The puzzle can be found here.
Hello, Shiny Happy People! This blog comes to you from the corner, where I’m Losing my Religion. Only my fourth time here and already Knut has me again. I hope he won’t mind; I certainly don’t. I very much enjoyed this, with my biggest groan (other than at TOOTHACHE, which caused me unnecessary and inexplicable pain) being the revelation of who the “one with laddered hose” was. Thanks, Knut!
As well as the aforementioned dental problem I had to make a couple of checks, so after a mostly harmonious time I ended up limping home with a little help from my (electronic) friends. Well, Everybody Hurts, sometimes.
I noticed fairly early on (well, I had to be reasonably alert for blogging purposes … ) that there were a few bands scattered around and thought we might be in for a musical theme. I imagined that “band” would be clueing different elements, but when the second band turned out to be the same as the first my progress sped up considerably – not least in getting 1a! It turns out that we not only have the band R.E.M. featuring no fewer than eight times in the solutions, the four band members also appear as answers: in 1a, 12a, 18a and 25a.
In the clues below, definitions are underlined. In the explanations, quoted indicators are in italics and I’ve capitalised and emboldened letters which appear in the ANSWER.
Across
1a Singer likely to have been attractive to George, according to Careless Whisper (7,5)
MICHAEL STIPE
This sounds like (according to careless whisper) (George) Michael’s type. The lead singer of R.E.M.
10a Head of Radio Four, posh, hired junior banker (7)
RIVULET
A charade of the first letter (head) of Radio, IV (four in Roman numerals), U (posh), and LET (hired)
11a Band leaders of old time electronic rock becoming more distant (7)
REMOTER
REM (band) and the first letters (leaders) of Old Time Electronic Rock
12a Bomb-maker‘s factories (5)
MILLS
Two definitions, the first referring to William MILLS. R.E.M.’s bassist and backing vocalist Mike Mills
13a Dutch superstar band leader Willy (9)
REMBRANDT
Our band is again REM; add to this the former German chancellor Willy BRANDT
14a Confusing punters and boxers? (10)
UNDERPANTS
An anagram of (confusing) PUNTERS AND
16a Band retired with Charlie in limo (4)
MERC
The band of the day, REM, reversed (retired), with C (Charlie, in the NATO alphabet)
18a American carmaker losing one dollar (4)
BUCK
BU[i]CK (American carmaker) losing I (one). R.E.M.’s guitarist Peter Buck
20a Sorry band getting plenty of oats in Hackney (10)
REMORSEFUL
REM (that band again) plus ‘ORSEFUL, plenty of oats being a horseful, and in Hackney indicating we need to drop the H
22a Being solvent, popped into Jerusalem brothel (9)
ALEMBROTH
This solvent is inside (popped into) JerusALEM BROTHel. This was a very tentative entry until I looked it up, even while successive crossing answers agreed with it
25a Times featuring English bishop; it’s rather seedy (5)
BERRY
BY (times, multiplied by) containing (featuring) E (English) + RR (abbreviation for Right Reverend, bishop). R.E.M.’s drummer Bill Berry
26a Praise from the east is minimal, initially, for doctrine of mind and matter (7)
DUALISM
LAUD reversed (from the east), IS (from the clue), and the first letter of (… initially) Minimal
27a Marcel chewed over a toffee (7)
CARAMEL
MARCEL anagrammed (chewed) around (over) A (from the clue)
28a Bubbly European female, passionate, embracing Southern church (12)
EFFERVESCENT
E (European), F (female), and FERVENT (passionate) containing (embracing) S (Southern) and CE (Church of England, abbreviated)
Down
2d Ridiculously vain hat ruled unacceptable (7)
INVALID
An anagram of (ridiculously) VAIN plus LID (hat)
3d Salt-marsh plants also cultivated in this place (8)
HALOSERE
An anagram (… cultivated) of ALSO inside HERE (this place). Collins tells me that a halosere is a plant community that originates and develops in conditions of high salinity. I didn’t know this, so looked up my (correct, as it turned out) guess in Chambers. It wasn’t there, so I used the anagram solver functionality. It didn’t have any appropriate suggestions: quite the contrary…
4d Root out; England opener, silly prat in embarrassing exit (9)
EXTIRPATE
The first letter (opener) of England followed by an anagram of (silly) PRAT inside an anagram of (embarrassing) EXIT
5d Odd way to lead, as Joe would for The Clash? (5)
STRUM
RUM (odd) with ST (way) going in front (to lead). Joe Strummer of The Clash, a very helpful choice!
