# General Mandolin Topics > Looking for Information About Mandolins >  I am speechless.....

## Michael Weaver

My buddy sent me this link and its some of the weirdest music I have ever heard. The album cover is enough to push it over the top...ummm enjoy? http://haroldvaclev.bandcamp.com/

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Bob Bronow, 

Jim Garber, 

journeybear, 

k0k0peli

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## Cheryl Watson

My personal favorite is "Cleaning the Bathroom."  Gee, I just do not know what to say.  I'm speechless too about the cover AND the music.

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Michael Weaver

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## Bob Clark

I am not quite speechless...I'd say it's different.  Really different.

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Michael Weaver

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## Londy

Um....uhhhh...hmmmm.  I too am stund, shocked and a little horrified.

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Michael Weaver

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## JEStanek

Interesting.  It's no Whipped Cream and Other Delights...  but, I've heard far worse.  Reminds me of Mike Mothersbaugh's stuff for PeeWee's Playhouse or The Residents (especially I wanted to be a cowboy but instead I'm an accountant).

Jamie

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Michael Weaver

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## Michael Bridges

Reminds me of 2 really bad days I spent in my college dorm room in 1973,with a 6 pack of beer and some windowpane a friend gave me.

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k0k0peli, 

Michael Weaver, 

Rob Zamites

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## Jim Garber

I am working on "I Wanted to be a Cowboy" right now. Excellent...

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Jim Nollman, 

Michael Weaver, 

Pete Jenner, 

Tobin

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## Michael Weaver

Lol have at it Jim and be sure you put it on YouTube!

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## F-2 Dave

Wow. Just wow.

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## Mike Romkey

I like it. A cross between Capt Beefheart, Sid Barrett solo and Tiny Tim.

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## Bertram Henze

I needed to fixedly stare at the cover to make it through _Cleaning the Bathroom_ alive...

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## almeriastrings

Real in-your-face proof absolute of that old cliche' that..

There's surely no accounting for taste.

Both visual and auditory simultaneously, in this case  :Disbelief:

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## Dave Hanson

I'm not speechless, it's utter rubbish.

Dave H

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bratsche

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## Bertram Henze

The main instrument of torture here, the ukelin (ulekin? muleskin?), is nothing new to the Cafe, btw.
A member once explored all its destructive power and published it...  :Cool:

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## Dagger Gordon

I dunno, I kind of like it.

I notice from the cover that it's 'In hi-fi!', so that's good.

Utterly eccentric, which I tend to be sympathetic to.

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Bill Lemerise, 

JEStanek, 

k0k0peli, 

Mike Bunting

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## RichardF

Mind you, taste can be an odd thing. Does anybody remember the late lamented Derek Bell from the Chieftains solo album entitled, "Derek Bell Plays With Himself"? He apparently maintained that it was a joke and all in the best possible taste. Mind you what a musician he was. Pure genius.

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## Bertram Henze

Seriously - has anybody missed out on this being totally tongue-in-cheek? So many hints - just look at this tasteoholics-anonymous-style confession _Hello. My name is Harold Vaclev. I enjoy playing the ukelin..._. 
The cover is a compound quote of so many tasteless vinyl record covers, though the more gross things can not be reproduced on a website (I dimly remember a Blues vinyl album where the white inner sleeve was replaced by a pair of ladies' underpants).
The music is clearly a deliberate attempt at being funny by dodging any quality criteria. Makes me think of those Little Britain episodes featuring Andy and Lou ("Maaargaret!").

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## Astro

Thats more like tongue-in-ear. Or fingers in ears.

I wouldn't spend the money but wouldn't that CD make a great party gift for someone you hated?

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Michael Weaver

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## mandolinlee

Maybe a button-down collar take off on "Riders in The Sky", (quote) "get along little balance sheets".

I have a ukelin in my basement, after hearing this, thank God, it's not in playing condition.

Lee

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## jaycat

Ever since I heard the 2nd side of the Plastic Ono Band's "Live Peace in Toronto 1969," I've been hard pressed to classify anything else as "unlistenable." That's over 40 years of listening; this guy doesn't even come close.

According to the Smithsonian website: "Ukelins were sold by the Phonoharp Company of East Boston, Massachusetts, and its subsidiaries, which apparently included the Bosstone Company." That would make the Ukelin Eastie's second-most famous export (after the meatball sub).

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## pefjr

Tiny Tim was better, at least he was funny.

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## JEStanek

That's the famous Lili St Cyr on the cover.

Jamie

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## Bertram Henze

> That's the famous Lili St Cyr on the cover.
> 
> Jamie


Somehow disappointing - now Mr Vaclev (or whatever his real name is) is not the Photoshop genius I had taken him for, just a good researcher. Or the picture inspired him to use the ukelin in the first place.  :Frown:

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## JEStanek

I found two photos of her in a Google Image search for Ukelin.  I give him full props for finding and using the photo.  The cover design is perfect.

Jamie

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## bmac

Wonderful!!!

Turns the incredibly boreing into something really creative.... The album cover is absolutely appropriate.

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## stevedenver

doood thats bitchin
havent stopped dancing.......LOL

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Michael Weaver

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## EdHanrahan

Why are my "big stupid grin" muscles on the verge of cramping??

