Remixing "Kill Uncle" – If Ronson or Finn had been at the helm

s writes:

Kill Uncle has often been derided for its bland, undeveloped production. I’ve remixed the album and re-ordered the tracks in an attempt to bring its production quality closer to “Your Arsenal” or “You are the Quarry” (since I don’t have the original master, I couldn’t mix it as precisely as I’d like or undo the reverb on Morrissey's voice). In some cases I just filled out the sound with guitars/emulated the live version, and in others I adding new elements to enhance the song (for e.g., Driving Your GF, End of the Family Line). Hope you like it, thanks for listening either way. It's available at:

http://www.smithstorrents.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4141

Here was my approach to changes (I remastered all the songs, which improves the clarity and makes them sound consistent relative to one another):

1. Our Frank – significant changes. Original has boring, hokey production, like a Madness song. I added a number of guitars to fill out the song and make it edgier.
2. Asian Rut – no changes. The song is unusual, a storytelling in ¾ time (a waltz beat, which limited the musical possibilities). I experimented with adding guitars, cymbals, etc., but decided to leave it alone because anything I did wouldn’t be better, just different.
3. Sing Your Life – moderate changes. Original is okay but lacks “edge”. I added the strumming and distortion riff used by the band in the KROQ session.
4. Mute Witness – mild changes. Original is really well produced, just a little thin in the background. I added a couple of background guitars mimicking the original riffs to fill out the sound.
5. King Leer – moderate changes. Original lacks the swing of the band’s live version, so I sped it up and added some guitars and a small bass riff to make it closer to the live version.
6. Driving Your Girlfriend Home – significant changes. Original has boring production, lwith hardly any musical changes between the verse, chorus and bridge (like beat poetry over a jazz improv). I added guitars/harps to improve the emotional effect of the song.
7. I’m the End of the Line – significant changes. Original has terrible production (the tempo’s off, the drums and bass have no groove). I sped up the song, added a new bass line and a number of string parts to create some drama.
8. Tony the Pony (this song was on my US released CD) – significant changes. Original has okay production, though the bass line is too similar to Sing Your Life and the instrumentation is predictable. I added some guitar riffs to take it in a new direction.
9. Found Found Found – no changes. Good production.
10. There’s a Place In Hell for Me and my Friends – no changes. Original has good production, and the KROQ live version is a good alternative rock version.
11. The Harsh Truth of the Camera Eye – mild changes. Again, the song is unusual, and the production’s carnival-esque atmosphere plays off of this. I felt the tempo was languid and the intro/outro indulgent, so I sped up and shortened the song (and since I think it’s the weakest of the songs, moved it to the end of the album), but otherwise left it alone.

If you add in the singles/b-sides from this era (My Love Life, the Loop, Pregnant for the Last Time), I think it improves the album dramatically, just like the re-release of Maladjusted was improved by the various b-sides.

 

[123xyz]

It reeks of amateurism...

Songs that are sped up have been sped up too fast.
The guitar playing is not in time for most tracks.
I heard a couple bum notes that were too obvious to ignore.
The additions are lacking any cohesiveness with the rest of the material.

The songs have not been "remastered" in any sense...the volume has simply been raised on the original CD rip. Contrary to what the OP intended, these changes make this album in no way similar to the production quality of "Your Arsenal" or "You Are The Quarry"...it simply makes it a clusterf*** of sounds that do not go together at all. I liken it to listening to a song you like on Spotify while one of their ads are playing at the same time - just irritating noise superimposed over something you enjoy.

Might end up giving it a miss after all ...

 

[Anonymous]

If it's that bad I want to hear it! Can someone upload 'Our Frank' to youtube? I think the original version is great, soo I'm interested to hear how badly someone has f***ed it up.

 

[Anonymous]

This bloke has way too much time on his hands, it's just dreadful..!

 

[gonzax]

I don't know what some guys here are complaining about but in all honesty this is ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT, a million times better than the original album. And in case you didn't read it, he does not have the masters to work with. I wonder what he would have done with them considering the fantastic job he's done here.
FANTASTIC. I don't think I'll ever go and listen to the original again after hearing this. I'm really impressed.

 

[gonzax]

Might end up giving it a miss after all ...

I would give it a try if I were you, this makes the original album much better in every possible way. All the additions are great, don't listen to the whiners and judge for yourself.

 

[Anonymous]

This is utter shit, what is the point in this I just don't get it. Are there any lyrics this freak doesn't like so he can rewrite them and overdub ?

And how the hell is this turd news ?

