After a brief hiatus (& my first week back at work following furlough) I have settled on a new format for Song of the Day for going forward. Basically, this is just a roll of the dice. The songs are going to be ones I hear or think of throughout the course of my day. Songs heard on the radio, mentioned in a book or magazine or even spontaneously popped into my head. I may explain in the post why I’ve chosen it, if it seems interesting or will draw attention to other blogs or writers I want to promote. If I miss the odd day please bear with me. I’m calling this series Chaotic Neutral, hope you enjoy.
Today I am choosing Peter Gabriels sinister Cold War hit Games Without Frontiers. I am currently reading K-Punk, a collection of blogposts & magazine articles by the late culture writer Mark Fisher. Today I read this review of cold war thriller The Americans, in which he mentions this paranoid Pop masterpiece due to its appearance during the finale of the shows first season.
Jeux sans frontières Jeux sans frontières Jeux sans frontières Jeux sans frontières
Hans plays with Lotte, Lotte plays with Jane Jane plays with Willi, Willi is happy again Suki plays with Leo, Sacha plays with Britt Adolf builds a bonfire, Enrico plays with it
Whistling tunes, we hide in the dunes by the seaside Whistling tunes, we’re kissing baboons in the jungle It’s a knockout
If looks could kill, they probably will In games without frontiers, war without tears If looks could kill, they probably will In games without frontiers, war without tears Games without frontiers, war without tears
Jeux sans frontières Jeux sans frontières Jeux sans frontières
Andre has a red flag, Chiang Ching’s is blue They all have hills to fly them on except for Lin Tai Yu Dressing up in costumes, playing silly games Hiding out in treetops, shouting out rude names
Whistling tunes, we hide in the dunes by the seaside Whistling tunes, we’re kissing baboons in the jungle It’s a knockout
If looks could kill, they probably will In games without frontiers, war without tears If looks could kill, they probably will In games without frontiers, war without tears Games without frontiers, war without tears
Jeux sans frontières Jeux sans frontières Jeux sans frontières Jeux sans frontières Jeux sans frontières Jeux sans frontières Jeux sans frontières Jeux sans frontières Jeux sans frontières Jeux sans frontières Jeux sans
Looking for some great music? Roll the dice.
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The Airbag/How A I Driving EP, released by Radiohead towards the end of the promotional campaign for OK Computer, featured not only some amazing b-sides from the OK Computer era, but also some of the most unique & compelling artwork of any CD I’ve ever bought.
There are all sorts of prescient seeming phrases in the artwork which make me think of 2020. Especially the disclaimers on the “survey” which explain what will happen to the data you give. These feel like an explicit reference to what we now call Big Data which Radiohead, in 1997-8, could already see creeping into our lives. In many ways the artwork of this EP could be considered a satirical masterpiece of Capitalist Realism, which resonates strongly today, in the chaotic atmosphere of late capitalism.
The point of this post is to show you the incredible artwork. Unfortunately, my copy has spent about twenty years in a smoking house & has become yellowed with age, losing its brilliant white colour. I am a little disappointed by this but luckily I was able to find excellent pictures of the packaging on Discogs.
My smoke-yellowed & dog-eared copy.
How it’s supposed to look.
The cartoon on the left is a little blurry & indistinct on the Discogs pic so here’s a close up taken from my old copy:
Airbag was never commercially released as a single, & as such never had a promo video produced, so here’s a great live version of it from the UK TV show Later With Jools Holland. As an aside: I’m sure I remember reading, possibly in an interview around the tie of release, that all of the songs on OK Computer were going to have videos made for them. Obviously this never happened but would have been amazing.
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Regular readers of Scruffy Theory may have noticed that my once regular posts have become more sporadic over recent weeks. There are many factors which have contributed to this & I feel the need to explain to people a little of what has been going on.
The chief reason I have slowed down in my creation of content is due to mental health reasons. I am, & have been for a while, experiencing depression & anxiety while, maybe unwisely, keeping this pretty much to myself. It’s not that I’m particularly ashamed of this or anything, but I do find it difficult to talk about. I have typed & retyped the bulk of this paragraph multiple times, giving varying amounts of detail, though I have decided to settle on just depression and anxiety. I may write more about it at a later date but for now, I’m just trying to deal with it as best I can.
