Britpop is a subgenre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom. Britpop emerged from the British independent music scene of the early 1990s and was characterised by bands influenced by British guitar pop music of the 1960s and 1970s. The movement developed as a reaction against various musical and cultural trends in the late 1980s and early 1990s, particularly the grunge phenomenon from the United States. In the wake of the musical invasion into the United Kingdom of American grunge bands, new British groups such as Suede and Blur launched the movement by positioning themselves as opposing musical forces, referencing British guitar music of the past and writing about uniquely British topics and concerns. These bands were soon joined by others including Oasis, Pulp, Supergrass, Sleeper and Elastica.

Britpop groups brought British alternative rock into the mainstream and formed the backbone of a larger British cultural movement called Cool Britannia. Although its more popular bands were able to spread their commercial success overseas, especially to the United States, the movement largely fell apart by the end of the decade.

Style, roots and influences[link]

Britpop bands were influenced by British guitar music of the past, particularly movements and genres such as the British Invasion, glam rock, and punk rock. Specific influences varied: Blur and Oasis drew from The Kinks and The Beatles, respectively, while Elastica had a fondness for arty punk rock. Regardless, all Britpop artists projected a sense of reverence for the sounds of the past.^[1]

Alternative rock acts from the 1980s and early 1990s indie scene were the direct ancestors of the Britpop movement. The influence of The Smiths was common to the majority of Britpop artists.^[2] The Madchester scene, fronted by The Stone Roses, Happy Mondays, and Inspiral Carpets (for whom Oasis' Noel Gallagher had worked as a roadie during the Madchester years), was the immediate root of Britpop since its emphasis on good times and catchy songs provided an alternative to shoegazing.^[3]

Britpop groups were defined by being focused on bands rather than solo artists; having drums/bass/guitar/vocals (and sometimes keyboards) line-ups; writing original material and playing instruments themselves; singing in regional British accents; references to British places and culture in lyrics and image; and fashion consciousness.^[4] Stylistically, Britpop bands relied on catchy hooks and wrote lyrics that were meant to be relevant to British young people of their own generation.^[3] Britpop bands conversely denounced grunge as irrelevant and having nothing to say about their lives. Damon Albarn of Blur summed up the attitude in 1993 when after being asked if Blur were an "anti-grunge band" he said, "Well, that's good. If punk was about getting rid of hippies, then I'm getting rid of grunge."^[5] In spite of the professed disdain for the genres, some elements of both crept into the more enduring facets of Britpop. Noel Gallagher has since championed Ride. Noel Gallagher stated in a 1996 interview that Nirvana's Kurt Cobain was the only songwriter he had respect for in the last ten years, and that he felt their music was similar enough that Cobain could have written "Wonderwall".^[6]

The imagery associated with Britpop was equally British and working class. Music critic Jon Savage asserted that Britpop was "an outer-suburban, middle-class fantasy of central London streetlife, with exclusively metropolitan models."^[7] A rise in unabashed maleness, exemplified by Loaded magazine and lad culture in general, would be very much part of the Britpop era. The Union Flag also became a prominent symbol of the movement, and its use as a symbol of pride and nationalism contrasted deeply with the controversy that erupted just a few short years before when former Smiths singer Morrissey performed draped in it.^[8] The emphasis on British reference points made it difficult for the genre to achieve success in the US.^[9]

History[link]

Origins and first years[link]

The origins of Britpop lie primarily in the indie scene of the early 1990s, and in particular around a group of bands involved in a vibrant social scene focused in the Camden Town area of London. This scene was dubbed "The Scene That Celebrates Itself" by Melody Maker.^[10] Some members of this scene (Blur, Lush, Suede) would go on to play a leading part in Britpop. Others such as Kingmaker, Slowdive, Spitfire and Ride would not. The dominant musical force of the period was the grunge invasion from the United States, which filled the void left in the indie scene by The Stone Roses' inactivity.^[11]

Journalist John Harris has suggested that Britpop began when Blur's single "Popscene" and Suede's "The Drowners" were released around the same time in the spring of 1992. He stated, "[I]f Britpop started anywhere, it was the deluge of acclaim that greeted Suede's first records: all of them audacious, successful and very, very British".^[12] Suede were the first of the new crop of guitar-orientated bands to be embraced by the UK music media as Britain's answer to Seattle's grunge sound. Their debut album Suede became the fastest-selling debut album in the history of the UK.^[13] In April 1993, Select magazine featured Suede's lead singer Brett Anderson on the cover with a Union Flag in the background and the headline "Yanks go home!". The issue included features on Suede, The Auteurs, Denim, Saint Etienne and Pulp and helped foment the idea of an emerging movement.^[11]

Blur, a group that formerly mixed elements of shoegazing and baggy, took on an Anglocentric aesthetic with their second album Modern Life Is Rubbish (1993). Blur's new approach was inspired by their tour of the United States in the spring of 1992. During the tour, frontman Damon Albarn began to resent American culture and found the need to comment on that culture's influence seeping into Britain.^[11] Justine Frischmann, formerly of Suede and leader of Elastica (and at the time in a relationship with Damon Albarn) explained, "Damon and I felt like we were in the thick of it at that point [. . .] it occurred to us that Nirvana were out there, and people were very interested in American music, and there should be some sort of manifesto for the return of Britishness."^[14] John Harris wrote in an NME article just prior to the release of Modern Life is Rubbish, "[Blur's] timing has been fortuitously perfect. Why? Because, as with baggies and shoegazers, loud, long-haired Americans have just found themselves condemned to the ignominious corner labeled 'yesterday's thing'".^[5] The music press also fixated on what the NME had dubbed the New Wave of New Wave, a term applied to the more punk-derivative acts such as Elastica, S*M*A*S*H and These Animal Men.

