February 1998 - Sinister

Sinister: reading list for cool kids
by Adam Robinson 13 Feb '98

13 Feb '98

After sitting at the back off class and not putting my hand up for several weeks, I blotted my copybook last week with a somewhat demented post about Aqua. Many thanks to you all for drawing a veil over that. To atone I would like to add "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt to the list of essential reading matter. It's a book that proves conclusively that classical Greek scholarship is the new rock 'n' roll. I'll go back to skulking now. Bye. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- . This message was brought to you by the Sinister mailing list. . To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". . For subscribing, unsubscribing and other list information please see . http://www.majordomo.net/sinister . For questions about how the list works mail owner-sinister(a)majordomo.net . We're all happy bunnies humming happy bunny tunes. Aren't we? -----------------------------------------------------------------------

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Sinister: Vulgar wealth (little/no B&S content)
by PKHINTZ＠aol.com 13 Feb '98

13 Feb '98

When Dr. HoneyHoneyPaul was asking for Columbo videos yesterday he mentioned _Wings of Desire_. A weeks ago, I told my father I had started reading _Wings of Desire_, and when I finished we could see the movie in the theatres. Moments lasted like an enternity before we realized my "faux pas": I had meant I was reading Henry James' _The Wings of the Dove_. (For the record, the first line is "She waited" but the rest of the novel is much better than that.) We both politely laughed--just imagine the difference that exists in high/low culture between the two! Later that night our discussion group came to the family manor; we talk over the world's issues as a pretense to be witty. The topic for the night was to be the differences in implicating socialism as theorized or utilized between Marx, Lenin, and Mao Tse Tong. To begin the roundtable banter we listened to the band McCarthy. The longer we listened the more frightened we became. I daresay that the punks were coming to chop of our heads! To protect ourselves we used our only asset--our wealth. Bags of money fortified our ancestral manor house; the servants were left on the grounds to fight off the marauding punks with the second-best silver candelabra. Myself--I have stayed inside to finish my novel. We are still waiting for the punks to attack; soon, I am sure. I warned you--no B&S content. A little more on track, this afternoon I ate my first _Tigersmilk_ candybar. For those of you with rude minds, it really is a candybar in the US. As food, it was okay-to-fine, but not as good as the album. Yes, I did eat my copy of the album just to compare it with the sweet. It was a very rich meal in a variety of meanings of the word. Living and loving Matthew ----------------------------------------------------------------------- . This message was brought to you by the Sinister mailing list. . To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". . For subscribing, unsubscribing and other list information please see . http://www.majordomo.net/sinister . For questions about how the list works mail owner-sinister(a)majordomo.net . We're all happy bunnies humming happy bunny tunes. Aren't we? -----------------------------------------------------------------------

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Sinister:Hello?
by Stoo 12 Feb '98

12 Feb '98

Hello! Anybody on the list want to mail me? I'm feeling a bit lonely. Stoo "Consider this,the slip,that brought me to my knees.." ----------------------------------------------------------------------- . This message was brought to you by the Sinister mailing list. . To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". . For subscribing, unsubscribing and other list information please see . http://www.majordomo.net/sinister . For questions about how the list works mail owner-sinister(a)majordomo.net . We're all happy bunnies humming happy bunny tunes. Aren't we? -----------------------------------------------------------------------

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Sinister: re: videos (and tape trading)
by andrew dean 12 Feb '98

12 Feb '98

Sinister: Videos AD Hillmann, FV37 (ah6991(a)bristol.ac.uk) Thu, 12 Feb 1998 14:21:43 +0000 (GMT) >Hey People with websites (and Jeepster esp), how about putting the ep >videos onto websites so that those of us unlucky enough not to have mtv >can have a look? >(Or are there size/legal problems?) ha, got it in one! i had 15 seconds or so of 'dog on wheels' digitised and viewable but it was 2Mbytes in size. the 2 minutes of 'llpj' i had was 8Mbytes*. even this large the quality was rather poor. there's also the actual job of getting hold of the things in the first place - i was lucky to catch the snippets i have. there are stills on the website but no moving stuff. (*i know, i could never figure out what i did to the second video to get it to have twice the compression factor of the first...) >It's only fair, the rest of us need to catch up, and we could do this >before people spend extortionate amounts of money on swapping videos... but money spent on videos / music must be disposable income anyway so what does it matter what you spend it on. if it's not disposable income and should be spent on food or bills or whatever then you are stupid. oh, and another thing, i go and offer to partner tigermilkless people up with people willing to do copies and people still post requests to the list. why? haven't you people read the archives? dumbasses. the offer still stands btw. currently i have 2 people in england wanting copies and 3 people in the states(?) and one in thailand (hi!) willing to do copies. send me (me, koogydelbbog(a)yahoo.com) your name and location if you want to be added. just keep the requests off the list, ok? (leslie, gez, your tapes went off this morning, bajinder, yours will go off on saturday, nathan - yours is done but not enveloped yet, maybe tomorrow) have fun at snow patrol tonight those of you who are going. reports tomorrow would be nice. oh, and tag, that wasn't my sobriety i was proving but my advanced intellect. 8) besides, i was in a team with the smackhead so i guess it balanced out. one of the words he suggested was 'aquaern' which would have been good, 7 letters and all, an extra 50 points. if only it existed... 8) andy am i fluffy enough for yer? ----------------------------------------------------------------------- . This message was brought to you by the Sinister mailing list. . To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". . For subscribing, unsubscribing and other list information please see . http://www.majordomo.net/sinister . For questions about how the list works mail owner-sinister(a)majordomo.net . We're all happy bunnies humming happy bunny tunes. Aren't we? -----------------------------------------------------------------------

