Anyone remember That Petrol Emotion's first album "Manic Pop Thrill"?

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Listened to this last weekend. A lovely period piece. Was surprised that the mystery had finally been solved of why "Natural Kind of Joy" was always said to be such a big deal.

I don't often return to records that came from '86/'87, to be honest. It was nice to just turn off the critical ear and hear something pleasant and vaguely familiar from that era.

― Bimble... (Bimble...), Friday, 25 February 2005 07:01 (twenty-one years ago)

I haven't heard that one in quite a while, but I got on a Chemicrazy kick for a bit last summer.

― Johnny Fever (johnny fever), Friday, 25 February 2005 07:29 (twenty-one years ago)

What was that "hit" they had? "Big Decision"? It would be so funny to hear that now.

― Bimble... (Bimble...), Friday, 25 February 2005 07:31 (twenty-one years ago)

"It's a Good Thing" was always lovely, with those Television-y guitar lines, that pumping bassline and the whopping great final chorus. They were magnificent live, and (fact fans) remain the group I have seen live the most despite last seeing them in 1992 or something !

― darren (darren), Friday, 25 February 2005 11:37 (twenty-one years ago)

I still like that album but think I prefer Babble. After that I went off them pretty quickly. First couple of singles ('Keen' & 'V2') were alright too, but nowt special. Saw them in 87-ish with the excellent Slab! supporting (and VOTB too but we shan't dwell on that...).

― NickB (NickB), Friday, 25 February 2005 11:48 (twenty-one years ago)

"shan't"

― NickB (NickB), Friday, 25 February 2005 11:49 (twenty-one years ago)

"Creeping to the Cross" is about the only TPE song I can muster up any interest in .. and even then, it's damn rare.

― dave225 (Dave225), Friday, 25 February 2005 12:28 (twenty-one years ago)

Lovely people, but their music, hmmmmmmmmmm, dunno really

― Dadaismus (Dada), Friday, 25 February 2005 12:39 (twenty-one years ago)

seconded "Creeping to the Cross". The intro to that song, I imagine is the noise inside a solvent abusers head. I have no scientific proof, only anecdotal evidence.

― coffee_cake, Friday, 25 February 2005 12:43 (twenty-one years ago)

Now, if they came out this year, they'd be huge. But the times were oversubscribed...

― Mark G, Friday, 25 February 2005 12:45 (twenty-one years ago)

i reluctantly got dragged to see them by a girlfriend who had a huge crush on steve mack and totally fell in love (with te band, not with mr. mack). i must have ended up seeing them about ten times and got to know them a bit - lovely, lovely people. by the time of the second album they were pulling crowds of about 1000 here in scotland but it all seemed to go all wrong after that. shame.

the first two albums and the v2 single were fab.

― stirmonster, Friday, 25 February 2005 12:51 (twenty-one years ago)

Very very good live band. Popular in Scotland indeed. Steve Mack fancied by lots of women, indubitably!

― Dadaismus (Dada), Friday, 25 February 2005 12:54 (twenty-one years ago)

I've got nothing bad to say about That Petrol Emotion. (Why can't I find my 7" of Keen?)

― peepee (peepee), Friday, 25 February 2005 12:55 (twenty-one years ago)

I bought "Babble" a few months ago solely because of "Big Decision", which I heard on Classic VH-1. It's just ok.

― Alfred Soto (Alfred Soto), Friday, 25 February 2005 13:12 (twenty-one years ago)

fucking class.

if the rumours of the reunion ever comes off i will be so chuffed.

recently found mint copy of manic pop thrill on vinyl (the 1st pressing .. as colurs were updated for later pressings), yet to dog the record deck out of storage .. but this is one of the 1st slabs to hit the spinner when i do get it linked back up ..

m.e/ireallylovemusic

― mark e (mark e), Friday, 25 February 2005 13:19 (twenty-one years ago)

Creeping To The Cross! OMG I forgot about that one, yeah that was especially good. Babble didn't excite me much either. I remember buying the single of V2 when it came out, then selling it, then regretting having done so.

― Bimble... (Bimble...), Friday, 25 February 2005 17:42 (twenty-one years ago)

TPE got pretty good reviews at the time.

― Alfred Soto (Alfred Soto), Friday, 25 February 2005 17:48 (twenty-one years ago)

all you really need is manic pop thrill. it's a great guitar record. they did a pretty cool cover of mother sky.

― scott seward (scott seward), Friday, 25 February 2005 18:25 (twenty-one years ago)

The lick on "Big Decision" is classic!

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Friday, 25 February 2005 18:26 (twenty-one years ago)

this is one that i never heard. having been obsessed with babble, i felt i needed. years of checking the T sections of used LPs before the internet produced nothing -- only making the desire stronger. as time passed though, i moved on. by the time i did inadvertantly stumble across a copy maybe three or four years ago (and relatively cheap), i didn't even care anymore. i've never even bothered downloading it. maybe i will now. or maybe not.

xpost:
Spencer O.T.M!

