Hello the land of SiNiSteR! It's been a while... (I haven't smiled...) and many things have happened... things that I'm sure you'd like to know but I won't tell you anyway... mmm unless you beg... nicely... and with the proper puppy-indie-eyes... Well, the sinister picnic's on this weekend... I was supposed to be there but alas I won't make it... First Sinister Picnic of the YeaR... I keep reading about kites and other weird things like that but anyway, no comment... don't you know that all you need is vodka bottles in your handbags? But instead of coming to London in May, I'm coming in June so I can go and see the Bell(i)es in Glasgow both nights! And then we're having a sinister picnic in London on the 23rd (is that right Mr Marvoloso sir?) June and it's at GREENWICH this time... Talking about Glasgow... there's been a lot of talk lately about this glaswegian beat combo, the Camera Obscura... mmm So, let's take things from the start... David Howie said: My comments on Camera Obscura were unjustified as well seeing that I’ve only heard three of their songs; as were my comments on Baxendale (“although quite why you’d want to”). However, I do stand by my opinion that they don’t sound that much like B&S (more like Felt, High Llamas, Idlewild at their poppiest perhaps) but that is no excuse for jumping on your comments; Camera Obscura have been around for a few years, their infuences vary... I'd say they're quite sixties, influenced by Lee Hazlewood and Nancy Sinatra, and yes, Felt too, but really High Llammas, and Idlewild?? they had two singles out, "park and ride" and "your sound" a while ago... and they've spent the last year or so recording an album... there are connections with B&S though... as Stuart (don't you just hate it when people call him Struan? it's just so awful and bad taste) produced the single for them, called "eighties fan" and it's out next month, mid June or something... its got a real sixties wall of sound feel and stuart arranged strings for it. The B-sides are "shine like a new pin" and "let's go bowling". I think that Mr Murdoch is also playing accoustic guitar in "eighties fan", but I can't say for sure...the album's out later this year.... other AffiNitiEs... Richard from B&S drummed for CO for a year... he's actually on their second single... Then Mr Danny Farrell went ahead and said: Camera Obscura, in my drunken state, did sound like B&S not a hugely like them but there was a resemblance, not in that they were scottish but because they sounded very much the "twee" band. Not in my very worst (best) drunken state I'd say that Camera Obscura sounded like the "twee" band... they're not hopping around like little happy bunnies in green fields and they hate daisies indeed... they may sound mellow in some songs, but that doesn't make them twee, does it? like you wouldn't call the Clientele a twee band, or Hopkirk and Lee, or the Montgolfier Bros, would you? unless mellow=twee nowadays... Marc Bots then said: Camera Obscura is an old dutch book by a guy called Hildebrand. It has a number of stories in it, situated somewhere in the end of the 19th century. I had to read some parts of it for my exams (seven years ago already, aargh), and found it particulary boring. I don't know if it has anything to do with the band, but at least you all may learned something today. Yes, we learnt something today... the band didn't take its name from monsieur Hildebrand I'm afraid, nor from monsier Vaneguem... The name comes from the prototype camera, where images were inverted onto a screen... simple as that... There's a CO mailing list for those of you who may be interested, it's called parkandride and it's another missprint.org mailing list... For those of you who are americans and have heard about Camera Obscura, this is not the american camera obscura coz there is a band in US called that but believe me they're utter crap... so don't subcribe with the hope of having yourselves indulged into emo (emotional hardcore) delights... That's all I had to say... for now... I hope everyone has a smashing time at the picini! it'd be better if I and my hotpantslollylove miss Pooky (or Genevieve to its posh-est) were there to form the sinister girls footy team and beat the boys up... next time... and Pooky, I don't know if you've heard that but Ally Cookie Cinnamon is going to be at this picnic too!! yes, yes, I know... anyway.. take care Vel xxx PS: Praise Laura Llew!!! she sent me the best themed parcel ever!!! knowing my fixation with lighthouses (please no freudian wits here...) Laura Llew, when I'm blue, you make feel like sniffing some glue... and no matter what the neighbours say if we could find a way and oh oh baby we will find a way... (stolen from the mightly Ramones... R.I.P Joey Daddy O') PpS: Joe Strummer when he was asked in an interview in Spin magazine (crap magazine but anyway) what was the most influencial, most important punk band in the UK, he replied "no question about it; the Television Personalities"... so there... I used to love Mr Strummer... after that, I adore him... "waR is the last possible creative act" MT "If" "the new creation will arise from the ruins of the old world", IsidoR Isou (International Lettrist) ____________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.co.uk address at http://mail.yahoo.co.uk or your free @yahoo.ie address at http://mail.yahoo.ie +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the 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 +-+ "sinsietr is a bit freaky" - stuart david, looper +-+ +-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "peculiarly deranged fanbase" +-+ +-+ "pasty-faced vegan geeks... and we LOST!" - NME April 2000 +-+ +-+ "frighteningly named Sinister List organisation" - NME May 2000 +-+ +-+ Nee, nee mun pish, chan pai dee kwa +-+ +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+