Fans Respond To ‘Sexist’ PJ Harvey Review
News posted Wednesday, January 18 2012 at 11:00 AM.
Related: PJ Harvey.
720 ABC Perth have learned a harsh lesson over the weekend: you don’t send an audio engineer to review a gig. And not just any gig, PJ Harvey’s sold-out performance at Perth Concert Hall on Friday (January 13).
Ian Church, who attended the show with his partner, has incurred the wrath of PJ Harvey fans worldwide following his government-funded review of the show, which sets music writing in this country back about 40 years. Here’s an excerpt (full review here):
I, like many of other males have been introduced to PJ Harvey by my partner. And after just two minutes of being at the concert hall, a guy and his wife pick up on our West Country English dulcet tones.
We talk about her music, and how although we as men are not massive fans, we both have great respect for her and her song writing.
After seeing PJ Harvey perform at festivals, I know this lass can hold her own with the boys. For research you only have to look at songs from the Desert sessions where she performs with the likes Mark Lanegan, and Josh Homme.
Published on Monday, the review has since been re-posted on Harvey’s Facebook page, with fans labeling it as “rubbish”, “embarrassing”, “pathetic” and “utterly horrible”.
“Surely the world has moved beyond this Macho rock crap?” read one post. “[It’s] interesting that he wrote about the desert sessions and not about the fact that she has been writing words and music for men to perform for 20 years.”
Another Facebook user described Church as a “paternalistic f/wit”, and called on an apology from the ABC. “Ian Church? Shame on you. I am an ABC subscriber and believe me they will hear from me once I have calmed down.”
Writing on Facebook, Melbourne music writer Andy Hazel said the review was "one of the most appallingly written misogynistic pieces of crap I've ever seen on the ABC".
"There must have been hundreds of better writers in Perth that night who could have written something insightful, well-researched, informative and factual," he said.
Harvey plays the State Theatre in Sydney tonight (January 18).
UPDATE, 2pm: 720 ABC Perth have now amended the PJ Harvey review, toning down the sexism in the first paragraph and adding a disclaimer at the end claiming it was an "audience review" even though Ian is on staff.
UPDATE, 3pm: An ABC spokesperson has advised M+N that while Ian Church is a member of staff, he attended the gig not as a representative of the organisation, but as a paying audience member. His opinion should be read as such.
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paternalistic fuckwit. good call.
Not to take away from the sexism, but man, that's some shitty writing throughout.
Ian's review of Gary Numan
PJ Harvey is a woman!!!??? This is an outrage. If anyone wants to buy my ticket for tonight please get in touch asap.
Good post.
Holy shit.
cripes
Fucking atrocious writing.
Wot?
I get the feeling Ian looks (and admires) at himself quite a bit in the mirror
That Gary Numan review is awful.
Wait, what?
the gary numan review is so special
I know me and my 30-something mates all had a whale of a time. Gary Numan has been keeping it real, and for that I thank him.
I do agree there is a gender divide to who likes PJ Harvey.
I'm mean, obviously yeh, men are impressed with the way she can hold her own, but women like her because she also has a cunt.
Whew. I could feel the tension rising.
Poor Ian. Everyone is a music critic critic these days.
my god
It's terrible, but I don't really see what 'government funded' has to do with it...it's not like the ABC reviews all its content with a minister before publishing or something!
I think the outcry is more a reflection on his ridiculous attitudes to female musicians than it is on his critical skills...although, yeah, that too.
LOL. He was being nice about her
Everyone is a music critic defender critic these days.
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Ian Church and Matthew Newton walk into a bar and order some beers from the barmaid.
The barmaid give the beer too much head and Churchy makes a sexist and derogatory comment about how women can't pull beers as well as men. Mathew Newton then beats the shit out of her because he is a woman basher.
meh, it's really not that bad. there's only one line in the exerpt I would hesitantly call 'sexist':
But you can take it two ways: 1. either that women are not as good at music as men generally, or 2. that there are more men in music so the calibre is higher because of sheer numbers. 1 is sexist, 2 is not.
hell, maybe 1 isn't even sexist, I don't even know anymore. Who gives a fuck. Why am I even writing this.
Fuck you have such a hard on for Matthew Newton
''after just two minutes of being at the concert hall, a guy and his wife pick up on our West Country English dulcet tones''
''After seeing PJ Harvey perform at festivals, I know this lass can hold her own with the boys''
''At the concert we were told by another fellow English lady usher that there would be no support band''
''Supported by her 3-piece band dressed like they should be sitting in old pub, all wearing white shirts and waist coats. The only thing missing from the picture would be a Lurcher dog.''
''It felt like we had gone through a porthole back to the old country and the concert hadn't even begun.''
Sure, the reviewer might be an Australian citizen but could this douche be more of any more of a POMMY BASTARD! ....haha
I remember hearing a J-Files on Polly Jean many years ago. a female caller said something along the lines of 'I cant believe how many males are calling up and are into her music'. Kingsmill rightfully pulled her into line. it doesnt matter what side of the divide yr coming from, basing someones music on their gender is dumb, dumb, dumb. why is it with PJ its a particular issue? there seems to be this idea that certain female artists like Tori amos, Joni Mitchell and Sinead o connor is 'chick' music. Joni is hardcore cool, does what she wants, and thats why i like her. PJ is both brutal and charming, enigmatic and subversive. she is a true original. thats all that matters to me. gender has never been an issue with music i like.
Here's some more of his work (kind of)
Another blog response.
Handy live music reviewing tips from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
I found this funny and I have no idea why.
Thats not sexist. This is sexist. Go to the Dan Kelly bit.
http://www.messandnoise.com/events/2000486
yeah, we've dealt with this already, australiapost. it was three years ago.
australia post - always late.
golden
There was a frenzy of Tweets last night from some highly amused U.K. broadsheet music critics about this. it seems Ian's fame is spreading.
Meh. If he really wanted to be sexist he could have mentioned her songs being popular with strippers.
Too many other gigs on for me to justify the $100+ for a ticket.
He well and truly is the Florence Jester Jenkins of music journalism.
I think he is more the party boy Cory of music journalism.
Also, this is just tall poppy syndrome.
Corey Feldman of music journalism?
I heard girls are go through this weird thing at 13 and at 16 they come out either elfin goddesses or whores - so PJ Harvey can't be both, right?