While Modern Life is Rubbish was a moderate success, it was Blur's third album Parklife that made them arguably the most popular band in the UK in 1994.^[13] Parklife continued the fiercely British nature of its predecessor, and coupled with the death of Nirvana's Kurt Cobain in April of that year it seemed that British alternative rock had finally turned back the tide of grunge dominance. That same year Oasis released their debut album Definitely Maybe, which broke Suede's record for fastest-selling debut album.^[13][15]

The movement was soon dubbed Britpop. The term "Britpop" had been used in the late 1980s (in Sounds magazine by journalist, Goldblade frontman and TV pundit John Robb referring to bands such as The La's, The Stone Roses, Inspiral Carpets and The Bridewell Taxis). "Britpop" arose around the same time as the term "Britart" (which referred to the work of British modern artists such as Damien Hirst). However, it would not be until 1994 when the term entered the popular consciousness, being used extensively by the music press and radio DJs.^[16] A rash of bands emerged aligned with the new movement. At the start of 1995 Britpop bands including Sleeper, Supergrass, and Menswear scored pop hits.^[17] Elastica released their debut album Elastica that March; its first week sales surpassed the record set by Definitely Maybe the previous year.^[18] The music press viewed the scene around Camden Town as a musical centre; frequented by Britpop groups like Blur, Elastica, and Menswear, Melody Maker declared "Camden is to 1995 what Seattle was to 1992, what Manchester was to 1989, and what Mr Blobby was to 1993."^[19]

[edit] Peak of success

A chart battle between Blur and Oasis dubbed "The Battle of Britpop" brought Britpop to the forefront of the British press in 1995. The bands had initially praised each other but over the course of the year antagonisms between the two increased.^[20] Spurred on by the media, the groups became engaged in what the NME dubbed on the cover of its 12 August issue the "British Heavyweight Championship" with the pending release of Oasis' single "Roll With It", and Blur's "Country House" on the same day. The battle pitted the two bands against each other, with the conflict as much about British class and regional divisions as it was about music.^[21] Oasis were taken as representing the North of England, while Blur represented the South.^[11] The event caught the public's imagination and gained mass media attention in national newspapers, tabloids, and even the BBC News. The NME wrote about the phenomenon, "Yes, in a week where news leaked that Saddam Hussein was preparing nuclear weapons, everyday folks were still getting slaughtered in Bosnia and Mike Tyson was making his comeback, tabloids and broadsheets alike went Britpop crazy."^[22] Blur won the battle of the bands, selling 274,000 copies to Oasis' 216,000 - the songs charting at number one and number two respectively.^[23] However, in the long run Oasis became more commercially successful than Blur. Unlike Blur, Oasis were able to achieve sustained sales in the United States thanks to the singles "Wonderwall" and "Champagne Supernova".^[24] Oasis's second album (What's the Story) Morning Glory? (1995) eventually sold over four million copies in the UK, becoming the third best-selling album in British history.^[25]

By the summer of 1996 Oasis's prominence was such that NME termed a number of Britpop bands (including The Boo Radleys, Ocean Colour Scene and Cast) as "Noelrock", citing Gallagher's influence on their success.^[26] John Harris typified this wave of Britpop bands, and Gallagher, of sharing "a dewy-eyed love of the 1960s, a spurning of much beyond rock's most basic ingredients, and a belief in the supremacy of 'real music'".^[27] Starting on 10 August 1996, Oasis played a two-night set at Knebworth to a combined audience of 250,000 people.^[28] The demand for these gigs was and still is the largest ever for a concert on British soil; over 2.6 million people had applied for tickets.^[28]

Decline[link]

Oasis' third album Be Here Now (1997) was highly anticipated. Despite initially attracting positive reviews and selling strongly, the record was soon subjected to strong criticism from music critics, record-buyers and even Noel Gallagher himself for its overproduced and bloated sound. Music critic Jon Savage pinpointed Be Here Now as the moment where Britpop ended; Savage said that while the album "isn't the great disaster that everybody says," he noted that "[i]t was supposed to be the big, big triumphal record" of the period.^[11] At the same time, Damon Albarn sought to distance Blur from Britpop with the band's fifth album, Blur (1997).^[29] On the album, Blur moved away from their Parklife-era sound, and their music began to assimilate American lo-fi influences, particularly that of Pavement. Albarn explained to the NME in January 1997 that "We created a movement: as far as the lineage of British bands goes, there'll always be a place for us", but added, "We genuinely started to see that world in a slightly different way."^[30]

As the movement began to slow down, many acts began to falter and broke up.^[31] The popularity of the pop group the Spice Girls has been seen as having "snatched the spirit of the age from those responsible for Britpop."^[32] While established acts struggled, attention began to turn to the likes of Radiohead and The Verve, who had been previously overlooked by the British media. These two bands—in particular Radiohead—showed considerably more esoteric influences from the 1960s and 1970s, influences that were uncommon among earlier Britpop acts. In 1997, Radiohead and The Verve released their respective efforts OK Computer and Urban Hymns, both of which were widely acclaimed.^[31] Post-Britpop bands like Travis, Stereophonics and Coldplay, influenced by Britpop acts, particularly Oasis, with more introspective lyrics, were some of the most successful rock acts of the late late 1990s and early 2000s.^[33]

