Yesterday's post got me to thinking about about British music in general and how much my own tastes have been influenced by one artist in particular....Damon Albarn. There's so much to say about him and all of the projects he's been involved in over the years that I am going to do so in three parts, so please stick with me.
Anyone who was of age in the 90's knows him most likely from fronting the band Blur, who among being known for their influential Manchester sound, also were known for their feud with the band Oasis. I'm loving Noel Gallagher's new album, but I don't think you can compare the two. Blur simply was a much better band in many ways, by outlasting, outperforming, and pushing themselves creatively over the years. Okay, I'll get off my soapbox now!
Blur's first album, Leisure, was released in 1991, with the hit "There's No Other Way", leading the charts in the UK at no. 8. I have so many memories of playing this album non-stop while I was living in Madison, WI. I had heard nothing like it before and was immediately hooked on the whole Manchester sound. There were other bands getting in on the act, like Happy Mondays, Inspiral Carpets, Stone Roses, and the Charlatans (who I also got hooked on for many years). Blur kind of epitomized the whole sound to my American ears though and they definitely stood the test of time looking back now.
"There's No Other Way" from Leisure (1991)
"Chemical World" from Modern Life is Rubbish (1993)
"To the End" from Parklife (1994)
"The Universal" from The Great Escape (1995)
"Song 2" from Blur (1997)
"Tender" from 13 (1999)
There were seven albums in total, with their last one, Think Tank, being released in 2003. The band unfortunately broke up soon after this release. I myself mourned their dissolution, but I didn't grieve for long because by this time, Damon Albarn was already involved with his new project, Gorillaz, which I will follow up with in part two.
Cheers, Stacey
18 January 2012
The British Invasion
So this is my first post on this blog and I hope I don't screw it up!
This will be a place for me to post my thoughts and links to whatever I happen to be listening to at the time. If anyone finds me and happens to discover a new band or singer they like I will be overjoyed. I spend a lot of time listening and trying to discover new music so nothing is more enjoyable to me than sharing that sense of discovery with other folks!
Lately I've been gravitating to British bands again (quelle surprise!). Somehow that's where I always find myself. The two I've recently downloaded are Clayhill and the Boxer Rebellion. I discovered Clayhill in a roundabout way. Their singer is Gavin Clark who has sung on many Unkle albums, who are a great favorite of mine. I found myself particularly enjoying the Unkle songs that he happened to sing on and looked him up on Wikipedia (not today...it's down!). The article mentioned that he also was a member of Clayhill, a British folk band. I can see why they get that designation but they are definitely alt-folk rock in my opinion.
Their most recent album, Afterlight can be downloaded on iTunes for $4.99. A fantastic deal!
"Grasscutter" from Afterlight
"One Nerve" from Afterllight
"Northern Soul" from Afterlight
The other band I've been listening to endlessly this week is the Boxer Rebellion, also based in London. In actuality, the singer is American, lead guitarist is Australian, but rest of the band is British and their sensibility is certainly British.
"Caught by the Light" from The Cold Still
The hauntingly beautiful "Both Sides are Even" from The Cold Still
"The Runner" from The Cold Still
Are they not amazingly talented? I can't believe I had never heard of this band until now! How many other great musicians and bands am I not hearing because commercial radio sucks? Thank god for Pandora and Spotify!!
If you want to leave a comment please do so...I would love to hear from you.
