Coral
Picture the scene if you will, you're sat in your parents' front room in Liverpool with the Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd rolling the spliffs, Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention jamming in the corner, and The La's looking on in wondrous bemusement before joining in. Mad? Possibly, but that is the scene that rolls through the mind as The Coral's debut long-player comes to an end. A more disparate and yet strangely coherent collection of moods and styles you will not hear this year outside a supremely eclectic compilation. 'The Coral' is the sound of a band saying 'Why don't we try this' as they attempt to distil all of their influences into one exhilarating musical soup - which is kind of the whole point of debut albums. And while most bands wouldn't dream of throwing in anywhere near as disparate a range of styles, that only makes the end result more unique. Weird but mostly wonderful. 11 tracks. 2002.