Another thing that has begun to take up my time is my studies. I’m currently just starting my third year (of six) of a part time degree through the Open University. I am studying towards a BA in English Language & Literature. This is going to take up a lot of my free time in the coming yer because I am studying a literature module this year, & have a fairly sizeable amount of reading to do in my spare time, in addition to my usual recreational reading.
This years reading.
Another factor which is going to impinge on my ability to post as regularly as I’d like is the fact that I am going to be returning to work following a long period of absence due to being furloughed. Perversely, I was furloughed in the first place in line with the ‘Shielding’ guidelines, to protect my partner who suffers from severe asthma, & now, as the danger level is rising again, I am being asked to return to work because I “no longer qualify” for furlough. I obviously know that this is a lie, but since furlough is at the employers discretion there is nothing I can do about it.
So my daily posting schedule is going to take a bit of a hit. I am going to attempt to keep going with Song of the Day for a while (I know, I’ve missed it for a little while now) but I may dispense with the themes I’ve been using & just use it to share with you a song which I particularly like or have been listening to that day. I will attempt to write a proper post at least once a week. I’ll also try & share images, songs & videos with you when I find something of interest. I may also start posting a little about what’s going on at work now I’m back as well as the literature I am reading as part of my studies.
I apologise for the slightly negative tone of this post. Here’s some great music with a great video by way of an apology.
I’m sharing this because I watched a great YouTube video by Trash Theory this morning about the evolution of Shoegaze that lead to Loveless. Oh hell, why not? Here’s the Trash Theory video too.
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It’s been a little while since I’ve done a post like this, but I like sharing screenshots from video games I’m currently playing, especially if they have a clever, leftist vibe to them. A couple of days ago I began to play Night In The Woods after seeing it in a great video by YouTuber Jacob Geller, which I’ll include at the bottom of this post. Seriously, check out some of his video essays. They’re really well written, researched & contain a sense of wide-eyes wonder that I find makes them incredibly watchable.
In the screenshots I’m sharing, main character Mae & her friend Gregg are smashing up this abandoned car (a tree is growing through it) with a baseball bat; to acquire the cars battery; to power an old, disused animatronic cartoon character; to give as a gift to Greggs boyfriend, Angus. The game is filled with charming, innocent (yet youthfully rebellious) scenes like that & is a joy to play. I’m playing it o XBox One but it is also available on PC, Mac, PS4, Nintendo Switch & even Linux so don’t worry, I’m sure you’ll be able to play it.
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I didn’t write this but I thought it was important to share it far & wide. It’s originally by Twitter user Russ, so give him a follow & like for his hard work.
UK: We don’t like our deal EU: Why not? UK: We only get 95% of what we want EU: It only gives us 95% too. That’s how negotiating goes UK: We want a new deal that gives us everything we can think of EU: But you signed a deal UK: Don’t care, we hate you EU: Bit rude UK: We elected people to go to your meetings specifically to say we hate you EU: And how is Nigel? UK: Not happy? EU: Why not? UK: TV has dried up. So we want a new deal, and we want the deal in 3 weeks, or we cancel our existing deal EU: Wait, what? UK: You heard. Give us 100% of what we want in 3 weeks, or we break the law and walk away with 0% of what we want EU: Er suits us! UK: Wait, what? EU: Perfect. Do it. Walk away. Take Nigel with you. UK: No, hold on, wait: you have to negotiate, so Boris can win EU: Why? Right now you have 95% of perfect, and we have 95% of perfect. If we renegotiate, you get more but we get less UK: That’s right EU: But if we don’t negotiate, we still have our 95% UK: Woah, hold on EU: And you have nothing UK: But Dom didn’t superpredict you’d say that! EU: And if we don’t have a deal, we don’t have to put up with you **** on our lawn UK: The Daily Mail made us do it and then ran away! EU: I just found this spine. Is it yours? UK: Welp! EU: So we’ll just sit this one out UK: Fine, we’ll go and make a great deal with the US — US: Yo suckers UK: We are here to get a lovely big trade deal US: Sure thing. Obey existing deals, and give us 100% of everything, plus 