Having sat with ears wide shut to everything except 'Fold Your Hands Child..." over the last several days (well, and Nico's 'These Days') I thought I would leave a few brief notes on the songs for those who have not heard the album yet. Mind, this is not a list of my most complicated thoughts, just a few remarks to provide a feel for the songs. I Fought In A War- The loneliness of the long distance soldier. The band heads to the battlefield on the opening mini-epic and is very successful. Solemn and effectively folky, doesn't not remind me of Phil Ochs. Contains the beautiful image "I bet you're making shells back home/ For a steady boy to wear/ Around his neck well it won't hurt to think of you/ As if you're waiting for this letter to arrive/ Because I'll be here quite a while." The Model- The familiar piano rollick of Charlie Brown winds through this tune, which could have appeared comfortably on any of B&S's records so far. Stevie's vocals appear here for the first of many times on the album. More lyrics to sing along with: "Dream of all the bully kids that hang around you/ I'm no different from the rest/ I'm not too proud to say that I'm o.k./ With the girl next door who's famous/ For showing her chest." Or is it Bowlie kids? Beyond The Sunrise- Campfire song sees Lou Reed singing from the sagebrush. Singer I do not know does a slight Crash Test Dummies imitation in the cadence of Johnny Cash. Spare instrumentals emphasizing audible acoustic chord changes. Isobel's slight vocals duet. Stuart's voice is only a ghostly "oh-oh" from ten rows back. D-e-l-i-c-a-t-e. Waiting For The Moon To Rise- Isobel's second consecutive song about celestial risings. This one more successful. Her singing here is different than usual in a good way. For some reason I see playing this while squinting into a late evening summer sun while driving along the ocean into Santa Barbara. Will anyone know what I mean? Marianne Faithfull's 'Come And Stay With Me' brought to mind. Don't Leave The Light On Baby- Somehow will be sampled by The Beastie Boys for an album intro or outro. Leisurely paced tune about a weary day/ life. "His ship came in/ I'm standing on the harbor wall" captures it well, I think. Everyone sings. The Wrong Girl- Same as all the live versions, fleshed out. The Chalet Lines- Stark, serious and excellent. A miniature knockout. A gorgeous tune about a dark day. Stuart demonstrates to the World Of Rock that 'fuck' can be sung appropriately and not just for a sloppy attempt at toughening up a weak tune, as boring musicians seem to do. For example, see anything by Limp Bizkit. Or Arab Strap. Nice Day For A Sulk- *sigh*. A real friend. More upbeat than the title might imply, this soundtrack for a summer evening is a favorite. Complicating my mix tape/ live request list. Belle And Sebastian at their finest. Women's Realm- Another tune for dancing like the Peanuts gang. Piano. Handclaps. It all. Stuart duets with Isobel. "But I dream as I set to scrub/ All the floors and walls I'm thinking of/ A song or two/ A boy a girl/ And a rendezvous". Stuart moves on to sing over his own chorus which should twist into a curious yodel if attempted live. Family Tree How many times will this be called 'Family Twee'? Isobel spends a rainy day in a library musing on her family geneolgy. Some of Isobels best lyrics, if she wrote this. There's Too Much Love Rousing Stuart album-ending opus we've come to know and love. Quite fitting. At the end, vocally and lyrically alone. "And when I come to blows/ When I am numbering my foes/ Just hope that you are on my side my dear". Bows gracefully with a lilting outro suitable for dancing. I haven't really given it a chance as an entire album as it still takes several repeats to make it past 'Sulk' and 'Chalet Lines'. Belle and Sebastian for me is at their best with Stuart up front so I wouldn't have minded 'Lord Anthony' or '...Middle Distance Runner' substituted for some of Isobel's songs. She's got Gentle Waves for this! Perhaps STUART should start a solo, side project. In a high compliment, the world of B&S is reminding me more and more of the Peanuts gang with sex lives. And does anybody feel the same way I do? Eliot +----------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ 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 +-+ +----------------------------------------------------------------------+