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90's British Pop Bands...
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Subject: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Bobert Date: 26 Feb 09 - 06:23 PM Well, I went thru a period in the 90's when I was listening to alot of new music (for me) and got into a few British pop/rock bands but... ...being a Yank I never did have a clue if these bands were considered popular in the UK as well... Two come to mind: Catherine Wheel and The Devlins... I really enjoyed them... So, UKers, here yer opportunity to talk about a subject that I haven't seen on Mudcat... So what about these two bands and tell us about other that I may have missed... Bobert |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Geoff the Duck Date: 27 Feb 09 - 06:24 AM Not aware of either of them, Bobert, old chap. That said, I don't seem to recall ANY bands from the 90's. I am sure there must have been some... Right - My brain has clicked in. The music scene in early 90's Britain had a lot of Rave and Techno in the charts. Not much connection with Folk, but there was something about it which grabbed me. Couldn't figure out what until one day I realised that the stomping beat of it was almost identical to the rhythm of clawhammer banjo. Back to your question, I think the most interesting band who hit the scene during the 90's was The Levellers, who combined elements of folk with other styles of music. Quack! GtD. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: GUEST,Ed Date: 27 Feb 09 - 06:31 AM Surely the most important British band of the '90s were Oasis? |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: GUEST,lox Date: 27 Feb 09 - 06:33 AM You mean self important ... |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: GUEST,Ed Date: 27 Feb 09 - 06:41 AM Possibly that as well! |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: matt milton Date: 27 Feb 09 - 07:08 AM "Surely the most important British band of the '90s were Oasis?" ugh, no. I never could see the appeal of Oasis. Well, actually I could see the appeal writ large: take the most obvious, banal, football-chant-singalong aspects of the Beatles (ignore all of the interesting stuff that made them possibly the most inventive band ever) and flog them to death. The same song over and over and over again. Oasis were totally witless chancers who got lucky. They're now like the UK's equivalent of, say, France's Johnny Hallyday: a parochial, backwards-looking phenomenon that must be utterly baffling to anyone not from there. I remember Catherine Wheel. Funny you should have mentioned them. They were quite obscure in the UK - they came out of the fuzzy indie guitar "shoegazing" scene. If you liked Catherine Wheel but never heard My Bloody Valentine, then you should definitely check out My Bloody Valentine: they were/are true originals. The only people I know of today who even approach the sound that MBV got are an American band called The Goslings, who I think are from San Francisco. For me, the 1990s in the UK were defined by trip-hop stuff: Portishead, Tricky, and Massive Attack. With the occasional bit of drum'n'bass such as Photek. A lot of that Britpop stuff from around then hasn't aged well, although I think some of Blur's stuff and Elastica's stuff still stands up. But I think my favourite 1990s UK rock album, which I suspect people on this forum would probably like a lot if they haven't already heard it is "Bring It On" by Gomez. Their first album, and the only good thing they've done. It's like they squeezed all their ideas onto that one record and had nothing else to say afterwards. It's basically a blues rock album, but it's a lot more than that: a lot of psychedelic influences and some beautiful countryish harmonies. The production and arrangements are terrific. It's like electric jug-band pop. Oh, and I also quite liked the Super Furry Animals 90s stuff too. They're a Welsh band who mix up a lot of 1970s psych and glam-rock influences with flourishes from acid house and punk. Again, true originals. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: GUEST,Jonny Sunshine Date: 27 Feb 09 - 08:03 AM What Matt said. I never thought I'd see the day people talk about My Bloody Valentine on a folk music forum.. I'd say the Stone Roses (at least their first album) and Pulp are two bands well worth a listen if you missed them out. