So, as shown clearly in the chart, the albums of the year ended up being Paradise Lost's Draconian Times and Fear Factory's Demanufacture. White Zombie's Astrocreep received an honorary mention alongside non-metal albums like Shelter's Mantra, Life of Agony's Ugly and Silverchair's Frogstomp. More established bands in my collection like Carcass, Faith No More, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Senseless Things all had good albums too, even if relatively speaking they all lost their way a little.
But it wasn't rock and metal all the way, I'd started my musical journey away from pop with indie and Friday nights at the Middlesbrough Arena allowed that journey to continue. With Britpop bursting forth I didn't quite look the part with my long hair, black T-shirts and army trousers, but strangely of all the genres I've dipped into over the years, Britpop was the scene that I felt a part of.
As the Arena included gigs on Fridays too, there were a lot of up and coming bands passing through the doors at that time. The ones I saw during 1995 are listed below, Skunk Anansie being the only one at the Arena that really moved on to bigger and better things, although there were others like O***s that played there that I was quite happy not to have seen.
03/03/95 Velo Deluxe, China Drum (@Middlesbrough Arena)
31/03/95 Snuff, Bulltaco, Star 69 (@Middlesbrough Arena)
02/06/95 Skunk Anansie, Honeycrack (@Middlesbrough Arena)
09/06/95 Boo Radleys, Swervedriver, Ed Ball (@Middlesbrough Town Hall)
21/07/95 Blameless, Bulltaco, Laxton’s Superb (@Middlesbrough Arena)
22/07/95 Pulp, Sleeper, Menswear, Salad, Powder, Chumbawamba, Skunk Anansie, 60ft Dolls, Blameless, Catatonia, Cecil + Marion, The Bluetones, DetRiMental (@Leeds Roundhay Park)
21/09/95 Shelter, Understand, Shutdown (@Middlesbrough Arena)
06/10/95 China Drum, Honeycrack, Reverse (@Middlesbrough Arena)
17/11/95 Rub Ultra, Fat (@Middlesbrough Arena)
01/12/95 Bullyrag (@Middlesbrough Arena)
The Roundhay Park gig was later dubbed Britstock and was my first festival of sorts, a who's who of up and coming British bands, many of whom would have chart hits. Note the appearance of Blameless in Middlesbrough on 21/07/95 followed again on 22/07/95 at Leeds, a gap of only 15 hours or so between me seeing them. Curios in that list come from Fat, who were a rap/rock band featuring Woody from Madness on drums (Downtime made the shortlist for this chart) and Bullyrag whose guitarist took to wearing what was basically a tea cosy over his entire face and head in the early days while staring out members of the audience.
My own music remained mostly in the indie and punk arena too, mostly down to my playing skills. Me and my brother recorded 3 albums and 2 EPs as Pyf Belly Machine as well as the extended incarnation of that band playing a gig at my college in February 95. We were the least talented in terms of playing, but the only band that went to the college that were playing original songs. And we were all right as well, rough around the edges but I still think we had some decent songs despite the constant instrument swapping.
Solo I recorded 2 albums and 2 EPs as Marvin (later to become Spraypaint), one each of which were recorded on my brother's new 4-track Portastudio. The increase in sound quality coincided with an increase in songwriting quality and despite the constraints in playing produced one of the best songs I've ever written in One of These Days.
I also did an album and an EP as Uranium, which was my first attempt at rock music, although there were a fair amount of keyboards on there too as I was really attempting to be Guisborough's answer to Nine Inch Nails. Results weren't amazing but I'd hone it a little in subsequent years.
As with last time I'll give a shout to the bands that made the shortlist but not the chart, so commiserations to Chemical Brothers, Carter USM, Schtum, Smashing Pumpkins, Lightning Seeds, Napalm Death, Presidents of the USA, Rocket From The Crypt, Sleeper, Bal-Sagoth, Charlatans, Saint Etienne, EMF, Die Krupps, Fat, Primus, Marilyn Manson, Extreme and Silverchair. Maybe next time?
1. My Dying Bride - The Cry of Mankind
2. At The Gates - Blinded By Fear
3. China Drum - One Way Down
4. Life of Agony - Let's Pretend
5. Anathema - A Dying Wish
6. At The Gates - Slaughter of the Soul
7. Paradise Lost - Forever Failure
8. Ash - Girl From Mars
9. White Zombie - Electric Head Pt 1
10. Red Hot Chili Peppers - My Friends
11. Paradise Lost - The Last Time
12. Paradise Lost - Once Solemn
13. Pulp - Disco 2000
14. Fear Factory - Self Bias Resistor
15. Paradise Lost - Hallowed Land
16. Cathedral - Hopkins (The Witchfinder General)
17. Fear Factory - Replica
18. Paradise Lost - Enchantment
19. Fear Factory - Demanufacture
20. Fear Factory - H-K (Hunter-Killer)
21. Paradise Lost - Shadowkings
22. Pulp - Common People
23. Shelter - Message of the Bhagavat
24. China Drum - Barrier
25. Faith No More - Ugly in the Morning
26. Faith No More - Digging the Grave
27. White Zombie - Super-charger Heaven
28. Fear Factory - Body Hammer
29. Misery Loves Co. - Need Another One
30. Life of Agony - Lost at 22
31. Shelter - Here We Go
32. Elastica - Blue
33. Ugly Kid Joe - Milkman's Son
34. The Gathering - Strange Machines
35. My Dying Bride - From Darkest Skies
36. Paradise Lost - Yearn For Change
37. Senseless Things - Something to Miss
38. White Zombie - Electric Head Pt 2
39. Faith No More - What a Day
40. Foo Fighters - I'll Stick Around
41. Senseless Things - 16.18.21
42. Senseless Things - Touch Me on the Heath
43. Elastica - Stutter
44. Blur - Country House
45. Black Grape - Reverend Black Grape
46. Boo Radleys - Wake Up Boo!
47. Faith No More - Ricochet
48. Pearl Jam - I Got ID
49. Boo Radleys - Find the Answer Within
50. Life of Agony - Seasons
51. Life of Agony - Damned If I Do
52. The Gathering - In Motion #1
53. Shed 7 - Where Have You Been Tonight?
54. Sugar Ray - Mean Machine
55. Rancid - Time Bomb
56. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Warped
57. Skunk Anansie - I Can Dream
58. Faith No More - The Gentle Art of Making Enemies
59. Faith No More - Cuckoo For Caca
60. Carcass - Keep On Rotting in the Free World
61. Cathedral - Utopian Blaster
62. Paradise Lost - Shades of God
63. Paradise Lost - I See Your Face
64. Shelter - Civilized Man
65. Rancid - Roots Radicals
66. Menswear - I'll Manage Somehow
67. Reef - Good Feeling
68. Reef - Choose To Live
69. Menswear - Stardust
70. Menswear - Being Brave
71. Supergrass - Alright
72. Senseless Things - Wanted
73. Green Day - Stuck With Me
74. Iron Maiden - Man On The Edge
75. The Gathering - Eleanor
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