I must say it's been a while since I've rocked out to them, but me and Supergrass go way back.
It was 1995, the height of Britpop, and I was desperate to own 'I Should Coco'. So desperate was I in fact that I parked on the zebra crossing outside Our Price to carry out the swift and essential purchase. It was to become my first fineable traffic offence – a regrettable day – which coincidentally marked the beginning of the Supergrass story.
'I Should Coco', their first album, shot them to fame becoming the must-have album for every credible indie kid of the time. Many an evening was spent jumping around to 'I'm not supposed to'; spacking out to 'Strange Ones' and their signature style was captured in that chirpy little number 'Alright'. But now, over ten years and six albums later, gone is the cheeky simian geezer of my youth with cheeky rascals in tow – before me now is a very tight, funky and extremely cool outfit. Outlasting many of their Britpop neighbours of the time, Supergrass are living it large, still pumping out some of their '90s classics and looking very stylish about it too.
Gaz is a mesmerising front man, changing guitars as regularly as planned engineering closures on the tube; he has commanding charisma and a perfectly poised trilby, not to mention an exceedingly sharp Madness-inspired suit. Thrashing about his wild surfer locks, drummer Danny Goffey is outstanding. Mick Quinn is playing bass and brimming with energetic enthusiasm; and Rob Coombes on keyboard appears to be the hushed yet dedicated member of the Supergrass team tonight. I can't tell you who the extra dude on the guitar is but if his manic tambourine shaking is anything to go by he knows a thing or two about banging out a wicked tune.
They didn't give a lot of crowd chat, but enough to announce that they would be playing most of the tracks from their latest offering, 'Diamond Hoo Ha'. Not an album I heard much of but I was impressed. The blinding title track has definite echoes of that catchy Supergrass sound but now all grown up. Although their albums since 1999 have not enjoyed as much critical acclaim as their earlier hits, it seems that Supergrass have an unwavering ability to stay in date.
Their latest tunes are still just as catchy but also exhibit growth and progression. This is a tight bunch of nice lads working hard and at what they do best – supplying us with entertaining, solid, consistent tunes, and doing it with a smile on their chops. I definitely don't enjoy a gig as much if the band doesn't seem to be enjoying themselves, even if it's a band I love. With these guys you wouldn't need to know one single tune. They're having a ball, so why shouldn't you.
It was 1995, the height of Britpop, and I was desperate to own 'I Should Coco'. So desperate was I in fact that I parked on the zebra crossing outside Our Price to carry out the swift and essential purchase. It was to become my first fineable traffic offence – a regrettable day – which coincidentally marked the beginning of the Supergrass story.
'I Should Coco', their first album, shot them to fame becoming the must-have album for every credible indie kid of the time. Many an evening was spent jumping around to 'I'm not supposed to'; spacking out to 'Strange Ones' and their signature style was captured in that chirpy little number 'Alright'. But now, over ten years and six albums later, gone is the cheeky simian geezer of my youth with cheeky rascals in tow – before me now is a very tight, funky and extremely cool outfit. Outlasting many of their Britpop neighbours of the time, Supergrass are living it large, still pumping out some of their '90s classics and looking very stylish about it too.
Gaz is a mesmerising front man, changing guitars as regularly as planned engineering closures on the tube; he has commanding charisma and a perfectly poised trilby, not to mention an exceedingly sharp Madness-inspired suit. Thrashing about his wild surfer locks, drummer Danny Goffey is outstanding. Mick Quinn is playing bass and brimming with energetic enthusiasm; and Rob Coombes on keyboard appears to be the hushed yet dedicated member of the Supergrass team tonight. I can't tell you who the extra dude on the guitar is but if his manic tambourine shaking is anything to go by he knows a thing or two about banging out a wicked tune.
They didn't give a lot of crowd chat, but enough to announce that they would be playing most of the tracks from their latest offering, 'Diamond Hoo Ha'. Not an album I heard much of but I was impressed. The blinding title track has definite echoes of that catchy Supergrass sound but now all grown up. Although their albums since 1999 have not enjoyed as much critical acclaim as their earlier hits, it seems that Supergrass have an unwavering ability to stay in date.
Their latest tunes are still just as catchy but also exhibit growth and progression. This is a tight bunch of nice lads working hard and at what they do best – supplying us with entertaining, solid, consistent tunes, and doing it with a smile on their chops. I definitely don't enjoy a gig as much if the band doesn't seem to be enjoying themselves, even if it's a band I love. With these guys you wouldn't need to know one single tune. They're having a ball, so why shouldn't you.
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Frieze Art Fair to launch new section for young galleries in 2012
Frieze have today announced details for the 2012 edition, their tenth art fair in London. Taking place...