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Bobert Date: 27 Feb 09 - 08:05 AM Thanks, Matt... I'll check some of those bands out... Especially My Bloody Valentine... I am surprised to hear that Catherine Wheel was an obscure band 'cause I thought and still think they were a great band... But then again I'm an ol' Bloodwyn Pig fan??? B~ |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Bobert Date: 27 Feb 09 - 08:07 AM Cross posted , Johnny... Thanks fir them, too... B~ |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Chris Green Date: 27 Feb 09 - 08:10 AM Bloody hell! I haven't heard of Catherine Wheel for years! If you're into them then Ride's first two albums are worth getting hold of. Supergrass are also well worth a listen. Oasis, however, were self-important Beatles wannabes. I thought they were pretentious cack then and still do now. Chris PS - You're right about the Stone Roses first album, matt. It's summer on a CD! |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: matt milton Date: 27 Feb 09 - 08:23 AM except the Stone Roses debut might actually have been 80s I think, 1989 or thereabouts. I was more into the Happy Mondays than the Roses. Haven't listened to it in a while but "Pills, Thrills & Bellyaches" is terrific. I think that was around 1989 too. Something else I just thought of that I listened to quite a lot in the late 1990s were a couple of heavy stoner-rock bands from the UK who played and released records together: Orange Goblin and Electric Wizard. I'm not even really into metal, but they out-Sabbathed Black Sabbath in such a stupid, totally derivative way that it was just brilliant. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Banjiman Date: 27 Feb 09 - 08:58 AM Happy Mondays, Stone Roses, Ride....ah my era, all good. I was listening to Portishead only last week when our Camper Van broke down on the way back from a gig in Scotland. Definitely stands the test of time. .... I'd add The Wedding Present (esp the album Bizarro) some of whom have re-emerged as The Ukranians of course and are now very rootsy. Might be late 80's when I think about it though. Spacemen 3 were great, always liked (some of) The Orb as well. Paul (being taken back to a field near Glastonbury) |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Sleepy Rosie Date: 27 Feb 09 - 09:11 AM Ditto many of the above. Seude, Radiohead, Jamiroquai, Manic's, Roni Size, Prodigy, Shamen, Orb, Orbital, FSoL etc. Not all pop exactly. But I dread to think how many others there are. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Stu Date: 27 Feb 09 - 09:19 AM Ash, Super Furry Animals, Garbage, Ocean Colour Scene (first album), any of Paul Weller's 90's output but especially Wildwood and Stanley Road, The Charlatans, The Divine Comedy, The Manic Street Preachers, Kular Shaker, The Seahorses (seriously underestimated band featuring John Squire of the Stone Roses - Oasis could have been this good), Supergrass, The Verve. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: fat B****rd Date: 27 Feb 09 - 09:37 AM The La's |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: GUEST Date: 27 Feb 09 - 10:05 AM The La's A fine, fine album of course, but released in 1990 it hardly defines the decade. Oasis do to an extent. Whether you like Oasis isn't relevant the 'folk' did... |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: GUEST,Ed Date: 27 Feb 09 - 10:06 AM Sorry, above was from me and there should be a comma after 'relevant' |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Brian Hoskin Date: 27 Feb 09 - 10:09 AM Alabama 3 |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: GUEST,HiLo Date: 27 Feb 09 - 10:23 AM Two albums that I still play a lot and that I think were just brilliant are Oranges and Lemons by XTC and Goodbye Jumbo by world Party. Were thay not early 90's ? |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: matt milton Date: 27 Feb 09 - 10:25 AM "released in 1990 it hardly defines the decade. Oasis do to an extent. Whether you like Oasis isn't relevant, the 'folk' did..." oh but I think whether you like Oasis or not is extremely relevant. We were asked for recommendations here. I think you can indeed say that, yes, Oasis did 'define' the decade for the UK (the US, sensibly, never really bit), in that they were a very assertive-sounding soundtrack for Blair years. You could say a similar thing about Coldplay, today, being the cosy sensitive cuddly opposite reaction to all that flag-waving triumphalism for the hug-the-world early 2000s. But it doesn't mean either of em made any good music. You may as well say 'Mama Mia' was the defining film of today. What is it, 1 in 3 households have a copy of the DVD? I slightly resent the word folk used that way, to refer simply to the biggest demographic. Even with scare quotes on. I think quite a lot of people are a bit embarrassed at how how much limelight they gave Oasis back then. I don't like them at all, but even the people who do like them seem to acknowledge that they were a one-trick pony who only made two decent albums. Liam Gallagher has got a great voice though, i'll give em that. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: GUEST,Spleen Cringe Date: 27 Feb 09 - 10:44 AM Yay! Banjiman's a Spacemen 3 fan! Join the club... do you remember Loop? They were in a quite a similar vein. And one of the ex-Loopies is now half of the psych-folk-tastic duo, Pumajaw, whose latest album, Curiosity Box, is rather fab. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Stu Date: 27 Feb 09 - 10:50 AM I like Oasis. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: irishenglish Date: 27 Feb 09 - 10:53 AM Band I wished had stayed around was Welsh band The Darling Buds. My wife especially likes The Verve/Richard Ashcroft. For that brief time Oasis were it, and not just in their own estimation either ( I remember the sleeve notes for a Clive Gregson album where he thanked amongst others Manchester United and Oasis). And though technically Irish, another band I think of as being 90's was The Cranberries, whom I loved. