I doubt that these three tracks will ever be heard by any of us. =( Thankfully, Daniel House pushed this remix project to completion and now we can finally hear the results. I will soon reproduce the press release for the "Remixes" and upload it to the shamefully outdated MOONSHAKE Web site. Stay tuned... Date: Mon, 7 Sep 1998 08:52:46 -0400 From: Margaret Fiedler Subject: Moonshake remixes Ran into Dave Callahan (ex-Moonshake) in a pub on Saturday night - he had= only just found out about the remixes release on C/Z via a friend in San Francisco who had seen it in a record shop. Not only hasn't he even hear= d most of the mixes, he also said that most of the remixers hadn't even bee= n paid for their work. So just letting everyone know, this release is not approved by Dave, nor does he want anyone to buy it and put money in C/Z'= s pockets. Date: Mon, 7 Sep 1998 11:49:07 -0400 From: "Jose' F. Berroa-Saro" Subject: Re: Moonshake remixes I bought it used section for $1.99. I particularly don't like any of the mixes. I bought for one reason, Robin Guthrie's version, and that sucks completely. My two cents......