July 1999 - Sinister - missprint.org

Sinister: no longer a GYBE! virgin
by A. Memon 16 Jul '99

16 Jul '99

hello all, i've just got back from two full-on cinematic hours of Godspeed You Black Emperor! at the Union Chapel in London. Like many, I missed my first chance to see them at the Bowlie Fest, due to a clash with a duo called Belle and Sebastian (sorry, I plagarised that from Duglas T Stewart), but from the people who went to that show, I was told I wouldnt be disappointed today. I arrived catching the last cool waves of Fridge (bad pun i know), but they were playing those hard twangy basslines and thudding drums that I didnt feel like tonight. Sorta like Ui if you're familiar with them, but with some keyboards over the top. So when GYBE! came onstage and slowly did the same thing, i thought i would be disappointed. what they initially started of with was quite sinister. very evil. satanic sounds almost. all this in a church remember. no smoking signs adorned the place, but i still couldnt help feel a little evil through the music i heard. the music could best be described as a soundtrack to walking barefoot over broken glass and enjoying it. yeah, quite sadistic. but then, what seemed to be the 3rd song (and about 30 minutes into the gig) they did this tune that lifted me right outta my place on the bench, and sent me in heaven's direction. it was a progression up some scale that only made you feel like you were an angel and loving what you looked down upon (see "wings of desire"). after this i was hooked. the song took me to new heights previously experienced only when i was down and unhappy. (seeing Smog and Palace back in 95 had the same effect) see, i wasnt up for any menacing rhythms and melody, i was quite content with life as it had been today, and needed no change thank you very much. i left the gig saying "i am a changed person." they're playing tomorrow (friday) at the same venue, and i dont think its sold out. £10 was more than enough value for money. ts good to see cellos, violins, xylophones and an upright bass drum (a la mo tucker) being used to good effect. one guitar part i heard even sounded like the guitar hum right at the start of "if you're feeling sinister." i've got to cut it short now only as i have to clamber into bed and get some sleep, but i hope someone sees them tomorrow and feels the same way i did. (sorry poetry café for the clash). goodnight, amos +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the reborn Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo(a)majordomo.net". WWW: http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "tech-heads and students" +-+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +-+ "jelly-filled danishes" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

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Sinister: Celtic Confusion.
by SSharp5210＠aol.com 16 Jul '99

16 Jul '99

Hiya. Somebody wrote inquiring about the Celtic/Rangers ratio....... During the BBC Scotland thingy Chris Geddes announced a love of Celtic and one of the B&S badges is in Celtic colours.Cool,non? Steve.Lazy and line painter.xxx p,s Fuck the huns............Just kidding and abusive.Neat. +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the reborn Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo(a)majordomo.net". WWW: http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "tech-heads and students" +-+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +-+ "jelly-filled danishes" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

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Sinister: Whew, im tired!
by JaMeS 16 Jul '99

16 Jul '99

hi, not much to say really, just a line to say that to occupy the long summer months which would surely otherwise idly pass me by ive spent redesigning my webpage, still at http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Hall/7789 nothing new here, ive put a couple of scanned in setlists on it but overall it looks a *little* bit more tidy i hope. or probably doesnt. anyway if anyone does stumble on it and finds glaring errors please let me know :) yeah and i apologise in advance for the annoying geocities ads... ..i saw that b&s doc which was on bbc scotland today as my sister kindly taped it for me. Chris was my favourite. aww, he's such a mummy's boy! where did i read that ' women just want to mother him'? he was great in it. yeah, and did anyone find out what that song was stuart was singing about Kelloggs and Nabisco was, nr the start of the prog? i cant remember if anyone did, its been really bugging me all day...like an early demo or something...ooh, and ive finally joined the picture sinister 'hall of fame', yay, or nay as the case may be..... JaMeS :) http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Hall/7789 +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the reborn Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo(a)majordomo.net". WWW: http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "tech-heads and students" +-+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +-+ "jelly-filled danishes" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

