They followed it with two mini-album "Ecstasy" and "Strawberry Wine", which were later included on a compilation album "Ecstasy and Wine" which was released in 1987 (I own it and itīs the most precious record in my collection). Itīs jangly pop already showed hints of the greatness to come and 1988 turned out to be their year. They released "You Made Me Realise" and later on the album "Isnīt Anything", both turned out to be hugely influential (not only on all of the Shoegazing bunch, but also lots of other bands). But the best was yet to come.
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It can be said that MBV were the founding fathers of Shoegazing but also killed the whole thing off. When they released "Loveless" in 1991, it made the albums by all the other bands unnecesserary, cos it compromised everything Shoegazing was meant to be and took it a lot further. Music like this hadnīt been heard before and has never been produced again.
The thing that strikes you first is the sound, layer upon layer, vocals and rythms drowned in a huge wave of feedback and sounds youīve never heard before. Shields achieved this by using guitars in ways that had never been thought of before and sampling them, to the effect that you sometimes think to hear a whole orchestra or flutes, but itīs always just guitars really. It was an absolutely amazing piece of work and seemed to make all the other bands realise that theyīd been foolish to think they could ever come up with anything as good as this, so they all shot off in different directions (Moose went country, Chapterhouse went dance, Lush went pop and Catherine Wheel went shit).
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Soon after the release they signed a new contract with Island, rumours had it that Creation didnīt want them anymore, cos "Loveless" nearly bankrupted them. Shields used the money to build his own study, in which he planned to record his new album. And after that the wait began. Every couple of months there would be new rumours about an album being released soon, but none of them were true. In November 1997 Shields even said in an interview that if the album wasnīt out before the end of the year he would kill himself. Well, the album still isnīt out, which is a shame, and heīs still alive, which is very good.
You canīt call Shields lazy for not releasing anything for so long, on one hand heīs been busy with other projects like Experimental Audio Research (EAR) together with Sonic Boom, and done some remixing work (Primal Scream, Mogwai), on the other hand he is a total perfectionist. He said for example that he didnīt like the idea of "Loveless" being released on tape at all cos the quality of the tape wouldnīt fit the sound. If he had had his way the album would have only been released on CD. Some people, eh. Never happy.
Well, letīs keep our fingers crossed that an album will be out sometime, although probably not before the millenium, but anyway, there still is hope.
about Loveless: MM "... but no worries, MBV have delivered. Quibbles aside, this is the motherlode, the outermost, innermost uttermost rock record of 1991. All you need."
about Loveless: NME "When 'Isn't Anything' came out three years ago, who'd have thought its perpetrators would've been held up to the light and worshipped for their carefully quilted patchwork. 'Loveless' ups the ante, and, however decadent one might find the idea of elevating other human beings to deities, My Bloody Valentine, failings and all, deserve more than your respect. Looking for a hilltop." 8 out of 10
Kevin Shields: MM "Weīre starting to be seen as just another bunch of rich, lazy, middle-class types who write vague, senseless lyrics and sit around all day doing nothing." (hmmmmm)
My Bloody Valentine records I own:
A really good MBV site, everything you need to know really
Now, this is obviously taking the piss: The KevCam, find out what Kevin Shields does with his time
