In a message dated 3/18/98 11:40:37AM, you write: << Maybe essexdog is right: IRC just isnt suitable for this. But it's all we've got. The Kevin Shields AOL chat shows questions formally put by an interviewer and answered in an ordered way - frankly very much like an NME interview but with a brain, but presumably with questions asked beforehand by fans? >> No, the questions were sent in 'live' to a central controller - he passed them on to Kevin who then chose which one to answer online. maybe I only mentioned that chat because I managed to get half a dozen questions answered (including "What's your favourite Spice Girl?" - and before anyone gets sarky on my 'ass', Smash Hits turned me down for a job, OK?). Re: The quoting of my posting about the "Is Stuart gay or not?" 'issue', specifically "It's a LARF, innit?" - That was intended to mean that ultimately the mystique element is very important, and frankly one doesn't really want to chat to people in a prosaic setting where "oooh I've just spilt crisps on the floor" takes precedence as a posting over 'fan' questions. There's no way the band could have done that chat without coming across as either flummoxed, aloof, anal, smug or flippant. Unfortunately they chose the latter. Whatever. As a journalist who happens to adore B&S, the music is the most important thing. I'd rather they wrote fiction or did something akin to the Melody Maker NYC diary than 'succumb' to the interview procedure. Do we actually CARE which is SM's favourite Felt song, or, indeed, what colour socks he wears? Belle Lettres is much more relevant. They have to realise that if they're going to enter into media-esque shenanigans, however, that an attitude reminiscent of the '86 shambling era (or, at least, the way it was portrayed by the NME and suchlike at the time) comes across as less than charming in print/IRC transcript. Stephen. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- . This message was brought to you by the Sinister mailing list. . To send to the list please mail "sinister@majordomo.net". . For subscribing, unsubscribing and other list information please see . http://www.majordomo.net/sinister . For questions about how the list works mail owner-sinister@majordomo.net . Listen, this is pish, I think I'll leave -----------------------------------------------------------------------