RANT - The Music, changed my life

For me, when the early noughties (2000 - 2005) came round after the absolute death of the britpop 90's, with The Verve having played some of the biggest shows a band could play, it felt like people were on the look out for something new.  Around that time I remember there being a real resurgence in, for want of a better term, rock n roll, with bands like Jet,  The Datsuns and The Black Rebel Motorcycle club to name but a few.  Leading the pack were The Libertines, who really caught the imagine of many, with their DIY stripped back style.   At this point I was already transfixed with The Music.  I remember clearly at school reading the NME and thinking, What a stupid name and that they seemed to come across quite arrogant  in the interview.  It was either that night or a few nights later whilst watching 120 minutes on MTV2 (you know the good old days when MTV2 had no adverts or even presenters - well maybe Gonzo was starting - and the videos would also have the directors name mentioned with the artist and track) this black and white video came on, and I'll never forget the first time I heard that riff slowly get louder and louder - it was Take The Long Road And Walk It (Fierce Panda version).

I knew I had to get my hands on this CD... which actually proved quite difficult mainly because it came out on vinyl as a limited print of 1,000 ...



 

...which I didn't acquire until 2006.  So I was left to catch the odd time it was on MTV2 until November 2001 when I went out and got the 'You Might As Well Try To Fuck Me' EP on CD from Scorpion Records in High Wycombe on day of release.  I knew it was coming out and had been waiting so patiently to get my claws on it.

The b-sides to the EP blew me away, 'Karma', 'Treat Me Right On', and 'Too High' were songs that had been put together like no other I had ever heard before.  The guitar and the vocals effortlessly brought a real epic sound to each track in completely differing ways, each with a different take on building a song to fever pitch.

A subsequent Radio 1 broadcast at a The Music show further made me need to see this band live, I'll never forget as the band were finishing with the song 'Disco', Steve Lamacq was wrapping up the broadcast with something along the lines of, 'Wow, incredible, if only you could see his crazy dancing, that was The Music live on Radio 1'.

Anyhow from that moment anything else sounded 2-dimensional in comparison (a phrase I used to describe many bands up until about 2006).

What made it better was I only had to show my mates The Music once and they were equally hooked.  We followed the band touring at tiny venues like the Colchester Arts Centre, (where I remember asking Adam Nutter the guitarist if Nick McCabe from The Verve was a big influence to which he replied he was more into Led Zep... which made sense RE 'You Might As Well Try To Fuck Me' EP and in later releases) and The Leicester Charlotte just after The People' EP had been released and more people suddenly started taking notice.

At this point the internet age felt like it was really coming through as the band publicised they would be previewing the video (and subsequently the track The People) on the bands website.  I must have been sitting at that computer at least an hour early in preparation.... but it was worth it.  The track took the band from cult underground band to proper Radio 1 fodder, and more and more people started to catch on...it was infectious.

The b-sides on 'The People' EP definitely brought through a bit more of the Led Zepplin influences, particularly the sound of the guitars on 'Let Love Be The Healer' and 'Jag Tune'.

Before we knew it the album was ready... of which I bought the deluxe version with a lot of my friends on day of release.  I still play the album today and am convinced it will stand the test of time and be arguably one of those albums of a generation... the intro from opening track, 'The Dance' sets the tone and stands up there with other classic intros 'Where The Streets Have No Name' (U2's The Joshua Tree) or 'I Wanna Be Adored (Stone Roses) etc etc.  Track after track after track of absolute genius and great production and mixing.  'Float' ending in it's head crushingly intense climax followed abruptly yet intuitively into 'Turn Out The Light', never loses it's poignancy before bringing it back to the brink with 'The People', leading right through to the ultimate ending in 'Too High' (re-recorded from the 'You Might As Well Try To Fuck Me' EP).  A nice touch was the secret track in 'New Instrumental' hidden BEFORE 'The Dance'... meaning the only way to hear it was to scroll backwards after hitting play at the beginning of the album.

Following the release of the album, the band had really reached a huge crescendo and a performed aq huge Brixton Academy show. My friends and I went there on mass.  It felt like we had been on this journey with them from small venues to headlining Brixton.  It also felt like the band were on the course to be a stadium band in a matter of months.

Free music - The Music

Singles 'Getwaway' and the 'Truth Is No Words' followed and not that it really mattered but each one took them higher up the charts.  The wait until the next album seemed so long although in reality it was exactly two years after the debut.  The bar was set and we all felt the pressure they must be under.

