SOUNDTRACK: COCTEAU TWINS-“Oomingmak” (1986).
In Stuart David’s book, In The All-Night Café, he lists the songs on a mixtape that Stuart Murdoch gave to him when they first met.
Although I’ve been a fan of Belle & Sebastian for a long time, I knew almost none of the songs on this mixtape. So, much like Stuart David, I’m listening to them for the first time trying to see how they inspire Stuart Murdoch.
In the book, David writes how much he does not like “rock,” especially music based around bluesy rock. Most of these songs, accordingly, do not do that. In fact, most of these songs are (unsurprisingly) soft and delicate.
Of all the bands on the list, Cocteau Twins were the one I know (and like) best. I’ve been a fan since 1987, so just after this album came out. I never remember which songs are which by them, because they have titles like “Oomingmak.”
Cocteau Twins are a magical band and at the time (and perhaps even now) no one sounded like them. Their music is so ethereal, it practically floats away both because of the shimmering echoing guitars of Robin Guthrie and Elizabeth Frasier’s high pitched vocals–often with non-intelligible words. [I honestly never knew she was actually singing words, but I see she was].
This song is the shortest song on Victorialand. It has a fast repeating guitar line and Fraser singing softly. Toward the end, she sings harmonies with herself in her slightly more harsh sounding vocal style. It’s a lovely song, as all of their are.
[READ: January 20, 2021] “Touched”
Reading this right after reading the Arthur Miller story was really strange. Because here was another thirteen year-old boy possibly having sex with an adult woman.
The story opens on Ali, the thirteen year-old. His Bombay family has visited him in England and are now returning to India. Ali was very sad to see them go,
Ali was most upset because his cousin Zahida was leaving. She was a year older than him. She had pressed her lips to his and then they ran up into the attic together and then
he continued caressinuntil, making his way through intricate whirls of material, he reached her flesh and slid his hand into the top of the crack.
He was suddenly concerned about being discovered they quickly separated.
Wow.
She asked why he was so sad that she was leaving–he could visit them any time. He said he didn’t have money. She told him to earn some.
Ali went to play cricket with some friends. They seemed annoyed by him being mopey and he wouldn’t goof around with the girls who were watching them.
When they boys went to play they always walked past the house of a blind woman, Miss Blake. She was in her thirties or forties. Some of the boys made jokes about her, but Ali liked her and always talked to her. She would always give him sweets or a few pennies.
As they walked past her house he realized that he maybe talked to her more than anyone else.
He tapped on her window and she invited him in (she called him Alan and he never corrected her).
She got him a glass of water which he never drank because the glass was so filthy.
He told her about his family leaving. She told him that her father had been to India once–he was a tea trader. He said that India was better than here in all this cold.
Ali told her that he was going to visit India when he saved up enough.
She startled him by asking “Won’t you take me. Please say yes you will.” She told him about what they would do there–including the school for the blind she would go to. Before he could answer she had given him a chocolate. Then she put her hand to his face and began touching him all over asking if he’d gotten bigger. She touched his neck and reached down his shirt and opened it. He thought about Zahida and when he would have enough money to visit her.
He went to leave and she moaned his name, then gave him a half a crown.
The next day as the boys walked by she called out to him and he promised he would be back.
Much like with the Arthur Miller story, I can’t tell if stories like this are just teenage boy fantasies or if weird things happen a lot more than I realize.
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