By the Smiths heyday I'd started a migration to near-complete jazz-funk-soul listening habits so the whole pre, during and post Madchester things was so much tumbleweed.
Is not the appeal all about high cheek bones, simian gait, shoulders back, jaw n chest jutting thirty-sumfink faux-rock chick wet dream blah blah blah
That's what everyone was telling me at the time. And I was hearing it all the time - IIRC, you and I would have been in Manc when it dropped.
It was funkier than the other shoegazing fare that was on offer to the overcoat and black plimsoll brigade. It was about as funky as skinny white kids with guitars were going to get, whilst remaining aloof and self-important. You were never going to get Brown running along the front of the stage high-fiving the crowd but it was black enough for Ben and Hilary and dem.
It's just the saucer-eyed, uncritical veneration of them that I have a problem with.
I understand the press' need to have a Next Big Thing to write about, but this was getting daft. The press bigging it up because it was "Funky" and acknowledged James Brown... I felt shit like that to be a diss to All of Black Music. Even locally, I thought there were bands knocking out far more interesting work. Remember Dr. Phibes & The House of Wax Equations? Even the Mondays, or ACR. So much music coming out at that time, deserving better than to be hidden by the titanic shadow cast by Roses praise.
Where's Padilla dude to talk us through the WC troubles in Brasil right now?
fucking madness at this point.
Last night things turned sour, I didn't go out to the protest - Porto Alegre has been relatively quiet because the bus fare fight happened here a few months ago. But people I know who went out in S??o Paulo and Rio saw some real fucked up shit. These protests were originally organized by left-wing organizations, including some small political parties, and last night was supposed to be a celebration of their (relatively small) victory in lowering bus fares. But the ultra conservative upper classes decided to join in and were incredibly hostile to anyone carrying the flag of a social movement or political party, even those who began the protests two weeks ago. And the media is egging everyone on, saying there are no political parties in the middle of this, just the people of Brazil, showing it on TV from a quite comfortable distance (there were barely any reporters on the streets) and saying it's all a beautiful party and y'know last time this happened the people impeached a president. They fail to explain that last they impeached a president who was guilty of some real fucked up shit, while now we have a democratically elected president who has done nothing to deserve impeachment. People holding signs calling the president a dyke, skinheads going after anyone representing a political party screaming "no political parties!" while those people say "no violence!". Idiots who say they want more money for health and education and pay less taxes all at once.
The last time this happened wasn't in 1992, when president Collor was impeached. It was 1964, when there was a military coup that sank this country into darkness for 20 years. You read the language the press are using today and it's the same they used on the day of the coup, when they praised the military for carrying out the will of a people who had been led out to the streets without political parties to protest "against corruption and for morality."
Last night a ton of people took to the streets but it included a lot of highly mobilized groups, including labor unions, left-wing political parties, and other social movements. They've basically pulled out of any further demonstrations now, and the hope is that things will cool down. Too many people who don't know shit about politics have gone out just because they've been told that's the thing to do right now, and some people are trying to co-opt this wave and turn into something hideous. My hope is that they alone won't be able to bring people out to the streets and this will peter out. But everyone is on alert right now.
He's out on the streets, sticking it to dey man?
We need him to explain what actual underlying reasons are, cos the news over here doesn't seem to know.
EDIT - oh, there he is. And explanation, doesn't sound good.
sorry about the pessimism guys, we all hope it's temporary, but that was the mood at the end of last night. There has been no shortage of mood swings since last week.
to be fair, there's not shortage of complaints. This whole thing started because of bus fare hikes in a city that has a comparably expensive public transport system that is absolute shit. The movement that led these protests has been protesting this for years, and it touches on some serious questions as to how our cities are governed, where the commons are constantly being sacrificed for the service of those who have purchasing power. In other words, the government gives huge incentives for purchasing cars but invests very little in public transit, leaving most cities in constant gridlock. The Movimento Passe Livre (Free Fare Movement) advocates for free public transport (as in you don't pay-to-ride, and the city also doesn't contract it out to shady companies), as a right similar to the free heathcare the government provides. The fact that they actually got the fare lowered and got this idea into the public discussion is huge.
the reason these protests erupted on a wider scale is because the Military Police were brutal in trying to repress this movement's protests last week, so people felt the need to come out in solidarity and also to guarantee our right to protest. There's a huge list of reasons to be out protesting, but the feeling is that a lot of those who went out these past few days don't understand why they're out. And when you have 100,000 clueless souls in one city (and somewhere close to 2.5M coutry-wide) out protesting without understanding why they're out, that leaves it open for anyone to give this whatever narrative they wish. That's the big question now - if it keeps going, in what direction will it go?
