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I Should Coco

As the Britpop wave crested in 1995, my albums of the year in that vein weren't by front-runners Blur or Oasis (though I did buy (What's the Story) Morning Glory?) but those by dark horses Pulp and Supergrass, with the latter's debut full-length release I Should Coco issued that May. My head had been turned late the previous year by their first single 'Caught by the Fuzz', and I'd been keeping my eye on their progress in the meantime.

It's an excellent album, fizzing with youthful energy and with plenty of good tunes. The songwriting is generally solid too, with a distinctly English lyrical sensibility on display in the vein of influences like Madness and The Kinks. The opening run of eight tracks maintains a high energy, with 'Caught by the Fuzz', 'Alright' and 'Sitting Up Straight' my favourites among them.

The tail end of the running-order has a more laid-back air, with the closing triple-decker of 'Time', 'Sofa (of my Lethargy)' and 'Time to Go' concluding things very nicely. I bought my CD copy in Rome in '97, at which point I would still also have owned the cassette I'd bought two years earlier.

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