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Manic Street Preachers - Postcards From A Young Man

Started by purlieu, June 02, 2010, 05:59:16 PM

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A major strength of Journal For Plague Lovers is its brevity.  Clocks in at 42 mins but it's a short 42 mins - as Rev said the songs don't hang around.  It also benefits from a lack of Wire Song-murdering Lines (the likes of which mentioned above).

Went back to Lifeblood because of this thread and whenever I listen to it I'm struck by how it's never quite as excellent as I recall it being.  Perhaps because it was a pleasant surprise at the time (my expectations were low after Know Your Enemy) and such a departure for the Manics.  There are some piss-poor efforts on there ("I Live To Fall Aslep" and "Emily") and someone should have been shot for that 'Collapsing like the twin towers' line, but the good far outweighs the bad.

Not sure how it colours my appreciation of the band but I came to the Manics properly with This Is My Truth.  Though I had loved the Kevin Carter single from back in the day and Everything Must Go was my first ever record, I was too young and dumb to understand them and just in it for the shiny Britpop sounds.  Became properly obsessed with the old stuff/mythology around 98/99, so by the time KYE came around my hopes were probably blown out of all proportion.

Props to purlieu for reminding about the Forever Delayed EP and Automatik Teknicolour in particular.  Need to dig that out.  What about favourite B-sides?  Duff lyrics aside, 'Close My Eyes' is relentless and I'm also a sucker for 'Sepia'. And 'Sculpture of Man'.

Quote from: Uncle TechTip on June 06, 2010, 07:44:41 AM
get slsk, it's first result for title + acoustic. In fact, here http://www.megaupload.com/?d=I9JTMRYP presuming its the right one

Wow, thanks a lot!

non capisco

Quote from: thehungerartist on June 09, 2010, 09:28:13 PM
I'm also a sucker for 'Sepia'.

That song always reminds me of 'Papa Don't Preach'. 

Spiteface

Quote from: thehungerartist on June 09, 2010, 09:28:13 PMWhat about favourite B-sides?  Duff lyrics aside, 'Close My Eyes' is relentless and I'm also a sucker for 'Sepia'. And 'Sculpture of Man'.

I really like "Donkeys" and "Patrick Bateman".  I also like how "Comfort Comes" Bridges the musical gap between "Gold Against the Soul" and "The Holy Bible"

Still Not George

The really great thing about the Manics is that they've written so many songs now you can find one for almost any tag imaginable. And for that, I am deeply thankful.

Doomy Dwyer

In terms of b-sides I've always had a fondness for 'RP McMurphy' from 'Stay Beautiful'. If I remember correctly it's just James and a guitar and a melancholy "Na Na Na" chorus, very sweet indeed. Wistful, yearning, partially indecipherable lyrics, a sketch of longing and defiant regret. Makes the heart heavy. When they were good they were very, very good. One of my great contemporary loves, this band. Even their many failures and betrayals were interesting. Intelligence, glamour and hatred. Dunlop green flash and leopardskin. Every single an event, a statement of intent. Those were the days. Oh, my boys...my boys...



Shoulders?-Stomach!

I don't think the fact that the songs end quickly is an endorsement of the album. Indeed, it's a bit like saying Definitely Maybe is the best Oasis album because it's the one that takes the least time to finish (I know so little about Oasis that that might not even be true, but you get the idea. I'm guessing it wasn't Be Here Now).

In that you inspect the albums tracks and find yourself counting the tracks you like on the number of fingers required to pick up a plectrum. They're so utterly unmemorable, which is as if not a more damning indictment of an album. I look at the filler on Know Your Enemy like My Guernica and Epicentre and compare them with the middle of Journal For Plague Lovers and think 'how are these terrible yet these good..they're incredibly similar'. Then when you look at the best tracks on KYE they seem to shit on even the best tracks on JFPL (the first two).

I happen to think there's more to music criticism than looking at a mature band and giving them 5 stars for producing up-beat yet mostly inoffensive, unobtrusive, music. It reaffirms my belief that most music critics judge albums on completely different criteria to most normal people. But of course I'm just bitter because a lot of my favourite albums have mixed reviews.

I think I could probably go around in circles on this issue for quite a long time though, so I'll say no more.

