80 minute long free music compilations featuring intriguingly mixed rock and rock-based music . Satisfying musical appetites around the globe since 2005
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SUPERGRASS In It For The Money ( Reissue )
( BMG / Echo )
After a brash 1995 debut fueled by cheeky songs like “ Caught by the Fuzz ,” Supergrass ’ second album defied expectations . 1997 ’ s In It for the Money proved that the young British band were champion songsmiths destined to go break out from the Britpop pack . Sophomore slump ? Hardly . The album is a masterpiece of nuanced songwriting and formidable playing . The core trio of singer-guitarist Gaz Coombes , bassist Mick Quinn , and drummer Danny Coffey are augmented by the secret weapon of brother Rob Coombes ’ swirling organ on songs like the title cut and his groovy electric piano elsewhere .
The album produced five bona fide concert standards and a bevy of great album cuts . The furious yet tuneful “ Richard III ” finds the core trio in headlong flight and going for broke , propelled by Quinn ’ s feral bass and Coffey ’ s crashing drums . The euphoric , escapist “ Tonight ” charges along Gaz Coombes infectious rock guitar riff and is punctuated by a sparkling brass section . “ Late in the Day ” begins as an acoustic strummer with an irresistible but melancholy melody , before exploding into carnivalesque and psychedelic color a la * Sgt . Pepper-era Beatles with hints of Pink Floyd “ Welcome to the Machine ” keys from Rob Coombes and spacefaring glamrock peaks a la ‘ 70s-era Bowie . Marc Bolan and T . Rex echo in the bouncing “ G-Song ,” augmented by a sparkling jazz-pop chorus and Gaz Coombes ’ sinewy acid-rock guitar heroics . The euphoric “ Sun Hits the Sky ” still measures up as a perfect summer song , updating the emotion of the Beach Boys “ Good Vibrations ” with muscular guitar pop and hand-clap confection . Rob Coombes ’ slinky synthesizer solo glides atop Gaz ’ sun-kissed power chords . The outro attains nirvana with Quinn ’ s hypnotic bass and transcendent tabla-fueled
rhythm . With its carnivalesque and trip beat , “ Going Out ” sounds most like the product of the Britpop era , capturing the kind of sonic bliss associated with early Charlatans , Happy Mondays , and Inspiral Carpets . The tense and restrained “ It ’ s Not Me ” foreshadows the kind of urbane , sophisticated pop and acoustic-electropop fusion that Coombes and company would explore albums later on 2005 ’ s Road to Rouen . With Quinn ’ s gliding bass and Gaz Coombes ’ shimmering electric piano , “ Cheapskate ” is another urgent bodymover . The song ’ s groovy dance-pop verse erupts into the crashing chorus of Gaz Coombes ’ guitars , setting up a Mick Ronson-styled glam-rock solo . “ If you like me , you can buy me and take me home ,” sing the freshly commodified Coombes and Quinn on “ You Can See Me .” The song describes alienation and solitude despite being available at anyone ’ s fingertips . As the album was released weeks after Gaz Coombes ’ 21st birthday , the song also reflects the stress of coming of age in the public eye .
The loping “ Hollow Little Reign ” dials back the manic energy for late-night rumination and muted Bacharach-inspired horns in a song that features another finely-crafted Gaz Coombes vocal melody and funky wah-wah guitar lead . “ Sometimes I Make You Sad ” concludes the album like a carnivalesque fever dream , pulsing atop grinding organ and truly demented beatboxing . The vinyl presentation is not elaborate ; there are no essays , photos , or other trinkets . Pick up the Deluxe 3D package if you want a pile of B-sides and a concertlength live album from the period . But the LP package gets it just right where it matters the most . The main album has been attentively remastered from original analog sources onto heavyweight black vinyl . A second white platter includes bonus tracks . One side includes the b-side “ The Animal ,” a remix exercise featuring breakbeat rhythm , ethereal keyboard ambience , and dubby bass . The other side includes Bentley Rhythm Ace ’ s club-friendly
16 illinoisentertainer . com september 2021