The perfect representation of the baggy movement's pills 'n' thrills hedonism, within a few years Flowered Up went from working-class kids to one of Britain's most hyped groups to drug-induced flameout. Seen as London's answer to Madchester groups like the Stone Roses and Happy Mondays, Flowered Up formed in 1989 in a Camden housing estate and... [+] Read More

The perfect representation of the baggy movement's pills 'n' thrills hedonism, within a few years Flowered Up went from working-class kids to one of Britain's most hyped groups to drug-induced flameout. Seen as London's answer to Madchester groups like the Stone Roses and Happy Mondays, Flowered Up formed in 1989 in a Camden housing estate and featured vocalist Liam Maher, keyboardist Tim Dorney, guitarist Joe Maher, bassist Andy Jackson, drummer John Tovey, and Barry Mooncult, who wasn't officially a member of the band but danced on-stage with a giant flower around his neck. From their first gig at the end of 1989, the group's unpredictable but enthusiastic live shows -- as well as their enthusiastic embrace of baggy's Ecstasy-fueled culture -- earned Flowered Up an equal amount of fans, detractors, and hype. Indeed, the band appeared on the covers of both NME and Melody Maker before they released any music. After signing to Heavenly, they released the club anthem It's On in the summer of 1990 and followed up with Phobia that autumn; both singles reached the Top 40 on the U.K. charts. Riding this momentum, Flowered Up switched to London for their full-length debut -- when they signed the contract, their manager cut open a bag of cocaine and wrote "F U" with it on the tabletop of the label's office. The group's 1991 album, A Life With Brian, was a commercial and critical disappointment: not only did the record's over-produced sound fail to capture the manic charisma of Flowered Up's live shows, much of the hype around the band had fizzled out by the album's release. London dropped Flowered Up a few months later when they delivered an uneditable 13-minute single; the band returned to Heavenly and released the single, "Weekender," to critical acclaim in 1992. "Weekender" denounced weekend club-goers, advocating a party-all-the-time philosophy that distilled Flowered Up's appeal and ultimate downfall. The group's week-long "Debauchery" party, which featured guests as diverse as Kylie Minogue and novelist Hanif Kureshi and took place in a mansion that Barry Mooncult was supposed to be renovating, ended up being Flowered Up's last hurrah. A few shows and recording sessions later, the group finally imploded. Tim Dorney became the band's most successful member, forming Republica a few years later; after disappearing for much of the '90s, in 2000 Liam Maher re-emerged with a new project, Greedy Soul, and signed to the Poptones label. ~ Heather Phares, All Music Guide [-] Hide

After the Stone Roses and Happy Mondays, Inspiral Carpets were arguably the third most popular band to emerge from the late-'80s/early-'90s Madchester scene. Like the Charlatans UK, they weren't quite as innovative as the city's two standard-bearers, relying less on the contemporary dance club beats that became Madchester pop's identifying... [+] Read More

After the Stone Roses and Happy Mondays, Inspiral Carpets were arguably the third most popular band to emerge from the late-'80s/early-'90s Madchester scene. Like the Charlatans UK, they weren't quite as innovative as the city's two standard-bearers, relying less on the contemporary dance club beats that became Madchester pop's identifying signature. They did, however, share a fascination with trippy psychedelia, particularly the Farfisa organ-drenched sound of Nuggets-style garage rock from the '60s, which set them apart from their peers. It also enabled them to tinker with their sound once the Madchester fad had passed, and the group continued to score hits right up to their mid-'90s breakup.

Inspiral Carpets were formed in the Manchester-area town of Oldham by guitarist Graham Lambert, who'd been playing around the area since 1982. His group -- named after an area clothing store -- finally began to settle on a permanent lineup in 1986, when drummer Craig Gill and Farfisa organist Clint Boon joined up. They were soon augmented by vocalist Steve Holt and bassist Dave Swift, and built up a following around Manchester with their demo tapes (done in a '60s-influenced garage punk style). Clever merchandising helped the band out financially; they sold T-shirts featuring their smoking-cow logo and their slogan "Cool as F*ck," which got them media attention when a student wearing the shirt was arrested for violating obscenity laws. Their first national release came in 1988 with the Plane Crash EP on Playtime Records, but when that label's distributor went out of business later that year, the band set up their own imprint, Cow Records, which was financed mostly by T-shirt sales. The first release on Cow was the 1989 EP Trainsurfing, which got the band even more national attention. At this point, Holt and Swift -- not keen on professional careers involving lots of time and travel -- decided to leave, and were replaced by vocalist Tom Hingley (ex-Too Much Texas) and bassist Marty Walsh. With their arrival, the band's Madchester-compatible style began to crystallize, as evidenced on the new lineup's first release, the swirling, organ-driven psychedelic tune "Joe" (May 1989). The single caused a stir in the indie underground that only intensified with the follow-ups "Find Out Why" and "Move," and after being courted by several major labels, the band wound up signing with the large London-based indie Mute.

