Forever Delayed - The Independent Manics Forum  

Go Back   Forever Delayed - The Independent Manics Forum > Manic Street Preachers > Manic Street Preachers Discussion

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old 10-08-2013, 22:15
cherrybomb's Avatar
cherrybomb cherrybomb is offline
Freed from the century
 
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Wakefield
Posts: 767
A Design For Life

I remember the first time I ever heard A Design For Life very clearly. I was working for a waste paper company and on that day I was busy pulling cardboard, plastic and other contaminants from a conveyor belt full of newspapers and magazines when whoever was on Radio One at the time announced the new Manics single over the crappy radio we had. All eyes turned on me as I was forever going on about the band at the time-I'm sure my workmates thought to the point of obsession. Anyway the radio was turned up full whack, the song was played and I could have died, it was awful schmaltzy bollocks! When it ended everyone was keen to hear me gush about it but all I could tell them was 'That is really shit!'. In my defense it was my first listen, on a crap radio, over the noise of a clanking conveyor and a rumbling Bobcat. But God I hated it. It was such a different sound from THB which I played to death and I was probably extremely resentful of the decision the band took to continue without Richey. Of course I grew to love it, but the thing that strikes me about it now is how fucking prophetic it was, it's far more relevant today than it ever was given the library closures, atos and the determination of the government to starve the poor. Imagine how powerful it would sound if today was the day it got its first radio play, it would be what Ghost Town was to the 80s.
__________________
I fuck arses. Who fucks arses? Maybe he fucks arses!
Reply With Quote
  #2  
Old 10-08-2013, 22:37
The Gutless Wonder's Avatar
The Gutless Wonder The Gutless Wonder is offline
Bored out of my mind
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: World Headquarters of 'Team JDB' and CoJ
Posts: 42,921
Great personal anecdote there! I probably heard the instrume9ntal of Design on the Welsh tourist board advert but had no idea who it was by until I discovered the Manics in1998!
__________________
"Former glam-punk rocker James Dean Bradfield now looks like your friendly, slightly rumpled Welsh uncle who always brings you chocolate when he visits. That's not a bad thing." - Allister Thompson aka The Gateless Gate (Canadian musician)
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old 11-08-2013, 09:31
Europa Gluten Free's Avatar
Europa Gluten Free Europa Gluten Free is offline
I live to fall asleep
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Posts: 3,452
I have a memory of hearing it every day after school in my local Virgin when it was released. I would spend half an hour in there looking at CDs 2 or 3 times a eek and it always seemed to be on. But I didn't get into the Manics during EMG. It wasn't until seeing a programme on Irish TV on the Manics and seeing the video for ME around the time of Tolerate that I got into them. I appreciate DFL but it is nowhere near my fav song. And I don't like the production on the single version.
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old 11-08-2013, 10:22
Brent_Bradfield Brent_Bradfield is offline
I am purity, they call me perverted
 
Join Date: Feb 2003
Posts: 203
Never did like the tune much... Then I heard it live...

Now it's the welsh national anthem :-)
__________________
www.babyschillaci.com
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old 11-08-2013, 10:23
Porco's Avatar
Porco Porco is offline
Doors slowly closing
 
Join Date: Sep 2004
Posts: 9,778
The first time I heard A Design For Life I was messing around with my 8-bit sound sampler on my Amiga computer. I'd attached my walkman to it and tuned to Radio 1 when I heard maybe half the song at most. Then I think for at least a couple of days I had no idea who it was by (this was before I had internet access... weird days) but I had this sample a few seconds long in glorious 8-bit stereo to listen to! It's my favourite song to this day, I love everything about it, and when I heard the album (which is also still my favourite) I immediately fell in love with that too...