 

[boy_afraid_Liverpool]

Ive not listened to it all yet, just two tracks, but for Tony the Pony alone its worth downloading, I really like what has been done to that. Wish the additional guitar in the middle was not as over powering on the vocal but still love it.

 

[AnonymousZero]

I downloaded out of curiously and... Well, where to start? The best thing to come out of this is Tony The Pony, which has improved the original by making it sound - well, alive. None of the others have been improved whatsoever. The End Of The Family Line is bar far the worst. The other songs have had some subtle tweaks, but overall the best intentions have cluttered it with noise. Something great does come out of this, however, and that is that it makes you want to visit the original Kill Uncle with forgiveness and a biscuit.

 

[boy_afraid_Liverpool]

The end of the family line is horrible

 

[hool']

Absolutely disappointing. Amateurish & rubbish.

 

[Anonymous]

The End Of The Family Line is my favorite song off that album, why would you change it? And the original bass line and drums suit that song perfectly. f*** this tart!

 

[Anonymous]

you did a good job with what you had to work with. but it reminds me just how bad clive langers production was on this album, and really how weak the songs were. i remember being really sad about this album after stephen street having written such powerful songs as suedehead and interesting drug etc to then get this. im not sure who was to blame, mark nevin, langer or morrissey, or all 3. ultimately morrissey i suppose for approving the whole mess and releasing it. its all bin-able.

 

[Anonymous]

okay, at first I thought people were just being mean and talking crap on the person that did this "remix" as most people do on this site...I couldn't resist and downloaded it and they were not kidding...it's one thing to do this for your own amusement and have a laugh at home with a few friends or whatever, but to post this in public...ouch.
the harsh truth of realism

 

[Anonymous]

you did a good job with what you had to work with. but it reminds me just how bad clive langers production was on this album, and really how weak the songs were. i remember being really sad about this album after stephen street having written such powerful songs as suedehead and interesting drug etc to then get this. im not sure who was to blame, mark nevin, langer or morrissey, or all 3. ultimately morrissey i suppose for approving the whole mess and releasing it. its all bin-able.

I agree. It's still better, though, (and by quite a margin) than anything he's done post-1997.

 

[chrisarclark]

In defense of Morrissey's Kill Uncle;

even more so than the under-appreciated prog of Southpaw Grammar, Kill Uncle is the most misunderstood, and thus underrated, album of Morrissey's career. surely, it is one of the most unique and this is likely why it is so chastised by fans and critics alike- yet this uniqueness should be seen as one of its many strengths.

the album begins with its first single, "Our Frank"- a perfect choice for the lead single as it is likely the most similar to his previous solo singles on the album. this song also perfectly sets the tone and progression of the album: an emphatically expressed desire to shake off the weighty thoughts of deep conversation and introspection that eventually gives way to an uncontrollable compulsion to think about "everything" "deeply" and "bleakly". all delivered by means of a racing, poppy musical backing and clever, humourous and undeniably charming lyrics and vocals, this is a fantastic way to open.

"Asian Rut" is easily one of the strangest songs in the Morrissey cannon, but this only adds to its interest. an eerie musical accompaniment, complete with the beautifully harmonious, yet unsettling, violin of Nawazish Ali Khan, a chilling depiction of racism and violence ending with one of the most transcending stanzas of Morrissey's career, "I'm just passing through here/On my way to somewhere civilised/And maybe I'll even arrive/Maybe I'll even arrive...." by that line alone this song is made spectacular.

one of the more widely accepted songs off Kill Uncle is second and final single taken from the album, "Sing Your Life". really, not much needs to be said here: a joyously bouncy musical backing for perhaps Morrissey's most inspirational and encouraging lyrics ever. complete with the Morrissey charm and humour- which has never been displayed more or to better effect than on this album- this is one of Morrissey's finest.

"Mute Witness" serves as a wonderful mirror to the classic "November Spawned A Monster" in its view of a disabled girl from the opposite and seemingly unsympathetic perspective. now, many will criticise Morrissey for having bad taste in attempting to extract humour from such a situation before abruptly sending the poor girl away in a taxi cab, but the very fact that Morrissey does write about things like this, where most would never attempt, shows his genuine empathy for the disabled. an ambiguous lyric and a glammed up musical performance, this is another great song.

people juste dont get "King Leer". ithink theyre juste being too serious or stuck up or something, but when people refer to one of Morrissey's greatest lyrics as his "lyrical nadir," it really makes me wonder what is wrong with them. it's simply a perfect piece of fey pop, boasting an absurdly hilarious lyric with its series of cringeworthy, but completely intentional, puns and clichés, including the title's labeling of the boyfriend as "King Leer"- brilliant. imean, if you think he’s being serious, Moz completely gives himself away when he begins to laugh at himself in the middle of the song. this is the most playful moment of Morrissey's career and it's classic all the way.