See also[link]

• List of Britpop musicians
• The Britpop Story
• Live Forever: The Rise and Fall of Brit Pop
• Post-Britpop
• Cool Britannia

References[link]

• Cavanagh, David. The Creation Records Story: My Magpie Eyes Are Hungry for the Prize. 2001.
• Harris, John. Britpop!: Cool Britannia and the Spectacular Demise of English Rock. Da Capo Press, 2004. ISBN 0-306-81367-X
• Harris, John. "Modern Life is Brilliant!" NME. 7 January 1995.
• Live Forever: The Rise and Fall of Brit Pop. Passion Pictures, 2004.
• Till, Rupert. "In my beautiful neighbourhood: local cults of popular music". Pop Cult. London: Continuum, 2010.

Footnotes[link]

External links[link]

• BBC News article on Britpop's 10th anniversary
• Britpop News Site

Manic Street Preachers
Manic Street Preachers performing live in London
Background information
Origin	Blackwood, Caerphilly, Wales
Genres	Alternative rock, post-punk, glam punk
Years active	1986–present
Labels	Columbia, Epic, Heavenly
Website	www.manics.co.uk
Members
James Dean Bradfield Nicky Wire Sean Moore
Past members
Richey Edwards Miles Woodward

Manic Street Preachers are a Welsh alternative rock band formed in 1986 consisting of James Dean Bradfield (lead vocals, lead guitar), Nicky Wire (bass, lyrics), and Sean Moore (drums, percussion). The band is part of the Cardiff music scene and were at their most prominent during the 1990s. They are colloquially known as "The Manics" or simply "Manics". Manic Street Preachers were originally a quartet but primary lyricist and rhythm guitarist Richey Edwards vanished on 1 February 1995.^[1]

In 1992, the Manics released their debut album, Generation Terrorists.^[2] Their combination of androgynous glam punk imagery and critical social lyrics about "culture, alienation, boredom, and despair" soon gained them a loyal following and cult status.^[3][4][5] The band's later albums retained a leftist politicisation and intellectual lyrical style while adopting a broader alternative rock sound.^[6]

Following Edwards' disappearance, Bradfield, Moore, and Wire persisted with Manic Street Preachers and went on to gain critical and commercial success, becoming one of Britain's premier rock bands.^[7] Altogether, they have garnered eight Top 10 albums, fifteen Top 10 singles, and have reached number one three times with their 1998 This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours album, the 1998 "If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next" single, and the 2000 "The Masses Against the Classes" single.^[8][9][10]

History[link]

Formation and early years (1986–1991)[link]

The band was formed in 1986 in Oakdale Comprehensive School, Blackwood, Caerphilly, south Wales. During this time, Bradfield had tried writing lyrics, but this later changed and Wire wrote all their earliest lyrics, leaving Bradfield, alongside the classically-trained Sean Moore when he joined, to write the music. Original bassist Flicker (Miles Woodward^[11]) left the band in early 1988, reportedly because he believed that the band were moving away from their punk roots. The band continued as a three-piece, with Wire switching from guitar to bass, and in 1988 they recorded their first single, "Suicide Alley". Edwards joined the band on guitar and often made contributions to lyrics with Wire, designing record sleeves and other artwork, and driving the band to and from gigs.

In 1990, they signed a deal with label Damaged Goods Records for one EP. The four-track New Art Riot attracted as much media interest for its attacks on fellow musicians as for the actual music. With the help of Hall or Nothing management, the Manics signed to indie label Heavenly Records. The band recorded their first single for the label, entitled "Motown Junk".

Their next single, You Love Us, sampled Penderecki's "Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima" as well as Iggy Pop. The video featured Nicky Wire in drag as Marilyn Monroe and contained visual references to Betty Blue and Aleister Crowley. In a now legendary interview with then NME journalist Steve Lamacq, Edwards carved the phrase "4REAL" into his arm with a razor blade to prove their sincerity.^[12] He was taken to hospital and received a total of seventeen stitches. Columbia Records of Sony Music UK signed the band shortly afterwards and they began work on their debut album.

[edit] Generation Terrorists to The Holy Bible (1992–1995)

Manic Street Preachers in Japan c.1993

Their debut album, Generation Terrorists ( sample (help·info)), was released on the Columbia Records imprint. The liner notes contained a literary quote for each of the album's eighteen songs and the album lasted just over seventy minutes. The record contained six singles and sold 250,000 copies.

The second album, Gold Against the Soul, was released to mixed reviews but still performed well, reaching number eight in the UK album chart and displayed a more grungy sound. The nature of the lyrics also changed, with Edwards and Wire eschewing their political fire for introspective melancholy.

By early 1994, Edwards' personal difficulties became worse and began to affect the other band members as well as himself. He was admitted into The Priory in 1994 to overcome his problems and the band played a few festivals as a three-piece to pay for his treatment.

