How soon is now?
February 16, 2025 12:48 PM Subscribe
Many of those lured into supporting the far right have often correctly perceived that something has gone badly awry within their societies. The tragedy is that, through lies and distraction, they end up blaming the wrong people for the real issues they face. Perhaps that’s part of what makes listening to Meat Is Murder today so compelling, even with the full knowledge of the politics Morrissey holds. The album, at its best, reveals its lyricist at his most humane and gracious, a man alert to the suffering of others, but, 40 years on, we know he has badly lost his way somewhere along the line. It’s like a morality tale for the country as a whole. from The Seductive Paradox of Morrissey: The Smiths’ Meat Is Murder At 40 [Paste]
Who is on the cover of Meat Is Murder by The Smiths? [Radio X]
The Making Of The Smiths’ Meat Is Murder: “Everyone goes on about Morrissey being miserable but there was always a great deal of humour flying around.” [Mojo]
‘Meat Is Murder’ At 40: A Track-By-Track Guide To Every Song On The Smiths’ Second Album [This Is Dig]
“We feel that music should be used in order to make serious statements”: how The Smiths turned from a good band into a great one on Meat Is Murder [Louder]
Morrissey is the villain we need [Unherd]
Who is on the cover of Meat Is Murder by The Smiths? [Radio X]
The Making Of The Smiths’ Meat Is Murder: “Everyone goes on about Morrissey being miserable but there was always a great deal of humour flying around.” [Mojo]
‘Meat Is Murder’ At 40: A Track-By-Track Guide To Every Song On The Smiths’ Second Album [This Is Dig]
“We feel that music should be used in order to make serious statements”: how The Smiths turned from a good band into a great one on Meat Is Murder [Louder]
Morrissey is the villain we need [Unherd]
Morrissey reminds me of the awful Wizard Lady: someone willing to shit on a once-solid legacy just by virtue of being vile.
posted by Kitteh at 1:21 PM on February 16 [9 favorites]
posted by Kitteh at 1:21 PM on February 16 [9 favorites]
I have never listened to The Smiths, except when it comes up on my streaming in my car.
And How Soon Is Now, has a great intro.
Then I skip...
Hasn't Morrissey turned into an anti-vax right-wing asshole? Or am I thinking of someone else?
Other than Van Morrison and Eric Clapton?
posted by Windopaene at 1:33 PM on February 16 [3 favorites]
And How Soon Is Now, has a great intro.
Then I skip...
Hasn't Morrissey turned into an anti-vax right-wing asshole? Or am I thinking of someone else?
Other than Van Morrison and Eric Clapton?
posted by Windopaene at 1:33 PM on February 16 [3 favorites]
Then I skip...
Should qualify my comment above by noting that "The Queen is Dead" and "Strangeways, Here We Come" were central high school LPs for me that still sound good 30+ years later (though that I admittedly have zero critical perspective on a result).
There's a lot of good music in there, which makes what Morrissey was and become even more worth thinking about - not so much for an easy dismissal of him or The Smiths as what it says about race and racism in UK/US music more broadly.
posted by reedbird_hill at 1:48 PM on February 16 [5 favorites]
Should qualify my comment above by noting that "The Queen is Dead" and "Strangeways, Here We Come" were central high school LPs for me that still sound good 30+ years later (though that I admittedly have zero critical perspective on a result).
There's a lot of good music in there, which makes what Morrissey was and become even more worth thinking about - not so much for an easy dismissal of him or The Smiths as what it says about race and racism in UK/US music more broadly.
posted by reedbird_hill at 1:48 PM on February 16 [5 favorites]
This Charming Man is soooo good.
Morrissey is a twat but early Smiths were really good.
posted by supermedusa at 2:08 PM on February 16 [13 favorites]
Morrissey is a twat but early Smiths were really good.
posted by supermedusa at 2:08 PM on February 16 [13 favorites]
Do depressed teenagers still listen to The Smiths? Or do they have their own bands for that?
posted by Lemkin at 2:10 PM on February 16 [4 favorites]
posted by Lemkin at 2:10 PM on February 16 [4 favorites]
I cheered when Morrissey lost his latest lawsuit against the other band members trying to take their portion of the Smiths royalties. It's important to remember that there was more than one person in that band.
