January 1999 - Sinister - missprint.org

Sinister: rebel angels
by jessica 10 Jan '99

10 Jan '99

hi all, mmm, i bought some new and wonderful underwear today, dispelling the myth that cheap underwear and expensive underwear are the same. indeed, they are not, as i sit here marvelling at the way my new halston underwear make my belly look like one sassy belly. for those of you in toronto (or near an eaton's store), all the halston underwear is 50% off, so indulge. i certainly did. about evan dando: i still have the biggest crush on him! ever since i heard the lemonheads version of "luka" i've been smitten. i even had a dream about him once (well, erm, more than once, but that's not the point) where i was in the hospital and he came in wearing a big furry moose costume and sang me a song and gave me hugs to make me feel all better. i felt fuzzy for days. about lesleyjo's wishes to ban wrapping paper: noooo! i say it should just be necessary to reuse all of it. i found the most amazing paper this year, some was plain silver and shiny, and there were others with pink angels on clouds, and still more with shiny sparkly hologram dots. and yes, i am totally anal with my wrapping paper as with everything else, and i slit the packages open very cautiously. i've even tried using a knife to slice the tape, but my family drew the line. however, we reuse all our wrapping paper, even ribbons and bows, and i made several little bags that people are reusing. about my single people lament: i was being totally serious when i said that i like staying home on saturday nights. and look! it's saturday night, and i'm writing a message to a hundred people who really just exist in my head and listening to stereolab and wearing my halston underwear that nobody else will get to see (so feel lucky that you've had a description). but i'm not bitter, oh no. i just get mad crushes on boys that write me email and live on the other side of the world and can't make me soup to console me when i'm sick. poo. but i will say that it's terribly scary to have friends who are getting married. it makes me feel so...old. not in a bad way, just in a way that's startling to me. like the same feeling i get when i listen to "retro night" on the radio and discover that the songs they're playing are the songs that i danced to in my first years of highschool. it just illustrates how fast time goes, how undervalued it is, and how little of it i seem to be able to remember. thank goodness for journals, and the fact that each birthday comes with cake. at work today, a gentleman with a little boy (isaac, 6 months, because i usually ask) asked me why a man with a baby is a woman magnet, but a woman with a baby is generally man repellent. i had to check my heart eyes before i told him that it was because women already have this maternal instinct that's assumed, and seeing them with children frightens some men, because they're reminded that they may not be ready for certain obligations and commitments, like a family, plus all their male ideals are called upon and questioned. whereas a man with a baby appears to be well rounded and in touch with his sensitive side: women like it if men do what is not stereotypically expected of them and bond with the child. and women who see this bonding are assured that the man is not afraid of showing emotion and that he has within him the capacity to be sensitive and in touch with his emotions. of course, all this is assumed. but this guy was really surprised that i came up with that answer, which i'm sure sounded like a textbook answer from somewhere, but that's what comes of too much thinking. and then he bought a carseat, and i had the opportunity to bond with isaac. it's amazing how a nice conversation with a total stranger can renew your faith in humanity. it's snowing again! this is the biggest snowfall in toronto in 40 years, perfect for snow angels. i can feel your jealousy, but don't worry, mud angels are just as fun. mwah mwah, jessicaxo +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo(a)majordomo.net". For list archives and searching, list rules, FAQ, poor jokes etc, see http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +---+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" +---+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

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Sinister: bite me gwenthy paltrow
by Genevieve Wesley 10 Jan '99

