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Listening to my music collection on shuffle, and Ocean Colour Scene have just popped up. Got me thinking that they're a classic example of a band who perfectly fitted 'the scene' at the time, were reasonably well thought of popularly and critically, but then just vanished as the scene moved on. One album wonders if you like.
Who else you got?
Right said Fred.
Prob more than 50% of all bands.
Prob more than [s]50%[/s]99% of all bands.
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[i]Prob more than 50% of all bands.
[/i]
Yeah, I was thinking that too. The number of bands who get past two successful albums is pretty small...
Mumford and Sons.
That may not be a bad thing............
Probably though some are even more of their time than most.
The Darkness are a good one I reckon.
And Morrisey but that's maybe me. Can't stand him 🙂
Ocean Colour Scene have just popped up. Got me thinking that they're a classic example of a band who perfectly fitted 'the scene' at the time,
Did they? They seemed to be around for bloody ages churning out awful dreary dirge.
then just vanished as the scene moved on
http://oceancolourscene.com/tour-dates/
One album wonders if you like
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean_Colour_Scene_discography#Studio_albums
OCS are sadly still on the go.
okay, maybe I should rephrase it as [i]"One [b]successful[/b] album wonders if you like".[/i]
I appreciate that there are many living dead bands...
There's a wealth of mid 90s Britpop cack that vanished as quickly as they appeared.
Kula Shaker?
Dodgy?
Boo Radleys?
None of them missed!
The Levellers.
Apparently they're still on the go too. Thank christ they disappeared off back into obscurity. Cider swilling, clown clothes wearing, bath-dodging, crusty tossers!
Glad it's not just me who felt that way about OCS! (edit: and the Levellers! Nice one binners 🙂 )
There were loads from the baggy era, britpop, new punk. Some good some bad:
Menswear (on the comeback I believe, terrible)
Northside
S*M*A*S*H
Compulsion
Mock Turtles
Flowered Up (awesome!)
Paris Angels
World Of Twist
There's a wealth of mid 90s Britpop cack that vanished as quickly as they appeared.
Kula Shaker?
Dodgy?
Boo Radleys?
I'll give you Dodgy and Kula Shaker, but Boo Radleys were a cut above. They'd been around a good while before they cashed in on Britpop with Wake Up Boo. Giant Steps (1993) is a stunning album.
S*M*A*S*H
Loved S*M*A*S*H. May have to go listen to them now 🙂
The rest pretty terrible.
Some bands even manage the trick of being uncool before they release an album Gay Dad spring to mind, probably Andrew WK too (over here) though I was never quite sure The NME weren't just trolling with that fad.
The Shaman spring to mind, and I'm sure there are a few others around that time I've forgotten about.
binners - Member
The Levellers.
Apparently they're still on the go too. Thank christ they disappeared off back into obscurity. Cider swilling, clown clothes wearing, bath-dodging, crusty tossers!
They run a yearly festival in East devon. Beautiful Days. Supposed to be quite good.
Therapy?
Although they never "disappeared", more continued ploughing their own rather darkly humorous and twisted furrow.
Deee-Lite - Groove Is In The Heart, etc.
Baa Kid K, PMJ?
Agree with muzzle,giant steps is an amzing album,one of my favourites,bombjack your're talking through your arse.
Saw The Levellers at York Uni before they got well known. The support act was Rambling Johnny Stomach Pump and the Village Idiots. To be fair, The Levellers seemed really good after that!
Oasis. Were OK at the time but would you listen to them now?
I wouldn't listen to them at the time (Oasis). Massively overrated.
Ocean Colour Scene and Oasis? You've just listed 2 of my favourite bands there, how dare you.
probably Andrew WK too (over here) though I was never quite sure The NME weren't just trolling with that fad.
I agree, and yet when I heard "party hard" on the Android TV advert a few months ago, I found myself going "aaah, Andrew WK" (in a positive way). He was good live too, insofar as he knew his place, and delivered!
He was good live too, insofar as he knew his place, and delivered!
Certainly was, if he'd been around in the 80s people would go all misty eyed at his name.
