Still remember these lads from Manchester at Reading Festival all those years ago, complete with a marching band (majorette led!), during their finale with Biggest Mountain, a delightful slow number, ending in a sweet rift to finish. Where initially I wasn’t sure if their sound was big enough – it was! They completely filled the farm with a huge, organ led blast.
They to me, combined the early rave / Madchester sound, with an early Britpop feel, largely due their Farfisa organ sound, played by the man, himself – Clint Boon. What a sound!
They always had both a hip, poppy beat, at the same time as having a downbeat or cynicism with the lyrics, though I still have no idea who wrote them, perhaps their always so serious / miserable lead singer, Tom Hingley.
I always felt that it was these two’s band, as in reality, they were much older (I thought) than the others, with them being in their 30s, when they suddenly packed it in – after something like 15 Top 50s in four or five years, with 4 albums being in the Top 20 (2 in the Top 5).
But for the few years, they were not ever out of the charts, and also ALWAYS had their very own keyboard / organ sound, and fashion sense; with them selling trillions of white, long sleeve t-shirts, with the “Cool as F*ck” logos.
Whilst annoyed they quit so soon, it’s my one hope that other bands would do this, as let’s be honest, who really gives a shit about a band after their first several albums.
Equally, they gave me one of my lasting “gig” memories, when after some drunk pelted Boon’s organs with a pint (at a university in Glasgow), Hingley stated; Who threw that? Who FOOKING threw that!, and with the help of their drummer (I believe) both went after the dick / culprit on the dance floor, to give him a doing. Classic!
One of their best:
CB
Curious Bystander 