touching from a distance

A review of the new Anton Corbijn film appeared in a recent Telegraph (the Cal one, natch) tabloid edition. I felt vaguely ill the rest of the day, because it seemed to me quite absurd. 'Control' will never be released here - in fact, it's probably out on 'limited release' anyway. Why review it? Here I bite off a long tangential rant on good movies never making it to my city because it's beyond obvious. I've wanted to see 'Control' since I first heard of it a few months ago. Some form of band-related OCD kicking in, no doubt, as I declared myself officially Over Them last year. (New Order is more to my taste right now, shock horror.) But teenage angst is more splendid and memorable than, well, a lot of other, more worthy events in one's life. Do I generalize unfairly? Paint those burgeoning years of indie fandom in too-flattering hues? What could possibly be more depressing than endless afternoons listening to songs like 'Transmission' and 'I Remember Nothing' on repeat, being something surely far worse than being the nineteen year old misfit (id est the nineteen year old underachiever)? Ach. Beware of the cookie cutter.

But it's music. By its very definition - perhaps 'description' suits better - it is life. Signs of, affirmation of, reason for.



And... I'm only doing this because I think the first post on this blog featured a picture of Blixa Bargeld: Einstuerzende Neubauten have apparently released 'Alles Wieder Offen'. That's right, folks, they've been doing this who-needs-a-record-label stuff longer than Radiohead. I have not, need I mention, heard any of EN's new work, but I hope it's a step up from 'Perpetuum Mobile'. They're an interesting example of a (literal-) deconstruction band with pronounced centripetal tendencies. (Oh gosh that sounded so good in a sort of wanky left-field-music-critic way.) I also admire that Bargeld continues to write and perform his lyrics in German - and that, going by translations, they're really very good.

I shall now fling a terrible navel-gazing trivia question into the void. Which bands alongside Joy Division form my personal (un)holy quintet of Bands From Manchester Whose Songs I Have Played On Repeat During Endless Miserable Afternoons? (And No, It's Not Bleeding Oasis.)