History Main / Britpop

Then, Oasis's long awaited third album ''Music/BeHereNow'' was released. It was (and still is) the fastest selling album in British history, but it was equally quickly sold on to charity shops by disheartened fans and went down in history as an overhyped, dismal flop. Finally, a band called Music/TheVerve (whom had existed for several years, but were originally recognised simply as "that {{Shoegazing}} act") seemed to be picking up the Britpop crown with their album ''Music/UrbanHymns'' which included the worldwide hit "Bitter Sweet Symphony", which seemed to keep the scene alive ... until it became the subject of a lawsuit from ABKCO due to it using a sample from an orchestral version of Music/TheRollingStones "The Last Time" (it's better to watch [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_s90-Hi2ZY this video]] to get the full details), stopping the band's career dead and officially killing Britpop. Music/{{Radiohead}}, formerly "the ones who did 'Creep'", promptly released ''Music/OKComputer'', a successful album that moved the British AlternativeRock scene away from Britpop and into a more atmospheric and melancholic direction. The rise of the Music/SpiceGirls, who were never Britpop but just plain pop, had perfect timing to capitalize on the near-simultaneous collapse of both Britpop and the dying days of grunge/alt-rock.

By 1998, the genre had evolved in the form of Post-Britpop, an even ''less'' well-defined category that continued to focus on guitar music, but leaned more towards alt rock and the melancholic sound laid out by Radiohead (who in response radically changed their style with the experimental ''Music/KidA''). This scene was occupied by bands like Music/{{Travis}}, Gomez, Music/{{Placebo}}, Music/{{Coldplay}}, Stereophonics, Music/{{Elbow}}, Music/{{Keane}}, Music/{{Feeder}}, Music/SnowPatrol, Starsailor, Embrace, Doves, and [[MyFriendsAndZoidberg Gay Dad]]. This scene's popularity with journalists started to to phase out by 2003, who began focusing on the emerging PostPunk revival, which too eventually faded out-- and along with the decline of PostGrunge, took mainstream rock with it (alongside a myriad of other factors).

* The Bluetones, a band that found early success when ''Expecting to Fly'' knocked ''Music/WhatsTheStoryMorningGlory?'' off the number one spot in the charts for a week.

'''Britpop''' was a somewhat ill-defined scene in British AlternativeRock in [[TheNineties the mid-1990s]]. When in 1991 Music/{{Nirvana}} released "Smells Like Teen Spirit", {{Grunge}} quickly took over the British music consciousness: suddenly everyone had long hair and scrappy clothes again [[GenrePopularizer suddenly everyone had long hair and scrappy clothes again]]. A loose rabble of musicians in Britain took exception to this, and in 1992 Britpop was born - music that was somehow 'British' rather than the American stuff. Music/{{Blur}}'s "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XV8CxSO5imQ Popscene]]" is often cited as the first Britpop song, with Suede's "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nWJQStqrfw The Drowners]]" following shortly.

'''Britpop''' was a somewhat ill-defined scene in British AlternativeRock in [[TheNineties the mid-1990s]]. When in 1991 Music/{{Nirvana}} released "Smells Like Teen Spirit", {{Grunge}} quickly took over the British music consciousness: suddenly everyone had long hair and scrappy clothes again. A loose rabble of musicians in Britain took exception to this, and in 1992 Britpop was born - music that was somehow 'British' rather than the American stuff. Music/{{Blur}}'s "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XV8CxSO5imQ Popscene]]" is often cited as the first Britpop song, with Suede's "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nWJQStqrfw The Drowners]]" following shortly.

Britpop came to a head in the summer of '95. That year, Blur and Oasis fought the Battle of Britpop; they released the songs "Country House" and "Roll With It" on the same day, and since no other noteworthy songs were there on that date, it was clear that one of the two would get to #1. Blur won that battle, but Oasis ultimately was the victors at the end of the 90's.

* Kula Shaker, a band influenced not only by early 90's rock, but also by late 60's psychedelia and Indian music. Notable for being led by Crispian Mills, son of Creator/HayleyMills.

