Contractual reasons for not releasing "new" materi

[7anthea7]

His vision does not exist anymore.

very true... (assuming that's still his vision)

That's the root of the issue, innit? All this speculation is based on what he last stated. The available info at the official site hasn't changed in donkey's years, and there hasn't been much in the way of interviews for quite awhile either.

So who knows what his 'vision' is at this moment? It becomes less an exercise in figuring out what it would take to get him to release something than in finding a way to blame him for not doing it. And I'm personally not going there - my stand is that an artist only 'owes' their public the best they can possibly do. If they believe that isn't possible, then they do everyone (including themselves) a kindness by not making the attempt

[stufarq]

Well said.

But the speculation's still interesting.

[Smallstone]

This thread has been great. I've enjoyed it! Essentially we're discussing where SOM are in relation to the business of music as a whole NOW and 'seemingly' Eldritch's lack of understanding of his position within the 'market'. Kinda sad really - but if he has NO IDEA and CARES even less - that is his look out. He's big enough and ugly enough to make his own decisions. If only he'd take a little advice now and again... Essentially I think it's his lack of understanding or blatent disregard for the bands legacy that erally irks....well irks [i]this[/i] old fan anyway But it is HIS band - he can rape the memory as he sees fit. Don't we all really deep down know and accept that a new SOM album will NEVER scale the heights of FALAA or VT or whatever brief period we hitch our memories onto musically...? The new band p*ss us off (those of us who are maybe 35-50+ and were there 1st time around) as they seem so flacid and pale compared to previous line ups and MUSICALLY speaking seem to be a composite of clueless crass metal/g*** twidleness? Yeah?
Setting up tours is a time consuming business. I personally think (shoot me down here folks) it works to fill the business like part of AE's mind (and maybe his bank balance) and that doing countless tours year after year serves as a distraction to the REAL business at hand - that is ENGAGING with the music business. I.e. making another record... He may have got screwed over before but it was his own choice. Seriously now WHO came out of that infamous music strike worse? The Sisters Of Mercy or Warners Brothers/WEA/East West? Come on.... [i]HE[/i] f**ked his career. Lets not kid ourselves here. George Michael/Prince in terms of CLOUT/SALES he ain't. For fucks sake - no one outside of this forum gives a tuppeny f**k whether they record again - ever! It (whatever 'it' is) has moved on... (the zeitgeist maybe?)
Argueing - or discussing methods of differing ways of taking product to market is just ... ultimately wank! Digital over CD sales in shops on the high street or f****ing Amazon. Whatever.... Sorry Had to get that off my chest....
Still... gonna go to the Forum! Ha ha ha. So really - jokes on me innit...
[/i]

[euphoria]

This thread has been great. I've enjoyed it!

Me too, definitely! Even if chances of a new album, or even product, are zero, it feels good to talk about it. Like therapy

If only he'd take a little advice now and again...

Not likely, as he has explicitly answered once that the best advice he has ever gotten was "Don't do that" or something similar. But then, it's one of the reasons we (ok, I) like him.

Still... gonna go to the Forum!

I'm not quite happy that they once again play England at the end of a giant tour - I think Leeds/London would be gig number 30 or 31 in a more or less straight line and that doesn't promise anything good as far as his voice is concerned.

[Kutan]

About still writing good songs when you grow old and satisfied:

Well, it may be true that you don't have that f**ked-up-ness like when you were 25 and full of amphetamine, but even if your daily life does not contain anything that people would expect from a rock star, you certainly have all your feelings inside and the songs you make of them have nothing to do with what you show on the outside.

This is from my experience of playing in one and the same band for 20 years now and the times when we thought about success are more than 10 years ago.

[7anthea7]

About still writing good songs when you grow old and satisfied:

Well, it may be true that you don't have that f**ked-up-ness like when you were 25 and full of amphetamine, but even if your daily life does not contain anything that people would expect from a rock star, you certainly have all your feelings inside and the songs you make of them have nothing to do with what you show on the outside.

This is from my experience of playing in one and the same band for 20 years now and the times when we thought about success are more than 10 years ago.

I suspect this varies wildly from one performer to the next - especially if you've made your name/acquired your fanbase through some rather fraught lyrical content. You may have mellowed, but that isn't what people want or expect to hear. Convincing them to give what you're doing now a fair listening would not be at all easy, and possibly quite unpleasant

My own experience (as a fiction writer, not a lyricist) is that when my life's on a pretty even keel, I either have to dredge awfully deep into myself for material, which frequently feels quite stale, or I have to create something based on experiences I've not been through, yet still feel the emotional weight of them as if I had. Some lyricists are quite good at the latter (Richard Thompson comes to mind), but not everyone is. I don't look at it as a failing, it's just the way you're built. Many abysmal books could have been avoided if people were more aware of such personal limitations - and many abysmal records as well

[7anthea7]

This thread has been great. I've enjoyed it!

