Pimp - Iceberg Slim Review

Review of Iceberg Slim's semi-biographical work 1967: Pimp

Relentless from the first disturbing page to the jailhouse revelation Slim gets by the end.
Very well written with intelligent use of metaphor - which is just as well because a more direct application of language would make many scenes unreadable with their brutality.
One criticism may be that each chapter seems to be based around one particular brutal episode - normally involving a women. But I guess it was a way for him to structure.
It also has that problematic ambiguity of gangster rap - used a lot by Ice T named after slim. Is the misogynistic violence sexual and actual being exposed or celebrated. There were some parts where I actually didnt know.
However as the afterword from a black female writer puts it -it shows elements of African American male culture which had been ignored or idealised by some in the past.
Read it in very nicely laid out new edition with foreword from Irvie Welsh and you can see the influence with a number of scenes seeming to be lifted directly into his work.
Shocking but readable.

Dark is the day?

Review of SFA's new work published in Scottish Socialist voice May 1st 2009.

Although it is 13 years since their debut album, Fuzzy Logic, Super Furry Animals are still something of an overlooked gem on the music scene. They also are the only group to appear in the NME reading the seminal Scottish socialist work Imagine, apart from the Pussycat Dolls. That last part was a joke!
Their current album Dark Days/Light Years was revealed with an online concert playing it in full a few weeks ago. For me, in our climate-ly changing world it is already the sound of the (premature) summer.
The last Super Furries’ work Hey Venus was a concept album about a young girl running away to the big city. Although containing a couple of cracking pop songs it was fairly short and had a slight feel to it. Dark Days, however, is a massive smorgasbord of tunes with literally something for everything: glam rock, heavy metal samples and disco all make an appearance.
One of the skills that SFA have showed over their nine albums is using all of pop music’s heritage but presenting in a way that is relentlessly current and original. Partially this is down to Gruff Rhys’ lyrics – sample song titles “The Very Best of Neil Diamond” and “Moped Eyes”.
The musical diversity is reflected in the album’s dialectical title – although there is a happy upbeat feel to many of the tracks they are placed in the context of the “dark days” that the planet is currently experiencing. For example the jumpy song “Inaugural Trams” salutes the wonders of an integrated public transport system (yes really) whilst recognising currently such a thing is unlikely, utopian even. Rhys has also said it is a salute to technology: “It’s a celebration of living with science rather than religion”. It also has a real Kraftwerk vibe, to the extent that a member of Franz Ferdinand raps in German throughout it.
There is a degree of retrospection to this work too there are two lengthy electronic soundscapes – which have a techno feel to them. They are a bit softer than some of the Super Furries earlier dance material but are quite stunning and in “Cardiff in the Sun” they have created a beautiful piece of music. There is also a nod to their Welsh roots, having once released an album of entirely Welsh tracks, with “Lliwiau Llachar” meaning Bright Colours.
Personally I think the stand out is “Mt” which is an inspirational celebration of human society – if you only seek out one track make it this one.
An excellent soundtrack for life at the moment then and the funny thing is the Super Furries make it seem so effortless .
Nick McKerrell

RIP - JgB

A sad day - goodbye JG Ballard..

Justice for the 96

The Monday after Hillsborough John Peel played this with tears running down his face as first song on show - according to Nicky Campbell

Rushing to Paradise

Review of Ballard novel from 1994 - picked up in second hand shop late last year. Not heard of it before - review probably explains why.

A difficult one. A sort of inbetweener for Ballard by his autobiographical work and his last 4 hyper-realist books set in the decaying modern world.

Of course brilliantly written and strong/memorable characters - also a good sense of location in the South Pacific. which at the time of writing in the mid 90s was the centre of dispute with Chirac resuming nuclear testing.
A project to supposedly liberate an island from the French Army and to allow the albatross to return collapses with hellish consequences.

I think it loses its way a bit with its discussion of women taking over society. Arguably sexist particularly with its portrayal of Dr Barbara. Notably in his later works his charismatic bad leading figures are all male. It also has a number of pretty disturbing scenes.

Not sure if it is meant to be an allegory but probably bites off more than he can chew which is quite surprising for JGB, on the whole misfiring

The beautiful occupations

2 schools in occupation in opposition to Glasgow NU Labour Council cuts - brilliant stuff. Spread the word

Gordon Brown as overenthusiastic SW member - discuss!

Looking at the coverage at the recent G20 meeting over the last week I sensed a certain desperation about G Brown. Firstly he built the meeting up ridiculously from what was a run of the mill summit. In the words of the FT

"Finally, it is most interesting that the G20 emerged as the crucial global economic forum. This is quite a transformation. It started as a forum for finance ministers and central bankers to discuss technical arcana. Five years ago, when the G20 convened in the small Mexican city of Morelia, it was not even the biggest act in town. Hotel space in the city was instead hogged by a convention of Harley-Davidson owners, and there was not a protester in sight".

Such was his hyperbole he almost caused capitalism to splinter between European and American interests. Then he overhyped the results stating $1 trillion had been injected even though most of it had already been pledged.

It reminded me of standard SW behaviour - totally exaggerate the importance of an upcoming demo (normally in London). Annoy everyone by focussing on it to the detriment of everything else. Then when the demo is a bit of a damp squib give a completely upbeat report of it playing with the attendance numbers a wee bit! I know Brown was once on the left neolithic ages ago but was he grounded in this school I think we should be told!