British Indie/Rock Bands of the '90s Quiz

Answer: Suede

Suede - or the London Suede, as they're known in the US - consisted of singer Brett Anderson, guitarist Bernard Butler, bassist Mat Osman (brother of TV presenter Richard), keyboardist/guitarist Neil Codling, and drummer Simon Gilbert. Butler left to go solo in 1994, after a clash with producer Ed Buller, and was replaced by Richard Oakes. Justine Frischmann, who would later go on to front Elastica and date Blur's Damon Albarn, also played guitar in an early line-up of the group. Suede split in 2003 but reunited seven years later; initially it was for a set of Teenage Cancer Trust gigs, but the reunion became permanent, and they ended up playing festivals (I saw them at Primavera Sound in 2019, incidentally) and releasing new material.

'Coming Up' is the name of Suede's third album, released in 1996.

Answer: Oasis

Along with the Smiths, the Stone Roses and Take That, Oasis are one of Manchester's most famous musical exports. Originally consisting of singer Liam Gallagher, his guitarist and songwriter brother Noel, guitarist Paul 'Bonehead' Arthurs, bassist Paul 'Guigsy' McGuigan and drummer Tony McCarroll, they released their debut album 'Definitely Maybe', which charted at Number One on the UK album chart, in 1994. Alan White replaced McCarroll for their second album 'What's the Story Morning Glory', which saw them enter a fierce rivalry with Blur, culminating in Oasis' 'Roll With It' and Blur's 'Country House' competing for Number One on the UK singles chart in 1995 (which Blur won). Bonehead and Guigsy were respectively replaced by Gem Archer and Andy Bell in 2000, and the band also went through various drummers. Noel and Liam did not get on, to say the least, and Noel finally left in 2009, with Liam and the remaining members continuing as Beady Eye. Both Liam and Noel went on to have solo careers, with Archer joining Noel's High Flying Birds.

'D'You Know What I Mean?' was the first single off Oasis' third album 'Be Here Now', released in 1997. Oasis was also the name of a chain of clothes shops, which went into administration in 2020.

Answer: Lush

Lush started out as the Baby Machines, with singer Meriel Barham, guitarists Emma Anderson and Miki Berenyi, bassist Steve Rippon - replaced by Phil King in 1992 - and drummer Chris Acland. Berenyi took over as lead singer following Barham's departure. Although Lush started out as a shoegaze band, in the same vein as Slowdive or My Bloody Valentine, they drastically changed direction in 1996 with 'Lovelife', their biggest and most commercial album yet. Sadly, drummer Chris Acland killed himself later that year, and the band split as they did not want to carry on without him. Anderson formed Sing-Sing with singer Lisa O'Neill, while Berenyi worked as a production editor for magazine companies and King played with the Jesus and Mary Chain. Lush reunited in 2015 with former Elastica drummer Justin Welch on drums, but split up again the following year, following King's departure, as they felt they had run their course and wanted to spend time with their families. Berenyi and Welch later went on to join Piroshka, who were also on 4AD.

'Split' is the name of Lush's second album, released in 1994, and 'Ciao!' is the name of their greatest hits album, released in 2001. Lush is also an international chain of soap shops, although unlike Oasis, the band did not take their name from the shop.

Answer: Cast

Cast frontman John Power originally played bass with the La's, the legendary Liverpool band behind 'There She Goes', and was mentored by reclusive frontman Lee Mavers. In 1992, Cast began to take shape with a frequently changing line-up revolving around Power, which also featured bassist Pete Wilkinson (formerly of Shack); he split the original band up in 1993 and reformed them with drummer Keith O'Neill and guitarist Liam 'Skin' Tyson. They were signed after supporting Oasis on tour in 1994. Power is a Liverpool fan and the band are supporters of the Hillsborough Justice Campaign; they played the Hillsborough Justice Concert at Anfield in 1997. After 'Beetroot' failed to make the UK Top 40 albums, Cast split in 2001, with Power going solo. The band reformed in 2011 and crowdfunded their fifth album 'Troubled Times' through the now defunct site Pledgemusic. Wilkinson left in 2015 and was replaced by Jay Lewis.

