New podcast about Manics
 

Apparently there's a new podcast coming up about Manic Street Preachers - first episode to air tomorrow :)

https://www.instagram.com/manicspodcast/


sorry if this has been posted before

Yes I've seen it on Twitter.

These things make me nervous.

Me too!

It's pretty bad. The tone is completely off. Three lads talking about Manics with in-jokes and spending the first 20mins talking about themselves and other bands? Awful.

They need a female presence on the panel. And it needs to be much shorter and focused on the band. It doesn't need to be album-by-album week-by- week, but at least just present a theme and explore it.

Very disappointing.

I enjoyed it as starting point. "yeahyeahyeahyeah"

They did waffle on a bit before getting to the point but they were starting a whole series of podcasts off and I think it worked well in that we got a sense of the people and their background a little. I wouldn't want that amount of banter before they get to the point in every episode, but as an introduction to a series I thought it was fine. I liked it. I don't see the point in a podcast if it's going to just be a dry reading like a manics wiki and you have no sense of who the people are talking about it or why. They made me laugh a few times, I liked the self-deprecation and daft jokes. Obviously everyone's mileage will vary.

"yeahyeahyeahyeah" though.... that could get a little annoying quite quickly!

Cautiously optimistic so far.

Hello!

I'm one of the hosts of this podcast. No prizes for guessing which. Thanks for listening and giving it a go if you did! Appreciate that it's not for everyone.

Our favourite podcasts have a casual vibe to them and so we definitely set out to emulate that. We also thought that regardless of like or dislike, the Manics are an enormously INTERESTING band, and demanded a more interesting discussion than just fans saying how much they love everything. We also want to cover how different people listen to music, how it can affect them, and how to engage with the context surrounding a piece of art. We didn't feel we could do this without listeners getting to know us a bit.

Agree that we need a female presence! This is something that we're going to address with upcoming guests. We sacrificed diversity for existing chemistry in that regard.

It takes us much less time to get into the Manics based stuff in future episodes, but we do love a tangent, so there's not much hope in them getting shorter haha! The thing we wanted to do by going album-by-album is a) present a story and b) see if knowing a bands discography improves the overall listening experience of a band. Does JFPL make more "sense" if you've heard The Holy Bible, for instance.

And on the point about us getting annoying. I couldn't agree more. The three of us are the most annoying people I know.

Yeahyeahyeahyeah.

I like your name.

:lol:

Hahah, that was more interactive than I expected and I am glad you took that comment in the spirit it was intended. :D

I'm looking forward to hearing the next episode, kudos to the three of you for giving it a go at all. :)

Have you ever actually met a Manics fan? Because, seriously, no bashes the Manics more than Manics fans. XD

Good luck with the podcast and all, but I cannot abide waffle on my podcasts. I get why it happens, but if I'm listening to something it's for a reason. And it's not because I care about what the hosts had for breakfast.

Are you suggesting they had waffles for breakfast? :)

My ideal MSP podcast would be hosted by an aging Richey-only acolyte who participates in supermarket sticker protests against censorship, a Mondeo driver, a Rugby lad called Tommy whose favourite songs are YSTS and Have A Nice Day, and Chris Packham

I would listen to this.

I can cut the extensive breakfast menu chat out of Episode 2 if it makes you more willing to listen?

Listened to it in work yesterday.

I liked it a lot, and I think it's a good range of persepctives to have for a band like the Manics.

As for the waffle? I'm used to it from other podcasts, and find it makes them less "dry" and more like they're presented by actual people. There used to be a podcast I liked called "Rider Club Radio" about the Japanese superhero franchise Kamen Rider. There were similar tangents on there about other japanese shows, games, scifi (one of the hosts also did a Star Trek podcast). Again, I liked it more than I would a purely on-topic show.

Will probably "listen along" with this one, taking in each album before the episodes come out.

I like that idea, I think I shall I do the same :)

Enjoyed an hour or so of it but a bit of editing wouldn’t go amiss.

Like the idea of non Manics fans giving their views so the overall idea is good. Will give it another go but if the general levels of waffle remain can’t see me making it to the end. The whole Sean the sheep Welsh bit would have been the first bit on the cutting room floor.

Iv not heard it yet, but why does it need a female presenter?

If I'd cut that out nobody would understand the levels of idiocy I am dealing with.

There are enough "lads" podcasts out there. You will get the tone when you listen to it.

Yes, Manics fans are precious about the band. But on one level, this seems like a podcast for the presenters to have a podcast rather than a podcast with the intent of exploring or analysing or celebrating the Manics.

Taken on board! Can't say we're the most "laddish" but the first episode is top heavy with chat about us. I would encourage you to listen to the next episode, because whilst I understand the style may not be for everyone, I do disagree that we're not intent on exploring, analysing, or celebrating the Manics. There's just not a ton to say about a 4 track EP and we wanted to introduce ourselves.

