hello all.. i felt like typing this up. had you guys seen the thing that cmj printed last month? the 'open letter to belle and sebastian' where they made more mistakes then anything else. singles by Douglas Wolk, august 2000: its a little perverse to release an album at the same time as a single thats not on it, but Belle & Sebastian is nothing if not a little perverse. "Legal Man"is no where to be found on the band's new album Fold Your Hands Child You Walk Like A Peasant -- but it really wouldnt have fit in there anyway. One hundred and sixty-two seconds of a groovy congo-driven beat with a lead sitar, novelty lyrics (for a love song in legal diction: Notwithstanding* provisions of clauses 1,2,3 and 4/ Extend the contractual period, me and you forevermore*), low budget organ and bleached-blonde girl-group backing vocals, ending with a call to go outside and enjoy the sunshine, its best understood in British tradition of Northern Soul: ultra-obscure 60s soul 45s played at casino discotheques in the North of England. On the surface, its something of an aberration for the band, but on further reflection if fits in neatly with the group's fascination with youth culture -- and Northern soul that was the most joyful kind of youth culture Britain has ever had. The disc is rounded out by guitarist Stevie Jackson's tender "Winter Wooske," a longtime highlight of B&S shows, and a chirpy two-part instrumental inexplicably called "Judy Is a Dick Slap." ____ xo Jes +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the undead Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list mail sinister@missprint.org. To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to majordomo@missprint.org. WWW: http://www.missprint.org/sinister +-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "tech-heads and students" +-+ +-+ "the cardie wearing biscuit nibbling belle & sebastian list" +-+ +-+ "sinsietr is a bit freaky" - stuart david, looper +-+ +-+ "pasty-faced vegan geeks... and we LOST!" - NME April 2000 +-+ +-+ "peculiarly deranged fanbase" "frighteningly named +-+ +-+ Sinister List organisation" - NME May 2000 +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+