10 Jan '99

hi list! you're all being such a delight lately! oh god..i'm turning into a belle and sebastian weenie, i skipped school and went to an art gallery...actually i had my heart set on this museum of civilisation 'mysteries of egypt' (interactive fun! running around in a huge place! pyramid fun!) but it was closed..the gallery was quite fun,the Contemporary Art boggles my mind..one exhibit is just a bedroom that looks like it belongs to Austin Powers,zebra print bedsheets and all...and another is just this string stretched across a room,..and another is just some old butter containers...but interesting! anyways,yes i wanted to see this shakespeare in love,yes yes it's supposed to be so wonderful,but it was all sold out so i saw waking ned divine,which i thought was going to be a stuffy old movie but turned out to be SO lovely,and funny,beautiful BEAUTIFUL scenery..naked old irish men on bikes,yay! it made me happy...The mini love story between pig-farmer was so simply sweet, why did God have to be cruel and place me so out of place,geographically speaking? i coudl've worn cute irish clothes,cute irish farmhands, the fun that could've been.. but it's all pink ski-doo jacket,jean-guy rubber boots and poutine breath. thanks for the dexy's info boys! i've ordered them,eggstone and perry blake (he has a song called 'genevieve (the pilot of your thighs)' which is too cool for me so i had to get it just for that reason i shall buy whatever comes in first,and then put the other two under my arms and run fast. lesley jo wrote: i should be brushing up on my crap >music now. is there a priize for guessing? it sounds like something >dreadful. here's one for you. "Am I SEX-shoo ULLL.....(yeah, yeah)" >that's all i know. my friend listens to them. gawd i need some new >friends!! what use is someone who has never heard of B&S? actually,i have a dear friend who LOVES the backstreet boys which i was always teasing her for,but she teases me just as much about 'sebastian and belle' and she thinks i'm silly,and i think she's silly ..the big vicious cycle....but actually,the boys saved us,i went to a concert in detroit with just her (driving,for the first time,without parents) and when we were sitting in the parking lot waiting to get out,we turned on 'backstreets back (alright)' and all the pervies and serial killers were driven away. o jeeze..i started off with belle and sebastian content,i really did! i was gonna talk about how that museum day was just like a belle and sebastian song *WEENIE ALERT! WOMP WOMP WOMP* but there are funner things to talk about yes...and i'm scared to death over this whole romulant buisness...maybe i'm not spelling 'romulant' write..it's a character off of star trek with pointy sideburns or something. love love (lots), genevieve "Naked old Irish men on bikes,yay!" --------- Stuart Murdoch p.s hmm,i don't know if i have an actual reason for disliking evan dando, he's a dork...well maybe if i actually met him and he turned out be nice,but i sense evil. ______________________________________________________ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo(a)majordomo.net". For list archives and searching, list rules, FAQ, poor jokes etc, see http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +---+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" +---+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

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Sinister: naked girls, snow and hockey playing bears
by vlass＠interlog.com 09 Jan '99

09 Jan '99

<<she also Took offense to the name Bare Naked Ladies. I think next time I'll just walk.... >> it's nice to see some good canadian music getting namedropped here on the sinister list, eh? hee. well, as long as it's not i mother earth or moist i won't get *too* mad.. :) but, anyway, yes, the name Barenaked Ladies created somewhat of a minor stir in my area of the world when previous Toronto mayor, June Rowlands also found the name offensive. She thought they were some mean, degrading, kicking sand in childrens' faces- type band, not chubby men who sang "if i had a million dollars, i would buy you a fur coat, but not a real fur coat, that's cruel". ack, enough talk about that! wow, the list *has* been incredibly nice these days. quiet too... only 4 or 5 posts when i check instead of 20 or 30. and they're always long thoughtful posts. awwww - see, given enough time we can really sort everything out ourselves. honey - don't come back! we don't need you! (just kidding :) ) we even have noam chomsky represented on the list! my sweeetie would be totally pleased considering he's always sending me stuff like that to read. finally at my own free will i took out a chomsky book, but it was a linguistics-related one, which i'm told is not as powerful or something as his political stuff.. well, boo. i think it's mighty interesting. but yeah, sanctions are bad!!! and that is my political stance. that and bears shouldn't play hockey! it looks really sad.. give them dignity! neither my mom nor i have been in any condition to shovel the driveway this week so we're practically snowed in. while mick mcmick enjoyed a little dusting of snow, we have this huge dumping of it. sure sure, it looks pretty and all that, especially right at twilight when it gets a neat blueish tint but sheeesh. i'm starting to remember why i called my zine "melt the snow".. hrrrm. i got a nice little belle and sebastian concert tape in the mail 2 days ago, from one of new york shows, i think. it's funny, you can hear the illegal illegal bootlegger exclaiming "wow!" after the first verse of "belle and sebastian". there's no isobel song, sigh, but there is that song "lord antony" that has embedded itself in my head. it doesn't pay to be smarter than teachers, no sir. and even more belle and sebastian related news - i had a big big screaming fight with a friend of mine over b&s cos he thinks that they suck, and obviously they don't.. i mean, gee, he actually thinks that they have no talent! i have absolutely no idea how anyone can think that. needless to say, i was practically in tears cos i couldn't defend them adequately; i'm terrible at yelling and fighting like that. eventually we simmered down and made peace but still.. it's frustrating when i can't explain the way they make me *feeeeel*. i spent a good part of the afternoon sleeping and dreaming of springtime. i nominate lesley jo for president, teri xx +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo(a)majordomo.net". For list archives and searching, list rules, FAQ, poor jokes etc, see http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +---+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" +---+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

