Nick Sanderson 1961-2008

June 18, 2008 4:31 PM

Nick Sanderson, ex-lead singer of UK art rockers Earl Brutus, has passed away. Earl Brutus were one of the most overlooked bands of the Britpop era, Sanderson himself being a swaggering hybrid of Jarvis Cocker and Mark E Smith. If you've not heard any of their music, just listen to (and watch) Come Taste my Mind (YT), and have a taste of the Brutus.
posted by hnnrs (9 comments total)

.

It's like mefi blue is now an obituary.
posted by jabberjaw at 4:46 PM on June 18, 2008

Yes, they were overlooked in the Britpop era, but that was because they were never a part of the Britpop era. Sure, connections were made (hey!), but Earl Brutus were someting else. I loved reading about them, reading about their frankness, their ideals, their shambolic gigs, their drunkeness. They truly didn't give a fuck, but at the same time they truly gave a fuck. Cast (hey!) your mind back to that period in time (ie the mid nineties), listen to "Come Taste My Mind" as suggested. You may not appreciate it, but if you have a sense of imagination, you'll appreciate how different they were, sore thumbs in a climate some of os lived through a decade ago. (And The Fall is The Fall, but The Fall is something different.)

Anyway, I'm rambling, I'm half drunk and I'm not even from the UK and I... Well, I don't care. Here's to you Nick, you magnificent bastard. Fucking cancer.
posted by soundofsuburbia at 4:51 PM on June 18, 2008 [1 favorite]

one of the most overlooked bands of the Britpop era...

I dunno if they were or weren't a part of the Britpop era, or even exactly what the Britpop era was. Maybe people just couldn't get with the guy sticking the mic into his mouth.

Anyway, RIP, Nick.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 5:19 PM on June 18, 2008 [1 favorite]

Hmmm... yeah - nice one - interesting stuff - I must have missed them at the time.

I do however somewhat resent any comparison between Sanderson and the incomparable genius Mark E.Smith.
posted by Monkeymoo at 6:28 PM on June 18, 2008

The Fall : Big New Prinz
Sorry but I couldn't resist it. Someone mention The Fall?
As Tony Curtis says while introducing the song, "If there is a holy grail then Mark E.Smith would be the only person allowed to pick it up."
posted by Monkeymoo at 6:38 PM on June 18, 2008

oops lol I meant Tony Wilson not Tony Curtis... I think I need more sleep...
posted by Monkeymoo at 6:41 PM on June 18, 2008

If Tony Curtis had said that, I'd have been very very delighted.
posted by Dee Xtrovert at 7:22 PM on June 18, 2008 [1 favorite]

"The SAS And The Glam That Goes With It" was one of those songs that colonises your mind and changes how you view things ever after. A damn shame.
posted by fallingbadgers at 10:46 PM on June 18, 2008 [1 favorite]

I loved reading about them, reading about their frankness, their ideals, their shambolic gigs, their drunkeness.

NME gave away a CD* with a great live version of Come Taste My Mind on it which featured Sanderson pausing in the middle to mumble "Always remember to turn your fire off, always remember to turn your fuckin' fire off before you go out. That's fuckin' important."

* NME Clean Sweep - All tracks recorded live at the Astoria Theare, London, between 18-25 January 1998. Superb version of Ex-Cowboy by Mogwai.
posted by ninebelow at 7:25 AM on June 19, 2008 [1 favorite]