Inspiral Carpets' debut album, Life, was released in the spring of 1990. Their first single for Mute, "This Is How It Feels," hit the British Top 20 and landed them a TV appearance on Top of the Pops; the follow-up, "She Comes in the Fall," reached the Top 30. The band recorded sessions with DJ John Peel and appeared at that year's Reading Festival, helping make Life a sizable hit. After releasing the Island Head EP late in the year, the band completed its next full-length, the darker The Beast Inside, which appeared in the spring of 1991. For the supporting tour, the band hired future Oasis mastermind Noel Gallagher as a roadie. Inspiral Carpets scored their biggest chart hit in the spring of 1992 with "Dragging Me Down," which appeared on their third album, Revenge of the Goldfish, released later that fall. Although it produced three more Top 40 singles and got the band a bigger overseas audience, the album proved to be their worst seller to date, possibly because the Manchester scene's moment was perceived to have passed. In response, the group returned to a more basic garage/psychedelic sound for their next album, 1994's Devil Hopping. It was generally well received, with the singles "Saturn 5" and "I Want You" (the latter a duet with the Fall's Mark E. Smith, who did not appear on the album version) returning them to the Top 20. In late 1995, Mute released a compilation called The Singles, and soon after, it was announced that label and band were parting ways. Inspiral Carpets called it quits not long after; Boon formed the Clint Boon Experience, while Hingley formed a group called the Lovers with Jerry Kelly of the Lotus Eaters. Hingley went solo in late 2000, issuing the album Keep Britain Untidy. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide [-] Hide

For many years, the Charlatans UK were perceived as the also-rans of Madchester, the group that didn't capture the zeitgeist like the Stone Roses or the band that failed to match the mad genre-bending of the Happy Mondays. Of course, they were more traditional than either of their peers. Working from a Stonesy foundation, the Charlatans added... [+] Read More

For many years, the Charlatans UK were perceived as the also-rans of Madchester, the group that didn't capture the zeitgeist like the Stone Roses or the band that failed to match the mad genre-bending of the Happy Mondays. Of course, they were more traditional than either of their peers. Working from a Stonesy foundation, the Charlatans added dance-oriented rhythms and layers of swirling organs straight out of '60s psychedelia. At first, the Charlatans had great promise, and their initial singles -- including "The Only One I Know" -- were hits, but as Madchester and "baggy" faded away, the group began to look like a relic. It was commonly assumed that their third album, 1994's Up to Our Hips, was the end of the line. However, the Charlatans made a remarkable comeback in 1995 with their eponymous fourth album, which found them embracing not only the flourishing Britpop movement, but also underground dance and techno, as well as their mainstay of classic rock. The Charlatans UK debuted at number one, and the group was hailed as survivors. Unfortunately, few knew how literal that term was -- as the band was recording its follow-up album in 1996, organist Rob Collins, who had defined the band's sound, died in a car crash. The Charlatans decided to continue as a quartet, and their subsequent album, Tellin' Stories, debuted at number one upon its 1997 release, suggesting that they had become one of the great British journeyman bands of the '90s.

At the time of their formation in 1989, it appeared that the Charlatans were all about transience. Inspired by the emergence of the Stone Roses, Rob Collins (keyboards), Jon Baker (guitar), Martin Blunt (bass), and Jon Brookes (drums) formed the Charlatans, rehearsing with a variety of vocalists before Tim Burgess joined as their singer. The group attempted to land a record contract with no success, so they formed Dead Dead Good Records and released their debut 12" single, "Indian Rope," in January 1990. Collins' dynamic, sweeping Hammond organ distinguished the group from their Madchester peers, and the single became a number one hit on the indie charts. By the spring, they signed with Beggars Banquet, releasing "The Only One I Know" a few months later. Borrowing heavily from the Stones, jangle pop, and funk, "The Only One I Know" became a monster hit, climbing into the pop Top Ten and becoming the group's signature single. Following another hit single, "Then," the band's debut album, Some Friendly, was released in the fall, debuting at number one.

