Like the Man Said: The Best of British Psychedelic Rock in the 1990

This blog post covers the best of British psychedelic rock in the 1990s. If you’re a fan of this genre, you’ll definitely want to check it out!

The Scene

In the early nineties, a new sound was emerging from the UK. This sound was a combination of the best of British psychedelic rock, and it was taking the world by storm. The bands that were creating this sound were influenced by the likes of Pink Floyd, The Beatles, and The Doors, and they were creating something truly special.

The birth of Britpop

In 1992, a new wave of British alternative rock bands influenced by the 1960s British Invasion and the punk rock movement rose to prominence. The release of Suede’s debut album in early 1993, followed by Blur’s Parklife and Oasis’s Definitely Maybe later that year, marked the beginning of Britpop as a musical genre.

Britpop was characterized by a focus on guitar-based hooks and melodies, paired with lyrics celebrating British youth culture and working-class life. The Battle of Britpop between Blur and Oasis in 1995 helped elevate the genre to mainstream success in the UK. By the end of the decade, Britpop had begun to decline in popularity, replaced by more introspective indie rock and electronic music.

The influence of American grunge

In the early 1990s, a new wave of American bands inspired by Nirvana and other grunge groups took the British music scene by storm. The most successful of these was Seattle-based band Pearl Jam, who released their debut album Ten in 1991. The album was an instant hit in both the US and UK, and its success helped to break down the artificial barriers between American and British music.

Other American groups who found success in Britain during this time included Soundgarden, Alice in Chains and Stone Temple Pilots. These bands brought with them a new attitude to music, which was characterized by a DIY ethic and a focus on personal expression. This was in stark contrast to the more polished and commercial sound of British bands such as Take That and East 17.

The influence of American grunge on British music was evident not only in the popularity of these new bands, but also in the changing sound of established groups such as Radiohead and Blur. Radiohead’s 1993 album Pablo Honey was heavily influenced by Nirvana, while Blur’s 1994 album Parklife featured several songs with distinctly American-sounding references.

The impact of grunge on British music was short-lived, but it left a lasting mark on the country’s musical landscape. The success of these American bands opened up new opportunities for British musicians, and helped to create a more diverse and interesting music scene.

The Music

The album opens with the sound of a train engine, which is soon joined by a fuzzy guitar and a garage-y drumbeat. The song is called “Tomorrow Never Knows,” and it’s a perfect example of what the British psychedelic rock band The Stone Roses were going for on their 1990 debut album. The song is a kaleidoscopic trip through space and time, with the ever-changing landscape of the music reflecting the band’s influences, which range from the Beatles and the Rolling Stones to the Happy Mondays and acid house.

The sound of Britpop

In the early 1990s, a new wave of British rock bands began to emerge, influenced by the sound of 1960s British Invasion bands and American garage rock. These bands became known as Britpop, and their music was characterized by catchy hooks, simple melodies, and a DIY ethic.

Britpop bands such as Blur, Oasis, Pulp, and Suede dominated the British music charts in the mid-1990s. They were often compared to their American counterparts, such as Nirvana and Pearl Jam, but Britpop was its own distinct scene.

While Britpop initially had a positive reception in the United Kingdom, it was not without its critics. Some accused Britpop bands of being too derivative of their 1960s predecessors, while others felt that they were simply copying American grunge.

Regardless of the criticisms, Britpop was one of the most influential musical movements of the 1990s. It helped to revive interest in British rock music and brought mainstream attention to a new generation of British bands.

The sound of American grunge

Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Alice in Chains were at the forefront of the American grunge movement in the early 1990s. The sound of grunge was characterized by heavy guitars, distorted vocals and a general sense of angst and despair. The lyrics were often dark and introspective, dealing with topics like depression, addiction and suicide. Grunge bands found mainstream success with hits like Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” and Pearl Jam’s “Alive.”

The Bands

Oasis

Oasis was an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1991. Developed from an earlier group, the Rain, the band originally consisted of Liam Gallagher (lead vocals, tambourine), Paul “Bonehead” Arthurs (guitar), Paul “Guigsy” McGuigan (bass guitar) and Tony McCarroll (drums, percussion). Upon returning to Manchester, Liam’s older brother Noel Gallagher (guitar, vocals) joined as a fifth member, which formed the band’s core and introduced elements of British traditional rock and roll.

Oasis signed to independent record label Creation Records in 1993 and released their record-setting debut album Definitely Maybe (1994). The following year the band recorded (What’s the Story) Morning Glory? with new drummer Alan White, in anticipation of worldwide chart success; indeed it became Brit-pop’s first album to enter the US Billboard 200 chart, reaching number four. Along with Suede and Pulp, Oasis was responsible for reviving mainstream interest in Britpop.

By 2009, the band had sold an estimated 75 million records worldwide. Oasis experienced various line-up changes after Noel Gallagher’s departure in 2009; they never recovered commercially from his absence, with his replacement Noel Fielding failing to regain traction or recapture the public imagination. Oasis disbanded in August 2009 following Internal struggle between Noel Gallagher And his brother Liam Gallagher.

