Johnny Marr interview in SPIN mentions why The Smiths won't reunite, Classically Smiths

Shoplifterromo sends the link:

Johnny Marr on His New Solo Album, Why the Smiths Won’t Reunite, and the Time He Almost Fell in a Volcano - SPIN
Maggie Serota // September 25, 2018

Excerpt:

I’m not going to ask you if the Smiths are ever going to reunite, because I know the answer is no. What I will ask is, do you feel like you dodged a bullet not reuniting given the political positions Morrissey has taken recently?

I don’t know whether I dodged a bullet because of that. I just feel like we never reformed because we shouldn’t have reformed. I don’t like ‘dodging the bullet,’ because there’s so many reasons why we haven’t reformed. I think that’s fair to say, and I don’t think that would come as any kind of puzzle or surprise to anybody. I don’t feel like I dodged any bullets. And also we never really got close to reforming, except for a conversation that happened quite a long time ago.

What did you think of that “Classically Smiths” event that kind of fell apart very quickly with Andy Rourke and Mike Joyce?

There wasn’t really much time to think anything of it. I heard about it when everybody else heard about it, which tells you all you need to know, really. It was particularly disrespectful that I wasn’t consulted, and I kind of feel it was a farce in the way it went down, really. I thought about it how I imagine everybody else thought about it, that it was really kind of sketchy. That is disappointing to me, that the band gets chained to that kind of sketchiness. It’s a good thing those guys weren’t organizing the gigs when we were together, otherwise we would’ve never gone on the stage.

 

[Anonymous]

His ham-fisted, clunking power chords and stumbling solos have ruined just about every Smiths cover. Plus I believe his lack of skill and creativity have been a major factor in the slide in quality of Morrissey's work since 2005. This is of course just my opinion, but I think you'll find many people agree with me.

I'm guessing you're not a musician? You seem to have heard some generic criticism of Tobias and are just repeating it parrot style. Would you like to point out the ham-fisted, clunking power chords and stumbling solos in the gorgeously restrained Smiler With Knife? Or the beautiful, intricate coda in Bury the Living? Or the wonderfully nuanced I'm Not a Man, or the accomplished jangle-pop melodicism of The Bullfighter Dies? Morrissey's musicians have really upped their game on the last two albums - the problems have been his increasingly dire lyrics which amazingly now have the power to ruin his songs, when once they were the strongest element.

 

[Anonymous]

Yes, true. But this is usually in reference to a 'Smiths Reunion'. I don't remember him being asked specifically about collaborating with Marr again. I always wonder if Marr sent him some music along the years..

This nonsense about and obsession with a reunion is verifiably pointless. Johnny Marr has sent - exactly - f***-ALL to Morrissey. Not even the brown paper sack filled with dogshit and a firecracker, he so richly deserves.

Johnny Marr has a bountiful, multi-faceted, career. He can do whatever he wants, whenever he wants, with whomever he wants.

Why the f*** would someone with the brilliant oeuvre of Johnny Marr waste his time on a bitter old twat that's been fat Elvis for the past 20 years?

 

[Famous when dead]

Slightly off-topic, but thought some might appreciate it as it was very recent.
Bigmouth... from UC Theatre, Berkeley, CA, September 25, 2018:



All credit to baby j - who got great footage for those interested.
See her channel for a few more from the same gig.
(https://www.youtube.com/user/badseed1313).
Regards,
FWD.

 

[Anonymous]

I'm guessing you're not a musician? You seem to have heard some generic criticism of Tobias and are just repeating it parrot style. Would you like to point out the ham-fisted, clunking power chords and stumbling solos in the gorgeously restrained Smiler With Knife? Or the beautiful, intricate coda in Bury the Living? Or the wonderfully nuanced I'm Not a Man, or the accomplished jangle-pop melodicism of The Bullfighter Dies? Morrissey's musicians have really upped their game on the last two albums - the problems have been his increasingly dire lyrics which amazingly now have the power to ruin his songs, when once they were the strongest element.

Are you a musician, li'l shooter? Pony up a link. Let's hear your stuff! ...or f***ing zip it.

Peppermint's comment was spot on. Ham-fisted GARBAGE. C-grade, off-strip casino rubbish. Zero soul. Just a bunch of cut-rate, pay-to-play lap-dogs following an inflated c*** around, hoping for the one that doesn't get cancelled.

Now THAT'S a band!

 

[vegan cro spirit 99]

Slightly off-topic, but thought some might appreciate it as it was very recent.
Bigmouth... from UC Theatre, Berkeley, CA, September 25, 2018:



All credit to baby j - who got great footage for those interested.
See her channel for a few more from the same gig.
(https://www.youtube.com/user/badseed1313).
Regards,
FWD.