Around this time, there was also a mini-subculture closely linked with Britpop dubbed Cool Cymru, that focused specifically on artists from Wales and spearheaded by acts such as the Manics, Music/SuperFurryAnimals, Catatonia, Gorky's Zygotic Mynci, Music/{{Stereophonics}} and 60ft Dolls. There was also the harder Britrock scene, championed by ''Kerrang!'' magazine and sharing more in common with American alternative rock but with a distinctly British spin. The Manics and Ash also fell into this scene, as did Music/[{Feeder}}, Therapy?, Terrorvision and Music/SkunkAnansie.

Around this time, there was also a mini-subculture closely linked with Britpop dubbed Cool Cymru, that focused specifically on artists from Wales and spearheaded by acts such as the Manics, Music/SuperFurryAnimals, Catatonia, Gorky's Zygotic Mynci, Music/{{Stereophonics}} and 60ft Dolls.

Britpop came to a head in the summer of '95. That year, Blur and Oasis fought the Battle of Britpop; they released the songs "Country House" and "Roll With It" on the same day, and since no other noteworthy songs were there on that date, it was clear that one of the two would get to #1. Blur won that battle, but Oasis ultimately was the more popular band at the end of the 90's.

Oasis chugged along, releasing well selling albums that got alright reviews until the band ended in an yet another squabble between the Gallagher brothers in 2009. Music/{{Blur}} had already turned away from the Britpop sound with their [[SelfTitled self-titled]] fifth album, which paved the way for much of the IndieRock scene of the 2000s, and unlike Oasis quit while they were ahead and still at the top of their game in 2003 (albeit two years after guitarist Graham Coxon departed). Pulp continued to release critically adored albums for a few years before completely disappearing. However, both Blur and Pulp have since made comebacks (in 2015 and 2013, respectively). Suede, the last of the four leading Britpop acts, fizzled out in 2003 after a couple of mediocre releases, but came back rejuvenated in 2011 and have been going ever since. Ash and Supergrass, two of the scene's youngest bands, somehow managed to outlive most of their Britpop competition, both becoming major players in the British alternative scene, though the latter split in April 2010 and reformed (as a live act only) in late 2019. Meanwhile, several of the aformentioned smaller bands would also reform during this period, though mostly catering towards the nostalgia/90s revival circuit.

* QuietlyPerformingSisterShow: Post-Punk Revival started out as this to Britpop, though back then it was under the name "New Wave of New Wave". Elastica scored a big success with their self-titled debut; Echobelly broke out of that particular ghetto to be accepted as a mainstream Britpop band; The Wildhearts did pretty well; other bands like These Animal Men and S*M*A*S*H (remember them?) never quite made the leap.

Oasis chugged along, releasing well selling albums that got alright reviews until the band ended in an yet another squabble between the Gallagher brothers in 2009. Music/{{Blur}} had already turned away from the Britpop sound with their [[SelfTitled self-titled]] fifth album, which paved the way for much of the IndieRock scene of the 2000s, and unlike Oasis quit while they were ahead and still at the top of their game in 2003 (albeit two years after guitarist Graham Coxon departed). Pulp continued to release critically adored albums for a few years before completely disappearing. However, both Blur and Pulp have since made comebacks (in 2015 and 2013, respectively). Suede, the last of the four main Britpop acts, fizzled out in 2003 after a couple of mediocre releases, but came back rejuvenated in 2011 and have been going ever since. Ash and Supergrass, two of the scene's youngest bands, somehow managed to outlive most of their second-tier Britpop competition, both becoming major players in the British alternative scene, though the latter split in April 2010 and reformed (as a live act only) in late 2019. Meanwhile, several of the aformentioned smaller bands would also reform during this period, though mostly catering towards the nostalgia/90s revival circuit.

Around this time, there was also a mini-subculture closely linked with Britpop dubbed Cool Cymru, that focused specifically on artists from Wales and spearheaded by acts such as the Manics, Music/SuperFurryAnimals, Catatonia, Gorky's Zygotic Mynci, Stereophonics and 60ft Dolls.

