how much did JDB spend on Guernica?

Reckon he's got a secret art stash somewhere? :p :lol:

I think you'll find it's called the Louvre, which was how James pronounced "love" one night in 1995 when he was drunk to a plateau no one has since reached. He's a big investor in the arts that man.

When I first heard The Descent I thought it was one of the worst songs they've written, even challenging It's Not War as the worst song it was possible for them to write ten albums into a career.

I still don't know what kind of song has a third chorus that's shorter than the second, so the ending is massively undercooked even for them, but I do find myself enjoying the song a lot now for some unfortunate reason.

It's a popular trick for when a song has just had an instrumental section so long that the final chorus seems like an afterthought. JFPL (the title track) is the same, although they cleverly doubled the post-chorus riff at the end to compensate

I really like the Descent, I don't think it gets enough credit really. Each part of the song is different yet it flows beautifully, and has a fabulous solo (the second part of it, the neeeeaaawwwws, ahh, just brilliant). I think it would sound brilliant on the radio as a single, but I would probably be in the minority there.

Not at all! This albums quite rich in quality songs given the lukewarm chart response isn't it?
If every song and note was recorded by another band it would be held up as a masterpiece and be lodged into the top 5 for months. But as it's "90's band Manic Street Preachers" etc...

It most likely would be a 'masterpiece' by almost any other band.

People just are not talking about the Manics. They're too busy talking about Take That.
:(

I don't know why people expect a cult band to have mass appeal, you can't have both.

True. I suppose the Truth era was when the Manics had their most populist appeal. They're not the sort of band where that kind of mass appeal would ever last forever. At least they had a good showing while it lasted! And they're still in the thick of things, even now.

They would have done better if they had gone all mass communication with JFPL. As in singles, big tour, more festivals in America, more promotion in general etc. They might have turned more young people onto them, instead of trying to appeal to people who have not bought an album since Truth and last spent money on the band, downloading YLAINE on itunes.

I'm still happy with how the albums done anyway.

Just bumping it to say I'm still going to this album above everything else.
I want someone to come in to my room with a pole with an electric shock and send a volt through me whenever I reach for PFAYM?
Like The Prisoner where they make him left (or was it right?) handed.

Left, The Schizoid Man :cool: