Morrissey - World Peace Is None Of Your Business (Album Review)
Tuesday, 15 July 2014
Written by Huw Baines
Photo: Michael Muller
Thirty years on from the release of ‘The Smiths’, Morrissey still revels in his role as one of music’s most polarising figures. Is he an arch, rakish wit, or a perpetual sixth former? ‘World Peace Is None Of Your Business’, his 10th solo record and first in five years, will provide plenty of ammunition for both sides of the argument.
As with ‘You Are The Quarry’, his 2004 comeback, Morrissey is in fine fettle throughout. Taking the odd trip through his higher register, he is sprightly and engaging on the ebullient Kiss Me A Lot, studied and powerful throughout the busy Pink Floyd-isms of Istanbul.
The title track, meanwhile, utilises a kiss off so unabashedly Morrissey that it’s entirely disarming: “Oh, you poor little fool.” But, delightful asides considered, the belly of the song betrays the major issue with the record as a whole.
Emerging from the chorus, Morrissey abandons tact and tumbles through couplets more Adrian Mole than stinging political attack: “Police will stun you with their stun guns, or they’ll disable you with Tasers. That’s what government’s for.”
Too often, as with the uncomfortable rhymes of Neal Cassady Drops Dead and The Bullfighter Dies, his barbs don’t stand up to anything more than a cursory inspection. But, thanks to his indelible delivery - the final words of Staircase At The University’s chorus are gloriously deadpan - and a sterling shift from his band and producer Joe Chiccarelli, much of ‘World Peace Is None Of Your Business’ sticks.
The instrumentation is diverse and surprising, the production gritty enough to emphasise some of the sharper edges of Morrissey’s lyrics but clean enough that its most outwardly pop moments can sweep the listener away. And, wrangling Spanish guitar, jaunty harmonium, a didgeridoo, long periods of silence and one of the world’s most expressive voices into a cohesive whole is no mean feat. Morrissey is a confounding, often infuriating artist, but one whose magnetism is undeniable. Here we see him at his best and worst. Crucially, though, the former overpowers the latter with some ease.
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