By 1998, the genre had evolved in the form of Post-Britpop, an even ''less'' well-defined category that continued to focus on guitar music, but leaned more towards alt rock and the melancholic sound laid out by Radiohead (who in response radically changed their style with the experimental ''Music/KidA''). This scene was occupied by bands like Music/{{Travis}}, Gomez, Music/{{Placebo}}, Music/{{Coldplay}}, Music/{{Stereophonics}}, Music/{{Elbow}}, Music/{{Keane}}, Music/{{Feeder}}, Music/SnowPatrol, Starsailor, Embrace, Doves, and [[MyFriendsAndZoidberg Gay Dad]]. This scene's popularity with journalists started to to phase out by 2003, who began focusing on the emerging PostPunk revival, which too eventually faded out-- and along with the decline of PostGrunge, took mainstream rock with it (alongside a myriad of other factors).

* Music/{{Blur}}, a former {{shoegazing}}[=/=]Madchester act that, after touring America in 1992 and finding the experience dreadful, became one of Britpop's leading lights, combining UsefulNotes/TheBritishInvasion-era music with Punk/New Wave best summed up as "Music/TheBeatles and Music/TheKinks meet Music/{{XTC}}".

Oasis chugged along, releasing well selling albums that got alright reviews until the band ended in an yet another squabble between the Gallagher brothers in 2009. Music/{{Blur}} had already turned away from the Britpop sound with their [[SelfTitled self-titled]] fifth album, which paved the way for much of the IndieRock scene of the 2000s, and unlike Oasis quit while they were ahead and still at the top of their game in 2003 (albeit two years after guitarist Graham Coxon departed). Pulp continued to release critically adored albums for a few years before completely disappearing. However, both Blur and Pulp have since made comebacks (in 2015 and 2013, respectively). Suede, the last of the four main Britpop acts, fizzled out in 2003 in response to increasingly lukewarm reviews, but returned in style in 2011. Ash and Supergrass, two of the scene's youngest bands, somehow managed to outlive most of their second-tier Britpop competition, both becoming major players in the British alternative scene, though the latter split in April 2010 and reformed (as a live act only) in late 2019. Meanwhile, several of the aformentioned smaller bands would also reform during this period, though mostly catering towards the nostalgia/90s revival circuit.

Oasis chugged along, releasing well selling albums that got alright reviews until the band ended in an yet another squabble between the Gallagher brothers in 2009. Music/{{Blur}} had already turned away from the Britpop sound with their SelfTitled fifth album, which paved the way for much of the IndieRock scene of the 2000s, and unlike Oasis quit while they were ahead and still at the top of their game in 2003 (albeit two years after guitarist Graham Coxon departed). Pulp continued to release critically adored albums for a few years before completely disappearing. However, both Blur and Pulp have since made comebacks (in 2015 and 2013, respectively). Suede fizzled out by 2003, in response to the increasingly lukewarm reception to their post-Bernard Butler material, but returned in style in 2011. Ash and Supergrass, two of the scene's youngest bands, somehow managed to outlive most of their second-tier Britpop competition, both becoming major players in the British alternative scene, though the latter split in April 2010 and reformed (as a live act only) in late 2019. Meanwhile, several of the aformentioned smaller bands would also reform during this period, though mostly catering towards the nostalgia/90s revival circuit.

Oasis chugged along, releasing well selling albums that got alright reviews until the band ended in an yet another squabble between the Gallagher brothers in 2009. Music/{{Blur}} had already turned away from the Britpop sound with their SelfTitled fifth album, which paved the way for much of the IndieRock scene of the 2000s, and unlike Oasis quit while they were ahead and still at the top of their game in 2003 (albeit two years after guitarist Graham Coxon departed). Pulp continued to release critically adored albums for a few years before completely disappearing. However, both Blur and Pulp have since made comebacks (in 2015 and 2013, respectively). Ash and Supergrass somehow managed to outlive most of their second-tier Britpop competition, both becoming a major players in the British alternative scene, though the latter split in April 2010 and reformed (as a live act only) in late 2019. Several of the aformentioned smaller bands would also reform during this period, though mostly catering towards the nostalgia/90s revival circuit.

