(TV) OT: MISSION OF BURMA reunion shows (fwd)

["Karl W. Reinsch" <karl@rockin-r.net>]

Here's the dirt, in a long "official" form.

Looks like Martin will not be involved.

-karl.
karl@rockin-r.net

---------- Forwarded message ----------
> Dear Boston Mission of Burma fan,
>
> It's been almost 19 years since you last saw Mission of Burma, and you've
> patiently awaited news about their forthcoming live shows, checking in at
> www.missionofburma.com for updates and information. To reward you for your
> steadfastness, we'd like to give you the opportunity to purchase tickets to
> their Boston appearance at Avalon on January 18th in advance of the general
> on-sale, which will take place on Saturday, November 3rd at 10 a.m. This
> special pre-sale will begin tomorrow, October 31st, at 10 a.m.
>
> To take advantage of this unique pre-sale opportunity please visit either of
> the urls below after 10 a.m. tomorrow. Burma is Back!
>
> for the Boston Show:
> http://www.nextticketing.com/avalon.html
>
> NYC show on sale now at:
> https://ticketing.ticketmaster.com/cgi/purchasePage.asp?event_id=3358ACC38F5
> 4&event_code=EIV0112&actname=MISSION_OF_BURMA&majorcatid=10001&minorcatid=52
>
>
> MISSION OF BURMA TO PLAY BOSTON AND NYC SHOWS IN JANUARY, 2002
>
> Seminal Boston band Mission of Burma has inexplicably decided to reform for
> performances in Boston and New York City in January of 2002.  They will play
> on Saturday, January 12 at Irving Plaza in New York City and Friday, January
> 18 at the Avalon Ballroom in Boston.  The original band, Roger Miller
> (guitar, vocals), Clint Conley (bass, vocals), Peter Prescott (drums,
> vocals) and Martin Swope (live sound, tape manipulations) will appear intact
> with the exception of Swope.
>
> Both Irving Plaza and Avalon have figured prominently in the band's career.
> In 1980, they played two legendary gigs with Gang Of Four - one of several
> gigs at Irving Plaza - and have played Avalon (known as Metro at the time)
> with the Psychedelic Furs, Jim Carroll, and many others.  Mission of Burma
> played their first gig on April 1, 1979 at the Modern Theater in Boston and
> played their last, following their farewell tour at the Paramount Theater on
> Staten Island, opening for Public Image Ltd., on March 26, 1983.  Their last
> Boston shows were on March 12, 1983 at the Bradford Hotel Ballroom. These
> will be their first performances in almost 19 years.  Opening acts and DJs
> will be announced at a later date.  Tickets for Irving Plaza are on sale now
> through Ticketmaster (212.307.7071, 617.931.2000, www.ticketmaster.com
> <http://www.ticketmaster.com>).  Tickets for Avalon will go on sale
> Saturday, November 3 at 10:00 am through NEXT Ticketing (617.423.NEXT,
> www.nextticketing.com <http://www.nextticketing.com>).  Both shows are
> presented by Clear Channel Entertainment.
>
> Below is a statement from the band explaining why they decided to play
> again:
>
> Mission of Burma has decided to do two performances in January - one in NYC,
> one in Boston.  Over the years we have been asked many times to play, and
> have always turned down the offer.  Why have we decided to do it now? We
> aren't certain, really.   However, all of the following may or may not have
> contributed to our decision:
>
> 1.  Punk passed the 25-year mark this year (enough time has past to feel OK
> about playing).
> 2.  Joey Ramone died in 2001. (he went down rocking - maybe we should too).
> 3.  Our Band Could Be Your Life, the book by Michael Azerrad.  (Made us
> nostalgic for sleeping in fumy vans and pressing unsuspecting listeners
> against the back wall).
> 4.  Peter's band, the Peer Group, opened for Wire (one of Burma's idols) in
> Boston (at the Roxy, which was the Bradford where Burma played our final
> show).  Clint played bass for Peer Group at that time, and Roger joined on
> Cornet and Organ for that show.  And . . . it was fun.
> 5.  Clint has started writing music again.
> 6.  Peter and Roger continue being involved with the music scene.
> 7.  Mark Kates checked in with us this summer - he helped organize Burma's
> last stand at The Bradford in 1983.  Who could be more fitting to keep us
> from backing out of doing the shows?
>
> We have no other plans than these two shows, as the ear/tinnitus problems
> remain.  We will play some hits, some obscurities, probably some new
> material. Martin Swope, tape manipulatist, has declined involvement (he has
> not been involved with music for years).  The band feels they can soldier on
> as a trio and disport themselves in a non-embarrassing fashion
> none-the-less. WARNING: we will probably be as sloppy and uneven this
> century as we were the last.
>
> Mission of Burma
>
> Mission of Burma's influence has, seemingly, only grown since their
