Customer Reviews

Dog Man Star

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This, the second album by the band was preceded by their highly hailed and applauded self-titled debut, a record that created so high expectations before its release -mainly by the music media- that it went to become the fastest selling record in the history of UK in 1993 and made them the recipients of that year's Mercury Prize award. Suddenly, Suede were all over the place, seen by many as the band responsible for bringing back British rock to the front, on a time when music was dominated by the grunge movement that was happening on the other side of the Atlantic. As things turned out, this was not to be the case, as Oasis took all praise for kickstarting the britpop frenzy and Suede were relegated to a very successful career in their homeland and continental Europe, while being virtual unknowns in the United States. What happened? Well... you might find some answers while listening to this record. Dog Man Star is a completely different album from Suede, gone were the catchy guitar hooks and the infected glam melodies from their debut, and what we get here is a grandiose album of epic proportions filled with melancholy and beauty in every song, Anderson and Butler deliver twelve tracks with gorgeous string arrangements and over the top vocals, that provide an atmosphere of calmness and reflection, and, aside of Heroin and This Hollywood Life, you hardly will find any monumental rocker like the ones on their debut. Maybe because they didn't deliver another Suede, and instead they chose to make a dark, elegant and beautiful album, they didn't hit it big in America. Something we'll never know. One thing we know, though. Dog Man Star is a great album, and an often overlooked statement of the British pop of the '90s.

Suede kicked off the Britpop explosion of the 1990s with a series of classic singles (The Drowners, Metal Mickey, Animal Nitrate, Stay Together) that were filled with embarrassingly outstanding B sides and a classic debut album. They returned with 1994s Dog Man Star, which is their undoubted masterpiece. The album was written and recorded as the band was falling apart, and guitarist/co-songwriter Bernard Butler famously departed just before the album's completion. When it was released, it was overshadowed by the latest offerings from Blur and Oasis. It was unfairly overshadowed. It is a brilliant, moody, yes, occasionally pretentious record, but early Suede actually wear pretentious quite well. The album's dark, somewhat insular mood made it a world removed from the brash, fun music that their contemporaries released at the time. There are so many highlights of this album from which to choose, but The Wild Ones, Daddy's Speeding, New Generation, The 2 of Us, Black or Blue, the amazing Asphalt World, Still Life, and "hidden track" Modern Boys are all outstanding. This is a very interesting record, that becomes increasingly compelling with repeated listens. Listening to this makes you wonder what songwriting team Brett Anderson and Bernard Butler might have been capable of in the way of immediate follow ups had their partnership not fractured. Suede would go on to Britpop success with Coming Up, and Anderson and Butler briefly mended fences as The Tears (whose record is also terrific) a decade later, but still...

I was awed, as everyone was, by Suede's self-titled CD in the early 90's. It sounded like nothing I had ever heard before. Dog Man Star follows up on Suede's freshman effort and nothing could prepare you for what awaits! This CD is soaring, moody, dark and strange all in good measure. The first track, "Introducing the Band," sets the tone for the trippy, drug fueled, songs that follow. Each song infects following the first listen--and the songs stay with you for a long time. The highlight track for me is "The Asphalt World"--listening to this song convinced me that--in 1994--the greatest band in the world was named Suede. You won't be disappointed.

To me this is where the band makes more of a stand and really gets the vibe. This is where I started with Suede. A friend let me borrow it and the rest is history. Although a good album I much prefer "Head Music". Again they have all the B-Sides and a "remastered" version is not for me, but the extra bonus songs are great and you don't have to purchase the two versions of the single. As most know each single has two versions and has at least 2-3 extra songs along with the tune. In essence you get 4-5 bonus tracks with each hit record. Good times all around.

Dog Man Star is one the best cds from the 1990s, most certainly Suede's best work. Highly recommend it.

Track listing;
1 Introducing The Band
2 We Are The Pigs
3 Heroine
4 Wild Ones, The
5 Daddy's Speeding
6 Power, The
7 New Generation
8 This Hollywood Life
9 2 Of Us, The
10 Black Or Blue
11 Asphalt World, The
12 Still Life
13 Squidgy Bun (Introducing The Band) [four track demo]
14 Ken (The Wild Ones) [four track demo]
15 Man's Song, A (Heroine) [four track demo]
16 Banana Youth (The Power) [four track demo]
17 2 Of Us, The [four track demo]
18 My Dark Star
19 Living Dead, The
20 Stay Together [long version]
21 Killing Of A Flash Boy
22 Whipsnade
23 This World Needs A Father
24 Modern Boys
25 Eno's Introducing The Band
26 La Puissance
27 Living Dead, The [piano version]
28 We Believe In Showbiz
29 Still Life [orchestral version]
30 Wild Ones, The [original unedited version]
31 Asphalt World, The [original unedited version]
32 Stay Together [video/DVD]
33 Heroine [Dog Man Star tour film/DVD]
34 We Are The Pigs [Dog Man Star tour film/DVD]
35 2 Of Us, The [Dog Man Star tour film/DVD]
36 Killing Of A Flash Boy [Dog Man Star tour film/DVD]
37 Pantomine Horse [Dog Man Star tour film/DVD]
38 Asphalt World, The [Dog Man Star tour film/DVD]
39 This Hollywood Life [Dog Man Star tour film/DVD]
40 Wild Ones, The [Dog Man Star tour film/DVD]
41 Still Life [Dog Man Star tour film/DVD]
42 Drowners, The [live at the Casino De Paris, 27th November 1993/DVD]
43 This Hollywood Life [live at the Casino De Paris, 27th November 1993/DVD]
44 We Are The Pigs [live at the Casino De Paris, 27th November 1993/DVD]
45 Metal Mickey [live at the Casino De Paris, 27th November 1993/DVD]
46 My Insatiable One [live at the Casino De Paris, 27th November 1993/DVD]
47 Animal Nitrate [live at the Casino De Paris, 27th November 1993/DVD]
48 New Generation [live at the Casino De Paris, 27th November 1993/DVD]
49 So Young [live at the Casino De Paris, 27th November 1993/DVD]
50 Sleeping Pills [live at the Casino De Paris, 27th November 1993/DVD]
51 Stay Together [live at the Casino De Paris, 27th November 1993/DVD]
52 Dolly [live at FNAC, Les Halles, Paris, 27th November 1993/DVD]
53 High Rising [live at FNAC, Les Halles, Paris, 27th November 1993/DVD]
54 Animal Nitrate [live at FNAC, Les Halles, Paris, 27th November 1993/DVD]
55 Still Life [live at FNAC, Les Halles, Paris, 27th November 1993/DVD]
56 Brett Anderson And Bernard Butler 2011 Interview [bonus material/DVD]