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Sinister: Procession Confession
by McQuain, Chris 15 Jul '99

15 Jul '99

...I've sworn off posting for a while but would like to chime in about New Order's "Procession" and "Electronic Renaissance". Listen to JUST THE BEGINNINGS of both songs in a row- the way the synth-melody goes dooooowwwnn/uuuuuuuuuuuup, dooooooooooooown/uuuuuuuuuup at the beginnings of both songs is remarkably similar, as is the rather dark/melancholy bass line that brings it back down to earth soon after... It CERTAINLY isn't anything like the glossily overproduced Technique, in my opinion. "ER" is very lo-fi, really one of the loest-fi B&S have ever done. Of course, none of this is to start off any kind of B&S/New Order comparison, obviously that's going nowhere fast, as "ER" is "reminiscent" ONLY (not a "copy") of "Procession", "Sleep the Clock Around" sounds a little reminiscent (again not a "copy") of Stereolab, and there's nothing else remotely like those two in the B&S ouevre. Any comment on THIS? I've come to believe our ears all hear things very differently, so the above is solely my opinion, but I thought I'd contribute to the little thread. And also, the Looper show here in Portland, OR (USA) was very good. Wee Karn actually TYPES on a typewriter for "Impossible Things", and the video show was super-cute. They didn't do an encore, but they did include "Who's Afraid of Y2K?" as the show closer, so I'm pretty sure we got everything. -Two or Three Things I Know About Chris +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the reborn Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo(a)majordomo.net". WWW: http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "tech-heads and students" +-+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +-+ "jelly-filled danishes" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

2 1

Sinister: Look, I'm really sorry about this
by Nick.Dastoor＠guardian.co.uk 15 Jul '99

