Liam Fray slams classist snobs who criticise northern fans

[Mouseboy11]

Was at the Bristol gig last night, the band were good and I do enjoy the earlier stuff in fairness. However it wasn't half full of idiot kids who still think football hooliganism is cool. 

[Hugh Jass]

Imagine Oasis with all the things that made them good back in the 90's removed...

[EamerRed]

2 hours ago, Zac Quinn said:

Even their biggest fans can't really believe this, surely 

....

I'm not saying they've not written a bad song. There's literally not a band on the planet that you couldn't do that for...

Barring that example, I think Liam Fray's lyrics are probably the band's strongest element. I've not seen this anti-Courteeners outlash anywhere else, and I'd say they have the best lyrics out of all of the prominent Manchester bands of recent times. I'm evidently fighting a losing battle here though 

[AM91]

On 07/11/2016 at 0:13 AM, eastynh said:

I was always under the impression that The Courteeners were more like the Roses than Oasis.

These sound and look far more like Oasis and they are from Australia.

 Big fan of their Cher - Believe cover. Decent album too. 

[Rose-Colored Boy]

46 minutes ago, EamerRed said:

I'm not saying they've not written a bad song. There's literally not a band on the planet that you couldn't do that for...

Barring that example, I think Liam Fray's lyrics are probably the band's strongest element. I've not seen this anti-Courteeners outlash anywhere else, and I'd say they have the best lyrics out of all of the prominent Manchester bands of recent times. I'm evidently fighting a losing battle here though 

They've not written a good one either, though, like even their very best are bang average throwaway indie tat by normal standards. I actually found Concrete Love enjoyable enough to listen to, I still put on Small Bones from time to time, but vastly overstating their worth with comments like "actually real not generic crap" is part of the reason people have a problem with Fray and their fans. That and the fact that the only reason they have outlasted The Enemy, Reverend And The Makers, The Fratellis and all the rest of them is being from Manchester.. people resent them because where they're from has meant they've survived longer than they ought to have done.

Edited November 15, 2016 by Zac Quinn

[AM91]

43 minutes ago, Zac Quinn said:

They've not written a good one either, though, like even their very best are bang average throwaway indie tat by normal standards. I actually found Concrete Love enjoyable enough to listen to, I still put on Small Bones from time to time, but vastly overstating their worth with comments like "actually real not generic crap" is part of the reason people have a problem with Fray and their fans. That and the fact that the only reason they have outlasted The Enemy, Reverend And The Makers, The Fratellis and all the rest of them is being from Manchester.. people resent them because where they're from has meant they've survived longer than they ought to have done.

Doesn't matter where they are from. Their music is better than Enemy and Rev and I'm a fan of both of those.

[Gozpot]

Doesn't matter where they are from, their music is borderline torturous.

[EamerRed]

44 minutes ago, Zac Quinn said:

They've not written a good one either, though, like even their very best are bang average throwaway indie tat by normal standards. I actually found Concrete Love enjoyable enough to listen to, I still put on Small Bones from time to time, but vastly overstating their worth with comments like "actually real not generic crap" is part of the reason people have a problem with Fray and their fans. That and the fact that the only reason they have outlasted The Enemy, Reverend And The Makers, The Fratellis and all the rest of them is being from Manchester.. people resent them because where they're from has meant they've survived longer than they ought to have done.

I completely disagree personally. I couldn't give a damn where they're from, and I think the Courteeners have more strong tracks than all of the rest of those you've mentioned, even though I like them. When I say 'actually real', it's not to be antagonistic, but the songs are clearly from genuine stories which you can relate to, which I struggle to do with many other bands, probably only The Smiths. Heck, even Morrissey likes them ffs. But as I say, we can disagree, it's all subjective!

[Rose-Colored Boy]

6 minutes ago, EamerRed said:

I completely disagree personally. I couldn't give a damn where they're from, and I think the Courteeners have more strong tracks than all of the rest of those you've mentioned, even though I like them. When I say 'actually real', it's not to be antagonistic, but the songs are clearly from genuine stories which you can relate to, which I struggle to do with many other bands, probably only The Smiths. Heck, even Morrissey likes them ffs. But as I say, we can disagree, it's all subjective!

