Us And Us Only

Us And Us Only

Quavering Hammond organ? Check. Sixties-throwback guitar riffs? Check. Climbing bass lines? Check. Ecstasy-blessed dreamscape that branded nearly all music coming out of Manchester, England, in the early '90s? Check again. With each new album, the Charlatans peel away the layers of hypnotic haze that enveloped their landmark debut, <i>Some Friendly</i>. <I>Us and Us Only</I>, their sixth studio release, reveals the core of the band's influences with greatest clarity. The opening track, "Forever," lives up to its name, an epic seven-and-a-half-minute free-wheeling tributary of free-association psychedelia. But after that, the jams are lifted nearly verbatim out of the Rolling Stones' proverbial songbook. The reigning "Madchester" champs don roots-rocker hats, as lead singer Tim Burgess occasionally works in his best Bob Dylan impression, the wah-wah gives way to twangy hooks, and piano and harmonica fill out melodies. <I>Us and Us Only</I> is an archetypically derivative album; but the honesty in its production has resulted in the Charlatans' most enduring collection. <I>--Beth Massa</I>