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Jerry Rasmussen Date: 27 Feb 09 - 11:28 AM There were the La's, and then everyone else. No one asked about defining the decade. Jerry |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: matt milton Date: 27 Feb 09 - 11:54 AM I liked Spacemen 3 a lot. Have you heard the album from Spectrum & Captain Memphis called "Indian Giver"? It's Sonic Boom with Jim Dickinson, a bluesy American producer and guitarist. Very good indeed. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Banjiman Date: 27 Feb 09 - 12:04 PM Do you know, I really didn't think I would ever be discussing Spaceman 3 on Mudact. Cool! I do remember Loop, not got any albums though. Matt, I've not heard the album you mention.... any idea where I could? Paul |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Jayto Date: 27 Feb 09 - 12:18 PM Is Jamiroquai still recording? I haven't heard anything from him in yrs. He got pretty big here is the States for a while and then vanished. I like watching Oasis because of thier train wreck nature. The music I really didn't enjoy but the train wreck was kind of amusing. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: GUEST,punkfolkrocker Date: 27 Feb 09 - 12:19 PM the 90's.. what a dull sad stagnant decade for Brit Pop.. you can moan about Oasis, but someone please explain the mass appeal of the Stereophonics !!!??? guess my favourite band that i can remember right now might have been Earl Brutus.. never saw them live.. but popular myth was they were ugly middle aged men who smelled of wee. Actually, for all the media hype Gay Dad were a very good live band and made better than average records.. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Nicholas Waller Date: 27 Feb 09 - 12:20 PM I've heard of the Devlins and like them too - so you're not alone. Radiohead and Portishead were also big for me at one stage. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: matt milton Date: 27 Feb 09 - 12:22 PM Banjiman: http://www.dotshop.se/ds/release.php?code=BMR105CD That has three tracks from it that can be listened to. My favourite being "The Lonesome Death of Johnny Ace" |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Jayto Date: 27 Feb 09 - 12:39 PM Here you go man Link for Matt Milton |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Phil Edwards Date: 27 Feb 09 - 05:17 PM Three words: Flying Saucer Attack. (Only got one of their, or rather his, albums, but it's brain-meltingly wonderful. Also brain-meltingly loud, but that's part of the point. I defy anyone to listen to the track "At Night" and not be...affected. I didn't think much of his Sally Free and Easy, though.) |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Chris Green Date: 28 Feb 09 - 05:49 AM Actually I'm surprised no-one's mentioned the Wonder Stuff. I saw them on their farewell tour in '94 when I was 16 and it's still one of the best gigs I've ever been to! |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Spleen Cringe Date: 01 Mar 09 - 03:41 AM You can also get SPECTRUM MEETS CAPTAIN MEMPHIS as a download from eMusic. PS: Matt (going off topic here), I bought the Michael Rossiter CDr you recommended. Excellent stuff it is, too. Cheers for that! |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Sleepy Rosie Date: 01 Mar 09 - 05:57 AM "I'm surprised no-one's mentioned the Wonder Stuff" Aye, 'Eight Legged Groove Machine' was played to death after it first came out (Red Berry Joy Town). Along with quite a few bands, they straddled late eighties and early ninties. Didn't get a kick out of their later material though - especially that track with Vic Reeves. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Sleepy Rosie Date: 01 Mar 09 - 06:07 AM House of Love was possibly my favourite band of that late eighties/early nineties period. 'Butterfly' album released I think 1990 (opening track Hannah) |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Rifleman (inactive) Date: 01 Mar 09 - 04:59 PM "Surely the most important British band of the '90s were Oasis? " what is considered "important" (or self-important) by many, is vastly different from what is interesting. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Bobert Date: 01 Mar 09 - 05:36 PM Can't argue with that... |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: GUEST,Rich Date: 01 Mar 09 - 05:38 PM I'm not an Oasis nut, but being in your mid-20's in the mid-90's it was hard not to love the straight-up punk/rock ethos of 'Definitely Maybe'. You can make all the derivative comments you like, Slide Away, Columbia, Rock-n-Roll Star, Live Forever etc. were great tunes and just what was needed to shake a bit of life into the rock scene at the time (IMHO obviously!). Faves of the 90's would also inlude Gomez (first two albums), Supergrass (In it For the Money), My Blood Valentine (Loveless), The La's (The La's), Radiohead (The Bends) and the simply sublime 'Grand Prix' by Teenage Fanclub; 40 minutes of perfection (buy it!). |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Sleepy Rosie Date: 01 Mar 09 - 05:47 PM I saw an unplugged performance by Noel on some tv music prog some years back. I think Liam had had a hissy fit and done a bunk. The combo of Noels unaffected vocals with the absence of exessive retro style production, allowed the genuine natural intelligence and beauty of his songs to shine through. Apart from that one illuminating experience, I've always found Oasis thoroughly derivative and dull. Eh oh. