Seamonsters

The Wedding Present

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 18, 1994)
• Original Release Date: May 1991
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Manifesto Records
• ASIN: B000005DDV
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #262,282 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
This album, produced by Steve Albini, has been voted the favorite album of Wedding Present fans, with 'Dalliance,' the opening track repeatedly voted as the favorite song. 10 tracks.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The most accessible Wedding Present release..., August 22, 2002

By	Sheryl Weidner "anime-ted" (Redmond, WA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

More than a decade after its release, "Seamonsters" still finds its way into my CD player at least once a month. The Wedding Present are well-known in their native Britain for publishing 12 successive top-ten singles in one year (rivaling only Elvis Presley by achieving the feat), and the releases from that year are perhaps more representative of the "true" Wedding Present sound. However, the Steve Albini-produced "Seamonsters" packages David Gedge's ex-girlfriend-drunk-dial lyrics, painfully honest growl and moan, and beached-whale guitar sounds into a pop landscape that undulates, aches and ultimately leaves you wishing you could fold the lead singer in a comforting embrace - though you sense he might just push you away. Even if this CD does not become a portal to your Wedding Present addiction, as it did for me, it will remain a top-of-the-stack favorite for driving, getting over bad dates, and high volume reality escapes.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Classic Gedge, June 17, 2003

By	Richard "Chappo" (Rochester NY, USA) - See all my reviews

If The Wedding Present came from Seattle they would probably be held in the same esteem as Nirvana are nowadays. "Seamonsters" was released the same year as "Nevermind" but is relatively obscure compared to that monster album. Still, sales alone does not a great album make and this is right up there with "Nevermind" in quality (some may argue that it's better).
"Seamonsters" moved away from the all out "fast and furious" approach of it's predecessor "Bizzaro". It is a lot more dynamic with delicate passages of music that sound like they're almost going to fall apart giving way to fierce multilayered guitar assaults. Breathtaking stuff and definitely not easy listening. That's not to say that there isn't any sweet pop music on this album "Heather", "Rotterdam" and "Dalliance" are wonderful tunes that point to Gedge's future pop writings with Cinerama and the Hit Parade tracks that immediately followed this album.
Lyrically he's again talking about love that has been lost, but the scenarios are more varied and unconventional this time around ("Octopussy" being an example). If you're fed up with the hundreds of dour "nu-metal" (or whatever they're calling it this week) soundalike [stuff] that clogs up the airwaves at the moment, this album will be a breath of fresh air. Honest music, honest production...awesome.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the ten best of the '90s, July 29, 2000

By	bpearis "bpearis" (Brooklyn) - See all my reviews

Seamonsters took a while for me to appreciate, mainly due to Steve Albini's production style. Production is probably the wrong word as it seems like he puts a couple microphones in the back of the recording studio and that's it. David Gedge's lyrics are a bit drowned-out in the mix. Having a lyric sheet would have aided things greatly.

But once you get past that, Seamonsters is the greatest loud-soft-loud (a style which Nirvana made very popular that same year -- hell, same month -- with Nevermind) album ever. "Dalliance" builds with Gedge's anger to a fury of noise that's just incredible. The whole album's great. Albini's approach to recording the band (which had previously suffered from serious '80s-itis over-reverbing), brings out the bands strengths -- not just Peter Salowka's blurry strumming but the intensity of Simon Smith's drumming. Albini may make any band seem noisier than usual, but he gets the drums right (see PJ Harvey's Dry or Nirvana's In Uetero). Every song is fantastic. A must-own.