Stuart Murdoch, a musical and lyrical hero of mine, becomes Stuart Murdoch, blogging hero.
A collection of blogs, you say? By a musician? An indie musican? Hmmmm. How interesting is that going to be? Well, quite interesting indeed, it turns out. You may already know Stuart Murdoch as the formerly-publicity-shy frontman of Belle & Sebastian. They were the band who swiftly amassed an army of fans in the late 90s, becoming key players in the indiepop movement in the process. Then they won a Brit award and changed tactics (sort of). If … Read More
Usually they’re tales of (or love letters to) girls lost in the confusion of adolescence or young adulthood, struggling to come to terms with their place in the world. Fumbled, forgettable sex is a repeated theme, as is identity crisis and the same sort of frustrated teenage ennui that Daniel Clowes depicted so well in his Ghost Worldseries. It’s existentialism through fiction, allowing his characters to project his worries and fears that maybe this life isn’t all we want it to be. His blogs, on the other hand, are much more confident. Murdoch still tells stories, of course, varying from taking pictures for Belle & Sebastian album sleeves to his opinions on the Olympics. But this time, he’s the focal point. And he turns out to be much funnier and more confident than you might have imagined. That’s not to say that he’s arrogant; he’s still self-deprecating at times, but it comes from a man much more comfortable with his own sense of self than his lyrics would suggest…
Chris Cocca 
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