Morrissey Talks Label Troubles, Glastonbury - from Pitchfork magazine online

There is a perverse relationship he's stuck in (seemingly; it's unfair to judge from a distance, but isn't that what forums are for ha ha). I mean he complains about how artificial the charts are and how any dumb talentless hack can get to number one with a good PR campaign, and then complain he's never had "huge promotion.". People I've known personally who are in similar habits of burning bridges (as he's done with many labels) are often locked in death-spirals with whomever they burn bridges with (proclaiming hatred but hoping they will chase after him for more, more, more.....). He seems fixated on the labels he detests.... Perhaps since he eschews romantic life partners, he's formed dysfunctional, co-dependent relations with record labels instead.......

For all the praise he seems to be getting, I'm struck by how utterly disingenuous his quote was. We all know the reason he will not release via the internet is because he views it as releasing to a small base of fans and beneath his pop star status. He has said this in past interviews. He seems to need to be wooed by a label, all the while decrying their lack of understanding and mismanagement of his releases.

I think what troubles me most is that if these songs were culled out of an album's worth of material to attract the attention of a label; well were in for another lyrical subpar outing. These can't be the cream of the crop?

He has never followed up an album with another which sounds nearly identical, and I pray he doesn't start now.
 
I think this interview was done by email, which would give Moz more time to craft his answers than in a spoken one. I'm not complaining though! It was a good read, good read...

He's been asked about the DIY route before and has clearly stated (more in this interview than ever) that he is simply stuck in the past with regards to having large amounts of support behind his music (because the label wants to release it, not because they have to). But one point that hasn't been put to him is that he could perhaps keep a larger share of the money made, which is something he surely wouldn't argue with. Didn't Radiohead do quite well with the "pay what you want" scheme of In Rainbows (despite up to 1/3 not paying anything)? Nonetheless, having the logo of a major label on his record is something he can't do without -- our kid will not change on that point.

The point which really bothers me is on one hand he absolutely refuses the DIY approach, while on the other states he must write songs, they are the only purpose for his life. So, I'm left confused: he seems to adore being adored, must write music, but refuses to release directly to his fans. The only conclusion I can arrive at is: money and fame are greater than song writing and his fans. The latter point I might add donning a tee shirt telling one of your prominent fan sites to go f*** themselves is not really helping to move me off my position.
 
This interview was picked up in a site apparently dealing with technology trends. Does it suggest that an album released online would rapidly find near a million homes? !
http://www.tgdaily.com/games-and-en...122-unplugging-myspace-and-the-music-universe

"The album is currently fully recorded and ready to go, with the singer debuting three tracks from the album last month at the BBC."

It occurred to me, he really is playing with fire here. Nowadays everything leaks. If the album is really done and he is merely waiting for a label, then he better be damn sure he knows exactly who has every recording.

P.S. Why does it have to be done?! I hate the new songs! Please tell me that's not what the entire album (tentatively titled: "f*** Me Solo") is going to sound like?
 
What a backward Arse.
He is the PERFECT artist for DIY. He has devoted fans and they are the only fans he is EVER going to have. There are no 20 years olds at his gigs. Fans follow him from gig to gig and they are older and have some jingle in their pockets to buy things. And they WOULD buy anything of quality offered them . Crikey . He could do different sleeve design on a self-made LP and sell it over and over at every gig if he wanted to .

And why is his merch such utter crap while we are discussing it?
 
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He has devoted fans and they are the only fans he is EVER going to have.QUOTE]

Not really true - there are plenty of people who have a passing interest in Morrissey. Many of them attend his concerts, but would only buy his current album if there was tons of hype or a good single on the radio. You are the Quarry sold 400,000, yet the critically superior (according to Metacritic website) Years of Refusal sold 90,000.
There are tons of floating voters out there who will take an interest if the conditions are right. If Morrissey can attract them, he can sell enough albums to satisfy a decent record label. Trouble is, he needs two brilliant singles to do this and I'm not certain that any of the 3 new songs would qualify unless they were improved considerably by a producer.
 