The group's next album, The Holy Bible, was released in August to critical acclaim, but sold poorly. The album displayed yet another musical and aesthetic change for the band, largely featuring army/navy uniforms. Musically, the band had shifted to a lo-fi post-punk sound. In support of the album, the band appeared on Top of the Pops, performing its first single, "Faster", which reached No.16. The performance was extremely controversial at the time, as the band were all dressed in army regalia. Bradfield wore a 'terrorist-style' balaclava. At the time, the band was told by the BBC that they had received the most complaints ever.^[13]

Shortly after, on 1 February 1995, Edwards disappeared from the Embassy Hotel at Bayswater Road in London after checking out at 7:00 am. His car was found abandoned 17 February 1995 at the Severn View service station near the Severn Bridge, which has since acquired notoriety for being a suicide spot. A car park attendant reported it had been there for three days; police search of the car revealed that it had been lived in for a few days. Edwards was never seen again, although the band have kept a percentage of the royalties aside should he return. He was declared presumed dead on 28 November 2008 by his family. The band commented that they respect their decision. Manic Street Preachers was put on hold for six months and disbanding the group was seriously considered, but with the blessing of Edwards' family, the other members continued.

[edit] Everything Must Go to Know Your Enemy (1996–2003)

The first album without Edwards, Everything Must Go, contained five songs either written or co-written by Edwards, and was released to overwhelmingly positive reviews. The bulk of the lyrics were written solely by Wire including number two hit single "A Design for Life". The album was shortlisted for the 1996 Mercury Prize award for best album, and won the band two BRIT Awards for Best British Band and Best British album, as well as yielding the hit singles "Australia", "Everything Must Go" and "Kevin Carter".

Manic Street Preachers live in London in 2005

1998's This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours was just as successful across most of the world, and gave the band their first number one single in "If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next". ( sample (help·info)) It was written about the Spanish Civil War and was inspired in equal parts by George Orwell's Homage to Catalonia and The Clash's "Spanish Bombs". The album also included the hit singles "You Stole the Sun from My Heart", "Tsunami" and "The Everlasting". Again the Manics won the Best British Band and album awards at the BRIT Awards in 1999.

On 31 December 1999 they played at the 'Leaving the 20th Century concert' in the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, the first and biggest ever concert to be held there with 80,000 people attending.

In 2000 they released the limited edition single "The Masses Against the Classes". Despite receiving little promotion, the single hit the number one position on the UK Singles chart, beating U Know What's Up by Donell Jones to the top. The catalogue entry for the single was deleted (removed from wholesale supply) on the day of release, but the song nevertheless spent seven weeks in the UK chart.^[14]

In 2001 they became the first popular western rock band to play in Cuba, (at the Karl Marx Theater) and met with president Fidel Castro. Their concert and trip to Cuba was documented and then released as a DVD entitled Louder than War.

In this concert they revealed many tracks from their sixth album Know Your Enemy. The song "Ocean Spray" was written by James about his mother's battle with cancer. The first singles from the album, "So Why So Sad" and "Found That Soul", were both released on the same day. Other singles included "Let Robeson Sing".

The greatest hits (plus remixes) album Forever Delayed was released in 2002, containing two new songs, "Door to the River" and the single "There by the Grace of God". An album of B-sides, rarities, and cover versions album was released in 2003: Lipstick Traces, which contained the last song worked on with Edwards.

[edit] Lifeblood to Journal for Plague Lovers (2004–2009)

The band's seventh studio album, Lifeblood, was released on 1 November 2004 and reached #13 on the UK album chart. Critical response to the album was mixed. Tony Visconti helped the band produce three songs on the album, which was followed by a UK arena tour in December 2004. A tenth anniversary edition of The Holy Bible was released on 6 December 2004, which included a digitally remastered version of the original album, a rare U.S. mix and a DVD of live performances and extras including a band interview.

In April 2005, the band played a number of shows as the Past-Present-Future tour — announced as their last for at least two years. The band released an EP entitled God Save the Manics with only a limited number of copies available and given out to fans as they arrived at the venue. After all the copies were gone, the band made the EP available as a free download on their website. In September, the band contributed the new track, "Leviathan", to the War Child charity album Help!: A Day in the Life.

The band's eighth studio album, Send Away the Tigers was released on 7 May 2007 on Columbia Records. It entered the official UK album charts at #2. Critical response to the album was largely positive, with some critics hailing the album as the band's best for a decade. A free download of a song entitled "Underdogs" from the album was made available through the group's website on 19 March 2007. The first official single released from Send Away the Tigers was "Your Love Alone Is Not Enough", which features The Cardigans' vocalist, Nina Persson. The second single, "Autumnsong", and a third, "Indian Summer", were released in August.

The band released a Christmas single in December. "The Ghosts of Christmas" was available as a free download on their official website throughout December 2007 and January 2008. In February 2008, the band were presented with the God-Like Geniuses Award award at the NME Awards ceremony.

The ninth Manics album, Journal for Plague Lovers, was released on 18 May 2009^[15] and features lyrics left behind by Edwards. Wire commented in an interview that "there was a sense of responsibility to do his words justice."^[16] The album was released to positive critical reviews, scoring 85 on Metacritic.^[17]

[edit] Postcards from a Young Man (2010–present)

On 1 June 2010 the band announced on their homepage that a new album called Postcards from a Young Man will be released on 20 September 2010. James Dean Bradfield said that the album would be an unashamedly pop-orientated affair following 2009's Journal for Plague Lovers. "We're going for big radio hits on this one," he told NME. "It isn't a follow-up to Journal for Plague Lovers. It's one last shot at mass communication."