15 Jul '99

I resent the original with all the fancy quotation marks. It probably wasn't worth it the first time, but I never was any good at cutting my losses. Anyone fancy a game of poker? I hope some of you will be able to 'muster up the courage' to go and hang out at the wussy Poetry Cafe tomorrow evening. See you there. Nick xx Belle who? . . . they won a Brit Award when no one had heard of them Belle And Sebastian may not court fame, but they've sure found success. By Caroline Sullivan "Do you want to know how much I hate them? Even their name raises my blood pressure," says a middlingly famous pop singer of fellow Scots Belle And Sebastian. What seems to be an inordinate amount of spleen directed at one inoffensive rock band is actually par for the course. Since emerging in 1996, the Glaswegian octet have inspired more fuming than almost any other group, all due to their so-called "wussiness". There's a good deal of evidence for the prosecution. The six men and two women (none of whom is called Belle or Sebastian) were last in the queue when God handed was handing out the rock'n'roll swagger, and were redirected instead to Wistful via, with an interim stop at Puny Physiques on the way. Songwriter Stuart Murdoch refuses to do interviews, while the others refuse to be photographed (the cover of their debut album, Tigermilk, featured a snap of Murdoch's girlfriend). And their fans are so shy they mostly converse on the internet, occasionally mustering the courage to go to events with names like like 200 Troubled Teenagers. Guilty as charged, wuss-wise, and even they admit it. The obverse, though, is that it takes shimmeringly unusual music to provoke the reaction they do. Tigermilk, which is re-released this week ? original 1996 copies, of which only 1,000 exist, change hands for up to £800 ? is a good place to begin. Songs contain not lyrics but paragraphs, read/sung by Stuart Murdoch. A track might begin, "My brother had confessed he was gay/It took the heat off me for a while/ He stood up with a sailor friend/ Made it known on my sister's wedding day." Cellos and trumpets have higher status than guitars, and the tempo is slow enough for bedroom to encourage brooding. Those who join their insular club take out membership for life ? and on February 16, fans rose in a show of strength. That night, the meek inherited the earth ? or at least the Brit Award for best newcomer, as Belle And Sebastian won 9,500 votes in a phone and internet poll. Producer Pete Waterman, who'd expected his charges Steps to win, called the result a fix and demanded a recount. A member of Steps voiced the question in the minds of most of the nation: "Who are Belle And Sebastian?" A bad night for robopop, but a good one for music. Belle And Sebastian hadn't expected to win either, so only the drummer and trumpet player had been sent to the ceremony. Murdoch, who never attends such events, was busy that night anyway. He works as a church-hall janitor, and spent Brits night clearing up after the local flamenco club. "We'd heard rumours throughout the day that it was us, but didn't take it seriously," recalls Richard Colburn, who played semi-professional snooker before joining as drummer. "The camera crew suddenly zoomed off to another table just as they were about to announce it, so we thought it was Billie or Steps ? and then they zoomed back to us. Rabbit-in-the-headlights time." Next morning, drummer Richard Colburn and trumpeter Mick Cooke found themselves dazedly running a dazed lap of honour on The Big Breakfast as other stars denounced their win. "Another Level said we cheated, but what really bothered me was when Cerys from Catatonia said, 'If Belle And Sebastian are best newcomers, I'm Robbie Williams'. When you consider that a year ago she was in the same boat as us..." sighs Cooke, who looks far too young to be in this Glasgow pub, which may be why he's restricting himself to orange juice. He, Colburn and guitarist Stevie Jackson are the Belle's lad faction, inasmuch as such a thing can be said to exist. The distinction comes from the fact that they're the only ones willing to do interviews, although they vet these carefully. Colburn, who flat-shares with Murdoch in the church hall, has taken the afternoon off setting up tables for tonight's bridge session ("It's very popular") to be here. Cellist Isobel Campbell and bassist Stuart David, who would have more to gain by being interviewed (Campbell has a solo band called The Gentle Waves, David a project called Looper), have elected to be absent, as have violinist Sarah Martin and keyboardist Chris Geddes. They begin, rather surprisingly, by disputing the idea that their fans are bashful underachievers who spend their lives on the net (although the fact that their website receives around 50,000 hits a week does support this theory). "It's too easy to put a label on us. We get all sorts, agewise and professionwise. I see quite good-looking people who've got girlfriends," maintains Colburn, ploughing through a bacon sandwich in an indeniably masculine manner. "I don't look out and see a bunch of geeky, speccy shy people." "They're on stage," quips Cooke. "We're not responsible for a lot of things that go on on our behalf." This is a reference to 200 Troubled Teenagers, an event in London in February that saw gaggles of foot-scuffling girls and boys gather to whisper about favourite tracks from the Belles' three albums (the others are If You're Feeling Sinister and The Boy with the Arab Strap, both deservedly acclaimed). It was the band, however, who were behind the Bowlie Weekender in April: three days of holiday-camp fun starring themselves and other limelight-rejecting bands. "But we don't reject the limelight," argues Jackson, who's quiet enough to be one of his own fans, but way too tall. "It's not a predetermined policy to be elusive, it's just the nature of the beast. I'd love to have a hit single. I'd love to play Top of the Pops! That's our next goal. If you're going to do it, you might as well let people hear it." In which case, perhaps you should have signed with American music bigwig Seymour Stein when he offered, and not refused support slots for on Radiohead and Pulp tours. Jackson shakes his head. "That was because there's eight people in the group and a very complex sound. It's taken all sorts of public humiliation and ineptitude to get almost professional, and we need very long soundchecks, sometimes hours. So we can't do supports, because we need control, and anyway, we only want to play to people who are there to see us. We've just turned down the Charlatans." There's no evidence of ineptitude on Tigermilk, which they've decided to re-release because "the price [of original copies] was going a bit mad"(popster Stephen Duffy supposedly owns 10 copies). They evince a quiet pride in the record, which was recorded in five days as part of a music-business college course. Now held up as the the gold standard of indie rock, it was almost totally overlooked back in '96, attracting just one (favourable) review. "It's stood up," Colburn declares. "I still enjoy listening to it. We couldn't have done it any better. Even the mistakes become defining." Belle And Sebastian are now feeling their way toward a their fourth album. A It's a tortuous process, because, typically, they insist that every decision be unanimous. Top of the Pops notwithstanding, they will undoubtedly continue to dodge the spotlight and irritate those who can't understand how a band could turn down the bright lights for insularity and church halls. Real success ? which is predicted for the next album ? may drive them even further underground, where even more delicate shoots will take root. Tigermilk is reviewed on page 18 (except it isn't, at least not in the edition that I've got. Unless they are confusing Belle & Sebastian with Hefner) +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the reborn Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo(a)majordomo.net". WWW: http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "tech-heads and students" +-+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +-+ "jelly-filled danishes" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

