The hoary old tussle between music paper the NME and Morrissey has resumed this morning, as the publication splatters its front page with controversial comments from the former Smiths man.
The cover, which you can see below, features a stern looking Morrissey glowering out from behind a superimposition of the words “The gates of England are flooded. The country’s been thrown away”.
“OH DEAR,” the tagline sighs, “NOT AGAIN.”
Quite. An immediate, even pre-emptive strike, has been posted by the singer’s manager at True To You, a Morrissey webzine.
“We were alerted to the fact that the NME were potentially doing a hatchet job on Morrissey,” manager Merck Mercuriadis claimed, “on the 16th of November by an anonymous post on morrissey-solo.com.
“We immediately contacted the magazine's editor Conor McNicholas who refuted the suggestion that the NME would be anything less than supportive and personally posted on the site categorically denying the "rumours and untruths."
Mercuriadis took McNicholas’s word for it, he says, until he received an email from NME staff writer Tim Jonze, who conducted the interview:
"Hi Merck,
Hope you're well. I should mention that for reasons I'll probably never understand, NME have rewritten the Moz piece. I had a read and virtually none of it is my words or beliefs so I've asked for my name to be taken off it. Just so you know when you read it.
Best,
Tim"
Still with this? The plot continues to thicken, with claim and counterclaim being tossed from trench to trench. Pow! Mercuriadis sends a letter to McNicholas, gets a reply three days later – after the magazine has gone to print.
“I need to drop you a line about the Morrissey piece running in NME this week,” the editor begins. “It's going to be much stronger than we'd originally discussed.
“Having lived with Morrissey's comments from the second interview and discussed with the editorial team we're running a piece where the comments aren't ducked and NME's position is made very clear.”
That position? “Liberal”, apparently, and one at odds to the interviewee’s views on immigration.
“Obviously no-one is accusing Morrissey of racism,” McNicholas protests. “That would be mad given what Morrissey says - but we do say that the language Morrissey uses is very unhelpful at a time of great tensions.“I am - as I say in the magazine - fully confident that Morrissey's comments are simply the result of a man in his 50s looking back nostalgically on the England of his youth, but his reasoning for that change is unreasonably skewed towards immigration and as a title we think that's wrong.”
Mercuriadis protests, again, claiming that the “inflammatory editorial” is “only…intended to create controversy to boost their circulation at the expense of Morrissey’s integrity”. He points out that “no journalist is willing to be credited” with the piece and insists that he and his client “will be unrelenting in our quest to bring him / NME to justice.”
In case you didn’t get that link earlier, Mercuriadis has reprinted confidential documents here, where he made the claims.
The singer has been scrutinised by the NME since 1992, when he appeared live in a support slot for Madness in Finsbury Park, London draped in a Union Jack Flag.
There is, of course, the potential for a huge amount of punning in this article. While the jugular was more suitable for us, feel free to amuse yourselves and us below.
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Got news? Email us at newsdesk@drownedinsound.com for back slaps and a credit...
Fucking hell!
The bloke out of MCR has done a comic!
Pele's done a solo album?
Yes he has
http://tinyurl.com/22yxyv
A snip at 16 quid
..
conor mcnicholas is such a twat.
i may have to buy his trash rag just to read this spurious nonsense.
If you do that, Diabolo...
...then that suggests "mission accomplished" on their part.
i will read it in Tesco
... and so should you
Conor McNicholas is SUCH
a weasal faced prick
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
this confirms that NME an even bigger bunch of total cunts that i thought
total, total hatchet harry
Get McNicholas out!
He should without doubt loose his job for this.
no one has done more
to make music in the UK completely and utterly shit than this man.
^ Well said.
Oh God
This is going to run and run.
NOT LIKE THE COLOURS IN THE UNION FLAG SON!
THESE COLOURS DON'T RUN.
ETC.
Does it really matter if he's opposed to immigration anyway?
Taking aside the NME debate for a Now I imagine most DiSers are, like myself, on the left-liberal side of the political spectrum and probably don't object to immigration in the way that, say, a BBC Have Your Say Contributor, might do.
But nonetheless, given McNicholas acknowledges Morrissey's comments weren't racist, does it really matter if his views on immigration are more in keeping with a Daily Mail reader than a liberal?
It does seem like the NME are trying to tell people what they 'should' think.
Hmmmmmmmmm
sounds like they are trying to sell copies of a flailing magazine more like!
aww morrissey the loveable racist
bf
much as I think Morrissey is a tossbag, I'm sure this is just a desperate attempt by the NME to plug their sinking ship with a bit of publicity.
That magazine sort of reminds me of a 58 year old cabaret singer dancing in the office of a cruise ship booking agent, desperately trying to get a job.
Faux-liberal hype obsessed drivel
Snap judgements are usually a no-no for me, but anyone out of their first year of uni who still reads and enjoys the NME isn't worh knowing
I need to understand everything that's gone on if I'm to make any kind of informed comment
but looking at that solicitor's letter, the balance does seem to be tilting in a particular direction, and it's not NME's. If that letter has been so carefully legally worded, the fact that they explicitly state there was a 'Get Morrissey' campaign is eye-opening.