On 26 July 2010 the first single from the new album, "(It's Not War) Just the End of Love", was played on the breakfast shows of BBC Radio 2, BBC 6Music, XFm and Absolute Radio. It was released on 13 September 2010. The title had previously been suggested as a working title for the album by Nicky Wire. Three collaborations were also confirmed on the band's website later that day: Duff McKagan will appear on "A Billion Balconies Facing the Sun", Ian McCulloch adds guest vocals to "Some Kind of Nothingness" and John Cale will feature on "Auto-Intoxication".^{[citation needed]} The band embarked on a UK tour to promote the album, starting in Glasgow on 29 September 2010. British Sea Power were the support act for the band on the tour. Two further singles have been released from the album - the McCulloch featuring "Some Kind of Nothingness" and the title track "Postcards from a Young Man".

The band initially announced that their next album has the working title 70 Songs of Hatred and Failure and will sound very different from Postcards from a Young Man. "The next album will be pure indulgence. There's only so much melody stored in your body that you can physically get onto one record. It was just so utterly commercial and melodic."^[18] However Nicky Wire contradicted this in 2011 while doing promotion for their greatest hits compilation National Treasures. When asked why the band was releasing the compilation Wire stated: "It's just the end of an era. Not the end of a band. We're gonna disappear for quite a long time."^[19]

A 38 track singles compilation, National Treasures – The Complete Singles, was released on 31 October 2011, preceded by a new single.^[20]

Solo work[link]

In late 2005, both Bradfield and Wire announced that they intended to release solo material prior to a new album by the band. A free download of Nicky Wire's debut solo offering I Killed The Zeitgeist was posted on the band's website for just one day - Christmas Day 2005. The album of the same name was released in September 2006. It charted at #130 in the UK. The sound of the album, which Nicky referred to as his "nihilistic anti-everything album", was inspired by, among others, Neu!, The Plastic Ono Band, Einstürzende Neubauten, The Modern Lovers, Richard Thompson and Lou Reed.^[21] Only one official single was released: "Break My Heart Slowly" charted at #74. Nicky toured small intimate venues across the UK with his band The Secret Society, affording fans the opportunity of seeing their hero at close quarters.

Bradfield's solo album, The Great Western was released in July 2006. It reached #22 in the UK. The sound of the album was inspired by, among others, Jeff Beck, Badfinger, Simple Minds and McCarthy. Two singles were released: "That's No Way to Tell a Lie" (#18) in July and then "An English Gentleman" (#31) in September. The latter is in remembrance of the first Manic's manager Philip Hall, to whom The Holy Bible had been dedicated. James toured the album with a band that included Wayne Murray, who would subsequently play second guitar for Manics live performances. James' solo gigs featured covers of The Clash songs "Clampdown" and "The Card Cheat", both from the album London Calling.

In a later interview, when the band were collectively asked what they had learned from making a solo album, Sean Moore dryly quipped, "Not to do one".

Collaborations and covers[link]

The band released in 1992 a split single with The Fatima Mansions (a rock cover of "Suicide Is Painless") which became their first UK Top 10 hit. They have recorded many cover versions of songs by other artists, primarily as b-sides for their own singles. Bands to whom the group have paid tribute in this way include The Clash, Guns N' Roses, Alice Cooper, Happy Mondays, McCarthy, Chuck Berry, Faces, and Nirvana.

The band's first musical appearance since Edwards' departure was recording a cover of "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" for The Help Album, a charity effort in 1995 in support of aid efforts in war-torn Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Lightning Seeds' song "Waiting for Today to Happen", from their fifth album, Dizzy Heights (1996), was written by Nicky Wire and Ian Broudie. That same year, James Dean Bradfield and Dave Eringa produced Northern Uproar's first single, "Rollercoaster/Rough Boys". The 808 State song "Lopez" (1997) features lyrics by Wire and vocals by Bradfield. It is featured on their greatest hits album, 808:88:98. Kylie Minogue's sixth album, Impossible Princess (1997), features two songs co-written and produced by the Manics: "Some Kind of Bliss" (Bradfield/Minogue/Moore) and "I Don't Need Anyone" (Bradfield/Jones/Minogue) were produced by Bradfield and Dave Eringa. Bradfield provided backing vocals, bass and production for the Massive Attack song "Inertia Creeps" (1998), which features on their successful third album, Mezzanine. Patrick Jones' album of poetry set to music, Commemoration And Amnesia (1999), features two songs with music written by Bradfield: the title track and "The Guerilla Tapestry". Bradfield plays guitar on both songs. Furthermore, the track "Hireath" features a section called "Spoken Word", in which Nicky Wire talks about Welsh identity.

In February 2006, the band contributed a cover version of "The Instrumental" to the album Still Unravished: A Tribute to the June Brides.

In February 2008 the Manics covered Rihanna's hit song "Umbrella". Their version appeared on a CD titled NME Awards 2008 given away free with a special souvenir box set issue of NME magazine, which went on sale 27 February. Additionally, the Manics' version of the song was made available on iTunes since 5 March 2008.^[22] Despite being chart-eligible (it reached number 47 in the UK^[23]), the release was not intended as an official single.^[24] Two further versions (Acoustic and Grand Slam Mix) were later made available on iTunes and now comprise a three-track Umbrella EP.

James Dean Bradfield and Nicky Wire contributed an original song, "The Girl from Tiger Bay", to Shirley Bassey's 2009 studio album, The Performance.