As have I - I hope I didn't make it sound otherwise!

For fucks sake - no one outside of this forum gives a tuppeny f**k whether they record again - ever!

I'd have to disagree there - since to the best of my knowledge, there were only two HLers at the Seattle gig, and it was a very enthusiastic audience, I'd assume that the other several hundred would also be happy to see a new release. They just don't talk about it as much as we do I assume this pertains just about everywhere...and there are other forums, after all (e.g. Poison Door).

Argueing - or discussing methods of differing ways of taking product to market is just ... ultimately wank! Digital over CD sales in shops on the high street or f****ing Amazon. Whatever.... Sorry Had to get that off my chest...

Yeah, it is wankery, to a certain extent. (Mostly, to my way of thinking, when arguments are based on faulty/insupportable premisses, or when it turns into a Von-bashing exercise ) However, it's interesting to note that, given the apparent knowledge, experience, resources and talent, not to mention sheer enthusiasm, that exists just among this group of people, nearly the entire infrastructure for a release could be created right here. (Unfortunately, the gazillion-dollar studio and the necessary personnel for such a recording are lacking...Oh well )

[Kutan]

I suspect this varies wildly from one performer to the next

Yes, indeed. Actually, this sentence was written from the perspective of only one performer - me

Convincing them to give what you're doing now a fair listening would not be at all easy, and possibly quite unpleasant

Not at all. I am different now and therefore the lyrics are different, but only because I have experienced more in life (still emotionally deep enough to write a song about) and not because life has become shallow. Ok, the point seems to be that something worth notice has to happen (which may result in less songs than before...but that's the same with )

[Prescott]

I've been gone for quite a while and it seems that nothing has changed. It's really depressing. I still think there's a slight chance Andrew will release a new Sisters record one day, but only the slightest of slight chances. You all can justify it for him however you want, but I think it's pathetic and shameful. Better to try than to be a coward and not try because it might not be good enough or whatever. But that's probably not it either. Maybe there is some legal reason why, etc. Bottom line it sucks more and more every day that he doesn't announce a release date for a new record.

Plenty of sequels I never thought would happen or be worth while, have/are happening soon.

There's a kick-ass new Star Trek movie coming soon.

Street Fighter IV which honestly looks like it was worth the wait.

Halo Wars

s**t, Kate Bush and Axl Rose finally released new material.

Live action Transformers? who would have thought? It sounds like smoke/alcohol induced nonsense, but sure enough that's happened, with another on the way.

It was a pleasure to meet Andrew after the Richmond concert. I should have had more balls and bluntly asked him what the deal is with a studio album. Instead I merely was content with him signing my Re-release box set which he told me he didn't make a cent off of.

Si signed it too. I should have grabbed the laptop case he set down to sign it and ran off to the nearest CD manufacturer!!!

Maybe someone or something has made Andrew wait for someone or something for a very long time, or maybe he is still waiting for someone or something and he figures we should all share his pain in waiting for something for a very long time too?

Either way it sucks Andrew.

[Mokarran]

<yawn>

If you find a discussion boring and have nothing to add to it, you surely must have other options than stating your dissent in such a boring manner?

I'll post what I want, where I want - but thanks for your comments.
My point wasn't aimed at you particularly - it's just we've been over this tiresome subject over and over again.

"I'll post what I want, where I want"

Freedom of speech, or unrepentent hogwankery?

[Moakahontas]

Cool down everybody...

[silentNate]

I should have grabbed the laptop case he set down to sign it and ran off to the nearest CD manufacturer!!!

At last- someone with a sensible plan

[7anthea7]

"I'll post what I want, where I want"

Freedom of speech, or unrepentent hogwankery?

Mod-ical license...

[Carcharoth]

I really don't think Eldo's ever going to officially release anything new. Mainly because he probably knows that whatever he puts out, it probably wouldn't be able to live up to the unrealistic expectations a large chunk of his fanbase has. Secondly because he's a lazy old git who's contempt with doing a tour every once in a while when he's running out of cash for drugs and cat food.

[_emma_]

Geez, man, respect, where did you get that insightful knowlegde from?


Mainly because of his fanbase expectations that he wouldn't live up to?

And secondly because he's a lazy old git??


Who's short of cash for drugs and catfood?????





Words fail me.


Apologies if I've just popped in out of the blue and posted a comment that has been posted several times on the previuous pages of this thread, it's late and I honestly can't be bothered to read the whole of it.

