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Amazon.co.uk Review
Mansun--whose records regularly go Top 10 in the UK, whose tours sell out effortlessly, but whose lead singer most people would be hard-pressed to name--are impossible to figure out; one gets the impression they prefer things that way. In successive photo shoots, they've been known to appear as safety-pinned punks, eyelinered New Romantics and Adidas-clad lads just to mess with people's perceptions, and never feature in their own videos.
Led by singer Paul Draper and guitarist Dominic Chad, Mansun arrived in 1996 straight outta Chester. While their peers were worshipping at the altar of Lennon, Marriott and Weller, Mansun were name-checking such off-limits influences as Duran Duran, Talk Talk, the Associates, Simple Minds and ABC. It's this blatant disregard for indie credibility that allowed Mansun to make such an ambitious, astonishingly opulent debut album. Attack Of The Grey Lantern creates a lucid musical narcosis, a waking dream, all multi-layered guitars and spooky samples: the mewing of drowning cats, the tolling of submerged church bells, WW2 air raid sirens (smoothed and airbrushed to sound like whalesong), ghostly operatic tenors, oceanic strings, and the Fahrenheit 451 crackle of burning paper (money? books? bibles?). It's almost--whisper it--a CONCEPT album. The titular Grey Lantern is a superhero exposing the moral hypocrisy of smalltown England, as exemplified by the irresistible "Stripper Vicar", the true story of a female friend, the daughter of a church minister, who found S&M apparatus in her father's wardrobe. A fantastic debut. --Simon Price
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
I hadn't even had the album for a week, but it almost instantly nestled itself into the position of being one of my all time favourite albums. I was familiar with the song Wide Open Space, and on its strength decided to buy the album. And not a moment too soon! Upon listening to the rest of the album I promptly forget about Wide Open Space and became absorbed in the other intriguing songs. Of course it's still brilliant, but with The Chad Who Loved Me as the opening track with its sumptuous strings and powerful chorus, it is quite understandable to do so.
And Stripper Vicar, has indeed, got to be one of the best crafted, 'soundtrack to the 90's' pop/rock song. It is dark, yet so bizarre and humorous. It's totally fascinating and enthralling; in fact, the whole album is. I entirely agree that there isn't a weak track present.
Some more of the album's highlights are the songs Taxloss, She Makes My Nose Bleed and Egg shaped Fred. They're all such strong songs with tunes/lyrics that are just impossible to dislodge ("We think you are stupid, we give you money because our assets are fluid"). The only difference is that, unlike many other catchy rock/pop songs, you actually WANT them to be stuck in your mind. Some of the tracks vaguely remind me of Blur, but far, far, better. Unlike Blur, they are deeper, more profound and generally more intelligent.
Combine catchy pop song tunes and choruses to strong guitar chords, then add a twist of bizarre wit, humour and irony, and you are getting close to having an idea of what this amazing album is like.
And Stripper Vicar, has indeed, got to be one of the best crafted, 'soundtrack to the 90's' pop/rock song. It is dark, yet so bizarre and humorous. It's totally fascinating and enthralling; in fact, the whole album is. I entirely agree that there isn't a weak track present.
Some more of the album's highlights are the songs Taxloss, She Makes My Nose Bleed and Egg shaped Fred. They're all such strong songs with tunes/lyrics that are just impossible to dislodge ("We think you are stupid, we give you money because our assets are fluid"). The only difference is that, unlike many other catchy rock/pop songs, you actually WANT them to be stuck in your mind. Some of the tracks vaguely remind me of Blur, but far, far, better. Unlike Blur, they are deeper, more profound and generally more intelligent.
Combine catchy pop song tunes and choruses to strong guitar chords, then add a twist of bizarre wit, humour and irony, and you are getting close to having an idea of what this amazing album is like.
8 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
This, put simply, is one of my favourite albums of all time. The theme running throughout it is very clever, the songs have a kind of black comedy and Paul Draper's voice is brilliant.
15 of 20 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Before The Killer's, The Libertines, The Bravery et al, there wasn't much!
