Do we like the Scissor Sisters?

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In what bizarro universe does straight vanilla extract have a bland taste?

― Dan Perry '08 (Dan Perry), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 13:46 (nineteen years ago) link

That's exactly my point, Dan! Have you ever drank vanilla flavouring straight out of the bottle? IT ACTUALLY PHYSICALLY HURTS YOU. That's what listening to this music is like. It is concentrated, painful, blandness.

― Danger Whore (kate), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 13:47 (nineteen years ago) link

it's actually "fun"

― Ronan (Ronan), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 13:53 (nineteen years ago) link

Then it isn't really bland, is it?

― Dan Perry '08 (Dan Perry), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 13:54 (nineteen years ago) link

Dan otm.

― Ronan (Ronan), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 13:55 (nineteen years ago) link

Yes it is. It is cocaine white blandness. It just *sounds* slick, it sounds so slick that you can't actually hear the music because it just slides off your eardrum.

― Danger Whore (kate), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 13:56 (nineteen years ago) link

actually one thing that bugs me about 'tits on the radio' is the way they repeat a line just before the chorus - i can't really see the worth of that. it's still a great track tho.

slick != bland. tho that is subjective, i love a lot of slickly produced music. dirty edge = over-rated, possibly more than the siziziziziz

― the neurotic awakening of s (blueski), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 13:58 (nineteen years ago) link

ESPECIALLY in indie-influenced circles.

― Dan Perry '08 (Dan Perry), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 13:58 (nineteen years ago) link

Slick does not equal bland if there is substance to the music. I mean, I love bubblegum, I love slickness in music, if it's the right kind of slickness. This is like slickness as a *substitute* for music, rather than shining up something that is already good.

But yes, all this is subjective.

― Danger Whore (kate), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:00 (nineteen years ago) link

The substance is there, Swygart nailed why the Scissor Sisters are quite good perfectly in his Pop Eye thread when 'Laura' charted - I quoted it on the Top 100 Albums 2000-2004 thread as a result.

― the neurotic awakening of s (blueski), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:01 (nineteen years ago) link

disco=cocaine music=blandness etc etc etc etc

― Ronan (Ronan), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:04 (nineteen years ago) link

Scissor Sisters live - grebt.
Scissor Sisters on record - "meh", ranging to "argh what is this shit?"

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:05 (nineteen years ago) link

reading the thread again, some very interesting points. stirmonster think they're trying too hard too, and i can see that. but conversely adam was suggesting they're not trying hard enough. i think they could stand to be more like Deee-Lite, they already have better songs than Deee-Lite (apart from THE ONE)

― the neurotic awakening of s (blueski), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:06 (nineteen years ago) link

I mean, its cabaret, and if you're going to do cabaret you might as well do it all singing all dancing PROPERLY rather than the muted offering on the album.

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:06 (nineteen years ago) link

I don't like the music, I don't like the way it sounds, I don't like their melodies, I don't like their harmonic structures, their lyrics make me want to scratch my own ears out, I dislike their production, I dislike their image, I dislike everything about them.

Yeah, that's just me being shallow and "indie", yeah.

― Danger Whore (kate), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:07 (nineteen years ago) link

it's not meant to be full on cabaret, it's meant to be cheesey rock music.

personally, though the album's not all classic, I think the good songs are better than most of the utter drivel in the album charts, at least there's a sense of difference there.

and "comfortably numb" is a brilliant record.

― Ronan (Ronan), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:09 (nineteen years ago) link

The Scissor Sisters are vile. Robbie Williams jamming with Jools Holland. Rolf Harris in bell bottoms with the Young Generation in 1973. Cannon and Ball's Casino with special guest Nick Kamen. Tom Fucking Jones. Nitty gritty. Music being played on the stereo system of that smug, smirking woman on the Standard Life advert, having just read the news about the 1000 redundancies Standard Life are making and licking her lips at the increased dividends these job losses will bring to her as a customer, and thus enabling her to flick crumbs of coulis at the dole queue from within the second BMW which she has been able to buy with said increased dividend plus or minus interest. Smug Roaring Boys spawn who ought to have their livers cut out with fucking scissors and fed forcefully to them via their newly denuded eye sockets, before having their semi-severed heads nailed to the door of the Islington Marquee and being forced to listen to the Go West remixes album until they expire painfully and pedantically in pallid puffs of arduous apnoea.