[dinky daisy]

I really don't think Eldo's ever going to officially release anything new. Mainly because he probably knows that whatever he puts out, it probably wouldn't be able to live up to the unrealistic expectations a large chunk of his fanbase has. Secondly because he's a lazy old git who's contempt with doing a tour every once in a while when he's running out of cash for drugs and cat food.

I think you are totally right. But still I prefer Sisters songs through s**t karaoke sound instead of any hi-fi full member band version of, let's say, Echo & The Bunnymen, UB40, The m*****n or Motley Crue.

[Purple Light]

Jesus!

216 replies to this thread... & I'd not really even noticed it! Is it worth me grabbing a beer or 8, taking an hour & reading through this? Must be interesting in parts to have so many replies or am I missing something?

[7anthea7]

Jesus!

216 replies to this thread... & I'd not really even noticed it! Is it worth me grabbing a beer or 8, taking an hour & reading through this? Must be interesting in parts to have so many replies or am I missing something?

Some of it's worth reading. A lot is just the same complaints/personal opinions/grievances that have been aired for the last 18 years

It might be worth the hour, as long as you remember the beer...

[Harvey Winston]

I think you are totally right. But still I prefer Sisters songs through s**t karaoke sound instead of any hi-fi full member band version of, let's say, Echo & The Bunnymen, UB40, The m*****n or Motley Crue.

Four bands you don't like? I don't follow, can you elaborate?

[despair]

I hope Andrew gets a magnificent vision, and then creates Floodland II all by himself!

[ashville]

1. No one is prepared to give him the money he needs to make another record (at least not on the basis money was previously spent). His needs may be unrealistic. He may well be aware of this.

2. There are plenty of companies out there who would release a new album due to the guaranteed sales ( to you lot).....but not for the money required to record it (see 1 above). Someone told me he spent an entire day doing the tambourine and handclaps on the first James Ray record....can you remember them?(the handclaps and tambourine, that is...I know you all remember James...)

3. No artist is restricted in the way posited above by lots of people.....its so long since the last contract ended he could re-record the entire back catalogue, never mind recording a new album. Warners would not be able to stop him. Only he can stop him.

4. You lot keep buying tickets to see the same show....stop it, stem the income, make the sod work for some attention....if thats what you want....he might not care, of course. Tricky, isn't it?

5. Its actually harder to make a record than some people think.....especially a good one.

6. FALAA is a badly recorded album of great songs....Floodland is a masterpiece, not one hair out of place....Vision Thing is well produced but the material is poor, or the material is great and badly produced, I can never make my mind up.....the missing 4th album has to be as good as Floodland to be worth making, and its not possible. You can't beat perfection. Equalling it is also difficult.

7. Don't blame Adam. He has been out of it for half as long as he was in it. Not counting the gigs he did.

8. "Some Girls Wander..." is the best Sisters album. Because it wasn't meant to be one. Was it? Discuss.

9. To quote Iggy....."I'm Bored".....

10. I saw Magazine last week. They were fantastic. They haven't played live for 28 years. I really am not bothered if they make a new record. Its not the point.

[despair]

Many valid points.

The key words here are inspiration and motivation, without those there is nothing. If an artist really puts his mind to it he will surely find a way to get it done. Several of my musician friends have the equipment to record and produce a decent sounding recording in their apartments, I can only imagine what someone in Andrew's position can access at little or no expense.

Yes, it has to be up there with Floodland to be worth it, hence the magnificent vision.

[Yggdrasil]

Many valid points.
Yes, it has to be up there with Floodland to be worth it, hence the magnificent vision.

I really hope that any new material would sound new, not like Floodland. I don't think it has to be "up there with Floodland" either, there are so many other great SoM records to compare with who are equally great in their own way. I would like to be pleasantly surprised! And I'm positive that AE is capable of pulling off a great record. Call me an optimist...

[despair]

I am not saying I want it to sound like Floodland, just that it has to be approx. as good to be worth making (IMO).

There aren't really many other albums to compare with as they only released 3 albums, and Floodland is widely regarded as the masterpiece. I love FALAA as well, in fact it was the '85 sound of the Sisters that made me fall in love in the first place. If Floodland had been my introduction to the Sisters there is a good chance I wouldn't be listening to them today (yes, I know it's crazy).

[il duce]

whatever he puts out, it probably wouldn't be able to live up to the unrealistic expectations a large chunk of his fanbase has.

I am not sure we even have any expectations anymore. When I read this thread I get the impression that if Von recorded his cat eating we would buy it and be merry because he did something.

Hey, wait a minute. Is that the problem? Has he realised that we have no expectations at all anymore?

By the way, I am disapointed with the Nashville Predators shirt, what a s**t team!