(always has to be personal dig at Morrissey)
I’ve been listening to The Smiths since I was inside the womb -- no, seriously. There’s a photo of my teenage mother fashioning distressed Levi jeans with
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"I’ve been listening to The Smiths since I was inside the womb — no, seriously.
There’s a photo of my teenage mother fashioning distressed Levi jeans with a Smiths t-shirt while pregnant with me, and my first onesie matched. Not to mention my first concert ever was Morrissey in Los Angeles when I was ten.
Forty years ago today, The Smiths released their self-titled debut, which would go on to change an entire sphere of British music. At a time when bands like New Order, The Cure and Siouxsie and The Banshees were blasting through the radio waves with their heavy, elaborate wailings, The Smiths came in with Morrissey’s drab vocals and Johnny Marr’s elevated guitar work — a combination full of sweet misery.
Now, before I go on, let’s get this out of the way: I haven’t met a Smiths fan in the last 15 years who doesn’t express their fandom without first apologizing for Morrissey — me included. He sucks as a person, but I love the music so much. Regardless of one’s stance on today’s “cancel culture,” most can agree that Moz has rightfully been criticized for his many racist and clearly miserable rants. Still, there’s something about The Smiths that remains a lifelong commitment — an angsty phase we never really grow out of.
The Smiths is a collection of ten songs that encapsulates Morrisey’s obsession and distinct worldview. The record opens with “Reel Around the Fountain,” a song that’s been suspected to be about child abuse, but ultimately serves as a prime example of Morrissey’s ambiguous lyrics. And to showcase Marr’s distinctive guitar skills, the band tapped “What Difference Does It Make?” and “Hand in Glove” for singles, the latter being hailed by the group, at the time, as the best song they’d ever written.
It’s hard not to agree. In a brief three and a half minutes, “Hand in Glove” showcases exactly what it means to be a Smith and, consequently, a Smiths fan: Moz with his baring heart, Mike Joyce steady on drums, Andy Rourke’s warm basslines and Johnny Marr’s melancholy-soaked guitar riffs. The song, and the entire album, is filled to the brim with reminders that it’s okay to be tender and kind, witty and clever, and that it’s this innate understanding of the human condition — the good, the bad, and the ugly — that makes up the DNA for every Smiths song and fan.
“No, it’s not like any other love,” Morrissey sings atop the cut’s jangly pop melody. “This one is different because it’s ours.”
The album closes with “Suffer Little Children,” another song suspected of being about child abuse. It references the five children killed by Ian Brady and Myra Hindley, later coined the Moors Murders. The song was so shocking upon the record’s release that several retailers refused to carry the album. But whether the content of Smiths music leaves you shocked or not, what makes their music so unique is that many of their songs — filled with homosexual and asexual desire — are all about the nature of lust, but without the trappings of sex.
And that’s what’s most impressive about The Smiths’ debut. That one of the best bands to ever come out of Britain not only seemed to know who they were from the get-go, but managed to capture that character with their first crack at a studio album. Though we may no longer be able to hear The Smiths without first thinking about how much of a tool Morrissey is, or listen to the band again for the first time, we can still put their debut on and be reminded of just what makes them so great and why being a fan is a lifelong commitment. Even if it’s one we didn’t sign up for. "
Samantha Lopez
Samantha Lopez is an Oregon native currently living in Chicago. She has been a gigging music journalist for nearly a decade, with work frequently appearing in Consequence and Paste. In recent years, she has also turned her focus to personal essays and poetry that explore ideas of trauma, mental health, and identity in a modern context. She is currently working on a debut collection of essays, a children’s book with her partner, and scripts for film and television. When not writing, she enjoys traveling, live music, and giving belly rubs to her black lab, Leopold Bloom.
www.slantmagazine.com
www.radiox.co.uk
www.pastemagazine.com