It was a remarkable beginning to their career, so perhaps it was inevitable that bad luck hit early in 1991. As they launched their first American tour, the Charlatans were forced to add "U.K." to their name since a San Franciscan garage rock band from the '60s already had claims on the name. The group returned to Britain, where they played a concert at the Royal Albert Hall. Following the gig, Baker announced he was leaving the group. He was replaced by Mark Collins (no relation), yet the group was sidetracked further by Blunt's bout with severe depression. By the time the group finally released their second album, Between 10th and 11th, Madchester had become passé, and the album was ignored by the public and earned mixed reviews.

Despite their declining popularity, the Charlatans soldiered on, yet hit their biggest setback to date in late 1992, when Rob Collins was arrested as an accessory to armed robbery. The situation had been entirely accidental -- Collins had been drinking with an old friend and wound up following him into a liquor store -- but he was sentenced to eight months imprisonment. Before he went into jail, he laid down the tracks for the band's third album, which was released in early 1994, once he had left prison. Up to Our Hips received stronger reviews than its predecessor, and its single, "Can't Get Out of Bed," was a bigger hit than anything on Between 10th and 11th. It was the beginning of a comeback that culminated the summer of 1995.

Prior to the release of the group's eponymous third album, Tim Burgess sang on the Chemical Brothers' "Life Is Sweet," which re-established his hip indie credentials and gave him, and the Charlatans, credibility in electronica circles. Appropriately, The Charlatans UK demonstrated a deeper dance sensibility, as well as more concise tunes, and it unexpectedly entered the British charts at number one. Following the release of the album, the Charlatans re-entered the front rank of British rock bands and were at the peak of their popularity, as well as critical acclaim. The group was still unable to crack the American market -- initially, they were barred from touring the country due to Collins' arrest -- yet they remained popular throughout Europe and Asia.

As the group was recording its follow-up to The Charlatans UK, Collins was killed in a drunk driving accident as he headed to the studio. Although Collins was pivotal to the band's signature sound, they carried on without him, completing their fifth album, Tellin' Stories, with the assistance of Primal Scream's keyboardist, Martin Duffy. Tellin' Stories was released in the U.K. in the spring of 1997 to generally strong reviews, and it entered the charts at number one. Two years later Us and Us Only came out, followed in 2001 with the dance-inspired Wonderland. The next year saw two releases, Live It Like You Love It, recorded live in the band's hometown in December 2001, and Songs from the Other Side, a collection of B-sides from 1990-1997. The Charlatans' eighth studio album, Up at the Lake, was issued in 2004, and two years later Simpatico hit the shelves. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide [-] Hide

Meshing '60s-styled guitar pop with an understated '80s dance beat, the Stone Roses defined the British guitar pop scene of the late '80s and early '90s. After their eponymous 1989 debut album became an English sensation, countless other groups in the same vein became popular, including the Charlatans UK, Inspiral Carpets, and Happy Mondays.... [+] Read More

Meshing '60s-styled guitar pop with an understated '80s dance beat, the Stone Roses defined the British guitar pop scene of the late '80s and early '90s. After their eponymous 1989 debut album became an English sensation, countless other groups in the same vein became popular, including the Charlatans UK, Inspiral Carpets, and Happy Mondays. However, the band was never able to capitalize on the promise of their first album, waiting five years before they released their second record and slowly disintegrating in the year and half after its release.

The Stone Roses emerged from the remains of English Rose, a Manchester-based band formed by schoolmates John Squire (guitar) and Ian Brown (vocals). In 1985, the Stone Roses officially formed, as Squire and Brown added drummer Reni (born Alan John Wren), guitarist Andy Couzens, and bassist Pete Garner. The group began playing warehouses around Manchester, cultivating a dedicated following rather quickly. Around this time, the group was a cross between classic British '60s guitar pop and heavy metal, with touches of goth rock. Couzens left the group in 1987, followed shortly afterward by Garner. Garner was replaced by Mani (born Gary Mounfield) and the group recorded its first single, "So Young," which was released to little attention by Thin Line Records. At the end of 1987, the Stone Roses released their second single, "Sally Cinnamon," which pointed the way toward the band's hook-laden, ringing guitar pop. By the fall of 1988, the band secured a contract with Silvertone Records and released "Elephant Stone," a single that set the band's catchy neo-psychedelic guitar pop in stone.

