Ride – Polar Bear

It appears that they’re still pulling the remastered trick, how old are CD’s at this stage and how good is people’s hearing that they have to stock up on at least half a dozen remasterings before reaching the promised land? Well, we’ll make an exception today because ‘Nowhere’ from one of our favourite ever bands Ride has been brushed up and packaged with a 40 page booklet to honour the fact that its now 20 years old….21 to be precise. ‘Going Blank Again’ may have shown Ride at their melodious best but it was its predecessor that cast them them to the forefront of shoegaze’s short stay at the top. Think of the genre and the most likely candidates to come into your head are MBV, Slowdive, Chapterhouse, the Boo Radley’s and Oxford’s finest. ‘Nowhere’ wasn’t without the obvious (‘Vapour Trail’ and later edition ‘Taste’) but it was the intricate noise that distinguished it. Like ‘Polar Bear’ which struck me down when I first heard it in a partially filled Salthill indie club many years ago. Looking all around and knowing we all felt the same thing made the moment special. So much so that a floor that had been vacant a minute previously was now populated with rows of bobbing heads full of dreams not yet burnt down. KD

Ride – Polar Bear

More Info: Official
Buy Songs: Ride
Year: 1990

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