Yes, I agree.
(And just to back up my weird assertion above, alongside U2 and PJ Harvey, there were songs by Doves, Richard Ashcroft and Interpol arpound that time all featuring NYC either heavily, thematically, or overtly in the titles.)
― David A. (Davant), Monday, 7 June 2004 23:11 (twenty years ago) link
― Je4nne Ć’ury (Jeanne Fury), Monday, 7 June 2004 23:26 (twenty years ago) link
― amateur!st (amateurist), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 00:07 (twenty years ago) link
― Baaderoni (Fabfunk), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 06:02 (twenty years ago) link
Many of the tracks on slsk etc were ripped from vinyl.
― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 06:17 (twenty years ago) link
― Baaderoni (Fabfunk), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 06:23 (twenty years ago) link
― AaronHz (AaronHz), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 06:38 (twenty years ago) link
― J.D. (Justyn Dillingham), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 07:23 (twenty years ago) link
― AaronHz (AaronHz), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 09:37 (twenty years ago) link
* British person using American idioms.* Romantic conception of self as 'intense artist'.* Literary humanist worldview influenced by American short story, poetry workshop lyrics such as: 'Can't you see my handwriting?/the curve of my g?/the longing?'* 'Strong woman feminism'; 'girls can be violent too, you know!'* Guitar orientation. (Connected to point above.)* She makes the kind of records that make critics say things like 'Lust, anger, hurt and trust do their timeless dance once again.' (Kitty Empire)* She makes the kind of records that make punters say 'Is this really about her break-up with Celebrity X / Y?' (Insert Nick Cave, Vincent Gallo, etc.) -- ie it's record-making as a sort of All-Celebrity LiveJournal.
― Momus (Momus), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 11:28 (twenty years ago) link
― briania (briania), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 11:35 (twenty years ago) link
― ___ (___), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 11:36 (twenty years ago) link
― C-Man (C-Man), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 11:37 (twenty years ago) link
― Momus (Momus), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 11:46 (twenty years ago) link
― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 11:46 (twenty years ago) link
― Momus (Momus), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 11:50 (twenty years ago) link
― ___ (___), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 11:52 (twenty years ago) link
― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 11:56 (twenty years ago) link
― thing of thing, Tuesday, 8 June 2004 12:00 (twenty years ago) link
― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 12:03 (twenty years ago) link
"WARNING, this dopey bitch likes fox hunting and enjoys upper class people tearing a helpless, exhausted animal to shreds. She is a cunt and therefore in buying this album you are also a twat. And her basic "re-invention" is wearing ass high skirts. No more radical than Emma Bunton, then".
― C-Man (C-Man), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 12:28 (twenty years ago) link
― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 12:39 (twenty years ago) link
― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 12:40 (twenty years ago) link
― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 12:42 (twenty years ago) link
― ___ (___), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 12:51 (twenty years ago) link
― C-Man (C-Man), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 13:19 (twenty years ago) link
― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 13:22 (twenty years ago) link
― Ned Raggett (Ned), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 13:43 (twenty years ago) link
― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 13:44 (twenty years ago) link
― Momus (Momus), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 13:55 (twenty years ago) link
Tie this in with his comments on the big and rich thread and I have to ask, are we in for an all-out anti-america essay at the homepage soon?
― danh, Tuesday, 8 June 2004 14:00 (twenty years ago) link
― C-Man (C-Man), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 16:12 (twenty years ago) link
― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 16:25 (twenty years ago) link
― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 16:26 (twenty years ago) link
the thing about her having a romantic conception of self as intense artist is another mystery to me. first question how do you know this? i perceive her as making intense music. as making the kind of music she likes to make. as being herself. maybe i am naive. but she comes over as authentic. or better original, unique. and even if she had that romantic perception. how could it ever influence the appreciation of her music? you seem to try to cover her with far-fetched rationalised labels to store her somewhere in the cave. what's the point?
what's bad about the strong rock girl thing? do you think she chose it in the beginning intentionally to promote her career? i don't think so. and even if it is so, she is brilliant at it.
and how can you reproach her what the critics write about her? that's totally ridiculuous. this point only makes sense if she made her records to make critics write that they are full of lust, anger etc. she didn't make "dry" for that, even you can't believe that. she risked something, tried something new and it worked out. that's what all your criticism sounds like. you envy her her success. is that true?
― alex in mainhattan (alex63), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 16:37 (twenty years ago) link
http://image.allmusic.com/00/amg/cov200/drg300/g327/g32720ot42m.jpg
― Mark (MarkR), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 18:07 (twenty years ago) link
― alex in mainhattan (alex63), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 18:42 (twenty years ago) link
― J.D. (Justyn Dillingham), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 19:22 (twenty years ago) link
― J.D. (Justyn Dillingham), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 19:24 (twenty years ago) link
― J.D. (Justyn Dillingham), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 19:25 (twenty years ago) link
― kyle (akmonday), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 19:27 (twenty years ago) link
hahaha, yes -- if only PJ had consulted the Observer before going into the studio, we would have been spared KE's crimes against reviewing.
― Enrique (Enrique), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 19:39 (twenty years ago) link
― C-Man (C-Man), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 20:30 (twenty years ago) link
― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 20:33 (twenty years ago) link
― C-Man (C-Man), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 20:36 (twenty years ago) link
― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 20:36 (twenty years ago) link
*"Punk-blues" is just an arbitrary category that, like all arbitrary categories, doesn't really describe music that has any complexity whatsoever. I wouldn't call Polly's music "punk-blues".*Seems to me that she can use whatever idioms she want to use.*I think that her intensity is completely organic, and not a pose at all.*I have no idea what her influences are. All I can say is that I find a lot of the lyrics on this album to be deeply moving.*"Girls" CAN be violent - and vulnerable, and funny, and romantic, and realistic, and any one of a number of different things that I think she is on this album.*They're also allowed to play the damned guitar, for crying out loud.*She's not responsible for silly things that critics say.*She's also not responsible for people who make lazy autobiographical connections.
Anything else?
― Salvador Saca (Mr. Xolotl), Tuesday, 8 June 2004 23:33 (twenty years ago) link
i'm all for calling out calum and momus when they're being silly but this reads like vegan bashing.
― The Lady Ms Lurex (lucylurex), Wednesday, 9 June 2004 02:09 (twenty years ago) link
-- alex in mainhattan (alex6...) (webmail), June 8th, 2004 10:37 AM. (alex63) (later) (link)
because momus doesn't actually really like music, as one listen to any of his records will attest.
― amateur!st (amateurist), Wednesday, 9 June 2004 02:15 (twenty years ago) link