― Donnie Smith The Quiz Kid, Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:10 (nineteen years ago) link

Also it's not as good as the last one.

― Donnie Smith The Quiz Kid, Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:13 (nineteen years ago) link

can you strickly have a 'crumb' of coulis?

― HKM, Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:13 (nineteen years ago) link

look come on this thread is on indie overload already without a clichéd tirade about the evil men in suits

― Ronan (Ronan), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:14 (nineteen years ago) link

I went to a show of theirs once with some friends and we all forgot to listen to the music and just kind of talked to each other the whole time, although we did boogie a little bit. I was surprised by how "straight" the crowd was, given how bent the Scissors are (haha er). But people were really going bonkers over them.

Kate they kind of slide off my ears, too, but I'm not sure it's because their arrangements or production are slick, as much as it's just all kind of unmemorably executed. I lurrrve male/female vocal combos in bands but nothing grabs me about this one. Like I said though, I wasn't really paying attention.

― You've Got to Pick Up Every Stitch (tracerhand), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:15 (nineteen years ago) link

(xpost to HKM)

They used to do them in Le Petit Blanc.

― Donnie Smith The Quiz Kid, Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:15 (nineteen years ago) link

Tracer on the money. Unmemorable would be the word. I honestly would not remember any of their songs if I hadn't been utterly overexposed to them.

― Danger Whore (kate), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:20 (nineteen years ago) link

totally disagree about 'unmemorable' - their tracks really linger in my head, epitomy of catchy

― the neurotic awakening of s (blueski), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:25 (nineteen years ago) link

ONLY BECAUSE THEY HAVE BEEN RAMMED INTO YOUR HEAD AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN LIKE PINOCHET'S TORTURE POLICE!!!!

― Donnie Smith The Quiz Kid, Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:26 (nineteen years ago) link

i don't think they have. i didn't even hear 'Comfortably Numb' until it entered the Top 10, i thought it was a bit silly but fine. i missed the buzz on 'Laura' last year but that had instant appeal. I didn't hear the album until after Glastonbury where they did a great show or at least it was a great time. TV and radio coverage seems to have been no more than the normal level and in fact I was surprised the album has sold as well as it has.

― the neurotic awakening of s (blueski), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:29 (nineteen years ago) link

They're not as good as Alcazar.

― Dom Passantino (Dom Passantino), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:31 (nineteen years ago) link

(xpost)

Didn't surprise me. Look at the album charts this (or any) year...Katie Melua, Dido, Keane...shit sells.

― Donnie Smith The Quiz Kid, Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:32 (nineteen years ago) link

pretty much horrible. i just can't get past the pisstake-beegees vocals
the new single (Mary) is doing the internet rounds now, for anyone that's interested

― rentboy (rentboy), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:33 (nineteen years ago) link

what is?

(xpost)

do you really think the Siziziziz fit in the same comfy bracket as Melua, Dido and Keane? perhaps a big quadrant of people are buying it cos they've heard it's the thing to buy for parties and dancing and super-fun times or something...maybe they don't actually listen to it. or maybe that's all horseshit.

― the neurotic awakening of s (blueski), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:34 (nineteen years ago) link

comfortably numb is a perfect track for them to cover - they are totally comfortable, easy, undemanding obvious and the feeling they leave me with is ... nothing.

― stelfox, Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:38 (nineteen years ago) link

and marcello how in the name of nigella lawson does one "flick crumbs of coulis", you nutcase?

― stelfox, Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:39 (nineteen years ago) link

Right!!!!! I've finally listened to this album!!!!! Ang again, it's been a bit of a surprise!!!! On the strength of the "Comfortably Numb" I was expecting a mildly annoyingly innoffensive House music flavoured record, and instead got for the most part a late 70s rock/pop record with solid, if slightly workmanlike, production, and reasonably decent tunes!!!!! In fact, at times it comes across almost like a Christopher Cross album with balls!!!!!!