I still regard it as some kind of crime against music that Return Of The Mack beat ADFL to number one in the charts.
__________________
'Those Manics are great mun ent'it!' | Miyazaki-San, Arigato | POPCORN!


| PorcoTunes: SC=fdporco YT=PorcoForever |
---“...but the pigs are getting into our garden, and just digging holes, looking for truffles or something…"---
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old 11-08-2013, 10:41
A Design For Manic's Avatar
A Design For Manic A Design For Manic is offline
Doors slowly closing
 
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: in my house
Age: 34
Posts: 9,961
the first time I ever listen to ADFL was maybe when I was 10 or even more, in the tv, but I never pay attention to it, only when I was a bit older I saw the video in MTV but I didn't know who are The Manics and only in 2007, when I started to be a Manics fan I was like "hey, they are the guys who play A design for life!"

p.s: I'm still got goosebumps when I listen to the song
__________________

Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old 11-08-2013, 13:10
sculptureofabloke's Avatar
sculptureofabloke sculptureofabloke is offline
Stretched out in the sun
 
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Manchester
Age: 40
Posts: 14,319
I remember A Design For Life coming out but I think I must've heard it about 50 times before I even knew who it was, somehow every time I heard it on the radio I'd miss the dj saying what it is. Twats. Must've heard it thousands of times and it still doesn't get old and I agree, it's as powerful now as it ever has been.
__________________
Quote:
Originally Posted by allisvanity View Post
I've said it before and I'll say it again. Manics fans, never fucking happy.
Reply With Quote
  #8  
Old 11-08-2013, 15:05
amnesic amnesic is offline
Knowlede Is Power
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Posts: 1,040
I remember having a friend at uni who was a die hard Manics fan who bought it the day it came out and played it for me. Have no memory of what I thought of it. A few months before I had borrowed her manics CDs but bar Motorcycle I wasn't convinced. A year later and I was in the right frame of mind to get into them. 1995/6 was taken up by being a die hard Joy Division/New Order fan, I had no room for further devotion!
__________________
If I was in this family I'd drink too/Arrange your face/Biscuits!/There is no poetry in my heart/Time falls through my fingers
Reply With Quote
  #9  
Old 11-08-2013, 16:17
Littlesue's Avatar
Littlesue Littlesue is offline
Footprint of history
 
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: The Black Country
Age: 63
Posts: 27,336
I remember buying it and also buying Return of the Mack the same day, both good singles in diferent genre's, Mack being one of the last decent RnB tunes. Don't know how it can be compared to Ghost Town if it was released today though as Design for Life is not a straight forward lyric like Ghost Town.
Reply With Quote
  #10  
Old 11-08-2013, 16:31
hummingbird's Avatar
hummingbird hummingbird is offline
Builder of routine
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: in a quiet corner
Posts: 19,463
i envy anyone that hears it for the first time
Reply With Quote
  #11  
Old 11-08-2013, 17:34
mar's Avatar
mar mar is offline
Winterlover
 
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Barcelona
Posts: 7,059
I bought EMG when it came out in 1996, so my first memory about it is actually listening to the CD, didn't hear the song before buying it. It's not one of my fave manics tracks but I kinda like it.
__________________
Birds ate my face.
Reply With Quote
  #12  
Old 11-08-2013, 18:41
cherrybomb's Avatar
cherrybomb cherrybomb is offline
Freed from the century
 
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Wakefield
Posts: 767
Favourite bit is the arpeggio (think that's right-I'm no musician) guitar bit that at first compliments the strings then turns into angry strums which compete with them.
__________________
I fuck arses. Who fucks arses? Maybe he fucks arses!
Reply With Quote
  #13  
Old 11-08-2013, 18:47
Littlesue's Avatar
Littlesue Littlesue is offline
Footprint of history
 
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: The Black Country
Age: 63
Posts: 27,336
Must admit its one of my least favorite Manic songs, I find it a bit boring and repetative
Reply With Quote
  #14  
Old 11-08-2013, 18:49
Mr.Selfdestruct's Avatar
Mr.Selfdestruct Mr.Selfdestruct is offline
Doors slowly closing
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Corcaigh
Posts: 8,994
I was never a big fan of it, before or after i got into the band. A lot of strings on that album sound dated to me now.
Reply With Quote
  #15  
Old 11-08-2013, 18:58
MoMoney MoJunk's Avatar
MoMoney MoJunk MoMoney MoJunk is offline
I live to fall asleep
 
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Monster
Posts: 3,579
Before I got into the band I was in a pub and ADFL came on. There was 5/6 people at a table near us and they only knew the 'we only wanna get drunk' line, and I remember thinking that surely whoever sang the song meant it ironically. Then I wondered if the people were aware of the irony.

Brilliant song though. And probably my fave video too!
Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT. The time now is 10:29.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.6
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.