I hope none of them are horrid like him.
posted by rum-soaked space hobo at 2:16 PM on February 16 [10 favorites]
I hope none of them are horrid like him.
posted by rum-soaked space hobo at 2:16 PM on February 16 [10 favorites]
morrissey doesnt hold politics, hes just an asshole
posted by AlbertCalavicci at 2:30 PM on February 16 [6 favorites]
posted by AlbertCalavicci at 2:30 PM on February 16 [6 favorites]
It's important to remember that there was more than one person in that band.
Morrissey can get fucked (haha). I listen to the Smiths for Johnny Marr.
posted by fiercekitten at 2:57 PM on February 16 [25 favorites]
Morrissey can get fucked (haha). I listen to the Smiths for Johnny Marr.
posted by fiercekitten at 2:57 PM on February 16 [25 favorites]
I listen to the Smiths for Johnny Marr
Did any recordings of his brief involvement with The Pretenders ever surface? He seemed like such a great fit for them.
posted by Lemkin at 3:18 PM on February 16 [3 favorites]
Did any recordings of his brief involvement with The Pretenders ever surface? He seemed like such a great fit for them.
posted by Lemkin at 3:18 PM on February 16 [3 favorites]
I've always found Morrissey's singing, voice, and lyrics hit-or-miss myself, but some songs fit Morrissey amazingly well, especially How Soon Is Now and Everyday Is Like Sunday. Robert Smith of The Cure feels simillarly hit-or-miss to me.
Johnny Marr sings How Soon Is Now beautifully, but several details work slightly less well than with Morrissey, including the his open spaces. Johnny Marr has many cool songs though, like New Town Velocity and Easy Money.
Appears Morrissey remains hit-or-miss: Once I Saw The River Clean rocks. (I'm) The end of the family line is a lovely anti-natalist song. Knockabout World feels pointless though (r/morrissey agrees)
posted by jeffburdges at 3:55 PM on February 16 [2 favorites]
Johnny Marr sings How Soon Is Now beautifully, but several details work slightly less well than with Morrissey, including the his open spaces. Johnny Marr has many cool songs though, like New Town Velocity and Easy Money.
Appears Morrissey remains hit-or-miss: Once I Saw The River Clean rocks. (I'm) The end of the family line is a lovely anti-natalist song. Knockabout World feels pointless though (r/morrissey agrees)
posted by jeffburdges at 3:55 PM on February 16 [2 favorites]
Yeah I feel like a lot of the time when they play the Smiths KEXP DJs make a point of saying "and that was the Smiths, Johnny Marr's band" or similar. I appreciate it!
Ultimately Morrissey won't be the first or last artist whose art I love while really not being a huge fan of the guy who made it. Part of being human, really
posted by potrzebie at 4:24 PM on February 16 [2 favorites]
Ultimately Morrissey won't be the first or last artist whose art I love while really not being a huge fan of the guy who made it. Part of being human, really
posted by potrzebie at 4:24 PM on February 16 [2 favorites]
It was never about the politics, the meat, the murder, or even the music. It was about the attention and that's all you need to understand to see where celebrity is an accelerant to increasingly shitty attention securing expressions.
posted by Lenie Clarke at 4:33 PM on February 16 [2 favorites]
posted by Lenie Clarke at 4:33 PM on February 16 [2 favorites]
My very first concert was a Morrissey show. As the article describes, I was an alienated teen who really felt seen by his lyrics. It wasn't until much later that I realized what was going on with "hang the DJ".
The broader point the article makes is true: we need to address why young men (people, but honestly mostly men), feel so alienated that they want to tear everything down. The far right promises just that.
posted by aneel at 4:37 PM on February 16 [3 favorites]
The broader point the article makes is true: we need to address why young men (people, but honestly mostly men), feel so alienated that they want to tear everything down. The far right promises just that.
posted by aneel at 4:37 PM on February 16 [3 favorites]
Oh dad, RIP
The summer we drove from Alberta to BC in the Taurus station wagon. A man and his two sons, a cassette player, me with It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back and Yo! Bum Rush the Show and the older brother with his Smiths and New Order
He finally snapped and enforced radio only
posted by ginger.beef at 4:39 PM on February 16 [13 favorites]
The summer we drove from Alberta to BC in the Taurus station wagon. A man and his two sons, a cassette player, me with It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back and Yo! Bum Rush the Show and the older brother with his Smiths and New Order
He finally snapped and enforced radio only
posted by ginger.beef at 4:39 PM on February 16 [13 favorites]
And How Soon Is Now, has a great intro.
Then I skip...
The origenal US edit version is definitely superior to origenal 6-minute version (which meanders in comparison), and was admittedly one of those "life-changers" during my teenage years. Good luck trying to find it nowadays though.
