The cult of Stephen Patrick Morrissey and the Smiths looms large in the lore of Indie and guitar based pop.

For what was a relatively brief existence (1982- 87) The Smiths have had a lasting effect on the music world. Love em or hate em their Rickenbacker jangle guitar lines and bedroom poetry was the soundtrack to much teenage angst from Whalley range to Vera Cruz. Have a look online at the Latino and Latina fandom in the West Coast of the states and Mexico – brylcreemed hysteria.

Of course central to this quasi-religious fervour is Morrisey the much lampooned fey bigmouthed frontman who went onto huge solo success before disappearing up his own arse via a succession of seemingly crazed rants on veganism, race, Britishness and the Monarchy. Hey this is music though where controversy is king though no? Well …. to a point. The existence of love the Smiths Hate Morrissey t-shirts shows a split within the fan-base.

Do I have a wilting gladioli in the game? Well kinda but not really. I got into the Smiths in 1989, 2 years after their demise. Their tales of longing and hopelessness in a dreary UK landscape spoke to me in a different way to the California thrash that I was also listening to and I can admit to morosely wandering half cut back from pubs pining over another friend-zone itch whilst Hatful of Hollow blared out of my cheap Sanyo headphones.  Also to stick with the cult status I have a piece of Morrissey’s shirt in a plastic teddy bear in my MattCave – a relic of sorts. It was thrown into the crowd at Brixton Academy on 21st July 1991 (I know this as I wrote that date on the bear) and was then ripped to shreds by crazed rockabillies. I was left clinging a corner and a button.  So it has sat in my various houses over the last 32 years as a souvenir rather than something to be worshipped or revered. I suppose the Smiths and Morrissey could be described similarly. I bought a few of his solo albums over the years though noting since the Irish blood English heart one and I tend to just roll my eyes when he says something stupid or storms off stage due to a meat pie being in his vicinity. He, to me has become the epitome of an embarrassing great uncle who sits in the corner at Xmas muttering racist nonsense and lamenting the “good old days” whilst everyone ignores him.

Still the fact that Rick Astley and the Blossoms packed out a tent at a farm in Somerset last month playing a cover set of Smiths, shows that there is still a clamouring for the old fellas choons if not his ridiculous ramblings.

Ol Mozzer now lives in Italy which is where so called “Suicidal popsters” Spiritual Front also call home.  It would appear that their bequiffed vocalist Simone “Hellvis” Salvatori got tired of being called a Mozzabee and the band decided to wear their sheer crinoline credentials on their sleeves with a tribute album.

The Queen is Not Dead is not, as my Ed first thought a tribute to the album of a similar name. Rather it is a collection of 15 tracks which span the Smiths studio albums. There are the expected hits – What Difference Does it Make?, There is A Light That Never Goes Out, and Girlfriend in a Coma but is also interesting that the band have chosen to cover lesser known fan faves like Girl Afraid and Barbarism Begins At Home.

Now that we have established they know their morose Mancunian melancholy music (ooooh aliteration!) it is all down to the execution.

I’ll be honest – I see no point in this album at all. Spiritual Front just straight up cover the songs adding very little any of them – OK there are some strings and brass in How Soon Is Now that rob the sadness from the original and is that a fucking Hawaiian guitar?

This is just an album of covers which I cannot see appealing to anyone but the most ardent Spiritual Front fan – of which there seems to be many. This is not like going to see a tribute act who serve as a nostalgia hit for us oldies or a “I wish I coulda been there but this is the next best thing” for millennials with an 80’s fetish.

This is just a love note for their idols which is a waste of ear-space.  Those of you who are older will remember Stars on 45 and other such albums from the late 70’s and early 80’s. Re-recorded versions of pop hits that were cheaper than the originals. This is that. I suppose if you don’t want to give money to ol Floppy bollocks you can buy this. Why not just stream the original albums instead?

I am gonna go and listen to the originals. They may be sung by a knobend but at least he wrote em.

(2/10 Matt Mason) 

https://www.facebook.com/spiritualfrontofficialpage

https://spiritualfrontofficial.bandcamp.com/album/the-queen-is-not-dead