51% controlling share in the NHS, and you get, let’s see, 60% of what you have now UK: Not good enough, we have a Special Relationship US: Bye UK: What? US: Bye. Talks are over, the Special Relationship is over, your country is over. Bye UK: But we haven’t got a deal, and we told everyone it would be easy! US: It is easy: we are 26% of world trade, making deals with EU (20%) and China (17%). We don’t need your 1.8%. No deal: easy UK: But we really need a deal, the EU outsmarted us US: We know. Some of us can read. Not Trump, obviously, but the rest of us. Try India — UK: Hi India, remember us? India: Oh ****, these guys again UK: We want a trade deal India: And we want to vastly increase the number of Indians who can live in the UK UK: We can’t do that. Turns out we’re, like, properly racist India: That is brand new information!! UK: So can we have a deal? India: Sure, fine. Join the queue UK: Who’s in front of us in the queue? India: EU, USA, China, Brazil, Korea, Canada, Australia basically everybody. We’re kind of a big deal now. UK: So you’ll be ready to negotiate in, what: 3 weeks? India: Ha ha ha ha ha UK: What did we say? India: 3 weeks? Try 3 years. This **** takes ages, bro UK: But we had a timetable of 3 weeks with the EU India: And how did that work out? UK: Erm India: Try Brazil — UK: Hi Brazil Brazil: We ArE oN FiRe!! UK: Maybe we can trade you some fire engines? Brazil: We LiKe bEiNg oN FiRe, iT’s OuR tHiNg NoW!!! UK: Shall we try New Zealand? Brazil: I aM So DrUnK!! UK: Yeah, let’s try New Zealand — UK: Hi, New Zealand NZ: Hi, Crazy Uncle UK: We’d like to sell you some lamb NZ: Sorry, it’s very noisy here, cos we still have a working economy. Did you say you want to sell us some lamb? UK: Yes NZ: Hold the line, gotta tell Australia this, they’ll **** themselves — UK: Hi Australia, wanna trade stuff? Aus: We wanna offload Rolf Harris and our worst ever PM. What can you give us for them? UK: We’ve already got them Aus: That was easy! So what can you trade? UK: We can send you some racists Aus: I think we’re sorted. Try Russia — UK: Hi Russia, we have loads of lovely things we think you’d love to own Russia: We already own them UK: You don’t own Boris Russia: True. We rent him by the hour. £160k for a tennis match UK: We really need a trade deal Russia: We know. We made you need one. Try China — UK: Can we please have a trade deal? China: And you are…? UK: We’re Great Britain China: Great, you say? UK: Well once China: It’s not ringing any bells. Do you have another name? UK: United Kingdom China: United, you say? UK: Alright, smart arse China: So you want a trade deal? UK: Yes, but first we demand you obey international law China: What happened to your deal with the EU? UK: We broke international law China: Have you been drinking moonshine with Brazil again? UK: We’re very tired. China: Why did you leave the EU? UK: We couldn’t deal with foreigners telling us what to do China: What do you want? UK: A deal China: With who? UK: Foreigners China: And why can’t you get one? UK: Cos we don’t know what to do China: Were you dropped as a child? UK: We just want a trade deal worthy of our status China: You’ve got one UK: No we haven’t China: Yes you have UK: Why won’t anybody take us seriously? China: Would you like to buy a mirror? UK: Finally, a deal! China: You had a deal worthy of your status, with the EU. You don’t need to renegotiate deals: you need to reassess your status. You’re not a mighty nation, you’re a small, wet, heavily indebted island on the edge of a globally important trade bloc, which you just left, you tit UK: So, what do you suggest? China: Aw, mate. You already know — EU: Hi there! Here to rejoin? UK: Yes, and on the same terms as before EU: Oh, I don’t think so. Say goodbye to your rebate, hello to the Euro, and bonjour to the Schengen area. Welcommen! UK: We hate you
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Day 10. I’m not really sure how I feel about the movie adaptation of Nick Hornby’s The High Fidelity. I remember enjoying it somewhat, but the smug, salesman-like smarminess of the scene in which Dry The Rain by The Beta Band plays really grates on me. I guess it does highlight how amazing the song is, even if it does so in such an aloof & arrogant way. What did you folks make of this scene?
Dry The Rain was the lead track on The Beta Band’s 1997 debut EP Champion Versions (& later The Three E.P.’s). This acid-soaked, Psyche Folk melancholia was a blast of invigoratingly fresh air when it first emerged. It was millions of miles away from the late Britpop which was just about hanging on to relevance in 1997.
Late afterthought: While adding The Beta Band to the ‘tags’ on this post I was surprised to see I haven’t written anything about them before. Expect this to be addressed soon.