Protests aside, another concern I'd have if I was Brasilian is the national team - this might be the worst side I've seen in my lifetime. Yeah, Neymar is great, Thiago is decent, Oscar should improve over time, but Hulk, David Luiz & Fred while good are wildly unpredictable in terms of the performance you'll get from them, Marcelo can't defend, there's no strength in depth, the midfield looks short of ideas, defensively disorganised... when England beat these guys back February, aside from a few breaks from Brasil, we reduced them to taking potshots from 30 yards. I think that even with homefield advantage they will really struggle.
b/w
Higuain to Arsenal would be great. Maybe not a comparable replacement for Van Percy, but he should be better than Giroud.
Now just get some midfield cover, defenders who can defend...
Godammit I wanna hear about the boy ppadilha out on the skreets, fomenting revolution, orchestrating teh Samba Spring, inciting anarchy and mayhem, taping it for a documentary, kicking over the statues with a million strong army of loosely connected but ultimately united black haired blue eyed boys (cont p94)
Fulfill my fantasies, I will live it vicariously and cheer from the sidelines as capitalist running dogs are driven in fear from Banco do Brasil and them.
wish I had more exciting stories to tell. The only march I attended was on monday:
meeting up in front of city hall
marching on. I'd say there were maybe 10,000 people out that night, and it was largely peaceful and friendly. There was a scuffle with police towards the end, when some people decided to march towards the headquarters of the local Globo affiliate. By then I had already left, so I didn't see it.
a lot of people were out on their balconies in support of the protestors. This was on monday, when the media still hadn't decided the protests were ok.
the best thing I saw was this group with a traditional murga, the little bands that play in the stadiums here in the south of Brazil. The group was Socrates' Band, and they had a huge banner that said "Another Football is Possible"
last night the president gave a speech laying out some plans to meet some of the complaints - things like a program for urban transportation, and a proposal to direct 100% of oil revenue towards education (which had been voted down in congress last year by many of the types who are protesting today). Can't tell if it has settled some nerves, still some people taking to the streets today.
With Porto Alegre being relatively quiet, I've just been following things on the internet and TV, which has been a huge lesson in alienation more than anything else. Haven't had a full night's sleep or been able to eat a full meal since monday, tbh. It would be quite different if I was in S??o Paulo, out in the streets and able to gauge what's happening.
and yes, Duder, our team is shite. No one doubts that. I blame Dunga, who refused to call up younger players to keep developing the team, now it's a whole new generation who can't seem to cope with the pressure, led by a paleolithic coach.
1. We just beat Italy. So, like I was saying, SUCK IT H8RZ
2. Looks like Tottenham signed Paulinho. So, I H8 U SPURS. On the other, that's a good signing for them. I always though he'd fit in well at Arsenal, he'd add some of the steel and testicular fortitude they have been lacking the past few seasons. Sad to see him go.
I know you could probably get a funny anagram out of "Gustavo Poyet" that features "Poo", so it must be true. Plus, he comes from a country with poor sanitation so it's stonewall as far as I am concerned.
Been without the internet all day though, so not actually read anything about it. But on this job the ability to talk loudly about a subject of which I know nowt seems to mitigate the need to actually learn the facts.
Was watching the Beeb coverage when this was announced, that guy Chapman is so boring he made this news seem like a chore he couldn't give a toss about instead of a breaking exclusive.
I thought Poyet had made noises about wanting to manage another club (Everton?), and he was sacked for breaching his contract by talking to agents etc about this.
Poo? Please to explain the rumours.
just an update for those of you who wanted info on the goings-on down here: protests still happening, although we're back to the pattern of small multitudes protesting against actual things and getting beaten by police, with the media back to criticizing them. Less irrational and clueless mobs out in the streets. Concurrently, my facebook feed is back to stupid shit being posted only by the usual idiots, meaning there's some semblance of normalcy. Leaders of the MPL (Free Fare Movement) meeting with the fucking president today, and they wrote a beautiful open letter to her this morning. After the fears of some insane fascist mob taking over the protests, the pendulum has swung back towards optimism. Globo even wrote an editorial over the weekend saying that although they're getting tired of the protests, they don't want a return to dictatorship. Says a lot that they have to spell it out like that. Surely they don't want to lose the World Cup, since they're one of the few who will make massive amounts of money off it. I don't think we should cancel it, but I think it would be beautiful if we gave FIFA a resounding F-U and told them to pay some taxes and leave a chunk of the loot they plan on taking from us.
