Yesssssss!

With the Manic Street Preachers announcing their gig in the newly refurbished Ulster Hall on June 6th; Claire McLoughlin writes (exclusively for Join the Q ;)) on the band and their latest offering:

Sample titles from the Manic Street Preachers’ new record: ‘She Bathed Herself In a Bath of Bleach’, ‘Jackie Collins Existential Question Time,’ ‘This Joke Sport Severed,’ and ‘Virginia State Epileptic Colony.’

Any other band would look idiotic. Only the Manics’ could get away with such ridiculous –or indeed brilliant- titles (see Freedom of Speech Won’t Feed my Children, Natwest-Midlands-Barclays-Lloyds, The Intense Humming of Evil, The Love of Richard Nixon et al), without sounding like pretentious 6th formers.

Cheerily titled ‘Journal For Plague Lovers,’ the new record, released May 18 , has been building up hysteria among fan on Manics’ fansite forums, as the Manics’ are touted to blow off their middle-aged 40 year olds tag, and show all the young bucks how it’s done.

Hardcore Manic fans (whose uniform consists of leopard print, pink feather boas and ‘4 Real’ scrawled across their arms), were ecstatic to find out that the album would consist entirely of lyrics left to them by AWOL lyricist and rhythm guitarist Richey Edwards, missing-in-action since February 1995.

Richey Edwards was (or is, depending what you believe) a troubled young man who suffered from alcoholism, anorexia nervosa and crippling depression. The now iconic shot of him staring at the camera with the phrase ‘4 Real’ carved into his forearm, dripping with blood remains one of rock’s most enduring images. Following an interview with Steve Lamacq, in which the journalist questioned Edwards over whether the band were to be taken seriously, Edwards took out a razor blade, etching 4 Real into his forearm to make his point achingly clear to the hack. The publicity this created launched the Manics’ into the media with a bang in 1991.

With his disappearance in 1995, abandoning his car near the Severn Bridge, he created a myth around himself, whilst seemingly wanting people to think he committed suicide, a body has never been found and many fans believe he is still alive and well.

In a final show of camaraderie, not seen in the money- grabbing egotistical nature of the business these days (yes Johnny Borrell I’m thinking of you) the remaining Preachers have kept putting royalties into his bank account following his disappearance in hope the complex character would return.

This of course remains highly unlikely but finally the lyrics left to the band by Richey are seeing the light of day, as the band announced last year they would record an album consisting solely of material Richey had left.

Whispers quickly began surfacing of a Holy Bible Mark II, a return to the Manics’ finest hour in 1994 with what was arguably one of the ugliest and most intelligent records of all time.

The Holy Bible contained lyrics about topics such as anorexia, the Holocaust, American foreign policy and political correctness, and judging by the titles off JFPL, the new record is just as bleak.

The first new track, played on Zane Lowes’ radio show, the fantastic ‘Peeled Apples,’ certainly sounded like a return to 1994 and made listening through the over-excitable Kiwi’s show just about bearable for once. Name checking Noam Chomsky and with lyrics such as “the Levi jean will always be stronger than the Uzi,” it is unmistakably Manics’, and is utterly brilliant.

Musically, it is the polar opposite to the lilting harmonising of ‘Your Love Alone is Not Enough’ and its angry chomping at the bit is miles away from “If You Tolerate This…”

Judging by the new track, it seems the Manics’ are back to form, complete with indecipherable lyrics, grinding guitars and lyrics straight out of tortured mind and genius of Richey.

Since 1998’s This Is My Truth, Tell Me Yours, the Manics’ had been struggling to find a niche. While successful commercially, TIMTTMY was criticised for being too middle-aged and not as complete as previous album Everything Must Go, which had proved their commercial breakthrough, bringing Brit Awards and sell out arena tours.

2001’s Know Your Enemy, referred to lazily by every music critic as the band’s ‘misguided punk album’ (despite the fact that only ‘Found That Soul’ sounds even remotely punkish) saw critics turn against them, and 2004’s quite frankly dreary Lifeblood simply confused fans, with Nicky Wire even admitting that the band were on the verge of splitting up after the ensuing tour.

With 2007’s return to form, Send Away the Tigers, bringing them critical and commercial success yet again with its pop melodies, it seemed the Manics’ were back. Even the notoriously fickle NME loved them, giving the album 8 out of 10 and crowning them Godlike Geniuses in 2008.

SATT however still alienated the Manics’ hardcore, who while always remaining loyal, dreamt of the day Manics’ mark I would return.

It is typically Manics’ for the band to decide to take a huge risk after the acclaim of SATT and once again shun commercial success by finally going back to their finest hour, washing the past 15 years under the carpet.

With no singles planned from the album and with the dark disturbing titles, is seems they are finally making music they want again, rather than pleasing the record company.

The album could be a disaster commercially, but hopefully like the Holy Bible it will stand up as much more than a record, representing a work of art, indeed Jenny Saville - last seen on the revolting but enthralling Holy Bible cover art - is back on board with one of her paintings on the cover of the new record.

JFPL is an event, and will form a sonic memorial to an articulate but troubled talent.

Keep your 80s throwbacks NME darlings La Roux and Friendly Fires, cast off the skinny jeans and scarf look all you young pretenders, and watch and learn Kings of Leon- the ghost of Mr Richey James Edwards has returned.

And by fuck we’ve missed him.

(And who knows maybe Richey give the tabloids a field-day by finally surfacing to assess his new material, if only to tell James Dean Bradfield that the guitar solo on track 5 is rubbish.)


*DISCLAIMER -However word of warning, no matter how amazing I anticipate this record to be, Nicky Wire does sing on ‘William’s Last Words’-just listen to ‘Wattsville Blues’ on 2001’s KYE to know that The Wire should never be allowed near a microphone….