Many indie pop fans are going through a personal reckoning these days, as we try to reconcile our love of the Smiths' music with the many heinous things Morrissey has said in recent years. Alvvays singer Molly Rankin recently addressed the topic, and now Belle and Sebastian singer Stuart Murdoch has shared his own struggles with Smiths fandom.
On Twitter/X, Murdoch wrote, "The trouble with the Smiths is that they are still so good. You'd expect them to be found out, what with the direction their singer went in recent years. But there's no fade, there's no mistake. If anything their records get better."
He did note, however, that he hasn't listened to them much lately — seemingly because of Morrissey's many distasteful statements. He wrote, "I listened to Half a Person, a b side, and it dazzles and left me dizzy still with its unmistakable brilliance. I know many can't listen any more, and I don't often, but there it is."
He added, "As my care for the singer has diminished, so my love for Marr and Rourke and Joyce has grown." The Smiths have long been a key influence on Belle and Sebastian's jangly, sensitive indie pop. See Murdoch's tweets below.
Meanwhile, Morrissey's own bandmates have turned against him, so they definitely won't be reuniting.