Tahiti are the people's champions of the Confederations Cup.
apparently Paulinho hasn't officially been signed by Spurs, just the usual sports media here jumping the gun on things like that. Higuain to Arsenal seems like a good move, he's a solid striker.
World Cup aint till next year, right? London was a 'warzone' according to the papers the year before the Olympics, but that turned out pretty nicely after all. I'm sure Brazil's WC will be alright too. If the Gov.'s got any sense they'll pander to the mob just enough to keep them sweet until it's all over, then it'll be back to business as usual.
probably just a case of someone with the beer-shits gone wrong, who then ran off in embarrassment. Happens all the time in Starbucks bathrooms in NYC, yet it hasn't tarnished their reputation. NBD.
Comments
Is not the appeal all about high cheek bones, simian gait, shoulders back, jaw n chest jutting thirty-sumfink faux-rock chick wet dream blah blah blah
Did it start with punk or Lizzy?
You have alluded to the hard-won Battle of the Funk previously. Who planted the flag?
Speak on it.
PS Ronnie "Head" Drayton on Clive Stevens set. Same guy from the 2nd incarnation of Defunkt.
[Vader voice]The circle is becoming complete...[/Vv]
That's what everyone was telling me at the time. And I was hearing it all the time - IIRC, you and I would have been in Manc when it dropped.
It was funkier than the other shoegazing fare that was on offer to the overcoat and black plimsoll brigade. It was about as funky as skinny white kids with guitars were going to get, whilst remaining aloof and self-important. You were never going to get Brown running along the front of the stage high-fiving the crowd but it was black enough for Ben and Hilary and dem.
I understand the press' need to have a Next Big Thing to write about, but this was getting daft. The press bigging it up because it was "Funky" and acknowledged James Brown... I felt shit like that to be a diss to All of Black Music. Even locally, I thought there were bands knocking out far more interesting work. Remember Dr. Phibes & The House of Wax Equations? Even the Mondays, or ACR. So much music coming out at that time, deserving better than to be hidden by the titanic shadow cast by Roses praise.
Oh, and their second album, which was fucking awful (and it led to mass theft of cherubs from my hometown, proving my point above).
"Gorrit like da fuhken... Alhambra in dere, lah."
fucking madness at this point.
Last night things turned sour, I didn't go out to the protest - Porto Alegre has been relatively quiet because the bus fare fight happened here a few months ago. But people I know who went out in S??o Paulo and Rio saw some real fucked up shit. These protests were originally organized by left-wing organizations, including some small political parties, and last night was supposed to be a celebration of their (relatively small) victory in lowering bus fares. But the ultra conservative upper classes decided to join in and were incredibly hostile to anyone carrying the flag of a social movement or political party, even those who began the protests two weeks ago. And the media is egging everyone on, saying there are no political parties in the middle of this, just the people of Brazil, showing it on TV from a quite comfortable distance (there were barely any reporters on the streets) and saying it's all a beautiful party and y'know last time this happened the people impeached a president. They fail to explain that last they impeached a president who was guilty of some real fucked up shit, while now we have a democratically elected president who has done nothing to deserve impeachment. People holding signs calling the president a dyke, skinheads going after anyone representing a political party screaming "no political parties!" while those people say "no violence!". Idiots who say they want more money for health and education and pay less taxes all at once.
The last time this happened wasn't in 1992, when president Collor was impeached. It was 1964, when there was a military coup that sank this country into darkness for 20 years. You read the language the press are using today and it's the same they used on the day of the coup, when they praised the military for carrying out the will of a people who had been led out to the streets without political parties to protest "against corruption and for morality."
Last night a ton of people took to the streets but it included a lot of highly mobilized groups, including labor unions, left-wing political parties, and other social movements. They've basically pulled out of any further demonstrations now, and the hope is that things will cool down. Too many people who don't know shit about politics have gone out just because they've been told that's the thing to do right now, and some people are trying to co-opt this wave and turn into something hideous. My hope is that they alone won't be able to bring people out to the streets and this will peter out. But everyone is on alert right now.
We need him to explain what actual underlying reasons are, cos the news over here doesn't seem to know.