WtF????????????

IS THE HALAL BUTCHER MIX???

 

[vegan cro spirit 99]

This nonsense about and obsession with a reunion is verifiably pointless. Johnny Marr has sent - exactly - f***-ALL to Morrissey. Not even the brown paper sack filled with dogshit and a firecracker, he so richly deserves.

Johnny Marr has a bountiful, multi-faceted, career. He can do whatever he wants, whenever he wants, with whomever he wants.

Why the f*** would someone with the brilliant oeuvre of Johnny Marr waste his time on a bitter old twat that's been fat Elvis for the past 20 years?

Brilliant career, ????
WTF are you playing with rubber bands ffs??

DramaJ stamps his CDs in his himself in his small, if marginally cozy, hut in Manchesteter.

 

[Anonymous]

This nonsense about and obsession with a reunion is verifiably pointless. Johnny Marr has sent - exactly - f***-ALL to Morrissey. Not even the brown paper sack filled with dogshit and a firecracker, he so richly deserves.

Johnny Marr has a bountiful, multi-faceted, career. He can do whatever he wants, whenever he wants, with whomever he wants.

Why the f*** would someone with the brilliant oeuvre of Johnny Marr waste his time on a bitter old twat that's been fat Elvis for the past 20 years?

My apologies to Elvis and his loved ones. The comparison wasn't meant to offend. I should have said Rick Diculous.

 

[Anonymous]

WtF????????????

IS THE HALAL BUTCHER MIX???

Hey east-pop! If you clean the residual wax from your ears (the shit that's built up from your years of eating pizza pops, frozen burek and your foster-mom's shitty sausages), you might realize that THAT'S how the f***ing song is supposed to sound. Morrissey's merry crew of dwarves sound like a trudging, off-key grade-school band of wankers by comparison.

Need a q-tip? ...and a new jerk-sock? Tell me what you need. I'm here for you, child.

 

[vegan cro spirit 99]

Are you a musician, li'l shooter? Pony up a link. Let's hear your stuff! ...or f***ing zip it.

Peppermint's comment was spot on. Ham-fisted GARBAGE. C-grade, off-strip casino rubbish. Zero soul. Just a bunch of cut-rate, pay-to-play lap-dogs following an inflated c*** around, hoping for the one that doesn't get cancelled.

Now THAT'S a band!

dont so harsh with DramaJ FFS have some compassion.
true his broke on the road but as long as there is ONE sucker
per venue willing to pay the 1oo dollars VIP the band will
be able to eat.

 

[Zoinks]

Slightly off-topic, but thought some might appreciate it as it was very recent.
Bigmouth... from UC Theatre, Berkeley, CA, September 25, 2018:



All credit to baby j - who got great footage for those interested.
See her channel for a few more from the same gig.
(https://www.youtube.com/user/badseed1313).
Regards,
FWD.

This sounds great, really rockin' and exciting! Johnny's put together a great band for himself. Love hearing the audience singing along!

 

[Amy]

I, for one, totally disagree.. I find his playing very deep and touching, piercing. He has a strong presence, and he's curious and stylish, and melancholy. There's a great connection between MOZ and him, and it's felt.

I've read this a few times and I can't tell if you're taking the mick. I mean, I can't think of anyone whose playing is less deep and touching. He's a very limited, clunky punk-type player. "Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want" is deep, touching and melancholy, but uh...?

 

[evennow]

I get a sense from what I've absorbed over the years, that Morrissey and Marr have never sat together and properly discussed / apologised for / argued out the reasons for the end of The Smiths.

I agree with your whole post, but I think it comes down to what you wrote above and the music. Until all four can put the music above and beyond all else there is no hope, nor real reason for them to come together again.

Having created so much great music in such a short period of time it would be, or more appropriately, would have been great if they could have put the past behind them. Grudges are hard to let go of though. I have a few that disconnected me from people who I considered my friends so I can understand how it might be difficult if not impossible to overcome.

The dynamic between the band that led to music that left a mark on our lives, and will continue to speak to the world as evidenced by the recent JT pic is still there clear, present and viable as if it were released today. My parents are divorced, and for a long time I hoped they would get back together again, but sometimes people split for good reasons, and acceptance is difficult, but in the end necessary.

 

[Amy]

I'm guessing you're not a musician? You seem to have heard some generic criticism of Tobias and are just repeating it parrot style. Would you like to point out the ham-fisted, clunking power chords and stumbling solos in the gorgeously restrained Smiler With Knife? Or the beautiful, intricate coda in Bury the Living? Or the wonderfully nuanced I'm Not a Man, or the accomplished jangle-pop melodicism of The Bullfighter Dies? Morrissey's musicians have really upped their game on the last two albums - the problems have been his increasingly dire lyrics which amazingly now have the power to ruin his songs, when once they were the strongest element.