Shortly after the release of "Elephant Stone," the Stone Roses' bandwagon took off in earnest. In early 1989, the group was playing sold-out gigs across Manchester and London. In May, the Stone Roses released their eponymous debut album, which demonstrated not only a predilection for '60s guitar hooks, but also a contemporary acid house rhythmic sensibility. The Stone Roses received rave reviews and soon a crop of similar-sounding bands appeared in the U.K. By the end of the summer, the Stone Roses were perceived as leading a wave of bands that fused rock & roll and acid house culture. "She Bangs the Drums," the third single pulled from the debut, became the group's first Top 40 single at the end of the summer. In November, the group had its first Top Ten hit when "Fool's Gold" climbed to number eight. By the end of the year, the band had moved from selling out clubs to selling out large theaters in the U.K.

For the first half of 1990, re-releases of the band's earlier singles clogged the charts. The group returned in July 1990 with the single "One Love," which entered the charts at number four. Prior to the release of "One Love," the Stone Roses organized their own festival at Spike Island in Widnes. The concert drew over 30,000 people and would prove to be their last concert in England for five years. After Spike Island, the Stone Roses became embroiled in a vicious legal battle with Silvertone Records.

The group wanted to leave the label but Silvertone took out a court injunction against the group, preventing them from releasing any new material. For the next two years, the band fought Silvertone Records while they allegedly prepared the follow-up to their debut album. However, the Stone Roses did next to nothing as the court case rolled on. In the meantime, several major record labels began negotiating with the band in secret. In March of 1991, the lawsuit went to court. Two months later, the Stone Roses won their case against Silvertone and signed a multi-million deal with Geffen Records.

For the next three years, the Stone Roses worked sporadically on their second album, leaving behind scores of uncompleted tapes. During these years, the group kept a low-profile in the press but that wasn't to preserve the mystique -- they simply weren't doing much of anything besides watching football. Finally, in the spring of 1994, Geffen demanded that the group finish the album and the band complied, completing the record, titled Second Coming, in the fall. "Love Spreads," the Stone Roses' comeback single, was debuted on Radio One in early November. The single received a lukewarm reaction and entered the charts at number two, not the expected number one. Second Coming received mixed reviews and only spent a few weeks in the Top Ten. The Stone Roses planned an international tour in early 1995 to support the album, but the plans kept unraveling at the last minute. Before they could set out on tour, Reni left the band, leaving the group without a drummer. He was replaced by Robbie Maddix, who had previously played in Rebel MC. After Maddix joined the band, they embarked on a short American tour at the conclusion of which John Squire broke his collar bone in a bike accident. Squire's accident forced them to cancel a headlining spot at the 25th Glastonbury Festival, which would have been their first concert in the U.K. in five years. As Squire recuperated, the Stone Roses continued to sink in popularity and respect -- even as their peers, the Charlatans and former Happy Mondays vocalist Shaun Ryder, made unexpectedly triumphant comebacks.

The Stone Roses added a keyboardist to the lineup prior to their U.K. tour at the end of 1995 -- it was the first British tour since 1990. In the spring of 1996, John Squire announced that he was leaving the band he founded in order to form a new, more active band. The Stone Roses announced their intention to carry on with a new guitarist, but by October of that year the group was finished. Squire's new band, Seahorses, released its debut album in June 1997, while Brown released his solo debut, Unfinished Monkey Business, early in 1998. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide [-] Hide

Along with the Stone Roses, Happy Mondays were the leaders of the late-'80s/early-'90s dance club-influenced Manchester scene, experiencing a brief moment in the spotlight before collapsing in 1992. While the Stone Roses were based in '60s pop, adding only a slight hint of dance music, Happy Mondays immersed themselves in the club and rave... [+] Read More

Along with the Stone Roses, Happy Mondays were the leaders of the late-'80s/early-'90s dance club-influenced Manchester scene, experiencing a brief moment in the spotlight before collapsing in 1992. While the Stone Roses were based in '60s pop, adding only a slight hint of dance music, Happy Mondays immersed themselves in the club and rave culture, eventually becoming the most recognizable band of that drug-fueled scene. The Mondays' music relied heavily on the sound and rhythm of house music, spiked with '70s soul licks and swirling '60s psychedelia. It was bright, colorful music that had fractured melodies that never quite gelled into cohesive songs.

