Grinspoon - Guide To Better Living

YOURZ

Hard to believe this album is over a decade old now.  It has been a constant player since I got it, most recently regularly as incentive music while I try to push my fitness levels up a notch.  I've seen the mighty Grinners heaps of times too, both at festivals and headline shows (it helps that an old mate is their manager). 

Grinspoon came to prominence after winning the JJJ Unearthed competition (the same competition that gave the world Silverchair).  Unlike the 'Chair, Grinspoon weren't underaged lads impressing all the record company big wigs; they were boozed up, stoned young men whose appeal related directly to their peers.  They knew how to rock hard, play hard and get themselves noticed.  They've done very little to tame that image, although the music itself has mellowed somewhat over the intervening years.

Right from the get-go, Grinspoon delivered both heavier, groove-rock and tight-as punk-pop gems.  Guide To Better Living, in balance, is weighted more to the harder songs, but after all, this is their debut and they weren't trying to impress anyone with sales figures or entries into charts, they just wanted to keep the fans happy, rock out and hopefully build a career for themselves.  Thirteen years later, and still going strong, I'd say this is one objective achieved.

VERDICT: TURN IT UP

MINE

I like Grinspoon.  I do.  I have to keep reminding myself of this as I plough through this album, which I don't like.  Apart from the radio-friendly single, it's a lot of almost-metal (YourZ sez: but then it could be almost-pop, if it weren't for the distorted guitars and shouty vocals hahahahaha...).  And despite enjoying the documentary Global Metal (YourZ sez: great doco!) when I caught it by accident on pay-TV, I'm not a metal-head.  It's also a bit same-y in terms of riffs and tempo, and didn't hold my attention as much as I wanted it to.

This is the Grinners' first full-length album and includes some live versions of their earlier songs, that had been released on EPs.  And I prefer the earlier songs.  This album's not as fabulous as the one they did next - New Detention - which won them a whole bunch of awards (and rightly so).  So check out Grinspoon - I recommend them.  But not this album.

VERDICT: TURN IT DOWN


For more information go to http://www.grinspoon.com.au/

In our collection we also have Licker Bottle Cozy, Pushing Buttons and New Detention