Band members[link]

Current members

• James Dean Bradfield - lead vocals, lead guitar (1986–present)
• Nicky Wire - bass guitar, piano, vocals (1986–present) rhythm guitar (1986-1988)
• Sean Moore - drums, percussion and trumpet (1986–present)

Former members

• Richey Edwards - rhythm guitar, piano (1989–1995)
• Miles Woodward - bass guitar (1986–1988)

Touring members

• Wayne Murray - rhythm guitar, backing vocals (2006–present)
• Sean Read - piano/keyboards, percussion, saxophone (2006–present)
• Guy Massey - rhythm guitar (2004–2005)
• Greg Haver - rhythm guitar, percussion (2002–2003)
• Nick Nasmyth - keyboards (1995–2005)
• Dave Eringa - keyboards (1993–1994)
• Anna Celmore - piano (2002–2003)

id:vocals value:red legend:Vocals/guitar
id:guitar value:purple legend:Guitar
id:bass value:blue legend:Bass
id:drums value:green legend:Drums
id:Lines value:black legend:Studio albums

bar:James text:"James Dean Bradfield"
bar:Nicky text:"Nicky Wire"
bar:Sean text:"Sean Moore"
bar:Richey text:"Richey Edwards"
bar:Miles text:"Miles Woodward"

width:10 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(10,-4)
bar:James from:01/01/1986 till:end color:vocals
bar:Nicky from:01/01/1986 till:01/01/1988 color:guitar
bar:Nicky from:01/01/1988 till:end color:bass
bar:Sean from:01/01/1986 till:end color:drums
bar:Miles from:01/01/1986 till:01/01/1988 color:bass
bar:Richey from:01/01/1989 till:01/02/1995 color:guitar

at:10/02/1992 color:black layer:back
at:14/06/1993 color:black layer:back
at:29/09/1994 color:black layer:back
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at:14/08/1998 color:black layer:back
at:19/03/2001 color:black layer:back
at:01/11/2004 color:black layer:back
at:07/05/2007 color:black layer:back
at:18/05/2009 color:black layer:back
at:20/08/2010 color:black layer:back

Discography[link]

• Generation Terrorists (1992)
• Gold Against the Soul (1993)
• The Holy Bible (1994)
• Everything Must Go (1996)
• This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours (1998)
• Know Your Enemy (2001)
• Lifeblood (2004)
• Send Away the Tigers (2007)
• Journal for Plague Lovers (2009)
• Postcards from a Young Man (2010)

Awards[link]

• Viewers' Favourite Album of All Time (The Holy Bible) - Newsnight
• 15th Best Album of All Time (The Holy Bible) - Melody Maker
• 10th Best Album Since Creation of Magazine (The Holy Bible) - Q
• 18th Best Album of All Time (The Holy Bible) - Q
• 10th Greatest Album of All Time (The Holy Bible) - Kerrang!
• Best Band of 1996 - NME Awards
• Best Album (Everything Must Go) of 1996 - NME Awards
• Best Band of 1999 - NME Awards
• Best Album (This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours) of 1999 - NME Awards
• Best Track (If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next) of 1999 - NME Awards
• Best Music Video (If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next) of 1999 - NME Awards
• One of The Writers' Best Albums (Everything Must Go) of 1996 - The Daily Telegraph
• Writers' Best Album (Everything Must Go) of 1996 - Melody Maker
• Readers' Band of 1996 (Runner Up) & "Writers' Album (Everything Must Go) of 1996" - NME
• Writers' Best Live Band of 1996 - NME Brat Award
• Writers' Best Album (Everything Must Go) of 1996 - Vox
• Writers' Best Album (Everything Must Go) of 1996 - The Sunday Times
• Writers' Best Album (Everything Must Go) of 1996 - Sky
• Writers' Best Album (Everything Must Go) of 1996 & Readers' Best Album (Everything Must Go) of 1996 - Select
• Readers' Best Album (Everything Must Go) of 1996 - Q Awards
• Writers' Best Album (Everything Must Go) of 1996 - Music Week
• One of Writers' Top Ten Albums (Everything Must Go) of 1996 - Metal Hammer
• Writers' Album (Everything Must Go) of 1996 (Runner Up) - Kerrang!
• One of Writers' Top Five Albums (Everything Must Go) of 1996 - Independent On Sunday
• Readers' Best Album (Everything Must Go) of 1996 - Hot Press
• Writers' Best Album (Everything Must Go) of 1996 - The Guardian
• Best Album & "Best Group" - BRIT Awards, 1997
• Best Band In The World Today - Q Awards, 1998
• Best Album & "Best Group" - BRIT Awards, 1999
• Best Live Act - Q Awards, 2001^[25]
• Q Merit Award - Q Awards, 2006
• Best Track (Your Love Alone Is Not Enough) - Q Awards, 2007
• 'God-Like Geniuses' - Shockwaves NME Awards, 2008
• The MOJO Maverick Award 2009^[26]
• Songwriting Prize at the Classic Rock Roll of Honour awards, 2011

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Manic Street Preachers

• Official website
• Manic Street Preachers on Myspace
• Manic Street Preachers biography from BBC Wales
• MspPedia, a comprehensive Manic Street Preachers wiki and archive
• Live Review in Japan by C.B.Liddell of Metropolis magazine

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Luke Haines
Luke Haines, performing at the 2005 Summer Sundae
Background information
Born	(1967-10-07) 7 October 1967 (age 44), Walton-on-Thames, England
Origin	England
Genres	Alternative rock, Electronica
Occupations	Singer-songwriter
Instruments	Guitar, piano/keyboard
Years active	1985–present
Labels	Degenerate
Associated acts	The Servants The Auteurs Baader Meinhof Black Box Recorder
Website	www.lukehaines.co.uk

Luke Haines (born 7 October 1967) is an English musician, songwriter and author, who has recorded music under various names and with various bands, including The Auteurs, Baader Meinhof and Black Box Recorder.

