No Room To Move, No Room For Doubt

Feed The Enemy is the opening song of Magazine's second album, Secondhand Daylight. 

The song plays to the band's innate sense of theatre, introducing elements of the band one at a time; it's 1:27 before Barry Adamson's bass kicks in with John Doyle's percussion and two minutes in until Howard Devoto utters his first word.

The sense of anticipation is paid off with the opening couplet,

It's always raining over the border

There's been a plane crash out there

Following the second verse break and a blistering turn from Dave Formula and John McGeoch, the song builds in intensity as Howard comes back in to deliver the final lines, the band moving as one yet ramping up the tension, until it comes to it's inevitable end. 

Feed The Enemy wasn't released as a single, that was track two, the punchier Rhythm Of Cruelty, but a video was made for the song, at 5:29 only twenty seconds or so shorter than the album version.

For Magazine's live shows, a shorter, sped up version in the spirit of their more uptempo numbers was introduced. It may lose the brooding menace of the studio original, but it travels well at this revved up speed.

When Magazine reformed, they also got to perform at the penultimate BBC Electric Proms. Their set on Thursday 22nd October 2009 included the faster version of Feed The Enemy.

I saw Magazine a couple of years later in Birmingham, for what proved to be their final tour in this (re)incarnation. Whilst Feed The Enemy had been dropped by then, the combination of classics and new songs from then-current album No Thyself did not disappoint.

It's always raining over the border

There's been a plane crash out there

In the wheatfields they're picking up the pieces

We could go and look and stare

How many friends have we over there?

The border guards fight unconvincingly

Whatever we do it seems things are arranged

We always have to feed the enemy

You could dance for me

And punch me through

You could dance for me

And punch me through

You could dance for me

And punch me through

You could dance for me

And punch me through

We watched them trash the last camera

Glued to all our TV's

The actors on the replay

Trying again to touch you and me

But they always seem to know

Exactly what they're talking about

They must've got you in a corner

You've got no room to move

You've got no room for doubt

That's exactly what they're talking about

They must've got you in a corner

No room to move

No room for doubt

Like An Insect Up And Down The Walls

As an appetiser for my review of Barry Adamson's gig at Strange Brew this week (coming Saturday, I promise), here's a classic from Magazine, circa 1978.

 

I've never seen the video for The Light Pours Out Of Me before and it's a nicely staged studio performance, with the individual members coming into shot with their respective musical introductions. 

 

So, you get a first sight of Barry (well, his torso at least) and guitar as that incredible bass line kicks in at 0:14, having followed John Doyle on drums and before John McGeogh, resplendent in a pink knitted jumper steps in front and, finally, Howard Devoto saunters into view, one hand in pocket, causally observing that "Time flies, time crawls..." 

 

Poor Dave Formula has to wait until 1:07 to get a look in but he makes up for it by playing two sets of keys, each placed either side of him.

 

One of the greatest openings to a song? It's hard to beat.

 

Before this raises any false hope, Barry didn't perform this or any other Magazine songs at Wednesday's show. However, here's one he did earlier, at the Moth Club in London on 27th April 2017. Different voice, different guitar, same great tune.