"Found Found Found" begins the fall back into that uncontrollable compulsion of introspection suggested in opener, "Our Frank". the hardest/loudest music on the album works as a signal call for the shift in mood and perspective. another brilliantly transcending line, even though it was pipped from Noel Coward, comes at the end with "I do believe that the more you give your love, and I do believe that the more you give your trust, the more you're bound to lose." great track.

it has been spoken of before how "Driving Your Girlfriend Home" can be seen as the other side of The Smiths' classic "There Is A Light That Never Goes Out" and itotally buy into that. it’s easy to see how this song may tell from the driver's perspective the return from the night out of seeing "people" and "life" to finally drop the girlfriend off at what he calls "her home" but what she would refer as not her home, but "their home" (iimagine there are others (family, roomates) living there along with her and this dislikable boyfriend and in this way she refers to it as "their home"). as she confides to the driver the problems in her relationship, perhaps they drive through a darkened underpass where she nearly gets up the nerve to ask him his feelings for her or if they could ever be intimate, but then "a strange fear" grips her and she juste cant ask. perhaps he wouldve had to decline anyway in the same way that he "can't tell her" and "can't answer". it’s all very engaging. viewing the song in this way makes it at once an indispensable classic, but regardless it stands up on its own as one of Morrissey's most quietly beautiful and ambiguous songs ever.

"The Harsh Truth Of The Camera Eye" is another song subject to overly harsh treatment from fans. honestly, ithink again too many take it all too seriously. a satire all the way, brilliantly over the top lyrically and musically, bludgeoning the listener over the head with the carnival-like keyboards/organ and "ominous" camera shutter sound effects in case you didnt get it. it’s all amazingly funny- especially the line "This photographer, he must've really had it in for yah!" toofunny- but it’s also extremely relatable for many, if not most. many people think they take bad pictures and are sometimes horrified by seeing themselves in film or even just the idea of having their picture taken at all. the song continues a much loved theme from past and future Morrissey songs such as "Late Night, Maudlin Street" and "Let Me Kiss You" of self deprecating judgment of one's own physical appearance. it’s not #1 single material, but it’s not trying to be and it works perfectly as the final comedic relief on the album (not counting the excellent "Tony The Pony" on NA versions of Kill Uncle).

it’s often a perilous practice to assume that the "I" in a Morrissey song is definitely in the first person and referring to Morrissey himself, but it's hard not to see "(I'm) The End Of The Family Line" as a very personal lyric. given that Morrissey has still never even come close to marriage, let alone fatherhood, this song does seem to be quite autobiographical. a powerful statement of radical independence and breaking from tradition, this is one of Morrissey's greatest and most quintessential lyrics ever. sometimes seen as a possible admission of his oft rumoured but never confirmed homosexuality with the opening verse of "With no complications/Fifteen generations (of mine)/All honouring Nature/Until I arrived (with incredible style)", Morrissey remains ambiguous enough to keep those overly concerned pointlessly guessing- typical Moz. as an added bit of interest or significance, the anti-paternal theme of this song adds another sinister layer to the line "Well, it's your own fault for reproducing" in the song "Ambitious Outsiders" from Maladjusted six and a half years later. simply one of the most clever and beautiful songs he has ever written.

the end of Kill Uncle for many comes with "There's A Place In Hell For Me And My Friends"- one of the most deeply touching pieces of music and poetry Morrissey has ever written. the somber tone reflected in the sparse arrangement and sad, yet somehow redemptive sounding, piano and drums is executed to perfection. some argue that the rockier, far more upbeat live version is superior to the album version, but istrongly disagree. while the live version is a somewhat interesting take on the song and perhaps more appropriate to be toured around stadiums and arenas, it takes too much away from the true mood and message of the song. a beautiful way to close a beautiful album.

but, if your from NA, the fun isnt over yet. whether "Tony The Pony" was truly intended to be on the album or not, idont care. it serves as an excellent, upbeat closer to Kill Uncle and is another great song. bringing back some of the rockabilly feel from The Smiths days, and at the same time hinting towards Your Arsenal, the music is wonderful and suiting to another wonderful and brilliantly funny lyric. endlessly clever in how the song jumps from the perspective of the narrator and protagonist (and possibly the protagonist's big brother as well), the song tells the charming tragicomic tale of "soft touch Tony." as the song lilts away, it leaves a smile on the listener's face, serving as a fitting end to a more than pleasing album.

all the complaints over the production on this album are as overblown as the complaints over the production of The Smiths' debut. the production on Kill Uncle is perfectly suited to the songs- it’s light, airy, poppy and allows the songs to come to the fore and speak nakedly and honestly for themselves. it’s easy to pick on Nevin, Langer and Winstanley as they basically came and went with this album, but they did an excellent job in helping Morrissey create an album most artists could only dream of creating.

