Fellow sinners, First off: My recent buildup of thoughts containing actual B&S content and a subtle name-check have roused me from my (heretofore lurking) bedsit infamy. On the subject of smut colliding with twee etc. (and trying not to be too repetitive): I’ve always first described the band to people who have never heard them by saying that they write excellent songs with lovely sounds filled with lyrics of hidden ire and often disguised cynicism and frustration. The juxtaposition of such is what attracted me to them in the first place and I think that’s what makes them wonderful.* That’s also why I prefer Struan’s songs—exactly for the way he combines angst with melody. (Reminds me that Stephin Merritt has a similar talent.) I don’t find this complexity in Isobel’s songs and to a lesser degree in songs by other members of the band. S&M and Bible study may be appealing by themselves, but putting them together intrigues me much more. Tangent not meant to offend: spraying walls and marking territory It doesn’t surprise me that Mr Murdoch got so angry at the journalists. (The use of ‘cunting’ to get a triple word score did not shock me either.) I’d probably react the same if I were in his position, but being a relatively apolitical girl, I’m not. Though, I have been using the adjective/adverb "fucking" alot lately, so maybe we have something in common. About fucking time. Thinking about politicizing music reminded me of the existence of Rage Against the Machine, and then in further randomness I thought of a Beck interview quote that I cut out of an early '90's copy of Spin for laughs when I was but an impressionable alternative lass of fourteen. It went something like, “…Beck begins sarcastically whining, ‘Oh, the tragedy and anguish, you just gotta Rage Against the Appliance, man. The toast is burning and you just gotta rip it out before it fills the house with smoke. Rage Against the Toaster.’” Memory like an elephant, mine. I’m glad Stuart sprays walls in Glasgow for anyone with eyes in their head, and doesn’t feel like he should have to go on about it to the music press to further his causes. Overarchingly setting their politics to music would discourage me from listening to B&S, I'm afraid. Crusading against Twee Hearing the word bandied about, twee has come to mean something pretty narrow to me. Any of the band’s detractors that I’ve heard always seem to cite their supposed tweeness as the first count against them and it’s obvious to me these naysayers aren’t really listening to the lyrics or they’d realize that twee doesn’t do them justice. It might do the Gentle Waves justice, which is just fine for the Gentle Waves. There are lots of quaking skeletons in my indie-rock closet. My taste is very eclectic and in addition to stuff like Hefner and the Magnetic Fields that seems popular around here, I also have some items in my music collection that I’m afraid would make some of you nauseous, or at least befuddled. Belle and Sebastian are a favorite, but they’re in mixed company in my record bin, shelved between 'Archie Bell and the Drells' and 'The Birthday Party.' Lastly: The Manly Size of Legal Man Scott wrote: <I have to echo Tim's grumblings regarding the price gouging. Let the DJ's get the white label. Pah.> I’ll be receiving my extended 12” dickslap secondhand before I decide if it’s worth shelling out my hard-earned student loan $ for my own private dose of vinyl. Until then I’ll just enjoy the smaller size, thanks. Figures that the DJ would be the one to justify the 2 formats in the interview. Ibiza? Who knows, maybe someday the Dust Brothers will sample it or something. An obnoxious man once told me I have a talent for stating the obvious. At this point I am chagrined to agree. I’ve tried to lovingly embellish the obvious here, at least. I hope it’s not a fault to find these days. Right, back to lurking. xxx Sarah * Sometimes it takes a while for my friends to be converted. One close friend for whom I made a B&S mix tape in December phoned me last week to tell me she’d finally realized their genius. She said, “what’s that band you sent me? Sebastian Bach? [she doesn't read labels well] They’re in my walkman all the time now, I love the part about the gay brother standing up with a sailor friend at his sister’s wedding!” My listcrush vote goes to the cutie who can tell me who Sebastian Bach is. ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the undead Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list mail sinister@missprint.org. 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