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Sinister: How I Wrote Elastic Man.
by Gary Done 09 Jan '99

09 Jan '99

Hello List... Just a quick note, as the Fluffyone is unwell and I am on Florence Nightingale duties. Duke, you are so right. Of all the proper Felt albums, I'm missing the last two, but feel safe to say ANY is worth getting as they a tip top indeed. "Forever Breathes the Lonely Word" and Crumbling the Antiseptic Beauty" are my two current faves. You can get them all from the labels which released them. Both do mail order, go to Cherry Red and Creations sites for details. Hmmm, by the time I've replied to this, I dare say a dozen people have already mentioned that Mick is in the Ampheteminies. Anyway, yes they have released a single, called "Around the World in 5 1/2 Minutes" on F&J records. It contains to cracking pieces of SKA, well worth the two and a half quid it costs. Now a heartfelt plea for two fellow listies to get in touch. Firstly the Divine Ailsa Ross, cos I've sent you a couple of mails lately, the first of which bounced and I just want to know if you got the second one OK. Secondly, JonnyKat, where are you hiding ?. Anyway, I'm off now to mop Fluffy brow and hold her hand. Bye for now Gary +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo(a)majordomo.net". For list archives and searching, list rules, FAQ, poor jokes etc, see http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +---+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" +---+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

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Sinister: the poison apple
by rebelstrange＠ldd.net 09 Jan '99

09 Jan '99

>relationships. overrated anyways, i say. singlehood is the way to go. >imagine, being able to go stay home on a saturday night if you want. ooh, how original!! a social life? hemm what's that?? i'm afraid you have lost me there. sheesh!! rub it in, pretty people! what are we, chopped liver? on the shiny apple incident, nick dastoor muses: I don't know about anyone else, but I don't find this whole incident cute at all. In fact it makes me feel kind of queasy. Would the Snow White story have worked so well with a banana? a point well taken, fella. especially considering the inordinate amount of freudian imagery i've been bombarded with lately myself, bananas and otherwise. fruit is not to be trifled with, these are powerful psycho-sexual symbols. what if, indeed, the rosycheeked elf boy of yore turned out to cultivate that charming lisp as a cover for his diabolical molestation plans? it's possible the very hysteria my friend and i experienced post-DC was due largely to some strange concoction prepared loving and injected into that very apple, which he did stroke and cradle in his hands like some malevolent Persian cat held by a james bond villain. Chilling!!! AS for the interview, i believe it was pjmiller who brings up such queries. the cello is indeed a mystery to be delved into. as for the "nude" painting, that seems to be merely the inflated imagination of a fantasizing mind, as there is no mention in the article that the painting was nude. however, it does prompt wondering exactly WHAT is in the painting. yes very curious indeed, i knew this would come up when someone got to reading it. and as for me, i can only pray that when the secret glaswegian operatives sneak up the church and snap telescopic photos of this strange artwork, it does NOT turn out to be nude. my frail constitution would be unable to withstand the sight of nude belle and sebastian, whether photographic, or artistic impression. who knows what lurks in the twisted imagination and paintbrush of ms. campbell, especially relating to Agent Murdoch?? if the tiger ears are any indication, i dont think i want to know. sometimes ignorance really *is* bliss. Whoa. that's some big-time Felt information!!!!! IF I WERE PRESIDENT OF THESE UNITED STATES: --Instead of muzak, all elevators and phones on hold would play endless stereolab --wrapping paper would be banned --Larry Flynt permanently sentenced to the stocks, where he could be afflicted with random sadistic sexual acts by passersby um i had another one but i forgot it never mind. lesleyjo http://www.members.tripod.com/rebelstrange No bachelor has ever experienced such desolate loneliness as does the spinster; for the bachelor is a man, and the older spinster but a male-like woman. --Dr. Joseph Tanenbaum, _The Riddle of Woman_, 1936 +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo(a)majordomo.net". For list archives and searching, list rules, FAQ, poor jokes etc, see http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +---+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" +---+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

