Browsing the BBC news website last Monday morning one particular headline caught my eye – ‘Supergrass split‘. What? I didn’t actually want to believe it was true, surely it couldn’t be? I even double checked the calendar to make sure it wasn’t April fools day, despite knowing full well that it had already been and gone. I think ‘denial’ is probably the word I’m looking for here. Once I’d read the article in full, it started to sink in. This was not some sort of practical joke, it was not some unforgivable grave mistake by the BBC’s editorial team, Supergrass – a band I’ve held so dearly in my heart since the mid nineties, have actually packed it in, and there’s no amount of reality dodging that could change this terrible news.
Casting my mind back to simpler times, I can vaguely remember my first ever Supergrass live experience at Wembley Arena in December, 1997 at the tender age of 13. They were supporting Oasis and Gaz was sporting a rather impressive beard – a detail of which I’m quite proud I remember. Now, surely every band wants their support act to do a good job of getting the crowd pumped for their arrival, but Supergrass did more than that, they almost blew Oasis out of the water – they were that bloody good. This was during the promotion of their second album, In It For The Money, which made for a pretty good set list. Tearing through brilliantly, energetic, ear-deafening performances of songs such as the frantic Richard III and Sun Hits The Sky, I’d really felt like I got a lot of bang for my buck that night, and I’d made the transformation from fan to obsessive. To say it was a religious experience might be going too far, but fuck it, what better way to describe it?
Sund Hits the Sky , Live at Glastonbury
It probably sounds very cliche to admit it, but like many others, I was first exposed to Supergrass when ‘Alright’ was released, a time when ‘Britpop’ had arrived, giving the British music scene a much needed kick up the arse and opening my eyes and ears to a bucket load of brilliant bands. ‘Alright’ was and still is the sound of a perfectly crafted pop tune that oozes youthful exuberance, it’s their Digsy’s Dinner, only better. This was the song that inspired me to dig out their debut album ‘I Should Coco’ from my local Our Price. The album didn’t disappoint, and did more to confirm my suspicions that I had stumbled upon something truly special. Overflowing with infectious melodies and upbeat, catchy, punky songs ensured it a regular spot in my Sanyo 3 disc CD stereo – these were good times.
In a modern age where bands that continuously fail to live up to the glories of their debut album, to the contrary, Supergrass made it look far too easy in 1997 when they released In It For The Money. I recall seeing the video for Richard III on a children’s Saturday morning television show, and being transfixed by Danny’s relentless, psychotic assault of his drums and the thunderous riff that blew my head off. The album also introduced listeners to a new side of Supergrass. They’d moved forward in their song writing and progressed on to the premier league with anthems like Going Out and arguably the record’s crowning moment – Late In The Day. The album came out at a time when ‘Britpop’ was at its arse end, whereas Supergrass were holed up in their own little bubble blissfully enjoying the peak of their career. Urban Hymns was the only album that rivaled theirs that year, and that’s saying something.
Third album, ‘Supergrass’, followed and boasted some of their finest moments, despite admittedly being a bit patchy in places. They’d continued to push forward with their songwriting and experimented with some new sounds, exploring darker avenues whilst maintaining their canny knack of crafting glorious slices of indie pop. Moving, Mary and Pumping On Your Stereo are songs a band on their third album would kill for. If anything, this album proved there was so much more to Supergrass than a radio-friendly catchy tune. It demonstrated they had depth, were capable of doing the distance and evolving as a band musically, unafraid to try out new ideas whilst keeping the quality up.
Another memorable experience of seeing Supergrass was at the V-festival in 2002. I’d managed to buy a last minute day ticket the night before and traveled up to Staffordshire from London. Unfortunately, Nickelback were on just before them, so to guarantee my spot in the crowd and enjoy Supergrass up close and personal, I had to endure this abomination of a band’s entire set. But this was merely a testament to my dedication and love for the band that was to follow. This particular gig stands out as it was one where they’d debuted new material from forthcoming album Life On Other Planets. As every new song was announced, I experienced a feeling only comparable to the one you get as a child on Christmas eve. Yes, really.
It was during the promotion for fourth album, Life On Other Planets that I saw Supergrass live again at Wembley Arena. However, this time they were the headliners. Gaz’s powerful, Bolan-esque vocals backed by the glorious racket his band mates contributed tore the roof off and the new songs sounded great. Grand arena’s aside, Supergrass are best appreciated in an intimate setting, namely the Shepherds Bush Empire. I’d seen them here the very same year, and it was a gig that would easily fit into my top ten live experiences of any band I’ve seen. Peering down from a balcony with more than enough red stripe at hand, I experienced Supergrass at what I consider to be their best. If you were there, I’m sure you’ll agree. If you weren’t, well I sincerely feel sorry for you.
