Vanderbilt and the Yeggman. Vipers. Vigor, the Hammersmith wonder.

Glad to see that this LiveJournal continues to shape opinion, as Simple Minds have clearly been reading it lately: they've just finished a tour of gigs based solely upon their first five albums, and a boxed set of same to accompany.

Bit late to post this, sorry, but you can still catch them at T in the Park this summer…

I've been listening to a load of Simple Minds just recently, in honour of Charlie Burchill's birthday, and am still bemused by the enigma that is their career path.

How can a band release as many as five (5!) albums that are at a pretty consistent standard of excellence, and then suddenly turn, more or less overnight, into complete drivel? One or two good albums before going down the quality tubes I could understand, but five? You'd think that by that stage you would have found your groove and would stick with it, not abruptly wrench yourselves into a vastly inferior version.

The sad thing, I think, is that people who only became aware of them via 'Waterfront', 'Don't You Forget about Me', 'Alive and Kicking', 'Sanctify Yourself' and other such flatulent stadium-fodder dross are probably not even aware that they had previously been a really good, interesting, thoughtful band, working more in the vein of Kraftwerk and the industrial pioneers. And it's not as if there had been a creative personnel change -- the drummers had a revolving seat policy, but Burchill and Jim Kerr persisted throughout.

Maybe it was because of Kerr taking up with Chrissie Hynde, which pretty much coincided with the change in direction. Hmm.

[Poll #1652043]

Ah yes, where was I with this, before I was so rudely interrupted having to write a load of games and stuff?

"My only topic of inquiry is: which young female is your jogging partner?"

And, for a bonus:

"Thank you for your offer of a match ticket at Stamford Bridge; but I find the prospect undiverting."

I guess you're all probably familiar, if only by repute, with the traditional song that starts:

Four-and-twenty virgins came down from Inverness;
And when the ball was over, there were four-and-twenty less.

It will not have escaped the sharp-eyed, though, that the second line contains what some consider a grammatical solecism.

I suggest the following improved version:

Four-and-twenty virgins came down from Invermuir;
And when the ball was over, there were four-and-twenty fewer.

Alternatively:

Four-and-twenty virgins came down from Invergordon;
And when the ball was over, there were four-and-twenty more o'dem.

(although arguably that one doesn't make much sense…)

Any more for any more? I guess it doesn't necessarily have to begin with 'Inver', probably any town somewhere in the Highlands would do.

An ophidian alliance thrives. It will speed, fracture and approach a national boundary.

And for a bonus:

We may encounter one another en promenade. Should I appear consistently lachrymose, please pass me without acknowledgement.

How would you assess my inferior musical performance -- would you boycott it?

And for a bonus:

A wealthy metropolitan appreciated his fortune but found his life generally hollow and unhealthy.

OK, this one's still pretty easy but not quite so (I think): somewhat older.

I put in a 24-hour shift to meet my unavoidable expenses (it's rather grim),
Which leaves me with a zero discretionary income (what a pity).

My deliberately blank expression is inscrutable, inscrutable; inscrutable to him.

An easy one to start off with...

(I think it was venta who came up with this idea.)

Person is trying to make film about "the story of Radiohead, Ride, Supergrass, Foals, Swervedriver, Talulah Gosh and the tiny local music scene that spawned them". You can give him money to do so, in exchange for various enticements from a copy of the DVD upwards. Up to and including an Executive Producer credit – how nice! And who knows, you might even be in some of the archive footage, if you've lived in Oxford.