The next thing I heard was the band were playing up in Liverpool, and it was the first show in what seemed like forever.  I managed to persuade my brother and some friends to come with me and I drove us the 400 mile round trip to the show and back.  Needless to say it turned out to be a stroke of genius (even if I do say so myself!). We got there ridiculously early and uncharacteristically found the venue relatively easily ... just in time to catch sound check and get to chat with the band, where Adam mentioned they'd be playing a few new tracks from the next album.

Little did we know that is was probably going to turn out to be one of the greatest The Music shows ever witnessed.  Not only that the line up wasn't bad either, Badly Drawn Boy a young Bloc Party and Haven (...you remember them ... they had that song...) supported.

The anticipation before The Music donned the stage was electric. The room was packed and about 5 minutes before they came on the place really started turning in to a sweat box as people jostled to get as close to the stage as possible.  The crowd erupted when the band came out on stage and zipped into an incredible set.  They performed the first ever live plays of 'Welcome to The North' and 'Bleed from Within' and everyone was just blown away... after the gig people were just talking about the new tunes... and it dominated the conversation in the car on the way home... which helped keep me awake... everyone was buzzing!  Unbeknown to us the gig was filmed and parts of it became the 'Welcome To The North' video.

I managed to get a copy of 'Welcome To The North' a week before general sale and (this is where I feel some fans are divided) it blew me away.  Where the debut album was all about the sound and the energy, 'Welcome to The North' was a more refined beast, with songs being the focus.  Don't get me wrong there was still plenty of guitar pedal sounds and reverb to keep that side of me happy :).  Rob Harvey had something to say, and this led the album. 'Bleed From Within' and 'Welcome To The North' are the two key tracks, undeniably powerful, and complimented by the other tracks on the album.  The one curveball for me was 'Breakin'... even more so when it was released as a single, although I'm sure I read somewhere this was due to the video for 'Bleed From Within' not being what they wanted and so released 'Breakin' instead.  'Freedom Fighters' is an absolute bruiser of a song - very Led Zepp in feeling and became a bit of local alternative club night regular for DJs, to which no one complained.  I managed to pick up a copy of the single on 7" from HMV in Cork, Ireland.

I think I only managed to catch one show around the album, again I think it would have been at Brixton, and by now The Music posse that we had built up went down in force.  Looking back, and whilst watching the subsequent Japan DVD, Rob's vocals were beginning to become a bit strained... dipping some of the high notes, which were later explained in an NME article a few years later.

'Welcome To The North', and the singles attached to it came and went, and we were left waiting for the next album and hoping the band could reignite some of the magic they had on the lead up to the first album.  A year passed and all of a sudden on the band's homepage was this video:

It was to be the taster of what was to come. Rob, shaved of his trademark long hair was screaming furiously down the mic in this clip for the song 'Fire'. The video quickly went around everyone and was the beginning of what was to come.

Years passed... things must have been stalled on the transition from EMI to Universal but then this video emerged:

... and at this point we knew they were coming back... and they did with a bang.

'Strength In Numbers' was a criminally under acclaimed album.  Every song leaves you wanting more... this should have been the album that reaffirmed their genius - epic soundscapes, raw power and genuine talent to write a decent song.  Myself and a mate went to the show at the Astoria that accompanied the album and the place went mental!  I literally have never seen before, or since,  a place come to life with one chord being played. I can't really describe it in words!  They were back.. Not only that, back on top form - Rob seemed to have put to bed some demons and ripped into tune after tune after tune.  From the three albums this band had a body of work to really set them apart from anyone else.

Lead track 'Strength In Numbers', 'Spike' and 'Drugs' are spine tingling to say the least. It's one of those albums that just awakens a lot of feeling in the listener, not even so much with the words, or the specific chords, but the way it all sounds together.

Now with the news that the band are to split, it goes without saying that the world will be a poorer place because of it.  It will be a long time, if ever, before a band comes round that can pull together such amazing writing, with a sound that stands out from the crowd and sounds fresh listen after listen after listen.

As musicians they were second to none... Rob could sing, FACT,  Adam could play the guitar like very few can or could, Phil would leave many awestruck at his maneuverability around a drum kit and Stuart gave them the solid grooves that added to their dancey nods.  The few times we met them they were always dead nice and really appreciative of the support.

They are a band I have grown up with, and a band that will be sorely missed.  I will have all the memories and the records and the one last show in Brixton on 4th August.

The band said goodbye on their website and left this tune as a parting gift... enjoy. You can also download the track for free from the band's website www.themusic.co.uk or by clicking here