I didn't think I had the mental fortitude to push past a voice that sounds like British Homer Simpson huffing helium, but alas here we are. First of all, I fucking hate the racist assclown whois Steven Patrick Morrissey. His outright criticism of conservative Margaret Thatcher was epic in the 80's, but now his support for anti-Islamic politicians and rhetoric concerning minorities is disappointing to say the least. Before all this came about, I merely hated his self-righteous overly dramatic buffoonery. But the hypocrisy and asinine behavior is some next level shit. The fact that Morrissey still somehow buoyed by ardent supporters and fans is pretty gross. As for The Smiths, truly, the only saving grace and engine behind the band is guitarist, Johnny Marr. U2's guitarist, The Edge is often referred to as 'the rich man's Johnny Marr' and that's fitting seeing how U2 has sold a combined 175 million records over time while The Smiths has sold less than 10% of that number. However Marr's jangly Rickenbacker / Telecaster sound is unmistakable and immediately identifiable as the sound of independent 80's music from Britain. It's hard to enjoy The Smiths because of the asshat who is inextricably linked to this band. However, I did get a chuckle when I read today that The Smiths, after being offered Oasis-style money for a reunion tour in 2025, was gladfully accepted by Morrissey while simultaneously ignored by Johnny Marr. Or, so Morrissey claimed. Marr responded to Morrissey on social media "As for the offer to tour, I didn't ignore the offer - I said no." In context of 2024, the title of this album. The Queen is Dead is obviously referring to Steven Patrick Morrissey and good riddance. In another parallel universe, this album plays better, it's not contaminated by British Homer Simpson huffing whippits with David Duke, and inevitably scores higher than a three.