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Sinister: A Call to Action, from Noam Chomsky, et. al
by Jeffrey David Hyslop 09 Jan '99

09 Jan '99

***************** Please distribute as widely as possible ***************** A Call to Action on Sanctions and the U.S. War Against the People of Iraq by Noam Chomsky, Edward Herman, Edward Said, and Howard Zinn January 8, 1999 At the end of 1998, the United States once again rained bombs on the people of Iraq. But even when the bombs stop falling, the U.S. war against the people of Iraq continues through the harsh economic sanctions. This is a call to action to end all the war. This month U.S. policy will kill 4,500 children under the age of 5 in Iraq, according to UN studies, just as it did last month and the month before that, all the way back to 1991. Since the end of the Gulf War, at least hundreds of thousands -- maybe more than 1 million -- Iraqis have died as a direct result of the UN sanctions on Iraq, which are a direct result of U.S. policy. This is not foreign policy -- it is sanctioned mass-murder that is nearing holocaust proportions. If we remain silent, we are condoning a genocide that is being perpetrated in the name of peace in the Middle East, a mass slaughter that is being perpetrated in our name. The time has come for a call to action to people of conscience. We are past the point where silence is passive consent -- when a crime reaches these proportions, silence is complicity. There are several tasks ahead of us. First, we must organize and make this issue a priority, just as Americans organized to stop the war in Vietnam, and to protest U.S. policies in Central America and South Africa. We need a national campaign to lift the sanctions. This kind of work has already begun, and those efforts need our help. For the past several years, individuals and groups have been delivering medicine and other supplies to Iraq in defiance of the U.S. blockade. Now, members of one of those groups, Voices in the Wilderness in Chicago, have been threatened with massive fines by the federal government for "exportation of donated goods, including medical supplies and toys, to Iraq absent specific prior authorization." Our government is harassing a peace group that takes medicine and toys to dying children; we owe these courageous activists our support. Such a campaign is not equivalent to support for the regime of Saddam Hussein. To oppose the sanctions is to support the Iraqi people. The people are suffering because of the actions of both the Iraqi and U.S. governments, but our moral responsibility lies here in the United States, to counter the hypocrisy and inhumanity of our leaders. Also, there has been a virtual embargo on news of the effects of the sanctions in the mainstream media. For the most part, the American people do not know what evil is being carried out in our name. We must continue to apply pressure on journalists at all levels -- from our local papers to the network news -- to cover this tragedy. We should overwhelm the major press with letters to the editor and put pressure on journalists to cover the story. And we must realize this could be a long struggle. Preparations should begin for all the possible strategies, including civil disobedience once a sufficient number of people are committed. Direct action that forces a moral accounting likely is going to be necessary. Whatever else we are doing, we should treat this as an emergency and put it at the top of our agenda. Existing groups can work on the issue, new groups may need to be formed, and national networks need to be built. A good central source of information exists on the web at http://leb.net/IAC/. Without action by us, the horrors will go on, the children will continue to die. We must appeal to the natural sympathies of the American people, who will respond if they know what is happening. We must therefore bring this issue, in every way we can, to national attention. The only way to avoid complicity in this crime is to do everything we can, and much more than we have been doing, to end the sanctions on Iraq. This issue must be discussed in every household and every public forum across the country. +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo(a)majordomo.net". For list archives and searching, list rules, FAQ, poor jokes etc, see http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +---+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" +---+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

