#quireboys

⭐️ Mick Cripps & Guy Griffin (The London Quireboys) 92'

The Wildhearts: Earth vs. The Wildhearts (1993)

30 years after its release, The Wildhearts' hit-and-miss debut long-player, Earth vs. The Wildhearts, still prompts a strong reaction -- though not always the one that fans and critics of the group's thrilling early singles and EPs were expecting ...

Instead of representing a rallying cry for impending, inevitable victory the album's embattled, "us against the world" title wound up reflecting the insecurities that seemed to lurk behind the group's public displays of bravado.

But who the hell knows?

One thing I've learned over the years is that nothing good can come from entering the dark labyrinth of Wildheart-in-Chief Ginger's (birth name David Leslie Wells) twisted mind: you'll just get lost, and he's certainly never found his way out!

Ginger really tied himself in knots on Earth vs. The Wildhearts, working/feuding with no less than three producers (Mike 'Spike' Drake, Mark Dodson, and Simon Efemey) and still emerging with an uneven set that managed to muck-up much of the band's raw energy.

First song, first riff, "Greetings from Shitsville" churns uncomfortably into action like bad Metallica, "Everlone" is everlong but at least it picks up the tempo, which is then sadly wasted on forgettable sprints like "Shame On Me" and "Drinking About Life."

Luckily, the even faster, Motörhead-worthy juggernaut "Suckerpunch" is impossible to ignore (or dislike), and fellow singles like "T.V. Tan" and "Caffeine Bomb" (note the livelier mix) finally deliver the irresistible power pop hooks fans were hoping for.

To a lesser degree, so did perverse Ginger love songs like "The Miles Away Girl," "Love U 'til I Don't," and "My Baby Is a Headfuck," which quotes The Beatles' unmistakable "Day Tripper" riff and features a guitar solo from Spiders from Mars legend Mick Ronson, just before his tragic passing on April 29, 1993.

But before I confuse everyone as much as Ginger does, perhaps I should clarify that Earth vs. The Wildhearts isn't a bad record by any stretch; it just failed to justify the hype (stalling at No. 46 in the U.K. charts) that accompanied the explosive live shows and euphoric press clippings leading up to its release.

Moreover, and more pragmatically, these recordings simply didn't match The Wildhearts' concurrent mini-releases, and you need only listen to the band's significantly better, bigger, brighter sophomore triumph, P.H.U.Q., to hear what I'm talking about.

Leave it to Ginger and his contrary bunch -- second guitarist C. J., bassist Danny McCormack, and drummer Stidi -- to flip historic rock 'n' roll's traditions on their head by having a Freshman slump!

But, if nothing else, Earth vs. The Wildhearts offered a preview of the chaotic missteps and near-misses that would both curse and define the band's -- and Ginger's -- star-crossed career forever after.