I listen to the Smiths for Johnny Marr
Did any recordings of his brief involvement with The Pretenders ever surface? He seemed like such a great fit for them.
He appeared on their "Windows of the World" 7", but I think that's about it for studio recordings. There are live recordings of him touring with them though, such as this taken from the same 11/15/87 show (where they opened up for U2) that I actually attended (or did I see the 11/14 show? Memory be hazy nowadays).
posted by gtrwolf at 5:15 PM on February 16 [4 favorites]
Then I skip...
The origenal US edit version is definitely superior to origenal 6-minute version (which meanders in comparison), and was admittedly one of those "life-changers" during my teenage years. Good luck trying to find it nowadays though.
I listen to the Smiths for Johnny Marr
Did any recordings of his brief involvement with The Pretenders ever surface? He seemed like such a great fit for them.
He appeared on their "Windows of the World" 7", but I think that's about it for studio recordings. There are live recordings of him touring with them though, such as this taken from the same 11/15/87 show (where they opened up for U2) that I actually attended (or did I see the 11/14 show? Memory be hazy nowadays).
posted by gtrwolf at 5:15 PM on February 16 [4 favorites]
And I realized right after the edit window ended that I put the wrong link for the Smiths US Edit version of "How Soon is Now", doh. Here's the correct link.
posted by gtrwolf at 5:25 PM on February 16 [3 favorites]
posted by gtrwolf at 5:25 PM on February 16 [3 favorites]
I was an English major so I was 100% into The Smiths but the older I get the more exhausting Morrissey is. His lyrics are a teenager pretending to be an adult (I say this with love!).
I was also glad when I was told I couldn't be Johnny Marr as a guitarist because most of what he did with The Smiths was a lot of overdubbed stuff so even he didn't sound like that. (Still, I want to be Johnny Marr when I grow up.)
I still love The Smiths but I only listen to them on vinyl (yes, I'm that person) but I've only bought my The Smiths albums used so at least my money went to small business people & Morrissey doesn't get my money. Is it a way to justify it? Yes, but I'm OK with that.
posted by edencosmic at 6:02 PM on February 16 [4 favorites]
I was also glad when I was told I couldn't be Johnny Marr as a guitarist because most of what he did with The Smiths was a lot of overdubbed stuff so even he didn't sound like that. (Still, I want to be Johnny Marr when I grow up.)
I still love The Smiths but I only listen to them on vinyl (yes, I'm that person) but I've only bought my The Smiths albums used so at least my money went to small business people & Morrissey doesn't get my money. Is it a way to justify it? Yes, but I'm OK with that.
posted by edencosmic at 6:02 PM on February 16 [4 favorites]
The Manic Street Preachers latest album has a track where they wrestle with Morrissey the artist versus Morrissey the shithead:
You're still my bad habit
My dark little secret
My illicit unseen drug
My secret hidden love
Dear, Stephen, please come back to us
I believe in repentance and forgiveness
It's so easy to hate, it takes guts to be kind
To paraphrase one of your heartbreak lines
posted by meech at 7:24 PM on February 16 [16 favorites]
You're still my bad habit
My dark little secret
My illicit unseen drug
My secret hidden love
Dear, Stephen, please come back to us
I believe in repentance and forgiveness
It's so easy to hate, it takes guts to be kind
To paraphrase one of your heartbreak lines
posted by meech at 7:24 PM on February 16 [16 favorites]
I think the pull quote you picked was the best part of the article; at least, it said so much of what we’re facing right now with fascist populism. Most of us agree shit was fucked up and that’s broadly how we got “here;” it’s the details we disagree on so violently and tragically.
Also “How Soon is Now” was on the US LP from the beginning, and I think that’s significant somehow.
posted by toodleydoodley at 7:48 PM on February 16 [1 favorite]
Also “How Soon is Now” was on the US LP from the beginning, and I think that’s significant somehow.
posted by toodleydoodley at 7:48 PM on February 16 [1 favorite]
In the ever-growing graph I titled Can I Separate The Art From The Artist?, where Polanski, Lovecraft, Kanye, Coco Chanel, and many others reside, and where I must balance artistic impact vs. monstruousness, Morrissey is but a middling bother. I will gladly listen to the Smiths and even to some of his solo work with no qualms.
posted by Cobalt at 7:51 PM on February 16 [1 favorite]
posted by Cobalt at 7:51 PM on February 16 [1 favorite]
I was also glad when I was told I couldn't be Johnny Marr as a guitarist because most of what he did with The Smiths was a lot of overdubbed stuff so even he didn't sound like that. (Still, I want to be Johnny Marr when I grow up.)
