4AD Vinyl & CDs

Review: ***B-STOCK: Sleeve damaged but otherwise in excellent condition***


Taking delirious pop melody and filtering it though a prism of ethereal effects-pedal abandon, Lush were a band who the shoegaze cliches of 'kaleidoscopic harmonies' and 'cathedrals of sound' were originally spawned to describe. Yet beyond the production values and the photogenic allure, both these infectious ditties and the band's steely approach have more than stood the test of time, and their recent reunion only helps to display their standing as more than a mere '90s museum piece. From the Robin Guthrie-abetted swirl of 'Nothing Natural' and 'De-Luxe' to the more stripped-down pop suss of 'Ladykillers', this compilation is testimony to a band who transcended cliche to straddle both dreamtime rapture and boozy abandon.

Review: Originally released in 1992, Lush's second studio album really stuck a flag in the ground for the band. Having bestowed the 'mini LP' Scar on listeners three years earlier, at which point they became one of the first outfits to have the term shoegazing applied to their sound, it would take a full length offering to truly establish a framework for the outfit's approach to the (sub)genre. Spooky did just that, opening on the beautiful, grinding greatness of 'Stray', in many ways the record only builds intensity and grandeur from thereon in, providing a home for some of the most incredible moments of opiate indie rock you could ask for. Helped no end by the production of Cocteau Twins' Robin Guthrie, 31 years later it remains a landmark.

Review: Album number three from English rock set Lush was first unveiled in 1994. By this time, the group had already established a reputation for themselves as masters of shoegaze, having helped spearhead the movement back in the late-1980s with the critically acclaimed mini-LP, Scar, alongside a host of EPs and singles, some of which would wind up on the band's beloved compilation albums. Split is certainly an apt name for this record, which sows the seeds of a departure in sound that would come into full bloom on the Britpop record Lovelife, a couple of years later. In this instance, there's still plenty of opiate and operatic walls of hyper-emotional sound, while in other moments things play out in a much more chart-friendly format, making this very much a historic document of changing trends at the time.

Review: In many ways, Lovelife represented a commercial high for British dream pop deities turned indie pogo set Lush. Reaching number eight in the UK album charts upon release, only the band's second album (technically their first full-length LP, with one compilation of singles and a mini-long player preceding it) managed to place higher, and while it was very much caught in a specific musical moment - shoegaze - it still felt rather experimental. Or maybe that's just true of the style overall. Regardless, leap four years into the future and things sound a lot different. Britpop's stranglehold on the charts was at max tought, and with their final album Lush jumped straight in with two feet. Clearly influenced by the high energy, big attitude ethic of the day, signs of which were evident on third album, Split, on Lovelife they managed to create one of the scene's defining albums, with anthems such as 'Ladykillers' and 'Ciao!' (featuring Jarvis Cocker, no less) among the highlights.

Review: Taking delirious pop melody and filtering it though a prism of ethereal effects-pedal abandon, Lush were a band who the shoegaze cliches of 'kaleidoscopic harmonies' and 'cathedrals of sound' were originally spawned to describe. Yet beyond the production values and the photogenic allure, both these infectious ditties and the band's steely approach have more than stood the test of time, and their recent reunion only helps to display their standing as more than a mere '90s museum piece. From the Robin Guthrie-abetted swirl of 'Nothing Natural' and 'De-Luxe' to the more stripped-down pop suss of 'Ladykillers', this compilation is testimony to a band who transcended cliche to straddle both dreamtime rapture and boozy abandon.