The Irish Times: Ezra Furman interview - Morrissey mentions (31 Aug., 2019)

Ezra Furman: ‘It’s in my blood to have a fear about encouraging fascism’ - The Irish Times.
By Ed Power

The cult indie singer on his angry new album, falling out of love with Morrissey, Trump’s treatment of refugees and why being gender non-conforming brings everyday peril

Main mention:

"The last time Furman spoke to the Irish Times, in 2015, he described Morrissey as his “hero”. Four years later all our perspectives of the Smiths icon are very different. Old Suedehead recently wore a right-wing “For Britain” pin on the Tonight Show. And he accused Mayor of London Sadiq Khan of being unable to “talk properly”. His halo hasn’t slipped. It’s turned to ashes.

“I’m not really listening to Morrissey or the Smiths lately,” says Furman. “When I do, it’s kind of ruined by thinking about things he’s said. And who he’s putting his support behind. I haven’t been not listening to him because I think it’s wrong to. It’s just hard for me to enjoy.”

He pauses. Furman is trying to walk a line. He may no longer be enamoured of Morrissey. But he doesn’t want to come across as if he’s telling other Smiths fans what they should or should not listen to. He’s not here to preach.

“If you can still enjoy it . . .” he says, trailing off as he gathers his thoughts. “I don’t really believe in trying to erase every Woody Allen movie from history. For one thing, that’s kind of unfair to all the people who worked on those movies or albums or whatever it is. What did they do wrong to have their work erased from culture?

“And secondly . . . we never knew anything about these artists. We’re not friends with them. I never expected my artistic heroes to be ethical heroes. It’s just if it ruins the art for you. For some people it does. For some people it doesn’t. If you were to put on [Smiths uber-weepie] I Know It’s Over Now, I’d be, ‘God, that’s good.’ I still know what’s good.

“You can’t deny that. You can’t be like, ‘yeah, that s*** sucks anyway.’ Maybe it’s a little bit ruined. Maybe it’s forever ruined. It’s hard for me because I’m a songwriter. I need my teachers. I need my texts that I study to get better at this.”"

full


The previous interview cited above that mentioned Morrissey can be found here.


Excerpt from said interview:

"Furman’s knack of catching the listener with a sucker-punch of a lyric before reeling them in with catchy melodies has become his modus operandi. There is a sense of the surreal in some of his songs; others are steeped in the perennial self-deprecating outsider wit that songwriters like Stephin Merritt and Morrissey have made their own.

“They’re my heroes,” he says, unsurprisingly. “They were my early awakening, a realisation that I could do it. They had something unexpected. I could write a joke song really easily, but I think something that might be true for my generation is that there’s a certain irony or detachedness expected of us, even though we really feel sincere. So the only way to sincerity is through a joke. There’s some kind of barrier to get through before you can say ‘I love you’ or ‘I’m hurt’ if you haven’t first pierced this cultural shell in some way.”"

Regards,
FWD.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I disagree with her opinion. However I won't pass judgement on Ezra until I've listened to some of her music.
 
Reasonable as always- Ezra Furman is, in my opinion, one of the greatest musical artists of the last decade. Think a combination of Lou Reed, Dylan and Spingsteen with added gender fluidity.


 
CATASTROPHIC SUCKY MUSIC
whats with the hollering FFS
approaching:handpointright::guardsman::handpointleft: land. doh:
 
Reasonable as always- Ezra Furman is, in my opinion, one of the greatest musical artists of the last decade. Think a combination of Lou Reed, Dylan and Spingsteen with added gender fluidity.



God those are awful. Music for characters in a Wes Anderson movie. But thanks, I wouldn’t have known about this person otherwise.
 
God those are awful. Music for characters in a Wes Anderson movie. But thanks, I wouldn’t have known about this person otherwise.

Nah ezra is supremely talented.
His trouble is he's an idealist.
Morrissey was obviously a massive hero and he feels let down. The sad thing is really he's believing the press too much. He's falling for it.. But maybe his hormone pills are clouding his mind
 
I like the production. It reminds me a little of how Nirvana recorded. There seems hardly any use of compression and the music breathes.
Kurt Cobain hated how Nirvana was recorded. He said Nevermind sounded like Motley Crue. Had he survived, he’d probably been a Donald Trump supporter.
 
Ezra Furman: ‘It’s in my blood to have a fear about encouraging fascism’ - The Irish Times.
By Ed Power

The cult indie singer on his angry new album, falling out of love with Morrissey, Trump’s treatment of refugees and why being gender non-conforming brings everyday peril

Main mention:

"The last time Furman spoke to the Irish Times, in 2015, he described Morrissey as his “hero”. Four years later all our perspectives of the Smiths icon are very different. Old Suedehead recently wore a right-wing “For Britain” pin on the Tonight Show. And he accused Mayor of London Sadiq Khan of being unable to “talk properly”. His halo hasn’t slipped. It’s turned to ashes.

“I’m not really listening to Morrissey or the Smiths lately,” says Furman. “When I do, it’s kind of ruined by thinking about things he’s said. And who he’s putting his support behind. I haven’t been not listening to him because I think it’s wrong to. It’s just hard for me to enjoy.”

He pauses. Furman is trying to walk a line. He may no longer be enamoured of Morrissey. But he doesn’t want to come across as if he’s telling other Smiths fans what they should or should not listen to. He’s not here to preach.

“If you can still enjoy it . . .” he says, trailing off as he gathers his thoughts. “I don’t really believe in trying to erase every Woody Allen movie from history. For one thing, that’s kind of unfair to all the people who worked on those movies or albums or whatever it is. What did they do wrong to have their work erased from culture?