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Sinister: Sorry about all those question marks
by Nick.Dastoor＠guardian.co.uk 15 Jul '99

15 Jul '99

And who is this 'middlingly famous' Scottish pop singer? Any hunches? Nick xx Belle who? . . . they won a Brit Award when no one had heard of them Belle And Sebastian may not court fame, but they?ve sure found success. By Caroline Sullivan Do you want to know how much I hate them? Even their name raises my blood pressure,? says a middlingly famous pop singer of fellow Scots Belle And Sebastian. What seems to be an inordinate amount of spleen directed at one inoffensive rock band is actually par for the course. Since emerging in 1996, the Glaswegian octet have inspired more fuming than almost any other group, all due to their so-called ?wussiness?. There?s a good deal of evidence for the prosecution. The six men and two women (none of whom is called Belle or Sebastian) were last in the queue when God handed was handing out the rock?n?roll swagger, and were redirected instead to Wistful via, with an interim stop at Puny Physiques on the way. Songwriter Stuart Murdoch refuses to do interviews, while the others refuse to be photographed (the cover of their debut album, Tigermilk, featured a snap of Murdoch?s girlfriend). And their fans are so shy they mostly converse on the internet, occasionally mustering the courage to go to events with names like like 200 Troubled Teenagers. Guilty as charged, wuss-wise, and even they admit it. The obverse, though, is that it takes shimmeringly unusual music to provoke the reaction they do. Tigermilk, which is re-released this week ? original 1996 copies, of which only 1,000 exist, change hands for up to £800 ? is a good place to begin. Songs contain not lyrics but paragraphs, read/sung by Stuart Murdoch. A track might begin, ?My brother had confessed he was gay/It took the heat off me for a while/ He stood up with a sailor friend/ Made it known on my sister?s wedding day.? Cellos and trumpets have higher status than guitars, and the tempo is slow enough for bedroom to encourage brooding. Those who join their insular club take out membership for life ? and on February 16, fans rose in a show of strength. That night, the meek inherited the earth ? or at least the Brit Award for best newcomer, as Belle And Sebastian won 9,500 votes in a phone and internet poll. Producer Pete Waterman, who?d expected his charges Steps to win, called the result a fix and demanded a recount. A member of Steps voiced the question in the minds of most of the nation: ?Who are Belle And Sebastian?? A bad night for robopop, but a good one for music. Belle And Sebastian hadn?t expected to win either, so only the drummer and trumpet player had been sent to the ceremony. Murdoch, who never attends such events, was busy that night anyway. He works as a church-hall janitor, and spent Brits night clearing up after the local flamenco club. ?We?d heard rumours throughout the day that it was us, but didn?t take it seriously,? recalls Richard Colburn, who played semi-professional snooker before joining as drummer. ?The camera crew suddenly zoomed off to another table just as they were about to announce it, so we thought it was Billie or Steps ? and then they zoomed back to us. Rabbit-in-the-headlights time.? Next morning, drummer Richard Colburn and trumpeter Mick Cooke found themselves dazedly running a dazed lap of honour on The Big Breakfast as other stars denounced their win. ?Another Level said we cheated, but what really bothered me was when Cerys from Catatonia said, ?If Belle And Sebastian are best newcomers, I?m Robbie Williams?. When you consider that a year ago she was in the same boat as us...? sighs Cooke, who looks far too young to be in this Glasgow pub, which may be why he?s restricting himself to orange juice. He, Colburn and guitarist Stevie Jackson are the Belle?s lad faction, inasmuch as such a thing can be said to exist. The distinction comes from the fact that they?re the only ones willing to do interviews, although they vet these carefully. Colburn, who flat-shares with Murdoch in the church hall, has