Up To Our Hips

It was exactly what I was looking for

It's The Charlatans!......more classic sound's from the early dagreat purchase as, alway's.

Maybe the best album?

Amazing album.

Cool

I'm a slight Charlatans obsessive and own every single, album, plus most re-mixes, promos etc. I still struggle to this day with the album's predecesor the unfocussed, poorly produced Between 10th and 11th, but Up to Our Hips for me was The Charlatans finding their sound and their Masterpiece. 10 track albums leave no room for filler and Up to Our Hips is still the only Charlatans album I own which doesn't have me reaching to skip a single tack.Recorded during one of many difficult times for the band, this time whilst original keyboard player Rob Collins was serving time for his role in an armed robbery. This is reflected in the darker, more somber mood of the album. There are several lyrical references from Tim Burgess such as "shoot it up lets go for a ride" "I wanna patrol the innocent mind" and closing track "inside looking out"The album isn't without it's lighter indie pop moments in the brilliant singles "Can't Get Out of Bed" and "Jesus Hairdo" but but what makes the album great is the darker, bass heavy tacks such as the "Patrol" "Up to Our Hips" and proggy instrumental "Feel flows". From start to finish up to our hips is an album which has to be listened to as a whole and even 16 years on since I purchased it, still makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand on edge.

After between 10 and 11 I ain't feeling this. I kept expecting Burgess to start singing "it's alright now..."?

You can't help but reflect, when listening to this album, what it would have sounded like had Rob Collins (RIP) not been banged up during the recording of the album. The Snyth Sounds of the much under rated Between 10th and 11th, the Charlatans previous album, gives way to a bass driven, dirty, bluesy sound that the charlatans have never recaptured since. Listen to the sleazy sounds of Patrol or Another Rider Up in Flames, to see what i measn, There are darker monets that you would normally expect such as I never want an easy life,Apparently tim Burgess's Homage to rob Collins.This isn't the charlies best album, but it is ther most adventurous. Between 10th and 11th was an attempt to get away from the madchester soaked, Some Friendly and Since Up to our Hips the Charlies slowly slid away into Tim Burgess's Bob Dylan Heaven (not that is a bad thing)On this album, without the rare talents of Rob Collins, the rest of the band seem to have expressed themselves more, filling the gapping chasm that Robs absence must have left in the studio,They always had a fantasic singer and an highly talanted Drumer, but the bassist and mark Collins the gituarist come to the floor, the bass lines drive through the album, more like Mani in the roses or Paul Ryder did in the Mondays. Its gives the Album a fuller heaveir sound a quality that ecohes in later songs like Forever.Whats more Classic sounding charlies songs such as Can't Get Out Of Bed and Jesus hair do contrast with the moodier darker songs giving the album an exciting feel.Like I said, not there finest moment but one that showed, if there was any doubt, that they were more that a Stone Roses Cover band.