Sinister: Stuart, Peacock and Ian Rankin (some 2015 Edinburgh book festival content, with lots of waffle on top)

[Niko Ovenden]

Sinister!

I'm resending an email I wrote back in the winter of 2015, which never
seemed to make it through one of the honey-nets and to you, dear readers.
I've moved to my account adding the O at the end of my name (who was that
Nik Ovenden guy?  He is from so long ago, like so many years, he is
literally another person, or at least another email account), and hopefully
am out of the nursery and thought this might still be of interest, albeit
belatedly.  If this one gets snagged too I'll get the hint and fade quietly
into the night :)

How last century to email, too, but in a nice quaint fashion since it's for
you lovelies.  Some promised content!  Of a sort. Not much.  Here we
go...Stuart David was at the 2015 Edinburgh book festival!  Promoting his
book "In the all night cafe".  It's about B&S, don't you know.  Apparently
the subline 'A memoir of Belle and Sebastian's formative year' was
editorial licence, as it's about 18 months.  Poesy.  By now you'll all have
read it, right?  Right?

The event was interesting, in a curate's egg fashion; the soundboard fellow
clearly didn't know much about B&S, all the tracks he was playing on the
lead-in were after Stuart D had left the band.  Ah well.  Neither did the
fellow next to me though, since when I mentioned this to him he looked
bemused too.  He wasn't wearing an upside down badge, so I knew that much.
Soundboard fellow did at least let us hear an early Stuart David (pre B&S)
demo, with some fellow called 'London' noodling with an acoustic guitar all
over the top of the vocals.  Now I'm wondering, and kicking myself for not
asking, whether the early B&S Demo "London Has Let Me Down Again" was
actually about Struan being stood up by an early guitarist, rather than an
ode to the dirty city.  Gah!  I may never know.   Unless another B&S band
member does a Bookfest show soon...although to be fair Hay-on-Wye is my
nearest book fest now I've been forced to abandon Scotland for the relative
ruralia of Ely and Cambridgeshire (teary emoticon).

Back on topic, Niko!  Ian Rankin chaired the event, not very well I'd say:
it was pretty clear he wasn't a superfan, he had to be reminded which album
"Seymour Stein" was off (I mentally yelled 'TWATTYBUS! TWATTYBUS, you
scruffily dressed buffoon!'  Well, maybe not buffoon, I wonder if I've ever
mentally called anyone that.  But I did yell TWATTYBUS in my head).  Ian
Rankin also hadn't ever listened closely to the lyrics, as Stuart D
patiently pointed out it was about Stevie *not* having met him.  Really,
only the Peacock Johnson connection had anything of resonance with Ian [for
the non Rebus aficionados out there, he appeared in a Rankin novel, as part
of a 'win a charity auction and your name appears in my book'.  Stuart D
bid on Peacock's behalf, clever man the both of them.]

Stuart David was patient, witty, and kind.  Also it was great hearing him
talk.  I mean, I've heard him talk a lot.  That's his music shtick, after
all.  But great voice. Very soothing.  Nice early stories, and I bought the
book, but not for me - it went to Lawrence, who needed a new book to cheer
him up from all the NZ flag referendum malarkey at the time.  Remember when
referenda/elections were about what now seem like trivial stuff?  Ah well.
Focus, me!  These journeys back into more halcyon times...Stuart and Ian
talked briefly about Looper, who I never got to see live (they cancelled
Bristol in 2000, alas!).  No chance of any live shows soon, either.  Stuart
talked extensively about Struan's chronic fatigue and the impact it had on
forming the band back in the 90s; he (Stuart)'s now suffering the same.
Poor guy.

Sinister weren't hat-tipped in the talk but Rankin referred obliquely to
the 'forum chatter' in getting the Tigermilk word out in the mid-late 90s.
That's you folks!  I thank you too, of course, as I only joined in '99
thanks to my own belle of the time, Viks, who probably don't get these
these days.  No doubt she still cool, if the family is anything to go by;
her sister did her PhD in Edinburgh and did the zombie game 2.8hrs later on
the same evening as me.  Now that's cool.  Cool cool cool.

The book fest, right?  Sheesh, Niko.  I got to ask one question to Stuart
during the wash-up: since I was at the time slave to higher education (both
in terms of the MSc I finished the same day as originally sending this
email, about the said 2.8 hours later, because writing about zombies was in
vogue...and I also had a previous paper-and-people-pushing job at the Uni,
now a dim memory), I asked about the Scottish FE College mergers doing away
with Stow, and whether the effect would be damaging on Scottish music.  I
mean, Glasgow Kelvin kept Electric Honey and all, but no 'study at stow' :(
 Stuart's answer was that he didn't think any A&R types would have the
freedom the early Electric Honey and Jeepster synergies had, and had a
general sense of bemusement about how to release and/or publish in the
modern era.  Me, I do neither, but I can see how it'd be confusing.
Anyway, any hidden Sinistereenies in the crowd, frantically casting their
minds back, that was me.  Hello now, if not then.  Hello from a horrible
dystopian future hellscape.

Stuart did the obligatory signings afterwards.  Guessed Ian was really not
a superfan as he just said 'cheers' and scarpered.  Ah well, we all know
B&S are better than Rebus.  I was second in line as I bought my book before
the event, and Stuart was kind enough to sign the book to Lawrence, and he
also signed my olde copy of Nalda Said - 17 years old?!, plus a couple of
my LPs.  I'm lucky enough to have an EH Tigermilk, also from 17 years ago,
which he signed in the only area of white space on the back (on the right),
and he signed my copy of the Geometrid too.  I was at a loss, surrounded by
B&S records at home, but thought those two would do.

We chatted briefly about Sinister, he was very nice about list mummy Honey;
we talked about CFS/ME and so on...I was laid low with something of that
ilk a couple of times, 1997 and 2000/1, but have been lucky since.  Stuart
mused maybe there was something about B&S and/or Sinister...but I wouldn't
trade you away for all the wellness in the world.  This list has been so
good to me.  Mostly putting up with my rambling.

Anyway, that's awful long.  The Pope's probably been to the bookfest, Paul
McCartney certainly, but that's all the content I can muster.  Hope you're
all well, on your phones and your iPads, and I wish you all the best, till
the next time the list Kraken awakes.  Anyone coming to Ely/Cambridge, feel
free to look me up, as I have been forcibly familially relocated from
Edinburgh and am so much closer to the dirty South!  This bleak future
would be cheered up by showing some Sinister peeps around my tiny new
city-home and to spin some twee vinyl.  Living the dream.  Or dreaming of a
life without referenda, elections and hellscapes.  I guess B&S can still do
that, even in quieter list times...

Lots of love,
Niko
xxx
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