Game Theory - Live Rarities 1983-1988

Live Rarities
songs rarely played live
1983-1988

FM + soundboard recordings (sound quality range: VG to VG++; might be 1 or 2 audience recordings in here...) 
 

ROB SEZ: It's been too long since I featured anything by the talented and much-lamented Scott Miller. He fronted a couple of other groups in his lifetime, but my fave was Game Theory. Super Mega Thanks to Mick for compiling these and creating the artwork, and to Don at the old ASH blog for sharing. If you're not aware of Omnivore's amazing reissue series (packed with bonus tracks), head over here lickety-split.

MP3@320

Supercalifragile - the final album, out now

Scott Miller had started work on a new Game Theory album at the time of his death.
Posies co-leader Ken Stringfellow took the recordings and created a superb final Game Theory album.
Buy it HERE at Bandcamp. THANK YOU Ken and Kristine Miller. 
BELOW: couldn't resist a photo of Mitch E. with the band, around the time Lolita Nation was recorded.

The Loud Family - Live Tour Compilation 2000

Live Compilation

“Attractive Nuisance” Tour, 2000

(various dates & venues)

audio rip from video recordings (sound quality range: VG+ to VG++; these are very listenable audience recordings, mono sounding; most are from club shows, so there are occasional moments of intrusive crowd noise)
 

The Loud Family plays The Knitting Factory, NYC, April 2000

ROB SEZ: BIG THANKS to DP for the original video recordings, and to 125 Records for releasing these on the most excellent Loud Family Live 2000 DVD (It's still available — and a steal at $15. Order that and/or the Loud Family's live CD compilation From Ritual to Romance HERE)

Repercussion: I didn’t realize the late Scott Miller was such a fan of The dB’s — until I started learning more about him just after his untimely death in April at age 53. In his introduction to the Loud Family’s cover of “Tearjerkin’” (included herein), Scott says the deeBs were one of his favorite bands "of all time". Then, while leafing through his fascinating and well-written Music: What Happened?, I found multiple references to his love not only of The dB’s, but also Chris, Peter, Mitch and Let’s Active.

Poor Kenny got the dreaded head-crop chop!

01 720 Times Happier...  

02 Deee-Pression

03 Idiot Son

04 Years of Wrong Impressions

05 Motion of Ariel

06 Sister Sleep

07 Slit My Wrists

08 Asleep and Awake On 
     the Man's Freeway

09 The Waist and the Knees

10 Cortex the Killer

11 The Apprentice*

12 No One's Watching My Limo Ride

13 Blackness, Blackness

14 Nice When I Want Something

15 Story In Your Eyes
     (Moody Blues cover)
16 Kenny's amazing bass riffs 

17 Where They Walk Over 
     Sainte Therese
18 Tearjerkin' (The dB's cover) 

19 Twenty-Four

20 Like a Girl Jesus

21 Rosy Overdrive

                 
              *Alison sings lead vocals on “The Apprentice”

TT: 78:38 mins.

Scott Miller greatly enjoyed this Loud Family lineup

SOURCES:
1, 3, 4, 6, 9 = Minneapolis, MN 2000-04-11 
2, 7 = Atlanta, GA 2000-04-20
5 = Go Rehearsal Studios, Chapel Hill, NC 2000-04-19
8, 14, 15, 17 = The Knitting Factory, NYC 2000-04-17
10, 11, 19 = Austin, TX 2000-04-26
12 = Chicago, IL 2000-04-13 
13 = WFMU-FM, Jersey City, NJ 2000-04-16
18, 20 = Cleveland, OH 2000-04-14  
21 = San Antonia, TX 2000-04-25

WAV lossless files

  

MP3@320

The Loud Family:

Scott Miller – guitar, lead vocals

Alison Faith Levy – keyboards, vocals

Kenny Kessel – bass, vocals

Gil Ray – drums

Learn more about the music of Game Theory and The Loud Family at AllMusic and at the Scott Miller-Loud Family official site
     

Game Theory - Boston, MA 1985

Boston, MA
Oct. 7, 1985

R.I.P. Scott Miller (1960-2013)

audience recording (sound quality VG+; a good-quality recording, with vocals a tad distant; I added some compression and tweaked the eq to improve the sound.) The performance? It's a smokin' GT show. ENJOY!

BIG THANKS to the tapers, traders and kneesfudd for sharing.

Scott Miller had all he needed: guitar, pillow, and Game Theory.

Repercussion: Mitch Easter has a strong association with this band, producing and contributing to most of Game Theory’s albums. Chris Woodstra of AllMusic says Mitch functioned as “a fifth member” of the group in the studio, beginning with Real Nighttime (Game Theory’s first proper full-length album) in 1985.  

SAMPLE: "Rayon Drive (Boston 1985)"

01 Here It Is Tomorrow

02 I've Tried Subtlety

03 Shark Pretty

04 Curse of the Frontierland

05 Never Mind

06 Linus and Lucy

07 Twenty-Four

08 Waltz the Halls Always

09 Rayon Drive

10 Where You Going Northern

11 Make Any Vows

12 Real Nighttime

13 Couldn't I Just Tell You (Todd Rundgren cover)

14 Friend of the Family (tape flip cut repaired at 4:35)

15 Like a Girl Jesus

16 Something to Show

17 Any Other Hand

18 Nine Lives to Rigel Five

19 The Red Baron

20 Sweet Jane (Lou Reed cover)

TT: 71:41 mins.

FLAC

  

MP3@320

Game Theory:

Scott Miller - guitars, vocals

Suzi Ziegler - bass, backing vocals

Shelley LaFreniere - keyboards, backing vocals

Gil Ray - drums

NOTE: There’s a lot more Game Theory and Loud Family live shows & rarities to be found at the rather groovy Big Plans for Everybody.

Learn more about Game Theory’s music at The Loud Family’s official site and at AllMusic
  

Game Theory - Berkeley, CA 1985 (Scott Miller memorial)

Berkeley Square
Berkeley, CA
Nov. 6, 1985

R.I.P. Scott Miller (1960-2013)

It’s sad the blog’s first Game Theory post coincides with the untimely death of the group’s leader on April 15 at age 53. Yet the music lives on...
 

Game Theory - shocking and awe-ing, San Francisco, 1985

soundboard (sound quality Ex-; great, warm-sounding recording; and the performance is pretty darn smokin'...)

REPERCUSSION: Mitch Easter has a very strong association with this band, producing and contributing to most of Game Theory’s albums. Chris Woodstra of AllMusic says Mitch functioned as “a fifth member” of the group in the studio, beginning with Real Nighttime (Game Theory’s first proper full-length album) in 1985.

BIG THANKS to the taper, traders and kneesfudd for sharing

SAMPLE: "I've Tried Subtlety (Berkeley 1985)"

01. Charlie Brown instrumental (cuts in; final 2 mins. only)
02. Shark Pretty
03. Never Mind

04. Curse of the Frontier Land

Mitch & Scott Miller
The Drive-In, Winston-Salem, NC 1985

05. The Only Lesson Learned
06. Baker Street
07. 24
08. Waltz the Halls Always
09. Where You Going Northern? -->
10. Real Nighttime
11. Rayon Drive
12. Couldn't I Just Tell You

13. Friend of the Family (cuts in)
14. I've Tried Subtlety
15. Beach State Rocking
16. If & When (sorry, not The dB's song)
17. Remake Remodel
18. I Turned Her Away
19. Dead Center

TT: 76:24 mins.
 

FLAC

  

MP3@320

Game Theory:
Scott Miller - guitars, vocals
Suzi Ziegler - bass, backing vocals
Shelley LaFreniere - keyboards, backing vocals
Gil Ray - drums

Learn more about Game Theory’s music at The Loud Family’s official site and at AllMusic