Everybody else was doing it…so they did it better

 


Album: Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can’t We?
Artist: The Cranberries www.cranberries.com
Label: Island
Release date: March 1, 1993
Peak chart position/sales: (IRE) 9 / (UK) 1, US 5x Platinum, UK Platinum, CAN Platinum

Dolores O’Riordan is the kind of musician who makes you wonder why tween magazines ever tried to associate the term ‘rock chick’ with Ashlee Simpson (truth be told, I wondered that before I discovered O’Riordan; but anyway). Exuding the sort of awesomeness that makes you wonder whether the word ‘cool’ was invented to accommodate her, I can only wonder at how obsessed I might have been with imitating her look, performance style and music when I was an aspiring young rocker at 13. As it was, Bono got that honour; but that’s another story. Point is, O’Riordan isn’t easily imitable at all and neither are her band, The Cranberries, possibly the best thing to come out of the 90s music scene. And thanks to deluded tween magazines it is only now that I discover them…

With its quip of a title, moody cover and punchy, open-ended song titles, Everybody Else Is Doing It, Why Can’t We? was already reeking of heartfelt rock attitude before I had even opened the CD case (well actually, I listened to it on Grooveshark so strictly speaking I didn’t have to open a CD case at all…but figuratively speaking, ok?). Anyway, fact is that despite the title, everybody WASN’T doing what The Cranberries ended up creating. There was a reason they shot to number 1 in the UK and went many times Platinum in the US. Mixing rock with Irish folk and folk rock, alternative and indie influences, they created moody, heartfelt, sometimes brazen and often political rock like only the Irish can do.
The majority of the songs on this album however, are The Cranberries’ more innocent days of love and relationship reflections. These are no wishy-washy lovesick tales though, with brooding indie-inspired guitar riffs and sweetly melancholy melodies balancing regular blasts of all-out rock and punchy tunes. O’Riordan’s voice rises above all and is the most intriguing mix of silky brogue and soaring vocal acrobatics that catch in her throat in the most startling manner before escaping at full belt in a breathtakingly gutsy style. When she sings “I’m a fool for you” she evokes the regret and bittersweet emotion of losing your heart, NOT the distinct suspicion that the last two words of the statement are rendered useless by the demented, half-clad gymnastics of a blonde “singer”. What I’m trying to say is that O’Riordan demands respect for her talent. And deserves it.

Let us not forget in my slightly feminist admiration, however, the other three quarters of awesomeness that make up The Cranberries. At this period the contribution of lead guitarist Noel Hogan, who co-wrote all but three of the songs with O’Riordan, was the epicentre of the band’s sound…and let me point out that he definitely put the ‘epic’ in ‘epicentre’. Economic yet remarkably effective riffs as in “How” and “Pretty” that layer perfectly with O’Riordan’s elegant acoustic strumming, provide a strong core for every song. Add Noel’s brother (and Cranberries co-founder) Michael Hogan and his bass to the mix and we get a satisfyingly fat groove throughout which often rises to the top of the mix with throbbing melody lines as in the edgy “Still Can’t” and “reflective Put Me Down”. Drummer Fergal Lawler tops it off with precise, snappy hi-hats and all-out cymbal crashes to provide creeping tension and thundering climaxes and the picture of moody, strong young rock is complete.
The delightful thing about The Cranberries is that even on this debut album their originality and consistency is already apparent; they have a sound worth listening to and they keep that voice loud and clear throughout the whole album - no mean feat for a fledgling band. The track listing of Everybody… works its way through a plethora of relationship ponderings, beginning with the innocent helplessness of “I Still”, an atmosphere which is peppered throughout the album with the naive “Dreams” and gently melancholy but undeniably lovely “Linger”. By the end of the album however, The Cranberries introduce us to less forgiving numbers like “How” which has O’Riordan hollering “Never before, never again” and the album ends on a slightly unsettled note with the threatening “Put Me Down”. Contrary to the seeming invitation in the title and seductive, whispering vocal, it has a slightly sarcastic, reproachful lyric whose eerie melody rings in your ears as the album finishes.

Managing to deftly weave the sort of sweet catchiness that wouldn’t go awry in a Corrs song with a pulsing rock tension, in-your-face attitude and musical depth that by turns makes you want to dance and air guitar it all the way, The Cranberries hit a winning combination first go. With talent, originality and not a little musical daring, who’s surprised by their success? Certainly not me. 4/5 stars


Listen to: Dreams, How, Linger

(Okay, and just coz it’s the most amazing protest song and will give you chills, go listen to Zombie even though it’s not on this album. Seriously.)


Is it worth my $$$? – Well, this is another one I bought before I finished typing (damn you JB Hi-Fi and your post-Christmas sales! It’s a crime to sell music so cheap right under my nose.) so…yes. If you’re after the darker, more political side of The Cranberries though, opt for the contemporaries of “Zombie” on their second (and highest selling) album No Need To Argue.