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## JH Murray

In the genre of 'ironic and tacky' music, this is brilliantly done. I haven't stopped laughing. Much better than his first album.

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## woodwizard

For some reason this reminds me of Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention... my grin muscles are also on the verge of cramping  :Smile:

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## mandolinlee

re: the album cover.

Can we say she has a leg up on other ukelin players?

Lee

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## journeybear

You guys are killing me!  :Crying:  I'm out of town for a three-night stand, so I'm using a library computer. As a result, I can't listen to this music that's causing such a stir. But I did look at the album cover, so now I know why _that's_ causing such a stir as well, and why no one has posted it. And yes, Lee, I daresay so!  :Laughing:  Eye-catching is putting it mildly.  :Whistling:

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## jaycat

> . . . Can we say she has a leg up on other ukelin players?


At least!

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## billhay4

I've given up music. Can't come close to this level of sophistication.
Bill

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Spruce

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## Spruce

Genius....
Sheer genius...

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JEStanek

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## Danielle

I have heard so much else that was so much worse that this isn't really even on the radar. Come on down and listen to 

And strangely enough I actually kind of enjoyed Nocturne Drawn with Purple Crayon. It sounds kind of like the music that is on babies wind up mobiles crossed with the ambient meditation music they play in some massage therapists offices. Which makes it sound worse than it really is....doesn't it?

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JEStanek

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## JEStanek

The real Genius would charge Hipsters $9 for a download.  It would totally sell.  I'm not criticizing either...

Jamie

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Jim

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## Michael Weaver

Hipsters would buy the album for sure. I should have the album cover framed.

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## jso

I'd love to share the link on facebook, but my friends wouldn't know what to make of the cover.

(Nor, possibly, the music.)

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## billhay4

Get new friends.
Bill

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JEStanek, 

Michael Weaver

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## Russ Donahue

"Git along little balance sheets"

Yeee-haw!

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JEStanek, 

Michael Weaver

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## vegas

Wasn't Harold Vaclev  a name on the Simon Wiesenthal Center "Most Wanted" list? If it isn't can we ask them to make it one?

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Michael Weaver

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## Michael Weaver

> wasn't harold vaclev  a name on the simon wiesenthal center "most wanted" list? If it isn't can we ask them to make it one?


lmao!!!

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## jaycat

> Wasn't Harold Vaclev  a name on the Simon Wiesenthal Center "Most Wanted" list? If it isn't can we ask them to make it one?


Ummm . . .what can I say? This comment is not exactly in the best of taste?

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## journeybear

So, I finally got home, and was able to dial up these tunes and learn what all the fuss was about. I recognized this immediately as proof of a rumor I had heard whispered with hushed, breathless anticipation: this is the latest project from Punch Brothers.  :Disbelief:  Apparently their experiments in the studio represented such a radical departure from their previous radical departures, they decided to release a few tracks as a trial balloon, so they could be evaluated on their own, to get more honest responses without the public's prejudiced perceptions and expectations. They also may have wished to enable a means of distancing themselves from public reaction should it prove overwhelmingly negative, a sort of built-in deniability. Judging from many of the responses here, this seems to have been a wise approach indeed.  :Wink:  I have no idea whether this represents a new direction for them or just a one-off foray into something completely different, nor whether there is any truth to this rumor, but it's something to wonder about**: how our are perceptions affected by extraneous information. Makes you think, hmmm ... ?  :Confused:

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## Bertram Henze

> this is the latest project from Punch Brothers.


If I were doing such a project incognito, 
- I'd create an alibi for myself (such as having been out of town),
- I'd pretend to be ignorant of the issue as long as possible (the last one to know),
- I'd present a plausible suspect.

The F.-Scott-Fitzgeraldesque broken-dreams mood of this music has "Key West" written all over it... Gotcha!  :Cool:

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## journeybear

No, you didn't. I am NOT Chris Thile. Really! I swear!  :Grin:

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## 4ForAll

A deranged cross of Harry Partch and goodness knows what!!

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## vegas

> Ummm . . .what can I say? This comment is not exactly in the best of taste?



For your consideration:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/09/op...s.html?hp&_r=0

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journeybear

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## journeybear

A fine selection of commentary appropriate to this purpose. I think this sidetrack has been adequately derailed. Though in parting, I aver that discussions of taste regarding the subject of this thread are rather moot, taking into account the cover photo. I daresay without that eye-catching imagery, the music thereon contained would probably not attract much attention. So, kudos to the marketing strategy; the production team has a bit further to go.

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vegas

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## Jim Garber

> this is the latest project from Punch Brothers.


Yes, when CT changed his allegiance to D'Addario strings he discovered that his Loars sounded like ukelins. he decided to make this duet album with Lili St Cyr.

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## mandotool

Kind of like ..David Lynch meets Russ Meyer..
and lookie what i found on Evil Bay..
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Ukel...item2a2d8951e4http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Ukel...item2a2d8951e4

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## Jim Garber

Those ukelins are everywhere. Those and instruments like them were made in the thousands as novelty instruments in the 1920-30s. I had one many years ago. Bowed psalteries are a more sophisticated variant.

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## JeffD

> Those ukelins are everywhere. Those and instruments like them were made in the thousands as novelty instruments in the 1920-30s. I had one many years ago. Bowed psalteries are a more sophisticated variant.