“And secondly . . . we never knew anything about these artists. We’re not friends with them. I never expected my artistic heroes to be ethical heroes. It’s just if it ruins the art for you. For some people it does. For some people it doesn’t. If you were to put on [Smiths uber-weepie] I Know It’s Over Now, I’d be, ‘God, that’s good.’ I still know what’s good.

“You can’t deny that. You can’t be like, ‘yeah, that s*** sucks anyway.’ Maybe it’s a little bit ruined. Maybe it’s forever ruined. It’s hard for me because I’m a songwriter. I need my teachers. I need my texts that I study to get better at this.”"

full


The previous interview cited above that mentioned Morrissey can be found here.


Excerpt from said interview:

"Furman’s knack of catching the listener with a sucker-punch of a lyric before reeling them in with catchy melodies has become his modus operandi. There is a sense of the surreal in some of his songs; others are steeped in the perennial self-deprecating outsider wit that songwriters like Stephin Merritt and Morrissey have made their own.

“They’re my heroes,” he says, unsurprisingly. “They were my early awakening, a realisation that I could do it. They had something unexpected. I could write a joke song really easily, but I think something that might be true for my generation is that there’s a certain irony or detachedness expected of us, even though we really feel sincere. So the only way to sincerity is through a joke. There’s some kind of barrier to get through before you can say ‘I love you’ or ‘I’m hurt’ if you haven’t first pierced this cultural shell in some way.”"

Regards,
FWD.
Using Woody Allen as an example along with Morrissey is totally off.
Allen is a creepy child molester adored by Hollywood who gave Roman Polanski an Oscar and a standing ovation. Big difference.
Morrissey's dipping his toe into politics just stank, it wouldn't actually matter which party, they're all self serving nazis. For Britain only stood out because they had a policy on animals.
Anyone who invests their time in politics is following someone else's agenda and foolishly wasting their time. It doesn't make them a bad person.
Grow up Ezra and learn to sing.
 
I watched a program where they used a specific mixing desk that was analogue and they wouldn't use anything else. I think this desk had been purchased from other notable studios, and it was an integral part of their sound. I might be wrong, but Foo fighters seemed to insist on using the same desk. Tell me if I'm wrong. They may have even built the studio around it!
I watched a programme where they take all the well know mainstream artists master copy to a room where its mixed with satanic ritual. The Rolling Stone, Beatles, Foo Fighters et Al.
I think ezra must be going mainstream because it sounds like it came from hell.
 
I'm in a similar place but it's more I have less patience for Morrissey's mediocre moments. I listened to California Son all the way through once, decided four songs are excellent and haven't listened to the others since. A few years ago, I'd probably given them more time.
 
‘It’s in my blood to have a fear about encouraging fascism’
The idea that Moz is encouraging fascism is absurd. Everything he says and does is to promote individual freedom. I take it Furman wouldn't have the same fear about encouraging communism? The body count from communism dwarfs that of fascism. Yet Chairman Mao is still a poster on student walls. And I wouldn't be at all surprised if the People's Army sweeps into Hong Kong some day soon to teach them the true meaning of communism.
 
Look, it's like this...I really don't GAS about the view(s) held by this 'Ezra', or any other person.

Say what you want, that's your right... but I have the absolute right to believe in, & love Morrissey...& I do, whole heartedly, unconditionally, & absolutely no-one, NO-ONE will change my view of one of the most influential, important, & brilliant artists of my time, who gave me, & the world, such beautiful music & lyrics totally beyond compare. Hendrix, Floyd, Clapton? No. Absolutely not.

No-one else has given me what Morrissey has given me, & I thank him whole heartedly.

I'm getting a bit tired of the neg stuff posted on here tbh...some of you are disgraceful, & should be ashamed, hiding behind keyboards...why do you come here spilling your bile?

Ppl, make up your own mind instead of reading, interpreting, & giving time to the shit posted in this particular article & on this site in general.

Je suis Morrissey & hope those genuine fans are too!

Je suis Morrissey, always.
 
Using Woody Allen as an example along with Morrissey is totally off.
Allen is a creepy child molester adored by Hollywood who gave Roman Polanski an Oscar and a standing ovation. Big difference.
Morrissey's dipping his toe into politics just stank, it wouldn't actually matter which party, they're all self serving nazis. For Britain only stood out because they had a policy on animals.
Anyone who invests their time in politics is following someone else's agenda and foolishly wasting their time. It doesn't make them a bad person.
Grow up Ezra and learn to sing.

Yes, it is interesting that to say anything critical of multiculturalism these days is equated with child abuse.
I do have to say though - Woody Allen has made some great movies. So has Roman Polanski.
 
Je suis Morrissey aussi...always & forever. He is my God.
Dissenters, suck it up.
 
Look, it's like this...I really don't GAS about the view(s) held by this 'Ezra', or any other person.

Say what you want, that's your right... but I have the absolute right to believe in, & love Morrissey...& I do, whole heartedly, unconditionally, & absolutely no-one, NO-ONE will change my view of one of the most influential, important, & brilliant artists of my time, who gave me, & the world, such beautiful music & lyrics totally beyond compare. Hendrix, Floyd, Clapton? No. Absolutely not.

No-one else has given me what Morrissey has given me, & I thank him whole heartedly.

I'm getting a bit tired of the neg stuff posted on here tbh...some of you are disgraceful, & should be ashamed, hiding behind keyboards...why do you come here spilling your bile?

Ppl, make up your own mind instead of reading, interpreting, & giving time to the shit posted in this particular article & on this site in general.

Je suis Morrissey & hope those genuine fans are too!

Je suis Morrissey, always.
Well said
 
[I call] for every shade and persuasion … we shall always be alongside each other.
-
Morrissey, May 2019.

End of. Yawn. Next. Etc.
 

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