TheThorne
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Post by TheThorne on Oct 31, 2023 9:09:16 GMT 1
31 Faith No More - Angel Dust
Staying in a similar vein we have their fourth album but unlike Rage, I had never heard this in full before. This is a weird weird record. Based on the singles you could never guess how weird it is especially if you take a track like "A Small Victory" which is so straightforward. The other singles are powerful though "Midlife Crisis" and "Everything's Ruined". But way from those two singles the album is plain bizarre. I had to listen to the version with 'Easy' on it to make my self sane again. I think it needs a lot of plays to get, if you ever could. The record reached #2 in the UK and #10 in the US. It was not a big seller only selling 500000 in the US. 4/5
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Post by Earl Purple on Oct 31, 2023 10:14:08 GMT 1
My #1 album of the year has now appeared. I'm not sure if "After The Watershed" was ever intended to be on that album, and "Rubbish" wasn't on it (that being their first single of 1992 and after ATW).
I bought it as I was buying a number of albums at the time but was surprised how good it actually was throughout. Lots of the f word throughout. "Worry Bomb" is an even better album with 1994-95 being just a generally brilliant period for albums.
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Post by TheThorne on Oct 31, 2023 11:20:36 GMT 1
My #1 album of the year has now appeared. I'm not sure if "After The Watershed" was ever intended to be on that album, and "Rubbish" wasn't on it (that being their first single of 1992 and after ATW). I bought it as I was buying a number of albums at the time but was surprised how good it actually was throughout. Lots of the f word throughout. "Worry Bomb" is an even better album with 1994-95 being just a generally brilliant period for albums. It was intended , it would have killed their royalties if the Rolling Stones credit had been on the album as well. As for ‘Worry Bomb’ we will see, I wasn’t as into the singles but not heard the whole album yet, that will be sometime in February probably. also ‘Rubbish’ was a re-issue from 1990, it would have been more at home on ‘101 Damnations’, if it had been 2023 it would have been on the special version of ‘101 Damnations’ no doubt.
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Post by Earl Purple on Oct 31, 2023 12:14:33 GMT 1
But "The Impossible Dream" was on the album and they didn't write that either, so they had to give away some royalties for that cover.
The rules for singles were generally that the B-side generated the same in royalties as the A-side which saw you have a cover version on the A-side and a self-written track on the B-side which might not be as good but it gave the artist royalties.
The same of course if the B-side was a cover which would have affected all 12 Hit Parade singles, but I guess David Gedge didn't care that much, writing 24 songs would have been too much and he got a lot of publicity.
By the way Rubbish is on the "Bonus edition" of 101 Damnations (which means they stuck it at the end as they added it to Spotify, together with some other songs). I guess on Spotify it doesn't matter, as royalties is per-track. After The Watershed is on "Straw Donkey (The Singles)".
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TheThorne
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Post by TheThorne on Oct 31, 2023 13:41:44 GMT 1
But "The Impossible Dream" was on the album and they didn't write that either, so they had to give away some royalties for that cover. The rules for singles were generally that the B-side generated the same in royalties as the A-side which saw you have a cover version on the A-side and a self-written track on the B-side which might not be as good but it gave the artist royalties. The same of course if the B-side was a cover which would have affected all 12 Hit Parade singles, but I guess David Gedge didn't care that much, writing 24 songs would have been too much and he got a lot of publicity. By the way Rubbish is on the "Bonus edition" of 101 Damnations (which means they stuck it at the end as they added it to Spotify, together with some other songs). I guess on Spotify it doesn't matter, as royalties is per-track. After The Watershed is on "Straw Donkey (The Singles)". It was more that they didnt declare it and Rolling Sones really hammered them in court, they even put an injunction on it. They do the same thing again to The Verve, Rolling Stones are ruthless with their music. Carter already knew they were taking a loss with 'Impossible Dream'.