― john'n'chicago, Friday, 25 February 2005 18:31 (twenty-one years ago)

the rap on big decision is NOT classic!

― scott seward (scott seward), Friday, 25 February 2005 18:32 (twenty-one years ago)

I tried to like babble when it came out as much as i enjoyed manic pop thrill, but it didn't work. i never played it. however, i STILL play manic pop thrill to this very day. you know, maybe, once or twice a year.

― scott seward (scott seward), Friday, 25 February 2005 18:34 (twenty-one years ago)

OTM Spencer

― Alfred Soto (Alfred Soto), Friday, 25 February 2005 18:53 (twenty-one years ago)

What did they do Mother Sky on Scott? I know they did a semi-crappy cover of Zig Zag Wanderer early on. Loop did a good Mother Sky round that time for sure.

― NickB (NickB), Friday, 25 February 2005 23:15 (twenty-one years ago)

You'd rather sail the ocean than make a big decision.

― Ferlin Husky (noodle vague), Saturday, 26 February 2005 03:19 (twenty-one years ago)

mother sky was a b-side on their groove check 12-inch. it was live too.

― scott seward (scott seward), Saturday, 26 February 2005 03:22 (twenty-one years ago)

Try as they might, tho, they couldn't find a tune in a barrel full of tunes.

― Ferlin Husky (noodle vague), Saturday, 26 February 2005 03:23 (twenty-one years ago)

actually, you know what, it was a Groove Check PROMO with 4 songs on it. Probably could find it for a dollar somewhere.

― scott seward (scott seward), Saturday, 26 February 2005 03:27 (twenty-one years ago)

It's A Good Thing is a GREAT tune.

― scott seward (scott seward), Saturday, 26 February 2005 03:27 (twenty-one years ago)

My freshman-year roommate was a straight-up God jock (lacrosse in the afternoons, Bible study in the evenings, Amy Grant records in between) who developed a sort of obsession with "Creeping to the Cross." He used to ask me to put it on, and then he'd pretend to be shocked and offended. I guess it was sort of his flirtation with the dark side or something.

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Saturday, 26 February 2005 05:24 (twenty-one years ago)

(and put me in the Babble column, tho I like Manic Pop too. haven't listened to either in some years.)

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Saturday, 26 February 2005 05:24 (twenty-one years ago)

I totally just got "Groove Check" for a dollar last week. Greatest day of my life. Now if I could just find that "Keen" 12"...

― Morley Timmons (Donna Brown), Saturday, 26 February 2005 16:15 (twenty-one years ago)

four years pass...

if the rumours of the reunion ever comes off i will be so chuffed.

to answer my own posting from all those years ago :

that petrol emotion : 2009 tour
01/07/2009 birmingham - academy 2
02/07/2009 portsmouth - wedgewood rooms
03/07/2009 london - bloomsbury ballroom
05/07/2009 kent - hop farm festival
06/07/2009 nottingham - rescue rooms
07/07/2009 manchester - academy 3
09/07/2009 leeds - cockpit
10/07/2009 newcastle - academy 2
11/07/2009 kinross, scotland - t in the park
12/07/2009 dublin - oxegen festival

clearly they have high hopes following last years one-off, but i fear they are going to find empty venues all over the land making this their final jaunt, meaning i am going to do that rare thing, and get off the bloody sofa and go to one of these.

― mark e, Monday, 22 June 2009 07:49 (sixteen years ago)

I saw the singer of this band in Seattle at a showing of a post-punk film a few years ago. I later read he moved to Seattle. I feel bad because I couldn't stop staring at him for awhile. He seemed embarassed.

I wish I knew where this LP is in my boxes off hand, but it'd take some digging.

― She's A Witch, You Son Of A (Bimble), Monday, 22 June 2009 08:17 (sixteen years ago)

This is kind of tempting. One of the first half-decent bands I ever really loved. First two albums were great, and the first couple of singles before those were pretty smart too. Loved 'Keen', really fizzed along. Guess it was a huge Bunnymen rip-off in hindsight, but it was early days for them and I still have a bit of a soft spot for it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfSANgRA6cE

― Enemy Insects (NickB), Monday, 22 June 2009 21:51 (sixteen years ago)

I just remember that video they had where the band had the lyrics to the song written in white-out across their Ray-bans. Couldn't help thinking that must be hard to see through. That was "Big Decision" wasn't it? Bought the album on the strength of that, but it never got much play.

― Violent In Design (Masonic Boom), Monday, 22 June 2009 22:18 (sixteen years ago)

Don't think I ever saw that video, but I remember the press photos of them with those shades. Did that song and also 'Swamp' live on The Tube on telly though. Great performances, they were a good band to go and see around that time.

― Enemy Insects (NickB), Monday, 22 June 2009 22:33 (sixteen years ago)

hurray.
looks like i will be venturing beyond the boundaries of s.glos, and going to the london show.
isn't nostalgia great.

― mark e, Tuesday, 23 June 2009 15:55 (sixteen years ago)

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