QuoteThe really great thing about the Manics is that they've written so many songs now you can find one for almost any tag imaginable. And for that, I am deeply thankful

It's great. I wish they'd conspire to be in more news stories simply to facilitate the tag fun. Come on Nicky,
Spoiler alert
go missing
[close]
. I didn't say that!





I think JFPL would gain massively from having Me and Stephen Hawking physically scratched off the disc. That opening riff is the sound of all the momentum and goodwill generated by the first two tracks having warm, flat lager poured on it. I'd rather they put Umbrella Miss Europa Disco Dancer II there instead.

The Plunger

Quote from: thehungerartist on June 09, 2010, 09:28:13 PM
Props to purlieu for reminding about the Forever Delayed EP and Automatik Teknicolour in particular.  Need to dig that out.  What about favourite B-sides?  Duff lyrics aside, 'Close My Eyes' is relentless and I'm also a sucker for 'Sepia'. And 'Sculpture of Man'.

What are these things that you speak of, I've never heard of them ? Unreleased tracks ? I'm intrigued.

Quote from: The Plunger on June 10, 2010, 07:39:33 PM
What are these things that you speak of, I've never heard of them ? Unreleased tracks ? I'm intrigued.

A Japanese import of B-sides and near misses from the Best Of sessions.  It has the four B-sides from CD1 and 2 of 'There By The Grace of God' (also the track itself), and 'Forever Delayed' which is included on Lipstick Traces.

purlieu

It's all in the TBTGOG style of quite synthy/new wavey but not as much as Lifeblood, and a bit more poppy than Lifeblood too.  Automatik Teknicolour has a wonderful EMG-esque anthemic chorus with verses that sound like The Cure.  Forever Delayed itself is one of my favourite Manics tracks ever.

lipsink

Some B-Sides I love: 'Prologue to History', 'RP McMurphy' (why was that not on the 'Lipstick Traces' compilation?), 'Sculpture of Man', 'Hanging On'.

I also really like their covers of 'Been A Son', 'Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head' and 'Bright Eyes', though they're all just James really.

I remember their duet with Sophie Ellis Bextor 'Black Holes for the Young' was quite rubbish. There's a good song in there but I found the recording/execution just really lacking. I think it was intended to be on the 'This is My Truth...' album too.

Still Not George

"Montana/Autumn/78" is probably my favourite B-side.

purlieu

Prologue To History is wonderful.  Also agree on the love for Sepia.  Further points go to Dead Trees And Traffic Islands, Askew Road, Everyone Knows/Nobody Cares, and a favourite of mine, No One Knows What It's Like To Be Me.

Barberism

I think Lipstick Traces is one of their best releases. But a lot was left off. No 'Masking Tape' or contender for most awesome solo ever 'Locust Valley'.


PaulTMA

'Socialist Serenade' is a truly vile song, though.  As is 'Valley Boy'.  Real barrel scrapers they seemed to be proud of enough to include.

Glyn

Quote from: PaulTMA on June 12, 2010, 12:36:54 PM
'Socialist Serenade' is a truly vile song, though.  As is 'Valley Boy'.  Real barrel scrapers they seemed to be proud of enough to include.
To be fair the immense solo on Valley Boy just about saves it (see SYMM). Including the plodding Just a Kid though in favour of the ones mentioned above (Locust Valley, Montana Autumn 78, RP McMurphy Patrick Bateman, Hibernation) was a weird one. For any fans of RP Mcmurphy the very early jangly shouty demo is worth tracking down (similiar to how radiohead slowed down Thinking about you)

This is a very useful thread for me. I've now blocked you all in my web browser.

purlieu


Shoulders?-Stomach!

Might take a while to appreciate its individuality as a song. At the moment all I can hear are 3 or 4 previous songs they've done being remoulded.

What it definitely isn't is godawful, which I suppose is a blessing.

Spiteface

I heard hints of "That's No Way to Tell a Lie" (James Dean Bradfield's debut solo single) in that.

They are definitely going for the big mainstream pop single here.  I like it a lot.