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Re: Sinister: Article in SFBG
by Nrbqlover＠aol.com 12 Feb '98

12 Feb '98

In a message dated 98-02-12 15:08:01 EST, you write: << "Alone Together" by Johnny Ray Huston San Francisco Bay Guardian Feb 11-17 1998 >> Hey Tara, thanx for transcribing that puppy. it was a good read. cheers, clem lane nrbqlover(a)aol.com n.p. Pavement-live in Sacramento 8/95 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- . This message was brought to you by the Sinister mailing list. . To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". . For subscribing, unsubscribing and other list information please see . http://www.majordomo.net/sinister . For questions about how the list works mail owner-sinister(a)majordomo.net . We're all happy bunnies humming happy bunny tunes. Aren't we? -----------------------------------------------------------------------

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Re: Sinister: baby boom
by barzy＠networkmags.com 12 Feb '98

12 Feb '98

heee heee...those photos are soooooo cute! Look at wee little TAG! How unthreatening he looks! Although.......if you look closely, you can see two shadows.....is what were seeing the shadow of the actual demon that possess our very own Tag? The evil spirit that dwells inside....caught on film? Cooooool. Andy's photos are by far the cutest tho....what fine breeding material!....(beth ducks as a bottle flies over international water aimed straight for her wee heed. *crack!!!!*) ow. beth ----------------------------------------------------------------------- . This message was brought to you by the Sinister mailing list. . To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". . For subscribing, unsubscribing and other list information please see . http://www.majordomo.net/sinister . For questions about how the list works mail owner-sinister(a)majordomo.net . We're all happy bunnies humming happy bunny tunes. Aren't we? -----------------------------------------------------------------------

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Sinister: Article in SFBG
by Tara Widmer 12 Feb '98

12 Feb '98

"Alone Together" by Johnny Ray Huston San Francisco Bay Guardian Feb 11-17 1998 Faced with the plight of Eleanor Rigby, the Beatles basically said, "Poor gal, what a pity". But when Stuart Murdoch sings about similar solitary souls on the title track of Belle and Sebastian's If You're Feeling Sinister, he understands their predicament - he's lived it. The success of Murdoch's band illustrates a classic rock and roll irony: misfit popularity. As the indie herd celebrates Belle and Sebastian, and writers endorse them in this week's Village Voise Pazz and Jop Critics' Poll, it's worth trying to convey why they're special. Because they definitely are. When I first played "IYFS" last summer, it didn't meet my expectations. I'd read and heard that Murdoch sang smart love songs about guys and girls, so I figured I'd relate to his lyrics. But the first thing that struck me was Belle and Sebastian's restraint. I was too busy likening the melody of "Seeing Other People" to the Peanuts theme to learn a lesson from the song's actual theme: the gap between what people say/do and think/feel in a romantic dilemma. Luckily, when a friend lent me the CD a month ago, my comparison-crazed rock-critic mind shut up and allowed me to listen. This time around, I felt the songs immediately and connected them with myself and a few guys I know -- guys who walk their own difficult path instead of chasing the commercial-sexual rainbow of lifestyle options (from drag-queen femininity to gym-queen masculinity) offered by the gay community. Still, is B&S's only audience were homo-misfits, they'd be mighty obscure; one of Murdoch's gifts is an ability to connect his particular experience with that of other people. Or, as he puts it in "The Boy Done Wrong Again," "All I wanted was to sing the saddest song/And if you would sing along, I would be happy now." Even that couplet doesn't do B&S justice; their songs don't languish in melancholy so much as face the hard but worthwhile job of living your own life. The most moving song on IYFS might be "Fox In The Snow," in which Murdoch observes a few living things during a snowfall. There's a metaphorical "starving" fox who might not be able to survive the cold. There's a girl who tries in vain to "tell someone all the truth" before turning to books for solace. There's a boy so consumed by futile travel that he doesn't notice the world around him. And finally, there's another boy, whom Murdoch tells to "make the most of" the snow: "Second just to being born/Second to dying too/What else would you do?" Each character in "Fox in the Snow" reminds me of someone, and not in the generic pop sense. Murdoch creates complex characters with simple words. The album-closing "Judy And the Dream of Horses" describes a teen female rebel who "did it with a boy" before giving herself "to books and learning" and "being number one." The twist of the song is Judy's identity, and it shouldn't be too surprising to anyone who notices Murdoch's close empathy for and identification with women: "The best looking boys are taken...... (quotes until 'If you're ever feeling blue then write another song about your dream of horses, call it Judy and the dream...')" I don't think I've ever heard harder-won nonsense harmony than the one Murdoch puts at the end of those words; it's the sound of real, personal happiness. Murdoch's worldly-wise choirboy voice fits his songs, which contemplate faith without embracing holier-then-thou Christian grace or fire-breathing satanic zealotry. He and his bandmates don't do interviews, but they're too independent to be indie-rockers -- they prefer playing churches to bars. Likewise, Murdoch may have an acoustic guitar and mention Bob Dylan in a lyric, but he's not a folkie -- if he's the next Dylan, he's one who turns "don't look back" into advice for young boys being cruised in parks at night. Ultimately, B&S evoke contrasts, not comparisons, with the greats. Instead of adding more unnecessary noise to popular music, they add scope. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- . This message was brought to you by the Sinister mailing list. . To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". . For subscribing, unsubscribing and other list information please see . http://www.majordomo.net/sinister . For questions about how the list works mail owner-sinister(a)majordomo.net . We're all happy bunnies humming happy bunny tunes. Aren't we? -----------------------------------------------------------------------