Oasis chugged along, releasing well selling albums that got alright reviews until the band ended in an yet another squabble between the Gallagher brothers in 2009. Music/{{Blur}} had already turned away from the Britpop sound with their fifth album ''Blur'', which paved the way for much of the IndieRock scene of the 2000s, and unlike Oasis quit while they were ahead and still at the top of their game in 2003 (albeit two years after guitarist Graham Coxon departed). Pulp continued to release critically adored albums for a few years before completely disappearing. However, both Blur and Pulp have since made comebacks (in 2015 and 2013, respectively). Ash and Supergrass somehow managed to outlive most of their second-tier Britpop competition, both becoming a major players in the British alternative scene, though the latter split in April 2010 and reformed (as a live act only) in late 2019. Several of the aformentioned smaller bands would also reform during this period, though mostly catering towards the nostalgia/90s revival circuit.

Then, Oasis's long awaited third album ''Music/BeHereNow'' was released. It was (and still is) the fastest selling album in British history, but it was equally quickly sold on to charity shops by disheartened fans and went down in history as an overhyped, dismal flop. Finally, a band called Music/TheVerve (whom had existed for several years, but were originally recognised simply as "that {{Shoegazing}} act") seemed to be picking up the Britpop crown with their album ''Music/UrbanHymns'' which included the worldwide hit "Bitter Sweet Symphony", which seemed to keep the scene alive ... until it became the subject of a lawsuit from ABKCO due to it using a sample from an orchestral version of Music/TheRollingStones "The Last Time" (it's better to watch [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_s90-Hi2ZY this video]] to get the full details), stopping the band's career dead and officially killing Britpop. Music/{{Radiohead}}, formerly "the ones who did 'Creep'", promptly released ''Music/OKComputer'', a successful album that moved the British AlternativeRock scene away from Britpop and into a more atmospheric and melancholic direction.

Oasis chugged along, releasing well selling albums that got alright reviews until the band ended in an yet another squabble between the Gallagher brothers in 2009. Music/{{Blur}} had already turned away from the Britpop sound with their fifth album ''Blur'', which paved the way for much of the IndieRock scene of the 2000s, and unlike Oasis quit while they were ahead and still at the top of their game in 2003 (albeit two years after guitarist Graham Coxon departed). Pulp continued to release critically adored albums for a few years before completely disappearing. However, both Blur and Pulp have since made comebacks (in 2015 and 2013, respectively). Supergrass somehow managed to outlive most of their second-tier Britpop competition, became a major player in the British alternative scene and existed until April 2010 and reformed (as a live act only) in late 2019. Several of the aformentioned smaller bands would also reunite during this period, mostly catering towards the nostalgia circuit. The rise of the Music/SpiceGirls, who were never Britpop but just plain pop, had perfect timing to capitalize on the near-simultaneous collapse of both Britpop and the dying days of grunge/alt-rock.

Oasis chugged along, releasing well selling albums that got alright reviews until the band ended in an yet another squabble between the Gallagher brothers in 2009. Music/{{Blur}} had already turned away from the Britpop sound with their fifth album ''Blur'', which paved the way for much of the IndieRock scene of the 2000s, and unlike Oasis quit while they were ahead and still at the top of their game in 2003 (albeit two years after guitarist Graham Coxon departed). Pulp continued to release critically adored albums for a few years before completely disappearing. However, both Blur and Pulp have since made comebacks (in 2015 and 2013, respectively). Supergrass somehow managed to outlive most of their second-tier Britpop competition, became a major player in the British alternative scene and existed until April 2010 and reformed (as a live act only) in late 2019. Several of the aformentioned smaller bands would also reunite during this period, mostly catering towards the nostalgia circuit.