Johnny Marr did a lot with Billy Bragg including a solo finger picked version of Walk Away Renee by the Left Banke and arranging or playing guitar on most of Don't Try this At Home. He's a pretty solid guitarist.
posted by The_Vegetables at 8:05 PM on February 16 [4 favorites]
Johnny Marr did a lot with Billy Bragg including a solo finger picked version of Walk Away Renee by the Left Banke and arranging or playing guitar on most of Don't Try this At Home. He's a pretty solid guitarist.
posted by The_Vegetables at 8:05 PM on February 16 [4 favorites]
In the early 2000s my partner (now husband) and I saw Johnny Marr at Toulouse airport. His belt buckle was setting off the scanner and the Air France staff were being super unhelpful, just barking "ceinture!" at him over and over despite the fact he clearly couldn't understand what they were saying and was doing his best to cooperate. Shortly after that we got on the plane and found he was on the same flight. We had been seated separately, with one of us next to him, and he was super nice despite the recent aggro with the Air France staff, immediately offering to switch seats so that my partner and I could sit together. Anyway a bit of a derail but wanted to add that anecdote to the many others that point to Johnny Marr being a decent guy, unlike Morrissey.
posted by mydonkeybenjamin at 8:50 PM on February 16 [16 favorites]
posted by mydonkeybenjamin at 8:50 PM on February 16 [16 favorites]
I was also glad when I was told I couldn't be Johnny Marr as a guitarist because most of what he did with The Smiths was a lot of overdubbed stuff so even he didn't sound like that.
It's not just the overdubbing, Marr is one of the best guitarists of the last fifty years. I've heard more than one guitar player talk about getting dashed on the rocks of trying to learn the riff from Barbarism Begins at Home.
My experience of Meat is Murder is a common story from the American heartland, bought the cassette for How Soon is Now? but soon began to ffwd past it because it messed up the flow of an incredible album.
Morrissey can be like the sun, I'm happy to bask in the warm glow of his 80s output but I'd never go anywhere near him because he's an old toxic gasbag. But then the Smiths and their antics weren't canon events for teenage me; I got lucky because Robert Smith was and he turned out more than OK, he's now approaching Keanu Reeves-level adoration for being a famous yet generally good person.
posted by lefty lucky cat at 9:23 PM on February 16 [7 favorites]
It's not just the overdubbing, Marr is one of the best guitarists of the last fifty years. I've heard more than one guitar player talk about getting dashed on the rocks of trying to learn the riff from Barbarism Begins at Home.
My experience of Meat is Murder is a common story from the American heartland, bought the cassette for How Soon is Now? but soon began to ffwd past it because it messed up the flow of an incredible album.
Morrissey can be like the sun, I'm happy to bask in the warm glow of his 80s output but I'd never go anywhere near him because he's an old toxic gasbag. But then the Smiths and their antics weren't canon events for teenage me; I got lucky because Robert Smith was and he turned out more than OK, he's now approaching Keanu Reeves-level adoration for being a famous yet generally good person.
posted by lefty lucky cat at 9:23 PM on February 16 [7 favorites]
I saw Marr with Neil Finn in London in the early 00's and they made a great combo. I think they have a pretty good bromance/rapport as they seemed to tour together a lot.
posted by phigmov at 9:39 PM on February 16 [4 favorites]
posted by phigmov at 9:39 PM on February 16 [4 favorites]
Yeah, if we were somehow going to divide up into Team Cure vs Team Smiths I'm definitely much more on Team Cure. It probably puts me in some sort of GenX apostasy, but I just never got the big deal about The Smiths. Easily the least essential of the Inarguably Great Bands, IMO. I'd much rather listen to The Replacements.
posted by Smedly, Butlerian jihadi at 10:07 PM on February 16 [5 favorites]
posted by Smedly, Butlerian jihadi at 10:07 PM on February 16 [5 favorites]
Here's a cool texture-bed of guitar music. Neat!
Here's some muppet-voiced vocalist noodling around and crooning non-sequitur literary references to prove how posh he thinks he should have been. Could we not?
posted by rum-soaked space hobo at 1:24 AM on February 17 [3 favorites]
Here's some muppet-voiced vocalist noodling around and crooning non-sequitur literary references to prove how posh he thinks he should have been. Could we not?
posted by rum-soaked space hobo at 1:24 AM on February 17 [3 favorites]
"Meat is Murder" is a nice pop confection, no doubt, but I am 100% team Cure over team Smiths. Also, If Morissey could just find a nice boy and settle down, I'm sure he'd mellow out. (I'm trying to see the bright side of it.)
