Anonymous eyeballs and a big black skull, the moles and the chubs, and so on...

[Gutter Ghost]

Anyone around these parts listen to The Residents? Probably my favorite band... you know, these guys:

http://tv.cream.org/extras/charityshoprecords/images/residents%20copy.png

...though, eventually one of the eyeball masks was (supposedly) stolen, thus, it was replaced with...

http://starling.rinet.ru/music/sleeves/zap_resident.jpg

...a big black skull mask. I know some people listen to the Residents and hear unlistenable noise (which alot of their early stuff approaches), but man... they're brilliant. Incredibly prolific, I have like 50 Residents albums and there are still many to find. Truly the most uncompromising band to ever record music, they've existed entirely on their own terms for almost 40 years now, still totally anonymous to this day. I could go on about this band for hours. Each album has a story and an idea, some new concept. I know alot of people write it off as pretentious art-rock junk... but for me, they're just such a fascinating entity. They've always had a sense of humor about what they do, and have made some truly incredible music: Mark of the Mole, God in Three Persons, The Commercial Album, Not Available, The Tunes of Two Cities... more great albums than I can list. I was just curious to see if there were any other Resident-admirers out there, or any Resident-haters, for that matter.

[Ex-Hendrix]

You know, I've always been interested in these guys but never really checked out any of their full albums. Any suggestions as to a starting point?

Also, it seems that this is one of those bands that aren't extremely popular, but the people that listen to them love them to a ridiculous extent. Just an observation. :P

[Gutter Ghost]

Yeah, thats true... the (relatively few) Residents fans that I've met seem to be kinda rabid about 'em. I'd say that The Commercial Album is the best introduction to the Residents and their bizarre style. Its a collection of forty one-minute-long songs, each one a sort of whacked-out pop tune. That was the album that got me hooked. It's an easy introduction to a band that has some pretty inaccessible stuff in their catalogue. My personal favorites are Mark of the Mole/Intermission and God in Three Persons, and you could always just dive in head-first and start with those...

[Ex-Hendrix]

Thanks, I'll definitely give a couple of those a try. I like the whole eyeball thing they've got going. Reminds me of Emerson's transparent eyeball.

Plus, they're very finely dressed.