Thursday, March 17, 2011

Ratcat - Tingles EP


Aussie readers will think I've lost my mind (again?!)....

Ratcat shoulda been huge?

For a few months around the release of the Tingles EP in 1990, they were huge in Australia. I can well remember Beatle-esque scenes of hordes of screaming teenage girls. Ratcat were at the right place at the right time - an irresistible combination of good looks and good songs - or to be precise, one great song, That Ain't Bad, a sublime slice of Buzzcock-ian fuzz rock that worms its way into your subconscious, and hangs around like an unwelcome guests for months afterwards.

Like most objects of teenybopper desire, the buzz(cocks) didn't last too much longer. The follow up albums (Blind Love and Inside Out) and singles sold less and less despite the material being as good as that from their halcyon period.

The Tingles EP provides a good summary of the band for those who have not heard them: That Ain't Bad, four further fuzz rock gems, plus the forgettable My Bloody Valentine, a lackluster piece of atmospheric tomfoolery that is not worthy of that name!

Ratcat - 1990 - Tingles EP

1. That Aint Bad
2. Tingles
3. Don't Go in the Water
4. Getting Away (From This World)
5. Skin
6. My Bloody Valentine

FLAC
MP3

2 comments:

  1. Brilliant EP, I had it on cassette, and "That Ain't Bad" is still on high mp3 rotation 20 years down the track.

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