taken the afternoon off setting up tables for tonight?s bridge session (?It?s very popular?) to be here. Cellist Isobel Campbell and bassist Stuart David, who would have more to gain by being interviewed (Campbell has a solo band called The Gentle Waves, David a project called Looper), have elected to be absent, as have violinist Sarah Martin and keyboardist Chris Geddes. They begin, rather surprisingly, by disputing the idea that their fans are bashful underachievers who spend their lives on the net (although the fact that their website receives around 50,000 hits a week does support this theory). ?It?s too easy to put a label on us. We get all sorts, agewise and professionwise. I see quite good-looking people who?ve got girlfriends,? maintains Colburn, ploughing through a bacon sandwich in an indeniably masculine manner. ?I don?t look out and see a bunch of geeky, speccy shy people.? ?They?re on stage,? quips Cooke. ?We?re not responsible for a lot of things that go on on our behalf.? This is a reference to 200 Troubled Teenagers, an event in London in February that saw gaggles of foot-scuffling girls and boys gather to whisper about favourite tracks from the Belles? three albums (the others are If You?re Feeling Sinister and The Boy with the Arab Strap, both deservedly acclaimed). It was the band, however, who were behind the Bowlie Weekender in April: three days of holiday-camp fun starring themselves and other limelight-rejecting bands. ?But we don?t reject the limelight,? argues Jackson, who?s quiet enough to be one of his own fans, but way too tall. ?It?s not a predetermined policy to be elusive, it?s just the nature of the beast. I?d love to have a hit single. I?d love to play Top of the Pops! That?s our next goal. If you?re going to do it, you might as well let people hear it.? In which case, perhaps you should have signed with American music bigwig Seymour Stein when he offered, and not refused support slots for on Radiohead and Pulp tours. Jackson shakes his head. ?That was because there?s eight people in the group and a very complex sound. It?s taken all sorts of public humiliation and ineptitude to get almost professional, and we need very long soundchecks, sometimes hours. So we can?t do supports, because we need control, and anyway, we only want to play to people who are there to see us. We?ve just turned down the Charlatans.? There?s no evidence of ineptitude on Tigermilk, which they?ve decided to re-release because ?the price [of original copies] was going a bit mad?(popster Stephen Duffy supposedly owns 10 copies). They evince a quiet pride in the record, which was recorded in five days as part of a music-business college course. Now held up as the the gold standard of indie rock, it was almost totally overlooked back in ?96, attracting just one (favourable) review. ?It?s stood up,? Colburn declares. ?I still enjoy listening to it. We couldn?t have done it any better. Even the mistakes become defining.? Belle And Sebastian are now feeling their way toward a their fourth album. A It?s a tortuous process, because, typically, they insist that every decision be unanimous. Top of the Pops notwithstanding, they will undoubtedly continue to dodge the spotlight and irritate those who can?t understand how a band could turn down the bright lights for insularity and church halls. Real success ? which is predicted for the next album ? may drive them even further underground, where even more delicate shoots will take root. Tigermilk is reviewed on page 18 (except it isn't, at least not in the edition that I've got. Unless they are confusing Belle & Sebastian with Hefner) +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the reborn Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo(a)majordomo.net". WWW: http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "tech-heads and students" +-+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +-+ "jelly-filled danishes" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

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Sinister: Grandpa Cook meets Stuart Murdoch shock!
by Alasdair Cook MS1996 15 Jul '99