An 18 track double debut album, though? Oh boy do we get into it.

You'd also probably like our episode on The Holy Bible, which has near enough to zero "chat," absolutely no jokes, and is the driest thing since sand.

I'll probably listen next week at work. Im really looking faward to it! I listened to an REM podcast recently that had a similar sounding format which I enjoyed. Keep it up!

I'm in for 3 episodes, i didn't overly like the first episode due to the chit chat and tangents. I do like that sort of stuff but not as a first episode. Still a diamond in the rough and look forward to the new episodes

It wasn't R U Talkin' R.E.M. RE: Me? was it?

That was the one! I was thinking it would be awsome if somone did one about the manics that was similar.

Definitely one of our inspirations.

.

That's very nice to hear, thanks!

Just edited the second episode and there is far, far less waffle. There's mini tangents, but it's mostly Manics from this point on!

We’re Manics fans, so now watch everyone say there isn’t enough banter or tangents in the second episode... ;)

(Joking, hopefully. Looking forward to it!)

Listened today, and really really enjoyed it! Didnt think it was too laddish at all, and i found the banter and the tangents really funny. Keep it up! Cant wait for the next one!

Thank you! :) Glad you like it. Next one is on Monday

New episode out today, if you fancy it! Much more Manics chat in this one :)

Really enjoyed it! That Springsteen joke was awful though.

I got to 25 mins and gave up, it's not for me.

Now this was more like it. I really enjoyed it (Ep2, GT (pt1)) and am hoping this continues on in a similar vein for all the albums. I do think the first episode benefited this one a lot for setting the tone and acting as an introduction. I even enjoyed the Springsteen gag! :lol:
Looking forward to the next episode already.

Thanks for kind words! This episode is definitely the tone that continues.

I really enjoy it! :) I think it's a shame though, if you totally ignore all non-album tracks. Some b-sides are far better than the album tracks of the eras - and then there's Suicide Is Painless ect. which is an essential part of the Manics canon. yeahyeahyeah

Anyway - good job lads! :)

Thank you very much! We will get to b-sides eventually if there is a demand for it, and Suicide is Painless is covered in the next episode!

For a start you dedicate an episode to cover Lipstick Traces? :)

Aye, that's definitely happening.

I've listened to these with a mix of pleasant surprise, alarm and outright horror (not necessarily in equal measure) so i felt i had some things to say.

Firstly, it's nice to see that manics fandom isn't so dead that there aren't still people out there inspired to make stuff like this and the recent essays book on the lyrics of the holy bible (triptych) and i am enjoying the discussion for the most part so i say keep it up. With that said, i'm trying not to be critical for the sake of it because it's nice to see things like this being made about them.

As a fan, when you feel like you know the manics so well it's very easy to lose sight of the fact that those who don't know about them really don't! The lack of general knowledge about them from the other two is quite surprising like the common misconception that they only sing about suicide. Then again, that might be true of most bands you're not personally invested in and to be fair, in a roundabout way they were approaching the true genius of the manics in that they are a band with 'music full of hope and lyrics full of doubt'. Kudos to you for getting them involved but how did you manage that when they've been dismissed as dad rock in the past? I mean, i personally can't imagine having the motivation for talking about muse for many hours at a time. Having said that, i was pleasantly surprised that generation terrorists hasn't so far been completely ripped to shreds and i do agree with a lot of the criticisms but i also agree with the host that it's a charming mess. It's really about a new band getting a boatload of cash and a swanky recording studio and bolting out of the gate with a statement of intent.

Now... what's all this hatred of the new art riot ep? It's bloody great! I'm sure this has come up before on here and it's something i agreed with at the time - if generation terrorists sounded more like the spikey, rough-edged new art riot ep then it would have been far better for it. Your honour, for my defence i would like to include into evidence the live version of strip it down found on the you love us (heavenly) single and lipstick traces. In relation to that, i would also support chat of notable b-sides considering many of them are superb but i heard mention of comfort comes and that is one that definitely needs to be covered, being as it is the missing link between gold against the soul and the holy bible and a fantastic track to boot.

The one thing i had a major issue with is the question of what exactly richey and nicky did in the band if they couldn't play, to paraphrase - 'how did they become a band?' and 'richey was like the mascot' and compared to bez of all people. Say wha... richey and nicky were the suicide twins! The culture sluts! The propaganda wing of the manic street preachers! Giving great copy and running rings around music journalists unfortunate enough to fall into their orbit, all the while looking amazing. That's why the manics had such perfect balance i think, james and sean the accomplished musicians, richey and nicky the androgynous glamour twins writing the words. I just expected our gracious host to chip in here and give a spirited defence of what those two brought to the manics that made them stand out from 'generic white band'.

Anyway, i'm looking forward to you all diving into the later stuff and what the others reactions are going to be to the less accessible material and what on earth they're going to make of it.