I knew these people before and after this made them famous.

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## haroldvaclev

Hello everyone.

This is Harold Vaclev.  I am surprised and flattered by all of the attention to my album.  There have been over 1,500 plays of my songs in the past four days.  I am also thankful for all of your comments, positive and not as much so.  I would be happy to answer any of your questions.

Yours,
Harold Vaclev

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## FLATROCK HILL

Hi Harold, 

    I do not pretend to be sophisticated enough to understand, let alone critique your music. I am sufficiently high-class to recognize a masterpiece of an album cover though. Bravo!

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## JH Murray

So Harold did you get more plays because of mandolin cafe or the post on reddit?

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## haroldvaclev

> So Harold did you get more plays because of mandolin cafe or the post on reddit?


Hello JH,

According to Bandcamp, much of it was from Mandolin Café.  It looks like there was a lot of visits from Facebook and through e-mail.  Reddit is credited with only a bit, about 50 total visitors out of more than 1,100.

Yours,
Harold

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## JEStanek

I like what you did. Keep up the good work. 
Jamie

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## Michael Weaver

Harold Vaclev!!!! No way!! I don't even know what to say. As I stated when I started this post, you have left me speechless. Okay....We are all ears. Please tell us how all of this came about?

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## Bertram Henze

A talked-about topic comes to life and speaks for itself. This is the funniest incidence since Finnegan's Wake.
Tell us Harold, what was first: the ukelin or Lili St Cyr?

Or, we could wait until Lili St Cyr logs on to tell us how long she's been playing the ukelin, if it is one of those secrets of Victoria's and what she does to fight UAS...

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## bratsche

:Popcorn:

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## Dagger Gordon

Would seem to be a classic case of 'Be careful what you say - you never know who might be listening'.

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## Bertram Henze

> you never know who might be listening.


_A palantir is a dangerous tool..._

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## haroldvaclev

> Harold Vaclev!!!! No way!! I don't even know what to say. As I stated when I started this post, you have left me speechless. Okay....We are all ears. Please tell us how all of this came about?


Hello Michael and everyone,

I enjoy collecting and playing a variety of instruments.  As suggested by some others, I am not a virtuoso by any means.  But I have fun with it.

I bought the ukelin at a flea market for $5.  I didn't know what it was, but it looked complete and in decent shape.  So I took it home and researched it.  Mine is from the 1940's, as best as I can figure.  I learned that the ukelin is not very highly regarded, for reasons that might be obvious to some.  It rarely appears in any sort of music today.  So I thought it would be fun to try to record a whole album with it.

I wanted the album to be fun and possibly funny.  It was my first time recording myself, intending for others to listen to it.  I played all the instruments myself, did the recording, the mixing, and so forth.

As for Miss St. Cyr, I learned about her during the course of researching the instrument.  I thought the pictures of her were pretty unusual, and as they say, sex sells.

I'm glad most people are enjoying the album in the spirit in which it was meant.

Yours,
Harold

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Bertram Henze, 

George R. Lane, 

JEStanek, 

Jim Garber, 

mandolinlee, 

Michael Weaver, 

Rob Zamites

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## Michael Weaver

Harold, 

  We really appreciate your response to this thread and we would love for you to join us on a regular basis. If you need a mandolin player with a sense of humor for future projects, you know where to find us!

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## vegas

Unbelievable! And here I'd assumed this entire thread was a joke, uh, "not exactly in the best of taste."   :Wink:

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Michael Weaver

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## Austin Bob

I just gotta say that Cleaning the Bathroom has turned into an earworm, and I can't stop whistling it.

 :Whistling:

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## journeybear

> Unbelievable! And here I'd assumed this entire thread was a joke ...


I don't think that was the case as much as the _topic_ seemed to be. But since the creator of the music which has caused so much merriment appears to have a good sense of humor, I believe those of us who have had a bit of fun at his expense need not be too worried about being called to task. After all, if Mr. Vaclev has done much exploration of Café discussions, he should have learned that there is a goodly amount of generally goodnatured jesting hereabouts. Perhaps part of this comes with our inclination to devote much time, effort, and thought toward playing a small instrument few people are familiar with, or can even name, and have assumed a certain tendency towards developing what some call an inferiority complex. If some of us choose to help counteract that effect on our well-being by poking fun at others and their instruments, it's quite understandable. Perhaps not the ideal approach, but understandable. Besides, we are hardly living in an ideal world, are we?  :Wink: 

In any event, welcome to the Café!  :Mandosmiley:  And good luck with this project and more to come. However our reactions to your music have been expressed, it seems many have enjoyed the respite from our day-to-day concerns it has provided. Thanks for that.  :Smile:

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Michael Weaver, 

vegas

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## vegas

> I don't think that was the case as much as the _topic_ seemed to be. But since the creator of the music which has caused so much merriment appears to have a good sense of humor, I believe those of us who have had a bit of fun at his expense need not be too worried about being called to task. After all, if Mr. Vaclev has done much exploration of Café discussions, he should have learned that there is a goodly amount of generally goodnatured jesting hereabouts. Perhaps part of this comes with our inclination to devote much time, effort, and thought toward playing a small instrument few people are familiar with, or can even name, and have assumed a certain tendency towards developing what some call an inferiority complex. If some of us choose to help counteract that effect on our well-being by poking fun at others and their instruments, it's quite understandable. Perhaps not the ideal approach, but understandable. Besides, we are hardly living in an ideal world, are we? 
> 
> In any event, welcome to the Café!  And good luck with this project and more to come. However our reactions to your music have been expressed, it seems many have enjoyed the respite from our day-to-day concerns it has provided. Thanks for that.


