OFF: sappy prog

[Jon Jarrett]

On Wed, 22 Sep 2004, David Kuznick wrote:

> Quoting Henderson Keith <keith.henderson at PSI.CH>:
>
> > Hmmm...Nektar are really (still) very good.
>
> I was somewhat disappointed with them at NEARFest, whereas I thought Caravan
> kicked ass.  I was taking my wife because she likes Caravan a lot, but Nektar
> isn't really her cup of tea.

        That does surprise me, I must admit. Having seen both in
reasonably recent years (Caravan last in 2001 at the Canterbury
Festival)  Nektar earlier this year as keen readers of my screeds to this
list will know, I thought Caravan were bland, self-indulgent and more or
less content-free, while Nektar were driven, imaginative and focused.
Caravan got everything I don't like about the whole jam-band thing
going. Nice bunch of people, apparently, but I won't complain if I never
see them play again. I've certainly never dared try their albums, even
though the two biggest fans I know are into much of the same stuff as me
(one of them's a death metaller who used to run Rise Above Records
website, for heaven's sakes--what?!). Nektar on the other hand have fast
become a fixation in the CD player (albeit currently between endless Bevis
Frond). So I am surprised that one could come out favouring Caravan over
Nektar live. What kind of ears am I not listening with? Yours,
                                                               Jon


--
                Jonathan Jarrett, Birkbeck College, London
    jjarrett at chiark.greenend.org.uk/ejarr01 at students.bbk.ac.uk
  "As much as the vision of the blind man improves with the rising sun,
       So too does the intelligence of the fool after good advice."
       (Bishop Theodulf of Orleans, late-eight/early-ninth century)