Bulletin Board of Bad Behavior

I got Shadowplayers today.

What I meant to say was, good for you! I hope you like it.

Happy Mondays have completed a new album, apparently.

Here's the link:

http://www.nme.com/news/happy-mondays/23803

Also, Section 25, who are currently gigging again (seems to me they've been out of action forever...since the 80's at least) actually performed the Joy Division song "Shadowplay" in Dublin recently.

A Certain Ratio are gigging nowadays too believe it or not and my friend in Glasgow said they did a lot of old songs when they played, which was not what I expected. Toward the end of their recording career when they started just using all electronics I think that's when they went downhill. Although to be fair, one of the things I've always appreciated about the movie 24 Hour Party People was that it portrayed them as they really were, that is, with all their ups and downs. They were far from a perfect band, but I'll be damned if they didn't have their classics. Another thing I was really satisfied hearing Wilson say in the Shadowplayers documentary was that he agreed with me that when they started having that lady sing circa Sextet, it was horrible. I share Tony's view that their original singer (who's name escapes me now, not Jeremy Kerr, but the earlier singer) should really have continued to sing more often. Okay I've looked up his name now - Simon Topping. He's in the Shadowplayers video too.

Instead, he left the band and did a boring EP on Factory of Brazilian music. Blah.

Tony (sorry, ANTHONY) started up another record label a few years ago called F4 (his second attempt after Factory to start a label) but it appears to be dead now. The Factory Too label he tried to start up in the early nineties had some really crap bands on it. I bought a 7" that had 4 of the new bands and they were all crap.

I'm determined to catch Wilson's radio show later this morning.

I'm thinking you probably don't know Section 25 very well, McC and I worried that maybe when you got Shadowplayers you'd think maybe you should own some of their records. But Section 25 are an iffy affair. Much more iffy than ACR, in my opinion. For one thing, the guy can't really sing. He's obviously tone deaf. I have really mixed feelings about that band, much more so than ACR. On the one hand, they were just part of the early Factory stable, so respect is due. They did have their moments (I prefer The Key Of Dreams album, and Looking From a Hilltop single and the album that was from called From the Hip and the Crazy Wisdom 12", and oh yeah...The Beast 12" which I believe was added to the end of Key of Dreams CD) but I think they are more imperfect than ACR, really, and that's saying something. Anyway, The Key of Dreams album sounds a lot like Can, and the Looking From a Hilltop/From The Hip is more like mid-80's synth pop.

Also I really love the way in Shadowplayers, Hooky is wearing a "Dancechester" T-Shirt. I mean, in some ways Manchester really is the king of dance music, isn't it?

Are you on about the radio show that you can access from BBC radio Manchester? It's my understanding that this is just a show about current affairs with a Manchester slant. Am I right?

No, the show I am talking about is (or was) on XFM Manchester, not BBC, and it is (or was) him playing music. I set my alarm last night but still didn't get up in time to catch it. I pushed the snooze button thinking I'd just get up after a bit, but slept instead. Anyway, when I did get up, I looked at the schedule just to make sure I'd really missed it and it appears he wasn't even on this week. I think the show might be gone for good.

Also I read about the lead singer of the Chameleons, Mark Burgess putting out a book soon where he talks about Joy Division and the whole musical atmosphere of Manchester at the time. I think it is suppoesd to be called A View From a Hill but I can't remember exactly where I read this so it's driving me crazy right now that I can't remember. I didn't even read the whole thing at the time because I was in a hurry for some reason.

Argh.

Anyway here is a cool site about Factory Records:

http://www.cerysmaticfactory.info/

When I was in Manchester I remember someone actually blaring Chameleons out their car, I thought that was positively amazing. I mean you couldn't hope for that to happen in the US, unless you were in L.A. and just extremely lucky or something.

I've got this cassette playing now that someone made me a long, long time ago and it has A Certain Ratio at the end but I can't figure out what album these ACR songs come from. That really really bothers me. I'm going to attempt to resolve this. I've got a CD that may help me...

Holy shit, I am serious I do not know what album these ACR songs come from. I think this must be something rare, I'm in shock. It sounds like Sextet era ACR, but no woman singing to ruin it. The guy in the UK who made me this cassette wrote no song titles because it was just added to the end of this other thing I wanted that wasn't Manchester related.

I mean there's just no way, because if it was officially released ACR I would recognize it, and I don't. And yet I know it's them. I don't understand it. The only avenue I haven't tried is their remix CD. Is there a chance it could be that? Or did that come too late?

Also, WHY DON'T I LIVE IN ENGLAND SO I CAN GO SEE VINI REILLY IN CONCERT WHY WHY WHY does god hate me so?