Day 0825 - Tellin' Stories

The Charlatans "Tellin' Stories" (1996)

The band had to promote themselves as the UK Charlatans when touring the US due to a band over there having prior claim to the name.   Maybe they should have called themselves 'the New Charlatans'.
 

The music is an organ-heavy rock sound, with nasally vocals... not surprising then that the band had supported Oasis for their 1996 shows at Knebworth.   Kind of like the Oasis sound but mixed with a bit of the 'Madchester' style, more dance-esque beats and swirly guitars.

Not too bad, a few catchy numbers, but not one that has really stuck with me too much after listening to it.  The track "How can you leave us" kind of reminded me in places of the equally catchy rock of "Long Grass" by the New Zealand band Pan Am.

Day 0554 - Atomiser

Big Black "Atomiser" (1985)

I had heard of Big Black (especially their provocatively titled second full-length album "Songs about Fucking") but had never actually heard a note of the music.  I was also very uninformed, in that I had heard of Steve Albini but knew him solely as a producer/engineer.  I didn't realise that he was musician in bands like Big Black and Shellac (he'd also... carrying on his role as provocateur, had a band called Rapeman).

The music here is essentially proto-industrial.  It's just "three men and a drum machine".  The tinny drum machine, aggressive guitars and barked vocals could be seen as an early guidebook for acts like Nine Inch Nails, Marilyn Manson and even early Shihad.