Nu Clear Sounds - Ash

In my opinion this is Ash's finest album to date. I'll maybe be revising this come next spring when their new album comes out, if the new tracks I have heard are anything to go by. This was Ash's first album as a four-piece with the addition of guitarist Charlotte Hatherly, and with this sees a more marked change from the poppiness of "1977" as Ash head down a more dark, broody, heavier path. Critics seemed to adore the album, although the fans reception was more lukewarm, it lost them quite a few fans whilst not really gaining them any. I think the more mature sound really benefits the band, as they grow up and move on. Projects ...  Read the complete review

Doesn't it seem as though Brit Pop has been dormant lately? Those rabble-rousing Gallagher brothers are keeping a low profile, and overall this hasn't been the year for the latest and greatest rock records making their way across the Atlantic every five minutes — that was so '97. But a steady stream of U.K. music-makers coming over here keeps us on our toes, if for nothing else than as a basis for comparison, especially after the SugarSmashRayMouth summer we just had. So let's raise the periscope and see what's beyond the horizon, shall we? Ash, having already been a big hit in England (but lesser known here), is comprised of three ...  Read the complete review

Many of you will have heard of Ash, they have been releasing singles off their latest masterpiece ‘Free all Angles’ for some time. ‘Nu-Clear Sounds’ was their second album, released before ‘Free all Angles’. Frankly it had a lot to live up to Ash’s first release ‘1977’ was a classic, and established them as one of the hottest prospects around on the music scene. The only problem was ‘Nu-Clear Sounds’ just did not live up to what it should have done. That is not to say this is a bad album, it just did not get close to the high standards Ash set themselves. They have tried to get a bit louder, and ...  Read the complete review

Ash's second album was always going to be a struggle. 1977 had arrived with a bang and had been adored by students and well, most people who liked indie across the UK. This album saw them take a more mature approach. Who: Indie rock group, who surfaced in 1995 with 'Kung Fu' and fronted by Tim Wheeler. On this album: 'Jesus Says' was the lead track from this and failed to dent the top ten singles chart. It has competent vocals from Tim, but I got the feeling it was trying to be too cool for its own good. The grittiness was there, but the sense of fun felt on the first album was lacking. 'Wild Surf' became the only other hit to ...  Read the complete review

This, Ash's second album, is the one they went all grown up on. Not only have they brought in a new girl, Charlotte Hatherly, on vocals and guitar ( who adds more depth to their sound), they've also taken a bit of a new direction, away from the poppy songs of the first album, to something which seems darker and more urgent. The opening song, projects, a relentless blast of sound which seems to hang around in the air for a couple of minutes, with a refrain of "dark in heaven baby that's for sure" really sets the tone for the album, edgy, intense, relentless and altogether a lot more unsettling than we've seen Ash before. There are really two ...  Read the complete review