Has anyone seen the trend on Facebook and Twitter now of responding to everything Russell Brand says with the word 'Parklife', taken from the Blur song from 1994? I think it is genius. I've never liked Russell Brand, quite frankly I think the man is a moron, but I have read sections of his new book Revolution. What terrible writing! Yet a lesser critic (me) would just be happy with using the words 'bad', or 'crap', or 'awful', or even 'hilarious' when describing Brand's flowery, pretentious style. However, thankfully for all of us there are better critics out there, critics whose little black hearts of wonderful cynicism make give entirely new perspectives on the quality of things. Blur's song is basically a monologue of self-important comments about every day life by a British actor only really known in Britain. It's not the thing you would really associate with Brand's writings on revolution, but the two are perfectly married, as this video shows: There is a lesson here. Never settle for typical, stock phrases when you can encapsulate all the problems of a text into one amazingly funny pop culture reference.
Ha! Yes... I have indeed noticed that trend, though for certain sections of the community who are not familiar, the genius must be lost on them. Gotta say, I find Russell Brand to be a bit of a pretentious git, but I did read My Bookie Wook, and found one rather hilarious, well observed passage in it, (well, hilarious to me at least.) He was talking about trying to quit his drug habit and going to group therapy. I've done my fair share.... not for drugs, for Bi Polar, but there was such a striking similarity I had to chuckle. Basically he was talking about the outrageous things people do under the influence and how they tell the group. A manic bi polar turn can make people do some pretty f**ked up shit too, and it can be hard to 'fess up and unburden, fearing the group reaction, and feeling somewhat sheepish after the fact. He noticed during the course of group therapy that the most outrageous confessions were prefixed by, "To my shame," as if the speaker needed to make the group understand from the off that they were well and truly sorry. I noticed in my next session that the same held true. Sorry for what exactly? Unlike those who commit dodgy acts while on drugs, folks with BP are driven by things beyond their control. (We never had the choice to just say no.) Shame should not come into it. But I digress. What he made rather a good job of was expounding on the fact that the prefix, despite what his fellow addicts seemed to think, was not a get out clause for bad behaviour. From his perspective, saying those words was in no way representative of full contrition, just the lip service of those fearful of the reactions of others. So, even though he's a bit of a dick, even Russell is capable of writing something that means something to somebody. (Even if it kills me to admit it.) But yeah, PARKLIFE!
Not being familiar with the song I didn't get it. The lyrics and the music video didn't make it readily apparent. I'm having a slow brain day, or, more likely, maybe it's a term known better across the pond. But I finally found an answer which is what I'm sharing here so others don't need to repeat the legwork. Parklife is the act of not having a job or any means of gaining money except that of the dole. Now I get it. I liked Brand's recent defense of the nurse with no symptoms of ebola being quarantined here in Maine, but I couldn't listen to his whole vlog because he's ridiculously wordy about something he could have said in 2 minutes instead of 15.
