Sinister: Morrissey, Murdoch, Merritt and Malkmus

[Nick.Dastoor at xxx.uk]

No. 80 with a bullet eh?  Whenever you lot get pissed off with the British and
their superior attitude, bear in mind that many of us still get a thrill when
big America comes to appreciate our own.  I remember the thrill I got in about
1989 when I discovered that Spin had voted 'There Is A Light That Never Goes
Out' the seventh best song ever.  It's even better when they make it to People
magazine.  Of course it does neither side any credit when stars way past their
sell-by date finally get huge in America (the Kinks, Morrissey again).

It was really nice to get that piece from the 'other' Guardian.  Made me realise
that interviews with bands you like can evoke more than just a 'durr.. they've
got that wrong' response.   Stuart's brief comments about the albums were, as
far as I can recall, the only ones he's ever made in public.   I'd heard before
that the band weren't happy with the way Sinister was recorded, and that he
wasn't over the moon about the way the new album came out in the end, but it's
nice to know they're not just hearsay.  Like David Moore says, you can hear that
'Get Me Away From Here, I'm Dying' isn't given the 'big' treatment it could
receive, but like Youn, I kind of like it that way.   It's unusual to hear an
artist candidly admit that an old album contains the best songs they've ever
written, though.  I think Morrissey (him again) once said something along the
lines of "I think Johnny and I both know that those [Smiths] records are the
best we've ever done or will do" and it made me warm to him.  Not sure if JM
would concede the point, but still.

Youn wrote some interesting things about 'The Chalet Lines' and when it's deemed
acceptable to express opinions or even joke about rape.  She's right that male
rape is somehow OK to snigger about.  So's murder.  But not female rape.  Is
rape worse than murder?  Probably not, but men feel uncomfortable being anything
other than wholly earnest about it because of the lingering fear that we are are
all potential rapists, or that somehow joking about it is a violation in itself.
Or maybe it's just that we know that you can't offend the murdered.  I once knew
a woman who expressed what I'm sure is a widely adopted view in certain feminist
schools of thought: that it is pernicious to build rape up as the worst possible
thing that can happen to a woman.  To her, the obsession with rape's scars was
just another way for society to cast women in the role of victim and diminish
their powers of resilience.  That was what got me thinking about the comparison
with murder, and I decided I basically agreed with her.  Of course the downside
of taking this view is that it make you look heartless: just because one woman
can get over it doesn't mean another should be criticised for failing to do so.

So.  Maybe Stuart is being brave in not caving into the idea that a song about
rape can't sit happily on a pop LP.  But I still don't want to listen to it.
Apart from anything else, lines like 'Full of woe and further to go' just seem
crap to me.  Isn't 'woe' one of those words that people only use in the modern
world when they're trying to sound poetic or quoting nursery rhymes?  Which I
suppose he is.

Sorry, a bit of a 'Chalet Lines' - 'The girl smells of milk' segue follows:

Funny thing.  My two favourite songwriters of the last twenty years share the
same intials.   Stephen Malkmus wouldn't be far off either.  And now I'm belated
becoming obsessed with Stephin Merritt.  Three of them have varients of the same
first name too.  OK, it's not funny.  It's just a meaningless coincidence, but
humans have an irrational urge to point out meaningless coincidences.  And I'm
human.  Not a gorilla.  I dressed as a gorilla cavalier to a party once.  I met
another gorilla cavalier there and it was the best sex that I ever had.

Last Smiths reference:  nessa wondered why their videos were so crap.  Well they
refused to make them for a long time, which led their US record company to
commission their own promos 'in a Smiths vein'.  So you get some
NHS-bespectacled oaf in NHS specs for 'Ask' and some troubled arty girl spinning
round like a loon for 'How Soon is Now?'.  The first one made with their
involvement was the 'parodic' one for 'I Started Something I Couldn't Finish', I
think.  Or maybe there was one for 'Girlfriend in a Coma'.  I can't remember.
Anyway, then they split up and Morrissey decided he loved looking at himself
after all, so he made lots more.

David was funny with his like/don't like ratios for all the albums.  I can't
imagine not liking that many songs of my favourite band.   I like 8/11 songs on
the new one but to me that's a pretty poor return.  I don't like having to sit
tight and take the clunks or use the skip button.

My spies tell me that the rotter Trousers has gone off to form a Spearmint
mailing list which he says will be just like Sinister but more intellectual.
Ha! As if.

Nicholas 'skinny raw rebellious' Dastoor xx


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