Britpop: Supergrass – I should coco (1995)

„I should coco“ is the debut album from britpop band Supergrass and was released in 1995 by Polophone. It reached the top spot of the UK album charts and platinum.

 

I anticipated some very annoying shit but the first few songs called me a liar with some pretty tight riffs and the yelling „1,2,1,2,3,4“ and the drum intro at the beginning of „I´d like to know“ sounding all in all very similiar to Dead Kennedys (just not so aggressive and pissed).

On „Mansized rooster“ the trouble begins. Some riffs are still pretty cool but the sound start to get worse.

„Alright“ is a classic and I thought at first that it was a cover. 

 

The rest of the album is horrible at best. The guitar tone get´s more and more strange and the riffs annoying, more like some pseudopunk like Blink 182.

 

Overall would it be good if the first 4 tracks were released as an EP. The rest is just pure bullshit.

Eastern import: Khaled – Kenza (1999)

Released in 1999 „Kenza“ is the 4th album of algerian rai musician Khaled, 6 years after he gained some international succes with his single „Didi“. The lyrics are in algerian or french ( C´est la nui) so I can´t even try to say something about them. Only „Imagine“ have some english lyrics but you should allready know them.

 

The album mixes traditional eastern music with western influences like the allready mentioned „C´est la nui“ which sounds like a western pop song or the song „E´dir E´sseba“ which got an 90s popbeat and uses accordeon in the strophe. 

On two songs he featuered female guest singers. Amar on singing a duet with him on „El harba wine“ and Noa on the cover version of John Lennons „Imagine“: It´s abaric first but then switched to english with the phrase „You may say I´m a dreamer […]“ sung by the two together. It got some tears in my eyes, just like the original song sometimes does.

Some of the song remind me very strong on bollywood movies.

All in all I think the album have some moments but I also think that the tracks standing more in an arabian tradition with less western influences are pretty monotonous. I didn´t really like them but anyway I think that it´s ok that this album is inclueded in the 1001 list as a representant for some international known eastern music.