Meenzer

You absolutely can argue that, because it's absolutely true. At the same time, though, "pop" music has been largely dead in this country for the last few years as the wave of dull guitar bands with "The" in their name has taken hold, so I have no problem with the mainstream success of a lass who can sing a bit and has some decent pop tunes, however manufactured her profile may be. It's a lovely thought that we should all discover music organically and not be dictated to by radio stations, record companies etc., but it's not like things work that way in any other part of our lives, really - we buy from supermarkets, we drive cars from companies we've heard of rather than clunking around in some Bulgarian rustbucket, we follow peer pressure in a way that isn't substantially different to outside "marketing". And besides, most of the people who rant about OMG ÜBERMARKETED MUSIC would be devastated if the record industry as we know it disappeared overnight and everyone was forced to muscle in on their "I was there first" badge of discovering bands and singers as soon as they pop out of the womb, or whatever it is they do that makes them so much superior to your average, regular consumer. There's no point in being "indie" if there's no mainstream to rebel against, is there?

Seriously though, I'm no fan of identikit popular/populist music, but you'd have to be a fucking retard to claim that a significant number of people spend their hard-earned money on stuff they don't actually like.

PR machine and radio done good, you mean. True, it's a right bind when you go to HMV for the new Einstürzende Neubauten CD and those industry bastards swap it for a pop album when you're not looking.

Just racked up the fastest-selling debut album in UK chart history, apparently. The girl done good.

Come on Martin, did you get a birthday blowjob? Did I shite. At a wedding yesterday and we were both so knackered by the end of the night that it was all we could do to make a birthday cup of tea before bed. Euphemism Euphemism, eh? I bet you do, I bet you do...

Oh aye and the "Meenzer" thing... it's a local dialect term for a resident of Mainz, Germany. Which I haven't been for several years now, but we'll gloss over that bit.

Come on Martin, did you get a birthday blowjob? Did I shite. At a wedding yesterday and we were both so knackered by the end of the night that it was all we could do to make a birthday cup of tea before bed.

Marvellous stuff. Thanks all!

Hrvatski Band Aid - My Croatia, My Home Ahhh, mid-90s patriotic hymns from ex-Yugoslavia. So dubious, both morally and musically.

Best kind of flight there is. And it was a pleasure keeping you from slipping into unconsciousness and falling off your stool.

Though to be fair, you only brought three items of clothing back with you...

Well there aren't many of them left, what with them starving to death halfway up the stairs and all.

You should have pissed out of the letterbox onto on him. I think Ritchie would agree thats fair play. It's quite high up mind, I might have needed a fluffer.

Aye, they don't even bother ringing the bell here. I've caught the fucker in the act as well. Shameless, I tell you, utterly shameless!

Will you be battling for the Bouquet with the Bridesmaid's? Course not. I might bat for the other team but I'm still shit-scared of commitment like any normal bloke.

The thrust of your original post notwithstanding, what's the solution, anyway? (That's a question to the room, not just to Fop.) Is it even possible to remember in the way you describe once the first-hand witnesses have all died out? Or are we simply teaching it all wrong?

Mate of mine from back home's getting hitched here in the big smoke, so that'll be basically the whole weekend taken up with social frolicking, starting from tonight. I'll be thinking of the plight of our fallen WWI soldiers throughout, though.

Then "no" is the answer (as it would have been for my suggestion, as it happens ). Sounds interesting though, my PC speakers are pitifully weedy.

A propos of nothing, I'd love Badoer to get a last shot at a proper drive, though I assume his time has been and gone now. My heart's still broken after the 1999 European. Gotta love Minardi.

Knowing the links you normally post, I'm scared to click. Is it a deluxe pube-trimmer?

So who here shaves their bollocks?

There's a camp-as-tits German comedian who does an excellent one of those for Nicole's "Ein bisschen Frieden". Just me then...?

Monday was my first day off work sick since I started this job about 18 months ago. Did me the world of good, too. I must do it more often.

Happy birthday to ya!

Fucking hell Davey, you're getting tardy in your old age. That was posted hours ago. You been practicing your vooooooowels???? Practising his bowel control more like. Poor lad's getting on a bit.