right now it's Dora, but a few minutes ago it was Robin Hood and all of them have haunted me since I popped the little tape into the car stereo, don't know what made me buy it $3.99 at the full moon record store, i wanted something different, something i wouldn't normally buy. from the cover art, expected terrible buzz saw punk or something. turns out to be a great, haunting and disturbing record. played it 7 or 8 times on the trip, just right for cruising 80 through the mountains, especially "I'm Not There," "Ghosts of American Astronauts" "Fantastic Voyage" "Maverick"... i know little about the Mekons, maybe somebody here is into them and can suggest the next one to get. i have this faint memory of a friend trying to get me to listen to this record, touting it, and me being put off by the cover, being anti-skeleton or something at the time. Same thing happened with Diamond Dogs, it was years before I discovered Bowie because of that album cover. either out in front or way behind, well maybe just way out

I can't believe no one out there has anything to say about this record.

Sorry we disappoint you. The only Mekons song I know is off that Lounge Ax compilation album.

i listened to a clip from it on cdnow, the stuff on this record is different. i think this one is maybe different from any of their others. that's why i wanted advice before i go out and buy their whole catalog.

Well, from what I know (which amounts to the reviews I've read), the Mekons are kind of like Foetus, in that every album of theirs is different. So, um, if you want to know which album to buy, you should be talking to somebody who knows what they're talking about, not me...sorry.

I have a copy of "Pussy, king of teh Pirates" which is the Kathy Acker/Mekons collaboration. Very good. I have a couple other very old mekons songs on a couple of punk comps .

This Mekons thing hasn't run its course with me yet, inexplicably, so you all have to put up with me talking about them again. I now have 7 or 8 records including even Pussy King of the Pirates, but the one in the car CD now is "Me." This is the one that has "Whiskey Sex Shack" and other shocking and amusing lyrics intended to deconstruct materialistic, self-centered sex-crazed American society perhaps, but the one that is going around and around in my head is "Gin and It," the chorus of which goes "belly to belly, back to back, dancing round the square." Actually it's the instrumental track where someone, probably Jon, plays and embelishes that addictive little blues riff over and over again on some stringed instrument, probably a bouzouki, with hypnotic rhythm, probably from Steve, driving it along.

Have you heard the Waco Brothers? That's Jon and some other guys singing country/western music. Pretty amusing.

i haven't bought any, i did listen to a live broadcast of one of their shows over the net, pretty bad sound quality... wanted to go see them when they were here but the show was cancelled. seems like a very mixed bag but probably fun to see. while the english guys are into Hank Williams etc. the american singer seems to hark after Lynyrd Skynyrd...

went to see the Mekons tonight in Atlanta. i can't understand it. they're such a fucking good band. (you know i care about something when i use intensifiers) and i was one of about 17 people who thought so. the room was about half full and most of them were middle aged guys in leather jackets who just stood there. something's wrong with the world. these guys are up there with the stones and bowie and elvis costello, etc. in my book. Atlanta is pathetic.

p.s. their new record, journey to the end of the night, is great

Okay, I've written this sentence, like, 5 times and I can't get it to sound right, but I hope you'll get the idea.... What would you recommend as the first Mekons album to buy?

the mekons are nothing to write home about, muchless synonymous with stones, bowie or costello, thats pushing it. Atlanta IS great, where did yuou see them? It is a monday nite, how great of a turnout can your expect? As a matter of fact i noticed yesterday my friends, in a band called Seely, from ATlanta, got a write up in The Advocate. Steven is gay as is Lori hence the write up. But I was shocked to see their gloosy press photo, they looked all snazzed up, and last time they passed through LA, lat time i saw them they have always been sneaker kids playing decent shoegazer music...Ever seen them ? Hey Nelly, is Dotties still open, on Memorial Dr, downtown?

I can,t remember what the C.D. is called but Dan Hicks is coming out with a new one with ELvis Costello and Bett Midler,that ought to be a trip,last I heard about Dan Hicks,he took off all his clothes at a show and got arrested.I have one of his albums sure don,t want to see him naked though.

i scored his Almost Blue on vinyl recently. Man what a gem that is, i admit my Costello section is rather slim.....this purchase was serves as encouragement

I just got his Trust C.D.,the whole thing blows me away,listening to You,ll Never be a Man right now.I still would do ANYTHING to hook up with him,I even put my e-mail address on his birthday tee-shirt from his fan club,told him I had something to show him.Iggy has a new one out to,it,s really good.

yeah thats what i hear, but i have been afraid to take on his newer solo stuff for fear of souring my taste for him. Nothing can replace what he did with the stooges or the first couple of solo records he did in the 70s.....Lou Reed has a new one out too, but I will probably pass that up as well, same reason.