you know, the one from november, the dreadful one. i don't think it was ever posted here. anyway, i've just scanned and ocr-ed it and i'm now posting it for your reading pleasure... i'll do the first part now and see what it looks like via email (i've a feeling it'll look dreadful) and post the rest if it's ok and fiddle with it beforehand if it isn't... anyway, enjoy... Their singer is the mild-mannered janitor of his local church hall. The rest of the band (six in all) have never been pictured together. In a year-and-a-half, they've only managed to play 15 gigs. By rights, no-one should ever have heard of them. Yet last week, they were invited on Top Of The Pops. This is the story of Belle & Sebastian; a Glaswegian group borne from obsession who now inspire devotion among thousands; a phenomenon comparable only to the advent of The Smiths in the mid-'80s; and a collection of seven of the most contrary and secretive people ever to make it into the Top 40. The origins of their success can be traced to the slight form of Stuart Murdoch, a 29-year-old ex-choirboy and one-time boxer, who'd always dreamed of starting a band. In January 1996, after years spent leaving hopeful notes scrawled in the windows of music shops, he succeeded: Belle & Sebastian were formed, and, two months later, 'Tigermilk' (a debut album limited to 1,000 copies and financed by the local college) found its way on to national radio. 'Tigermilk' was a record that took everybody by surprise: a debut album that combined the urban romance of the Tindersticks with the brittle folk of Nick Drake; a wrenching collection of songs riddled with quiet humour and failed love; and an outsider's Bible that addressed an audience long since neglected. From the outset, Belle & Sebastian were different: Murdoch wrote all the songs but was reluctant to be interviewed and absolutely refused to be photographed (as did most of the band). As a result, they were forced to issue a series of perverse press shots of cuddly toys and 'playful' car-crash mock-ups. This on its own was enough to fuel imaginations, and their next album 'If You're Feeling Sinister' went on to sell over 15,000 copies. Since then, a series of EPs have propelled them to even greater heights of popularity, culminating in their current release (the '3... 6... 9 Seconds Of Light' EP) making the Top 40. All this time, NME has been desperately striving to interview them, only to be rebuffed at every turn. Seemingly, Belle & Sebastian were a principled anomaly, mavericks in the carefully-marketed world of modern music. Then we met them... ok, more this afternoon i guess... cheers andy koogydelbbog@yahoo.com ----------------------------------------------------------------------- . 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 -----------------------------------------------------------------------