Get to know the shocking highs and lows of the biggest stories in music.
Get to know the shocking highs and lows of the biggest stories in music.
So here we are, twenty years on...
The UK indie guitar scene was a brief, bright moment where exciting new bands emerged from all corners of the UK, and made themselves available to fans. It was a time when young people controlled the culture and left the major record labels in the dust. It was an intoxicating era of community, messiness and hedonism. And actually, there is a hunger for all of that now. Many of the bands from that time are still going, and are playing to more people than they ever have before. The UK Indie Explosion holds a fascination for those audiences too young to have experienced it firsthand, and those Gen Z-ers have popularised the term ‘indie sleaze’. Meanwhile, guitar music is cool again, with the likes of English Teacher, Wet Leg, and Wolf Alice leading a rock revival.
Presented by Kate Nash Produced by Jack Howson & Rich Power A Peanut & Crumb production for BBC Sounds & 6 Music Commissioners for the BBC were Will Wilkin and Hannah Clapham
The producers would like to extend deep thanks to: Ed Greig for additional (early noughties) production heard across the series David Crackles for engineering every episode The BBC Archive team, namely David Hyde, Joseph Schultz, and Colin Waddell
Just six action-packed years after the start of the UK indie sleaze music scene, The Word magazine coins the derisory term “Landfill Indie” to describe the oversaturation of guitar music, turning the entire genre into a joke. Major labels are falling over themselves to sign the next big indie thing, but many of these hopefuls aren’t ready for the limelight. And audiences seem ready for a new, entirely different, sound ... one that's less male-dominated, for starters. Cue Kate Nash, Adele, Laura Marling, Florence Welch and co.
Featured interviewees include Alexandra Haddow, Johnny Borrell, Tara Joshi, Alex Kapranos, Paul Smith and Gary Jarman Presented by Kate Nash Produced by Jack Howson & Rich Power A Peanut & Crumb production for BBC Sounds & 6 Music
Warning: this episode contains strong language and adult themes.
The UK indie guitar music scene hits the tabloids. Johnny Borrell, Pete Doherty and Luke Pritchard partner up with A-List celebrity girlfriends. Lily Allen and Amy Winehouse become unhealthy media obsessions. And most shockingly of all, Preston from the Ordinary Boys goes on Celebrity Big Brother and actually has a great time. This red top frenzy builds to a messy crescendo that includes phone hacking, divorce, band break-ups, and a devastating fatality.
Featured interviewees include Alexandra Haddow, Pete Doherty, Samuel Preston, Tara Joshi, Johnny Borrell and Luke Pritchard Presented by Kate Nash Produced by Jack Howson & Rich Power A Peanut & Crumb production for BBC Sounds & 6 Music
Warning: this episode contains strong language, adult themes and descriptions of drug use, which some listeners may find distressing. Details of help and support are available at bbc.co.uk/actionline
What’s a music scene without fighting and feuding? Brace yourself for Art Brut versus Bloc Party, Razorlight versus The Kooks, and The Libertines versus themselves. With all the booze, drugs, and partying, things are bound to get messy. Especially at the notorious NME Awards, where Ryan Jarman of the Cribs has a near death experience.
Featured interviewees include Luke Pritchard, Johnny Borrell, Eddie Argos, Pete Doherty and Ryan Jarman. Presented by Kate Nash Produced by Jack Howson & Rich Power A Peanut & Crumb production for BBC Sounds & 6 Music
Warning: this episode contains strong language, adult themes and descriptions of drug use, which some listeners may find distressing. Details of help and support are available at bbc.co.uk/actionline
2005 to '06 is the pinnacle of UK Indie Sleaze, as Razorlight, Arctic Monkeys, The Kaiser Chiefs and The Kooks well and truly take over the mainstream. Scrappy guitar bands are now dominating the BRIT Awards and playing to an audience of 2 billion at Live 8. But with success comes the inevitable backlash...
Featured interviewees include Johnny Borrell and Luke Pritchard Presented by Kate Nash Produced by Jack Howson & Rich Power A Peanut & Crumb production for BBC Sounds & 6 Music
Warning: this episode contains strong language, adult themes and descriptions of drug use, which some listeners may find distressing. Details of help and support are available at bbc.co.uk/actionline
A new tribe is born: The Indie. You can spot an Indie a mile off. They are in skinny jeans, scarves, and trilbies, in a random configuration designed to look as dirty and debauched as possible. The early internet - MySpace and band forums - solidifies this fun new scene, and breaks down barriers between artist and fan. 'Guerilla Gigs' become a thing, with spontaneous shows sprouting up in funeral parlours, tube trains, pub roofs ... and drug dens.
Featured interviewees include Alexandra Haddow, Gary Jarman and Pete Doherty Presented by Kate Nash Produced by Jack Howson & Rich Power A Peanut & Crumb production for BBC Sounds & 6 Music
Warning: this episode contains strong language, adult themes and descriptions of drug use, which some listeners may find distressing. Details of help and support are available at bbc.co.uk/actionline
Now that being in a band is cool again, and now that grotty indie guitar music seems a viable career choice, every corner of the UK sprouts an exciting new group ... or two, or three. Glasgow's Franz Ferdinand seize the moment, winning the Mercury Music Prize. They are the undisputed early leaders of this new scene-without-a-name, setting a tone that is unashamedly artistic and literate. And also quite boozy.
