A plain Azed.
This took two or three sittings to complete, although a couople of parsings apart, it wasn’t that difficult by Azed standards. I’m not 100% sure of the parsings of ALABANDINE and FREIT (actually, the parsing of FREIT is probably right, it’s the definition I’m unsure of).
Thanks Azed.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | BOBOLINK |
Songbird died, old, in a flash (8)
|
| ob. (obiit, so “died”) + O (old) in BLINK (“flash”) | ||
| 7 | CAUM |
Limestone once universal in English river (4)
|
| U (universal) in CAM (“English river”) | ||
| 10 | ANIMA MUNDI |
A Muslim leader almost unravelled the soul of the cosmos? (10, 2 words)
|
| AN IMAM (“a Muslim leader”) + [almost] UNDI(d) | ||
| 11 | PALAMA |
Webbing one attached to a lamp that’s broken (6)
|
| A (one) attached to *(a lamp) [anag:that’s broken] | ||
| 12 | CRESS |
Salad garnish? Set removed from iron baskets (5)
|
| SET removed from CRES(set)S (“iron baskets”) | ||
| 14 | UNAWARES |
One in sunwear that’s slipped, oblivious (8)
|
| A (one) in *(sunwear) [anag:that’s slipped] | ||
| 17 | LORICA |
Crumbs I caught acting in cuirass (6)
|
| LOR (“crumbs!”) + I + C (caught, in cricket) + A (acting) | ||
| 18 | REMISS |
Rand suffering seism, not at all vigorous (6)
|
| R (Rand) + *(seism) [anag:suffering] | ||
| 20 | BOART |
Abrasive swine, cross? (5)
|
| BOAR (“swine”) + T (a tau “cross”) | ||
| 21 | ARRAS |
A prince accepts his father hanging? (5)
|
| A + RAS (“prince”) accepts R (Rex = king, so “his father”) | ||
| 23 | EPOPEE |
Long poem poet penned in Early English (6)
|
| (Alexander) POPE (“poet”) penned in EE (Early English) | ||
| 25 | MOUTON |
Scottish speaker introducing fashion for faux fur? (6)
|
| MOU (“Scottish” word for mouth, so “speaker”) + introducing TON (“fashion”).
Mouton is fleece treated to look like fur. |
||
| 28 | STAR TRAP |
Unusual stage device to get discussion going (8, 2 words)
|
| START RAP (“get discussion going”) | ||
| 30 | STRIG |
Spire in parts of the south, just right in the middle (5)
|
| (ju)ST RIG(ht) [in the middle] | ||
| 31 | LEASIE |
Poet’s slovenly, to decide on retiring that is (6)
|
| <=SEAL (“to decide on”, retiring) + i.e. (“that is”)
Laesie is a Spenserian term for “lazy”. |
||
| 32 | ALABANDINE |
A musical group and how it stands, for rock of a kind? (10)
|
| A BAND (“musical group”) in A LINE – how it stands
Not 100% sure of this parsing, as most bands don’t stand in a line. |
||
| 33 | WYTE |
The old know what youth twigs eventually – they’re only beginners (4)
|
| Only the beginners of W(hat) Y(outh) T(wigs) E(ventually)
Wyte is an old word for “to know”. |
||
| 34 | BY-STREET |
No major thoroughfare – bet tyre’s getting damaged (8)
|
| *(bet tyre’s) [anag:getting damaged] | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | BAPU |
What Gandhi was for many, soul fully soaring (4)
|
| BA (ancient Egyptian “soul”) + <=UP (“fully”, soaring) | ||
| 2 | ORANGE-ROOT |
Plant with medicinal properties? Yellow nettle also reared (10)
|
| OR (“yellow” in heraldry) + ANGER (“nettle”) + <=TOO (“also”, reared) | ||
| 3 | BALAAM |
Misleading prophet, repeatedly accepted in soothing stuff (6)
|
| [repeatedly] A + A (acceptable) in BALM (“soothing stuff”)
Balaam appears in Numbers. |
||
| 4 | LIMAX |
A threat to e.g. lettuces, top topped? (5)
|
| [topped] (c)LIMAX (“top”)
Limax is a common genus of slugs. |
||
| 5 | IMARI |
Fine pottery from Italy, found near the sea, timeless (5)
|
| I (international vehicle registration code for Italy) + MARI(time) (“found near the sea”, without TIME (timeless))
Imari is a fine Japanese porcelain. |
||
| 6 | NACELLE |
Airborne car, not once requiring a battery internally (7)
|
| NE (“not”, once) requiring A CELL (“battery”) inside | ||
| 7 | CURB-ROOF |
