A critical hammering in the Weekly Worker, fulltimers of left groups posting under aliases, drunken arseholes sticking the boot into my Weltanschauung. These things are all part of the joy of running this site. But to be used as part of a PR release, and not the good PR of Bill and Jason, the bad PR of public relations, that is humiliating.

Cam Lindsay managed to read my piece about how the Florence and the Machine single “Kiss With A Fist” makes domestic violence sound like an act of love and concluded that the rhetorical question “is this the new face of feminism?” was meant to be answered positively. It’s on a website puffing the song.

No matter how stupid, out of touch, unable to understand nuance, and bewildered you are Cam has just outdone you. I’ve not made this up.

Florence and the Machine
“Kiss With A Fist”
5/15/2008 By Cam Lindsay
As the overwhelming chart success of the British female singer-songwriter has now officially reached the point of saturation (and for some, nausea) what with Lily Allen, Amy Winehouse, Kate Nash, Adele and Duffy all having their shot, it’s time for a revolution.
Meet the revolutionary: Florence and the Machine. Or should I say, the fiery, freckled “enchanted skeleton” who signs her cheques Florence Welch. Eschewing the customary sass and/or prettiness of her contemporaries, Florence instead is all about spittin’ some blues with her Machine (aka Dev Hynes of Lightspeed Champion and Test Icicles fame) hacking away at the guitar.
No surprises, Moshi Moshi picked her up for their popular “singles club,” which to date has included such luminaries as Matt & Kim, Kate Nash, Lykke Li, Late of the Pier and Friendly Fires… not bad.
Flo’s contribution is the vengeance-seeking “Kiss With A Fist,” a scornful anthem that has attracted the attention of some who are considering it the new wave of feminism. With rackety percussion and filthy blues riffing, the 20-year-old drops a set of soon-to-be-quoted-by-everyone lyrics denouncing her abusive lover: “You smashed a plate over my head/Then I set fire to our bed/My black eye casts no shadow/A kick in the teeth is good for some/A kiss with a fist is better than none.”
Expect Amy, Adele and Kate to come storming back with similar fight songs as soon as this hits number one… on the indie charts, that is.
“Kiss With A Fist” drops in the UK on June 9 via Moshi Moshi