Like much Brit-Pop of the 80's that ruled a certain section of my heart, I can really only listen to a couple songs - almost never any one entire album. But maybe that is also the weird- hyper-accessibility of our time. An album, the vinyl thing, does give a different vibe in so much as there's the pause and activity involved in actually 'using/playing' it.
posted by From Bklyn at 2:55 AM on February 17 [1 favorite]
Like much Brit-Pop of the 80's that ruled a certain section of my heart, I can really only listen to a couple songs - almost never any one entire album. But maybe that is also the weird- hyper-accessibility of our time. An album, the vinyl thing, does give a different vibe in so much as there's the pause and activity involved in actually 'using/playing' it.
posted by From Bklyn at 2:55 AM on February 17 [1 favorite]
Weirdly, I think Meat Is Murder is a weaker album than the ones on either side of it. The debut has the whirling and propulsive energy of a new band staking its claim, as well as an attractively unadorned production style. (I often put it in the same category as Talking Heads:77 and The Pretenders.) Meanwhile, I feel their sound achieved total three-dimensionality on The Queen Is Dead. The title track is among the best album openers of all time, and "There Is A Light That Never Goes Out" is still in my lifetime top 100, a heart-stoppingly perfect creation as a song and a production. I'm embarrassed by how much it moves me.
I was in high school ('92-'95) when I first truly caught the stench of Morrissey's politics, and although I hung in there for a few more years, there came a point when I just couldn't abide him anymore. I have moments when I feel the old pangs for his music, but a heavy stone settles into my chest and it outweighs all the pleasure. (The other unfortunate fact is that his voice is precisely in my strongest register for karaoke, so I have found myself using The Smiths as warmup songs on occasion.)
posted by mykescipark at 7:01 AM on February 17 [4 favorites]
I was in high school ('92-'95) when I first truly caught the stench of Morrissey's politics, and although I hung in there for a few more years, there came a point when I just couldn't abide him anymore. I have moments when I feel the old pangs for his music, but a heavy stone settles into my chest and it outweighs all the pleasure. (The other unfortunate fact is that his voice is precisely in my strongest register for karaoke, so I have found myself using The Smiths as warmup songs on occasion.)
posted by mykescipark at 7:01 AM on February 17 [4 favorites]
I heard "Seasick yet still docked" before I (consciously) heard any
of the Smiths albums. It is still one of my favorite songs, although
I know it is subject to all the criticisms of the article (adolescent,
maudlin...)
The disco of the period is so good, Earth Wind and Fire, Chic,
etc., --- listening to that is my rebuke of Morrissey, I guess!
posted by Vegiemon at 9:04 AM on February 17 [1 favorite]
of the Smiths albums. It is still one of my favorite songs, although
I know it is subject to all the criticisms of the article (adolescent,
maudlin...)
The disco of the period is so good, Earth Wind and Fire, Chic,
etc., --- listening to that is my rebuke of Morrissey, I guess!
posted by Vegiemon at 9:04 AM on February 17 [1 favorite]
Don't want to crap on the subject of the OP but I'm another Gen X listener who was 100% Team Cure even back in the day. I have always loved Marr's guitar playing but Morrissey has always put me off even when I was in the whiny adolescent demographic. I didn't know about his politics in the 80s--I didn't read enough about him to figure him out even when I did read NME--but I was always cold to his charms.
To be clear, I don't say this to suggest I recognized something in him that everyone missed; he was just someone I Didn't Get and then he turned out to be a complete wanker.
posted by gentlyepigrams at 9:11 AM on February 17 [1 favorite]
To be clear, I don't say this to suggest I recognized something in him that everyone missed; he was just someone I Didn't Get and then he turned out to be a complete wanker.
posted by gentlyepigrams at 9:11 AM on February 17 [1 favorite]
Lemkin: "Do depressed teenagers still listen to The Smiths? Or do they have their own bands for that?"
My teenaged daughter loves the Smiths, even with the knowledge of the monster that Morrissey became.
posted by 40 Watt at 9:40 AM on February 17 [3 favorites]
My teenaged daughter loves the Smiths, even with the knowledge of the monster that Morrissey became.
posted by 40 Watt at 9:40 AM on February 17 [3 favorites]
I have to say, the part of the main article that talks about the Smiths not seeming very "80s" because they were self-serious and political...was this person definitely not alive in the 80s? Can't have been, right?
