.“‘u’!; f
MRKJHini nu
' . W‘s»... ‘ {
Judas Priestaftera tripto Stud-U-Like band. but. yes. when we're all sitting in thatcourtroomdoingbattle with these . . . lawyers. it did bring out a sort ofcamaraderie in tis.‘ Since the case hinged on subliminals rather than the general content oftheirwork. l’riest had the luxury of not needing to doubt their innocence for a moment. The raging controversy on yiolent and Satanic imagery in heavy metal has mainly concerned what actually is heard and If Priest haven‘t been given reason to question their songs and image.
neither have their experiences jolted them into supporting other groups being pursued through the courts. or
i in campaigns by the Parents Music Resource (’enter. 'l‘heir camaraderie
doesn‘t extend to 3 Live Crew. for instance. as 'l‘ipton comments
tersely. ‘No. that's just a totally
different issue to ours. 'l‘heirs is
basically a censorship thing. whereas
ours just had no foundation
whatsoever.'
’l‘heir trial hasn‘t put them off
America — ‘We chose a career oyer
there. so we have to deal with their
. legal system' - or made them change
3 their writing and recording habits —
‘We‘ye never written in any way
that‘s condoned the use of drugs or
alcohol or yiolence. so we really had nothing tochange' — and. best of all.
! they're playing with 'renewed energy
and yigour. in abundance‘.
After eighteen years. too. ‘We‘ye never been a band that's let the grass grow under our feet .‘ 'l’ipton reassures me. ‘We're very aware of all the youngsters. and we keep up
with them. you know." Indeed. sir. Judas l’ries‘Ip/ay The Play/louse. Llfliinburglz on 'l'lzurs'duy 28.
.-_........ t v CLASSICAL
,NHJSKSJ,
Rediscovering Weill
While Kurt Weill‘s work forstage remains among the most popularofthe century. his reputation as a symphonist has been almost non-existent. Scottish audiences, though, are enjoying an
unprecedented opportunity to judge the
merits of his Symphonies, with the RSNO having played both underthe baton of Matthais Bamert in the current season, and the SCO now performing Symphony No 2, with Lionel Friend conducung.
Bamert discovered Weill‘s music
twenty years ago through ‘The Rise And
Fall Of The City Of Mahagonny’, one of the great radical operas from his pre-Warassociation with playwright and polemicist Bertolt Brecht. The Symphonies revealed facets ofWeiIl‘s work which were different in character to eitherhis pre-Warcabaret manner, or the later popular musical style he adopted after fleeing Nazi Germany to America.
‘I never had a chance to conduct them until now,‘ Bamert told me. ‘Twenty years ago they were not considered at all important, and they are still notwell known. I think his style became very popularfhrough his songs, and perhaps people did not find that same style there. And of course,’ he laughs, ‘as soon as someone finds success in a more popular form, the critical establishmentbecomes very critical.‘
The Second Symphony is considerably more redolent ofWeill's
Kurt Weill
stage music than the earlier piece, but i
even here it is not really the Kurt Weill that we know through works like ‘Mahagonny‘.
‘In the Symphony No 1, he is very much a young composer looking for a style, and it actually sounds more contemporary than the second one, more underthe influence of Schoenberg and the composers of that period. They are both very interesting, but the Symphony No 2 is more straight-forward and more accessible in its musical language.‘ (Kenny Mathieson)
Weill‘s Symphony No 2 is featured in the SCO programmes in Glasgow on March 27 and Edinburgh on March 30. See Classical Listings.
um:- Disaffected
Bleach
For those who trust the music press implicitly (and there must be some of you out there), Bleach will surely top this month's gig list for sheer curiosity value. Eulogistic reviews ottheirfirst two EPs ‘Eclipse' and ‘Snag‘ (dig the trendy one-word titles) and of their intense, rambling live shows have verged on ridiculous degrees at reverence, not least forsinger Salli Carson and her repetitive chanty vocal style, and have led to inaccurate comparisons with bands like Lush.
GuitaristNeil Singleton is understandably sceptical. ‘The only comparison we have with these bands isthefemale singerandthat's easy journalismto pigeonhole bands like that.“
However, media adulation hasjust about been mirrored by public
acceptance. The band feel that this comes downto the usual combination oftalent, hard work and favourable circumstances. ‘As we‘ve progressed, part ofthe thing has been the luck of the timing. We seem to have come along just atthe righttime, butthen that can come back on you. You‘ve got to believe that whatever the press and the hype, after so long you can establish
yourselves and get over all that.
Scenes can come and go but if you‘re
any sort of band you‘ll still be about.’
Unfortunately the group show no desire to manipulate theirhyperbolic press—they're too preoccupied with predicting the arrival of the backlash. This insecurity may have something to do with the speed of their recognition. Like so many other current indie pretenders, they’re still fledgllngs of the scene, anxious to spread their wings and furtherrealisetheir potential.
‘We'd like to be around fora good couple ofyears,’ declares Neil, ‘because everything is happening so fast and that‘s not our idea of what we're about. We'd like to be in control again and you certainly can't do that if you‘re just going to be around for six months.‘ (Fiona Shepherd)
Bleach play The Venue, Edinburgh on Fri 22, King Tut's, Glasgow on Sat 23
' and the Bay Hotel, Gourock on Sun 24.
THE E
l
T H E
r. CAFE
OPEN
LUNCH Monday-Saturday Noon-7. 30pm
DINNER Monday-Thursday S. 30- l I pm
Friday-Saturday $.30-Midnight
Sunday 6. 30- I 0.
SUNDAY BRUNCH Noon- 39m
APPETISERS I2 noon-8pm Daily
ITY E
:9 BLAIR STREET EDINBDRUH
OJI 2200'25
J
The List 22 March — 4April 199133