Slog - Comments on Ghost in the Machine http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine There's a ghost that haunts Robert Lang Studio, and it hates heavy metal. The neighborhood of Richmond Beach, where the studio is located, is a supernatural hotspot, crawling with the spirits of drowned mariners and dead children and George the Janitor (that's another story). Robert Lang—a respected studio engineer who's hosted myriad historic sessions over his 30-year career, including Nirvana's last and the Foo Fighters' first—has a spook story all his own. It involves buried treasure, a dead man's ghost, the Afghan Whigs, and a piece of Italian marble depicting the image of Jesus. The story is this week's... Copyright 2008 Fri, 26 Oct 2007 11:29:02 -0800 Sun, 28 Oct 2007 21:35:39 -0800 http://www.movabletype.org/?v=3.34 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Comment by About a Ghost The lore is good, but doesn't that "ghost" look a lot more like the camera's flash refelcting of the control rooom window?

]]> About a Ghost http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834008 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834008 City Fri, 26 Oct 2007 11:43:42 -0800 Comment by Jaye Man, I grew up in the same class as Bob's son, I remember when he was putting that studio together. Haunted? Never heard that, but maybe he just didn't want to spook us kids

]]> Jaye http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834125 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834125 City Fri, 26 Oct 2007 12:37:52 -0800 Comment by Fnarf The ghost has better taste than any of the losers inhabiting the studio in life. Greg Dulli? The world's most appropriately-named rock star.

]]> Fnarf http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834141 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834141 City Fri, 26 Oct 2007 12:44:38 -0800 Comment by Alf I think the ghost left some of that money for me. This is bullshit. At least $300 of that was for me. I'm gonna go out there and tell Lang. He'll give me my $300, right?

]]> Alf http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834166 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834166 City Fri, 26 Oct 2007 13:02:07 -0800 Comment by kerri harrop i loved this story, there have been tales about bob lang's ghost for decades now and it was fun to see it in print. too bad you couldn't get grohl on the phone, i seem to remember him having some chilling times there.

and, yo, fnarf @3: those "losers" you refer to include a hell of a lot of very talented musicians spanning the years, from cobain to gibbard and many in between.

don't be such a grump. and don't talk shit about my homeboy. besides, it's pronounced "duly," as in "duly noted that fnarf has questionable taste in music."

]]> kerri harrop http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834197 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834197 City Fri, 26 Oct 2007 13:30:43 -0800 Comment by Alf The ghost of Dubby is going to find Fnarf and fuck him up. And make him listen to hours of Dulli's music.

Albums recorded at Lang's = millions of copies sold. Yeah, losers huh.

Fnarf, let's hear your smartass remark.

You better beware, motherfucker.

]]> Alf http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834208 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834208 City Fri, 26 Oct 2007 13:39:47 -0800 Comment by El Mont I see the ghost. I believe in the ghost. Nice sound efx! Lang is cooky, but you gotta love him.

]]> El Mont http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834384 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834384 City Fri, 26 Oct 2007 15:54:44 -0800 Comment by Fnarf I've seen the Afghan Whigs. They sucked ass. So did grunge. Seattle rock in the 90s was uniformly stinky bilgewater.

Ever notice how hair metal, which grunge knocked off the charts overnight, is actually fun to watch when it comes on VH-1 or whatever? Stupid, yes, and ridiculous, but funny and fun to watch.

Grunge, on the other hand, just looks worse and worse in retrospect. Seriously, Cobain wrote a couple of decent tunes, but the rest of them all put together did nothing any person with taste would ever want to see or hear again. Tuneless thumping and plodding, groaning and thrashing, and ugly as hell. A dog shitting peach pits is more entertaining, and more tuneful.

The output of that studio isn't the worst of it, but it's bad enough.

]]> Fnarf http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834551 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834551 City Fri, 26 Oct 2007 18:17:30 -0800 Comment by Bobber Fnarf is right about hair metal being fun to watch. But it's fun cause it's so bad, you're like, 'I can't believe' they actually did that.' Grunge is bad to watch in retrospect in a different way.

Fnarf is the music authority in this town. He's made and sold millions and millions of records. NOT.

Don't you know who he thinks he is?

]]> Bobber http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834624 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834624 City Fri, 26 Oct 2007 20:47:03 -0800 Comment by Fnarf I know what I like, and I can defend it better than you can, Bobber.

]]> Fnarf http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834648 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c834648 City Fri, 26 Oct 2007 21:53:31 -0800 Comment by J.R. @8: "A dog shitting peach pits is more entertaining, and more tuneful."

Fnarf, you've missed your calling. I've never seen a more natural rock critic.

]]> J.R. http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c835180 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c835180 City Sun, 28 Oct 2007 21:32:50 -0800 Comment by J.R. And why is it that photos of ghosts are always so damn unimpressive. I'm with #1--it sure looks like a reflection on the control room window.

]]> J.R. http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c835181 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/10/ghost_in_the_machine#c835181 City Sun, 28 Oct 2007 21:35:39 -0800