In the beginning, there was grunge. King Kurt and Lord Eddie ruled the world, when they weren't trying to tear it apart in a nihilistic act of mutually assured destruction. However, around the time ABC cancelled MY SO-CALLED LIFE, and Osama bin Laden began his campaign of terror (coincidence? Of course not) the end came for the Seattle sound. And so life moved on, the "nu-metal" phenomenon grew pace almost as quickly as its exponents lost any credibility they might once have had.
These days, of course, we'll take anything half way decent. So it's a real pleasure to find a band that grew up to the sound of Ten
and In Utero
, and pays homage in its work. Such is Inme, a London three-piece whose members are still comfortably in their teens.
This is a Type 4 song, about the dangers of getting close to someone only to find that they go off and shag the chap just down the road and you hate yourself and want to jump off a very tall building only to have your plans thwarted by finding the lifts have broken down. Or something.
This isn't the group's first release, but it's the first one that has gotten national airplay. And it's a strong marker for future success. If we're lucky - very, very lucky - they may end up as successful and wonderful as Ash have been over the past seven years. But where Girl From Mars
featured a buried pop theme that's been present in everything they've done since, Firefly
typifies Inme's work with a deep, dark, depressing gloom.
An album is scheduled for 2003. We hope.