Bugger - first big electronic act for ages and I’m going to be crazy busy until at least 8pm.
Foundational in my music tastes. Massive influence on the sounds I make. There is a very obvious dip in quality after Surrender (and Galvanise can fuck right off) but the last two records have been great. No Geography in particular can stand alongside the first three proudly.
Plus my kids like the Salmon Dance, so it isn’t completely devoid of worth.
Find them really boring save for a couple of singles. Might just not be my thing. Cannot express properly how much I hate Hey Boy Hey Girl, really dreadful. A generous 2.
One of the first singles I ever bought with my own money. The vocal line is a little grating, but that pounding mid range and top line blips can still get a reaction from me 20+ years later.
Some absolute bangers but so much dross with a career built on star fucking.
Saw them a Glastonbury 2004 and they were amazing but shit every other time. They’re nowhere near the hights of Orbital or Underworld.
I really only know their debut properly. I remember hearing Leave Home for the first time at an HMV in Brent Cross thinking that that track was brilliant and bought the album.
Saw them later in 1995 supporting The Prodigy. Only heard their other stuff in passing and haven’t bought any subsequent albums.
I think history hasn’t really been kind to them because I totally agree with @anon19035908’s Wonderwall comments but at the time it felt like they did a really good job of dragging a lot of close-minded proper-haircuts type Britpoppers into thinking, “Hey, dance music isn’t necessarily shit actually”.
If you put them on at a party I wouldn’t wish them gone which is better than Oasis I guess?
One of the biggest 5s going. Not sure a single other act has as many bangers to their name. Not just a singles band either, really good cohesive albums deep in to their career. One of the best live acts on the planet. Chemical Brothers gig is basically a guaranteed 90 minutes of euphoria.
Love them! I know they have some subpar releases and are a bit cheesy/obvious at times but they have also reached some heady heights, and it has been great to see them get there again with that last (absolutely banging) album.
Some of the - if not the absolute - best music videos of all time too. I mean, can anyone look out the window of a train without thinking of Star Guitar? Even after all these years…
I also have a lot of love for the Hanna soundtrack and would like to see them do more of that.
Dig > dust > Surrender = No Geography > Borm in the Echoes = Come With Us > We are the night >>>> The shit ones
The named albums are all worth a listen, the first four are clear 5s.
For people comparing then to Oasis - have a listen to Born in the Echoes, whereas it isn’t strictly experimental as such, it’s still inventive and fresh sounding 25 years after the debut record. Oasis didn’t sound fresh by the second record.
Really easy 5. Would have been a pushed 3 a month ago but I relistened to the 1st 2 albums when they were on Tim’s Twitter Party, remembered how good they were outside of the handful of massively overplayed singles (usually involving an indiebloke) that I remembered them for and ended up getting really into their later stuff. There’s a good afternoons entertainment working though their videos on YouTube, consistently great.