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Sinister: sinister: dylan in the movies
by Keara Manning Depenbrock 12 Feb '98

12 Feb '98

last month there was a old documentary film about bob dylan playing in new york called "don't look back". i'm pretty sure that is where the line came from. i wish i had seen it. it's supposed to be good. keara d. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- . This message was brought to you by the Sinister mailing list. . To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". . For subscribing, unsubscribing and other list information please see . http://www.majordomo.net/sinister . For questions about how the list works mail owner-sinister(a)majordomo.net . We're all happy bunnies humming happy bunny tunes. Aren't we? -----------------------------------------------------------------------

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Sinister: sinister-notes from the minister
by Suzanne Schroeder 12 Feb '98

12 Feb '98

> ------------------------------ > > Date: Wed, 11 Feb 1998 08:49:19 -0600 (CST) > From: Schaffenberger <kschaffe(a)trinity.edu> > Subject: Re: Sinister: Bands Of Old > until I paused to reconsider...only to realize that it is not James Dean > I see. It is LUKE PERRY, aka Dylan McKay of the popular American > television series Beverly Hills, 90210. When I hear "It's not your money > that they're after, biy, it's you..." I remember those first Dylan > episodes when Brenda and Kelly were both crushie on Mr. McKay. In > particular, I think of the episode in which Brenda dyed her hair blonde > to attract his attention. Of course, this was long before anyone knew of > Dylan's wealth, hence, Brenda and Kelly weren't after his wallet, they > were just after his elusive persona. Yeah, but Luke Perry is a big bomb in every film he has ever made. I keep seeing Bob Dylan everytime I hear those lyrics which is completely bizarre since I'm guessing his acting is no better than his singing...if he was to ever star in a film. Here's my bizarre theory 'coz I want to go into a bizarre tagent. It's 4 in the morning and, well.... The drugs could have made him paranoid hence why they're singing "don't look back" and he has made a score, (because he;'s in the park and you know that the park is the best place to buy drugs since kids like to do hits in between games) but some hoodlums decide they want to run after him and take him down, yet Bob doesn't know why or what to do. Does he get rid of the money and distract them while he tries to get away? No, because they want to beat the shit out of him personally for making that MTV unplugged album. If he looks back, then it would be like the biblical story where the girl turns into a pillar of salt. And then he will go blowing in the wind. And the answer my friend, is blowing in the wind. thanks for letting me get that off my chest. yours, Suzanne ----------------------------------------------------------------------- . This message was brought to you by the Sinister mailing list. . To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". . For subscribing, unsubscribing and other list information please see . http://www.majordomo.net/sinister . For questions about how the list works mail owner-sinister(a)majordomo.net . We're all happy bunnies humming happy bunny tunes. Aren't we? -----------------------------------------------------------------------

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Sinister: has everybody gone home?
by A.M. Horne 12 Feb '98

12 Feb '98

so where is everybody? don't tell me the sudden burst of poetry (including my brief contribution) scared them all off. and just when i'd got used to nearly 100 messages a day. but nevermind. (and the best-opening-to-a-novel strand seems to have come to an end as well: my only contribution to general chatter over so soon. sigh. well, ttfn, espadrille ----------------------------------------------------------------------- . This message was brought to you by the Sinister mailing list. . To send to the list please mail "sinister(a)majordomo.net". . For subscribing, unsubscribing and other list information please see . http://www.majordomo.net/sinister . For questions about how the list works mail owner-sinister(a)majordomo.net . We're all happy bunnies humming happy bunny tunes. Aren't we? -----------------------------------------------------------------------

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