EDIT - oh, there he is. And explanation, doesn't sound good.
to be fair, there's not shortage of complaints. This whole thing started because of bus fare hikes in a city that has a comparably expensive public transport system that is absolute shit. The movement that led these protests has been protesting this for years, and it touches on some serious questions as to how our cities are governed, where the commons are constantly being sacrificed for the service of those who have purchasing power. In other words, the government gives huge incentives for purchasing cars but invests very little in public transit, leaving most cities in constant gridlock. The Movimento Passe Livre (Free Fare Movement) advocates for free public transport (as in you don't pay-to-ride, and the city also doesn't contract it out to shady companies), as a right similar to the free heathcare the government provides. The fact that they actually got the fare lowered and got this idea into the public discussion is huge.
the reason these protests erupted on a wider scale is because the Military Police were brutal in trying to repress this movement's protests last week, so people felt the need to come out in solidarity and also to guarantee our right to protest. There's a huge list of reasons to be out protesting, but the feeling is that a lot of those who went out these past few days don't understand why they're out. And when you have 100,000 clueless souls in one city (and somewhere close to 2.5M coutry-wide) out protesting without understanding why they're out, that leaves it open for anyone to give this whatever narrative they wish. That's the big question now - if it keeps going, in what direction will it go?
Edson Arantes do Nascimento needs to shut the fuck up so he doesn't embarass Pel??.
or as Romario once said: "when Pel?? keeps his mouth shut, he's a poet."
b/w
Higuain to Arsenal would be great. Maybe not a comparable replacement for Van Percy, but he should be better than Giroud.
Now just get some midfield cover, defenders who can defend...
Fulfill my fantasies, I will live it vicariously and cheer from the sidelines as capitalist running dogs are driven in fear from Banco do Brasil and them.
meeting up in front of city hall
marching on. I'd say there were maybe 10,000 people out that night, and it was largely peaceful and friendly. There was a scuffle with police towards the end, when some people decided to march towards the headquarters of the local Globo affiliate. By then I had already left, so I didn't see it.
a lot of people were out on their balconies in support of the protestors. This was on monday, when the media still hadn't decided the protests were ok.
the best thing I saw was this group with a traditional murga, the little bands that play in the stadiums here in the south of Brazil. The group was Socrates' Band, and they had a huge banner that said "Another Football is Possible"
last night the president gave a speech laying out some plans to meet some of the complaints - things like a program for urban transportation, and a proposal to direct 100% of oil revenue towards education (which had been voted down in congress last year by many of the types who are protesting today). Can't tell if it has settled some nerves, still some people taking to the streets today.
With Porto Alegre being relatively quiet, I've just been following things on the internet and TV, which has been a huge lesson in alienation more than anything else. Haven't had a full night's sleep or been able to eat a full meal since monday, tbh. It would be quite different if I was in S??o Paulo, out in the streets and able to gauge what's happening.
1. We just beat Italy. So, like I was saying, SUCK IT H8RZ
2. Looks like Tottenham signed Paulinho. So, I H8 U SPURS. On the other, that's a good signing for them. I always though he'd fit in well at Arsenal, he'd add some of the steel and testicular fortitude they have been lacking the past few seasons. Sad to see him go.
This was great:
Loved it when Mario was playing in England for all of his crazy antics, and he's now starting to look like the real-deal on the pitch.
Can't be bothered reading the stories, but I'm banking on Duder having done so.
Is the implication that Gus did the Bobby Sands act and then tried to pin it on someone else via email "methinks thou protests too much" shanannigans?
And fwiw typing shenanigans with the extra 'n' in the middle and a rogue 'a' gave predictive text 'shaman iguana'.
That is all.
Been without the internet all day though, so not actually read anything about it. But on this job the ability to talk loudly about a subject of which I know nowt seems to mitigate the need to actually learn the facts.
I am a neurosurgeon btw.
I thought Poyet had made noises about wanting to manage another club (Everton?), and he was sacked for breaching his contract by talking to agents etc about this.
Poo? Please to explain the rumours.
Brighton v Palarse, naughty poo smearing of away dressing room pre-match.
Gus on some "it wasn't me what done it" tip.
B/w
of course not, Gus
Tahiti are the people's champions of the Confederations Cup.
apparently Paulinho hasn't officially been signed by Spurs, just the usual sports media here jumping the gun on things like that. Higuain to Arsenal seems like a good move, he's a solid striker.
also: plaese to explain poo?
also - 'poogate' explained. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2326470/Gus-Poyet-fury-Brighton-leave-poo-Crystal-Palace-dressing-room.html
Fuck Pele, fuck FIFA, fuck your government, fuck my government, fuck ALL governments.
Phew, feel better now.
::smiley::