Ever since the Keith Richards (not) snorting his dad thing, which unexpectedly got NME tons of publicity, McNicholas has gotten even worse with his desire to be seen to be 'agenda setting' (it's even in the mission statement on their website now). This one could potentially undo him. We shall see...
What I'm not saying in the above is whether or not I agree with Morrissey. I haven't read the article.
So...
...when is the Pele album out?
Is this racist? Or is Conor Mchnicholas Trite?
Q you live in italy now. would you ever consider moving back to Britain ?
A Britain's a terribly negative. And it hammers people down and it pulls you back and it prevents you. Also, with the issue of immigration, it's very difficult because although I don't have anything against people from other countries, the higher the influx into England, the more the Britich identity disappears. So the price is enormous. If you travel to Germany, it's still absolutely Germany. If you travel to sweden, it still has a Swedish identity. But travel to england and you have no idea where you are !
Q Why does this bother you ?
A It matters because the British identity is very attractive. I grew up into it , and I find it quaint and amusing. But England is a memory now. Other countries have held on to their basic identity, yet it seems to me that England was thrown away
Q isn't immigration enriching the British identity rather than diluting it ?
A It does in a way, and it's nice in its way. But you have to say goodbye to the Britain you once knew.
Q that's just the world changing
A But the change in England is so rapid compared to the change in any other country. If you walk through Knightsbridge on any bland day of the week you won't hear an English accent. You'll hear every accent under the sun apart from the British accent.
I wouldn't say that was racist in the slightest
England does seem to have something of an identity crisis (big can of worms right there <<<) and perhaps immigration is a contributing factor. But what I really got from that is he doesn't want to move 'home' because it has changed so much it wouldn't be the 'home' he remembered
he's got a point
but I think it has very little to do with immigration and much more to do with how england is turning into one big tesco.
wales doesn't have this problem nearly as much. it still looks and feels like its own country.
Do we have to have a national identity?
that's a question
that deserves its own thread.
-
I have to disagree with Morrissey and say the loss of British identity is not due to immigration. A MORI survey in 2002 found most people thought 1 in 6 or 7 people in Britain were foreign-born, when the reality is it's more like 1 in 25. The issue is more the import of foreign, e.g. American culture in terms of TV, magazines, cultural trends. The problem does not lie with actual foreigners, it's more to do with people born in England not embracing their past. Then again some would say the past of England is despicable and steeped in colonialism and the exploitation of others. What Morrissey said isn't strictly racist but I would have to disagree with his nationalistic ideas.
He agrees
Even the English language, I find, has been hopelessly mucked about with and everything is American or Australian. It's astonishing but it's so rife. It's not that I dislike America - I think America is fine on the other side of the Atlantic. It works quite well and is interesting. If Margaret Thatcher was a strong person, which she isn't, she would not allow this Americanisation to happen. But because she is such a weak Prime Minister it happens and any influence American business wishes to have on England it has. They've completely taken over Newcastle." ...Morrissey 1987
Not quite
What he is saying there is still over nationalistic in the old fashioned Tory sense. The key is not to forbid or control foreign influx. Anyone studying the motives of the WTO or global economics will know globalisation has benefits for global productivity. The focus should be on the British government to promote and maintain British culture. BBC job cuts is an example of failure in such an area. This whole block out the rest of the world thing Morrissey seems insistent on I just totally disagree with.
...
"If you travel to Germany, it's still absolutely Germany"
you know that's just bullsh!t, and whatever he means with "absolutely Germany" has worrying historical connotations to my ears. Germany today is a multicultural society and there are many places with a very visible presence of immigrants - and yes, there is racism too...
I'd say he has a point vis a vis Germany.
I was born in Germany and have lived there on 3 separate occasions, they have more of a sense of self that us.
it's nationalism not racism
right?
the interview is boring
It's weird journalism.
Hahahahaha, NME!
Wacky fun.
..
hmmm. to me it reads as a man dissatisfied with the dilution of a culture in general, rather than a racist. nme hyperbole cuntage.
Conor MacNicholas
....spitting in the face of common sense and musical integrity since, well, whenever he was born. A man that has achieved nothing. A waste of oxygen. A carbon footprint for no purpose. The symptom of the downfall of western civilisation as we know it.
Yep, I don't like him.
was nme always this awful?
and why is it now a tabloid which seems to have the sole aim of appearing in other tabloids.
-
Yes
The difference between Morrissey and Conor McNicholas is
that people like Morrissey. Therefore it is possible to forgive him for being a bit right-wing, whereas it is completely impossible to forgive Conor McNicholas for turning the NME into a big cheerleading nonsense rag for the industry band machine.
