the British Evasion

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Radiohead aside, the only British band that seems to be making any kind of splash on this side of the pond is the warbling Coldplay... there are no British bands on the charts, on the radio, and there really hasn't been since Oasis and the Spice Girls years ago. Who is the next great hope for British music to retake the US? 'Vex Red'?

― Andy, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

How's about that Mick Jagger? ;-)

― helenfordsdale, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

It's the perfect time and the perfect lull. The Shadow Ring now have it all in their hands to conquer Stateside youth and the rest of the masses with them. LEZ DO IT.

― Brian MacDonald, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Right now they're claiming it's Starsailor. I DOUBT.

― Ned Raggett, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I don't know though, I wouldn't have rated Coldplay either.

But then Coldplay have something most other British bands don't have...THE DAVE MATTHEWS FACTOR! When I first heard "Yellow" I assumed it was a new DMB single. I was dumfounded to find out it wasn't them. So I guess the trick is to fool people by sounding like a mediocre but highly successful rawk band.

A Brutish Creed soundalike would probably rake in the cash.

― Nicole, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

my american dave matthews loving friend was like "coldplay are so great, they'll definitely make it over in america". that definitely figures.

he also hates dance. it fits so well.

― Ronan, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

It's not possible for there to be a British Creed.

Only about 2% of the country believes in God anymore. So the market just isn't there.

― Ben Williams, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

The kids are getting into Bob the Builder, maybe he could do the business?

(Actually, Craig David is selling a fair amount of records and, if they count, Gorlliaz.)

― scott p., Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Craig David is doing really well. I think he actually might break out this year.

― Ben Williams, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

CAN WE FIX IT YES WE CAN!!!

― BOB BOB BOB, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

What about David Gray, He's selling alot here. Of course he also has the Dave Matthew's factor.

― A Nairn, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

David Gray is brilliant... who else could have constructed such a razor-sharp wordplay: "Babylon" as "babble-on." Get it? Get it?

― Andy, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

In any case, your examples (Gorillaz excepted) are whiny, pasty singer/ songwriter types that grown-ups listen to. I'm talking about STARS, big goddamn stars like Marc Bolan was... What Brit is going to be a big goddamn STAR.

― Andy, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

There are no stars bigger than Marc Bolan, and even he wasn't that big here in the States.

― Sean, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

In any case, your examples (Gorillaz excepted) are whiny, pasty singer/ songwriter types that grown-ups listen to.

I wouldn't think Craig David would fit this description.

― Nicole, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

BOB!! BUILD!!

― BOB BOB BOB, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

But who have the U.S. missed? Robbie Williams, I guess. But other than that who else in the UK has been a big Gallagher/Spice Girl-style Star in the past few years? Fran Healy and Hannah S Club aren't exactly the same thing, are they? The "second tier" -- Fatboy Slim, Blur, the Verve, the Prodigy all did about as well as could be expected. The personalities seem to be coming from hip-hop and nü-metal.

(of course, David Gray = not British, but he probably fits the "spirit" of Andy's question and was sold here in the same breath as Travis, Coldplay, Badly Drawn Boy.)

― scott p., Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

i hate them, but Bush was very successful in the US in the mid/late 90s, trying to sound like an american band

― g, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

(of course, David Gray = not British

Well, I see that I am clearly wrong. I always thought this guy was Irish. Nuts.

― scott p., Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I can't work out if Scott's last post is a joke or not.

― Tim, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Now, I'm just confused. I always thought he was Irish, probably because he popular there first and his songs seem to brush up against some Celtic influence (I've never heard his speaking voice), but checked AMG between posts and it said he is born in Manchester, raised in Wales. Is he Irish?

― scott p., Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

*was popular*

― scott p., Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

No he's just inexplicably and terminally popular here.

― Ronan, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

There are, of course, those American 'artists' who are only known in the UK, i.e. Daphne & Celeste and... gulp... the Fun Lovin' Criminals. Over there, these lads appear in beer ads... in the US, they're fortunately unknown.

― Andy, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

oi don't sneer at d&c: they have the nitsuh seal of approval

― mark s, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

For starters, Britain needs to seriously upgrade their standard for loud, in-your-face irony-free obnoxiousness. Oasis just wouldn't cut it these days. Way too subtle.

― Curt, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

The failure of the Brits to properly franchise the boy/girl band phenomenon is disappointing. After all, Take That kickstarted the current resurgence. Now it seems as if (or perhaps I should say the end of year TOTP program made it seem as if) every other band--er, "band"--in England consists of either 5 boys or 5 girls (or possibly 3 girls and 2 boys, etc.), but they are all completely unknown in America.

