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Somewhere along the way, in the mid 1990's, we all got a bit
lost. Most all of us, except the blokes who made up the band Reverb,
John Peel, and Will Sergeant. During the years when
Spiritualized were honing their psychedelic craft and turning
from Velvet Underground droning towards a less dark, more
drug-induced sonic haze, the UK three piece Reverb was making
the same sort of brilliant pop that fit somewhere in the nooks
and crannies between contemporaries like Oasis, Ride,
and Luna. Their music was at once lush and vibrant swirls
of guitar-drenched sound and pop sensible drumming; the kind that
drew its influence from earlier Britpop acts like Echo And
The Bunnymen or Happy Mondays.
Collected here for the first time on one disc are the complete
(?) recordings of this nearly lost band. The poppy brilliance
of "Metamorphosis" is a telling sign of the genius that
was short lived in the two-year career of the band. Honing the
thick pop set forth by progenitors such as Gang Of Four
and The Wedding Present, Reverb crafted their songs on
groovy and memorable basslines, tight drumming, and alternately
swirling and jangling guitars. Ant Walker's vocals fit
nicely with the era of Manchester's burgeoning musical re-awakening,
and his guitar playing was the icing on the cake. The rhythm section
made up of Dave Battersby and a cascading line of drummers
was the lifeblood and heartbeat of the new post-new wave British
rock movement. From the first single "Pedal", with its
wash of guitars and strident ride cymbal to the last gasp of throaty
growl and heavy tremolo of "Cut", Swirl is filled
with glorious formative moments that had effect on all the bands
at the time.
So, whether you have ever heard of Reverb prior to this or not
is somewhat moot. The fact is, this collection is a missing link
in a musical chain that has so many small overlooked links that
formed vital pieces in the progression of the new Britpop. Fans
of Happy Mondays, Inspiral Carpets, Charlatans UK,
Ned's Atomic Dustbin, Oasis, Spiritualized, Luna, etc.
stand up and take notice… this is your wakeup call.
-Embo Blake
Track Listing:
1. Pedal
2. Swirl
3. Metamorphosis
4. The Man Who Came Back
5. Melting Into You
6. Down Tonight
7. Colourblind
8. Velocity Fall
9. Sensory Overload
10. Mr. Soundman
11. Mesmorized
12. Shopping
13. Ain't No
14. Deep
15. Fragile
16. I've Been Away
17. Vertigo
18. Feel It
19. Shopping
20. Cut
21. The Man Who Came Back
22. Slipping Through My fingers
23. Spacewalk
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