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Therapy - Troublegum


Marsh

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Been listening to this a fair bit over the last couple of weeks and it reminded me of good times. Screamager at the Mudd Club was a true staple every week and it was glued to my walkman at school.

Despite it being quite "angsty" which made it perfect for me and probably a few others to listen to in their bedrooms, I still think to this day it's a pure gold album. The riffs are spot on and despite the heavieness it's always underpinned with a great melody and / or hook. It's the drums, though - I reckon this is one of the best drumming albums out there. Fyfe Ewing was a genius - he hits so hard on this album and is so steady I reckon it's close to perfection.

Despite some good albums I reckon they never even came close to matching Troublegum.

I just love the way it all hangs together so well - a real album if you like. And in Screamager and Nowhere two of the best rock singles from the nineties. It's probably one of the most accessible "metal" albums I have.

Anyone else a fan of this album or have any thoughts on it?

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Therapy? are fan-fucking-tastic! Went to Glasgow last May to see them and they are absolutely brilliant live. Although their older albums have that raw sound, I quite like the newer albums, NANE and OCFA are certainly much more produced than previous records they've done, but they are still really good albums. OCFA is definitely in my top 3.

Troublegum brought them some limelight, but then they did SP-YF which was basically noise, but good noise (to me at least) and folk didn't really associate that with the "poppy" style of Troublegum, which is a shame.

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Therapy? are fan-fucking-tastic! Went to Glasgow last May to see them and they are absolutely brilliant live. Although their older albums have that raw sound, I quite like the newer albums, NANE and OCFA are certainly much more produced than previous records they've done, but they are still really good albums. OCFA is definitely in my top 3.

Troublegum brought them some limelight, but then they did SP-YF which was basically noise, but good noise (to me at least) and folk didn't really associate that with the "poppy" style of Troublegum, which is a shame.

Nice one - I've seen them live a couple of times and they were fantastic. Always a safe bet for a great night of music with Therapy? onstage.

There was the so - so Infernal Love (more of the pop, less of the metal) and Semi - Detached (less of the good tunes and overall direction) before Suicide Pact which I agree is indeed a great balls out rock album - I enjoy it a lot too. I just reckon Troublegum is superior as it has both the noise and the hooks. It's genius!

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Cracking album; I loved this band when I was 14-15. From the moment I first heard "Screamager" I was in a love, it was the perfect mix of hooks and heavyness. In recent years Therapy? faded out of my listening habbits to the point where I actually now haven't listened to them in about a year, I'll always appreciate the impact that album had on me when I was younger though.

I was so pissed off when I had to miss out on them playing in Aberdeen the last time around, grrr. I didn't bother with the Glasgow gig last year due to waning interest.

Regarding their other material, I definitely prefer the 90's stuff. Troublegum is the obvious highlight for me but Nurse, Pleasure Death and Semi-Detached used to get regular spins. I never really got into their later stuff; I thought High Anxiety had a few good tunes but some pretty poor ones too, with NANE being much the same but with a higher bad/good ratio. OCFA bored me to tears.

I might give this a spin later on :up: nice one.

What does everyone make of the Scopophobia DVD?

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Guest bluesxman

Just recently picked up a CD copy of 'Troublegum' as I only had a cassette, fantastic album and certainly their best. 'Babyteeth', 'Pleasure Death' and 'Nurse' had their moments but this album just has so many great songs - 'Screamager' of course being the highlight but it even has a decent joy Division cover in 'Isolation' which is rare. I lost interest after 'Infernal Love'.

Went to see them at the Barrowlands on the 'Troublegum' tour, ace gig, supported by Credit To The Nation who provided Nirvana-sampling Mudd Club staple 'Call It What You Want'. Think Kerbdog were the other support.

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Guest Steven Dedalus

Andy Cairns is technically my cousin (I was at a funeral with him a number of years ago).

Does that make me a total punk rock legend?

Troublegum is a great album, and as mentioned above by someone, the drums are just amazing. I think that's what really set them apart from the pack in the good ol' days: they were a dirty rock band with drums that were almost verging on programmed dance music. And they had a way with a melody as well.

They've kind of faded into total irrelevancy now, and although their live shows are still pretty good (with the exception of the last time I saw them when they were total gash), I don't think they'll ever have another decent album in them.

Total Fave: Opal Mantra single. I'm also very fond of Infernal Love, though I can see why a lot of people don't like it. But surely it's worth the price of admission for their cover of 'Diane' alone?

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u lot are mad. therapy had some good tunes, good riffs, good tones but the most shitty assed pocky pock snare sound ever! by jee-saw! are you all deaf, the tunes are great but the drums? pish!

Certainly not deaf, min.

You're entitled to your opinion but you're the first person I've heard describe the man machine that is Fyfe Ewing as "pish."

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perhaps the production of the drums isn't the best, but the playing of them is phenomenal.

Certainly far from formulaic rock drumming.

Me, I love potato junkies.

Imagine early Therapy? with decent production?

I think someone had once posted the band who sound like therapy? with balls

"el bastardo"...quite entertaining

"Therapy? meets Big Black" (hmm...not sure about that one).

(classics include : "I hope you get cancer" and "watch more porn")

www.myspace.com/elbastardo

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Guest Steven Dedalus
u lot are mad. therapy had some good tunes, good riffs, good tones but the most shitty assed pocky pock snare sound ever! by jee-saw! are you all deaf, the tunes are great but the drums? pish!

I might be deaf, now that you mention it.

Top marks for 'pocky pock', though.