What a backward Arse. He is the PERFECT artist for DIY. He has devoted fans and they are the only fans he is EVER going to have?

Not really true - there are plenty of people who have a passing interest in Morrissey. Many of them attend his concerts, but would only buy his current album if there was tons of hype or a good single on the radio. You are the Quarry sold 400,000, yet the critically superior (according to Metacritic website) Years of Refusal sold 90,000.
There are tons of floating voters out there who will take an interest if the conditions are right. If Morrissey can attract them, he can sell enough albums to satisfy a decent record label. Trouble is, he needs two brilliant singles to do this and I'm not certain that any of the 3 new songs would qualify unless they were improved considerably by a producer.
 
There are no 20 years olds at his gigs.

Completely untrue. I was one, for a start, and I saw many, many others in their late teens/early 20s at the York and Leeds gigs.
 
Didn't realise you were 20, Amy.
You seem to have the perspective of someone who's been following Morrissey since day one!

Completely untrue. I was one, for a start, and I saw many, many others in their late teens/early 20s at the York and Leeds gigs.
 
What a backward Arse.
He is the PERFECT artist for DIY. He has devoted fans and they are the only fans he is EVER going to have. There are no 20 years olds at his gigs. Fans follow him from gig to gig and they are older and have some jingle in their pockets to buy things. And they WOULD buy anything of quality offered them . Crikey . He could do different sleeve design on a self-made LP and sell it over and over at every gig if he wanted to .

And why is his merch such utter crap while we are discussing it?

I'm exactly 20 and went to see him nearly two weeks ago in York.
 
Didn't realise you were 20, Amy.
You seem to have the perspective of someone who's been following Morrissey since day one!

Is that a polite way of saying I'm a sad obsessive? :D
Yes, I'm 20... I started my Moz collection with "Quarry" (of course) and then zig-zagged back and forth between his solo and Smiths material until I had it all, and that was about six years ago. Morrissey was the first "pop star" whose personality/charisma I really connected with - I remember spending weeks and weeks just reading through his old 80s/90s interviews and trying to get a sense of the bigger picture, I think I must have seen every single one. I study English Lit so I was familiar with a lot of his lyrical 'sources' and reading through them made me feel like I understood him more.

Anyway I digress - what I mean to say is that I feel like I've been there since day 1 because I spent so long slotting all the little pieces of Morrissey's career/persona/'manifesto' together in my head after I first heard the music. I've done the same with Marr to a certain extent - and though I've become more critical/analytical over time (you can't really gush over "The Kid's A Looker" when you've heard "I've Changed My Plea To Guilty" and so on), I still have a lot of affection for the *figure* of Morrissey as I understand him. Dreadful new songs aside, I'm not ready to give up on him just yet.
 
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Is it my imagination or is he hitting 'em out of the f***ing park with his interviews again?!

It's like 1985, and shit!

You're right, spot on - another fab interview
 
"My current band are exceptional"


...and that, Moz, is where you are dreadfully, miserably wrong :(

Haven't dropped by here in a while, this post reminds me why.
This type of negativity is sucking the very lifeblood out of the world...
 
What I find odd is that he's able to find a label to release a reissue of Bona Drag, another meaningless best of compilation and a b-sides album but no-one's interested in new material. Sigh.
 
Haven't dropped by here in a while, this post reminds me why.
This type of negativity is sucking the very lifeblood out of the world...

Slight exaggeration, no? Jeez. Either you've completely ignored my last post or you're just trying to stir things up. If you think his current band are "exceptional" then you need your ears (and head) examined.
 
What I find odd is that he's able to find a label to release a reissue of Bona Drag, another meaningless best of compilation and a b-sides album but no-one's interested in new material. Sigh.

It seemed EMI approached Morrissey to collaborate with the reissue because he issued a statement on 14th August 2008 asking fans not to buy Rhino boxset.
 
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