'Finetime' was Cast's debut single, released in 1995; 'Live the Dream' was the third single from their second album, 'Mother Nature Calls', released in 1997; and 'Magic Hour' was their third album, released in 1999. The picture shows molten metal being cast.

Answer: Sleeper

Sleeper were founded by singer Louise Wener and guitarist Jon Stewart after they met at Manchester University, and they went on to recruit drummer Andy Maclure - who later became Wener's boyfriend - and bassist Diid Osman, who was replaced by Chris Giammalvo in 1997. The male members of the band were nicknamed 'Sleeperblokes' by the press, due to being seen as bland and generic and getting very little attention compared to Wener (they responded to this by wearing 'Sleeperbloke' t-shirts). 'Pleased to Meet You', their 1997 third album, sold poorly, as did tickets for their 1998 tour; several gigs were cancelled as a result and the band split up that year. After Sleeper split, Wener became a writer; her first novel, 'Goodnight Steve McQueen', was published in 2002. She also wrote a memoir about her time in Sleeper, 'Different for Girls: My True-Life Adventures in Pop', published in 2010. Sleeper reformed in 2017 and played the Starshaped festival along with various other Britpop bands. They released their fourth album, 'The Modern Age', in 2019.

'Smart' is Sleeper's debut album, released in 1995, and 'What Do I Do Now?' was the first single to be released from their second album, 'The It Girl', in the same year. Elvis Costello covered it in 1997 for a Volume compilation (and his version is drastically different). The picture is of a railway sleeper.

Answer: Super Furry Animals

Although the Super Furry Animals were not as big as their compatriots Catatonia, the Stereophonics and the Manic Street Preachers in the '90s, they still enjoyed a sizeable amount of success. Like Catatonia, but unlike the Manics and Stereophonics, they were bilingual and released a Welsh-language album, 'Mwng' ('Mane') in 2000. Singer Gruff Rhys has also released Welsh-language solo records. The other members of SFA were guitarist Huw 'Bunf' Bunford, keyboardist/remixer Cian Ciaran, bassist Guto Pryce and drummer Dafydd Ieuan, who also played in an early line-up of Catatonia. One of their singles, 'The Man Don't Give a (Censored)', is considered to be one of the sweariest singles ever, with the offending word being featured over 50 times; in 1995, they also released an EP called 'Llanfairpwllgwyngyll (In Space)', albeit with the full name of the Welsh town in question. The band went on hiatus in 2010, save for a one-off performance at a memorial match for the Welsh footballer Gary Speed in 2012; they got back together in 2015, but went on hiatus again in 2019, although Ieuan, Bunford, Pryce and Ciaran still performed under the name of 'Das Koolies'.

'Golden Retriever' is a single from 'Phantom Power', SFA's sixth album, released in 2003 (and the video for the song features an actual one). 'The International Language of Screaming' is a single from their second album 'Radiator' and was released in 1997.

Answer: Belle & Sebastian

Although the line-up of Belle & Sebastian has changed over time, the core members are essentially singer and main songwriter Stuart Murdoch, keyboardist Chris Geddes and drummer Richard Colburn. The original line-up also included bassist and co-founder Stuart David (who left in 2000) and cellist Isobel Campbell (who left in 2002). Multi-instrumentalist Sarah Martin joined before the release of the band's second album, while touring trumpeter Mick Cooke was also a full-time member from 1998 to 2003. Belle & Sebastian are somewhat of a cult band, rarely giving interviews, but surprised their fans by performing 'Legal Man', their highest-charting single, on 'Top of the Pops' in 2000. They also won Best Newcomer at the 1999 Brit Awards, beating the likes of Steps. The band members have all been involved in various side projects; Campbell teamed up with former Screaming Trees singer Mark Lanegan, David formed Looper with his wife Karn, Murdoch released an album of songs with various female singers called 'G-d Help the Girl', and Cooke played in the Amphetameanies, a ska band.

'If You're Feeling Sinister' is Belle & Sebastian's second album, released in 1996. 'Belle et Sébastien' was a French TV series, based on a 1966 book by Cécile Aubry about a boy called Sébastien and his big white dog Belle.