I have to agree with everything journeybear said. Mr. Haclev appears to be a very good sport. If this is a real album and he is a real person (given the jokesters here I still have some doubts..uh, Sam Bush running for office?) I commend him for boldness and more than anything else, being able to take a joke with great dignity. _That_ is a quality I admire.

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## Michael Weaver

> I have to agree with everything journeybear said. Mr. Haclev appears to be a very good sport. If this is a real album and he is a real person (given the jokesters here I still have some doubts..uh, Sam Bush running for office?) I commend him for boldness and more than anything else, being able to take a joke with great dignity. That is a quality I admire.


Oh it has definitely crossed my mind that its someone on here messing around. Either way its still hilarious.

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## journeybear

Whatever is really going on around here, this thread came to a screeching halt once Harold joined in. Sad when these frivolous frolics take a serious bent. Sigh ...  :Whistling:

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## JEStanek

It's funny how people stop joking about someone when they show up  :Wink:  .  I think it had probably run it's course, anyway. An album of a total of almost 11 minutes had a long conversational run.

Jamie

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## Steve Ostrander

That's an oval hole ukelin she's got there. I prefer the f-hole ukelin--much better for bluegrass....

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## Jim Garber

The most amazing thing IMHO is that the cover photo was not Photoshopped but that was the original photographer's prop used. I guess ukelins were considered sex toys in those days.




> That's an oval hole ukelin she's got there. I prefer the f-hole ukelin--much better for bluegrass....


Yes it has much more bark. Woof!

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## journeybear

The assertion that the photo in question was not photoshopped had to be verified. So a quick google episode ensued, and sure enough, this is true. Cropped a bit to fit the album, but it's for real. Here it is in a blog about William Shatner. Why that? Read on!

_He told about sneaking in to see the famous burlesque stripper Lily St. Cyr, as a teenager in 1940s Montreal.

Lili St. Cyr held the title as the most famous woman in Montreal throughout the late 1940s into the 1950s._

Just fascinating, what we learn around here. 

I would guess the ukelin was used as a prop, a handy means of covering sensitive areas, more completely than a mandolin, with its skinnier neck. Please refer to the Milla Jovovich photos for comparison. (Risking opening that can of worms, I know, but seems more or less relevant.)

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## Bertram Henze

> William Shatner


We just had to end up on board the NCC 1701, what with the ukelin being such an exotic instrument it might have been played by the elders of Vulcan. After all, Sneaking in sure appeared no problem - just beam...

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## Michael Weaver

> It's funny how people stop joking about someone when they show up  .  I think it had probably run it's course, anyway. An album of a total of almost 11 minutes had a long conversational run.
> 
> Jamie


Honestly, I thought 10 responses max...boy was I wrong!

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JEStanek

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## Bob Clark

I think this has been one of the more amusing threads I've seen here in quite a while.  I am glad that Mr. Vaclev is a good sport and I hope he has enjoyed himself with this as much as some of us have.  I stand by my assertion in post #3 that his music is different.  I certainly hope he takes that as a compliment, whether he turns out to be a denizen of the Cafe making a joke or not.  

Mr. Vaclev, I tip my Mandolin Cafe hat to you :Smile:

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## Tobin

> I would guess the ukelin was used as a prop, a handy means of covering sensitive areas, more completely than a mandolin, with its skinnier neck.


Plus the location of the sound hole on that ukelin was, shall we say, more ideal than a mandolin for the intended suggestiveness of this photo.  Very well done, IMHO.




> The problem "seems" to be that the tip of my index finger simply isn't fat enough to push down all four strings.


Wonder if this one had a rattlesnake rattle in it?  Now would be the time to look in there and find out!

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## haroldvaclev

Hello again everyone.

I thought you might like to know that the total result of this discussion was just shy of 2,000 plays of my songs.  Up until last week I had a total of about 300 since February 2012.

Thanks again.

Yours,
Harold

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Michael Weaver

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## Jim

> Hello again everyone.
> 
> I thought you might like to know that the total result of this discussion was just shy of 2,000 plays of my songs. Up until last week I had a total of about 300 since February 2012.
> 
> Thanks again.
> 
> Yours,
> Harold


Well played Harold!  :Mandosmiley:

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## Cheryl Watson

Yes, there is different "good" and different "bad."  This is most definitely the later and rubbish is a good descriptor for it.




> I'm not speechless, it's utter rubbish.
> 
> Dave H

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## eadg145

Gee, I don't know.  I think "rubbish" is a bit harsh.  I'm listening to it again right now, and I think it might actually be useful as a soundtrack for a short film.  It's tonal and in Western temperament.  I don't see the need to shoot the effort down.  I'm gonna enjoy having these pop up from time to time in my music shuffle.

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## jaycat

> Yes, there is different "good" and different "bad."  This is most definitely the later and rubbish is a good descriptor for it.


I really think it's much more useful (and kinder) to label art by what you like and what you don't.

