Elastica - Elastica (CD, 1995). 1) Line Up 2) Annie 3) Connection 4) Car Song 5) Smile 6) Hold Me Now 7) S.O.F.T. 8) Indian Song 9) Blue 10) All-Nighter 11) Waking Up 12) 2:1 13) See That Animal 14) Stutter 15) Never Here 16) Vaseline Elastica: Justine Frischmann, Donna Matthews (vocals, guitar); Annie Holland (bass); Justin Welch (drums). Additional personnel: Dan Abnormal (keyboards). The pop viciousness exuding from Elastica's pores far surpasses any qualities thus far exhibited in Britain's "new glam" movement. One time Suede member (pre-"London" era) Justine Frischmann and Donna Matthews weave together assorted guitar and vocal textures, recalling various levels of pop genius in a disdainful, Kinks-esque tone. Frischmann's dry lyrics are deliciously biting. Her sarcastic take on stardom ("if I can't be a star I won't get out of bed"), groupies ("Drivel head knows all the stars/Loves to suck their shining guitars"), and impotence ("no need to whine boy") are all icily casual. Musically, Elastica is a pop lover's dream. Combining a Buzzcocks-tight rhythm section with enviable guitar delirium, Elastica's grip on pop sensibility is dead-center. What sets the band apart from their peers is their unstoppable wit. Already stars in their native England, Elastica have gotten it all but have also maintained a fabulously jaded perspective in regards to their desires--as Frischmann herself points out in "Waking Up," all she needs is "a guitar and a lover who pays me." What could possibly be more gratifying. Cs45