Co. furor unusually involving Britain – one’s inclination changes (8)
|
| *(co furor) [anag:unusually] involving B (Britain) | ||
| 8 | ANEMIA |
What may afflict US patients? Nurse holding employees up (6)
|
| AIA (Indian “nurse”maid) holding <=MEN (“employees”, up) | ||
| 9 | MISRATED |
Tram rides off course, not right? Valued wrongly (8)
|
| *(tam rides) [anag:off course] where TAM = T(r)AM, not R (right) | ||
| 13 | SECRETAIRE |
Cabinet moment to withdraw, active within (10)
|
| SEC (“moment”) + A (active) within RETIRE (“to withdraw”) | ||
| 15 | FRAME-SAW |
Small bit of film viewed – it’s used for cutting (8)
|
| FRAME (“small bit of film”) + SAW (“viewed”) | ||
| 16 | DIATRIBE |
Philippic boosting assistance set before family (8)
|
| [boosting] <=AID (“assistance”) set before TRIBE (“family”) | ||
| 19 | SYNTONY |
Radio tuning somewhat rocky round big city being turned up (7)
|
| STONY (“somewhat rocky”) round <=NY (New York, so “big city”, being turned up) | ||
| 22 | RUG RAT |
Kid still crawling, Arthur? Oddly good for husband (6, 2 words)
|
| *(artgur) [anag:oddly] where ARTGUR is ARTHUR with G (good) instead of [for] H (husband) | ||
| 24 | PARSEE |
One with splendid hat in story, normal to behold (6)
|
| PAR (“normal”) + SEE (“to behold”)
In one of Rudyard Kipling’s “Just So” Stories, “How the Rhinoceroes Got His Skin”, a Parsee wore a fantastic hat which reflected the rays of the sun. |
||
| 26 | WALDS |
Salad served up – daughter introduced Scottish dyes (5)
|
| D (daughter) introduced to <=SLAW (“salad”, served up) | ||
| 27 | FREIT |
Venomous snake? It’s kept under inverted box (5)
|
| IT kept under <=ERF (“box”, as in a small house and garden)
A freit is an omen in Scots, and I suppose a venomous snake is ominous, but I feel I may be missing something here. |
||
| 29 | PELT |
Hide in shower (4)
|
| Double definition |
Thanks loonapick. I agree with your parsing of ALABANDINE (I had to pattern search that one), it is a bit loose.
27 is KRAIT – we’ve had a similar clue before.
ERF is a find, anyway.
Thanks as ever to Azed.
Ah, I see you have a LEASIE/LAESIE confusion at 31 – sending you astray with 27 no doubt.
Yes, 27 is KRAIT [ARK (inverted) + IT], and 31 is LAESIE.
For 32: Rock bands (except for the drummer in back) typically stand in a line across the front of the stage. I also agree with your parsing.
ALABANDINE I think would have been improved with “how it may stand”.
Agree with Gonzo re LAESIE and KRAIT.
Thanks for the blog, LAESIE seemed to have a lot of spellings , fortunately for me it was last in with WALDS . I got stuck with tthat crossing until I thought of slaw for salad.
KRAIT was used in January, IMARI and variants have been in a lot recently.
A lot of bands do stand in a line, no drummer and just mime to a backing track, nearly all the “girl bands” and “boy bands” do this.
32ac: I agree with Tim C@4 that “how it may stand” would have been better. I would also dispense with the “and” as the answer is not A-BAND-IN-A-LINE but simply (A-BAND) in (A-LINE).
I hadn’t come across the Parsee and his hat, but the word play was clear enough and then I googled it.
Oh. I thought I had got it. Only second attempt at azed
I had krait @27d and laesie @31a. Will go back and recheck.
Thanks Setter and loonapick
Edit just read other comments and fell much better now
I found this fairly straightforward, including KRAIT and LAESIE. Thanks to Loonapick for clarifying some parsing, and as always to AZED for my weekly fix
Greetings and thanks, as always, to Azed- also loonapick for blog. Don’y remember much about 2723 but it seemed pretty normal. KRAIT was, I’m sure, a repeat.
Don’t suppose anyone will read this but was too busy to chip in yesterday- solving 2724 and pondering clues, plus other responsibilities.