Heart of a Punk Soul of a Rasta

"POSTCARDS FROM A YOUNG MAN"
MANIC STREET PREACHERS
Better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all

To start please allow me précis Boz. No not bleedin' Boz Boorer, Boz Dickens!
I love the MANICS, to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that. This must be distinctly understood, or nothing wonderful can come of the review I am about to write.

"Postcards from a Young Man" is not just the tenth studio release by Manic Street Preachers it is more importantly the tenth LP that I, like a multitude of others have passed over their hard earned KA$H for. My mind is now racing, but think as I might there aren't many bands I own ten studio albums by. Maybe three or four. No, wait, five, six……………...anyway this making of the tenth album should not be a thing that is taken lightly; remember what happened to Mahler when he had the temerity to better Beethoven's NINTH by the sum of ONE, yeah!

But when a band gets to double figures should you ever expect a classic? The very recent history of The Manics (since the 2006 and their solo album hiatus escapades) has been nothing short of exemplary. "Send Away the Tigers" - strange to describe it as such, but it was, The Manic Street Preachers Greatest Hits. Every aspect of Manics music past was touched, taken apart, inspected, firculled with, reconstructed and regurgitated into something new. To follow this up a year later with the majestically awkward "Journal for Plague Lovers" which I think will be seen as their greatest work; once we are all under the sod and the historical contextualists have all been executed; was nothing short of miraculous. But now we have "Postcards from a Youngman" and for me anyway ("in my own little dream world") the miracles have come to a sudden END.

What is "Postcards from a Young Man"? Is it a re-visitation of "This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours"? If it is it misses by a long mile. Is it a moment of GREAT SIMPLICITY as decribed on the back sleeve? No I think we'll let's leave the slogans to the CRASS. So is it a lapse in musical taste? Not really, BAD TASTE has surfaced here & there throughout The Manics career from "Bright Eyes" to "The Theme from MASH" to Rhianna's "Umbrella", YUK! No, I think "Postcards from a Young Man" is simply a product of the time, a dull collection of unrelated immediately disposable slickly contrived pap infused songs. And it hurts! Because this is not an PRODUCT produced by some come day go day dross merchant, this is an ALBUM by the greatest lyrical arranger of our times JD Bradfield and the always cerebrally challenging & erudite lyricist Nikki Wire.

Am I being hypercritical here? No, I don't think so I think I'm being restrained. But if you don't want to hear my truth it's time to FUCK OFF and read some bed wetting sycophants review, who'll also mark the album out of FIVE for you; just in case you fall asleep part way through. Talking of which - I read a review of "Postcards" a week or two ago and the Journalist (spit) found need to mention ELO several times in his piece? I think it's probably because he couldn't NAME and other ROCK band that had ever used strings (well that's about how thin I think most Journos are anyway). But for me there is no Beatlesque ELO or GLAMesque ELO sound on "Postcards", what dominates for me from the start of "(It's Not War) Just the end of Love" is the guitar of Bradfield; and Bradfield's guitar speaks only one word: BOSTON. Yes the soft porn rock of Tom Scoltz and BOSTON - flat, thin bland FM ROCK. Yeee FUCKING haw! YAWN.

The title track "Postcards from a Young Man" is up next and here the strings are still not of ELO, oh no, its worse, coz as far as I'm concerned, the refrain the strings is playing comes straight off "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" by "Tears for FUCKING Fears". PLEASE HELP! Then we get "Some Kind of Nothingness" where the mighty MAC (Ian McCulloch) is doing what? Lending what? Nothing as far as I can hear because he's so low in the mix and so low in his range - he is literally vocally inhabiting an after world of nothingness. Is he there just to sing "Never Never Stop" at the end? If he is we've heard it before and then it was wonderful (especially on the Discotheque version) and now it bleedin' well ain't.

I'd like to stop now cos this is only hurting me, but I can't. One more thing. The obviousness "Hazelton Avenue" NO! "I told you about Strawberry Fields, You know the place where nothing is real" we've told you about Menlove Avenue, Stanley Road, Parthenon Drive so please……………….."Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before" its just too formulaic for words! ………………one day I'll right a song about going back to the 331 The Western Orbital Route but until then enough already! Enough.

Yes I think it's fair to say I'm overwhelming disappointed by "Postcards from a Young Man". Just about every move and gesture on the album both musically and lyrically is telegraphed. But I'll live, its not all bad news. I still love the MANICS, there is no doubt whatever about that, and this must be distinctly understood. "Postcards from a Young Man" changes nothing, I have shall turn myself around and run full tilt back into the open arms and still unfolding delights of "Journal for Plague Lovers". END.