Träd, Gräs och Stenar vs. The Grateful Dead

[Miss Tasty Princess]

After decades of hating The Grateful Dead, I've recently started listening to and really enjoying their early stuff (at this point, their first four albums). I also recently bought Djungelns Lag by Träd, Gräs och Stenar due to raves I've read here and elsewhere about this early 70's Swedish band.

Point: When I listen to Djungelns Lag it sounds pretty much like late 60s Dead jams to me but without the "song" aspect (i.e., just jamming with little structure).

Question: Do people deny the similarity or rationalize it away somehow? I ask because it strikes me that many folks who rave about TG&S would probably rather stab themselves in the face than listen to The Dead (you could've included me in that category up until a few months, I have to admit).

[Paul]

I've never personally minded the music of the Grateful Dead, but they sure do come with a buncha baggage.

[tinobeat]

One of my favorite albums when I was about 16 or 17 was the Two From The Vault 2CD live album by the Dead. I still think its great.

I think some people rationalize away or ignore the connection, but I think more and more, the Dead have lost the stigma. I mean, with stuff like Sunburned Hand and NNCK and all the beard rock and psych revivals going around everywhere, you can't deny the awesomeness of Live/Dead and Anthem of the Sun. And Workingman's Dead is practically a bible for more than a few indie pop bands, whether they know it or not...

I think Phish is the band that people'll talk shit about without really knowing what's going on, based solely on the (very heavy) baggage they carry in the form of their fans.

I really don't like Phish very much at all, but I have immense respect for them and what they did/do (are they back now? or still gone? I have no idea). I do think its hilarious when indie kids are shocked and/or horrified that Phish covered "Gold Soundz" and that they love love love Sonic Youth. Its not that far removed, you know...

[earl grey]

i was really fascinated with the dead for a few months during my senior year after a deadhead friend of mine lent me 'two from the vault'. i think it was in part because their shows are so comprehensively documented - fascinating to read that stuff, see how the setlists evolved, etc. 'live/dead' was pretty awesome, and i also liked their fillmore east double disc a lot. i preferred their early stuff - the stuff i've heard post-72/73 doesn't really grab me. haven't listened to them in years though.....

i remember reading an interview with ira from YLT once where he mentioned 'live/dead' and 'workingman's dead' as albums he really loved.

[vesper]

Phish is still around: I have a friend that goes to about 4 of their shows a year. I've also never been a Phish-h8r although I can't say I like them either.

[Miss Tasty Princess]

I guess part of what irks me (somewhat) is reading absurd hyperbole like this (from the Forced Exposure catalogue):

In a world where seriously inferior artists of the era (Grateful Dead, Faust, Ya-Ho-Wa) have boxed sets and large record sales to show, the true bliss of these trance-inducing, throbbing hallucinatory jams, its Ornette-esque guitar lines and Liebzeit/Tony Allen voodoo-drumming deserves to be heard by more than the psychedelic fatsos who don't blink twice spending the 100 - 200 dollars it would take to obtain an original copy.

Then again, perhaps this is a poor attempt at humor.

[Miss Tasty Princess]

Originally posted by SirPatrickSpens
The Dead, at their peak, blow away Träd, Gräs och Stenar but there are valleys to trod through...Most definitely! Part of my decades long aversion to The Dead comes from having gone to a college where they were quite popular and suffering through endless badly recorded live tapes of them doing poor covers of old folk and bluegrass songs. I dig the spacey jamming of the early stuff but I don't feel a need to ever hear again or own stuff like "Casey Jones" or "Truckin'."

[fuzztony]

I'd like to hear more, but think I might have heard Trad, Gras och Stenar years ago in London with a stoned uncle (he also had some great Camel albums, who are worth checking out for worthwhile not-cheesy prog/art rock. Camel = big inspiriation to a current Swedish progressive deathmetal band Opeth, who were great early on, but are a bit shit now).

Umm, as for the Dead, very much agree that after '72 it's pretty thin on the ground. I do love the early albums, especially Aoxomoxoa and Live/Dead. Garcia is a pretty great...flawed, but wonderful IMHO.

It's not surprising to hear indie legends like YLT taking inspiration from the Dead's best work.

[yovan]

I do think its hilarious when indie kids are shocked and/or horrified that Phish covered "Gold Soundz" and that they love love love Sonic Youth.

I've always heard Trey Anastasio is a huge Pavement fan... When I saw a Jicks show a while back, Malkmus pulls an over-the-top solo and starts laughing and mocking Anastasio while mentioning him by name (To the delight of the indie kids, I might add).

I guess the feeling's not mutual.

[Paul]

Originally posted by yovan
...Malkmus pulls an over-the-top solo and starts laughing and mocking Anastasio while mentioning him by name...
Newsflash! Malkmus is a dick. Next thing you'll be telling us is that there never were any WMDs!

Heh.

[bitterfruit]

Newsflash! Paul is a dick. Next thing you'll be telling us is that "Fever To Tell" is boring as hell and that Junior Senior suck ass.