| The New Art Riot EP (1990) was a second self-financed slab of retro-punk, which led to plenty of media coverage, even if much of it was disparaging. The Manics themselves, spraying 'I am a slut' on their blouses, sporting makeup and spouting Situationist slogans, resembled a head-on collision between The New York Dolls and George Orwell. Heavenly Records released the next two singles - "Motown Junk" and "You Love Us" (both 1991) - the latter of which was a two-fingered salute to a music press that failed to see the band as anything more than cartoon punk. In May 1991 Richey and journalist Steve Lamacq were heatedly discussing the 'authenticity' of the band when Richey decided to make his point by calmly carving the words '4 REAL' across his forearm with a razor blade. Widely regarded as a publicity stunt at the time, the incident has since been re-appraised as an alarming early sign of his deteriorating condition. |
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