15 Jul '99

So is anyone else's grandpa in a B&S video then? Cos mine is. I discovered this the other day while watching the dog on wheels video for the second time, and almost fell off my seat when I realised who the old man Stuart is asking directions or something from in Byres road was. I had to rewind the video about three times to make sure I wasn't dreaming. My grandpa, preserved in history even when he joins the choir invisible. I haven't told him yet, though. I haven't told my grandpa either. I've heard mumblings of a Nick Drake tribute concert being held in London in September with actual good proper people playing. I don't suppose anyone can give me any details of exactly who might play and when exactly it is could they? Fank you. Ooh, here's a nice bit of the Tigermilk review from the Glasgow Herald penned by that lovely Mr David Belcher: "...If this isn't one of the 10 most affecting debut albums in musical history, you can come round and eat my hat. Worth gifts of gold; frankincense and myrrh - plus your dying breath and all the tea in China." Oh, and Flo said: > I suppose some of the Glasgow members of the list went to see Godspeed You > Black Emperor! on Monday, since the topic was being discussed on the NG a > while ago. I'm so jealous!!! GYBE! are so good, and Mogwai coming as > surprise support.... that's unfair!!! I did go but unfortunately missed Mogwai due to Miss Ailsa Ross' boyfriend's germs (boring story, doesn't matter). Howver I did see Godspeed.. who were indeed very good, a bit like having your head pulled off and your heart pulled out simultaneously. Which is a good thing. Alasdair xx +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the reborn Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo(a)majordomo.net". WWW: http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "tech-heads and students" +-+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +-+ "jelly-filled danishes" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

1 0

Sinister: I see quite good-looking people who?ve got girlfriends
by Nick.Dastoor＠guardian.co.uk 15 Jul '99