> premature demise in 1983.  In their time. they were an influential and
> somewhat popular underground band, a cornerstone in a American independent
> scene that threatened for years to reach the mainstream, doing so eventually
> with the success of bands like R.E.M (who have covered "Academy Fight Song"
> and Nirvana.  Moby's 1997 cover of  "That's When I Reach for My Revolver"
> while predating his current success, is perhaps the most well recognized
> example of their influence, but they abound, from Blur guitarist Graham
> Coxon's last solo album which featured TWO Burma covers, to the recent
> success of At The Drive-In.
>
> Formed as a trio, guitarist/vocalist Roger Miller and bassist/vocalist Clint
> Conley, (both fresh from the break-up of Moving Parts), joined with
> drummer/vocalist Peter Prescott (formerly with The Molls) in February 1979.
> The three played together until the summer of 1979, when Martin Swope joined
> to provide what was commonly seen as an "x-factor" in the band's sound -
> tape loops and sonic manipulations that were done from a visually
> unobtrusive position behind the soundboard.  (Swope's contribution often
> left audiences wondering how the three musicians on stage were creating the
> sounds that they were hearing.)
>
> Burma released their debut, the seminal "Academy Fight Song" 7", in June
> 1980 on Boston producer Rick Harte's Ace Of Hearts label.  The single, still
> regarded as a high watermark of Boston music, quickly sold out of its
> initial pressing - an unprecedented feat for an independent band and label
> at that time. With a growing number of live dates and positive media
> attention for the single under their belts, the band returned to the studio
> to record signals, calls, and marches, which Ace Of Hearts released in July
> 1981.  The EP's six songs showed a marked growth from the tightly-wound,
> blistering attack of "Academy...," with the Conley-penned opener "That's
> When I Reach For My Revolver," quickly becoming the band's calling card.
> Concise in presentation yet broad in scope, the EP ranges from the
> two-minute bullet of "This Is Not A Photograph" to the sonically majestic
> "All World Cowboy Romance."
>
> The band's second single, "Trem Two" b/w "OK/No Way," showed up in April
> 1982, with their full-length debut, VS., following in October of that year.
> A dozen
> furious tracks, the album met with press raves both at home and abroad.  The
> New York Times called it "a raw-power dissertation" and "a solid, compelling
> piece of work," while the UK weekly, Sounds dubbed it "a fascinating,
> turbulent, and worthy debut full of slanted timing, trimmings, and a teasing
> strength and coarseness."
>
> As Burma's profile continued to develop in the wake of VS.'s release, so did
> Miller's tinnitus.  The quartet's extreme stage volume so exacerbated the
> guitarist's condition that he was forced to pursue less deafening musical
> endeavors.  The decision was made to embark on a farewell tour in March 1983
> and subsequently disband.  Their final shows were recorded, and in 1985 Ace
> Of Hearts compiled and released THE HORRIBLE TRUTH ABOUT BURMA, a document
> of otherwise unreleased songs that fully captures the glorious roar and
> bewildering dynamics that characterized the Burma live experience (as it was
> then).
>
> Since its demise, the band's recorded legacy has been well represented:
> Rykodisc released a (now-deleted) 80 minute compilation CD in 1988, and then
> reissued impeccably re-mastered and expanded versions of the band's entire
> Ace of Hearts Records' catalog in 1997, adding singles, compilation tracks,
> and previously unreleased recordings to signals,..., VS., and  THE HORRIBLE
> TRUTH.  (In addition, the Taang! label released two posthumous collections
> in 1987 - a self-titled ten-song assemblage of '79 - '82 vintage studio
> tracks, and a trove of previously unreleased material entitled, Forget.)
>
> Upon Burma's demise, Miller embarked on a solo career (he has also recorded
> in various combos under the monikers Maximum Electric Piano, No Man/No Man's
> Band, and most recently The Binary System and Alloy Orchestra), as well as
> with Swope in Birdsongs Of The Mesozoic.  Prescott has led Volcano Suns,
> Kustomized, and Peer Group.  Conley has kept a low musical profile, but that
> is about to change.  He is entering the studio in November with a new band
> that includes Chris Brokaw of Come and Matt Kadane of The New Year, and
> before that, Bedhead.  Since Burma, he produced and played on Yo La Tengo's
> 1986 debut album, Ride The Tiger, and reunited with Miller in 1996 for a
> one-off single as Wrong Pipe.
>
> For Further Information Please Contact:
>
> melissafarrington@clearchannel.com
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