Do you like Eric Dolphy? The Fall? Albert Ayler? I'm guessing maybe not. But does that make it "rubbish?" What is the measuring stick here? Is it conformity -- if so, I would tread lightly. We don't get far without innovators breaking the rules.

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Bob Clark, 

Jim, 

journeybear

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## bratsche

I didn't particularly like the music, but I hated the "cover art" much more, which probably helped predispose me to dislike the music, more than feel what would probably otherwise be indifference to it.  I expect that only other women would understand that.  I'll never be able to look at a ukelin without prejudice now.  Sad.  Or maybe not...  :Laughing: 

bratsche

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## journeybear

> I really think it's much more useful (and kinder) to label art by what you like and what you don't.


Very true. Saying you like or dislike someone's creative effort and saying why is much more useful than just saying that it's rubbish, or conversely, that it's great. Not really saying much that way.




> What is the measuring stick here? Is it conformity -- if so, I would tread lightly. We don't get far without innovators breaking the rules.


Really. Hendrix was reviled by many when his first album came out. A lot of people wrote it off as noise. What he was doing was so different from whatever had come before a lot of people didn't know what to do with it. He soon became revered as the genius he was, and always will be the _ne plus ultra,_ but it was hard for him at first. I listen to those songs now and then and still marvel at the creativity he displayed, even moment to moment.And to think those were all scratch tracks.  :Disbelief: 

I'm not saying this is in that category  :Whistling:  but people should be able to express themselves and get a chance for their work to be evaluated on its own terms. And hey - who knows what would happen if that ukelin were electrified and its signal put through a wah wah, a whammy bar, and a stack of Marshall amps?  :Wink:

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## FLATROCK HILL

> I didn't particularly like the music, but I hated the "cover art" much more, which probably helped predispose me to dislike the music, more than feel what would probably otherwise be indifference to it.  I expect that only other women would understand that.  I'll never be able to look at a ukelin without prejudice now.  Sad.  Or maybe not... 
> 
> bratsche


I'm afraid that I too will not be able to look at a ukelin again without having a reaction.

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## Randolph

Maybe, just maybe, Mr. Vaclev had fun in the creation of his cd.  And, maybe, just maybe, some of us have had fun listening and discussing his work.  Over the course of the past year or so I have managed to record a cd.  Some songs are handmade, some are p.d. and a few are "stolen," with full credit given to the original authors.  Admittedly, this bit of vain "rubbish" was a simple Fathers' Day gift to my children, and will not grace the internet anytime soon.  And still, I had fun doing it.  Spending time in a recording studio, overcoming the jitters, hearing my voice and playing for the first time as a recorded reality, designing the cd cover...each step was a big expansion of my musical understanding and confidence.  Just as importantly, my kids have had fun listening to it.   And, when I am dead and gone, there will be just this tiny trace of creativity still in existence.  Perhaps my grandchildren will smile and have fun listening to grandpa.......Having Fun... :Smile:

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## Raggle Taggle

We don't really know a lot about "Mr. Vaclev" and that is part of the fun.  If anything this thread brought the ukelin (and its variants) to my attention. The backstory on these intruments? alone could make a great movie. For those who are interested just Google it and read the history of these and how an instrument? made in the first half of this century are today only worth about $30!  I can't get this image out of my mind of George Clooney's character from Oh Brother as the ukelin salesman at the farmers door in the middle of the depression. Hilarious!

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## vegas

> Very true. Saying you like or dislike someone's creative effort and saying why is much more useful than just saying that it's rubbish, or conversely, that it's great. Not really saying much that way.
> 
> 
> 
> Really. Hendrix was reviled by many when his first album came out. A lot of people wrote it off as noise. What he was doing was so different from whatever had come before a lot of people didn't know what to do with it. He soon became revered as the genius he was, and always will be the _ne plus ultra,_ but it was hard for him at first. I listen to those songs now and then and still marvel at the creativity he displayed, even moment to moment.And to think those were all scratch tracks. 
> 
> I'm not saying this is in that category  but people should be able to express themselves and get a chance for their work to be evaluated on its own terms. And hey - who knows what would happen if that ukelin were electrified and its signal put through a wah wah, a whammy bar, and a stack of Marshall amps?


I would ordinarily agree with this, but I don't think you can take whatever sounds come out of this "instrument" seriously. I had never heard of this instrument in spite of the many years I've spent listening to music of a wide variety from all over the world. I went on YouTube to find various people "playing" it and the best word I can come up with for the sounds it makes is wretched. Then you come to find it was sold door-to-door like family Bibles mostly to rural rubes and its value as "art" or as a "musical instrument" becomes apparent. It has neither artistic nor musical merit of any kind.

Trying to compare this to real music by people like Eric Dolphy, Hendrix, Ornette Coleman, John Coltrane or some of the other more experimental musicians is, IMHO, absolutely ridiculous. All the names I've mentioned were serious musicians who could play real music and took chances by doing something not as mainstream. This instrument is not capable of producing anything worth listening to and was basically a marketing scheme to separate hopeful simple folk from their money. I suspect whoever is behind this particular project has an incredible sense of humor and wanted to see what kinds of reactions would come of making recordings like "I wanted to be a Cowboy but instead I'm an Accountant" or "Cleaning the Bathroom." Don't the song titles tip you off? Have you seen any serious musicians using this instrument in their recordings? It is NOT simply a matter of taste. I can't imagine this project as anything other than a joke by someone with a keen, although twisted sense of humor.