Kill Uncle, though admittedly not Moz's best, is a great album- iwish more people would take the time to realize that.

 

[oliver]

In defense of Morrissey's Kill Uncle;

thanks for posting... I agreed with a lot of what you posted but I'm not sure about this bit:

sometimes seen as a possible admission of his oft rumoured but never confirmed homosexuality with the opening verse of "With no complications/Fifteen generations (of mine)/All honouring Nature/Until I arrived (with incredible style)", Morrissey remains ambiguous enough to keep those overly concerned pointlessly guessing- typical Moz

If anything I think the ending suggests the opposite. The lyric leads you one way before Morrissey declares that "the decision is mine" - i.e. it's a conscious choice. And just to confirm the old switcheroo, he does a fake fade-out too.

It's probably, along with Driving Your Girlfriend Home, my favourite song on the album.

 

[Anonymous]

Agreed that Kill Uncle is vastly underrated. It's interesting that while they are not necessarily the "best" albums in the Moz catalog, Kill Uncle and Southpaw Grammar are the ones I generally go back to the most often.

 

[whenyou're19]

Despite the harsh reactions, I appreciate the effort at re-imagining this neglected chapter in Morrissey's canon. Of the new efforts, I found King Leer, Sing Your Life and End of the Family Line to be the worst of the remixes. Especially the later which was one of may favorites from the album. Still I like what was done to Driving Your Girlfriend and Mute Witness. Here's what I came up for a Kill Uncle Redux after reducing the levels of the remixed tracks to have a consistent volume:

1. Our Frank (New Remix Version)
2. Asian Rut (New Remix Version)
3. Sing Your Life (Kill Uncle Version)
4. My Love Life (US Remix from Very Best of Morrissey)
5. King Leer (Live Costa Mesa, CA June 1, 1991)
6. Pregnant For The Last Time (Single Version)
7. Skin Storm (Pregnant For The Last Time B-Side)
8. Tony The Pony (New Remix Version)
9. Found Found Found (Kill Uncle Version)
10. Mute Witness (New Remix Version)
11. The Loop (Sing Your Life B-Side)
12. That's Entertainment (Sing Your Life B-Side)
13. Driving Your Girlfriend Home (New Remix Version)
14. I've Changed My Plea To Guilty (My Love Life B-Side)
15. Harsh Truth of the Camera Eye (New Remix Version)
16. The End of The Family Line (Kill Uncle Version)
17. There's a Place in Hell... (New Remix Version)

 

[Skylarker]

Register. Log in. Download.

Whoa, whoa...SLOW DOWN. That's a lot to process for some of these people.

 

[mcrickson]

Despite the harsh reactions, I appreciate the effort at re-imagining this neglected chapter in Morrissey's canon. Of the new efforts, I found King Leer, Sing Your Life and End of the Family Line to be the worst of the remixes. Especially the later which was one of may favorites from the album. Still I like what was done to Driving Your Girlfriend and Mute Witness. Here's what I came up for a Kill Uncle Redux after reducing the levels of the remixed tracks to have a consistent volume:

1. Our Frank (New Remix Version)
2. Asian Rut (New Remix Version)
3. Sing Your Life (Kill Uncle Version)
4. My Love Life (US Remix from Very Best of Morrissey)
5. King Leer (Live Costa Mesa, CA June 1, 1991)
6. Pregnant For The Last Time (Single Version)
7. Skin Storm (Pregnant For The Last Time B-Side)
8. Tony The Pony (New Remix Version)
9. Found Found Found (Kill Uncle Version)
10. Mute Witness (New Remix Version)
11. The Loop (Sing Your Life B-Side)
12. That's Entertainment (Sing Your Life B-Side)
13. Driving Your Girlfriend Home (New Remix Version)
14. I've Changed My Plea To Guilty (My Love Life B-Side)
15. Harsh Truth of the Camera Eye (New Remix Version)
16. The End of The Family Line (Kill Uncle Version)
17. There's a Place in Hell... (New Remix Version)

Now this sounds like something I'd be willing to give a try. Might it be too much to ask if you'd be willing to upload this version of KU?