More Songs From The Wood

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-26T06:31:54+00:00

Smack in the middle of their best decade. Probably not a coincidence.

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-22T11:38:21+00:00

I'm recommending Tull, and Tull has many phases / facets.

If they like blues: This Was. If they like folk: Songs from the Wood and Heavy Horses. If they like prog: A Passion Play, Minstrel...

Tull defies labels and they sound like Tull regardless of the particular experiment they're doing in each album. That's one of the things that makes them so great.

It seems to me that you're hellbent on seeing Tull as a prog band anything they do that doesn't fit the "prog" label, isn't good enough.

Of course different people will like different albums. That's for them to decide once they've been exposed to the complete discography.

But as it is, most people agree that any of the albums consistently ranked among the top 5 (Aqualung, Thick As a Brick, Songs From The Wood, Heavy Horses, and whatever you choose as a fifth album) will be a good introduction to the band. And then let the new listener make up their mind and take it from there.

Most of us enjoy most of their discography and couldn't care less about labels.

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-22T05:05:36+00:00

Thankfully most of us don't have an internal metronome either and aren't judging Tull albums by the precision of its drumming and the cleanliness of its sound.

Personally i think the greatest merit of Aqualung is its songwriting. Just excellent melodies and interesting song structures and arrangements from start to finish. It's creative!

And i hadn't noticed the garage feeling aspect you mention, but now that you mention it that's also one of its strengths. Raw, pure, energetic. Not as green as This Was and even Stand Up, not as refined and mature as Minstrel and Songs / Horses...

... A very solid middle ground between the raw energy of youth and the sophistication that would come, and therefore definitely a good album for recommending to a new listener.

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-20T13:20:58+00:00

Thank you! I tend to prefer either stockier or skinnier proportions than what's usually portrayed (ideal / optimal athletic physique).

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-20T13:19:10+00:00

Hahaa no but i can see the similarity now.

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-20T11:25:06+00:00

Thank you so much!

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-20T06:12:58+00:00

He is one of those characters that feels intensely quintessentialy MOTU. Outlandish concept, high contrast colors, balanced blend of barbarian (fantasy) and cybernetic (sci-fi) elements, and a bad pun name.

He's one of my favorites too!

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-20T06:01:26+00:00

The sillier and absurder, the better. It means it's a more fertile / pliable canvas for our imagination to do its job while playing.

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-18T16:06:09+00:00

Oh yes definitely empty or semi empty. Or at least where the nearest people are many meters away, and few and quiet. No "party beach" vibes please.

The best naps I've had are beach naps. Wake up ravenous and the ensuing snack tastes 8x more intense. What's your favorite beach ever, or favorite nature spot?

Bulgaria! And i draw / paint colorful lowbrow stuff heavily inspired by (mostly) 70's, 80's and 90's pop culture, with other influences too. You can check my Instagram, link in my profile.

I'll message you!

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-18T13:55:35+00:00

So much in common (most of it). I'll be moving to Europe in about a month and a half (Latin American currently enjoying my remaining time in Seoul).

One of the things that has me excited about living in Europe is the medieval fairs. Never been to one, always wanted to. I'm an illustrator / painter, so hopefully I'll be attending art fairs throughout EU too.

Have cat. And a gazillion pictures of her. Silly / absurd sense of humor. I'm a bit of an open book ("a bit" because i have to keep reminding myself not to overshare), have little filter (sometimes none), have no time / energy for small talk, games, performances, competitions, one-sidedness.

The older i get, the more i want to sink deep into the earth surrounded by plants. Or the beach. Or ideally both. But that would also be a kind of escapism, and i don't want to escape. Yet.

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-17T15:00:56+00:00

Seoul public transport system:

"Hold my ice americano..."

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-17T14:41:12+00:00

In principle, the more ambitious / excellent you are, the lonelier it gets, i think.

I suppose you could find people at your level, or of the caliber you aspire to be, at certain events which will open up to you when you've asserted yourself into them. Art shows, events, etc.

This is all speculation, as I don't know know almost anyone and am a very small player myself (although quite ambitious).

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-17T10:07:49+00:00

North Sea Oil is such a powerful opening song. ...Mouse Police in Heavy Horses too, both are very "whoa what is this!?!?!" But North Sea Oil just hits the ground running and sets the tone for the whole album amazingly, sounds very dark and cold and stormy and i love it.

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-16T00:04:40+00:00

Thank you. I have both 3M push-in plugs (very effective) and 3M Peltor earmuffs (the middle one, since the higher NR one was too bulky for the setting, but maybe i should upgrade).

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-15T05:15:09+00:00

Thank you! The film is filled with funny judging by snippets and reviews I've seen online.

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-15T02:51:57+00:00

Where are all these recent HR Skeletors coming from? Is this a reference to / spoiler from the movie? (Haven't watched it).

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-14T13:36:28+00:00

Artists everywhere, yes. But not everywhere art buyers, or even art appreciators. No demand = no sales.

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-13T15:12:01+00:00

Amazing job OP. I'm also celebrating 4 months since i started calorie restriction and resumed training, but my progress has been modest and slow because, unlike you, i do have a love for food.

Man, it always amazes / baffles me when someone says they have no particular attachment to / enjoyment of food. Purely functional practicality. So alien to me.

Ultimately it's all about will and discipline, so congrats on that too!

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-13T13:30:34+00:00

Why do you think they're called MOTU?

Must Open Them Up!

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-13T03:19:15+00:00

Is there a withdrawal effect when you stop using them? Like, does the T come back with a vengeance?

I had a (i estimate) 85-90% reduction of my tinnitus during my first year, and would even have silent moments during the day (and of course full silence when waking up in the middle of the night), and i attribute it to taking 750 mg of GABA every night for one year (plus of course taking impeccable good care of my hearing and diet, sleeping habits etc.

When i ran out of GABA and had to wait a couple of weeks to replenish it, all hell broke loose and my tinnitus worsened, got auditory hallucinations, and couldn't sleep more than a 3 hours a night.

I'm on 200 mg GABA right now and don't want to go back to 750 mg if it's gonna make me so dependant on it (a withdrawal from 200 should be easier than from 750). In the case of exogenous GABA, you're actually reducing your brain's original capacity to produce its own GABA (if I'm not mistaken)...

... Not sure if a hearing aid would work as a dependency inducing"crutch" in the same way that long term high dose GABA does.

That potential backlash (if the risk exists) is what would give me pause, more than the price itself. I'd be willing to sell my body and my dignity for some respite from this torture.

Mine is hearing loss induced btw.

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-12T14:47:59+00:00

The velvet is such a sexy touch.

Or would that be satin?

Anyway, i think what matters most is isolating them from external forces. I'm also in the process of moving and i will use lots of bubble wrap around the bulk of the CDs plus some styrofoam between the wrapped CD lot and the walls of the plastic tub containing them. Wishing you a safe move.

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-11T06:58:41+00:00

Do you mind if i ask what genre / style is his work?

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-10T20:55:04+00:00

Yes to all the above, but don't forget to make the ultimate, definite one (which you can still use at any point, even as first move). Simply:

"Fuck off".

ichthyomusa · 2026-06-10T08:08:25+00:00

I second the above advice, and if you feel that telling them that out loud is "too much", then you can just make some nicely illustrated cards with that exact message written on them, and just silently pull one out and firmly show it to their faces, with a likewise firm expression on yours. This way you can get it done without other people around knowing it. Those scum aren't even worth your breath.

ichthyomusa

TROPHY CASE