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## Randolph

Gosh darn it...I guess I should have taken that class titled "Real Music 101" when I had the chance, those many years ago.  Instead, I guess I was having too much fun to be a "serious"  musician, or surfer, or lover, or adventurer or any of the other things that have brought me "non-serious" joy and laughter over the years.  Maybe I should take myself more seriously, although it's probably too late by now. :Laughing:

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## jaycat

> . . . I suspect whoever is behind this particular project has an incredible sense of humor and wanted to see what kinds of reactions would come of making recordings like "I wanted to be a Cowboy but instead I'm an Accountant" or "Cleaning the Bathroom."


Sounds not a little like a description of Frank Zappa's music, doesn't it?




> Have you seen any serious musicians using this instrument in their recordings?


That was my take on the Marxophone, until I discovered it had been used in recordings by The Doors and Lovin Spoonful, among others.

I just want to make it clear that in no way do I think this is the best stuff I've ever heard. But I do think there is a lot of latitude for experimentation in music, and that we should welcome it all. No one is saying you have to put in on your playlist if you don't want to.

Remember, there was a time when Bob Dylan's voice was deemed unlistenable. Not to mention Joseph Spence . . .

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## vegas

> Sounds not a little like a description of Frank Zappa's music, doesn't it?


Zappa did an awful lot of that. I think the difference here is that Zappa was a knowledgeable musician who stretched the limits. He applied the Da-Da art form to music, but he was serious about music as art. This recording wins high marks in my book for humor and I think (hope) that was the point in recording it. The cover art should be another clue.

When Reagan was president, there was a photo of him in our local paper with Lili St. Cyr. They were both performing in Las Vegas long before he entered politics. St. Cyr was sitting in a trapeze (possibly bottomless, but the photo wasn't clear) in a Las Vegas showroom with a group of men below her looking up. A young Ronald Reagan was one of the men. It was a great photo of an earlier, more innocent time. Here was the future president looking sheepishly up at a lady willing to reveal all. I've searched the Internet and can't find the picture. I SWEAR to you it was printed in the _Las Vegas Review Journal_ more than once. If anybody else can find it, please put it up.

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## mandolinlee

Many have remarked about how bad Mr. Vaclev's music sounds - YET, there are people that feel the same way about mandolin music.

No one on this board, I hope.

Lee

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## eadg145

> This instrument is not capable of producing anything worth listening to and was basically a marketing scheme to separate hopeful simple folk from their money.


Hey, now let's not go dragging the bagpipes into this.   :Wink:

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## journeybear

> ... I don't think you can take whatever sounds come out of this "instrument" seriously ... I can't imagine this project as anything other than a joke by someone with a keen, although twisted sense of humor.


I'm not defending this music, just the man's right to make it. If people like it, fine; if they don't fine. People are free to move on and listen to something else, just as they are free to change the channel if they don't care for watching, say, "Real Housewives Of Podunk" (or wherever). Taking someone to task for producing art - or "art," if you prefer - doesn't matter a whole lot, unless you are a paid critic and HAVE to analyze it. 




> Trying to compare this to real music by people like Eric Dolphy, Hendrix, Ornette Coleman, John Coltrane or some of the other more experimental musicians is, IMHO, absolutely ridiculous.


I wan't comparing this music to that of Hendrix (no comparison, really), just using that as an example of musical experimentation and nonconformity. I'm all for people following their muses and creating art, music, literature, etc., in whatever way they are inspired to do it. If it lacks sophistication ... well, we are living in a time in which a lot of unsophisticated stuff is being produced. There is still a fair amount of good stuff being produced as well. It's just a matter of deciding what to devote one's attention to. 

This strikes me as the modern equivalent of primitive art. It isn't anything great, but  it isn't as awful as some people are saying. You know, we live in an age in which people put all kinds of inane crap up on youtube, and other people spend hours and hours watching it and commenting on it. There are uncountable hours of far worse gooberage than this available for one's entertainment. In that context, this ain't all that bad. In fact, it's really innocuous, and hardly deserves getting all worked up about. And hey - it's free. And worth every penny listeners are paying.  :Wink:

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Bob Clark, 

JEStanek

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## Bertram Henze

> When Reagan was president, there was a photo of him in our local paper with Lili St. Cyr. They were both performing in Las Vegas long before he entered politics.


This?

Nothing shocking - figure him trying to play the ukelin instead  :Whistling:

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JEStanek

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## vegas

> This?
> 
> Nothing shocking - figure him trying to play the ukelin instead


That's the only one I could find, but it isn't the one I'm talking about. The one that was published in our local paper was unquestionably a young Ronald Reagan. He worked some shows in Las Vegas shortly after his divorce when he needed money and his acting career was in a rut. He probably had to pay "alimony" as they called it back then. It's a shame I can't find it. It was nothing shocking or scandalous. It showed a more human side of a typical Midwesterner.

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## mandolinlee

Hi All -

Just to bump this thread w/ an update. Tonight (7-1-13) the Antiques Roadshow had a UKELIN!!!!   Appraiser claimed they sold new in the '30s for $35 door-to-door. The 1998 appraisal was $50 and the 2013 update was $100.