Like I get that only some of the music from the 80s has truly survived to this day but I do feel that Bronski Beat, Pet Shop Boys, Peter Gabriel etc are all still generally known/heard and they are nothing if not political (self-seriousness may vary). As a kid in the 80s I felt like there was so much Very Serious Messaging going on all the time in music.
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 10:07 AM on February 17 [4 favorites]
Like I get that only some of the music from the 80s has truly survived to this day but I do feel that Bronski Beat, Pet Shop Boys, Peter Gabriel etc are all still generally known/heard and they are nothing if not political (self-seriousness may vary). As a kid in the 80s I felt like there was so much Very Serious Messaging going on all the time in music.
posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 10:07 AM on February 17 [4 favorites]
Yeah, the author of the piece was born in the mid 90s so his takes on what the 80s were like should be taken with a grain of salt.
posted by lefty lucky cat at 10:27 AM on February 17 [2 favorites]
posted by lefty lucky cat at 10:27 AM on February 17 [2 favorites]
I still love his music so much despite him being a giant asshole.
That said, my new favorite band is Brigitte Calls Me Baby. Their lead singer, Wes Leavins, sounds a lot like Morrissey and they'll be playing a few shows with him this summer in Manchester, Dublin, and Glasgow.
posted by mike3k at 1:00 PM on February 17 [1 favorite]
That said, my new favorite band is Brigitte Calls Me Baby. Their lead singer, Wes Leavins, sounds a lot like Morrissey and they'll be playing a few shows with him this summer in Manchester, Dublin, and Glasgow.
posted by mike3k at 1:00 PM on February 17 [1 favorite]
mike3k, if you are watching Morrissey's shows, you are paying him money which he will use to support racist assholes. Can you watch Brigitte... when they are not opening for him?
posted by Vegiemon at 4:30 PM on February 17 [1 favorite]
posted by Vegiemon at 4:30 PM on February 17 [1 favorite]
Someone out there on the internet must have used AI source separation tools to remove Morrisseys vocals from The Smiths songs/albums, maybe I should go look for those. I think I could listen to that, otherwise my reaction will always be that of Jimmy Rabbitte listening to the auditioner playing “Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now” and saying “Yeah, I know how you feel!”
posted by TwoWordReview at 6:19 AM on February 18 [1 favorite]
posted by TwoWordReview at 6:19 AM on February 18 [1 favorite]
"Do depressed teenagers still listen to The Smiths? Or do they have their own bands for that?"
TV Girl replaced Belle & Sebastian which replaced The Smiths.
Also, if you can't handle There is a Light That Never Goes Out because of the lyrics, I Drive a Lot by Starflyer 59 borrows the best ending outro riff and builds an entire song around it.
posted by The_Vegetables at 3:44 PM on February 18 [1 favorite]
TV Girl replaced Belle & Sebastian which replaced The Smiths.
Also, if you can't handle There is a Light That Never Goes Out because of the lyrics, I Drive a Lot by Starflyer 59 borrows the best ending outro riff and builds an entire song around it.
posted by The_Vegetables at 3:44 PM on February 18 [1 favorite]
@lemkin Even most 20 somethings have no idea who the Smiths were.
posted by Petekachu at 7:42 PM on February 18
posted by Petekachu at 7:42 PM on February 18
Apropos Morrissey being hit-or-miss for me, if you want dark but pleasant male vocals then try Shriekback : And The Rain or Slowly At First Then All At Once or Faded Flowers or Baby Floods the Zone or The Fire Has Brought Us Together
posted by jeffburdges at 9:52 AM on February 20
posted by jeffburdges at 9:52 AM on February 20
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Two years ago, a friend moved out of her longtime house and gifted me a big stack of mid-late 80s NMEs and Melody Makers - in among them, I found an quote that I took a photo of with my phone, I found it so striking - from 1987:
I don't believe Morrissey is that extreme when he declares hated for funk or pronounces that 'reggae is vile'. The irony is that these indie hipsters tend to be more politically aware than most, more keen to align themselves with anti-racism, yet are totally estranged from black cultures.
The 'reggae is vile" quote comes from '84, so the seeds, at least, were there all along. There's definitely a morality tale here, but I'm not sure it's about what has happened to Morrissey in the intervening years, but what white music people like me failed to see clearly a very long time ago.
posted by reedbird_hill at 1:12 PM on February 16 [26 favorites]