The Bishops: The Only Place I Can Look is Down
By
Evan Sawdey 12 April 2007PopMatters Interviews Editor
A lot of people wish that there were still truly innovative bands out there, like the Beatles, changing their sound with every release. Some bands have decided that the best way to overcome this problem is simply to imitate the Beatles whole-heartedly. Hell, it worked for Oasis, so why not a scrappy young British trio calling themselves the Bishops? Yet what that group doesn’t realize is that Oasis managed to capitalize on the Lennon-McCartney dynamic and make it wide-screen and cinematic, perfect for their peak late ‘90s alternative audience. The Bishops are doing nothing more than trying to re-write “Help!” over and over again. Their debut American release, The Only Place I Can Look is Down has not a single original note, idea, or second that’s worth mentioning. Sure, the chord changes of “In the Night” could have been replicated during an Ed Sullivan broadcast, but the throngs of screaming girls wouldn’t have been very impressed. No band is ever required to be innovative, but it doesn’t hurt if they try at least something relatively inventive. A better idea? Go see a Beatles tribute band—it’ll sound more authentic.
Evan Sawdey began contributing to PopMatters in late 2005 after contributing for years to his college newspaper
The Knox Student. Evan became the Associate Interviews Editor for PopMatters in the summer of 2008, and then the full Interviews Editor a year after that. Since joining, Evan's work has been written for and been quoted/featured in a wide array of publications including SLUG Magazine, The Metro (U.K.), Soundvenue Magazine (Denmark), the Daily Dot, and multiple national newspapers. Evan has been a guest on WNYC's Soundcheck (an NPR affiliate), was the Executive Producer for the
Good With Words: A Tribute to Benjamin Durdle album (available for free at
GoodWithWordsAlbum.com), and wrote the liner notes for the 2011 re-release of
Andre Cymone's hit 1985 album A.C. (Big Break Records) and the 2012 re-releases of
Philip Oakey & Giorgio Moroder's standalone 1985 pop effort (Virgin/Gold Legion),
the JoBoxers' 1983 debut album Like Gangbusters,
'Til Tuesday's 1985 debut Voices Carry, and
Plastic Bertrand's 1978 album AN 1 (all Hot Shot Records). He is a current member of The Recording Academy and resides in Chicago, Illinois. You can follow him
@SawdEye should you be so inclined.
The Bishops -- The Only Place I Can Look is Down
Print
Email
Share