If Mr. Vaclef bought his at a flea market for $5, he got a bargain.

Lee

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Michael Weaver

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## Michael Weaver

> Hi All -
> 
> Just to bump this thread w/ an update. Tonight (7-1-13) the Antiques Roadshow had a UKELIN!!!!   Appraiser claimed they sold new in the '30s for $35 door-to-door. The 1998 appraisal was $50 and the 2013 update was $100.
> 
> If Mr. Vaclef bought his at a flea market for $5, he got a bargain.
> 
> Lee


Man! If I could go back to the 1930's and buy a hundred of these....I would have $6500!!!!!

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## journeybear

Well, sure - if you could sell all 100 at $100 per. You'd be doing well to sell 35 and break even. It's more likely you'd have a stack of them taking up a room in your house for a good while longer than the missus would be willing to tolerate. And besides, if you could go back to the 1930s, I daresay there would be a lot more interesting ways to spend your time. But to each his own ...  :Whistling:

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Michael Weaver

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## Michael Weaver

> Well, sure - if you could sell all 100 at $100 per. You'd be doing well to sell 35 and break even. It's more likely you'd have a stack of them taking up a room in your house for a good while longer than the missus would be willing to tolerate. And besides, if you could go back to the 1930s, I daresay there would be a lot more interesting ways to spend your time. But to each his own ...


How dare you say that there were more exiting things to spend your money on in the 1930's!!! Let me guess... Bread? Milk?

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## Bertram Henze

> Man! If I could go back to the 1930's and buy a hundred of these....I would have $6500!!!!!


But then you'd be drafted to fight on either Omaha Beach or Henderson Field - journeys to the past are too dangerous and thus never worth monetary gain, not even counting the costs of a flux capacitor.

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Michael Weaver

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## Michael Weaver

I can already see the classified ad. Hey guys I have 100 ukelins that are looking for a new home! Now is your time to get a piece of history and a divorce.

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## Tobin

> Man! If I could go back to the 1930's and buy a hundred of these....I would have $6500!!!!!


Except that $35 in the 1930s was about the equivalent of $578 today (according to the inflation calculator I found online).  So, in REAL dollars, your investment in ukelins would mean you'd be losing $47,800 in actual value.

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## Michael Weaver

> Except that $35 in the 1930s was about the equivalent of $578 today (according to the inflation calculator I found online).  So, in REAL dollars, your investment in ukelins would mean you'd be losing $47,800 in actual value.


Why would I travel back in time to earn an honest dollar instead of taking money I already have? Guess I would have to pay in silver...I'll get it worked out. You get started on the machine.

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## journeybear

You know, I was concerned with how a time traveler would spend his *time* back then, not his *money*. Of course, you can spend your time spending money (sorry, Eagles), even on such a risky venture as investing in ukelins, but, as I also said, to each his (or her) own. Putting the cost into the current currency context really make me wonder how these ever got sold back then. These days, they might have accrued some collectors' or curiosity-seeker's value; in the 1930s ... eh, not so much.  :Confused:  That's a lot of loaves of bread.





> How dare you say that there were more exiting things to spend your money on in the 1930's!!! Let me guess... Bread? Milk?





> ... if you could go back to the 1930s, I daresay there would be a lot more interesting ways to spend your time.

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## Michael Weaver

> You know, I was concerned with how a time traveler would spend his time back then, not his money. Of course, you can spend your time spending money (sorry, Eagles), even on such a risky venture as investing in ukelins, but, as I also said, to each his (or her) own. Putting the cost into the current currency context really make me wonder how these ever got sold back then. These days, they might have accrued some collectors' or curiosity-seeker's value; in the 1930s ... eh, not so much.  That's a lot of loaves of bread.


I was seriously wandering the same thing. How could someone have afforded the equivalent of over $500 on an instrument in the 1930's?

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## vegas

> I was seriously wandering the same thing. How could someone have afforded the equivalent of over $500 on an instrument in the 1930's?


I'm betting the $35.00 price printed in the label was part of the marketing scheme. Have ever seen an instrument maker put a price in their label?

The door-to-door guy would point to the label "proving" how much the "instrument" was worth. (Hey, looky there! By golly, there it is in writtin'!) Then, he'd offer it for a small fraction of that price because, "It's the last one I got left and the baby is sick so I gotta get $______ to pay the doctor."

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## Michael Weaver

I guess tough times and lack of employment would create innovative ways to make a buck. Better than being a tricky bible salesman I suppose.

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## Randi Gormley

There have always been millionaires regardless of the current economy (and wealthy criminals) and bright young things in college, so it's not impossible that someone would buy one back in the 30s for $35. just sayin'

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## Timbofood

I had a "Hawaiian Tremoloa" from the same era, what an oddity! I think I might have sold mine for ten bucks in 1976 or maybe I gave it away, I hope I did the latter, I think I might feel guilty taking someone's hard earned ten bucks.  It was kind of cool though.

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## journeybear

As I recall reading around here sometime, autoharps were sold door-to-door back then too, probably for around the same price. Back then, it was much more common for people to play music themselves, and instruments that were relatively easy to learn and play could very well have been marketable to novices.

