Sinister: well the drums rolled off in my forehead

[Helen McLean]

first things first,

i suppose i am one of those people whom we like to call lurkers on
this list, having been on it for more than a couple of years and one
of those who can count the times they have posted on one hand. so
hello everybody.

The recent posts have been a reminder of how great this list can be
and what a community it is and for that I am thankful to be on it. For
me, living in one of the most isolated cities in the world, the effect
this tragedy has had on me is mindblowing, and so as such I can only
sympathise with the many of you who have had a much more personal
involvement in all this, as much as I am able. I hope you are all
okay. A friend across the ocean wrote to me and said 'its amazing how
world calamities can make our own little worlds unbearable'. indeed.

Something that has made me smile is talking to a girl I know who lives
down the road from the mosque in my city, who has spent an evening or
so cleaning fresh graffiti off the walls of the mosque with some of
her friends, all being so disgusted with it that they decided to do
something about it. These things affect even my sleepy township, but
there are always good people around too.

* * * * * * * * *
The bit with the content I suppose:

lately i was driving in my car with a friend of mine and i popped in a
tape of B&S, the green album if you must know, and she sat there
listening, and she remarked to me "you know i haven't really listened
to these guys in ages and I had forgotton about how good they actually
are". I smiled, for I hadn't forgotton see, though I started listening
to the music properly then, like i was listening for the first time in
ages as well (which caused some havoc on the roads as my concentration
lapsed) and I started thinking, which is probably a dangerous pastime,
for me in any case.

But I was thinking about it right, as we were driving along, and
started wondering how other people interpreted this music and
associated with it. And I thought about music that I associated with,
and how so much of it has a well, for lack of better words, a sense of
place i suppose. Songs that remind you, or are descriptive of places.

Where I live is summed up by alot of songs, I was reminded of this by
The Triffids song "too hot to think, too hot to move" (or is it 'too
hot to move, too hot to think" I forget) which I listened to the other
day, and is a song about summer in the city where I live in Australia.
And their great song 'wide open road' which is pretty much how country
Western Australia would sound like, if it were music. There's a
stretch of road that I have driven along when going to visit my
Grandparents which is dead straight for about an hour. Literally, they
just drew a straight line on the map between two towns when building
it, so I have been told, and ploughed through salt lakes and over
hills with this straight road. And there is nothing much in sight for
miles. Usually no cars also. And I am reminded of this stretch of road
when I hear that song. (The Triffid's - Perth band in the 80's,
released on Rough Trade in England I think, but in any case it doesn't
matter really).

The point was, (and yes there is a point) I was wondering about Belle
& Sebastian, and whether others would say that they give you a sense
of Glasgow, or at least the surrounding area or even of Scotland. I
mean, they name drop places quite often, some of which I am sure I
will go to some day (and see the country park and maybe even hang
around till after dark.) I wouldn't know really, I appreciate the
music and the lyrics alot anyway, having never been to Glasgow, and I
suppose the fact that there are so many fans from everywhere would
show that there is something universal about all this music. But there
is something about those Triffid's songs, and Sodastream, and a couple
of other bands which I love because they have a certain feel which I
associate with where I live. Ironically, because I often wish I could
get out of where I live sometime soon. I'm also positive that if I
ever went to Iceland it would look like Sigur Ros sounds, and in the
'Paradise City' the grass IS green and the girls are pretty. Right?

So hidden in all my rambling was a question I suppose, which doesn't
necessarily have to be answered, about songs and imagery and how they
can have a sense of place. And how the majority of the music that I
like has that in some form or another. Take from it what you will,
even if it is purely a quizzical look. I apologise, I'm only lucid
when I'm rising buses :)

Take care all, ( and also take care of young Jeremy who is visiting
yonder shores :)
    Helen

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