Search - Blur :: Modern Life Is Rubbish

Tony C. from PALATINE, IL
Reviewed on 11/15/2009...

classic

1 of 1 member(s) found this review helpful.

Eccentricity has rarely sounded so good

Wheelchair Assassin | The Great Concavity | 11/17/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"As a genre, Britpop has certainly had its moments, but too many of its more noted practitioners haven't quite been able to emerge from the overwhelming shadow of their Beatles influence (hell, Oasis don't even try). Many of these bands, or at least the ones that tend to hit here in the States, mean well, and they're certainly not without talent, but their music ultimately comes up lacking because the originality just isn't there (I'm looking your way, Coldplay). That's where Blur come in, with a sound and vision all their own. Blur's roots are in the same Beatles-derived template that a million other bands have borrowed from, but instead of appropriating this formula Blur twist it around and expand on it to create a style that's recognizably British but still unmistakably theirs. These guys take thirty years of British rock history and throw it in a blender, but what comes out is their own convention-dodging creation. And they're a lot more fun than Radiohead to boot.The irreverent attitude of original British-invasion bands like The Who, The Beatles, and The Kinks is here in all its glory, but "Modern Life Is Rubbish" is a Britpop album for the mind. The album is filled with odd time signatures, off-center arrangements, and the kind of skewed guitar sound that you won't hear on your local modern-rock station because it's too busy playing the latest terrible Nickelback single. Damon Albarn's voice is usually a bit off-key, but since everything else here is as well, it works perfectly. Blur's quirkiness brings to mind the Flaming Lips more than Oasis, and just like with the Lips, "Modern Life Is Rubbish" isn't just weirdness for its own sake; these guys have a batch of immensely enjoyable songs on their hands. "For Tomorrow" starts out with one of the catchiest hooks you'll ever hear, and then gets even catchier with a "la la la la la, la la la la la la la" chant that'll rattle around in your head for days. The riff-driven "Advert" actually rocks pretty hard, while "Colin Zeal" even introduces a reggae-dub beat that would do the Clash proud. And you've got to respect a band that would follow up the swooning guitars and and biting vocals of the bizarre "Pressure On Julian" with the joyous, transcendent pop of "Star-Shaped." For its part, the lyrically sly, musically stunning "Chemical World" is a classic, pure and simple. Is there a better lyric out there than "The peeping Thomas has a very nice view/ Across the street at the exhibitionist"? I think not.For its second half, "Modern Life Is Rubbish" actually manages to get slightly weirder, showcasing the commitment to diversity that truly separates Blur from the crowd of pretenders. After "Chemical World," the album mixes (relatively) straightforward pop with some more experimental stuff, sometimes within the same song (see "Pop Scene" for an example of what I mean). In a real curveball, "Intermission" starts out as a jazzy piano piece before skidding into a fascinating mess of noise and distortion. The distorted vocals, jumbled drum beat, and snatches of guitar noise that make up "Oily Water" combine to form one of the oddest, coolest rhythms you'll ever hear on a "pop" album. "Miss America" and "Resigned" are the quietest, most minimal songs on here, but their music and lyrics still keep them from resembling anything you'll hear on the radio. To sum up, not only do I consider "Modern Life Is Rubbish" one of the best British albums I've ever heard, but it's quickly become one of my favorite albums of any kind, ever. And given the fact that my CD collection is filled with punk, hardcore, and ultra-extreme metal albums, that's no small achievement. On one final, throwaway note, anyone who likes this album should check out Porcupine Tree's masterful, Britpop-meets-prog-rock-meets-metal album "In Absentia." I think you'll like what you hear."

Blur's first great one

Bryan Wilson | Lexington, MA United States | 02/02/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"the little i've heard from blur's true first album, "leisure", i did not like, and many will agree that "modern life is rubbish", being so markedly different, is their first recording of true significance. maybe that's harsh, but it's also a testament to how good this record is. not as immediately enjoyable as "parklife", and not as complex as "the great escape", their other two "british" releases, "mlir" accomplishes a quasi-perfect balance that mapped out their musical direction for the next 3 years. the songs here all reek of british culture and that's a good thing, because albarn paints wonderful pictures of british life through his characters' words. as many have pointed out, blur was undergoing a sort of image makeover as they'd grown sick of the madchester, shoegazing scene that my bloody valentine and the stone roses had made so popular. this album, in many ways, ushered in the brit-pop sound of the 90s - that's a tremendous feat given blur's insignificance and the fact that critics ignored them at the time. songs like "chemical world", maybe the best here, bring back the meaningful pop hook-chorus days of the 60s, and incorporate the musical weirdnesses of bowie and the kinks. the first 9 tracks on the album are great and never let up, especially "for tommorow" and "star shaped". there's that genuine brit-feel i was talking about. the latter half of the album sags a little, but there are interesting tracks that recapture the spirit of the earlier songs, like "villa rosie" and "popscene". this is certainly an important album for blur fans and those interested in the roots of current brit-pop. casual fans of blur may not be thrilled with the album though, because it is difficult to grasp without giving it ample time to sink in, much like "great escape" and even "13"."