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Therapy? have had a good trio of drummers over the years, Fyfe, Hopkins and Cooper. Their current drummer, Neil Cooper is definitely of the same style as Fyfe, but I would say he has a bit more energy. Graham Hopkins always seems to be forgotten about, perhaps because he wasn't like Fyfe and had to deal with the expecatations of being a carbon copy, but I think in all the T? albums, the drumming is an influential part.

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Graham Hopkins always seems to be forgotten about, perhaps because he wasn't like Fyfe and had to deal with the expecatations of being a carbon copy

And the fact that he is Ronan Keating's cousin!

Like the snare sound or not, I have no album in my collection that sounds like it. Let's compromise and say it's unique. Listening to it now, in fact - I still think it's one of the best drumming albums out there.

Peep - I like that El Bastardo's sound. Lyrics are a big, er, strange, but a definite Therapy influence. Good shout. I'm imagining early albums with decent production and salivating! Babyteeth without the whole "sheet metal" production would be a powerhouse. Pleasure Death's production always reminds me of Joy Division somehow, but it so dosen't work with a metal band. If it was beefed up I would reckon this would be a stone cold classic.

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Certainly not deaf, min.

You're entitled to your opinion but you're the first person I've heard describe the man machine that is Fyfe Ewing as "pish."

aye totally. i like therapy, but for the overall tunage and cairns's witty sarky lyrics, i mean you can fault a band with "suicide pact: you first" for a cd title. its a personal thing. or maybe just my stereo but the snare sound jist riles me . its just really annoying, cairns is a top chap though. i have to admit i like the stuff they have done recently....

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ah but surely thats the most important element of an album. the snare drum sound...

i think what i like about them is the tunes, the use of dynamics, ( i read an interview ages ago and they put this down to stealing song structures from the jesus lizard) , the lyrics, the drums are probably important if you are a drummer- but nae me. they are good but someone needed to have a word with the drummer....it just sounds bad.

mapeersonalllopinionoffcourse!

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  • 3 weeks later...

I think it's brilliant watching Neil Cooper on stage, he's got so much energy!

I remember reading that when doing the "If It Kills Me" video, he actually had a dislocated shoulder, although you wouldn't think it. He certainly had a lot to live up to joining the band, but I think he's better than Fyfe.

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Just recently picked up a CD copy of 'Troublegum' as I only had a cassette, fantastic album and certainly their best. 'Babyteeth', 'Pleasure Death' and 'Nurse' had their moments but this album just has so many great songs - 'Screamager' of course being the highlight but it even has a decent joy Division cover in 'Isolation' which is rare. I lost interest after 'Infernal Love'.

Went to see them at the Barrowlands on the 'Troublegum' tour, ace gig, supported by Credit To The Nation who provided Nirvana-sampling Mudd Club staple 'Call It What You Want'. Think Kerbdog were the other support.

Kerbdog were indeed the other band on the bill. I remember it being a fantastic show. I think I ended up seeing Therapy four times that year if memory serves me right (and it is a bit hazy in places due to youthful over-indulgence. Definately saw them at the Queens Hall, Edinburgh that year so maybe was the Barras again? ). Thats back when I lived in Fife and top quality gigs in Edinburgh and Glasgow were only a short drive away...

Saw them a few years later at the Edinburgh Venue and they were still good but it was a shame to see the diminished size of their audience

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  • 1 month later...

ah kerbdog, certainly to mind one of the 'other' best rock bands of the 90's.

i once asked for kerbdog at exodus and was told that they were a second rate therapy?, its a fair point of view i guess and probably one which stopped them from marching to the success they deserved back in the day but if you havnt heard them or have forgotten them try and track down the first album, every tune is spot on and well worth a listen....

therapy? were awsome, ooo those controversial t-shirts always f-ing and blinding... ooo

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ah kerbdog, certainly to mind one of the 'other' best rock bands of the 90's.

i once asked for kerbdog at exodus and was told that they were a second rate therapy?, its a fair point of view i guess and probably one which stopped them from marching to the success they deserved back in the day but if you havnt heard them or have forgotten them try and track down the first album, every tune is spot on and well worth a listen....

therapy? were awsome, ooo those controversial t-shirts always f-ing and blinding... ooo

we ('pelt' at the time) supported them in the Pelli once.

We helped them in with all their equipment, and didn't even get a thanks. Muz needed one cymbal stand, as one was bust when he set it up, and they told him he couldn't use one of theirs...

nice guys.....rassafrassinsuckerassin....

I've got a green 10" promo of suckerpunch (if I remember correct).

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  • 1 month later...

A Therapy? show was my first ever gig, both us and the band being from the Larne area, my friends and i thought it apt . As the tickets for the Mandella Hall in Belfast specifified it was an over 18s show, and being only 15, we doctored our bus passes... suprisingly this didn't work. However, due to working in Number One Records, at which the Michael Mckeegan was a frequent shopper, i had aquired the mobile phone number of the support band's (Throat) drummer. Ringing him on a payphone (15 year olds didn't have mobiles in those days), we managed to persuade him to put us all on the guestlist... he did! However,to prevent us buying booze, we were only allowed to stay in the balcony/backstage area and not into the pit itself. Trading a backstage pass with a guy solved this problem and he tended our alcohol needs all night, while we watched the Throat's (with Therapy? lovely guys) and Therapy's sets from our balcony view.

My unstumped, signed ticket along with backstage pass sits pride of place at the bottom of my ticket stump box.

As we were leaving the bouncers who denied our access at the start, told us not to come back til we grew some pubes. I never have... gone back!

Good times!

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I listened to Troublegum quite a lot back in 95-96 kinda time. I dug the CD out a couple of weeks ago, it's still got some great tunes but it sounds a bit dated IMO. Hasn't aged well. Plus Screamger has been overplayed to fuck. Can't beat sticking on "Knives" in the car tho and bellowing along to the chorus.

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