History[link]

'New Wave'[link]

Haines formed numerous bands when he was at school. At college he joined The Servants who recorded two commercially unsuccessful albums. It was only when Haines formed The Auteurs with his girlfriend Alice Readman (who had also been drafted into The Servants from time to time) and Glenn Collins in 1990 that he began to achieve some success.

Regular gigging in the London area and an NME sponsored gig brought them to the attention of Hut Records. They released their first single, "Showgirl" in 1992, and their debut album New Wave a month later. Haines was later to claim that this was the album that started Britpop, though he later showed disdain towards the movement, stating in a 2003 interview that Britpop consisted of "a bunch of bands who weren't good enough to exist in their own right, like music's equivalent of the Bloomsbury Group." Certainly it was ahead of its time in turning back from the acid house then popular to more traditional songwriting in the vein of The Kinks or The Small Faces. It is arguable that more commercially successful bands (such as Suede) owed much to Haines' vision. In any case, the album sold only 12,000 copies but was nominated for a Mercury Prize although the eventual winners were Suede

The band toured the UK and the USA, gaining generally good reviews: however it is the opinion of the NME that the band were better in the studio than live.

A brush with fame[link]

Their second album, Now I'm a Cowboy (1994) featured "Lenny Valentino" one of their most famous songs. By now the band were touring Europe and the States regularly, and were gaining a reputation as one of the best new British bands.

However, just as the band looked like achieved mainstream success (as other British bands, such as Oasis and Blur were then doing), Haines broke both of his ankles, resulting in the cancellation of much of their 1994 European tour. At the time he claimed "I jumped off a fifteen-foot wall (while) touring, ... to finish the tour and get the insurance" but later, in the sleeve notes to Das Capital, he denied that it was deliberate, writing "I merely drank too much wine and fell over. It happens." In a wheel chair for most of 1995, Haines wrote the very different songs that would end up becoming the Auteurs' third album, After Murder Park. Even bleaker and more introspective than previous Auteurs albums, this was just as English as his previous work but now showed very different influences: the downbeat folk of Richard Thompson, the aggression of My Bloody Valentine, the pared down experimentalism of Wire, and the caustic lyrics of The Fall. It was produced by Steve Albini and recorded at Abbey Road studios in North London.

After 'After Murder Park'[link]

The Auteurs recorded a session for John Peel on 20 February 1996.^[1]

At this point, Haines created a solo side project called Baader-Meinhof. Haines released one eponymous album under this moniker in 1996, which is named after the Baader Meinhof terrorist group. The sound was similar to that of The Auteurs, but more sparsely produced and with elements of funk and electronica, with lyrics, typically for the ever-contrary Haines, about terrorism.

After this, Haines disbanded the Auteurs, only to bring them back together again for their fourth album How I Learned to Love the Bootboys. This sounds like an amalgamation of Haines' previous styles: it is electronic, but has the same concern for pop hooks as his first two albums: on the other hand, the lyrics are brooding and obsessive, in a similar way to those on After Murder Park. From this point on, The Auteurs became merely a name for whatever musicians Haines chose to bring together for specific projects.

Black Box Recorder[link]

After this album Haines created another side project with John Moore (formerly of The Jesus and Mary Chain) and Sarah Nixey: Black Box Recorder. The band produced three commercially successful albums, England Made Me, The Facts of Life, and Passionoia. There is also a B-sides collection, The Worst of Black Box Recorder. The Facts of Life produced the eponymous single, which has been the biggest hit of Haines' career so far.

Although no official split announcement was made, the band was on hiatus during the mid-2000s.

Going solo[link]

Haines has branched into film music, writing the music for Christie Malry's Own Double Entry, a British film based on the novel by B.S. Johnson. Director Paul Tickell had originally expressed a wish to license How I Learned to Love the Bootboys as the Soundtrack for the film but couldnt afford the sync rights from Virgin Records which allowed Luke to write a soundtrack more tailored for the film. Unfortunately reception for the film was lacklustre as a result of the film being released post-Twin Towers attack in America, as Luke put it "Back in 2000, this celluloidal genocide just seemed like logical fictitious denouement to a film about a deranged, avenging angel, but in the heightened state of paranoia of the post Twin Towers world, it seems less far-fetched. The upshot of all this is that no distributors will go anywhere [the film]".

He has also produced a solo album under his own name, The Oliver Twist Manifesto. After the purchase of Virgin Records by french company Fnac, Hut Records' (The Auteur's erstwhile label) boss David Boyd decided before the dissolution of the company he built that Luke should do The Auteurs 'Best of' album ' but gave him a budget to re-record the songs as he saw fit. Luke speculated in his book Post Everything that this was partly as a thanks to Luke but primarily a parting shot at Fnac for dissolving the company he'd built up for over ten years. Das Capital: The Song Writing Genius of Luke Haines (sic) consisted mostly of Auteurs songs rerecorded by Luke most notably with the inclusion of a string quartet and a couple of new original songs thrown in.

In 2001 Haines called for a "National Pop Strike".^[2]

A box set covering his career to date, Luke Haines is Dead, was issued in 2005, and two new albums were expected in 2006: 'Off My Rocker At The Art School Bop', and the soundtrack to the abandoned musical 'Property', which like his Black Box Recorder work, also features Sarah Nixey.

