I would be willing to bet that most of you have seen this stuff before, but in case you haven't...

"Beginning" Review
According to this site, Roger Dabbs sings...(read more to see why the writer is confused...)

"Up-Town Mix" Bio
Apparantly Rollum has gotten bulkier and has short, spikey blond hair. Or, at the least the "pictures" page thinks that...

Enjoy these and share more if you have them.

I remember reading that first article when it came out. I wonder if that guy ever found this site again. I wonder if he ever thought about the band again after cursing them.

That guy talks about The Features as if they were aliens he had glimpsed for only a brief moment as they sailed by on their UFO. It's funny how "strange" and mysterious he makes them seem.

Features Interactive Discography
This one has been discussed before, I believe. But, I am a completist, so here it is again.

UTK October '02 Article

Fictitious Records Page

Ace Weekly Back-Issue

I haven't tried to look for it lately, but there once was quite a bit on the first EP. It and Fl Oz's Big NOtebook... generated quite an internet buzz, but that was 6 years ago.

Insight Into History of Parrish
Look under the 1992 tab. Then, read under "About" to figure out what it is you are reading.

My Roger Dabbs search did not turn up anything "relevant", but did provide me a few laughs. Try it for yourself, if you have AOL.

Can you imagine him playing the keys in uniform?

That would be almost as cool as him wearing the Vader "smoking" shoulder-pads, as discussed previously. Maybe if he dressed in the costume, he could then have a special time set aside during the show to teach the crowd some valuable lessons about how to properly use a Swiss Army knive or build a fire...YES! Build a fire in the middle of the stage! That's genius!

(Edited by richarddawson at 8:58 pm on Mar. 26, 2003)

he'd be a burley angus young...

I know you guys ain't hatin' on the BSA in here. Watch it!

I'm sure this has been seen by everyone else, but I'd never seen it.

http://www.grandennui.com/audio.html

HOLY FREAKIN' CRAP!!!

This is the greatest thing ever! I had no idea a copy of this song even existed. Thank you, thank you, thank you, Ceeze!

I never realized that this song was an ancestor of "Leave It All Behind."

oh my god! maybe i'm lame but i never knew about that site. nor had i ever had the chance to hear that song until now. thank you, ceeze. and thank you sean t. brennan, whoever you are...you are a talented man.

Yeah, me neither. It would have been cute if JC pitted this one against LIAB in the brackets. I'll bet I would know who would have won.

I'll echo the thanks, Ceeze. You rule! Is this the longest Features song ever? Or does Hey Lou hold that title?

I had never heard this song before, although TF has mentioned it to me many times. I will have to say...I love it. Thanks, Ceeze. You're the best.

Well it is very nice to have finally heard the song. Who was this recorded with and at what time? This was post-rawlings pre-mahaffey, right? Overall, I'm glad that this "turned into" "Leave It All Behind" since I think that it is vastly superior. But this was very interesting, good job Ceeze!

According to Matt Mahaffey, the sessions he did with the Features were in spring of 2000. (For the record, some people have challenged Matt's memory on the timeline of events... but he's still probably pretty close.) According to YaDaDa's recent research, "Stick Together" debuted in August, 2000. So this recording is definitely post-Mahaffey. I'm guessing that it was fall of 2000 when the track was recorded.

According to Mr. Brennan's resumé, he lives in Chicago now. Since that's where Wiyum attends school, they probably know each other. We'll just have Wiyum ask the guy when he recorded the song.

(Edited by Tom Foolery at 9:54 am on Mar. 28, 2003)

The words stolen from my mouth. Definitely post-Mahaffey, though the recording sounds like it could fit in with it. Either you mis-read me or I misinformed y'all, but it was Fall 2000 when Stick Together debuted, and summer/fall 2001 when LIAB came around.

Thanks for that site Ceeze! That was great to hear!!!!

Thats awesome!!! I'm talking about the info, not the song. I may be the only one who thinks this way, but I didn't really like it at all. (however, it does get better towards the end) THANK GOD it turned into Leave it All Behind!

The song morphed later, and it took the tune of "Soon Discover" from late '99. This last morph was after "Leave It All Behind" was created, so I'd imagine it had different lyrics for the verse.

This further proves my theory about many Features songs--even among fans, the songs are not as well-liked if they're not experienced live. I think that the participation for Jurley and the choreography with Your Smile would have you singing the praises of those much more if more of you saw it live.

(Edited by YaDaDaDa at 7:28 pm on Mar. 27, 2003)

I still like Jurley and think that it has some great, great keyboard, bass and geetar moments. I'm almost alone on this though....

Okay, so I just listened to the track ("Stick Together"). It's cool, in its own way, I think. Though except for a couple of parts, it's hard to tell that there's a guitar player in the band. I never heard this incarnation of "Stick Together" performed live. The version that I heard was much more rock'n'roll. I dig this one, though. I dig it.

nice, this is like no other features track i've ever heard. very raw yet nicely layered. it reminds me of a few of the more lo-fi tracks tracks on spoon's kill the moonight.

it seems to me that if the audience doesn't react to new songs with enthusiasm, it makes the band shy away from playing them. that's my observation anyway.....

the newest crop of tunes gets quite the reception from what i can tell, which is all that matters to me. good shit.

good shit indeed. " there's a million ways to sing the blues" continues to amaze me, and " the way it's meant to be" is simply awe inspiring.....

i'm suprised that the band hasnt played the song that they debuted at the last red rose show more often.......it's a really good song. their songs just keep getting better......

