THE STONE ROSES – LOVE
SPREADS (GEFFEN)
The Stone Roses were
always a weird proposition. I wasn’t
into them at the height of Baggy.
Indeed I remember being frightened of those bands and the people that
were into them (most notably my friend’s older brothers and friends). For me The Stone Roses represented those
people in the studio audience of The Word that danced and looked awful and
terrifying all at the same time. I was too
young to understand, I didn’t know what was going on. My gut instinct was that crappy people were into the Stone Roses
and time has not necessarily proved me wrong.
I think drugs have a
lot to do with appreciating the Stone Roses experience. And that has just never been me. All I ever heard was the basic repetition,
sly guitar and light drums that sounded electronic. What was going here?
In their absence the
Stone Roses managed to take on some kind of mythical indie rock status. While they were away there was no evidence
to tarnish their legacy or their position as music gods and thus the hype grew
and grew (their coming album was entitled “Second Coming” for fuck’s
sake). And I must admit to getting
caught up in it myself, even to the point I bought this single at the point of
entry (day of release). In my defence
it was offered on promotion. That was
how the CD singles charts used to work.
On the week of release many would be on the shelves priced at £1.99 but
the following week once they had charted the prices would rise to a more RRP
level/degree of £3.99. So it was buy
now or pay more later, which was in the end saw me buy copious/ridiculous
amounts of CD singles and part of the reason why I now struggle to move around
my apartment. Indeed I was suckered by
the machinations of the music industry just like everyone else.
“Love Spreads” is a
lumbering piece of work. Certainly it
didn’t justify the five year wait; this was not a creative high. That said it is a passable song. There is something almost nautical in the
creaking sound of John Squire’s guitar and when Ian Brown’s vocals finally drop
in it seems to add a drive to proceedings, a dull roar. The lyrical sentiments are somewhat
muddied. To use the line “let me put
you in the picture” does feel a term appropriate to an arrogant return from
absence. And that’s not pleasant. By this stage Oasis was slowing taking over
music and their influences were taking notes.
Still, who returns to the fold with an almost six minute song?
Following on the
release came “Your Still Will Shine”, a track also lifted from their highly
anticipated new upcoming album. For a
fan this must have been cause for concern as the flat construct with its
acoustic approach that already felt tired before Brown’s vocals even dropped
in. I wasn’t buying it.
The third track
“Blackout” clashes like a healthy hybrid of G-Funk and classic, like Parliament
wrestling with the Happy Mondays with a wizard playing piano while Squire is
the time and space to breathe and indulge.
And it’s not awful.
The Stone Roses always
duped lots of people.
Thesaurus moment:
mendacity.
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