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Post by TheThorne on Nov 1, 2023 8:37:16 GMT 1
30 Finitribe - An Unexpected Groovy Treat
Who remembers these guys? Finitribe were another Scottish electronic music group from Scotland. Basically the Edinburgh Shamen, so much so that they signed to One Little Indian and were labelmates. Way less political even in their early days but just as spiritual at their peak. This was their breakthrough album where The Shamen really gave them a leg up and they released some amazing singles including '101' which had a whole new production sound which would later be borrowed by Snap for their hit 'Welcome To Tomorrow'. But it isn't just the singles bangers that 'Forevergreen' and 'Ace Love Deuce', the whole record is pretty awesome really. I need to go back and hear their previous album, as it is supposed to be just as good. 4/5
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Post by TheThorne on Nov 1, 2023 8:47:14 GMT 1
29 Thousand Yard Stare - Hands On
The debut album from the pre-Brit Pop band, but really again what else would you call this, if you have never heard them think of a half way house between The Bluetones and Ash and that is where they would sit. I saw them supporting James in 1991 and they were great. It is just infectious guitar pop with clever witty lyrics, the stand-outs are '0-0 A.E.T. (No Score After Extra Time)' and the very jaunty 'Buttermouth' which is almost pop punk. 4/5
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Post by TheThorne on Nov 1, 2023 8:54:42 GMT 1
28 Morrissey - Your Arsenal
His third solo album and maybe his most controversial. It is also a superb one so much better than his previous record. The hooks are back big time with his catchiest single yet "We Hate It When Our Friends Become Successful" and the others are not to shabby as well "You're the One for Me, Fatty" and "Glamorous Glue". I never heard this album until now, but I do remember all the controversy about the track "The National Front Disco" and of course the line 'England for the English (England for the English)' which maybe makes it a Brexit anthem. Back then many gave him the benefit of the doubt, it is maybe just a story about some guy but now of course we know this is the kind of stuff he comes out with... and early indicator. The record reached #4 in the UK and #21 in the US. 4/5
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Post by TheThorne on Nov 1, 2023 8:58:32 GMT 1
27 Revolver - Baby's Angry
Not strictly an album but I am allowing it, in the same way I will allow The Beta Band - 3 EPs later. I bought this and I love it, one of the best shoegaze records ever with arguably the best shoegaze song not made by My Bloody Valentine which is 'Heaven Sent an Angel'. That song, 'Venice', 'Don't Ever Leave' and a brilliant cover of 'Since Yesterday', essential for the genre. 4/5
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Post by TheThorne on Nov 1, 2023 9:05:08 GMT 1
26 Drop Nineteens - Delaware
We stay with shoegaze but this time, it is a band from the US. The band from Boston have recently reformed and are releasing some great singles in 2023, can't wait for the album early next year. They also knew what they were doing releasing a single called 'Winona' who was and still is the Queen of Gen X culture, with her cool alternative movie choices and now her role in 'Reality Bites' the most zeitgeist movie around. Also many men and women I am sure were totally in love with her like me!! That is the stand-out track but the whole record is a brilliant mix of shoegaze and Pixies style indie rock. The record reached #5 in the UK indie chart. 4/5
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Post by TheThorne on Nov 2, 2023 8:40:13 GMT 1
25 The Charlatans - Between 10th and 11th
Their second album and it is for sure not one of their best records, most of it is very standard Charlatans which is no bad thing but we know they will get a lot better than this. The shining light is the single 'Weirdo' which would probably make most people's top 10 Charlatan's song list. Thinking now I have been a bit generous as not sure if this is a top 25 album. The record only reached #21 in the Uk and #173 in the US, it is possible if they had been on a big major this could have been the end for them. 4/5
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Post by TheThorne on Nov 2, 2023 8:45:42 GMT 1
24 Pavement - Slanted and Enchanted
Now an album that gets to shortage of accolades, the debut album from the slacker rock lo-fi band. I didn't buy this album but I did buy 'Trigger Cut' so I was a fan pretty early. For me it is maybe not my favourite of their records, it does have a couple of duds whereas their next record is brilliant through and through. But they are something new and different, and this will be such an influential record. Not an album you would expect to be a hit but it did get to #72 in the UK. 4/5
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Post by TheThorne on Nov 2, 2023 8:52:23 GMT 1
23 Tori Amos - Little Earthquakes
Here is an album that I am sure will be popular here, that you maybe never saw coming. This was the debut album from the singer/songwriter and I was a fan from the start, I bought most of the singles a real case of if I knew that everything after "Silent All These Years", was going to be as good or even better I should have waited for the album. But the way things worked then, if we all had waited for the album then the single would have flopped, someone had to be the single buyer! Best track, I love nearly all of them but it has to be "Crucify", it just has the most gorgeous production, and her vocals are amazing. The record reached #14 in the UK and #54 in the US. 4/5 (the first of the high ones)
