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We’re going to agree to ignore that the video above is made up of unrelated clips of Kick Ass. We’re also going to agree to ignore the fact that it sounds like there’s a fairly evil storm brewing over London, because this song is an unashamedly summery slice of pop-rock from way back (how scary is that?) in 1999.

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There’s nothing hugely special about this track, I just like it. It wasn’t a single, I didn’t hear it on the radio, I don’t think any of my friends were into the band either. I don’t know much about the band and I actually don’t know a huge amount of the rest of the tracks from the album ‘All of You’ is taken from. In fact, I’m not even sure how I came across the track in the first place—I can only assume it has something to with being a teenager with an insatiable thirst for new music and Audio Galaxy. Oh lordy, horrible memories of bleeping, slow, dial-up connections are coming flooding back… let’s not go there.

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Anyway, listen, enjoy, and if you’re in London, hiding from the rain, imagine for a second that you’re not.

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KS

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Today’s unapologetic cheesefest is this sublime slice of cheddar courtesy of Australia. I don’t know what it is about the video (and actually the song a bit too) but it kind of reminds me of Boyzone’s ‘Picture Of You’. Some things I love about this video:

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• It looks unashamedly late-90s. Those over-saturated colours! That pseudo dance routine! My God, those haircuts.
• The girl ironing, actually ironing, her hair. Umm, what?
• The news anchor in a pale pink suit with the make-up artist in the fluoro-green jacket and bright red skirt. WHY. JUST WHY. MY EYES ARE BURNING. BURNING, I TELL YOU.
• If you squint a bit, John Farnham actually kind of looks like Rik Mayall trying to take the p!ss out of John Farnham. 

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There’s a lot more additional WTFs going on here, but I’ll leave some (dubious) viewing pleasure down to you.

(And yes, I do quite like the song)

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KS

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This performance of ‘Black’ is taken from Pearl Jam’s now iconic MTV Unplugged set back in 1992. I reckon this performance is even better than the original, recorded version on their debut album, Ten.

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Apparently Epic Records wanted to release ‘Black’ as the fourth single from the album but the band refused—

“fragile songs get crushed by the business. I don’t want to be a part of it. I don’t think the band wants to be part of it.”
- Eddie Vedder

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It’s a heart-wrenching song and I think this Unplugged performance draws that out more so than any other. Eddie’s cries of “We belong together” at the end just make me melt. Here’s another choice Eddie quote from the Pearl Jam 20 documentary film:

“The song’s about letting go […] I’ve heard it said that you can’t really have a true love unless it was a love unrequited. It’s a harsh one, because then your truest one is the one you can’t have forever.”

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Ouch. Massively.

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(Eddie Vedder …don’t mind if I do.)

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KS

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I was having a bit of a nineties moment last night and remembered this song. I’m not normally an R&B fan (and arguably this is just straight-forward pop anyway) but I always had a bit of a soft spot for this song. Finding the video of this performance from Top of the Pops made me feel a bit like I was 10 years old again… just for 2 mins 49 seconds. 

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‘Nobody Knows’ was the debut single by Tony Rich, released back in 1996. The album it was taken from, Words, received a Grammy award for Best R&B Album. Previously, he had been writing for other artists at LaFace, such as TLC, Boyz II Men and Toni Braxton, but ‘Nobody Knows’ netted him his first platinum single of his own, reaching #2 in the US and #4 in the UK.

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KS

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Anathema are one of those bands that have hugely transformed themselves from album to album. Beginning in Liverpool in 1990, they were a doom metal band, complete with doom-y death growls from vocalist Darren White. Upon Darren’s departure from the band in 1995, guitarist, Vincent Cavanagh took over singing duties, lending Anathema a much cleaner sound and beginning the next chapter of the band’s sound—a sound that was firmly established by the time Judgement was released in 1999, on British metal label Music For Nations. Judgement also marked the first album on which Danny Cavanagh took over the bulk of the song-writing (after bassist Duncan Patterson left the band) and was at the peak of what I like to call Anathema’s particularly “dark & twisty” period — characterised by melancholy, depressing lyrics, with atmospheric and melodic (though still fairly heavy) music that was clearly drawing a lot of influence from Pink Floyd.

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“That was a big changing point, tuning up to Eternity. At the point, I think we found our voice. We were still very melancholic, extremely so, really. There are moments of real anger and intensity, and maybe even joy, but it’s very hard to find. Alternative 4, I think, was one of the darkest periods in the band - personally, musically, in every way.”

- Vincent Cavanagh, interview on Sea Of Tranquility

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I think ‘Deep’ is one of the real highlights from Judgement. It’s anthemic (every time they play this live, even now, the crowd sing every word), that little guitar riff is brilliant and Vincent’s voice sounds awesome. It also really shows off the melodic heart that was always present in their music (a concept they explored recently by revising their early material on Falling Deeper).

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These days, Anathema seem an altogether happier band, both personally and musically. 2011’s We’re Here Because We’re Here album marked yet another chapter in Anathema’s evolution and saw a kind of positivity replace the darkness of the previous albums. Looking back at songs like ‘Deep’ within the context of where the band are at now, it’s interesting to see just how raw and publicly they laid out their problems, but it’s also striking to notice how the beautiful melodies that weave themselves through the newer material were hiding just under the surface all along.

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sad Anathema…

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…happy(er) Anathema

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KS

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The bank holiday weekend came with a condition: if any day was sunny, we’d spend it in a beer garden. Flashback to Good Friday: the sun was indeed shining. Onforth to the beer garden. Quite the misnomer, given that the drink of choice was our old friend, the Jaegerbomb…

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Fastforward to later that evening, back at home, feeling great. And then someone brings out the 90s tunes. Sorry, 90s TOOOOOOOOOOOOONZ. My favourite hazy memory is dancing on the sofa to this song. Of all the Swedish songstresses of the late 1990s, Meja is perhaps my favourite. ‘All ‘Bout The Money’ is by far her greatest hit. Even Billboard Magazine agrees: “Once in a while, a debut single hits you between your eyes and makes you want to do everything in your power to lend support to its success.” The nonsense lyrics of the chorus – “It’s all ‘bout the money/It’s all ‘bout the the dum dum didudumdum” speak volumes about our societal dependence on the dosh. Here, Meja is a foil to our home-grown songstress Jessie J, and her smash hit ‘Price Tag’ – “It’s not about the money, money, money/We don’t need your money, money, money”. Meja vs Jessie. Money vs the power of song. Sounds like a day at the office…

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Back to the song! It’s from Meja’s second album (really?) Seven Sisters. Wikepedia informs me that the album won Best Album of the Year and Best selling Scandinavian artist at the illustrious World Music Awards in Monte Carlo. Fuelled by Jaeger and Red Bull, I bestowed the track my own award – “BEST SONG EVERRRRRRRRRR!” Quite. 

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PC