Mon, 03 Dec 2007
Creative Shambles
A while ago I had a few uncomplimentary
words to say about the last Babyshambles
album and having just heard the latest one,
I thought I'd give you an update: it's
better - not love it to bits, can't do
without it better, but better all the same
with some nice dirty guitar and some
original-sounding songs.
The reason I mention them at all is just
to highlight the problem of being original
and having something to say, both musically
and lyrically. There are plenty of bands who
don't aspire to this at all - they tack
themselves onto a genre, and away they go,
hoping to get laid a lot and maybe even get a
buck or two... until they grow up, when they'll
get real jobs. I'm not sneering at them at all
but my interest generally lies elsewhere.
Do the BS (sorry, couldn't resist it)
belong in this grouping? I think they're
groping to get out of the grouping and maybe
when they're Teenshambles, they'll have found
a voice. The fact that they're looking and
groping commends them a little.
In contrast to this are people who hardly
seem able to do the commonplace. They stand
up and sing, or whatever, and many people
don't have a clue what the hell they're
talking about - that's the downside (in
commercial terms anyway). The trick, of course,
is to have a few accessibility handles that
people can catch onto. Mstation interviews
one such this month, Jessie Evans who, amongst other things, finds
interesting places to put her sax playing -
including artpunk bands.
The good news for all of us is that there's
actually quite a lot of this sort of thing
out there. You need to find it, and then you
need to lack the need for hype to say it's
alright to like it. In other words, thinking
for yourself is good, even though it can be
time-consuming.
Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and Peace
and Love, dude/tte.
(thunderfinger)
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pre Dec 04 reviews are here
