Kaiser Chiefs lead way in the battle for Britpop domination
January 5, 2006
By Charles de Olim
'It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.'' Admittedly, the opening sentence of the Charles Dickens' classic A Tale of Two Cities, is a peculiar way to describe that fleeting period in rock music history known as Britpop.
But it also best summarises the lofty heights achieved in music creativity and its spectacular fall as the '90s British indie music scene self-destructed under the weight of its own hype and expectation.
As musically influential periods go, it never took on say, the cultural and political significance of the '70's punk movement. It was, however, a period that saw a resurgence of the great British bands and their world-wide impact on the pop music scene.
Now, The Britpop Story, a documentary to be aired on Staurday (BBC Prime 10.30am and 5.30pm) and repeated on Sunday (2.30pm and 10.30pm) attempts to recapture this fascinating period and all the characters and bands which shaped it.
John Harris, journalist and author of The Last Party: Britpop, Blair And The Demise Of English Rock (2003) hosts a doccie that features Blur's Graham Coxon; Elastica's Justine Frischmann; Sleeper's Louise Wener; founder of Creation records, Alan McGee, who managed the likes of The Stone Roses and Oasis.
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