15 Jul '99

This is going to be in tomorrow's Guardian. It's boring as fuck, but there you go. At least there are some new exciting quotes from the band. They turned down a support slot with the Charlatans! My my, they are getting big for their boots. Nick xx Belle who? . . . they won a Brit Award when no one had heard of them Belle And Sebastian may not court fame, but they?ve sure found success. By Caroline Sullivan Do you want to know how much I hate them? Even their name raises my blood pressure,? says a middlingly famous pop singer of fellow Scots Belle And Sebastian. What seems to be an inordinate amount of spleen directed at one inoffensive rock band is actually par for the course. Since emerging in 1996, the Glaswegian octet have inspired more fuming than almost any other group, all due to their so-called ?wussiness?. There?s a good deal of evidence for the prosecution. The six men and two women (none of whom is called Belle or Sebastian) were last in the queue when God handed was handing out the rock?n?roll swagger, and were redirected instead to Wistful via, with an interim stop at Puny Physiques on the way. Songwriter Stuart Murdoch refuses to do interviews, while the others refuse to be photographed (the cover of their debut album, Tigermilk, featured a snap of Murdoch?s girlfriend). And their fans are so shy they mostly converse on the internet, occasionally mustering the courage to go to events with names like like 200 Troubled Teenagers. Guilty as charged, wuss-wise, and even they admit it. The obverse, though, is that it takes shimmeringly unusual music to provoke the reaction they do. Tigermilk, which is re-released this week ? original 1996 copies, of which only 1,000 exist, change hands for up to £800 ? is a good place to begin. Songs contain not lyrics but paragraphs, read/sung by Stuart Murdoch. A track might begin, ?My brother had confessed he was gay/It took the heat off me for a while/ He stood up with a sailor friend/ Made it known on my sister?s wedding day.? Cellos and trumpets have higher status than guitars, and the tempo is slow enough for bedroom to encourage brooding. Those who join their insular club take out membership for life ? and on February 16, fans rose in a show of strength. That night, the meek inherited the earth ? or at least the Brit Award for best newcomer, as Belle And Sebastian won 9,500 votes in a phone and internet poll. Producer Pete Waterman, who?d expected his charges Steps to win, called the result a fix and demanded a recount. A member of Steps voiced the question in the minds of most of the nation: ?Who are Belle And Sebastian?? A bad night for robopop, but a good one for music. Belle And Sebastian hadn?t expected to win either, so only the drummer and trumpet player had been sent to the ceremony. Murdoch, who never attends such events, was busy that night anyway. He works as a church-hall janitor, and spent Brits night clearing up after the local flamenco club. ?We?d heard rumours throughout the day that it was us, but didn?t take it seriously,? recalls Richard Colburn, who played semi-professional snooker before joining as drummer. ?The camera crew suddenly zoomed off to another table just as they were about to announce it, so we thought it was Billie or Steps ? and then they zoomed back to us. Rabbit-in-the-headlights time.? Next morning, drummer Richard Colburn and trumpeter Mick Cooke found themselves dazedly running a dazed lap of honour on The Big Breakfast as other stars denounced their win. ?Another Level said we cheated, but what really bothered me was when Cerys from Catatonia said, ?If Belle And Sebastian are best newcomers, I?m Robbie Williams?. When you consider that a year ago she was in the same boat as us...? sighs Cooke, who looks far too young to be in this Glasgow pub, which may be why he?s restricting himself to orange juice. He, Colburn and guitarist Stevie Jackson are the Belle?s lad faction, inasmuch as such a thing can be said to exist. The distinction comes from the fact that they?re the only ones willing to do interviews, although they vet these carefully. Colburn, who flat-shares with Murdoch in the church hall, has taken the afternoon off setting up tables for tonight?s bridge session (?It?s very popular?) to be here. Cellist Isobel Campbell and bassist Stuart David, who would have more to gain by being interviewed (Campbell has a solo band called The Gentle Waves, David a project called Looper), have elected to be absent, as have violinist Sarah Martin and keyboardist Chris Geddes. They begin, rather surprisingly, by disputing the idea that their fans are bashful underachievers who spend their lives on the net (although the fact that their website receives around 50,000 hits a week does support this theory). ?It?s too easy to put a label on us. We get all sorts, agewise and professionwise. I see quite good-looking people who?ve got girlfriends,? maintains Colburn, ploughing through a bacon sandwich in an indeniably masculine manner. ?I don?t look out and see a bunch of geeky, speccy shy people.? ?They?re on stage,? quips Cooke. ?We?re not responsible for a lot of things that go on on our behalf.? This is a reference to 200 Troubled Teenagers, an event in London in February that saw gaggles of foot-scuffling girls and boys gather to whisper about favourite tracks from the Belles? three albums (the others are If You?re Feeling Sinister and The Boy with the Arab Strap, both deservedly acclaimed). It was the band, however, who were behind the Bowlie Weekender in April: three days of holiday-camp fun starring themselves and other limelight-rejecting bands. ?But we don?t reject the limelight,? argues Jackson, who?s quiet enough to be one of his own fans, but way too tall. ?It?s not a predetermined policy to be elusive, it?s just the nature of the beast. I?d love to have a hit single. I?d love to play Top of the Pops! That?s our next goal. If you?re going to do it, you might as well let people hear it.? In which case, perhaps you should have signed with American music bigwig Seymour Stein when he offered, and not refused support slots for on Radiohead and Pulp tours. Jackson shakes his head. ?That was because there?s eight people in the group and a very complex sound. It?s taken all sorts of public humiliation and ineptitude to get almost professional, and we need very long soundchecks, sometimes hours. So we can?t do supports, because we need control, and anyway, we only want to play to people who are there to see us. We?ve just turned down the Charlatans.? There?s no evidence of ineptitude on Tigermilk, which they?ve decided to re-release because ?the price [of original copies] was going a bit mad?(popster Stephen Duffy supposedly owns 10 copies). They evince a quiet pride in the record, which was recorded in five days as part of a music-business college course. Now held up as the the gold standard of indie rock, it was almost totally overlooked back in ?96, attracting just one (favourable) review. ?It?s stood up,? Colburn declares. ?I still enjoy listening to it. We couldn?t have done it any better. Even the mistakes become defining.? Belle And Sebastian are now feeling their way toward a their fourth album. A It?s a tortuous process, because, typically, they insist that every decision be unanimous. Top of the Pops notwithstanding, they will undoubtedly continue to dodge the spotlight and irritate those who can?t understand how a band could turn down the bright lights for insularity and church halls. Real success ? which is predicted for the next album ? may drive them even further underground, where even more delicate shoots will take root. Tigermilk is reviewed on page 18 (except it isn't, at least not in the edition that I've got. Unless they are confusing Belle & Sebastian with Hefner) +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the reborn Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo(a)majordomo.net". WWW: http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "tech-heads and students" +-+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +-+ "jelly-filled danishes" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

