Symbolic Forest : Belle & Sebastian

Changing tunes

Thoughts from the history of music

Published at 12:47 pm on January 30th, 2021

I mentioned the other day about having a backlog of ideas to write about without forgetting what they are. Some of them have been bubbling around for a few years now, when I’ve read a book or watched something on the telly. For example, a few years ago I was given a copy of the book *Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Story Of Modern Pop* by Bob Stanley. For the past thirty years or so, Stanley has been one third of the band Saint Etienne, who I’ve loved almost as long, and who right from their start in the late 80s have made pop music that cuts across categories, combining fantastically catchy pop hooks with lyrics that are pitched at just the right level between meaningful and slightly inane; but at the same time squeezing in London hip hop, club beats and art school sound collages. Their first album combines pop bangers like “Nothing Can Stop Us” with voice clips of Richard Whiteley and Willie Rushton; the second has excerpts from the 1960s British films Peeping Tom and Billy Liar, and a man ordering chicken soup.^* Their songs “Like A Motorway” and “Hate Your Drug” are arguably the best attempt anyone has ever made to revive the 1960s “death disc” genre,^** but at the same time they care as deeply about London psychogeography as Geoffrey Fletcher, Iain Sinclair or Patrick Keiller. In short, they cover such a broad area in their music, that it is not surprising Stanley wrote a broad, broad book.

The Artist's Dilemma

In which we discuss music and advertising

Published at 9:47 am on December 2nd, 2008

Filed under: Artistic.

It’s a question that must come to every artist and musician who starts to get successful. Sell out, or not sell out? And what is “selling out” anyway? What about advertising? Do you license your music for use in advertising, knowing you’ll effectively lose control over how it’s presented?¹ Maintain artistic integrity, or go for the money? There are some bands whose oeuvre will, forevermore, be thought of as “oh, it’s that song off that advert, you know, that one for thingy, that stuff.” – the Penguin Cafe Orchestra being a prime example.²

Slip-up (part two)

In which tastes keep changing (again)

Published at 10:38 pm on April 10th, 2006

Filed under: Artistic.

When Belle and Sebastian released their last album, a couple of months back, I wrote that clearly I’m not a *true* fan any more, because I didn’t buy it until the second day of release.

Slip-up

In which we listen to music

Published at 9:21 pm on February 8th, 2006

Filed under: Media Addict.

Clearly I’m not a Belle and Sebastian fan any more. I can’t be, because I forgot to go out and buy their new album on Monday, when it was released. I did remember to go and get it yesterday, though, and now I’ve got around to listening to it.

Keyword noise: Belle & Sebastian, fandom, indie, music, The Life Pursuit.

Growing up

Or, remembering what we used to like

Published at 9:04 pm on January 17th, 2006

Filed under: Artistic, Media Addict.

Tastes change as people grow up. Things you are a huge fan of will slowly fade away, and other things will come along to replace them. Your tastes will change, as you change.