Disaster Amnesiac first heard the Stooges in about 1986, when I was in 9th grade, through my pal Patrick O'Leary, who lent me a tape that had Funhouse on it.
Their music hit me immediately. I absolutely loved the primal, primitive, grooving drumming, along with, of course, Iggy's demented front man spiel and Ron's wildly psychedelic guitar riffs. A copy of their debut was quickly acquired, on which Disaster Amnesiac found even more of that hot, simple beat. Anyone that has listened to The Stooges should know what I'm talking about: the simple, iterative patterns that develop into swinging, locked groove movements that carry the tunes.
As I ponder Scott Asheton's drumming, I keep coming back to the thought: as Johnny Ramone made it OK for a certain generation or two of individuals with limited initial talents to pick up guitars and just GO FOR IT, then Scott Asheton is very much his equivalent for those who were inclined to pick up sticks.
Scott Asheton's spare patterns on tunes such as No Fun (that intro!), 1969, I Wanna Be Your Dog, and Dirt (again, with intro!) are Rosetta Stones for a certain type of drumming that, while on its surface can sound primitive to more "sophisticated" ears, is a truly effective, physically moving approach. Rock Action's action showed many, "hey, you can do this, too."
Disaster Amnesiac is among that demographic, and I'm still grateful to Scott Asheton for the encouragement. Godspeed, Rock.
2 comments:
Saddest news of the week Your remembrance is heartfelt.
I'm now reminded of the friendly longhair punker clerk at Licorice Pizza in Torrance who introduced me to the Stooges' Raw Power LP, also in 1986: "that's my favourite record of all time"
RIP
This passing really cuts deep. I wish that I could have listened to Raw Power with you and your pal in Torrance!
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