Whenever a member of a Britpop band (Oasis, Blur, Pulp, etc.) speaks, somebody’s going to get dissed. That isn’t a bad thing though; it’s just how they roll. In fact, Jarvis Cocker has gotten so good at slagging off fellow rockers, he’s passing on the talent to his children in a guest review of some of this year’s popular tracks with guardian.co.uk.
Cocker starts out by predictably scoffing at Lily Allen’s “Not Fair” as a song that should repel all would-be boyfriends of the singer. “Musically,” he adds, “it’s not so hot; a kind of synthetic hoedown.” To his chagrin, Cocker’s kids, ages 13 and 6, enjoyed the track.
The best mini review, however, is Cocker’s take on “The World We Live In,” by The Killers: “That title is just asking for trouble: what, you’re gonna sum up the whole of human existence in 4mins 13secs are you Mr Flowers?” he asked. “OK, hit me. Apparently the planet we are inhabiting sounds like an ELO B-side put through a flanger. This is so bad it actually made me feel sorry for them for a minute. They seem to want success so badly and then they curl this one out and mess it all up for themselves.”
I wonder if Brandon Flowers is still mad about The Killers being bigger in England than the U.S. If so, a feud with a British rocker is probably the last thing he wants these days. Perhaps Trent Reznor will chime in instead.