To answer some of the questions in a recent post (numbered like the
original post):

1)  Ring is my favorite.  Numbers 2 on down vary depending on my mood.
Still Life is currently #2.
2)  I enjoy the guitar riffs (is that a proper term?).   For example, I
find myself humming the main guitar part in New Boy all the time.  I
also enjoy Doug's voice, partiuclarly the contrast with the music.  I
think he has one of the most distinctive voices around.  George has a
very unique voice too.  Finally, more so than any other band, their
songs have a certain "bop along" quality, if you know what I mean.
3)  I've always thought that their albums all sounded very different,
although I think you can see a link from Fun & Games, to One Simple
Word, to Ring, and to Still Life.  Weird Food is a good album, but seems
sort of out of the continuum.  I thought the difference between Darker
Days and Boylan Heights, and Boylan Heights and Fun & Games, was pretty
drastic.
5)  All the albums generally remind me of the times I bought them,
especially One Simple Word, since that was the first one I owned.  Ring
reminds me of a trip from Lexington, VA to Harrisburg, PA, with a stop
in D.C.  I played that CD several times on that trip and was hooked
right away.
6)  George's songs on Still Life do seem more similar to the songs on
Brain Junk.  I loved Brain Junk, so that is a good thing.  Curly's Train
is addictive, and I love Queen of Charades.
10)  Favorite Connells song- tough, because that varies for me so much,
but I'd have to say New Boy because it is my favorite more often than
others.  Still Life is getting there for me.
   Least favorite - even harder.  I'll have to think about that one.
There aren't really any that I dislike.  Perhaps Adjective Song.

Evan



> -----Original Message-----
> From: Stephen Brown [SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
> Sent: Wednesday, June 24, 1998 2:46 PM
> To:   [log in to unmask]
> Subject:      Ten Questions
>
> Stephen Brown here. 24-yr-old Connells fan in Atlanta.
>
> I thought I'd throw some new fodder into the mix, since we haven't
> explored
> any new questions in a while.
>
> 1)  Is there anyone on the list who DOESN'T like the Still Life album?
> (I,
> of course, love the album, but I'd be curious to know how others feel
> it
> falls into the album continuum). I'd love to hear some constructive
> comments, especially since the band is so jazzed about getting back in
> the
> studio and making their next album (a sentiment they usually wouldn't
> express until 2-3 years later!)
>
> 2) Is there anyone who can pinpoint 3-5 thematic elements that ring
> true of
> any Connells song? For instance I often hear of the "chiming guitars"
> and
> "melancholy, cynical lyrics put to a Southern jangle-pop beat" -- What
> else
> do people on the list find to be so compelling about Connells songs?
>
> 3) Is there anyone else who feels that, for better or worse, every
> Connells
> album sounds completely different -- perhaps due to different
> producers?
> (One Simple Word has so many different background instruments; Weird
> Food
> incorporates a harder edge and sing-speak; Still Life has more of a
> mellow,
> country feel to some tracks; Boylan has an evocative, almost Gallic
> feel at
> times; sounds on Darker seem to come from a cavern of melancholy with
> Doug
> and his deep voice; Fun & Games and Ring are pretty close in their
> jangly,
> anthematic, guitar-based sound)
>
> 4)  What IS with the Appomattox reference? And Boy Island? Has anyone
> asked
> the band to elaborate?
>
> 5)  Is there anyone who, like me, can directly correlate life
> experiences
> to particular Connells albums they played at that point in their
> lives.
> (For instance, Ring reminds me of college, Darker Days reminds me of a
> bad
> traveling salesman job I had for two weeks in which I listened to the
> album
> every day on the road, Weird Food reminds me of my first job, etc.)
>
> 6) What does Mike Connell's twin brother do?
>
> 7) Although I love them, does anyone feel that George Huntley's songs
> on
> Still Life were more like his solo CD Brainjunk than anything the
> Connells
> have ever done?
>
> 8)  Does anyone have an explanation for each album's cover art? I am
> intrigued by why they have chosen certain images (including the New
> Boy EP)
> and why both of their recent albums include photos of the band on the
> front.
>
> 9)  Since TVT does so many soundtracks, is there any way we can get
> more
> Connells songs in movies? PCU, Heavy, Scream and the upcoming Dead
> Man's
> Curve are simply not enough for me. I want their songs booming in
> every
> appropriate film possible!
>
> 10) What's your favorite and least favorite Connells song?
>
> I hope I don't inspire too many answers, but these were the things on
> my
> mind immediately after lunch today.  Keep up the great Connells fandom
> guys! The more people hear, the more they will love!