Icehaven

The B sides debate is very post Holy Bible (save for a few), is that intentional? Best Bsides were mostly EMG backwards. RP McMurphy and Patrick Bateman already mentioned, the Heavenly version of Spectators of Suicide, Last Exit on Yesterday (not strictly a B side but not an A side either), Bored Out Of My Mind, Dead Yankee Drawl, Never Want Again, and the Instrumental Design For Life are my favourites. And the trip hoppy instrumental version of If You Tolerate This...

Beagle 2

Sigh, back to fucking string sections and sickening lyrics. JFPL was fantastic, saddens me they've still got that kind of stuff in them but they choose to go back to this. Exactly what I expected really.

purlieu

After several listens I have decided I like this at least 60 times more than anything post-Lifeblood.  The jangly chorussed guitar and lovely poppiness appeal.  I do have a horrible feeling a lot of the album will sound like Send Away The Tigers though.

Shoulders?-Stomach!


Beagle 2

Yes folks, Nicky's back in charge of the words!

1.   "(It's Not War) Just The End Of Love"
2.   "Postcards From A Young Man"
3.   "Some Kind of Nothingness" (feat. Ian McCulloch)
4.   "The Descent – (Pages 1 & 2)"
5.   "Hazleton Avenue"
6.   "Auto-Intoxication"
7.   "Golden Platitudes"
8.   "I Think I've Found It"
9.   "A Billion Balconies Facing The Sun"
10.   "All We Make Is Entertainment"
11.   "The Future Has Been Here 4 Ever"
12.   "Don't Be Evil"


Nnnngggh.


What I don't understand about the whole "We want to go commercial again now" is that Jackie Collins Existential Question Time got a bit of play on Absolute Radio last time round - as there were no singles I guess they just picked one - and it sounded great. What were the sales figures like? Was JFPL really that much worse a seller than Send Away the Tigers that they feel they need to go back to the string sections straight away?

I must say, I've kept quiet on this thread so far, but the love for Lifeblood astonishes me.

purlieu

Maybe they fancied writing some pop songs again.

Spiteface

Quote from: purlieu on July 27, 2010, 10:11:23 PM
Maybe they fancied writing some pop songs again.

My thoughts exactly.  They've always had a habit of making albums that contrast with the ones directly before them, so just as "The Holy Bible" was followed with the poppier "Everything Must Go"*, so this pop direction also makes sense coming after "Journal for Plague Lovers".

* - and then once they took THAT as far as they could with "This is My Truth..." they went and did "Know Your Enemy", which sounds positively lo-fi in comparison on some tracks.

Beagle 2

It's a pretty shit pop song though. I don't think they're really any good at pop songs. They're good at rock songs, and sometimes they're good at big choruses. But when they go all out cheese like this, it just sounds bad. In fact, it sounds like "You're my Darling Angel" by Shaggy at the start.

I really liked So Why So Sad because it was something interesting sounding that was different to the shouty rock I love, not just default pop mode with added fucking string section. But this just sounds as tossed off as Forever Delayed.

Custard

Well, it looks like the album may find its merry way onto der interwebs soon, as Simon Price (Manics biographer) is saying on Twitter that his review copy arrived today.

Not that I'm suggesting he'd leak it, but these things usually are by someone or other, aren't they, once the press packs go out.

I like the single, me. But then the only Manics album I don't really get on with is TIMTTMY, which was way too long, lifeless, and bloated for my liking. I also think i'm one of the few who really enjoys SATT. Thought it was a glorious poppy record, and sounded like them having a great 'ol time, which makes me smile every time i hear it. Journal was much better though. Felt far more like the "old" Manics, so I can see why so many would love it and see it as a big return to form. Though, as I say, I only think their form properly dipped with TIMTTMY. Though the b-sides were fantastic in that period. Prologue To History, Black Holes For The Young, etc.


Shoulders?-Stomach!

Rating their catalogue as:

Generation Terrorists - 7
Gold Against The Soul - 6
The Holy Bible - 9
Everything Must Go - 9
This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours - 5
Know Your Enemy - 8
Lifeblood - 7
Send Away The Tigers - ...well...3. That I contemplated giving it zilch probably says something about my opinion of this.
Journal For Plague Lovers - 4


So a good album is overdue for in my personal fandom...

I'm worried that it's gone past the usual "oh but i prefer the pop stuff/punk stuff" and they can't actually write an album full of interesting songs anymore.