The scene
This is the definition of my life Lying in bed in the sunlight Choking on the vitamin tablet The doctor gave in the hope of saving me In the hope of saving me
Walked in the corner of the room A junk yard fool with eyes of gloom I asked him time again Take me in and dry the rain Take me in and dry the rain Take me in and dry the rain Take me in and dry the rain the rain The rain the rain the rain now
Dusty brown boots in the corner By the ironing board Spray on dust is the greatest thing Sure is the greatest thing Since the last since the last
Walked in the corner of the room A junk yard fool with eyes of gloom I asked him time again Take me in and dry the rain Take me in and dry the rain Take me in and dry the rain Take me in and dry the rain the rain The rain the rain the rain now
I asked him time again Take me in and dry the rain Take me in and dry the rain Take me in and dry the rain Take me in and dry the rain The rain the rain the rain now
If there’s something inside that you want to say Say it out loud it’ll be okay I will be your light I will be your light I will be your light I will be your light
If there’s something inside that you want to say Say it out loud it’ll be okay I will be your light I will be your light I will be your light I will be your light
I Need Love, yeah I Need Love
If there’s something inside that you want to say Say it out loud it’ll be okay I will be your light I will be your light I will be your light I will be your light
If there’s something inside that you want to say Say it out loud it’ll be okay I will be your light I will be your light I will be your light I will be your light
I need love I need love
Looking for some great music? Check the Song of the Day (Movie Soundtracks) Spotify playlist.
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Day 9. “Oooh. Stop!” Where Is My Mind? by the Pixies not only soundtracks the explosive finale of the psychological late ’90’s uber-thriller Fight Club (below) but it’s also a ridiculously good song that doesn’t really need an excuse to post about it. It’s a rare song (although, come to think about it, Pixies have quite a few) that doesn’t sound as if it was written & recorded so much as it was grown. It’s got an elemental, organic feel to it that is preciously rare in a way which I find difficult to explain.
Partly as a result of it’s inclusion in Fight Club & partly as a result of it’s inclusion on the genre-defining Indie Rock masterpiece Surfer Rosa, Where Is My Mind? absolutely writhes with the kind of cultural significance that that you could write entire series of books about. To attempt to get the importance of this phenomenal work of art, I have included below both the ending scene of Fight Club during which the song is utilised & an excellent live (TV) performance of the song by the band back in 1988, at the absolute peak of their powers.
Pixies, 1988, “I guess you guys aren’t ready for that yet. But your kids are gonna love it.”
Ooh, stop
With your feet on the air and your head on the ground Try this trick and spin it, yeah Your head will collapse But there’s nothing in it And you’ll ask yourself
Where is my mind? Where is my mind? Where is my mind? Way out in the water See it swimmin’
I was swimmin’ in the Caribbean Animals were hiding behind the rock Except the little fish But they told me, he swears Tryin’ to talk to me koi koy
Where is my mind? Where is my mind? Where is my mind? Way out in the water See it swimmin’
With your feet on the air and your head on the ground Try this trick and spin it, yeah Your head will collapse If there’s nothing in it And you’ll ask yourself
Where is my mind? Where is my mind? Where is my mind? Way out in the water See it swimmin’
Ooh With your feet on the air and your head on the ground Ooh Try this trick and spin it, yeah Ooh Ooh Ooh Ooh Ooh
Looking for some great music? Why not check out the Song of the Day (Movie Soundtracks) Spotify playlist?
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Day 8. Another one from The Matrix, Dragula by Rob Zombie was another Alternative night classic at the kind of nightclubs I used to frequent in my teenage years. The versionused in The Matrix was the Rod Herman remix but for the video I have opted for the original version, not least because it has a really good video. I also failed to find the remix on Spotify, so the original version will be on the SPotify playlist too. I’ll include the remix YouTube link here.
The remix adds layers of electronic production to the track which nicely brings the song in line with the late ’90’s cyberpunk visions of The Matrix. I’m not sure but I also think our local Alternative Rock DJ’s played this version too, presumably The Matrix OST was a useful CD for any Alt/Rock DJ to own.
Superstition, fear and jealousy
Dead I am the one, exterminating son Slipping through the trees, strangling the breeze Dead I am the sky, watching angels cry While they slowly turn, conquering the worm
Dig through the ditches And burn through the witches I slam in the back of my Dragula!
Dig through the ditches And burn through the witches I slam in the back of my Dragula!