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Post by TheThorne on Nov 2, 2023 9:02:13 GMT 1
22 P J Harvey - Dry
Just one place above, we have her future friend, and another debut album from a singer-songwriter. P J is a different thing altogether from Tori, who is very much in the classic 70s singer-songwriter vein. P J owes more to punk and grunge. I got into through the single 'Sheela-Na-Gig' which still annoys me to this day, at how it is set in decibels. It is always a tricky song to DJ!! I then went back and bought 'Dress' not something i usually do and i think it is even better. Polly is not for everyone but this is one of her more accessible albums as it is very grunge-adjacent. The record reached #11 in the UK. 4/5
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Post by TheThorne on Nov 2, 2023 9:08:04 GMT 1
21 Utah Saints - Utah Saints
Another curveball maybe but along with The Prodigy, Utah Saints are one the best in UK dance in 1992. They just knew how to make anthema using great classic pop hooks and they have so much energy and enthusiasm, not like most of the churned out pap dance on TOTP. They should be dated and maybe their debut 'What Can You Do for Me' is a little but the rest could power a house party today, and it would go down a storm. The record was a big hit reaching #10 in the UK and #165 in the US, where they proved pretty popular. 4/5
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Post by Earl Purple on Nov 2, 2023 11:55:44 GMT 1
Morrissey - No Arsenal:
The first album with what became the main band that extended even into the mid-2000s comeback, i.e. Alain Whyte and Boz Boorer, although Boz didn't write any of these songs. 2 of the songs were co-written by Mark E Nevin who wrote most of Kill Uncle plus the wonderful "Pregnant For The Last Time" which wasn't on any album. One of those two was "I Know It's Going To Happen Someday" and Mark Ronson, who produced the album, made it sound a bit like "Rock N Roll Suicide" and said he wrote that arrangement anyway and thus they wouldn't get sued by David Bowie. "Certain People I Know" also sampled its main riff from "Ride A White Swan". So 2 years before Oasis borrowed "Get It On" for Cigarettes And Alcohol, Morrissey's band were already doing that.
As for "The National Front Disco", people looked at the title and came up with "Morrissey is a fascist" which clearly was a load of nonsense, he was very much speaking out against the "David" and in the song it was a father speaking to his son and clearly Morrissey himself doesn't have a son but it was his voice expressing his opinion. "Bengali In Platforms" was obviously more controversial but in my mind was also not fascist in any way. Later on in his life Morrissey did associate some of his views with those of political extremists but at the time at least that didn't appear to be his political view.
Glamorous Glue: "We won't vote Conservative, because we never have...". But in Irish Blood English Heart he was sick to death of "Labour, and Tory..". That's because Tony Blair was Prime Minister and had taken us to war in Iraq. So maybe that's where he started to drift in his political views.
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Post by TheThorne on Nov 3, 2023 13:46:16 GMT 1
20 Juliana Hatfield - Hey Babe
Again remembering I have talked about some of these already. I first discovered Julianna Hatfield through her Lemonheads collabs, I missed Blake Babies, that has now been resolved. She was my total indie crush!!! This was her gorgeous debut album from 1992 and it was not on Spotify when I talked about it 2019 but all her albums are now As mentioned their was two singles which both made my top 10 at the time, whether I have charted them in my revised charts who knows as I don't know their release dates. This album did not chart but it is totally gorgeous. 4/5
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Post by TheThorne on Nov 3, 2023 13:49:13 GMT 1
19 Pale Saints - In RibbonsThe second album from Pale Saints and probably more accessible than their debut, it also contains my favourite song of theirs which was' Throwing Back the Apple'. Just brilliant shoegaze, so underrated. Not a lot more to say, you know that is what you are going to get and few bands do it better. It reached #61 in the UK. 4/5
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Post by TheThorne on Nov 3, 2023 13:54:31 GMT 1
18 Buffalo Tom - Let Me Come Over
Very interesting that none of this batch of albums made my overall top 300 of the 90s, more hints than 1992 is not the deepest of years. The third album from the Boston Alt Rockers and probably the one that got them noticed here most following their previous indie hits like 'Birdbrain'. Buffalo Tom have always been one of the bands that I am a fan of that many people didn't know its a shame as they were great, still are their comeback record was pretty decent. This album probably includes their best slow song which is "Taillights Fade" but I think heir next album is better overall, close to perfect in fact. This album failed to chart. 4/5
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Post by TheThorne on Nov 3, 2023 19:57:51 GMT 1
17 Catherine Wheel - Ferment
The debut album from Catherine Wheel and probably their best album and it used to be so hard to find, I had to eventually get it on Ebay as it was still not on downloads or streaming. Well like Julianna they are finally added, they did have some music but now you can get it all. They were so much more than just another shoegaze band and to be fair they were probably more successful than any other shoegaze band in the US as they had a bit of edge to their sound. The big song "Black Metallic" is as much post-punk as it is shoegaze. It reached #36 in the UK in 1992. 4/5
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