Redondo Blech!

I like Morrissey. Or, at any rate, I like The Smiths, which is, as they say, close enough for government work. And I like Patti Smith. I've seen her live a couple of times, and I worship her first album: if the universe were at all fair (to me), I would be able to sing a karaoke version of "Land: Horses/Land Of A Thousand Dances/La Mer (De)" in any bar in the country. Which, of course, would not be fair to any of the patrons of those bars, but being a solipsist, that doesn't much concern me now, does it?

At any rate, having just heard Morrissey's live version of "Redondo Beach", I am now confident that these are two tastes that do not go great together. Morrissey makes the mistake of trying to sing the song as if he is Patti Smith, which just makes him sound like the worst female inpersonator ever. Doing an impersonation of Patti Smith, which would seem like an odd choice for a drag queen. It's just miserable, which, considering the singer, should be appropriate, but it really is not. I'm just glad I didn't pay to hear it.

I also found a site that features some MP3s that the Mosquitos did live at a radio station. The Mosquitos are probably my favorite live band -- which, considering how rarely I see live music, really doesn't amount to much. They opened for Air, and for the time that they were onstage, I just had one of those "Perfect Pop" epiphanies that happen so rarely nowadays. All the stoner hippies were there to see the headliner (who frankly sucked), but I could have left after the opening band and gotten to sleep before 2AM that night. Regrets, I have a few...

The Mosquitos are, however, a much different band on their studio recordings than they are live. Live they had a live rhythm section, and they swing with vigor, while on the CD they relied on synths and drum machines. So I was disappointed when I bought the CD. (One of the best songs from the first CD is available for download here. Their sophomore effort was a marked improvement.) However, I totally recommend you see them live: even their Portugese verion of "Bizarre Love Triangle" is a lot better than it sounds. Plus, the lead singer's blouse was completely see-through (in a hippie, "Comfortable-with-my-body" way, not a creepy peep-show way), which may not matter much to me, but I know some of you guys and girls out there would get a kick out of it. Plus, she had on-stage charisma, which I've found is pretty rare.

The final issue of Vinamarama came out today, and I officially have a crush on Ali. I think it may be his eyebrows. God bless that Grant Morrison.

I received a call today from an academic library in Idaho (!), asking if I was still interested in the position that I applied for. So now I have to hook my old computer back up to try to find an academic writing sample to send to her -- I believe that it is a tenure-track position. In less pleasant news, the repairs on the Focus came to $380.06. I am currently preparing myself for my defection from Ford Country.