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: GUEST,Sarah, Barnsley Date: 02 Mar 09 - 09:45 AM The Jesus and Mary Chain's 'Automatic' was late 80's but sits well alongside Catherine Wheel. Early Spiritualised was pretty good too (didn't they rise from the ashes of Spaceman 3 ?) S |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Banjiman Date: 02 Mar 09 - 10:35 AM .....I'm waiting for someone from the pop police to come along and tell us that some of the bands we are talking about are not really pop! They might look like pop and sound like pop but because the tracks were written, recorded and released for non- commercial reasons they can't really be pop. Yes, spiritualised did spring from Spaceman 3. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Geoff Wallis Date: 02 Mar 09 - 11:43 AM Well, The Devlins were/are an Irish band and MYV were formed in Dublin too, but later moved to London and MYV's only two albums came out in 1988 and 1991. Some names that haven't been mentioned: Supergrass; Gene; The Flaming Stars; The Big Dish; The Blue Aeroplanes; Placebo (hated them!); Denim; The Auteurs; The Divine Comedy; The Boo Radleys; The Inspiral Carpets; Lush; Salad (hated them too); Saint Etienne; Sleeper (hated them more than all the others I've hated already); Cast; The Verve; Menswear; The Bluetones; Dodgy; Northern Uproar; Echobelly; Pulp; Ocean Colour Scene; etc. And, one that I loathed even more than all the other of my objects of hatred put together, Shed Seven. That's probably enough. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: GUEST,Spleen Cringe Date: 02 Mar 09 - 12:40 PM Thanks a bunch, Geoff, for reminding me of various utterly rubbish bands I thought I'd managed to evict from my conscious mind! I'll bash your Shed Seven with my ... Senseless Things. And friggin' Kingmaker. And Swervedriver. Had enough yet? St Etienne, on the other hand, were pure pop genius... |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Chris Green Date: 02 Mar 09 - 01:03 PM Ah, St Etienne! Dodgy were bloody good as well, particularly their first album. In fact, I rated that a lot more than the later stuff that got all the airplay. While we're on the subject of appalling 90s bands - anyone remember Shampoo? They made the Spice Girls sound like the Supremes! |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Bobert Date: 02 Mar 09 - 01:16 PM I'd forgotten The Verve... I bought their CD as well but they didn't really do much for me... BTW, any UK'ers remember Bloodwyn Pig from the 60s??? I loved them... B~ |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Geoff Wallis Date: 02 Mar 09 - 01:46 PM I think you mean Blodwyn Pig, Bobert. Great band - saw them many times! |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Chris Green Date: 02 Mar 09 - 01:49 PM I've just replaced my lost copy of the Dodgy album from Amazon and will be waiting anxiously for its arrival! Thanks for the reminder Geoff! |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Phil Edwards Date: 03 Mar 09 - 11:09 AM I remember telling someone that Embrace were as much better than the Verve as the Verve were better than Oasis. I think that was probably true, except that the comparison only really held good for Embrace's first album and the Verve's last. Also, you have to be using a value of 'better' that includes 'more earnest'. |
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Subject: RE: 90's British Pop Bands... From: Geoff Wallis Date: 03 Mar 09 - 12:23 PM I meant to write 'MBV' rather than 'MYV' in my posting above. I'll get my coat. Oh, jayz, Spleen Cringe, why did you have to mention Kingmaker, a veritable blot on the city of Hull, and Senseless Things too? Others I've subsequently remembered include The Wildhearts, Ned's Atomic Dustbin, Mansun, Babybird, Catatonia, My Life Story, Dubstar, The Supernaturals, The Jazz Butcher, the utterly wretched Travis, The Sundays, Cranes, James, Slowdive, and Curve. That's more than enough. Part of the reason all these names have stuck in my memory is that I worked in a mate's record shop in Islington in the 1990s and we were awash with CD singles which he'd buy in job lots from NME reviewers. I also had a fling with an agent which mainly involved visiting the tacky-carpeted back rooms of music pubs in the hope of discovering nascent 'superstars'. She always remained remarkably hopeful despite all the aural evidence to the contrary. |
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