Maybe I'm just as bad as Stuart, but "a clichéd rape"? Is this possible? Isn't rape, by definition, something intensely personal and (hopefully) unique, something which comes in as many forms as there are victims? Some may question the wisdom of Stuart writing the song. I quite literally did at the press conference. However, I don't personally think it was unwise, but courageous ("brave" always seems a bit weedy, almost an excuse). When I spoke to Stuart after the event, partly to apologise in case I had embarrassed him, he said he was pleased someone had asked him a question that didn't have a mindless journalese answer (sorry if I'm blowing my own trumpet here, but it's an important subject, I think). The point was that something very emotional affecting happened to a friend of Stuart's, and many years later it still made enough of an impression for him to want to express how he feels about it, the incident, the subject. For one second imagine if he'd written a third person account. Yuk. Instead, Stuart puts himself in an extremely vulnerable emotional position - I'm sure it was hard for him to express those emotions, and I'm sure he's aware that others will interpret them negatively, in ways he never meant, and he's prepared to stand up for himself. The song is awkward and sometimes difficult to listen to, but I can't imagine any male putting it more honestly or more sensitively. Perhaps, you may argue, that's the point - he simply shouldn't have written about it. I strongly believe the opposite, and to me, this otherwise unremarkable song is probably the most vital on the album. Stuart, so adept at writing about the vague and abstract, has taken an impossible subject and tackled it without hesitation. It's one of the few pieces of evidence that B&S are moving forward, rather than treading water and indulging in retro as recent releases have hinted at. Markx ******************************************************************* Please Note that from the 17th of June, the HIT UK address changes to - HIT Entertainment PLC 5th Floor, Maple House 141-150 Tottenham Court Road LONDON, W1P 9LL Tel: +44 (20)7 224 1717 Fax: +44 (20)7 224 1719 The contents of this e mail from HIT Entertainment PLC are confidential and intended for the addressee only. If you are not the intended recipient you must not copy or further distribute this e mail; please notify us by telephone on 020 7224 1717, and delete the e mail from your computer. This e mail has been checked by our anti-virus system before leaving us; we accept no responsibility for the e mail and any attachments once they leave us. www.hitentertainment.com www.bobthebuilder.org ******************************************************************** +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ 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 +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+