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Sinister: A day in the City and The Opera
by WeeChrisBS＠aol.com 09 Jan '99

09 Jan '99

Hello List, Well, yesterday Our Class Went On a Field Trip To The Opera hall in San Francisco to See The opera "Madam Butterfly" i forget how Madam was spelled. Maybe it is right anyways..... On the way up I just listening to B&S,Charlatans UK,U2 and Placebo and a Wee Bit of radiohead and Verve. anyways I happened to be in the car with the teacher(yay me!) and she Some how heard the lyrics to "Pure Morning" by Placebo and said "It was Degrading to Woman" and I said "Well you have to be Undressed while Your Pressed and Boxing clever to understand the song" she also Took offense to the name Bare Naked Ladies. I think next time I'll just walk.... Finally we got there and had 2 hours to blow off. So we Ate at ::Barf:: Burger king(Hey it was that or 1nch Patty's Mcdonalds) so I had a Double Whopper Combo meal and Of Course Like I always do I got stomic aches. Aye I think Im going to be a Vegetarian now expect Of Course For Chicken and Duck expect When their Fried. I cant stand Fried food! but its weird cos I totally hate Fried Chicken but love KFC. Anyways I'm always a sucker for the Pot Pie....... Anyways On to The Damn Opera already. well It was pretty good I admit For an opera and I admit I was teary at the end but Ahh Why Can't they make an opera where The Girl kills the Jerk guy and where She Doesn't either Kill herself or get Killed. anyways a future project I guess but Im not a real fan of opera I think the only ones I really like are "Madam Butterfly"(the one we saw) and "Carmea". The rest are way over my head. I prefer Musicals yes ahh "Rent" I love RENT. I wanna see it again and Of Course Damn Yankees and all the classics. Anyways I've gone on long Enough, Ta ta -Damon +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo(a)majordomo.net". For list archives and searching, list rules, FAQ, poor jokes etc, see http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +---+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" +---+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

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Sinister: A Day in the Life of...me
by Mick McMick <> Sandcastle Records 09 Jan '99

09 Jan '99

Hello Sinisterines, Well, let me start by saying that I continue to be terribly pleased with the list, and that this is one of those slice of life-type posts, so before I take up my pizza cutter, you may want to stop here if you're not into that. Today, as you probably know, is a Saturday, and a particularly lovely Saturday at that. Saturdays are the subject of nearly as many songs as have been written about Sunday, and rightly so, because they're great. This particular saturday, as those of you living in this particular region of the United States will know, is one coated in powdery snow. The snow isn't everywhere, nor is it pouring from the heavens. It simply tops all the buildings and cars like so much frosty icing, and coats the parts of the ground which haven't been cleared, including my walkway. The sky is cloudy, and it's not too cold out. It's one of those days that makes me prefer winter over summer. People probably normally think I'm a bit mad, but you can take your humid sweaty days and shorts if you'd like, you can never cool off, and warming up here is just a matter of properly bundling up. So today I had set several errands for myself to do, most of which involved record label things like sending off a package to Twee Kitten mailorder and a few other places. So today I put together some CDs and parcels, and then went uptown for a bit of lunch. I returned, allowed myself some video game-playing time, and then set off for the post office. There's one within walking distance of me, but it's a fair piece away, and I'm not particularly keen on going all that way overburdened with packages. Plus, I just got my car back, so it's a good excuse to drive. I decided to take a demo I had gotten a couple months ago with me to listen to in the car, because it reminds me of winter so much, and that's how I wanted to feel today. The tape is one of those that takes a good 7 or 8 listens to really appreciate it, much like just about every B&S or Field Mice release I own. It's quite lovely, but I don't want to abuse the forum with rantings about it, suffice it to say it will be out on my label someday, if things work out like I hope. I was driving and listening, which is one of my favorite things to do (the combination of the two, though each is nice alone, together they are wonderful). I saw a couple of people shovelling snow, and playfully throwing it on one another and laughing. And, seeing as how I was concentrating on the music I was listening to, not where I was going, and seeing as how I am rather scatterbrained, I was halfway to the grocery store before I realized I was heading in the wrong direction. I recall that I was listening to my favorite song on the tape. I love to listen to the backing vocals, which make one reflect on the beauty of the voice of the girl who is singing backups, until they get to the part where you can tell that are actually some miraculous sort of keyboard. Lovely. Anyway, I was so pleased with the tape, I really didn't mind, and I turned around and started heading to the post office. When I got there it was closed. Again, I really didn't mind. I returned back here, and that's where my story ends. /"\_/"\_/"\ Mick McMick/Sandcastle Records <<->> bp224996(a)ohiou.edu \ / Sandcastle Records Homepage: ICQ#5056758 | | http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Amphitheatre/4972/ | | "I am always wishing to make people | | in the world happy with my smiles." | | -Mr. Friendly +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo(a)majordomo.net". For list archives and searching, list rules, FAQ, poor jokes etc, see http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +---+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" +---+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

