Review - Super Furry Animals
"Outspaced"
album on Creation
Records/Cortex through Shock!
The Welsh music onslaught continues! Like
many Canadian and New Zealand artists, one is quite surprised who actually
comes from this small south-western part of the UK. Spear-headed by Catatonia
and Space
early in 1997 and the resurgence of the Manic
Street Preachers last year,
Super Furry Animals "Outspaced"
album on Creation Records/Cortex through Shock!
proves that there is more to Wales than Rugby,
coal mining, Sean
Connery and Tom
Jones!
“Outspaced” opens with the
high-rotation single from last year The
Man Don't Give A Fuck, featuring the most gratuitous use of that word I
have ever heard! I only ever listened to it a couple of times during the
novelty stage of its release but have turned it off ever since. Don't get me
wrong - I'm no prude, but 50 times (OK – I listened to it this once to count
them all!) is beyond artistic expression in any book!
The CD then moves through the rarities and
B-sides promised the punter and fan alike, but treads through some well-worn
Brit-pop territory in the process. Stand out songs on the record include the Gary Glitteresque
Dim Bendith with Blur,
Swervedriver
and Oasis
flavouring; Focus Pocus/Debiel with
early 80s keyboard effects, late 70s guitar sounds and a 60s-John
Lennon middle-8; and the Paper Lace Billy Don't Be A Hero sequel Don't
Be A Fool Billy, complete with 1973 tendencies and a Brit 90s twist.
Each Brit-pop outfit I have experienced over
the years has a gimmick, a tone of their own, a signature tune. But overall the
rest of their catalog sounds fairly much the same as the rest of the genre.
Unfortunately SFA
"Outspaced" even as a
collectible item doesn't escape this phenomenon ««¶