Here's a thoughtful, although for me almost entirely wrong, attempt to look at pop artists and how we judge their work in light of their "views" - using Morrissey and X as case studies.
https://sterlewine.substack.com/p/xs-comeback-and-morrisseys-fall
This section, for example, I genuinely don't even begin to recognise Erlewine's reaction to the songs:
Once a lyricist of extraordinary empathy, Morrissey has let his compassion curdle to the point that he's encouraging suicidal souls to just kill themselves at Jim Jim Falls. It's a nasty note to begin an album and it reverberates through the record, turning the superficially heartfelt "Love Is On Its Way Out" and "Bobby, Don't You Think You Know" in hectoring little numbers. The hardness of spirit proves to be a compelling counterpoint to the liveliness of the music, amounting to the debut of a new variation of Morrissey's persona.
But hey, we're all entitled to our own interpretations of these songs.
https://sterlewine.substack.com/p/xs-comeback-and-morrisseys-fall
This section, for example, I genuinely don't even begin to recognise Erlewine's reaction to the songs:
Once a lyricist of extraordinary empathy, Morrissey has let his compassion curdle to the point that he's encouraging suicidal souls to just kill themselves at Jim Jim Falls. It's a nasty note to begin an album and it reverberates through the record, turning the superficially heartfelt "Love Is On Its Way Out" and "Bobby, Don't You Think You Know" in hectoring little numbers. The hardness of spirit proves to be a compelling counterpoint to the liveliness of the music, amounting to the debut of a new variation of Morrissey's persona.
But hey, we're all entitled to our own interpretations of these songs.