Suck On That
(24.07.2003 - 12:21 p.m.)

Fhqwgads.

I guess I just felt like saying that. It's always a good way to make yourself feel better. Partly because it is so ridiculous a word, partly because it has to do with Strongbad (the funniest guy in the universe, ever) and partly because I just needed something to say to get me started on this entry.

oOo oOo oOo

"You've clearly got talent as a writer, so I'm sure your script is amazing. Don't let yourself down with a negative attitude."

You may never know how much it meant to me to hear that this morning. Thank you, from the bottom of my very being. No, not my arse.

You made me feel better when I needed it, and for that I am truly grateful.

oOo oOo oOo

What the hell happened to the Diaryland chat facility? I'm aware that I'm going to start sounding terribly old and nostalgic, but I remember a day when I could go in there and have an intelligent conversation with other thoughtful, mature folk and come away having had fun and a few thoughts provoked. Now, whenever I go in there, it is populated with hordes of teenagers that spend all their time calling each other "bitches" and thinking that it is really provocative to say "fuck."

oOo oOo oOo

"I was astonished by BBC Radio 1 station controller Andy Parfitt's remark last week that 'around 30 per cent of artists on the Radio 1 playlist are UK artists.' As pathetic as this lowly percentage might seem, it turns out that (in true BBC tradition) this was not an admission of failure, but a bullish response to criticism that Britain's only national pop station, funded by the licence payer, does not do enough to support home-grown talent. 'We make no apology for featuring international artists,' Parfitt continued. 'The UK is awash with global music.'

Parfitt is being particularly disingenuous in his response. A quick glance at their playlists will establish that most of the other 70 per cent is accounted for by American releases. The rest of the globe is represented by a dance track from France.

As if to highlight the small-mindedness of Radio 1's position, the Mercury Music Prize nominations were announced this week. And what a delight they turned out to be. The fact that critically lauded albums by such fantastic talents as Blur, Super Furry Animals, Nitin Sawhney, Turin Brakes and Un-Cut never even made the shortlist is a testament to the depth of quality in contemporary British music.

Yet, aside from the deserving inclusion of number one albums from Coldplay and Radiohead, none of the artists represented could be described as household names. Indeed, how could they be known in the households of Britain when our only national pop station ignores them in favour of imported American pop idols?

The Mercury Music Prize performs a useful function in drawing attention to the thrilling creativity at the heart of British popular music. Radio 1 could perform an even more useful function by playlisting some of these fantastic records."
Abridged from Neil McCormick On Pop, The Daily Telegraph, London.

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