A little melancholy 80s pop

Anyone know anything about Strawberry Switchblade? I've never heard of them, but they got a  cheery mention in a footnote to the liner notes of Orange Juice's Coals To Newcastle 6-CD box set. Rather good, I thought - a poppier female version of The Pale Fountains.

You'll hate this, Cynical Ben

Much to Cynical Ben's disgust, I love 80s chamber pop. The first is a live track by The Pale Fountains, who later became Shack, and Michael Head and the Strands, romantic Liverpudlians all.

I'm an academic get me out of here

It's hot, stuffy and boring. One of our number is being driven to scavenge Marks and Spencer rather than face the bureaucracy. Others are loosening their ties or have simply launched themselves from the window ledges. Nothing appears to be happening in the world - even in Iran - and all you student bloggers are obviously outside.

I'm reading the English subject centre's Benchmarks for English degrees. Amazing what you're meant to know by the end of it!

So to break the boredom: one of my favourite bands of the early 80s (though I was quite young then) - The Pale Fountains