Yeah they've been saying it meant to be a double album for years. Agree it would make the release more interesting.

I'd bet my missus that the KYE release will be the original double album idea.

http://www.foreverdelayed.org.uk/for...ad.php?t=63136

Hey! That's an actual thread about KYE reissue! ;)

So there is! I've bumped it up

KYE is a double-album. It's longer than London Calling even when you remove the silence before the last track.

Reading the comments on the manics podcast twitter thread about zeitgeist it's amazing to me that people still can't give credit to the album because of nicky's voice. I mean when you think of the decades of songs/albums where the singer didn't technically have a great singing voice you have to wonder whether these people dismiss those too. Nicky's voice wouldn't be at all appropriate for the songs on the great western but it's absolutely suited to the lo-fi sound of zeitgeist.

I agree with you, Tim.
But, honestly, I see nothing wrong in Nicky's singing voice either. I mean, he's not James, but so what? He doesn't have to be.

What's wrong is he can't sing...ha...and I have all the time in the world for Nicky so mean no disrespect:) There are many who can't sing but they have something distinctive, a character to their voice if y'like..Bob Dylan, Tom Waits are maybe the obvious...so I agree it's not necessary but depends on what you be trying to convey...I can do without Nicky's voice normally...but...I do love As Holy as the Soil...which is very emotional and wouldn't be the same without Nicky's voice so it ain't all about being pitch perfect (but you wouldn't want me as a guest vocalist on owt...suicide is preferable...I mean painless maybe)

Whilst musing aimlessly it can go the other way too...singer's with incredible voices who rarely find their chance to really own it...I always find George Michael's rendition of Somebody To Love incredibly moving and read he got very worried and nervous he wouldn't do it justice but it was incredible and at the other end of the spectrum Courtney Love ain't blessed with the best tune carrying but if you want sheer grrrl rage she's incredible

Other singers like Whitney sing such bland songs that to be frank it takes someone trying to cover them for you to appreciate just how gifted they are ...

Ramblings

His last album was 2006?5? I imagine he'll at least have developed his voice further.
I'd be happy with The Left Behind vocals on IKTZ.
Or that could be a stick of false hope and disappointment I've created for this thread?

Oh, of course he can't sing for shit but... and this comes up on the pod, james' album is kinda over-produced and lacks a certain edge that nicky's lo-fi C86 style catchy indie has. The problem is many people just don't look beyond the voice which i find highly reductive because they are missing some quality tracks. Though i agree with the pod that both albums are missing that essential, unknown, quality that the manics as a whole bring to an album.

I guess it must be a 'marmite' thing but I can honestly say that Wire's vocals have never bothered me at all.

Williams Last Words is the obvious example but I'd say that the vocals are great on tracks like : Afterbloom, Derek Jarman's Garden (that piano intro is fantastic), Everything Fades (love the outro ,especially 'like a prayer, I can hear you calling') , and there is noone else who could sing the line 'ich bin ien newporter' in the same way !

I enjoy listening to Nicky Wire's voice. Like Richey's he sounds intelligent. I like his album and when he sings certain lines. He also sung No Feelings live. I think he said James couldn't do that. So just his beautiful self.

Nicky's a fine singer albeit not a powerful one. His timing and rhythm are perfectly adequate. Some of his early tracks, as with many musicians, suffer from a lack of confidence, and self awareness but he's shaken that off now.

I get what you mean, but fundamentally if someone actively dislikes the central focus of the recording, it's pretty hard to get past that. For everything you can write critically about a piece of music, if you think it sounds horrible then you're just not going to want to listen to it.

I like Nicky's voice too. It's warm and kinda soft (in an emotional way). I think I said it before, but I have to say it again: whereas James' voice fills me with euphoric energy, Nicky sounds like a tender hug of comfort and consolation.
He might not have James' range, but he's not out of tune, (unless maybe a very tiny wee bit in The Future Has Been Here 4 Ever, but that sounds deliberate and fitting) or bad singer, in my opinion (although, I admit, I'm no pro, and this is just from my own perspective as a fan).