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Sinister: re: Tindersticks, Migala, & promo
by Keytapes＠aol.com 09 Jan '99

09 Jan '99

Hello, all. Since on the subject, any Tindersticks follower would certainly enjoy Migala. They're from Madrid and have a couple cd's out on Acuarela. The newest release, "Asi duele un verano" is superb. In fact, Stuart David (I believe) mentioned in one of the Brit press interviews, that Migala is his favorite new band. Also, Migala is the featured group on the new Keyhole compilation (3 bands-3 songs a piece) due out beginning of March. Email privately for more info, if you should like. --------Michael from Keyhole Records P.S. Has anyone heard the soundtrack the T-sticks did for the film "Nenette & Boni"? +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo(a)majordomo.net". For list archives and searching, list rules, FAQ, poor jokes etc, see http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +---+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" +---+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

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Sinister: Re: <WHAT'S THE BEST FELT ALBUM TO BUY?>
by Alexis Petridis 09 Jan '99

09 Jan '99

---------- >From: Ben Parker <ben_hates_penguins(a)yahoo.com> >To: sinister(a)majordomo.net >Date: Wed, Jan 6, 1999, 10:21 pm > > > > >Whats the best felt album to get...to get first...or at all...or >whatever? > > > >Anyone? > > They're all fucking ace, to be quite honest with you. The early ones ��Crumbling The Antiseptic Beauty and The Splendour Of Fear � don't sound like any other band in the world, they're totally oblique and opaque in a way that hardly any other music is, swathed in echo and reverb, beautiful classical guitar filigree played on electric, really simple repetitive song structures and inaudible/inpenetrable lyrics. Half the tracks are instrumentals. They're like the sound of shyness on record, which is not something that many bands try to get across.And Splendour Of Fear has The World Is As Soft As Lace on it, as namechecked by Belle And Sebastian on I Don't Love Anyone'. The next two, The Strange Idol's Pattern and Ignite The Seven Cannons have clearer production, more of a nod towards 'pop' songwriting, still loads of beautiful instrumentals and incredible songs e.g. My Darkest Light Will Shine, Primitive Painters (with Liz Fraser from the Cocteaus on it). Actually, 'Ignite The Seven Cannons' has a woeful 80s production job on it by Robin Guthrie of the Cocteau Twins, all awful 'big' snare sounds, too many effects on the guitars etc. but the quality of the songs shines through. Then there's the Creation stuff. 1986-1989. Maurice Deebank, the guitarist, left (he made an OK-ish, rather over-produced solo album called 'Inner Thought Zone', all instrumental) which changed the band's sound quite dramatically: Martin Duffy (who's now in Primal Scream)'s organ playing comes much more to the fore, and Laurence's lyrics get even more straightforward, although they're still utterly beautiful. The sound isn't unlike a very Anglicised version of Bob Dylan's mid-60s "wild mercruy sound" on Highway 61 Revisited or Blonde On Blonde. The first Creation album Let The Snakes Crinkle Their Heads To Death is just short 'cocktail' instrumentals, kind of easy listening, which is obviously quite a common thing nowadays, post-dance music and post rock and Air and people like that, but was pretty fucking weird in 1986. Next two are Forever Breathes The Lonely Word and Poem Of The River, which are most people's favourite Felt albums. The songwriting is fucking incredible on both of them ��Rain Of Crystal Spires, A Wave Crashed On Rocks, She Lives By The Castle, All