6d Knut’s taking in unknown island, right where they make Turkish delight (5)
IZMIR
I’M (Knut’s, the writer’s) containing (taking in) Z (a mathematical unknown), followed by I (island) and R (right). Izmir is the third most populous city in Turkey
7d Understanding part of 10,10,10? (7)
ENTENTE
Part of tEN TEN Ten
8d Piano band playing rumbas with awful din reportedly getting top marks (7,6)
PREMIUM BRANDS
P (piano, in music), our band again: REM, and an anagram of (playing) RUMBAS mixed in with an anagram of (awful) DIN. Defined via a homophone: sounds like (reportedly getting) top marques
9d Current Lord Lieutenant supporting judge friend in danger (10,3)
CRITICALLY ILL
I (symbol for electric current) + LL (abbreviation for Lord Lieutenant) following (supporting, in a down clue) CRITIC (judge) + ALLY (friend)
15d Honk with laughter about helium (though it might need nitrous oxide) (9)
TOOTHACHE
A charade of TOOT (honk) with HA (laughter), C (circa, about), and HE (chemical symbol for helium)
17d I cry a river; in charge, having the same pressure (8)
ISOBARIC
Another charade: I, SOB (cry), A, R (river), and IC (in charge)
19d Say adieu to band cherished by Ms Blanchett (7)
CREMATE
REM (band) inside (cherished by) CATE (Blanchett)
21d Leader of indie band grabbed by groupie, one with laddered hose? (7)
FIREMAN
The first letter (leader) of Indie, and our band REM inside (grabbed by) FAN (groupie). A hose(pipe) taken up a ladder could be a “laddered hose” – beautiful whimsical definition!
23d Succinct lawyer (5)
BRIEF
A double definition
24d Seafood starters of Oysters Rockefeller upset band (5)
ORMER
Initial letters (starters) of Oysters Rockefeller plus the reversal (upset) of – you guessed it – the band REM
It wasnt until the end of this most enjoyable puzzle that I heard a Murmur or maybe a Green clue from another puzzle.Always liked the band.
And loved the puzzle
Thanks Knut and Kitty (sounds like another act too)
Loved this, laughed out loud at 14a, these things never cease to amuse. Very grateful for the name check in 13d. I hope I am not alone in saying I have never heard of ALEMBROTH
great stuff as usual, many thanks knut and thank you kitty for a most entertaining blog
Super puzzle. Was there a theme!
Some great clues here. Especially liked Michael’s type, junior banker, Dutch superstar and plenty of oats in Hackney.
Thanks to Knut and Kitty.
Band – REM. Another band, oh them again. Aha! Thanks, Knut for an accessible theme, although my LOI was, bizarrely, 1a, which I of course probably knew, unlike the rest of the band. I wasn’t helped by the app stopping short of the (7,5) bit. It does that. Loved it. Thanks to S&B
Knut on absolute top form.
Like others I guessed ALEMBROTH and then checked it. It was very helpful to find 15d. The definition there was wasted on me but that is perhaps because I try to keep as far away as I can from dentists [I know, that’s not a sensible thing to do].
Last one in: HALOSERE (another guess).
I think I liked ‘one with laddered hose’ most.
Perhaps, those who don’t know who the late Joe Strummer was might be unhappy with 5d but you won’t hear me.
Just wondered whether Knut liked the band so much that he wrote a puzzle around them, or that he tried to do something with the REM/band crossword near-identity.
For your (perhaps, useless) information, REM loved my hometown Utrecht. During (and before) their heyday they played a lot of gigs there (at the rather intimate Tivoli venue, in particular – a place that doesn’t exist anymore). Often the band then stayed for a couple days, just to walk around a bit, along the canals, or to go into a pub to have a pint. Those were the days.
Very nice (and entertaining) blog Kitty, so many thanks for that.
And thumbs up for Knut.
REM were a really naff band who didn’t deserve this accolade. For some reason they seems to be one of crossword-setters’ favourite groups.
It’s very nice to see Kitty and Knut (as “Baer/Baerchen,) both groundlings here and in the Guardian* respectively, stepping into the limelight and making such a fine job of it.
* i.e The Guardian in the days before they locked out us Canadians and the Lord knows whom else.
Knew of the band REM, but had no idea about the names of the members, so I had to use Google for 1a.
Had trouble with 3d also, my anagram solver and my word wizard didn’t help.
Thanks, Knut & Kitty.
Late to this because I had to borrow the office printer to print it. A little tougher than Knut usually is perhaps because of the obscurities (HALOSERE AND ALEMBROTH were new to me. Very entertaining, I particularly liked the ‘ORSEFUL…
Thanks to Knut and Kitty