Blur | Modern Life is Rubbish
Let's get one thing straight. 'Modern Life is Rubbish' is my favorite album EVER. People can go on about Oasis being the next step on from the Beatles, but they're living in a dreamworld. You can argue about it all day, but the fact is that Oasis have merely cashed in on the Beatle's sound (or should that be one of the Beatle's sounds?) without progressing or adding any innovative ideas into the equation. Blur, on the other hand, have re-invented themselves with every album, and this, their seccond attempt, is, in my opinion, a damn-near perfect album.

But what makes it better than, say, 'Parklife'? It's hard to say, but there is definitely something in the music which appeals to me a lot more than 'Parklife'. The entire album has a theme, with the cover art and inlay fitting in perfectly with the songs to create a perfect piece of legislated nostalgia which oozes Brittish culture from every pore. I just love every song on it, so to give you a rundown on each one would take forever. The only criticism I could possibly make about this, the best album ever, is that on some songs such as 'Advert' and 'Colin Zeal', the electric guitar should have been just that bit more prominent, but this is more than made up for in Blur's live performances.

Every track on this album has its own mood and feel, and is written perfectly, using whatever instruments are needed in order to execute the perfect mood of each song - be it moog synthesiser, melodica, chair leg, power drill (true!) or Casio SK-1 (it's a recording device which was used for the sample at the beginning of 'Advert', which was taken from an advert on the shopping channel). Some songs on the album such as 'Oily Water' and 'Resigned' (two of my favorites) will never have anything written remotely similar to them ever again - they're just too different to be copied in any way.

Despite the albums unfailing musical quality, Blur only hit the big time after this album was released, and, whilst most Blur fans will undoubtedly own it already, it still remains untouched by the remainder of the general public. Hopefully, by reading this review you will make the right choice by going out and buying this beautiful collection of songs.

Sound Clips
'Resigned' - (0:36) | 'Sunday Sunday' - (0:33) | 'Advert' - (3:26) - special recording for James!!!

RATING: 98%