Not one of those songs are any good, though, are they?

"I'm Not a Man" is different, for sure, but it goes on far too long and lacks any kind of melody.
"Smiler with Knife" - again, bizarrely empty as a song; these pieces have so little musical structure that it might as well be Moz on his own.

 

[vegan cro spirit 99]

I agree with your whole post, but I think it comes down to what you wrote above and the music. Until all four can put the music above and beyond all else there is no hope, nor real reason for them to come together again.

Having created so much great music in such a short period of time it would be, or more appropriately, would have been great if they could have put the past behind them. Grudges are hard to let go of though. I have a few that disconnected me from people who I considered my friends so I can understand how it might be difficult if not impossible to overcome.

The dynamic between the band that led to music that left a mark on our lives, and will continue to speak to the world as evidenced by the recent JT pic is still there clear, present and viable as if it were released today. My parents are divorced, and for a long time I hoped they would get back together again, but sometimes people split for good reasons, and acceptance is difficult, but in the end necessary.

YOUR PARENTS are DIVORCED??? WTF??? are they Mr and Mrs Methuselah???
are they like 9000 years old?

 

[vegan cro spirit 99]

Hey east-pop! If you clean the residual wax from your ears (the shit that's built up from your years of eating pizza pops, frozen burek and your foster-mom's shitty sausages), you might realize that THAT'S how the f***ing song is supposed to sound. Morrissey's merry crew of dwarves sound like a trudging, off-key grade-school band of wankers by comparison.

Need a q-tip? ...and a new jerk-sock? Tell me what you need. I'm here for you, child.

Your fixation is getting out of hand FFS

The song was written to be sung in english not some unknown cro magnon dialect FFS

Poor miserable DramaJ, maybe he never learned English properly as a child as he was sooooo
poor and penniless.

 

[Anonymous]

dont so harsh with DramaJ FFS have some compassion.
true his broke on the road but as long as there is ONE sucker
per venue willing to pay the 1oo dollars VIP the band will
be able to eat.

Yes. ...and for $200 you can get a ticket to one of Morrissey's casino show's, a copy of his latest, over-crammed, elevator hits reissue and the pleasure of not only not having to meet the wanker but - also not having to go at all. The inevitable cancellation will make things easier on your sense of sanity and wallet.

f***ing brilliant.

 

[Peppermint]

I'm guessing you're not a musician? You seem to have heard some generic criticism of Tobias and are just repeating it parrot style. Would you like to point out the ham-fisted, clunking power chords and stumbling solos in the gorgeously restrained Smiler With Knife? Or the beautiful, intricate coda in Bury the Living? Or the wonderfully nuanced I'm Not a Man, or the accomplished jangle-pop melodicism of The Bullfighter Dies? Morrissey's musicians have really upped their game on the last two albums - the problems have been his increasingly dire lyrics which amazingly now have the power to ruin his songs, when once they were the strongest element.

Wrong, actually. I am a classically trained musician with a good pair of ears, and a music fan of most genres over five decades. I hear nothing 'restrained', 'nuanced' or 'accomplished' in Jesse's playing, but I do hear a basic lack of skill and imagination, and quite a few mistakes. I'm not going to get into a slanging match over it because it's clear we're not going to agree, but I will say that sometimes it's possible to hear what you want to hear.

 

[gordyboy9]

mr marr you have been found guilty of butchery on a slaughterhouse scale and murder of a once fantastic song,the punishment, well there is no punishment that would do this crime justice,for the sake of humanity and people with perfect hearing please STOP.

 

[Peppermint]

Slightly off-topic, but thought some might appreciate it as it was very recent.
Bigmouth... from UC Theatre, Berkeley, CA, September 25, 2018:



All credit to baby j - who got great footage for those interested.
See her channel for a few more from the same gig.
(https://www.youtube.com/user/badseed1313).
Regards,
FWD.

Actually, that vocal was a lot better than I was expecting. He seems to be adapting the songs to fit his vocal style, rather than trying to 'do it like Morrissey', which - in the absence of the real thing - seems like a decent plan. Well done, Johnny.

 

[Eldritch]

Your math is completely off my dude! It's ALREADY an average, we don't know the original scores. What are they teaching in school these days?

Exactly. Metacritic takes all reviews and puts them on a scale 0--100. This shows that LIHS reviews were about 3/5 while Call The Comet got mostly four star reviews.