Ash - Ash 1977: Collector’s Edition

Horribly dated sophomore effort

It would be great if we could say that, 12 years and four albums on from the release of Ash’s sanguine stumble through puberty, 1977, the album retained its sun-kissed optimism. Unfortunately, this grungy slice of Britpop has not aged well.

At the time, the rough spontaneity of Tim Wheeler’s flat vocals and Rick McMurray’s muffled drumming only added to the youthful energy of the group who were, in 1996, barely out of school. Now, though, the original format just highlights the recording’s poor quality.

Nonetheless, Ash recently played two sell-out shows in London and it’s said they’ve played the London Astoria more than any other band. This threedisc release supposedly recaptures the magic of their five-day residency there in 1996. While not completely lacking in interest, this release comes close. For one thing, there’s little point in including a live show if said show has no atmosphere whatsoever.

There are some interesting extras on the Rarities & B-Sides disc, including a reworking of the Star Wars’ Cantina Band theme and a surprisingly passable cover of the Dusty Springfield hit I Only Want To Be With You. Aside from the occasional kitsch quirk, however, this is pretty tedious stuff.

1 stars

Warner Bros | 5186504505 (3-CD)

Reviewed by Emmy Watts
<< Back to Issue 357

You might also like:

Login Here

Free Newsletter


Subscribe to
our email newsletter by emailing:

anna.bowen@
metropolis.co.uk