Other albums followed – the mellow, acoustic-driven Road To Rouen which unveiled a bold new direction that challenged their listeners and the more recent Diamond Hoo Ha, which marked more of a return to the jaunty pop of their earlier material. Despite commercial success on the wane in recent years, I’ve enjoyed every record they’ve released and strongly believe they’ve never put out a weak album. Every one has sounded different from the last and has stood the test of time. With so many hits, you’re hard pushed to associate them as a band tagged with ‘one’ song. Some might say ‘that’ song would be ‘Alright’, but anyone with a good ear for music will know that they’ve crafted dozens of tunes just as good as, if not better, than that one, and its just a pity that not enough people are aware of this fact. Grace, Caught By The Fuzz, Sun Hits The Sky, Moving..need I go on? Aside from their fantastic collection of singles, they also have a remarkable back catalogue of album tracks that are at the very least worth a preview play on i-tunes -‘She’s So Loose‘, ‘It’s Not Me‘, ‘Za‘, and the epic ‘Prophet 15′ to name a few.
One of my biggest regrets is not having told Danny what a great drummer he is. I was at a gig for the homeless charity ‘Crisis’ in the Camden Roundhouse and noticed he’d slipped into the crowd and stood right in front of me during the Dirty Pretty Things set. A light bulb in my head went off and I had the idea of shaking his hand and telling him he was my favourite drummer of all time, the usual arse-licking you feel the need to give your heroes. Before I’d quite managed to pluck up the courage to do so, he was gone. But that’s fine, because I’ve got a feeling Danny’s more than likely heard it all before.
Supergrass were more than a band to me, they’d become part of the fabric of my youth, soundtracking some of the best years of my life with songs that mean a great deal to me. I have fond memories of many of their songs, whether it be playing air guitar to Richard III in my bedroom as a teenager (we’ve all done it at least once), singing Caught By The Fuzz at the top of my voice at an indie club night, or hearing St Petersburg for the first time at a show in Camden’s KOKO, there’s just too many to mention.
Whether or not Gaz and Danny’s recent side project The Hot Rats played any part in the decision to split up Supergrass currently remains unknown, and I wouldn’t want to speculate. The last we’d heard from the band was that the new album was near completion, and I cling onto the hope that this material will see the light of day, as it would be a nice treat for the fans, one last hurrah if you will. What is certain is that this is truly a sad loss to music and the end of a band who came out of the Britpop era relatively unscaved and managed to sustain their success in the wake of the movement’s demise. Never really having been plagued with the cliched downfalls associated with many bands, whether it be drug, booze or friendships breaking down, they always seemed like a band you’d never imagine splitting up, they were the girlfriend you’d never imagine would walk away. ‘Musical differences’ have been cited as the reason for the split, which despite the sadness of it all is far more comforting to hear than any bad relations between band members being the cause.
If you’ve been unfortunate or ignorant enough not to have experienced the pleasures of Supergrass before, I urge you to get hold of their singles collection and take things from there. It’ll probably be one of the best purchases you ever make, but don’t thank me, thank Gaz, Danny and Mick.
Matt Humphrey
You forgot to include Rob in your thank you at the end. He has been there from the start too!
I didn’t expect to get so emotional about this, it’s not like anyone died, but I’ve felt awful these days. I cried reading this article. I’m not sure I’m up to the farewell gigs.
I guess it would be like after any relationship; the sex after the breakup might be fun, but it will not fix things. And I do have to say my heart is broken, just as after any breakup. And I still love them.
My teenage years are built on I Should Coco. Those were the days I was ones caught by the fuzz myself. All that great music and my kid dancing first time by the natural urge to Diamond Hoo Ha, and these things will forever be so. But I fear these ‘musical differences’ were just the thing that kept them from ever being boring! What if we never get to experience again the kind of chemistry that these guys had together? I mean The HotRats is fun and all, but it comes no where near being as interesting as Supergrass has always been.
mate, very good read, in fact i was at some of the same gigs as you, and like you Supergrass provided the soundtrack to my life. – check out my site on facebook – just type in “supergrass tribute” and u will see my site to get supergrass the number 1 single they never had