Suede – Suede (1993)

One more from the boot fair haul of a couple of weeks ago, I remember hearing the album at the time of release (probably on CD from the library), and quite enjoying it, but not enough to want to follow it up too closely.

The androgynous image of the cover and Brett Anderson's deliberately ambiguous statements didn't really appeal, but as a happily married man in his thirties, I probably wasn't the confused teenager market they were after. However, I enjoyed some of the songs. So thirty years on, how does it sound?

It's a decent listen, without anything getting me over-excited. It starts with two of the singles, So Young and Animal Nitrate. She's Not Dead slows the pace right down, and is probably the strongest of the slower songs, with Moving trying to contrast, with an ordinary faster song. The songs seem to alternate through the middle of the album, up, down until Breakdown, where we get a double dose of teen angst in a tedious ballad. Thankfully, single Metal Mickey comes along to liven the album up, followed by Animal Lover, another brighter track. There's a predictable conclusion with the over-earnest ballad The Next Life.

When they're rocking, I've quite enjoyed this album, but some of the slower songs sound strained, and at times a bit whiny to this pensioner.

Link to full album

3* - a solid debut, where the band sound at their best when they turn the decibels up.