Mind you, the ongoing refusal of Brit girl/boy bands to conform to US standards of robotic beauty is wonderful. They all look so dumpy doing their little routines.

― Ben Williams, Monday, 28 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

David Gray is English raised in wales, but we have the Irish to blame for his popularity. I dallied with a irish girl four years ago who tried unsuccesfully to convince me of his merits. And then we 'exploded' on to the UK charts.

Don't you just wish he would?

God I can't stand him. Whiny tubby boring old bastard. Anyhoo; I don't think ver 'Sailor will cut it across the pond. I know it's an unpleasant thought, but the nu-metallers, mookers, and their ilk look like noisy evolutionary succcesses compared to our new British guitar bands.

I dunno. They've just got no spunk.

― misterjones, Tuesday, 29 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

for 'we' in above post read 'he'. Really must stop typing so fast

― misterjones, Tuesday, 29 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I was wondering a similar thing myself a few months ago, although from a British perspective. From where I stood it specifically seemed like there was a dearth of major English guitar bands. The thread, The Strange Death of English Bands is here.

― N., Tuesday, 29 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

As the UK continues to decline into squalid uselessness, its inhabitants try harder and harder to maintain their 'cool', which disables the ability to 'rock' and be a 'star'.

― dave q, Tuesday, 29 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

What happened to 2002, year of the pro-British Dave Q?

― Tom, Tuesday, 29 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

By all accounts, the new UK band that have the ability to "storm" the charts state-side are....

drumroll....

LOSTPROPHETS!!!

and guess what? they're shite.

Its just playing US NuMetal at their own game.

If there was any justice in the world, the best crossover would be Roots Manuva.

but there isnt.

― Rob Carthy, Tuesday, 29 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

um, i think you guys -are- miscounting the success of craig david. driving around in a car with no cd player on saturday and sunday for most of the day i heard him 11 TIMES. and it was a slinky smoov luvvaman r&b version of uk garage hit "7 days", albeit at 1/10th the pace. david always had more of a chance to break out than any uk garage satellite, becuz unlike say wideboyz or the artful dodger he has a -face-, a pretty face gurls like apparently.

― jess, Tuesday, 29 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

If there was any justice in the world the best crossover would be Roots Manuva

Ethan to thread I think.

Lost Prophets also need to be skinned and rolled in salt.

― Ronan, Tuesday, 29 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Pendatic Moment: "7 Days" != UK Garage.

― Tim, Tuesday, 29 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

wait, tim are you saying "7 days" does or does not = uk garage? now i know i have it on my "greatest garage anthems...ever" comp...

― jess, Tuesday, 29 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

The original version of "7 Days" is the ones doing the rounds on radio and MTV. Same as "Fill Me In," it isn't the two-step remix that is getting on U.S. radio.

(Of course she isn't British, but it's sort of stupidly exciting to hear Kylie on the radio.)

― scott p., Tuesday, 29 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

It's stupidly exciting to hear "Can't Get You Out of My Head", anyway. If it had been "Spinning Around" I would have just been annoyed.

― Nicole, Tuesday, 29 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Actually, I meant "Kids" ;)

― scott p., Tuesday, 29 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

The problem with most UK rock music currently is that it's drowning in necrophilia (not literally, sadly), possibly thanks to Oasis and their total lack of a single original thought proving a valid selling point.

― DG, Tuesday, 29 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I read that heroin abuse in Britain is surging, so that has to help out the music scene, right?

― bnw, Tuesday, 29 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Are Starsailor really the second big Brit thing in America right now? Seriously?

I was walking over to the neighborhood newstand to pick up a weekly a few weeks ago, only to see a crowd of people at the neighborhood record store (Sonic Boom records) waiting anxiously for Starsailor to perform live. The lead guy person came by, made an obnoxious wail for a song.. maybe two.. then left to go to his/their opening slot for the Charlatans.

Soooo, unless I live in an oasis of Starsailor immunity or something.

― Brian MacDonald, Tuesday, 29 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Muse have the looks, attitude, tunes and yank-friendly distorted guitars. My money's on them.

― Justin Case, Tuesday, 29 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Maybe not the looks, but Dave Grohl wasn't/isn't exactly an Adonis was/is he? (apologies to the enviably talented Muse drummer).

― Justin Case, Tuesday, 29 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Muse have the looks, attitude, tunes and yank-friendly distorted guitars.

Pity about the lack of talent.

― Ned Raggett, Tuesday, 29 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Pity about the lack of talent.

You could say that about damn near every British guitar band in memory.

[ducks]

― M. Matos, Wednesday, 30 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Isn´t that mudvayne british? they sure sounded british for me

― Chupa-Cabras, Wednesday, 30 January 2002 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

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