Don’t be Noel Gallagher

Thanks to it featuring quite heavily in s2 ep5 of The OA (as in, it’s part of the plot, not just background music), I’ve had Lightning Crashes by Live stuck in my head since last night. It was still playing on my mental repeat this morning.

Live. Now there was an odd band. Quasi-religious cultish fanbase, one-hit wonders (over here anyway) and yet … they really had something. Lots of filler through their career, but when they were on form, they are really rather good. The singer was properly bonkers in the nut though.

I went to see them a few years back in Glasgow, and was quite blown away by the crowd’s fervour. They had FANS in bold caps. More obsessed than Pearl Jam fans. More than Morrissey fans. More even than Lamb fans (and Lamb fans are nutso).

Before that, I tried to go see them in Birmingham back in the late ’90s. Knew I was cutting it fine for the last train home, but I was supposed to meet and interview the band before the gig (their PR girl was an old friend of mine). I sat in a pub in Brum waiting for something like four hours, before I gave up – the gig was clearly going to run late as well and I wouldn’t get to see them anyway. Just as I was leaving they rocked up in four separate limousines. A limo each. For a gig with only a few hundred capacity.

ANYWAY. I’ve had Lightning Crashes stuck in my head, so here it is. Dated, sure, but still achingly beautiful.



And their one-hit wonder in the UK market, I Alone.



And, to finish, a deeper cut … Laikini’s Juice.

Throwing Copper is far and away their best album. That PR girl of theirs sent me copies of their entire catalogue on CD and, er … I sold the rest on to a second-hand shop for beer money.

Ha! Yeah, I’d forgotten about that.

I’m just fondly remembering the PR girl now. She was fun. Erica something.

Throwing Copper was a cracking album, I recall it being played on repeat whilst I completed Rolling Thunder on the Mega Drive. So Lightning Crashes and Rolling Thunder are forever linked in my head. Agree with what poprock says above. It was an easy entry into grunge, kinda like Smash or Dookie were for punk rock. Singer was definitely a mentalist but they could make some great sounding noise when they wanted to

Is that a good thing?

U2?

That Fontaines DC soundtrack doesn't really do it for me despite being a massive Pogues head.

MacGowan spat out lyrics like confetti - was rare for him to base a song around a few lines (like Summer in Siam for example). No quality instrumental accompaniment either.

These boys were nearer the mark though they are more Country.

But I suppose you are right. 21C. shrug.

The video is rather good but I'm not sure of the music.

It’s very confusing having The Fontaines, The Lafontaines, and Fontaines DC all being quite successful.

At least The Fontaines split up last year.

Not forgetting the Fontaines of Wan

IS IT TOO REAL FOR YOU?

Fuck off, child.

A weird one I am gonna pump.

Been listening to my old mix CDs from 2004 and it inspired me to get into the album Spiritual Machines by Our Lady Peace, an album I revered in my teenage years. OLPs output prior and post this record is piss, alt rock, going for the big U2 shit after, but I love this album.
Yes, it's a concept album. It's about the idea of AI becoming human based on the writings of Ray Kurzweil. He narrates the album at certain points. And yes, the album does descend a little into that 00s rock at points (I'm looking at you, "Middle of Yesterday") but there are some really wonderful moments throughout. I'm loathe to call it the Canadian Radiohead, but there are some good parallels to Ok Computer, and indeed Origin of Symmetry by Muse.

It's not an all timer, but it's a cool, solid album that talks a lot about y2k fear.

No, they were big in the 97-03 period in the states, but really only one album (Gravity) resonated in the UK, and that was very much the 2002 Kerrang scene only.

Can't say I've ever heard of them tbh.