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Sinister: Calling All Stuart David Fans
by The Stuart David Fanclub 15 Jul '99

15 Jul '99

Hey you lovely and good people of Sinister, Fed up because there`s not nearly enough talk of Stuart David? Sexually frustrated because there`s not nearly enough pictures of him? All those sleepless nights,spent tossing and turning, wondering what the latest news concerning him is? We hear you, we hear you loud and clear.Stuart Murdoch may be the Everything of Belle & Sebastian,but Stuart David provides the Boom Shocka Locka Boom. BUT, we...need...YOU! Yes,oh yes we do.In order to open the Stuart David Complex we need photos,facts,stories,things,drawings,pictures,reviews,collages,screenplays,anecdotes,modern art dances...well just about anything really,concerning that king among men.You will get full recognition for it all,AND you are entered,absolutely free of charge into the One Hot Summer Night contest,where you could win dinner with Stuart David and a cozy stay at the Holiday Inn with him.* So come ON boys and girls,help us out.Mail and questions or comments to: stuartdavid_fanclub(a)hotmail.com PLEASE! Even if you aren`t a fan of his,but have a lot of stories or photos concerning him,please,help us out. Yours Hopefully, The Stuart David Fanclub *The Fanclub is not responsible if Stuart David actually turns up. ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the reborn Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo(a)majordomo.net". WWW: http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "tech-heads and students" +-+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +-+ "jelly-filled danishes" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

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Sinister: Milking the water...
by Giita . 15 Jul '99

15 Jul '99

Hello Tiggerpuppies, How has everything been in e-mail land? I havenŽt been online for almost a month now and it has been terribly depressing...I missed my Sinister :( ... Yes, I am going to continue ranting about Tigermilk..I just got it today from Jeepster(a bit late I think), I am giving my best friend a copy.. On Wed, 14 Jul 1999 marie elia wrote: Subject: Re: Sinister: Tigermilk statue - --- Alan Singfield <alan.singfield(a)iSOFTplc.com> wrote: >Anyway, most sensible people will >cut the tape in the middle of Electronic >Renaiisance, so no damage done there. oh, dear. i just can't take this. just as lesley jo will fiercly come to the defense of her beloved isobel, i feel i can no longer keep quiet at the abuse that Electronic Renaissance is taking. what is wrong with you popkids? can't you appreciate the pure synthesized beauty? the petshopboys-ness of it? the way struan's silvery vocals cut and shimmer and echo through layers of pure dance beats? sheesh! i cue my tape up so that E.R. is the first song when i go for a drive... *sigh* i suppose i can't convince you all... Yes, Electronic Renaissance is one of my absolute favorite Tigermilk tunes :) I used to play it over and over again...I once put Electronic on at full volume during a Theater performance me and some kids wrote..The play and the music went very well together.. What have I been up to? I have been working too much. Because I work outside i have been drowning myself in Icelandic rainwater.. I desperately need sunshine!! Why is there a cloud over Reykjavik?? ..I have been partying a bit..but I have to get out of the Ice and go somewhere...I guess iŽll have to wait until All TomorrowŽs.. Well I am going to an amuzement park to lift my spirits so, IŽll stop my whining and go off.. XXX @->-- Giita "And we all say we donŽt want to be alone, we wear the same clothes because we feel the same.." End a century - Blur ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the reborn Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to "majordomo(a)majordomo.net". WWW: http://www.majordomo.net/sinister +-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "tech-heads and students" +-+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +-+ "jelly-filled danishes" +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+

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