Attack of the Grey Lantern

Attack of the Grey Lantern Artist: Mansun
Label: Sony
Category: Music


Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Media: Audio CD
Number Of Discs: 1


UPC: 074646793527
EAN: 0074646793527
ASIN: B000002BTQ


Release Date: 1997-06-24

Attack of the Grey Lantern


Related Categories:

General General
Categories | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music
Britpop Britpop
Categories | British Alternative | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music
Indie Rock Indie Rock
Categories | Indie & Lo-Fi | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music
General General
Categories | Indie & Lo-Fi | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music
Post Grunge Post Grunge
Categories | American Alternative | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music
General General
Categories | Rock | Styles | Music
Progressive Rock Progressive Rock
Categories | Progressive | Rock | Styles | Music
Pop Rock Pop Rock
Categories | Pop | Styles | Music

Tracks:

  1. The Chad Who Loved Me
  2. Wide Open Space
  3. She Makes My Nose Bleed
  4. Naked Twister
  5. Take It Easy, Chicken
  6. You, Who Do You Hate?
  7. Mansun's Only Love Song
  8. Taxloss
  9. Disgusting
  10. Egg Shaped Fred
  11. Dark Mavis

Similar Items:

  1. Six
  2. Six
  3. Little Kix
  4. The Sun Is Often Out
  5. Expecting to Fly

Album Description

The British guitar band's 1997 debut album features 11 tracks. EMI.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars This CD will grow on you .......2007-02-13

I have been a Mansun fan since I heard "Wide Open Space" back in '97. It's probably been my favorite song ever since then, but I never did try and track down one of their CDs. I bought this one about 4 months ago, and have listened to it virtually every time I'm in my car. As the other reviews state, it is quite a strange sound, but Paul Draper will definitely hook you in with his voice & lyrics and it will continue to grow on you. Definitely a 10. Keep in mind I guess I'm not a real Mansun fan. I picked up their other 2 CDs after I thought I'd move on to their other releases. "Six" was one of the worst CDs I think I have ever listened to, and "Little Kix" is quite dull throughout - definitely not on par w/the "Grey Lantern". You will not regret picking this one up.

5 out of 5 stars The Most Innovative British band of the 1990's.......2005-06-04

Sadly, Mansun are no longer with us, having broken up at the end of 2003, but this, their first album (the UK version) is fantastic. This is rock album as sweeping cinematic epic, every song seguing into the next and containg a central thread filled with colorful (sordid, in frontman Paul Draper's words) characters such as Dark Mavis, the Stripper Vicar, The Chad, and Egg Shaped Fred. Absolutely gorgeous in its musicianship, singing, and production, this is a great album if you're into great British bands like Blur, Suede, Pulp, and Radiohead, and want to dig a little deeper into that sound and style. In fact this album is the one that knocked Blur's fantastic 1997 self titled album off the #1 spot in the charts. All the songs on here are excellent, but check out the opening trilogy of tracks, Stripper Vicar, Egg Shaped Fred, Wide Open Space, and the majestic and haunting finale, Dark Mavis. Phenomenal. One last note...DO NOT BUY THE US VERSION OF THIS ALBUM. It is chopped up, rearranged, has songs missing, and completely ruins the album as it was intended. You'll spend a bit more for the UK version, but it's worth it. Besides, the added tracks on the US version are available on the excellent Kleptomania box set.

4 out of 5 stars And another cool band from the UK.......2005-01-26

Mansun is one of the many UK bands that just never made it here. It is a shame too, since I think they're cool, quirky, and fun. Their music is full of bizarre lyrics, sweeping strings, rocking guitars, and synthesizers. It is Britpop with a dark side.

I like to listen to bands who are basically unknown in the US, and I almost always realize that I've found another great act. Mansun is no exception here. I can't really think of another band to accurately compare them to, they are just Mansun. I say give this CD a listen though. Either you'll really like it or you will think it is quite weird. It may even grow on you, but if not at least you'll have given it a chance.

5 out of 5 stars As good as Six.......2004-02-10

I don't quite get all these people saying it's not as good as Six.

Anyhow, what we have here is a something that would never happen with an American band. But let's not talk about that. Let's talk about Paul Draper's evil, evil voice. You hear metal artists try to make their voices sound devil-esque. Paul Draper sounds like Satan's lawyer... or maybe his crooked accountant, or his agent or bookie. Satan may seem to run the show, but Paul Draper is who owns 85% of the souls in hell, and he uses them to make some great tunes. I can make my case point just by playing "Naked Twister". That effortless, creepy vibrato laced falsetto that seeps into your body like a cloudy gas of sorts. He does that sort of thing throughout this solemly beautiful album. The songwriting and structure here might not be as random and fascinating as on Six, but they find other ways to keep your attention. Each one is an imaginative, dark, eclectic composition that I'm sure you'll either admire, think evil thoughts about, or find some marginal reason to dismiss them as a sum of their influences (rock critics/uptight musicians who use words like "dark", "eclectic", "solemn", and "composition"; but can nary create or display any of them). Don't miss the point. Just get this album (less than $2 used right now, actually). My only complaint is that I really wish this one had "Stripper Vicar" instead of "Take it Easy, Chicken"... I haven't heard "Stripper Vicar", but the other one is my least favorite track on the album.

3 out of 5 stars A good debut, though not as good as Six.......2003-04-27

Having read all this great stuff about 'Attack of the Grey Lanturn' and being a proud owner and lover of their second album 'Six', I had no hesitation in purchasing this record. However, it did disappoint me just slightly. On 'Six', there is a sense of wonder at the incredible, progressive musical experiments and charmingly mad nature of what's going on. On 'Attack of the Grey Lanturn', the songs don't seem to be as well-written at their core. Nevertheless, its a very interesting album, really unlike anything else.

It begins brightly with the pleasent, orchestral 'The Chad Who Loved Me' with its rumbling guitar and epic scope (still no match for the title track of 'Six', which opens it) and the rather mad dance-y camp groove of 'Mansun's Only Love Song'. It, and many songs on here, would be somewhat mislabelled under Indie Rock, being far more reliant on synthesisers etc than guitars, although their subsequent albums are more guitar-based.

'Taxloss' however is irritating and its stupid tune and overblown nature leaves you desperate to just put something else on by its 3rd minute, let alone the 7th. The acoustic, yearning 'You. Who Do You Hate?' is much better, and when it explodes into heavy rock it is extremely cool. 'Wide Open Space' follows and its an expertly constructed exercise in paranoia like Radiohead with a poppier melodic core, but doesn't quite match up to its equivalent off Six, 'Legacy'.

'Stripper Vicar' is quite Blur-ish in its very English pop melody and lyrical comic cheekiness. It also seems influenced by Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd, however there's a rockier twist here on both bands. Its opposite number on Six would probably be 'Being A Girl', and again its not quite as good, but nevertheless a cool single. 'Disgusting' begins with a gothic, chilling soundscape and moves into an echoing synth-driven number which still has a quite dark feel. 'She Makes My Nose Bleed' despite its awful title is very well constructed with its keyboard-and-guitar combination and another dark feel.

'Naked Twister' has a really epic, memorable chorus and is an album highlight. However its followed by the awful 'Egg-Shaped Fred' which sounds like a parody of Britpop performed by a metal band. 'Dark Mavis', too, is a beautiful closer, building and yearning, with good lyrics, and ends with the same orchestral theme that 'The Chad Who Loved Me' has, adding to the feel of concept and unity for the album.

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