Dodgy - In a Room
Unlike Supergrass (see yesterday’s track) Dodgy were never quite able to discard the off-the-wall approach of The Dodgy Album and move into more serious territory with later albums. That said, when a band calls an album Free Peace Sweet, they are probably sending out a signal that says they’re not overly fussed about being taken all that seriously anyway.
The Dodgy Album might have introduced the world to the way of Dodgy in 1993, but musically it was nothing more complicated or strange than a fun slice of old-fashioned English guitar pop, mixing the effervesence of singles ‘Water Under The Bridge’ and Lovebirds with sweetly nostalgic songs like Grand Old English Oak Tree and Cold Tea. Homegrown in 1994 brought the band their first taste of summertime chart fame with Staying out for the Summer, but it wasn’t until Good Enough from Free Peace Sweet that they reached the Top 10. Coming just before that success, In A Room reached number 12, and helped the album reach number 7 - Dodgy’s only Top 10 album.
Its sheer energy, the endless summer of Britpop vibe, blaring horns and Matthew Priest’s typically kinetic drum work turn In a Room from a throwaway lead single into something worth keeping and revisiting now, 18 years on.