Aidan Moffat of Arab Strap picks his favourite Beatles album
Emerging in the mid-1990s with a sound apt to soundtrack Trainspotting, the Falkirk project Arab Strap found its footing under the shared ambitions of Aidan Moffat and Malcolm Middleton. After The Beatles’ disbandment in 1970, rock music proliferated through the whim of pioneering artists like Brian Eno, Suicide and My Bloody Valentine, resetting rules and forcing the genre into ever-tighter niches. We thought we had heard it all by the time Arab Strap showed up.
Taking strong cues from The Velvet Underground’s macabre humour and New Order’s embrace of punk and synthesisers, Arab Strap distinguished themselves with a pungent sonic identity. In 1996, the duo released its debut album, The Week Never Starts Round Here, home to their first and most popular single, ‘The First Big Weekend’.
Although Arab Strap boasts an oeuvre of breadth and originality mostly unparalleled in its time, ‘The First Big Weekend’ endures as their signature song. While artists never get to choose their most popular songs, Arab Strap won’t be dissatisfied with this figurehead at the bow. Complimenting Middleton’s infectious instrumental compositions are immersive, spoken-word lyrics representative of Moffat’s characteristic style.
With this early success in hand, Arab Strap ran with the plan, continuing to evolve through six further studio albums, and remain active today, with a seventh, I’m Totally Fine With It Don’t Give a Fuck Anymore, slated for 2024. Throughout the past three decades, Moffat’s unique lyrical command has been the only constant.
Such lyrical distinction can only be inspired by a multitude of sources. While few obvious ties can bind Arab Strap to The Beatles, Moffat remembers the 1968 self-titled “White Album” as a turning point and, despite being a late-comer, learned to appreciate Paul McCartney’s daring and adventurousness.
As a youngster, Moffat railed against his mother’s music tastes, seeking an identity of his own. This meant avoiding The Beatles for several years. “When I was in high school, I just hated all that shit. I thought the Beatles were for old people,” Moffat told Stereogum in 2021. ” My friend’s dad went away on holiday, and he had the ‘White Album’, which I’d never heard. I never knew this existed, and my friend insisted we play it. He said, ‘Honestly, you’ll love this record.’ So we cracked open his dad’s very expensive brandy and laid down on the couch, and I listened to the ‘White Album’.”
Continuing, Moffat admitted that the epic double album had its less appealing moments, but at least it exhibited depth and originality. “It’s still my favourite Beatles record. Especially from Paul McCartney’s point of view, it’s got the absolute worst of his indulgences — like ‘Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da’. He’s even putting on the fucking Jamaican accent. That wasn’t cool even then,” he derided.
One track on the expansive LP grabbed his attention more than any other though. “But then there’s things… ‘Blackbird’ just totally took me by surprise,” he said. “This beautiful, folky song. It seems to just stick out. There was so much variation, and out of all of them, this gorgeously quiet moment stopped me. […] This was a whole new side for me to see of the Beatles.”
Later, Moffat recalled finding an obscure gem in McCartney’s solo catalogue. “Years later, I would find McCartney II with that song ‘Temporary Secretary’,” he added. “I used to go to this club, Optimo, that used to be in Glasgow. This was in the last 20 years — I had never heard ‘Temporary Secretary’ before, and they played it. I couldn’t believe it when they told me. It sounded like some long-lost electronic post-punk track. That’s why I wanted to talk about the White Album. He’s a lot more adventurous than people like to give him credit for, which is why I like ‘Helter Skelter’ too. What an idea. The story is he wanted to make something that would rival The Who. Then he just did it.”
Listen to The Beatles’ ‘Blackbird’ and Arab Strap’s ‘First Big Weekend’ below.
