Sinister: He's not joking about the Sherlock Holmes thing, y'know [caution: spoiler]

[Nick.Dastoor at xxx.uk]

SHOOT THE SEXUAL ATHLETE

Now I'm in a band people try to make me do things
Kiss arses and pay tribute
But I'm inclined to do those things anyway
And I don't care who hears it

'Cause I'm a fan of the Go-Betweens
A fan of Robert, and I always have been
But I like Grant, now that I've met him
Because he's charming

Of all the stars, and all the would-be stars
I'd take him home, to my mum and dad
Yeah, he's charming, but he's a trouble-maker too
He amuses me greatly

I like Lindy and I saw Vickers
Pete stole the set list, and the itinerary
He wrote my name down as 'Tour Rent Boy'
It was hard, but so is life

[terrific violin break]

I was making button badges
And I had too much time on my hands
I coloured them in by hand
Pere Ubu and the Sugarcubes

Kids came in to watch me
But Pete & Sean just scorned
Just like they scorned Robert
But I secretly liked the big guy
He dressed liked Sherlock Holmes

And he fixed us with a quizzative eye
Before singing such romances
That only the sods trampled underfoot by Thatcher
Could appreciate their love
Could appreciate their love


But it doesn't really work without the music.  In one way, it sounds like the
kind of novelty record that makes it into the Festive 50 at no.31.  But in
another, it has restored my faith in Belle & Sebastian.  Sure, it's a minor
piece, but there's so much life on it.  No fucking 60s inflections or overloaded
string sections or 'what instrument shall we use next'.  Instead, just an
instinctively great vocal delivery, weird phrasing, experimental instrumentation
(is the band doing a kind of human beatbox thing at one point?) and all.  Like
nothing you've ever heard them do before, yet the effect on *this* listener was
to be thrown straight back into the ear-to-ear grin that I had when I fell in
love with them in the first place.

Incidentally, I think they have made up the word 'quizzative'.  I assume it's a
conflation of 'quizzical' and 'acquisative', probably meant to mean the former,
if I know Robert Forster's looks.   And I'm not sure about the I got the 'Pete &
Sean' line right.  It could be 'Pete Shotton' for all I know.


THE MAGIC OF A KIND WORD (for Poppa)

I understand the opening lines of this song were met with grimaces when they
played it live in Glasgow.  "NO! ISOBEL! PLEASE NOT ANOTHER BREATHY SONG
FEATURING THE WORD 'SORROW'!"  They're tricksters though, and it soon mutates
into one of those 60s pop pastiches they ermm.. love.  I guess it's OK if you
like that sort of thing.  Not as overproduced as it might be if they were doing
it on their own time


NOTHING IN THE SILENCE

Y'know, I even quite liked the last Gentle Waves album.  But a side-project is a
side project.   By this point I was just thinking "Hmm.. this session started in
the best way possible and now it's just gone to shit.  But at least this means
the last track is likely to be another Stuart one"


MY GIRL'S GOT MIRACULOUS TECHNIQUE

Yep, Stuart's back.  Peel called it 'My Baby's Got Miraculous Technique' at the
end, but I think he was right the first time.  I have it down as a grower.

Hello everyone.  It's nice to be back.  I really got excited last night when
'Shoot The Sexual Athlete' came on and I just wanted to tell you all about it.


Nick xx


+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
        +---+  Brought to you by the Sinister mailing list  +---+
     To send to the list mail sinister at missprint.org. To unsubscribe
     send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to
     majordomo at 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  +-+
 +-+  "sick posse of f**ked in the head psycho-fans" - NME June 2001   +-+
 +-+               Nee, nee mun pish, chan pai dee kwa                 +-+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+