Unwittingly or not, Happy Mondays personified the ugly side of rave culture. They were thugs, purely and simply -- they brought out the latent violence that lay beneath the surface of any drug culture, even one as seemingly beatific as England's late-'80s/early-'90s rave scene. Under the leadership of vocalist Shaun Ryder, the group sounded and acted like thugs, especially in comparison with their peace-loving peers, the Stone Roses. Ryder's lyrics were twisted and surrealistic, loaded with bizarre pop culture references, drug slang, and menacing sexuality. Appropriately, their music was as convoluted. Happy Mondays were one of the first rock bands to integrate hip-hop techniques into their music. They didn't sample, but they borrowed melodies and lyrics and, in the process, committed rock blasphemy. For a band that celebrated their vulgarity and excessiveness, Happy Mondays appropriately were undone by their addictions, but they left behind a surprisingly influential legacy, apparent in everyone from dance bands like the Chemical Brothers to rock & rollers like Oasis.

With their second album, 1988's Bummed, Happy Mondays became British superstars, particularly Ryder. Pills 'n' Thrills and Bellyaches, released in 1990, marked the height of the band's popularity, creativity, and influence; although the record made the Top 100 albums chart in America, it didn't establish them as stars in the U.S. After that, the fall was quick. By the time they released their last studio album, Yes, Please, Manchester had disappeared from public consciousness; it sold respectably, but the group didn't have the commercial impact that they had just two years before. Besides the lack of public interest, Shaun Ryder had become addicted to heroin, tearing the band apart in the process. At a high-level record contract meeting, Ryder walked out for some "Kentucky Fried Chicken," which was the band's slang for heroin. He never returned and the group quickly fell apart.

Ryder and the Mondays' full-time dancer Bez re-emerged in the mid-'90s with Black Grape. The band released its critically acclaimed debut, It's Great When You're Straight...Yeah, late in the summer of 1995. Black Grape's sound pursued the same direction as the Mondays, only with a harder, grittier edge to their sound and lyrics. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide [-] Hide

Emerging out of semi-nowhere -- well, Norwich -- the Charlatans UK were saddled with a name that lent itself to jibes about their quality, perceived bandwagon jumping and the burden of being a one-hit wonder with "The Only One I Know." Then Some Friendly, the group's debut, planted itself at the top of the UK charts; while the rest of the '90s... [+] Read More

Emerging out of semi-nowhere -- well, Norwich -- the Charlatans UK were saddled with a name that lent itself to jibes about their quality, perceived bandwagon jumping and the burden of being a one-hit wonder with "The Only One I Know." Then Some Friendly, the group's debut, planted itself at the top of the UK charts; while the rest of the '90s were up-and-down for the band, this album set the band on its way. Drawing on Blunt's background in mod and psych outfits, Collins' outrageously funky keyboards and Burgess' unexpected star quality -- even if his voice wasn't the strongest -- Some Friendly is just that, a friendly and fun vibe. Some of the lyrics betray Burgess' sharp-tongued punk background -- "You're Not Very Well," the opener, expresses anything but sunny sentiments -- but otherwise Some Friendly delivers everything from '60s beat groove to Madchester bagginess with verve. True, the group was still following in the Roses/Mondays slipstream -- "Fool's Gold" was the blueprint for much of the album -- but the individual delights of the slow trance "Opportunity," "Polar Bear"'s upfront rhythms and "Flower"'s slightly ominous funk all show the band's abilities well. "The Only One I Know" remains the best-known cut, Blunt's crisp bass and Collins' Deep Purple-inspired keyboards providing its charge. But Some Friendly's hidden masterpiece comes at the very end -- "Sproston Green," a monster jam based on Collins' supreme keyboard work, with Burgess' soaring lyric matching the massive surge of the music. It remains the concluding number of the band's sets to this day for good reason. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide [-] Hide