I don't give two shits what Morrissey's views on race are, to be honest (even though he's clearly not racist, just anti-immigration), because he has given something beautiful to the world in the form of the music of The Smiths, particularly the first album and The Queen Is Dead, music that has enriched mine and many other peoples' lives, and music which has made me at times feel substantially less alone. And Conor McNicholas has done what, exactly? Made the Arctic Monkeys and Razorlight look more important? Fuck you, McNicholas, fuck you and your whole money-chasing operation.
The NME is propaganda for scenesters
The speed at which NME promotes and then disowns them is shocking, and the way they make unimportant new bands that will be forgotten in 10 years time out to be saviours of music is also disgraceful. The NME is a music scene's equivalent of the Sun with their over-blown and sensationalist stories. It's pathetic as it's plain to see the NME tried to dig out this old debate to sensationalise and boost sales, they took a gamble and they lost as Morrissey is still a powerful figure in pop culture and the music industry.
if his comments
aren't racist, then what's the problem? I really don't understand. What are the NME accusing him of?
British Identity
What the fuck is it with its savage colonialist past? A War torn Imperialist nation of dole hungry scavenging Daily Mail readers? Immigrant Smiths fans?! What a lot of cock. All served up by a so-called premier Brit living in Italy. FUCK YOU MORRISEY AND EVERYTHING YOU STAND FOR.
And, no - I don't even wish to spell your dickhead name correctly.
Prick.
Well, Ash Akhtar without Britain's 'savage colonial past'
I would suggest that you would be rather less likely to be a resident of Tooting.
War torn? WTF?
Dole hungry? Laughable.
Daily Mail readers? Well, we have them more than outnumbered by rational free thinking types.
Ciderland
What?
Britain has a colonial past - and I am a resident of Tooting. So...your argument lacks any rational.
Why would I be less likely be a resident WITHOUT it? Because Britain didn't divide post-conquering?
War torn - ermmmmm - Iraq?
Dole hungry - look around (unless you're well off)
Daily Mail - among the highest readership / circulation along with The Sun.
You're living in a fucking fantasy land. Go join Morrisey in Italy.
Surely no one actually cares about The NME or Morrissey anymore?
I have fuzzy memories of them being good in the past but I could do without both of them.
Is Conor MacNicholas the most hated man in music??
I'm not saying he's shouldn't be hated , but people go really mental on the DiS board at the mere mention of his name!
I just hope people don't fall for this and start buying his shitty mag again.
If Tim Jonze won't put his name on the article it MUST be shit.
yeah
conor macnicholas is a wanker though. i picked up a copy of the nme the other week and i couldn't believe how it was written, it was like it was aimed at 15 year olds (i guess it is). it was actually pretty sad.
lol
@ NME.
What so Morrissey isn't allowed to have views on England? I'm not white and I find it hilarious how often the 'racist' stamp is used on people just expressing their opinions? What he said isn't racist in the same way that what Jade Goody said earlier this year isn't racist. Racism requires power.
People are so scared to talk.
^^ This ^^
The more idiots like McNicholas cry wolf over 'racist' non events in order to drum up publicity for failing endeavours like the NME the less there is on real racism.
*the less *focus* there is
.
...
Agreed. The editor needs shooting...
I find that offensive
I'm 15 and I haven't read the NME since I was about 13, it is actually complete toss.
It's good that you've realised this at a young age!
I was 15 when I stopped buying the NME (and the rather superior Melody Maker) on a weekly basis.
Amazing as it must be for anyone who wasn't around (or at least wasn't reading it) in the early-mid nineties, but, it used to be quite good.
A sad decline.
I'm glad someone said that
15 year olds aren't idiots. I'm 35 and remember what I was like when I was younger, and know I'd have felt just as patronised then as I do now.
this is further proof that the nme have gone to complete shit.
which should be a shock to no one.
..
I'm opposed to the level of immigration there is in this country completly. I wouldn't consider myself racist, ignorant, or prejudiced but believe that I should at least be allowed to say this without being branded thus. We have a number of problems in this country, one of which is increasing amounts of overcrowding. I have no doubt Morrisseys article was pissed about with by the NME to sensationalise things, but I hate even more that Morrissey (or anyone else) is not allowed to express rational, considered doubts about our country's policy on immigration.
Just reading up NME on wikipedia
I always thought 'NME wasn't so bad in my first year of Uni 2001-2002, really. But then it just went tits up during that summer of 2002. Or am I mad?'
The shift? Conor McNicholas. Appointed 2002. Gone were the covers with Aphex Twin or At The Drive-In. Enter Doherty, Von Bondies.
I never really saw it. I guess I forgive myself for buying the rag up to 2001 now.
I agree, but music is so dire now
I'm actually feeling nostalgic for the Von Bondies! And other middle ranking garage bands like the Black Keys, and D4 :-S
Hang the DJ
He has done this before, he wrapped himself in the flag in the nineties for the NME cover. Obviously being proud of your own nation is a really serious crime in a tiny minority of people's eyes.