But they can't take away the stars

-
Eyes down, half asleep, fringe swept; celebrate your sheen and self and just bastard-well GAZE. Yes, whether you like it or not, there is always a certain era or moment (a movement?) that will try to define you and refuse to let go: tentacles gripped hard around those chords, pedals and headphones that speak to you of noises you possess. This will happen at gunpoint, usually. And also when the red wine flows. You return to those soundtracks seeking a solace and comfort lacking in what you hear around you today, last night, a month ago; a longing that is familiar in memory and practice. For even if you hide the CDs at the back of the cheap Ikea storage 'unit', in a vague attempt to play something else for a change, you will still unearth the Hut, 4AD or Creation treasures when the detective work starts. If you were lucky - and, um, are quite old - you'll no doubt remember that Ride used to take to the stage with 'Fyt' floating (yes, floating) through the PA system. They insisted. And it just worked brilliantly, in that developing, layered, building-to-reach-a-plateau kinda way. It was a 'must' for Side A, Track 1 of many a compilation tape. Often, such a start would require a less-than-novel shift into various players within that London ('Syndrome' on Oxford St) scene that celebrated itself. Ride, of course, and Moose as well. Guitars a howling, lyrics a mumbled, and grim punters posed as statues for the dancing never even started, not once. The Wallasey Boo folks, up North, were a bit different to the posh Thames Valley lot, and they changed focus after that first album, but nothing can take away from the raw effects terror of 'Ichabod and I'. And yes, I was tempted by the cheap and nasty lures of 'Outdoor miner', as a cover to finish on, but sometimes asexual silly pop is exactly what you want, the fucking most.
-
This Mortal Coil - 'Fyt' (4.24)
Ride - 'Chelsea girl' (2.58)
The Boo Radleys - 'Walking 5th carnival' (4.35)
Moose - 'Jack' (3.43)
Lush - 'Chirpy chirpy cheep cheep' (cover) (2.39)
-
One of the very few essential albums, really. We can't be friends, unless...
-