Cherry Red Records released a "Best of The Servants" compilation, with sleeve notes by Haines, early in 2006.

New album Off My Rocker at the Art School Bop was released in October 2006. Haines worked with maverick pop producer Richard X (Sugababes, Liberty X, Rachel Stevens) on some tracks. The album was preceded by a double A-sided single 'Off My Rocker At The Art School Bop (Richard X version) b/w I Am The Best Artist/Skinny White Girls.' There is currently no news on a release date for the 'Property' soundtrack.

Haines toured the UK and Ireland during November 2006. John Moore guested on bowed saw and backing vocals at some gigs.^[3]

On 16 November 2006 Haines played a live session for BBC Radio 6 Music's Gideon Coe show.

On 13 December 2006 Haines played a live session (three songs) for BBC Radio 2's Janice Long show. During an interview on the same show Haines said that he may play some gigs in early 2007 in support of a E.P. release of Leeds United.

Haines has played at book signings for David Peace who was promoting The Damned United, a book on Brian Clough's brief tenure at Leeds United in the 1970s. Leeds United relates to this, and with the reference to the Yorkshire Ripper, to Peace's earlier Yorkshire/Red Riding Quartet. The refrain "The North! The North!" advances on the earlier Auteurs track The South Will Rise Again, itself a response to The N.W.R.A. by The Fall. The phrase "The North! The North! Where we do what we want! The North! The North! Where we do what we like" is also a quote from a character in the Red Riding Quartet.

In issue four of the comic book Phonogram, Haines appears as a spirit guide leading the main character through a metaphorical land representing Britpop.

Black Box Recorder reformation[link]

In December 2007, Black Box Recorder teamed up with Art Brut to create the single Christmas Number One under the collaborative title of The Black Arts.^[4]

In October 2008 Black Box Recorder appeared at the Nick Sanderson (Earl Brutus) tribute concert.

It was subsequently announced on Luke Haines' web site that the band would play their first headlining gig for five years at The Luminaire, Kilburn, London in February 2009.

Author[link]

Haines' memoir Bad Vibes: Britpop and My Part in Its Downfall was published on 1 January 2009 by William Heinemann Ltd. The book covers Haines' experiences during the Britpop era 1991 to 1997.

In May 2009 a novel about Haines by author Tim Mitchell Truth and Lies in Murder Park: a book about Mr Luke Haines was published by benben press.^[5] The book includes material based on interviews with Luke, and explores the themes of his music.

Post Everything: Outsider Rock and Roll, Haines' second book of memoirs, was published in July 2011 by William Heinemann Ltd.

Discography[link]

Studio Albums[link]

• New Wave, 1993 (The Auteurs)
• Now I'm a Cowboy, 1994 (The Auteurs)
• After Murder Park, 1996 (The Auteurs)
• Baader Meinhof, 1996 (Baader Meinhof)
• England Made Me, 1999 (Black Box Recorder)
• How I Learned to Love the Bootboys, 1999 (The Auteurs)
• The Facts of Life, 2000 (Black Box Recorder)
• Christie Malry's Own Double Entry OST, 2001 (Luke Haines)
• The Oliver Twist Manifesto, 2001 (Luke Haines)
• The Worst of Black Box Recorder, 2001 (Black Box Recorder)
• Passionoia, 2003 (Black Box Recorder)
• Das Capital, 2003 (Luke Haines)
• Luke Haines is Dead, 2005 (Luke Haines)
• Off My Rocker at the Art School Bop, 2006 (Luke Haines)
• 21st Century Man/Achtung Mutha, 2009 (Luke Haines)
• 9½ Psychedelic Meditations on British Wrestling of the 1970s and early '80s, 2011 (Luke Haines)

Singles/EPs[link]

• Showgirl, 1992 (The Auteurs)
• How Could I Be Wrong, 1993 (The Auteurs)
• Housebreaker, 1993 (The Auteurs)
• New French Girlfriend, 1993 (The Auteurs)
• Lenny Valentino, 1993 (The Auteurs)
• Chinese Bakery, 1994 (The Auteurs)
• The Auteurs vs Mu-Ziq EP (remixes), 1994 (The Auteurs/Mu-Ziq)
• Back With the Killer EP, 1995 (The Auteurs)
• Kid's Issue, 1996 (The Auteurs)
• Light Aircraft on Fire, 1996 (The Auteurs)
• Child Psychology, 1998 (Black Box Recorder)
• England Made Me, 1998 (Black Box Recorder)
• The Rubettes, 1999 (The Auteurs)
• The Facts of Life, 2000 (Black Box Recorder)
• The Art of Driving, 2000 (Black Box Recorder)
• These Are the Things, 2003 (Black Box Recorder)
• The School Song, 2003 (Black Box Recorder)
• Off My Rocker at the Art School Bop, 2006 (Luke Haines)
• Christmas Number One, 2007 (The Black Arts - collaboration between Black Box Recorder and Art Brut)
• Leeds United EP, 2007 (Luke Haines)

Bibliography[link]

• Bad Vibes: Britpop and My Part in Its Downfall, 2009 (Published by William Heinemann Ltd)
• Post Everything: Outsider Rock and Roll, 2011 (Published by William Heinemann Ltd)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Luke Haines's MySpace profile
• Luke Haines Website
• 2011 Luke Haines interview on musicOMH
• 2001 National Pop Strike interview on Yahoo
• 2005 Interview
• 2003 Interview
• Leeds Today article on Leeds United song