The People I Like Are Those That Are Dead. The lyrics are heartbreaking: note lyrical corespondence between A Wave... and A Century Of Fakers ("People are crying, What are we gonna do/ People are dying, I don't care about them I care about you/ In your wisdom, you ruined it all/ You sacrificed me for the course of the storm...", which seems pretty much the same idea as the lyrics of Century... It also contains the great couplet "Now it's all over like a wave crashed on rocks/ I'm not your Jesus, will you get off my cross?" which I think is genius) Next two are pretty odd: Train Above The City was really panned at the time, cosisting as it does of Martin Duffy's 'jazz' instrumentals on vibraphone and piano. The first side is a bit silly, really, but the second side is more 'ambient' and bits are really great: Book Of Swords is lovely. One thing that's certainly true of Train Above The City is that it's proof that Felt were just reading from a totally different map to any other band in the 80s (or,indeed, before or since). I can't think of any other band that would have put that out. Then there's The Pictoral Jackson Review, personal favourite, although that may have mroe to do with the fact that I listened to it loads when I first left home and that was a v. intense period in my life and it reminds me of that.One side has two long instrumentals (Sending Lady Load is 13 minutes long or something) while the other side has a load of v. short (1:30-2:30 minutes) proper songs. Bit rougher than the two preceeding LPs, but the lyrics! ACE! ACE! ACE! And then there's the last album, Me And A Monkey On The Moon, which was deliberately intended to be their final album, and sounds a bit like a resume of Felt's whole career. She Deals In Crosses sounds like something off their first album (their new guitarist sounded a bit like Maurice Deebank), Never Let You Go is perfect pop, Mobile Shack sounds more like Denim than Felt. It's wicked. In fact, I'm going to put it on now... Sorry for rambling on like this, but sometimes, in my weaker moments, I think Felt are the greatest band in the history of rock, none of my mates particularly like them, so I seldon get a chance to discuss their merits or otherwise. If you're looking for a starting point, try either of the volumes of Absolute Classic Masterpieces (one covers Creation years, the other the early 80s stuff on Cherry Red). Or if you're rooting around second-hand, there's Gold Mine Trash (which covers the early 80s) and Bubblegum Perfume, another Creation comp. Those last two are both deleted and, actually, Absolute Classic Masterpieces vols. 1 and 2 are both better. They've got loads of non-album singles which are also fantastic ��Penelope Tree, Space Blues, Ballad Of The Band... And while we're on the subject, does anyone out there have copies of any Felt gigs or any of the Peel Sessions they did? I'm also after a few singles to complete my collection: Primitive Painters/Cathedral CD single, Ballad Of The Band 12", Rain Of Crystal Spires 12", Final Resting Of The Ark 12' and Space Blues 12". If anybody's got 'em, or knows where I can get 'em, please get in touch. And, on the subject of records that have clearly influenced Belle And Sebastian, as anyone mentioned John Cale's Paris 1919 album? It's absolutely marvellous from start to finish, and you can definitely hear echoes of songs like Anadlucia and The Endless Plain Of Fortune. Ah, that sounds like a Felt title... Shit, another post to this list that makes me sound like Record Collector magazine. Sorry kids. I'm quite interesting really... love, Alexis +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". 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