Oasis chugged along, releasing well selling albums that got alright reviews until the band ended in an yet another squabble between the Gallagher brothers in 2009. Music/{{Blur}} had already turned away from the Britpop sound with their fifth album ''Blur'', which paved the way for much of the IndieRock scene of the 2000s, and unlike Oasis quit while they were ahead and still at the top of their game in 2003 (albeit two years after guitarist Graham Coxon departed). Pulp continued to release critically adored albums for a few years before completely disappearing. However, both Blur and Pulp have since made comebacks (in 2015 and 2013, respectively). Supergrass somehow managed to outlive most of their second-tier Britpop competition, became a major player in the British alternative scene and existed until April 2010 and reformed (as a live act only) in late 2019. Several of the aformentioned smaller bands would reunite during this period, mostly catering towards the nostalgia circuit.

Then, Oasis's long awaited third album ''Music/BeHereNow'' was released. It was (and still is) the fastest selling album in British history, but it was equally quickly sold on to charity shops by disheartened fans and went down in history as an overhyped, dismal flop. Finally, a band called Music/TheVerve (whom had existed for several years, but were originally recognised simply as "that {{Shoegazing}} act") seemed to be picking up the Britpop crown with their album ''Music/UrbanHymns'' which included the worldwide hit "Bitter Sweet Symphony", which seemed to keep the scene alive ... until it became the subject of a lawsuit from ABKCO due to it using a sample from an orchestral version of Music/TheRollingStones "The Last Time" (it's better to watch [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_s90-Hi2ZY this video]] to get the full details), stopping the band's career dead and officially killing Britpop. Music/{{Radiohead}}, formerly "the ones who did 'Creep'", promptly released ''Music/OKComputer'', a successful album that moved the British AlternativeRock scene away from Britpop and into a more atmospheric and melancholic direction. Several of the aformentioned smaller bands would reunite during this period, mostly in a live capacity.

Oasis chugged along, releasing well selling albums that got alright reviews until the band ended in an yet another squabble between the Gallagher brothers in 2009. Music/{{Blur}} had already turned away from the Britpop sound with their fifth album ''Blur'', which paved the way for much of the IndieRock scene of the 2000s, and unlike Oasis quit while they were ahead and still at the top of their game in 2003 (albeit two years after guitarist Graham Coxon departed). Pulp continued to release critically adored albums for a few years before completely disappearing. However, both Blur and Pulp have since made comebacks (in 2015 and 2013, respectively). Supergrass somehow managed to outlive most of their second-tier Britpop competition, became a major player in the British alternative scene and existed until April 2010 and reformed (as a live act only) in late 2019.

Then, Oasis's long awaited third album ''Music/BeHereNow'' was released. It was (and still is) the fastest selling album in British history, but it was equally quickly sold on to charity shops by disheartened fans and went down in history as an overhyped, dismal flop. Finally, a band called Music/TheVerve (whom had existed for several years, but were originally recognised simply as "that {{Shoegazing}} act") seemed to be picking up the Britpop crown with their album ''Music/UrbanHymns'' which included the worldwide hit "Bitter Sweet Symphony", which seemed to keep the scene alive ... until it became the subject of a lawsuit from ABKCO due to it using a sample from an orchestral version of Music/TheRollingStones "The Last Time" (it's better to watch [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_s90-Hi2ZY this video]] to get the full details), stopping the band's career dead and officially killing Britpop. Music/{{Radiohead}}, formerly "the ones who did 'Creep'", promptly released ''Music/OKComputer'', a successful album that moved the British AlternativeRock scene away from Britpop and into a more atmospheric and melancholic direction.

Around this time, there was also a mini-subculture closely linked with Britpop dubbed Cool Cymru, that focused specifically on artists from Wales and spearheaded by acts such as Manic Street Preachers, Music/SuperFurryAnimals, Catatonia, Gorky's Zygotic Mynci, Stereophonics and 60ft Dolls.

