The Verve
The Verve EP
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NATN Recommended
The Verve
The Verve EP
Vernon Yard, 1992
RiYL: Pink Floyd, My Bloody Valentine, Spiritualized |
The EP's five songs introduced the Wigan, Lancaster quartet as a space-rock combo of the most ethereal order, its music floating in on cool waves of phasing and simmering melodies. Not unlike R.E.M.'s Chronic Town, the central and true sound that this debut EP presents was never to find its direct equal in the ever-evolving band's subsequent catalog (though it serves as the logical foundation for their first LP, A Storm In Heaven).
Guitarist Nick McCabe is the band's psychedelic heart, stretching each shimmering note until it blends seamlessly with the next, and consistently eking great melody out of hallucinatory noodling. Drummer Peter Salisbury shows a great deal of restraint, painting muted rhythms around McCabe and vocalist Richard Ashcroft's harmonic movements. Bassist Simon Jones is the communicator between Salisbury and McCabe, sometimes tugging the songs back toward earth, sometimes following them away on vapor trails.
Though not much more than a half-hour long, The Verve EP is a consistently enjoyable listen, and it remains the cornerstone of a distinguished body of artwork produced by Verve during the band's short but tumultuous career.
TROY CARPENTER | Troy Carpenter founded NATN from a Chicago apartment during the ambitious winter of 1998 with co-conspirators Ben French and Jonathan Cohen. After a five-year stint in New York, he and wife Lourdes have recently relocated to Indianapolis, where he spends days listening to music and nights in the kitchen at Elements restaurant. Musical heroes: Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley, Super Furry Animals. What else makes life worth living: Sushi, Phucty, runs in the park, and the Atlanta Braves.