Featured interviewees include Alex Kapranos, The Cribs and Paul Smith Presented by Kate Nash Produced by Jack Howson & Rich Power A Peanut & Crumb production for BBC Sounds & 6 Music
Warning: this episode contains strong language and adult themes.
Noughties UK indie music was iconic, fashionable and thrilling. These days the kids call it 'Indie Sleaze', although at the time there was no cohesive name for the collection of bands - from Franz Ferdinand to The Libertines, The Long Blondes to The Cribs, Bloc Party to Razorlight, Arctic Monkeys to The Kooks - that erupted from all corners of Britain. These young artists exploded with attitude, tunes, vitality, and misconduct, creating an army of costumed disciples.
This is the story of the UK’s most influential musicians of this millennia, and the wild culture that surrounded them - including a collapsing music industry in the face of new media, a fatal tabloid frenzy, and the lows to be found amidst the highlife. Come and ride the UK Indie Wave, as recalled by the people who were there, sweating into their skinny jeans.
Episode 1 takes us back to Year Zero (aka 2001), when a foreign band invasion led by the Strokes ignites and inspires this nation's youth.
Featured interviewees include Johnny Borrell, Pete Doherty and The Hives Presented by Kate Nash Produced by Jack Howson & Rich Power A Peanut & Crumb production for BBC Sounds & 6 Music
Warning: this episode contains strong language, adult themes and descriptions of drug use, which some listeners may find distressing. Details of help and support are available at bbc.co.uk/actionline
Celebrating the 30th anniversary of Britpop!
As the 90s hurtled towards a new millennium, Britpop wasn't just making big headlines, it had also become very big business.
As money flowed through the UK music industry, everyone was desperate to be part of Cool Britannia. However, with the arrival of money came the arrival of excess.
In Episode 7 of The Rise and Fall of Britpop, legendary Evening Session hosts Jo Whiley and Steve Lamacq re-unite to look back at what life was like for those in the eye of the storm.
The Rise and Fall of Britpop was presented by Jo Whiley and Steve Lamacq. It was written by Steve Lamacq and Paul Sheehan. Technical Production by Tim Heffer. With additional production by Phil Smith. The Editor for BBC Audio was Helen Hobday. The Commissioning Producer was Jonathan O’Sullivan. The Commissioner for Sounds was Will Wilkin. Archive comes from The Word, Fierce Panda, Channel 4, Hattrick, Steve Lamacq, Peel Acres, Creation Call, Ginger Media and the BBC Archive. The producers would like to thank all contributors and archive interviewers and interviewees including Matt Everitt, Jax Coombes, Miranda Sawyer, John Harris, Stephen Merchant, Matt Tasker, Dermot O’Leary, Sara Tabar, Anna Richards, Tom Ravenscroft, Sam Cunningham, Chris Morris, Stuart Maconie, Mark Goodier, Georgia Frampton and Snuff.
Thirty years ago a youthquake of creativity took hold of the UK, as Britpop sucked everything into its cultural orbit.
From supermodels at Fashion week, to Edinburgh’s underbelly and from Match of the Day montages, to puppets interviewing rock stars on Breakfast TV, the attitude and aspirations of Britpop reverberated across the country.
In episode 3 of The Rise and Fall of Britpop Steve Lamacq and Jo Whiley dust off old note books, photo albums, CDs and tapes and look at the effect Britpop had on every aspect of British culture.
Listen only on BBC Sounds.
Presented by Jo Whiley and Steve Lamacq Written by Steve Lamacq and Paul Sheehan Produced by Paul Sheehan with additional production by Phil Smith Technical Production by Tim Heffer Editor for BBC Audio Helen Hobday Commissioning Producer Jonathan O’Sullivan Commissioner for BBC Music Will Wilkin A BBC Audio Production
Britpop, as a term landed in the spring of 1993 but it was a full year later, that everything changed over the course of just twenty days. In Episode 2 of The Rise and Fall of Britpop, Steve Lamacq and Jo Whiley revisit the key moments on the road to Britpop’s explosion. Including on air resignations at Radio 1, a band of rowdy Mancunians and a tragic death, which caused shockwaves around the world. 30 years later Steve and Jo are taking advantage of their contacts, going through old note books, photo albums, DATs, Mini Discs and the BBC archives, to chart the Rise and Fall of one of the biggest musical movements ever to hit the UK… Britpop. Warning: this episode contains strong language, adult themes and descriptions of self-harm and suicide, which some listeners may find distressing. Details of help and support are available at bbc.co.uk/actionline
Listen only on BBC Sounds.