Answer: Skunk Anansie

Skunk Anansie, unlike other bands listed here, were considered to be 'Britrock' rather than Britpop, due to having a heavier sound. The core line-up was singer Skin, guitarist Martin 'Ace' Kent, bassist Richard 'Cass' Lewis and drummer Mark Richardson (who replaced original drummer Robbie France, who died in 2012). Their song titles often featured brackets, such as 'Twisted (Everyday Hurts)' and 'Hedonism (Just Because You Feel Good)'. Skin's stage name is not a reference to her bald head; it's actually because she was nicknamed 'Skinny' as a child. After Skunk Anansie split in 2001, Skin went solo and released her first album, 'Fleshwounds', in 2003; she also toured with Placebo and Robbie Williams. The band reformed in 2009 and went on to release several more albums, starting with 'Wonderlustre' in 2010.

'Weak' was the final single to be released from Skunk Anansie's debut album 'Paranoid & Sunburnt' (and it piqued my interest in them after I saw them performing it on 'Top of the Pops' in 1996). Skunk Anansie are named after the furry little stinker pictured here (Lewis suggested 'skunk' as a name because they intimidate other animals, and are black and white) and Anansi, an Afro-Caribbean folk hero and trickster who took the form of a spider.

Answer: Angelica

Admittedly, this one is a little tricky, but Angelica were one of the more underrated bands of the late '90s; they were considered to be spiritual successors to Sunderland's Kenickie, with a similar upbeat punk-pop sound and use of orchestral instruments such as glockenspiels and violins. They were singer Holly Ross, guitarist Claire Windsor, bassist Bridget Colton (who also sang lead vocals on a couple of songs) and drummer Rachel Parsons. In 2002, Angelica played Ladyfest and toured with Babes in Toyland, striking up a friendship with Kat Bjelland, who produced their first full-length album 'The Seven Year Itch'; she also sang on one of the songs, 'Golden Lillies'. Sadly, Angelica split up soon after. Ross went on to form the Lovely Eggs with her husband David Blackwell, while Colton and Parsons joined The Adventures of Loki.

'The End of a Beautiful Career' was a mini-album released in 2000, which contained the song 'Why Did You Let My Kitten Die?', inspired by 'Whistle Down the Wind'. 'Why Did You Let My Kitten Die?' was voted Alternative Record of the Year 1999 by fans of Radio 1's 'Evening Session'.

Answer: Space

Space began as a trio in 1993 with singer/bassist Tommy Scott, singer/guitarist Jamie Murphy and drummer Andy Parle, but became a quartet - and drastically changed their sound - when keyboardist Franny Griffiths joined the following year. Griffiths and Scott had played together in Hello Sunset during the '80s before Griffiths temporarily relocated to Spain. 'Female of the Species' brought Space to the attention of the public when it was released in 1996, and their debut album 'Spiders' went platinum. The band became a quintet in 1997 with the addition of bassist David 'Yorkie' Palmer; Parle was later replaced by Leon Caffrey that year and the band ha further success with their second album 'Tin Planet' in 1998, including a Top Three duet with Catatonia's Cerys Matthews, 'The Ballad of Tom Jones'. However, they ran into problems with their record company and Murphy left in 2001; they continued as a quartet before splitting. Parle died in 2009 and Murphy, Griffiths and Scott met up at his funeral. They reformed Space two years later, with the addition of three new members: drummer Allan Jones, second keyboardist Ryan Clarke and bassist Phil Hartley, who had played with Scott in the Drellas after Space's split. Murphy left again in 2012 and Space released 'Attack of the Mutant 50ft Kebab' the following year, an album which consisted mainly of Drellas songs. Clarke left in 2014 and Space continued as a quartet, releasing their crowdfunded album 'Give Me Your Future' in 2016. Scott also released his solo debut, 'Marionette', in 2020. The other band members were also involved in side projects; Hartley and Jones played in Super Fast Girlie Show, while Griffiths made synthwave music under the name of Super Pixel Chix.

'Begin Again' was the third single from Space's second album 'Tin Planet'.