"Your club is full of overrated
Dehydrated, goggled eyed girls
And they're trying to stare at me
But their eyes are rattling
And they're struggling to see

And she can't stand still
Cause of sixteen pills
That she's taken in the mini bus
Her conscience followed her into the night
Gave her mum a fright
I said "Fuck, that it's her own fault for letting her out of your sight"

And now you're too tired to eat
And you're too hungry to sleep
You're hooligans on E
And we're too tired to bother with any of you

Cavorting and snorting
Your way through the band
Get your hand off me trouser leg
I'm turning up tonight
But only to knock you down a peg

And now you're too tired to eat
And you're too hungry to sleep
You're hooligans on E
And we're too tired to bother with any of you

Your club is full of overrated
Dehydrated, goggled eyed girls
And they're trying to stare at me
But their eyes are rattling
And they're struggling to see

And now you're too tired to eat
And you're too hungry to sleep
You're hooligans on E
And we're too tired to bother with any of you

We're Gentlemen aren't we?
And we're too articulate to bother with any of you"

Relatable lad songs by the lads for the lads ...

[EamerRed]

Except that the song is going against lad culture.... Just as Bide Your Time also is. Why is it so difficult to accept that people can legitimately like this band?

I'm not going to dispute that they do attract the biggest ****s to their gigs though.

[eastynh]

Can someone tell me what makes the Courteeners a shit band? Is it their chord progressions, musical skills, lyrics, productions? Or just the fact of where they come from? 

Then can we contrast why The XX are regarded as a good band? I have been listening to the XX a bit and its ok. Yet I would be interested in the reception they would get if they were from Manchester rather than the same posh school as Hot Chip.

Edited November 15, 2016 by eastynh

[Hugh Jass]

11 minutes ago, eastynh said:

Can someone tell me what makes the Courteeners a shit band? Is it their chord progressions, musical skills, lyrics, productions? Or just the fact of where they come from?

They make horrifically dull music that sounds like every indie lad-rock band from the last 20 years charting back to Oasis.

Where they come from is irrelevant.

[eastynh]

17 minutes ago, Hugh Jass said:

They make horrifically dull music that sounds like every indie lad-rock band from the last 20 years charting back to Oasis.

Where they come from is irrelevant.

From what I have heard they sound absolutely nothing like Oasis, apart from the fact they are both beat combos.

Edited November 15, 2016 by eastynh

[Alex DeLarge]

6 minutes ago, eastynh said:

From what I have heard they sound absolutely nothing like Oasis, apart from the fact they are both beat combos.

It's just the fact they play generic indie rock music which has been done a million times before.

This board is obviously going to hate  The Courteeners as they're into electronic music, punk, World music, folk, hip-hop and the behaviour of some of their fanbase will put people off them more.

[BlackHole2006]

17 minutes ago, eastynh said:

From what I have heard they sound absolutely nothing like Oasis, apart from the fact they are both beat combos.

What others have said, I do not like them because their songs sound exactly the same as any other indie band of their ilk. Also I don't like the fact that their fans tell me that they are the best band in the world ever and anyone who disputes this is obviously inferior.

I feel the same way about avid Radiohead fans who think that anyone who doesn't like Radiohead must be stupid, and I'm actually quite a big fan of Radiohead.

Edited November 15, 2016 by BlackHole2006

[Alex DeLarge]

At the end of the day, the amount of hate this band gets is because they're so generic.

Rat Boy is from Essex, he's generic shite, Catfish are from Wales, they're generic shite, The Vaccines are a bunch of posh boys from London, they're generic shite as well.

[eastynh]

13 minutes ago, BlackHole2006 said:

What others have said, I do not like them because their songs sound exactly the same as any other indie band of their ilk. Also I don't like the fact that their fans tell me that they are the best band in the world ever and anyone who disputes this is obviously inferior.

I feel the same way about avid Radiohead fans who think that anyone who doesn't like Radiohead must be stupid, and I'm actually quite a big fan of Radiohead.

See this is the thing for me, Radiohead sound like a poor mans Joy Division to me, they are just continuing the line of morbid indie/proto electro/rock music that Hooky and the lads instigated 20 years prior. Now just because Joy Division did it does not mean Radiohead are shit as they are blazing a similar trail.

No one has mentioned from a musical point of view why the Courteeners are shit yet. Its been because they are compared to similar bands which is a cop out really. Heard a few mentions of Oasis and their fans, but again none of that actually matters to the quality of their music. 

How many bands are truly original? There are not many. Most bands wear their influences on their sleeves.