Presented by Jo Whiley and Steve Lamacq Written by Steve Lamacq and Paul Sheehan Produced by Paul Sheehan with additional production by Phil Smith Technical Production by Tim Heffer Editor for BBC Audio Helen Hobday Commissioning Producer Jonathan O’Sullivan Commissioner for BBC Music Will Wilkin A BBC Audio Production
What was life like before Britpop? Join Steve Lamacq and Jo Whiley as they rewind the tape to hear how the UK sounded at the start of the 90’s. Britpop emerged at a very specific time in British History, recession and war had dominated the headlines, the Iron Lady left Downing Street for the final time and the UK’s music scene was fractured. Rave was still in relatively rude health, terrifying the tabloids and the parents of teenagers, Morrissey had felt the wrath of music fans after appearing on stage in a Union Jack and the Manic Street Preachers were bringing their own unique blend of rock n roll to the world. But there was one genre that dominated the airwaves and co-opted the ears of the UKs Youth... Grunge. In Episode 1 of The Rise and Fall of Britpop, Steve and Jo have new interviews, never before heard archive and more giving us a warts and all look back at the genesis of the scene. Discovering how these different elements collided to create the perfect conditions for a big bang which saw a new wave of British creativity spewed into existence. Warning: this episode contains strong language, adult themes and descriptions of self-harm and suicide, which some listeners may find distressing. Details of help and support are available at bbc.co.uk/actionline
Listen only on BBC Sounds.
It's the moment so many people had been hoping for - Oasis are back. Steve and Jo reunite to tackle the biggest musical story of the year, the return of Noel and Liam. But what do we know about the reunion so far?
Presented by Steve Lamacq and Jo Whiley Written and produced by Paul Sheehan and Phil Smith for BBC Audio
The Rise and Fall of Oasis - Episode 8 - Live Forever?
With both Liam and Noel having successful solo careers, and a new generation of fans discovering Oasis, there is endless talk of the band getting back together. And whilst they seem to have been staying out of each other’s way, the constant jibing has moved to social media. We look at what the band means to a new generation of fans, and if they ever will just give each other a call?
The Rise and Fall of Oasis was presented by Jo Whiley and Steve Lamacq. It was written by Paul Sheehan and Philip Smith. Technical production by Tim Heffer and Sarah Hockley with additional production by Berni Botto, Anna Richards and Merrily Grout. The Editor for BBC Audio was Helen Hobday, the commissioning producer was Hannah Clapham and the Commissioner for BBC Sounds was Will Wilkin. It was produced for BBC Audio by Philip Smith and Paul Sheehan.
Archive comes from - The Brits, Channel 4, ITV, MTV, CBC Radio, 9News, Sky One Productions, OasisMediaArchive and the BBC Archive.
The producers wish to thank all the contributors and archive interviewers and interviewees including: Matt Everitt, Dermot O'Leary, Ben Walker, Christine Boar, Anna Richards, Zane Lowe, Mark Radcliffe, John Wilson, Paul Kobrak, Mista Jam, John Harris, Felix White, Stephen Sackur, Hannah Farrell, Jolie MacKereth, Elizabeth Alker, Mark Goodier, Shaun Keaveny, Tony Visconti, Brian Cannon and Lisa Moorish.
Oasis during the 2000s dutifully continue to play the hits to a committed and enthusiastic audience. However, when the final show does eventually come, it’s a largely unsatisfying end for a band that always seemed stronger than the rest. Oasis. Killed, by a plum. In a portacabin. In Paris.
The Rise and Fall of Oasis - Episode 6 - Where Did It All Go Wrong? The Death Of A Party
As the millennium approaches, Oasis are no longer sound tracking a generation. They are flat and limping along; trying, in vain, to find their place in a shifting musical environment. Noel chooses this period to get clean but he, and Liam, have divorces pending. Bonehead and Guigsy leave the group, and the band release ‘Standing on the Shoulder of Giants’ - their comedown album. Add to this, their “worst gig ever” live at Wembley stadium and a fight in Barcelona that will fundamentally alter the brother’s relationship. And we look at how the tabloid demand for the band lead to cases of phone hacking and leaks within the camp.
In the lead up to the release of Be Here Now, Oasis tabloid mania is at fever pitch, but what should be the crowning glory of their career is slowly unravelling. The band faced a series of challenges, many of their own causing, and the album is released to massive fanfare... and industry paranoia. We learn about the chaos that followed the group at the time, the backlash that came after the release of Be Here Now, the Australian tour affair that almost resulted in a major diplomatic incident and how Noel’s visit to number 10 changed everything.
Oasis are Massive. Earls Court, Knebworth and actual success in America. But with that comes arrogance, defiance and a fight so ferocious that the band appear to have finally split up. We cover the chaotic month that sees the band play Knebworth, have a meltdown live on MTV, and a US tour that starts without one brother, and ends without the other. Utter chaos, and pure drama at the very peak of their powers. Post Knebworth, Oasis really didn’t know what to do next, and as they lurch from one drama to another, the British tabloids have made them a front page priority.
With a number 1 single under their belts, the band headline Glastonbury on Boneheads’ 30th Birthday, welcome a new drummer and release the era defining album - (What’s the Story) Morning Glory? But this episode is not without drama - a studio fight almost derails the Oasis express and the Blur Vs Oasis rivalry reaches a nadir.