Throughout the 90's Oasis we're preaching the same boring nonsense, Supergrass made pop records and the Stereophonics bored the living day light out of me(and anybody else with a bit of common sense).
BUT, in 1997 there was one or two exeptional bands around (if you looked hard enough)-and one of those was the brilliant outcasts-Mansun.
They never really did fit in with the rest of the Brit-Pop garbage back then, but who cares?
"Attack Of The Grey Lantern" is simply one of the best and most accomplished albums i've ever heard.
As a 16 year old Guitarist in 1997-hearing this album was for me, a LIFE changer.
I'd never heard an album so daringly insperational, unique, diverse, honest and modest, and original.
"The Chad Who Loved Me", "Wide Open Space", "Mansun's Only Love Song" and "Taxloss" are my personal favorites.Paul Draper had one of the best voices i've ever heard...(Chris who?)
Forget what the fickle music press press had to say about this band.
Just listen to the album and tell me it isn't good!
A truely unforgetable listen
Throughout the 90's Oasis we're preaching the same boring nonsense, Supergrass made pop records and the Stereophonics bored the living day light out of me(and anybody else with a bit of common sense).
BUT, in 1997 there was one or two exeptional bands around (if you looked hard enough)-and one of those was the brilliant outcasts-Mansun.
They never really did fit in with the rest of the Brit-Pop garbage back then, but who cares?
"Attack Of The Grey Lantern" is simply one of the best and most accomplished albums i've ever heard.
As a 16 year old Guitarist in 1997-hearing this album was for me, a LIFE changer.
I'd never heard an album so daringly insperational, unique, diverse, honest and modest, and original.
"The Chad Who Loved Me", "Wide Open Space", "Mansun's Only Love Song" and "Taxloss" are my personal favorites.Paul Draper had one of the best voices i've ever heard...(Chris who?)
Forget what the fickle music press press had to say about this band.
Just listen to the album and tell me it isn't good!
A truely unforgetable listen
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
British indie with a twist
This is one of those pre-OK Computer albums that I've always thought of as inseparable from its time, but that's not to say it's exactly typical. Read more
Published 2 months ago by MideastMC
Excellent.
Why did such talent disapear so early in what should have been a long and successful 'band' career,(one for you Mr Draper? Read more
Published 6 months ago by Mr. P. Murphy
Leicester Bangs Review (1997):
Mansun - Attack Of The Grey Lantern (Parlophone)
With two hit singles under their belts, the slightly annoying "Stripper Vicar" and the truly wonderful "Wide Open Space",... Read more
With two hit singles under their belts, the slightly annoying "Stripper Vicar" and the truly wonderful "Wide Open Space",... Read more
Published 17 months ago by Leicester Bangs
Superb
Like many I bought this album having only heard wide open space, which I loved,the price was low so I took a chance, I'm more than glad to say its a chance I don't regret,... Read more
Published on 26 April 2008 by D. Mccutcheon
Not really my thing
To commemorate the release of their single Taxloss, Mansun came up with a publicity stunt where commuters at London's Liverpool Street station were showered with £25,000 to herald... Read more
Published on 19 Oct 2007 by Greg Farefield-Rose
British Album Of The Decade???
When looking back on the '90s music scene in Britain, this really should be rated as one of the best albums that came out. Read more
Published on 26 July 2007 by Gertrude Stein
Still one of my favourite albums
This album came out in 1997, this was Mansun's first album & includes the hit singles Wide Open Space & Stripper Vicar. Read more
Published on 27 Mar 2007 by E. Swainston
A 90s Classic
Amazing that this magnificent debut album should be so underrated as to be undiscovered country for so many people. Read more
Published on 7 Oct 2004
Genuis
I first bought AOTGL after hearing wide open space, and what a brilliant buy this album is. Mansun have produced one of the best albums I have ever heard. Read more
Published on 9 Dec 2002 by "starsidez"
Truly unbelievable
I first bought this album after watching wide open space live on TFI friday. Now that to me still stands out as one of the greatest tunes of all time, not for its complexity, just... Read more
Published on 15 Oct 2001
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