There are still no relevent points being made in regards ro their music. Most negative aspects still seem to be associated with the things on their periphery (lads, fans, guitars and so on)

Edited November 15, 2016 by eastynh

[TomViolence]

6 minutes ago, eastynh said:

See this is the thing for me, Radiohead sound like a poor mans Joy Division to me

 

[Alex DeLarge]

5 minutes ago, eastynh said:

No one has mentioned from a musical point of view why the Courteeners are shit yet. Its been because they are compared to similar bands which is a cop out really. Heard a few mentions of Oasis and their fans, but again none of that actually matters to the quality of their music. 

How many bands are truly original? There are not many. Most bands wear their influences on their sleeves.

There are still no relevent points being made in regards ro their music. Most negative aspects still seem to be associated with the things on their periphery (lads, fans, guitars and so on)

There's a difference between not-being original (as no band truly is) and being completely generic. This board loves Kendrick Lamar, what he did on To Pimp a Butterfly wasn't original, combining jazz and spoken word with hip-hop has been around since the beginning of the genre, however as he incorporated these elements in a clever and fresh way, on top of some stellar songwriting and lyrical moments, it made genre not really matter.

The Courteeners don't do anything original, which would be okay, but it's not like they're technically great musicians or great lyricists either. Without one specific talent to fall back on, the fact they're generic stands out even more. 

[Amy Lawn]

22 hours ago, EamerRed said:

So I just got back from seeing this lot in Bristol and like it or not they really do have this generation by the bollocks.

In the same way that The Donald has them by the pussy?

[efcfanwirral]

A lot of people are quoting awful lyrics from a pretty poor first album as if bands can't grow. I'm sure there are poor lyrics on later albums but I think they've definitely got better in that regard.

im a big fan by the way but the way I see it....

albums 1 and 2 - songs about nights out that appeal to the absolute worst of the people who appear at the gigs and inhabit the city I unfortunately have to live in  these songs make a good live atmosphere but not much more. Though as has been said some are against lad culture but are cleverly disguised as going out songs 

After that - more mature themes and some better lyrics and less stuff that appeals to the football hooligans

But I can completely see how people would dismiss them after that first album 

Edited November 15, 2016 by efcfanwirral

[Richi1988]

9 hours ago, Hugh Jass said:

They make horrifically dull music that sounds like every indie lad-rock band from the last 20 years charting back to Oasis.

Where they come from is irrelevant.

 

9 hours ago, Alex DeLarge said:

It's just the fact they play generic indie rock music which has been done a million times before.

This board is obviously going to hate  The Courteeners as they're into electronic music, punk, World music, folk, hip-hop and the behaviour of some of their fanbase will put people off them more.

My favorite genre is probably Indie 

[Rose-Colored Boy]

16 hours ago, EamerRed said:

 Why is it so difficult to accept that people can legitimately like this band?

It's not.. people are welcome to like whoever they like.. it's just when said people start going on as if they're leagues better than any of the 100's of identical bands they happen to have outlasted, which has only happened because of where they've come from.

Just a sense of realism and level-headedness would be nice. I've got some right critically-speaking dirge in my record collection because I too like what I like - but (at least as I've got older) I've realised that going around claiming it's Bowie levels of groundbreaking or what-have-you just makes me look daft .

Edited November 16, 2016 by Zac Quinn

[EamerRed]

14 minutes ago, Zac Quinn said:

It's not.. people are welcome to like whoever they like.. it's just when said people start going on as if they're leagues better than any of the 100's of identical bands they happen to have outlasted, which has only happened because of where they've come from.

Just a sense of realism and level-headedness would be nice. I've got some right critically-speaking dirge in my record collection because I too like what I like - but (at least as I've got older) I've realised that going around claiming it's Bowie levels of groundbreaking or what-have-you just makes me look daft .

But this is the thing, all of the 'haterz' in this thread say this, but I can't see where anyone is claiming that they're leagues better? I've said they're better than a lot of the stuff around but that's purely from the live shows where they get really fecking energetic.

Can't understand the criticism further up of them being 'dull' either. Yes, they are similar to many other indie bands, but their gigs are by far the most bouncing out of the lot, take out the tw*ts who go along as well and it would be great. As we've seen above, no one can answer why they're apparently crap, except that they don't have any stand out features, which goes for 99% of bands. I'm not claiming they're Led Zep or anything here 

EDIT: Probably shouldn't have replied to this to be honest, it's subjective so no one is going to 'win'. I just think people should be allowed to enjoy what they enjoy so long as it doesn't harm anybody 

Edited November 16, 2016 by EamerRed

[CaledonianGonzo]

What if it harms the wider culture?  Aaaaahhhhhhh...