Blur

Blur is an English rock band, formed in London in 1988. The group consists of singer/keyboardist Damon Albarn, guitarist/singer Graham Coxon, bassist Alex James and drummer Dave Rowntree. Their debut album Leisure (1991) incorporated the sounds of Madchester and shoegazing. Following a stylistic change influenced by English guitar pop groups such as the Kinks, the Beatles and XTC, Blur released Modern Life Is Rubbish (1993), Parklife (1994) and The Great Escape (1995). As a result, the band helped to popularise the Britpop genre and achieved mass popularity in the UK, aided by a chart battle with rivals Oasis in 1995 dubbed “The Battle of Britpop”.

In recording their follow-up, Blur (1997), the band underwent another reinvention, showing an interest in lo-fi and electronic music. With 13 (1999), all four members used computers extensively for songwriting for the first time. The album received mixed reviews but performed well commercially. In May 2002, Coxon left Blur during the recording of their seventh album Think Tank (2003). Containing electronic sounds and more minimal guitar work, the record was marked by Albarn’s growing interest in hip hop and African music. After a 2003 tour without Coxon during which they debuted material from Think Tank, Blur did no significant work or tours until 2005’s Best Of compilation.

With Albarn working on Gorillaz and other projects during most of this period, James settled into his role as bassist for James’s supergroup Fat White Family while Rowntree worked on political activism. In 2009 four singles taken from Midlife: A Beginner’s Guide to Blur were released to coincide with concerts at Hyde Park celebrating Blur’s 21st anniversary as a band; these were “Fool’s Day”, “This Is A Low”, “Under The Westway” and “The Puritan”.

After reuniting in 2008–2009 for live performances featuring all four original members—the first since 1999—the band released a new studio album titled The Magic Whip in April 2015; it entered at number one on both the UK Albums Chart and US Billboard 200.

Pulp

Pulp was a British rock band formed in Sheffield in 1978. The band’s classic line-up consisted of Jarvis Cocker (vocals, guitar), Candida Doyle (keyboards), Russell Senior (guitar, violin), Mark Webber (guitar, keyboards), Steve Mackey (bass) and Nick Banks (drums, percussion). They were considered part of the Britpop movement that occurred during the mid-1990s.

The group released two studio albums to critical acclaim before disbanding in 2002. In 2010, they returned to performing with a series of sold-out concerts in the UK and Europe. The following year, the band released their first album in over a decade, titled This Is Hardcore. The album entered the UK Albums Chart at number one, making it their only album to reach the top spot.

Pulp are known for their distinctive style of songwriting which often deals with themes of love, loss, and desire. The band’s lyrics are written by Cocker and are often witty and sarcastic. They have been praised for their musicality and inventive use of pop culture references.

The Legacy

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. The 1990s were a confusing, transitional decade for many reasons, and music was certainly no exception. Grunge had killed off hair metal and hair metal had killed off hair rock, leaving a void in the musical landscape. Into that void came a new wave of bands that were heavily influenced by the sounds of the 1960s and 1970s. These bands brought back the sounds of psychedelic rock, and they did it in a big way.

The influence of Britpop on American music

In the 1990s, the rise of Britpop led to a renewed interest in British psychedelic rock from the 1960s. This was partly due to the fact that many of the leading lights of Britpop, such as Damon Albarn and Noel Gallagher, were openly inspired by the music of that era.

However, it was also due to the fact that American alternative rock bands such as Pavement and Sonic Youth had been referencing British psychedelia in their own music since the late 1980s. In fact, Pavement’s 1992 album Slanted and Enchanted was strongly influenced by The Kinks’ 1966 album Face to Face.

The growing interest in British psychedelia in the US was also fuelled by the reissue of key albums from the genre on CD, such as The Pretty Things’ 1968 album S.F. Sorrow and The Zombies’ 1968 album Odessey and Oracle.

The influence of American grunge on British music

In the early nineties, American grunge rockers Nirvana invaded the British charts with their seminal album Nevermind, and suddenly everyone wanted to sound like them. The raw, lo-fi sound of grunge was a major departure from the polished pop and stadium rock that had dominated the charts in the eighties, and Nirvana’s success paved the way for a new wave of American bands to achieve mainstream success in the UK.

One of the most important things that grunge did was to bring alternative music into the mainstream. Alternative music had always been popular with a small but dedicated niche audience, but with Nirvana’s breakthrough it became possible for bands like Oasis and Blur to achieve massive commercial success without having to compromise their sound or their vision.

The influence of grunge can be heard in many British bands who came to prominence in the nineties, such as Radiohead, Placebo, and Catch 22. These bands took the raw energy and attitude of grunge and combined it with their own unique take on songwriting to create a new sound that was both fresh and exciting.

Even today, British music is still being influenced by grunge. Bands like Foo Fighters and Muse are carrying on the legacy of Nirvana by making music that is both deeply personal and immensely popular. The spirit of grunge lives on in British music, and it is sure to continue influencing new generations of musicians for years to come.