Still don't get this "Scissor Sisters = Super Gay Camp Explosion!!!!!" bobbins tho!!!!! I'd only regard "Tits on the Radio" and "Filthy/Gorgeous" as even remotely camp, and the rest are about as camp as an episode of "One Man and His Dog"!!!!!! Even their "outrageous" image looks suspiciously like it was ripped off 70s fashion- eg that photo shot on the album looks uncannily like the inside cover shot on Roxy Music's "For Your Pleasure"!!!! (And that was far camper- look at Eno, for Cliff's sake!!!!) I mean let's face it, if Scissor Sister dressed like some cartoon ELO rather than a wonky collision of Roxy Music and Manhattan Transfer, they could have released exactly the same album and people would have labelled them "ironic" rather than "camp"!!!!!! (Mind you, given how the media routines equates "gay" with "camp" anyway, maybe not...)

― Old Fart!!! (oldfart_sd), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:39 (nineteen years ago) link

surely gay and camp are synonomous with good logic and reason?

― the neurotic awakening of s (blueski), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:44 (nineteen years ago) link

No, people buy Scissor Sisters records because they are stupid and lazy and think that doing a disco cover of a Pink Floyd song constitutes adventurous new music whereas they are simply gentrified bourgeois corporate gutrot packaged by Polygram to look new.

― Donnie Smith The Quiz Kid, Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:44 (nineteen years ago) link

yeah that's totally why i like them

― s1ocki (slutsky), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:45 (nineteen years ago) link

I once flicked crumbs of coulis at Nigella Lawson. She was trying it.

― Donnie Smith The Quiz Kid, Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:46 (nineteen years ago) link

'Donnie' if you most people buy records because they're always looking for adventurous new music then you're being just as stupid and lazy as you claim they are.

― the neurotic awakening of s (blueski), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:46 (nineteen years ago) link

That is what most people should be buying records for. Otherwise they might as well stick with the ones they already have.

― Donnie Smith The Quiz Kid, Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:48 (nineteen years ago) link

steven do you mean that the words "gay" and "camp" mean "logical".

― stelfox, Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:48 (nineteen years ago) link

and may i suggest if you're not actually interested in dancing to this kind of music, it's going to be hard convincing people your criticisms of it are valid

(xpost x2)

lots of people buy records because they find them fun, and because they like to dance to them

stelfox - no gay smoke without camp fire geez

― the neurotic awakening of s (blueski), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:49 (nineteen years ago) link

I wouldn't mind SS if they were actually dancable, but I can't even dance to them. Sigh.

― Danger Whore (kate), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:50 (nineteen years ago) link

well obviously, as in i can't believe you wrote that, other people can dance to them

― the neurotic awakening of s (blueski), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:52 (nineteen years ago) link

I'm not "other people." And I don't want to dance to them. And I am right.

― Donnie Smith The Quiz Kid, Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:52 (nineteen years ago) link

"Dancing" and "fun" are invalid critical memes. Read your Spinoza.

― Donnie Smith The Quiz Kid, Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:54 (nineteen years ago) link

Donnie Smith The Cliched Indie Kid, I didn't particularly like the Floyd cover myself!!!! (Basically because it didn't go FAR ENOUGH!!!!! They really should have done a hardcore gabber remix job on it!!!!!) But I was most surprised to like the rest of album when i heard it from "unofficial" sources!!!!

Hence I bought it, but not because of the Floyd cover, in fact despite it and all that "camp" hype!!!!

Hence your "theory" is utter twallox!!!!

― Old Fart!!! (oldfart_sd), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:54 (nineteen years ago) link

idiocy levels on overdrive now.

― Ronan (Ronan), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:54 (nineteen years ago) link

oh man, when resorting to "this is how other people SHOULD act" you know the argument is over

i just don't like the record. can't explain it. i love disco. i love fun retrovival records. i love camp as tits records.
i just don't care for this one at all. sounds so trite (and "forced" at the same time) that its really rubbed me the wrong way every time i've put it on.

but i would certainly never tell anyone else that they "SHOULD" or "SHOULD NOT" enjoy it for whatever reason they do. yuck.

― rentboy (rentboy), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:54 (nineteen years ago) link

in the name of clarity:

i thinking marcello means couscous. coulis is like a kind of thin sauce type dealio they sort of do weird 'lines' of at posh restaurants, like petit blanc indeed.

― HKM, Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:55 (nineteen years ago) link

the idea that the Floyd cover is "new" or meant to be new is so utterly ridiculous.

― Ronan (Ronan), Wednesday, 15 September 2004 14:55 (nineteen years ago) link

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