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Morrissey's meltdown

doctorbeck

08:27 / 30.04.04

the full ine up is here, and the scamble for tickets started this moring, i was wondering what people thought of the line up, and as a bit of a tangent, whether this signals his return to iconic status in the UK after the whole national front disco / bengali in platforms thing

Link

i am dead exited abut nancy sinatra, tho it is hardly cultural event of the year seeing her and the new york dolls i think both will be very good nights out

as for mozzas rehabilitation....i am in fact going with a virulently politicised bangali friend but haven't had time to ask what she makes of it yet.

andrew

lonely as a cloud...

10:17 / 30.04.04

Just about your reference to his *iconic* status...I think the whole NF/Bengali thing was kind of forgiven or at least swept under the carpet when he was releasing good material... but he hasn't really released anything decent (in my opinion, anyway) since Vauxhall and I. His status as an icon depends more on the quality of his material, rather than on his politicsal statements, which have usually been kinda dubious anyway.

Regrettable Juvenilia

10:34 / 30.04.04

Wot, no ADF?

Ari Up playing Slits material sounds like a must-see. Pity she's supporting Jane Birkin, which is a bit like Bjork being second on a bill to Vanessa Paradis. Still might be worth attending though...

doctorbeck

11:48 / 30.04.04

ADF seem to have become the token ethnics at most meltdowns in recent years. i was thinking cornershop might be a more appropriate act this year given their public burning of mozzer pictures back in the day ....

i wonder about mozzer as icon / national treasure, surely more related to his brilliance with the smiths than his solo career? agree his politics have always been vague and tenuous, and sure a lot of people would have loved him to become a gay icon or symbol of a new englishness (eg post-colonial one) but in some ways his determined ambiguity has been his strength and his weakness.

interesting that one of his support acts is the cockney rejects, another bunch who were caught in the cross-fire of the anti-racist movement / Oi! wars in the 70s but who were as far as i can remember definitely anti-racist working class kids.

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Jack Fear

22:15 / 02.05.04

[Ari Up] supporting Jane Birkin ... is a bit like Bjork being second on a bill to Vanessa Paradis.

You are mad. Also, you are wrong.

Jane Birkin is mighty indeed: she has stood toe to toe with both the sataanic majesty of Serge Gainsbourg and the godly racket of Les Negresses Vertes, and lived to tell the tale. Clearly she has transcended the limitations of mere mortal flesh.

I love the Slits as much as any other right-minded person, but... c'mon! Jane Birkin!!

Tom Coates

10:43 / 03.05.04

I heard his latest song online and he pretty much confronts head on the racist associations with the UK and with his use of imagery from it. Most of the rest of the stuff I can forgive (National Front Disco etc), but I still have real trouble with Bengali in Platforms and rather think that he should make a break with the past and get it removed from Viva Hate as - at best - a clumsy and ill-conceived song.

Loomis

14:11 / 03.05.04

Remove the song from the album years later? That would be the George Lucas school of revisionism then I take it.

doctorbeck

10:12 / 04.05.04

i agree that bengali in platforms was a clumsy attempt at talking about something, the outsider staus of the immigrant i reckon, that fell flat largely due to the mozzers refusal to explain himself, i know a couple of bangalis who were really apphauled by it

i like the idea of removing it from mozzer continuity in some crisis of infiniite mozzers sort of way but have to accept that a childhood hero had feet of clay

the new single does indeed confront racism head on, as well as the monarchy and the failure of new labour, and sounded wonderful on the radio at the weekend, definitely going to seal his rehabilitation

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Tom Coates

00:34 / 05.05.04

I think it would be revisionist if he did it quietly with the intent to pretend it never happened, but I'm not sure I'd have much problem editing something I'd created years before because I'd realised it was offensive or dubious as long as I made it clear that I had edited it.

Ganesh

00:49 / 05.05.04

I think a big part of Morrissey's appeal is that he does his own thing, and makes relatively few concessions to fashion, criticism, or anything else - or, at least, that's the way he's always presented himself to the world. Tacitly almost-admitting mistakes is one thing; going so far as to actually edit songs from his back catalogue would show him to be much more directly yielding to his critics. He could never do it.

But... his Meltdown? Anyone going to any of it?

doctorbeck

12:01 / 06.05.04

as much as i can. 2 of the mozzer gigs, nancy sinatra, gorecki and thinking about the new york dolls

amazing chance to see mozzer in a small-ish venue (2000 compared to 16000 in manchester)

not sure the dolls will suit a clean and sit down venue like that though, i think the 100 club would be better

mozzer tix sold out in an hour but they are on ebay for those with too much disposable income

think the line up is fairly predictable, except for what looks like a couple of drag acts, alan bennet is a nice touch as is the evening with oscar wilde. and the cockney rejects?

genius choice and subtle repost to the NME, who also hounded the rejects during the rock against racism / OI! wars

andrew

Goodness Gracious Meme

13:11 / 07.05.04

"I still have real trouble with Bengali in Platforms"

oops. sorry.

Ganesh

21:21 / 07.05.04

Yayyyy!! Successful bid for two front stalls tickets to see Moz on the 11th!

(Had been thinking of buying more tickets for friends, but could only really get two together. Still plenty for sale, though...)

Suedey! SHOT FOR MEAT!

21:35 / 07.05.04

So, Morrissey on Wossy next week, eh? With Dale Winton as the other guest.... hmmm.

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