Dead I am the pool, spreading from the fool Weak and what you need, nowhere as you bleed Dead I am the rat, feast upon the cat Tender is the fur, dying as you purr
Dig through the ditches And burn through the witches I slam in the back of my Dragula!
Dig through the ditches And burn through the witches I slam in the back of my Dragula!
Do it baby, do it baby Do it baby, do it baby Burn like an animal
Dead I am the life, dig into the skin Knuckle crack the bone, twenty one to win Dead I am the dog, hound of hell you cry Devil on your back, I can never die
Dig through the ditches And burn through the witches I slam in the back of my Dragula!
Dig through the ditches And burn through the witches I slam in the back of my Dragula!
Do it baby, do it baby Do it baby, do it baby Burn like an animal
Dig through the ditches And burn through the witches I slam in the back of my Dragula!
Dig through the ditches And burn through the witches I slam in the back of my Dragula!
Dig through the ditches And burn through the witches I slam in the back of my Dragula!
Looking for some great music? Check the Song of the Day (Movie Soundtracks) Spotify playlist.
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Another great new single from my local boutique cassette label, Safe Suburban Home. This time it’s the York band Cowgirl. Fuzzy, exciting Indie Rock with Noise Rock & Britpop undertones.
On Only Lasts A Moment, Cowgirl seem to excel at painting a lush sound world of loping melodicism & swirling fuzziness. Simple & pretty lead guitar patterns weave in & out of lazy, midtempo rhythms. I feel that they’ve taken a bubblegum Pop approach to the kind of ethereal shimmer of early Ride, particularly the way they apply the sonic conventions of Shoegaze to the melodic swagger of Britpop.
B-Side Hold Me turns up the tempo & the intensity somewhat, & there’s a definite Shine compilation vibe to the floaty, reverb soaked vocals over the rock solid rhythms. There’s also a Grungy, Alt Rock edge to this too. It’s somewhere in the sonic vicinity of The Bluetones maybe.
Only Lasts A Moment b/w Hold Me is released on 11th September 2020 on Safe Suburban Home. You can pre-order the Cassette or digital versions here.
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Day 7. I suppose I’d never really thought of my generation (or age/year group) as having its own movie but 1after giving it some thought,The Matrix is definitely it. Released the year I turned 17, I remember going to see it with a group of friends, all baggy jeans, Korn hoodies & wallet chains. The soundtrack seemed to be tailor made to us too. My Own Summer (Shove It) can only be described as an anthem in the kind of circles I used to move in. The sinister, slow & incredibly heavy riffing of the verses & the explosive screaming of the chorus soundtracked many an alternative night in a local nightclub, headbanging to it at midnight, drunk on pound-a-pint lager.
Interestingly, Deftones are one of the very small number of Nu Metal bands which I still like & regularly listen to. I drifted away from it as a genre as I discovered Punk & rediscovered Indie Rock. They were radically different from the majority of Nu Metal bands. They had weird melodic sensibilities & inspirations which you didn’t really see in other Nu Metal bands. Things like The Smiths & Radiohead. You can hear it in the woozy, narcotic vocal melodies of the verses in My Own Summer (Shove It).
Favourite comment on the YouTube video:
Fun fact: That shark was a goldfish before this song started playing.
Hey you, big star Tell me when it’s over
Hey you, big mood, guide me to shelter ‘Cause I’m through When the two hits the six and it’s summer
Cloud, come (shove it, shove it, shove it) Shove (shove it, shove it, shove it) The sun (shove it, shove it, shove it) Aside (shove it aside)
I think god is moving its tongue There’s no crowd in the streets And no sun in my own summer
The shade is a tool, a device, a savior See, I try and look up to the sky But my eyes burn
Cloud, come (shove it, shove it, shove it) Shove (shove it, shove it, shove it) The sun (shove it, shove it, shove it) Aside (shove it aside)
Cloud, come (shove it, shove it, shove it) Shove (shove it, shove it, shove it) The sun (shove it, shove it, shove it) Aside (shove it aside)
I think god is moving its tongue There are no crowds in the streets and no sun in my own summer
Come (shove it, shove it, shove it) Shove (shove it, shove it, shove it) The sun (shove it, shove it, shove it) Aside (shove it aside)
Looking for some great music? Check the Song of the Day (Spotify) playlist.
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Scruffy Theory 