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## journeybear

He's back! Not that he ever went away, but while looking for something else today, I happened on this wacky thread, and revisited the source. There I found Walter Vaclev had uploaded more music, last July, and felt duty-bound to report this. I find myself compelled also to report that it's not as intriguing as his previous work. Indeed, it is disappointing in its normalcy. There is no ukelin or other odd instrumentation, and most songs seem to be fairly pedestrian singer-songwriter stuff - vocals accompanied by guitar, except for three by piano and one by banjo.  :Disbelief:  The overall effect is rather disheartening, as if witnessing someone whose adventurous spirit ( I hesitate to say "muse") has been abandoned in favor of an eagerness to please, or simply follow well-trodden paths similar to countless others bent on repeating what they have heard from others. In other words, it's excruciatingly mediocre. What I liked about the previous music was its primitivism, its clumsy yet endearingly unsophisticated fealty to something resembling a vision. These offerings have none of that, and while the title's allusion to them being demos provides him with an excuse for them sounding unfinished, they sound so unfinished I'm baffled why he put them out there. I think the emphasis here is on the lyrical content, which is rather trite. Again, I find his motivation baffling, but at least with the pieces on "Your Ukelin Favorites" there was something charming about their naivete, and the way he had put some time into multi-tracking instruments to create what sounded like an attempt to realize inspirations. This seems like he wasn't trying that hard, or gave up before finishing them. Once again, I'm left scratching my head over what I've just heard, but for different reasons.  :Confused:  This isn't weird, just ... boring.  :Sleepy:

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## JEStanek

This cut isn't as interesting to me as the Ukelin Album.  Sophmore record blues.

Jamie

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## fernmando

If I were a wealthy man, I would fund a Walter Vaclev/Henry Kaiser duo record. Maybe with Susan Sarandon on the cover.

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## nickster60

The new album has a real early 60's folky sound. I prefer the  multi-instrumental mishmash.

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## journeybear

I agree. And not very food folky at that. Sophomoric is right. Hope he gets back to the other stuff.

Perhaps what these songs need are more tracks. But there's still the vocals ...

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## bart mcneil

I have never done it, but i know folks who have created a second identity for their art, and have done so fairly effectively at least in the short run.

My reaction to Harold and his art is pure admiration.

*Here's to you Walter Vaclev!*

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## Franc Homier Lieu

> I have never done it, but i know folks who have created a second identity for their art, and have done so fairly effectively at least in the short run.
> 
> My reaction to Harold and his art is pure admiration.
> 
> *Here's to you Walter Vaclev!*


Some people are even successful creating a second identity for a pretty long run, like Jandek. His music will also leave you speechless. Lots of it on YouTube, but here is a random sample:




The story of his mysterious early career is told in the documentary "Jandek on Corwood."

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## Nick Gellie

Not impressed at all! Belongs to the realms of zombie music.

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## journeybear

I've, um, experienced some of Jandek's music before. I'm reluctant to say anything because some of his audience members look frightening.  :Frown:

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## journeybear

There's weird, there's good weird and bad weird. This is pretty good weird, from Orenda Finks, someone I learned about on "Last Call With Carson Daly" last night.



She went through a year of withdrawal following the death of her 16-year-old dog, which affected her more deeply than she had expected. After emerging from this period of grief, songs just started flowing out of her, an album being the result. It doesn't seem to be as "out there" as other music on this thread, but it's still pretty out there. This video is an homage to several scary movies.

Here's another. Her music isn't very adventurous, but there's something about it - maybe it's the lyrical content, or the concept or back story - that gives me a bit of the heebie jeebies.

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## Lord of the Badgers

i can easily out-weird this... this is tame...

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## jaycat



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## JEStanek

Jaycat... that feels derivative of the Velvet Underground. Orenda Fink's stuff reminded me of a lot of Suzanne Vega's stuff that I really like.

The Russian Group Winnie Puh wins that.

Jamie

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## journeybear

Ah, The Shaggs. Pretty, um, interesting results from three sisters who'd never shown interest in music before their father bought them instruments, upon advice a palm-reader gave their grandmother.  :Disbelief: 

Apparently there is a tribute album; so sayeth the wiki:

Better Than The Beatles: A Tribute to The Shaggs is a tribute album consisting of cover versions of songs by The Shaggs from their only album, Philosophy of the World. The title comes from a Frank Zappa interview, in which Zappa refers to The Shaggs as the "3rd best band" of all-time, calling them "better than The Beatles."|[citation needed]

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## jaycat

> . . . Zappa refers to The Shaggs as the "3rd best band" of all-time, calling them "better than The Beatles."|[citation needed]


Two bands were better than the Shaggs? I wonder who they were.

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## journeybear

This was before Walter Havel, so it couldn't have been him.

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## Timbofood

I am speechless!

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## rubydubyr

> I'm not speechless, it's utter rubbish.
> 
> Dave H


I was thinking the very same thing...... and I thought I couldn't sing.... I have a world renowned voice compared to this guy  :Mandosmiley:   :Laughing:   :Grin:

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## MandoMiguel

The album cover reminds me somewhat of the cover for Appassionáto by Peter Xifaras

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## JEStanek

Peter's website looks like it dates to the era of MySpace!

Jamie

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## Pete Jenner

It's pure genius!

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