218 - The Smiths - The Queen is Dead

The Smiths are a band that illicits contradictory reactions within me. Morrissey's crooning style can grate on my nerves, but the wit in his lyrics really grabs my attention. There is a softness to their music that gives a fey impression, but then you look at their guitarist, Johnny Marr. He has a tremendous reputation for his layers of jangling guitar and the influence that sound had on much of British rock music of the 90's. There it is: the tension between Morrissey and Johnny is what drives the odd dynamic of The Smith's songs.

When paying attention to the audio mix, Morrissey's vocals are obviously on top, followed by drums, bass, and then Johnny Marr's guitar (keyboards are usually pretty even with guitar). To a certain extent, I have seen quite a few similarities with the Smiths and Roxy Music: my begrudging respect for the crooning style of the singers, tension between the crooning vocals and experimental/playful instrumentation, and a sound that is both soft and confrontational at the same time. I've listened to this album a lot over the past month in hopes that it would shed some sort of light on my indifference to the Smiths or why people go all ga-ga over Marr's guitar parts. While I have a greater appreciation for what all is happening with the guitars, I can't really claim any further clarity on The Smiths.

Songs I Knew I Liked: "The Queen is Dead," "Frankly, Mr. Shankly," "The Boy With The Thorn In His Side," "Vicar in a Tutu," and "Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others"

Songs I Now Like: Nothing new.

Songs I Can Go the Rest of My Life Never Hearing Again: "I Know It's Over"