In the end, heaving under the weight of drugs, [[CreatorBacklash artist disillusionment]], and the continued failure by any band not named Oasis to break America, it collapsed, thanks to four problems. First, the fact that Britpop was very hard to define led many to question whether certain acts, such as The Divine Comedy, truly were "Britpop". Second of all, much like America's RiotGrrrl scene, several sources around that time also didn't really understand what it was and so lumped various British AlternativeRock bands and artists with the movement no matter how tenuous the similarities were, such as Music/PrimalScream, Music/RobbieWilliams, the aformentioned Manics and Stone Roses, GenreBusting bands such as Music/{{Space}}, Super Furries, Music/{{Stereolab}}, and even '''''Music/{{Radiohead}}'''''. The sheer lack of care or research became excessive.

** Me Me Me was a Britpop supergroup that only released one song ever.

By 1998, the genre had evolved in the form of Post-Britpop, an even ''less'' well-defined category that continued to focus on guitar music, but leaned more towards alt rock and the melancholic sound laid out by Radiohead (who in response radically changed their style with the experimental ''Music/KidA''). This scene was occupied by bands like Music/{{Travis}}, Gomez, Music/{{Placebo}}, Music/{{Coldplay}}, Music/{{Elbow}}, Music/{{Keane}}, Music/{{Feeder}}, Starsailor, Embrace, Doves, and [[MyFriendsAndZoidberg Gay Dad]]. This scene's popularity with journalists started to to phase out by 2003, who began focusing on the emerging PostPunk revival, which too eventually faded out-- and along with the decline of PostGrunge, took mainstream rock with it (alongside a myriad of other factors).

Additionally, several established British bands, most notably The Charlatans, the aformentioned Lightning Seeds, and Saint Etienne, began to embrace Britpop and gain commercial success as a result. There were also several, smaller groups of varying popularity (and quality) that rode the Britpop wave to a handful of chart singles. Among them are Babybird, Cast (fronted by Music/TheLas' John Power), Catatonia, Dodgy, Gene, Geneva, Heavy Stereo (featuring future Oasis member Gem Archer), Longpigs, Music/{{Mansun}}, Marion, Menswe@r, My Life Story, Northern Uproar, Powder, Rialto, Salad, The Seahorses (fronted by [[Music/TheStoneRoses John Squire]]), Shampoo, Shed Seven, and These Animal Men. Many of these groups were considered to be FollowTheLeader acts to the big names, and many never even managed a blip on the radar outside of the UK, but they all have their own devoted followings to this day.

Additionally, several established British bands, most notably The Charlatans, the aformentioned Lightning Seeds, and Saint Etienne, began to embrace Britpop and gain commercial success as a result. There were also several, smaller groups of varying popularity (and quality) that rode the Britpop wave to a handful of chart singles. Among them are 60 Ft. Dolls, Babybird, Cast (fronted by Music/TheLas' John Power), Catatonia, Dodgy, Gene, Geneva, Heavy Stereo (featuring future Oasis member Gem Archer), Longpigs, Music/{{Mansun}}, Marion, Menswe@r, My Life Story, Northern Uproar, Powder, Rialto, Salad, The Seahorses (fronted by [[Music/TheStoneRoses John Squire]]), Shampoo, Shed Seven, and These Animal Men. Many of these groups were considered to be FollowTheLeader acts to the big names, and many never even managed a blip on the radar outside of the UK, but they all have their own devoted followings to this day.

In the end, heaving under the weight of drugs, [[CreatorBacklash artist disillusionment]], and the continued failure by any band not named Oasis to break America, it collapsed, thanks to four problems. First, the fact that Britpop was very hard to define led many to question whether certain acts, such as The Divine Comedy, truly were "Britpop". Second of all, much like America's RiotGrrrl scene, several sources around that time also didn't really understand what it was and so lumped various British AlternativeRock bands and artists with the movement no matter how tenuous the similarities were, such as Music/PrimalScream, Music/RobbieWilliams, the aformentioned Manic Street Preachers and The Stone Roses, GenreBusting bands such as Music/{{Space}}, Music/SuperFurryAnimals, Music/{{Stereolab}}, and even '''''Music/{{Radiohead}}'''''. The sheer lack of care or research became excessive.