The Plastic Hassle (1993) - Ripe

Celebrated by indie darlings The Sugargliders, whose brilliant 2012 compilation A Nest With A View (which you all need to BUY because it's really good) contained the liner notes that repeatedly name-dropped Ripe and subsequently lead me to track this album down.

Released in 1993 on Beggar's Banquet in the UK, the group drew various comparisons to Sonic Youth and Velvet Underground but for me they come across more as a proto-Britpop type ensemble, with the added concession of being local and somewhat ahead of the wave. What you get is mildly catchy distorted pop (typified expertly by perennial favourite, album opener 'Something Fierce').

Guitarist Peter Moran also featured on a Sugargliders track or two, indicating some synergy between the two bands despite their very different sonic outlays.

Ripe had several other releases (including lots of singles/EPs) that I will likely put up if I ever find them. Someone had the insight to upload their first album Filterfeed but the link is broken at this time of writing. They also made the Britpop reference, and I only found the page after writing the bulk of this post! Synchronicity.

Enjoy!

1. Something Fierce        4:20
2. Supernatural        4:11
3. Centre Of The Universe        6:13
4. Moondriven        5:25
5. The Plastic Hassle        7:23
6. Get Your Shit Together        4:10
7. Mother Figure        3:54
8. Daylight Wants To Kill        10:51

You can now get this album officially on Bandcamp!

The Plastic Hassle (1993) - Ripe