The Charlatans - Tellin' Stories
The Charlies, as we like to affectionately call them, have been around for quite some time, since back in 1990 when they were mixed up in the whole ‘baggy’ scene and were accused of being Stone Roses wannabes. Some Friendly soon put these accusations to rest with its quality content such as the blistering The Only One I Know and had them riding the crest of the ‘baggy’ wave. Their reply to this early success was to release a less commercial second album and a equally good third one, however the sales still weren’t there. They were then expected to pull the plug and slip away silently to depart from the music scene for ever, following the likes of the other early 90’s brigade. They’ll have to thank Britpop for the success of The Charlatans and ultimately the reason they’re still around, and more popular than they were in their baggy days. The good times came to an abrupt end with the tragic death of Rob Collins, the gifted keyboardist of the band. However they vowed to continue, proving their dedication by playing the pre-scheduled Oasis gigs and V96 at Chelmsford in August last year.
After the release of One To Another with its Chemical Brothers style sample, the album was looking to be another change in direction by Tim Burgess and co. I’m afraid if you were expecting some sort of indie/dance (but with a more original type of sound) crossover considering the amount of work they’ve done with the said duo you are going to be disappointed. The only track that comes anywhere close to One To Another is the instrumental Area 51. The rest of it is in stark contrast, ranging from the Just When You’re Thinking Things Over style of How Can You Leave Us to the Bob Dylan-esque Get On It that sounds suspiciously similar to Like A Rolling Stone. There is a difference from the last album in that there is a similar sound to all the songs (although they don’t all sound the same) while on the last one there was a real range of styles. Nevertheless they haven’t loss their edge when it comes to mixing rock, funk and pop as epitomised on the absolutely class track Only Teethin’. The temporary loan of Primal Scream’s keyboardist, Duffy, may have influenced this record a bit, with some songs sounding as though they’d be right at home on their last album.
Up To Our Hips compares well with Tellin’ Stories, with both having about four stand out tracks, an instrumental in the middle, while the rest are nice but not real goers. Pleasant.(6)
Jaso
