HE IS THE LAW

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

By popular demand, JUDGE POP is back from a lengthy patrol in the Cursed Earth, back to fight MUSIC CRIME on the mean streets of MEGA CITY POP. This week his legal scrutiny falls on PATRICK WOLF, who has risen to #1 on the Poptimists Listening Charts - but is he any good? The Judge's word is law - can you help guide him?

[Poll #956326]

Comments

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

Oh god people keep talking to me about Patrick Wolf. I was piqued enough* to ask his PR for the new album and god it's unlistenable - overblown but still ineffective and wimpy, and again I don't understand why people would inflict their voice on people if they can really really not sing!

The first three songs, anyway, I had to turn it off after that.

Also have other reasons for hating not just P Wolf but the entire scene he's a part of, mostly to do with having ended up too close to it (but not close enough that I give a flying fvck about the tedious gossip emanating from it!!!!).

*saw him compared to Rufus Wainwright, whom I love, quite a lot, comparisons TOTALLY offbase though (they are both gay and a bit flamboyant and quite lavish in their ambition and that's about it). Key diff is, Rufus can make me laugh, P Wolf is entirely humourless as far as I can hear.

(The last.fm poptimists group is a total disgrace, looking at the most popular acts! How do they calculate it anyway - by how many group members listen to Artist X per week, or by how many times Artist X is listened to across the group?)

[jauntyalan.livejournal.com]

the number is the number of separate members who have played something by that artist

similarly with the tracklisting, the number of people who have played that track

it doesn't reflect how intensively anyone may have listened to an artist or track individually, just the number of people who have played it/them once

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

This feature will probably guarantee PW another #1 spot!!

[jauntyalan.livejournal.com]

PAVEMENT though. PAVEMENT.

i think i might abdicate as 'leader' in protest

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

Clearly there is MUCH WORK to be done in Mega City Pop.

[dubdobdee.livejournal.com]

beneath the pavement THE BEACH

And yet

[blue-russian.livejournal.com]

Cassie and The Field (okay, they're not pop either) rank on the tracks list.

The thing you need to resign yourself to is that most popular artists, and especially artists with longer histories, tend to chart higher.

Unfortunately not all the poptimists here are actually using last.fm (for various reasons).

Anyway, I like lots of music. The Lex was listening to classical last week, if I recall correctly! Even less Pop than Pavement ;)

[jauntyalan.livejournal.com]

oh look, an inline preview of a patrick wolf track...

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

Based on A&E I was expecting MORE ambition and lavishness - it seemed quite...lo-fi! I think I was expecting something more like Simon Warner or Thieves, to use two minor personal touchstones for flamboyant pop.

I didn't mind the voice really!

Definitely wimpy though - not always a bad thing.

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

I am surprised people describe him as 'lavish' cus I always thought he was incredibly minimal. Hohum.

[jeff-worrell.livejournal.com]

OK have now listened to three PW songs on youtube (didn't get to the end of the third one, actually), inc. two from his latest record. Not my thing at all. If Dr. T had used this guy as the stick with which to beat "indie pretending to be pop" yesterday, I would have argued with him far less.

To the isocubes wi' him! (Wolf, that is, not Alex)

One's bored of being British

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

Whatever became of Simon Warner?

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

PW is bi, rather than gay. Though he has also rather worryingly suggested that he might spend the rest of his life with a horse, which can't be good.