A swirling, neo-psychedelic kaleidoscope of hallucinogenic drugs, trippy beats, borrowed hooks, and veiled threats, Pills 'n' Thrills & Bellyaches is Happy Mondays' masterpiece and the peak of the entire Madchester craze. Where the Stone Roses were pop classicists, Happy Mondays pushed pop into the ecstasy age. The Mondays' cut-and-paste rhythms... [+] Read More

A swirling, neo-psychedelic kaleidoscope of hallucinogenic drugs, trippy beats, borrowed hooks, and veiled threats, Pills 'n' Thrills & Bellyaches is Happy Mondays' masterpiece and the peak of the entire Madchester craze. Where the Stone Roses were pop classicists, Happy Mondays pushed pop into the ecstasy age. The Mondays' cut-and-paste rhythms and melodies are clearly influenced by hip-hop and electronic dance music, and their songs have the same sort of twisted internal logic, subverting conventional pop song structures while reinterpreting oldies, occasionally stealing entire songs and claiming them as their own (John Kongos' "He's Gonna Step On You Again" is transformed into "Step On," LaBelle's "Lady Marmalade" provides the basis for "Kinky Afro"). Most of the musical collage is the creation of producers Paul Oakenfold and Steve Osborne, but the vision of Pills 'n' Thrills & Bellyaches belongs to Shaun Ryder, who reveals himself as a surreally gifted lyricist. Lifting melodies at will, Ryder paints a bizarre vision of modern urban life, fueled by sex, drugs, violence, and dead-end jobs -- and instead of lamenting the state of affairs, he celebrates them in his hoarse, arrhythmic, tuneless holler. His thuggishly surreal sense of humor and appropriation of hooks became enormously influential on British rock & roll in the '90s, particularly on Oasis' sense of style. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide [-] Hide

Since the Stone Roses were the nominal leaders of Britain's "Madchester" scene -- an indie rock phenomenon that fused guitar pop with drug-fueled rave and dance culture -- it's rather ironic that their eponymous debut only hints at dance music. What made the Stone Roses important was how they welcomed dance and pop together, treating them as if... [+] Read More

Since the Stone Roses were the nominal leaders of Britain's "Madchester" scene -- an indie rock phenomenon that fused guitar pop with drug-fueled rave and dance culture -- it's rather ironic that their eponymous debut only hints at dance music. What made the Stone Roses important was how they welcomed dance and pop together, treating them as if they were the same beast. Equally important was the Roses' cool, detached arrogance, which was personified by Ian Brown's nonchalant vocals. Brown's effortless malevolence is brought to life with songs that equal both his sentiments and his voice -- "I Wanna Be Adored," with its creeping bassline and waves of cool guitar hooks, doesn't demand adoration, it just expects it. Similarly, Brown can claim "I Am the Resurrection" and lie back, as if there were no room for debate. But the key to The Stone Roses is John Squire's layers of simple, exceedingly catchy hooks and how the rhythm section of Reni and Mani always imply dance rhythms without overtly going into the disco. On "She Bangs the Drums" and "Elephant Stone," the hooks wind into the rhythm inseparably -- the '60s hooks and the rolling beats manage to convey the colorful, neo-psychedelic world of acid house. Squire's riffs are bright and catchy, recalling the British Invasion while suggesting the future with their phased, echoey effects. The Stone Roses was a two-fold revolution -- it brought dance music to an audience that was previously obsessed with droning guitars, while it revived the concept of classic pop songwriting, and the repercussions of its achievement could be heard throughout the '90s, even if the Stone Roses could never achieve this level of achievement again. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide [-] Hide

The Farm's debut album Spartacus is one of the more ridiculous by-products of baggy, containing all of its rolling, neo-psychedelic grooves and blissfully colorful pop hooks, yet very little of its charm, character, or substance. Since baggy was never about substance, this is particularly damning. Still, the Farm manages to turn out a couple of... [+] Read More

The Farm's debut album Spartacus is one of the more ridiculous by-products of baggy, containing all of its rolling, neo-psychedelic grooves and blissfully colorful pop hooks, yet very little of its charm, character, or substance. Since baggy was never about substance, this is particularly damning. Still, the Farm manages to turn out a couple of goofily endearing singles with "Groovy Train" and "All Together Now," but the group shows no real feeling for dance-club rhythms, or even pop hooks. As an artifact, Spartacus is fascinating, since it demonstrates how far the over the top the entire Madchester phenomenon went, even if the record itself isn't necessarily good listening. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide [-] Hide

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