Well, I guess the crowd didn't respond too well to the newest song that they played at Red Rose. I would like to hear it again sometime, but I would probably rather hear "Situation Gone Bad" again. As the cool kids say, "It's all good".

from what i remember, i liked the new song. a lot of times it takes a few listens to really grasp the song- for me anyways.

Yeah, I also enjoyed the new song quite a bit, and I'm sure I could grow to love it. It gets stuck in my head every time I think about it.

Sounds like ignorant speculation to me...I think Der Fuhrer Parrish has final editing control over the set list. You can see how pissed he gets when people yell for songs that are no longer in current rotation.

Actually, it was just a type-o on my part. I've since corrected it.

This version sounds a bit different than what I remember. It's a bit slower. I remember it sounding happier with more of a rock sound. However, that wonderful chorus is still there.

Believe me, I tried to do my part to encourage this song. I guess it takes more than one, though.

I'm going to go against popular opinion here and say that I don't care as much for the newest stuff. Features songs seem to come in waves, and the songs in each crop seem to have a similar sound. I don't like the sound of the current generation as much as some of their previous works. "There's a Million Ways to Sing the Blues," "Exhibit A," "The Way It's Meant to Be," and "Situation Gone Bad" aren't thier strongest works in my opinion. "Me and the Skirts" is my favorite of their newest material, but I consider it to be more of a bridge from the previous generation to the current one.

I like the new stuff, also Skirts especially, but the ultimate era for me was Action/ Don't Lie/ Temporary Blues/ Harold/ God Save Rock n Roll. Maybe Demons is in here too? I'll have to review my history

I'll second that. That was my favorite "wave" of songs, too. "Stagecoach" was in that era, too, wasn't it?

I really, really, really want to hear "Situation Gone Bad" and the "pants getting tighter" song again. They are both very very good. I think that the newest crop of songs is equal to all of the other offerings of the past year.

I think someone (and by someone I mean Wiyum ) should document these "waves" of songs, since I have often found myself pondering this phenomena. I too consider both "Me & The Skirts" and "Look Out Below" as being part of a transitional wave in-between the "Someway, Somehow/The Design/Buffalo Head/Damage is Done/Growing Old" wave and this current one.

Uh-Oh...Confusion Abroad

Vote for The Features...and Request a CD Sampler

Haha- maybe those are the guys that Rory had to send the lawyers after? They should have a Features battle of the bands. The Aussie Features look like hippie DMB jammers.

What's this about a July release date? Can we even hope that it could be true? How very provocative...

YES! I forgot Stagecoach, which I think was the one that always used to be "For Elise". Do you know her? Burma was around that time too, and I really miss that song. It may have been a little earlier though.

An Australian band of the same name, eh? Sounds like a certain Chipmunks episode. There will have to be a battle of the bands to determine who gets the name. I hope those Aussies, barring any dingos eating their babies, will get used to being called "The Featurettes".

Stagecoach was much older. It came about shortly after they finished the Mahaffey sessions (Spring, 2000).

It's hard to say if I have a favorite era. The songs recorded around the Mahaffey recording sessions would be my favorite, but all of those songs were written over a couple of years. It was actually a patchwork of pre and post-Don Sergio stuff.

I think he almost has. Since he shows when each song debuted, it gives you an idea of which songs were written around the same time. However, much of it is subjective if you also incorporate the "sound" of the songs.

Roger looks really different in those pictures.

Oh no! YDDD and I agree on something. I think that's one of the seven signs of the End of the Age. It's been very interesting to see how my affinity for the band's older material contrasts with other fans' preference for the new songs.

Speaking of, we haven't heard from Wiyum in a while. Did any one run into him at the show last night? He said a while ago that he'd be there. He also hasn't posted in a good while.

Geez, if I missed both Wiyum and Rachel, then the night was not lived to it's fullest. I also saw Bowl of Fire but he disappeared right after the show. At least most of us are slowly overcoming the shyness...

I find the other Features page to be a bit similar, at least the top bar and the almost identical font/presentation of the name. I didn't pick up on the fact these guys were from Australia. I saw some references to playing in California though.

You're right, YDDD. But it's actually even older than you surmise. There's a very different version of it from the Rawlings sessions, isn't there? And that was before they recorded with Matt Mahaffey.

there is.....i have an mp3 of it.

I forgot about the Rawlings version of it. Rawlings came before Mahaffey, but the song actually didn't make an appearance in their live set until mid-2000, after Mahaffey.

I've never seen that "other features" website. I heard that they were going to release a record and they got a cease and desist letter from ours truly (seeing that our Features have been published and sold records internationally). I thought the pale imitators went away after that. Apparently they don't know who they're messing with.

richarddawson sent me this link. it's interesting.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...2518276552&rd=1

I held out on everybody, because I'm a bitch. I wanted it for myself, but it got a little too pricey for my wallet.

Converted Listener

The Features are great, but Senryu sucks

Another Review

Brief SXSW Mention

Hey, has this link been posted yet?

http://enjoyment.independent.co.uk/music/r...sp?story=431688

"The scary, hairy bassist, Roger Dabbs, seems to have escaped his Unabomber-style shack, wide-eyed and bearded..."

HaHaHaHa! That's a great description - Roger, the scary, hairy bassist!

In all seriousness, here we have yet another unbiased Londoner who likes the Features. I think that when the EP gets released over there, it could really go somewhere if the Features hit the clubs hard and promote it.

That was a great description.

my mom used to read me that one at bedtime.

ok children, gather round for the story of the hairy, scary, bassist...

It would be really weird if the Features pulled an Edgar Allan Poe and made it big in Europe and then made their way back over here. I don't especially want that to happen, but it would be weird.