From josephvess at xxx.com  Fri Jan  8 00:57:22 2016
From: josephvess at xxx.com (Joseph Vess)
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 2016 00:57:22 +0000 (UTC)
Subject: Sinister: Still the simple things
References: <1034629121.1698153.1452214642468.JavaMail.yahoo.ref@mail.yahoo.com>
Message-ID: <1034629121.1698153.1452214642468.JavaMail.yahoo@mail.yahoo.com>

So I hear Sinister's back? I'm a little late, sorry. Not as late as when I last posted though, 9 years ago now I think?

I was listening to The Boy with the Arab Strap (see how long it's been? I don't even remember the clever nickname of it) a few days ago, probably the first time I've listened to it all the way through in years. It was the first B&S album I got, about 17 years ago. I think the last album of theirs I got was The Life Pursuit, and the last one I actually really listened to was DCW. I mean, I hate to be one of those old fogies saying "it's not as good as it was back in my day"...oh wait, I LOVE being one of those old fogies. Sorry!

As I was listening to it today I remembered the very first time I heard it, in my dorm at university. I remembered how much I absolutely loved it then, and listened to it over and over and over, and how few albums I listened to then that I still listen to now. And I can't think of any that move me like hearing this one again after a long absence, except maybe If You're Feeling Sinister, and especially the way that "Get Me Away From Here I'm Dying" transitions into "If You're Feeling Sinister." I love that bit. And listening to it today I just had this feeling of joy and happiness wash over me, this combination of nostalgia and familiarity and musical perfection. It was lovely. And that it happened as I was driving home from work on a quiet, country road with a beautiful sunset over the mountains in front of me made it even better. It's much easier to have that feeling now living way out in the country after almost 20 years in crowded, congested cities.


Thanks to Sinister I snagged a free copy of Stuart David's new book a few months ago, the one called "In the All-Night Café: A Memoir of Belle and Sebastian's Formative Year." I have to say I quite enjoyed it, read it through in about a day and a half, and it also made me harken back to those early days of my listening to the band, even though by then it wasn't their early days at all anymore. Damn they do make wonderful music though. It's a great read, especially if you're a sentimental one like me.

Glad you're back.

Joe

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