from Rhino (aka Warner Music TV)

 

Brit Box: U.K. Indie, Shoegaze And Brit-Pop Gems Of The Last Millenium

 

The British are coming in a big way as Rhino presents the first-ever comprehensive survey of U.K. indie music with the king's ransom-sized, 4-CD THE BRIT BOX: U.K. INDIE, SHOEGAZE, AND BRIT-POP [sic] GEMS OF THE LAST MILLENNIUM. It gathers 78 key tastemaker recordings from U.K. performers spanning the last 15 years of the 20th century, chronologically sequenced over four packed discs. This celebration of cool Britannia is housed in bloody awesome box shaped like a classic red U.K. telephone booth -with working lights - and comes with a matching phone kiosk-shaped collectible keychain!

 

 

While many of these acts claimed superstar status in Mother England, only a select few seriously impacted the U.S. charts - but their stylistic imprint and collective hip factor clearly steered the course of contemporary music as the last millennium wound down. With the respect given the earlier '60s-era British Invasion in so many other compilations, the THE BRIT BOX is the first collection to hail Britannia with a wealth of music previously available only to those combing through the import bins at their local record stores. These artists didn't so much reject mainstream musical sensibilities as spin them in their own fashion for tracks that remain the essence of cool.

 

 

Disc 1, the first of THE BRIT BOX's four chronologically ordered CDs, roughly spans 1984-1990. Seminal U.K. artists including The Smiths, Jesus & Mary Chain and The Stone Roses take timeless guitar-pop and freshly reinvent it, while groups including Happy Mondays and Primal Scream borrow gleefully from hip-hop to give birth to acid house.

 

 

Disc 2, spanning '90 to '93, explores bands that came to be known in the British press as “shoegazers,” acts that spent more time looking at their feet than making eye contact with their audiences. Featuring tracks by Ride, My Bloody Valentine, The Telescopes and others, the music courses through a sonic space comprised of introspective soundscapes, hazy guitars and dense production.

 

 

Disc 3, focusing heavily on '94-'95, opens with Suede's “Metal Mickey.” Throughout, the song sequence heralds the arrival of Brit-pop, and hugely popular bands including Oasis, Blur, Pulp, and Elastica.

 

 

Disc 4, THE BRIT BOX's final CD, shows that even latecomers to the party like Ash, Super Furry Animals, Mansun, The Verve, and Placebo had some smashing songs in them.

 

Totaling over five hours of music, THE BRIT BOX: U.K. INDIE, SHOEGAZE, AND BRIT-POP GEMS OF THE LAST MILLENNIUM also features an 80 page booklet with interviews, memories and essays from Creation Records founder Alan McGee, seminal producers Stephen Street and Alan Moulder and an assortment of artists.

 

OK rate these records....

 

How soon is Now? - The Smiths

Lorelei - Cocteau Twins

Primitive Painters - Felt

Somewhere in China - Shop Assistants

My Biggest Thrill - The Mighty Lemon Drops

Just Like Heaven - The Cure

Lips Like Sugar - Echo & The Bunnymen

April Skies - The Jesus And Mary Chain

Walkin' With Jesus (sound Of confusion) - Spacemen 3

Crash - The Primitives

Unbearable - The Wonder Stuff

She Bangs The Drums - The Stone Roses

The Only One I Know - The Charlatans UK

Step On - Happy Mondays

Loaded (Single Version) - Primal Scream

This is How it Feels - Inspiral Carpets

Obscurity Knocks - The Trash Can Sinatras

There She Goes - The La's

Here's Where The Story Ends - The Sundays

Vapour Trail - Ride

Sight Of You - Pale Saints

Only shallow - My Bloody Valentine

For Love - Lush

Flying - The Telescopes

Pearl - Chapterhouse

I Want To Touch You - Catherine Wheel

Trip & slide - Bleach

Coast is clear - Curve

You - Five Thirty

This River Will Never Run Dry - Moose

(Thought i'd Died) And Gone To Heaven - The Family Cat

(Don't cut Me Down) Mary Quant in Blue - The Dylans

0-0 A.E.T. (No score After Extra Time) - Thousand Yard Stare

Grey cell Green - Ned's Atomic Dustbin

Shoot You Down - Birdland

Stay Beautiful - Manic Street Preachers

Star sign (Single Version) - Teenage Fanclub

Metal Mickey - Suede

Duel (Radio Edit) - Swervedriver

Breakfast - Eugenius

Barfly - Superstar

Regret - New Order

Laid - James

Kite - Nick Heyward

Lazarus - The Boo Radleys

You're in A Bad Way - Saint Etienne

Wow & Flutter - Stereolab

Tracy Jacks - Blur

Live Forever - Oasis

Common People - Pulp

Speeed King - These Animal Men

Wallflower - Mega City Four

Insomniac - Echobelly

Sleep Well Tonight - Gene

Sleeping in - Menswear

Alright - Supergrass

Alright - Cast

Stutter - Elastica

In A Room - Dodgy

Girl From Mars - Ash

Sale Of The Century - Sleeper

Sleep - Marion

Tattva - Kula Shaker

The Riverboat song - Ocean Colour Scene

You're Gorgeous - Babybird

Slight Return - The Bluetones

Something 4 The Weekend - Super Furry Animals

Something For The Weekend - The Divine Comedy

Brimful Of Asha - Cornershop

Service - Silver Sun

Ladies And Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space - Spiritualized

Wide Open space - Mansun

Step into My World - Hurricane #1

Lucky Man - The Verve

Untouchable - Rialto

Mulder And scully - Catatonia

You Don't care About Us - Placebo

Oh Jim - Gay Dad

 

so do you think this is a good compilation and worth getting???

i definitely approve of this compilation...big fan of felt and super furry animals right now

Love it, definately getting this one.

There's probably enough there (especially the first two discs) to make it worthwhile, but as it goes on it gets worse. Not bad if you don't own any of it already though - a good starting point.