Teenage Fanclub
Bandwagonesque

THE REVIEW

Since the numerous enthusiasts of Brit-rock present on these pages have not yet thought of it, I am taking the liberty to write a few words about one of the most famous and enjoyable British albums produced in the past decade by Cool Britannia: "Bandwagonesque" by the Teenage Fanclub.

Part of the ace trio released by Creation in 1991, along with the much more celebrated "Screamadelica" and "Loveless", this album was highly praised by American critics, being chosen as the album of the year by SPIN Magazine ahead of "Nevermind" (which, on the other hand, was awarded by NME, just to remind that at the time grunge was also very popular in the UK...). After all, Teenage Fanclub were not exactly the typical faces sent to the cover by the English press, nor will they ever write in cooking or fashion blogs.

 Four cheerful, somewhat ugly Scots, in love with Guinness and Celtic Glasgow, still around making a decent living with the original sin of having guiding figures all coming from overseas, apart from the inevitable Beatles: the "weak" rock of Big Star foremost, the Rickenbacker crackle of the Byrds (on the next album there's a track called "Gene Clark..."), the solemn and vulnerable stride of Neil Young, and the narcoleptic feedback of Dinosaur Jr.

Among these grooves lie small gems of vigorous guitar pop, among languid electric ballads that seduce the senses  ("What you do to me", "December"), power-pop assaults of intoxicating freshness ("Star Sign", "Pet Rock"), loose and romantic harmonic progressions ("The Concept", with a Mascis-like unrefined solo).

The alchemy doesn't always work, but when everything clicks, you have one of the best albums to place on the turntable now that Autumn is slowly extending its shadows. The perfect track is the programmatic "Alcholiday": the sunny Neil Young of "Zuma" spotted in the dreary and melancholic Scottish weekend, among Crazy Horse style vocal harmonies and enchanting melodies. A small hidden treasure amid the greenery of parks and the gloomy skyline of Glasgow.