[i]Ocean Colour Scene and Oasis? You've just listed 2 of my favourite bands there, how dare you.[/i]
You need to get out more, lunge 😆
[i]The Shaman spring to mind[/i]
Never heard of them... oh you mean that short-lived band The Shamen with their 10 albums from 1987 to 1998! Flash in the pan that lot 😆
The Shirehorses
Propaganda
Bloc Party
CSS
Empire of the Sun
Man or Astro-man?
Porcupine Tree
The XX
God this thread is a goldmine of....no......wait. What's the opposite of a gold mine?. Is there such a thing as a shit mine?
The Levellers.Apparently they're still on the go too. Thank christ they disappeared off back into obscurity.
I saw them at the Hop Farm a couple of years ago, they were excellent.
The Rembrandts
The Beatles
I must say when I saw this thread 'Menswear' was the first thing that jumped into my brain
Also filed firmly under the 'where are they now?'
Sleeper (Had a bit of a thing for the singer back then)
The Lightning Seeds
The fact is the the vast majority of music that's popular at any given point tends to fade into obscurity, look at a U.K. top 40 singles from 20 or 30 years ago and see how few bands are still remembered now.
Shirehorses still make me chuckle 😆
KLF?
[i]Sleeper (Had a bit of a thing for the singer back then)
[/i]
*wistful memories...*
Andrew WK has kept himself busy...
[url= http://www.theguardian.com/music/shortcuts/2012/nov/26/andrew-wk-bahrain-pass-notes ]Cultural Ambassador to Bahrain[/url]
[url= http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/fun/news/a410100/andrew-wk-gives-speech-at-my-little-pony-convention-video.html#~p3TlDWZxknF2DF ]My Little Pony Conference[/url]
His Twitter feed is ace* too...
I like some of his t-shirts, shame they don't do the Rob Ford version any more;
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* Warning: Your definition of "ace" and mine may vary
KLF?
So many happy memories of asking every DJ at every student disco if they had any KLF and would they play it please.
and going mental when the request was fulfilled. Great nights (and early mornings..)
they were of their time for sure. Marvellously so. Their wiki page is worth a read if you have some minutes.
TM
Elastica?
Salad?
Shed7?
A few that sprang to mind. All quite influential at their time one way or another and all short lived..
Pulp weren't short lived! They were going for flipping ages before Different Class and they kept going for years afterwards. Even if you discount the 80s stuff and the reunion they were releasing albums properly 1990-2002, which is about as long as Blur, for example.
If you're after shit Britpop bands that rightly vanished into the depths of obscurity after Oasis jumped the Status Quo shark with Roll With It, I nominate Menswe@r, Republica, Cast, and of course Ocean ****ing Colour ****ing Scene.
Oh and Kula Shaker. God they were awful.
Love and Pulp seem like strange choices - Love released, what, 6 albums - at least three of which are arguably classics - over a decade and Pulp were around forever and had 4 top ten albums.
Agree with muzzle,giant steps is an amzing album,one of my favourites,bombjack your're talking through your arse.
Maybe, however, it is a great arse. One big hit single then sinking without trace from the charts does kinda suggest they disappeared and were of their time (a bit like the OP question)
Completely agree with menswear.
I'd also add Mansun to the list of bands that quite thankfully never managed to trouble my ears again.
My contribution is Life Without Buildings. They genuinley only did one album, Any Other City, andit wasn't really a hit so not sure it counts.
But still, it was bloody brilliant and one that I think a lot of people on here would enjoy so fill your boots.
Bonus question time - who can cite the connection between their song 'The Leanover' and mountain biking?
Clearly their carriers were longer than my memory 🙂
OK
Can't say he wasnt short lived.
Republica
I got my first fumble at the school disco to Baby Get Ready To Go so they can do no wrong in my eyes.
Roper, I was just about to say Pulp!! Been active for the best part of 30 years but will always be exclusively britpop.
I'll add Scissor Sistors, Mika, the Beautiful South, Catatonia.
Yeah, Mansun! Funny though, they've got this hardcore following who have re-union events and stuff. We must've missed something!
Kingmaker!
Olive!
lucky7500 - MemberRoper, I was just about to say Pulp!! Been active for the best part of 30 years but will always be exclusively britpop.
I'll add Scissor Sistors, Mika, [b]the Beautiful South[/b], Catatonia.
