2003 DECEMBER 11 #345
Dan Fioretti - Be My Loud Valentine
"Meanwhile, in another kingdom…'
Be My Loud Valentine is a "mini-musical' by Dan Fioretti, recorded in the late 80"s or early 90"s, and released as a cassette single on his Kitti Tapes label (motto: Music So New, It Almost Doesn"t Exist!).
Dan says, "Listen to it with someone you love!' and why not? It has romance, kings and princes and pretty girls, giant swamp monsters and swimming contests, a hat that won"t come off, and a killer cover of Led Zeppelin. Fioretti recorded it live in his home studio. I think it sounds like he"s trance channeling The Cheese Band with a go-for-broke, just-pound-on-the-keyboards-and-sing approach. He doesn"t just drop his inhibitions here; he hurls them out of the window. Best of all, it"s filled with Dan"s wonderfully odd, gentle humor. I"m simply incapable of listening to it without breaking into a silly grin.
I asked Dan about the recording session, and he says, "I was making some tapes & thingies late at night & my roommate was trying to sleep & I had to be quiet. But the next day I was alone so I could get loud again, thus, LOUD valentine. The rest is self explanatory.'
So, after listening, you think you know all you need to know about Dan Fioretti? Nope! He has produced a huge body of work over the years, with literally hundreds of full length cassette releases and several CDs. He works in a wide variety of styles and techniques, including experiments with tape manipulations and sampling, midi compositions both intricate and minimalist, and mutant pop. To sample just some of the many moods of Dan Fioretti, check out: http://zebox.com/dankitti/music/. (At the moment, I"m especially partial to "Bricklike Muzick', "Dancing In The Dark', and "2b1 Remix'.) Also check out http://www.dankitti.org/ for a launching pad to all things Kitti.
- Palomino Royalle
TT-9:02 / 8.3MB / 128kbps 44.1khz
From the Kitti Tapes Cassette Single
Carl Howard writes:
I have known Dan Fioretti. Completely sweet, completely
dedicated to independent music making and trading... and
completely out of his mind. So much so that for several
years he was considered impaired enough that the State
of New Jersey remanded him to a group facility and he
lived completely on the State's dime. To know Dan Fioretti
is to adore his unique madness, which begins the moment
you encounter the stilted way he talks (kinda... "This
is Dan Fioretti over here," a salutation well known
to DJs of WFMU-FM).The most fun I ever had with him was
after the first and only broadcast of perhaps the Worst
Episode Ever of Stiff Trek "Voyager," in which
the bridge crew is lured to a planet and forced to fight
in an inter-tribal battle with villagers who use strange,
near gibberish English including phrases like "Sharper
you should fastwalk..." and "Nullied upturned."
I called Dan right after this show was over because I
knew he was a fan. If it weren't for his peculiar brain-blasted
twist on things that makes The Church of the SubGenius
seem tame by comparison, I don't know if I ever would
have gotten my jaw off the floor after that televised
excrescence! Anyway, THAT'S why you should listen to Kitti
tapes.
(Images courtesy of Palomino Royalle)