Attack Of The Grey Lantern - Mansun

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A Bit of Background ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Mansun were formed in 1995 in Chester by Paul Draper (vocalist/rhythm guitarist) and Stove King (bassist), alongside Dominic Chad (lead guitarist) and Andie Rathbone (drummer). The band started in controversy by originally being called Manson after the infamous Charles Manson but were legally required to change it due to copyright issues. Mansun were caught up in the Britpop explosion around the same time that such bands as Blur, Oasis, Cast, Pulp, Sleeper, Garbage, Elastica etc were hitting form, but for me they erred much more on an Indie rock style than Britpop, perhaps due ...  Read the complete review

Well where do i begin on one of the albums that got me through a lot of bad times and when i listen to it now i still think what a great album it was and as the album cover says "Number 1 Album" and it got there rightfully so as it was the time of around the Britpop type era and some bands did well and some others struggled badly but i think Mansun did their own thing and i think it worked and even though some of the lyrics were a bit unusual i think thats what attracted a lot of people to the band and their meloncolly music at times. My brother already has purchased Attack Of The Grey Lantern and i had heard a few Mansun tracks on the radio and also ...  Read the complete review

Music is a great thing for sharing. Sure, we can't like everything, but all it takes is to whack your friends CD in the hi-fi, and away you go. You may even find something you want to go out and buy yourself, or you may embrace an entirely new genre. Who knows until you try it? Well, me and Mark Burlison (yhwman) and doing a bit of CD swapping while we are still living together at uni, and it's my job to review Mansun's debut album 'Attack Of The Grey Lantern'. Should be interesting… Mansun are a band from the tail end of the indie era, and while they do exhibit a few traits from indie, they succeed in creating a new interesting, and ...  Read the complete review

Write some songs about a stripping transvestite vicar and someone called Mavis? Surely it?ll never catch on, you must be mad! Well, that?s what a quartet from Chester decided to do, unleashing their debut album into the British music scene, four years ago now. And it still seems like yesterday. Woo hoo Mansun, you knocked Blur off the number one spot in the album charts with this gem! And on with album... For those who don?t know who Mansun are, they?ve been lumped in the indie category. Not strictly true, as they don?t exactly stick to the indie style and certainly don?t give a damn when it comes to competing with their peers. They just do what the hell ...  Read the complete review

Mansun's debut album in 1997 was probably one of the most refreshing debuts of the year (though I find Mogwai's 'Young Team' the best of that year, but I would wouldn't I? =)). The band who draw influences from bands like the Manix were (I dunno if they still are after the critics have slaughtered their latest album) the UK's most likeliest lads in the indie scene. Catchy and poppy enough to scrape at the mainstream, but still weird and outcast enough to be the darlings of the indie crowd. Exactly what the music scene needed! 'Attack Of The Grey Lantern' is 11 (+ a 12th bonus track) songs worth of guitar pop genius and quite a dose ...  Read the complete review