Hang on! They've been going (in one form or another) for about as long as Pulp! 🙂
Hang on! They've been going (in one form or another) for about as long as Pulp!
And they've had 8 top 10 albums*! The scissor sisters had four in the top five then broke up and Catatonia had three top ten albums, two of them going platinum.
Mika was proper shit though.
*tip: Any band that's managed three platinum best of records probably doesn't count in this context.
PWIE
Gaye Bykers on Acid
Others I'd thought already mentioned Salad, Kula Shaker,
[i]Mika was proper shit though[/i]
I've read so many good things on this thread!
Good call BignDaft - Shed 7 would get my vote.
Saw them a couple of times and loved them.... And plop, they're gone without a trace.
Has anyone mentioned James yet?
I've read so many good things on this thread!
Wait, hang on, are you coming down on the side of Mika?
Anyone mentioned Republica yet?
If Porcupine tree are legit then so are Spin Doctors (oddly just finished listening to Pocket Full of Kryptonite an hour or so ago).
JJ72
The Seahorses
Hanson (Still about. My wife loves them. FML)
Garbage
Savage Garden
Toploader
Shed 7 would get my vote.
I once did a presentation at uni to one of the guys out of shed 7, that's my claim to fame.
Shed 7 got their recording contract by beating my mate's band in a battle of the bands competition.
I'm not sure if it counts as a claim to fame, but I've held it against them ever since...
And I'm slightly surprised that no-one's mentioned the awesome Bluetones yet!
Bluetones?
Spin Doctors did a UK tour last year.
Black Grape? Finlay Quaye? Freak Power
To a lesser extent, Supergrass?
**edit - balls, beaten by a few seconds!**
Toploader
I roadied once for this pile of musical excrement (NOT a claim to fame, more a memory that I would only approach when I'm in my happy place)
Horrid, horrid gig. Glad they are no more. The audience consisted of old people and giggling kids.
Rock N F'ing roll.
who can cite the connection between their song 'The Leanover' and mountain biking?
It was on the soundtrack to the Original 'Earthed.'
Garbage, hmmm Shirley Manson another frontwoman I had a bit of a thing about as a teenager, I can sense a theme here. Still listen to 'Heaven is Wide' on a fairly regular basis.
Hang on! They've been going (in one form or another) for about as long as Pulp!
True, and my sister in law is a huge fan, but I'd argue that in the public consciousness they're only known for the brief period when slightly dull jangly pop was 'in' 🙂 Actually I'll add the Thrills and the Magic Numbers as well.
Pretty much the same goes for Scissor Sisters. They may have sold a lot of albums worldwide but I'd be extremely surprised if anyone outside of the hardcore fan base could even name the 3rd & 4th albums without google, never mind a song that isn't one of the first three singles released.
That may be stretching the premise a little but I do think all my original choices are very much associated with short periods of time.
Terrorvision?
Saw them at Wolverhampton Wulfrun many years ago, and then a couple of years later they were doing our Uni ball - as I was setting my drums for our set earlier in the evening, Shutty wanders past, already pissed, and asks if I wanted to play instead of him!
I nearly included Reef on this list but the local rag recently suggested they're rehearsing for a comeback tour.
The Rembrandts
so much to say but wasted on the foolish
The Only Ones
Although maybe should be "bands that deserved to make it but didn't" category?
The Magic Numbers? They must be still going, they were in the Harry Hill Movie!
Shed 7 would get my vote.Saw them a couple of times and loved them.... And plop, they're gone without a trace
er they headlined Bingley festival last year. OK it's not Glasto but it's still a reasonably sized 3 day festival. The last one of the summer IIRC
Roachford
Doctor & the medics
Skunkanansie
Dumpy's Rusty Nuts
All of whom had their good points
my band supported Dr & The Medics at Bradford Uni in the late 80s.
and at different times, New Model Army, UK Subs, Psychosurgeons and quite a few more
</claim to fame>
anyway, back on topic, may I present:
Eldritch would periodically take them on tour up until about 5 years ago but thanks to signing a ridiculous record deal that he later decided was a bad idea, did nothing recorded since Vision Thing in 1990.
He has finally decided to give up the ghost with TSOM