Come on now, admit it - who here likes/has liked the Cranberries?

Pretty much agree with Turrican. Loved these two records growing up and still do.

o'riordan's voice, specifically in the first album, sounds amazing in how it fades in and out during the bridge or whatever you want to call it

definitely reminiscent of elizabeth fraser at some parts

their lyrics have always been a bit crap, I never knew what any of them were in the first record then when I eventually looked them up I felt "oh." Lots of 'walking out through the door' etc

Nah ode to my family and linger have great lyrics

yes. well, clearly some people liked the direction they went in or they wouldn't have continued to put out six or seven albums that go in that direction.

― akm, Tuesday, January 16, 2018 1:20 PM (twenty-seven minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

they didn’t though. bury the hatchet was v much a scaling back from to the faithful departed

their singles are generally solid throughout (even “salvation” which i think has a v charming velocity) except “time is ticking out”

there are the cranberry saw us demos on youtube from cassettes they released pretty good stuff

'Salvation' is a very good performance and topline, but I can never get past how awful the lyric is.

Zombie is fine. as with many female musicians/celebrities many had a decent go at her when she had issues a few years back. it's pretty sad overall. idk. Dreams and Linger are better than a lot of the songs that probably inspired them. I always think of Chungking Express when I think of Dreams, even though it's a Faye Wong cover (extremely faithful to the original and therefore sublime.)

'Daffodil Lament' is probably the best song they ever did.

I adore NNTA, really like EEIDISWCW, never heard the rest. I am going to admit right here and now that I played NNTA more often than anything else in my dorm room in 1995

I came up with a dozen goodies.

10. Just My Imagination

that's a good one but i think i prefer "you and me" as a single from that record

Zombie being a huge hit was definitely a problem, the third record even has a terrible remake of it (Hollywood) and the whole thing feels like a mess with that edgier, rockier sound and the political posturing that feels awkward. They were really good at evoking nostalgia in ballad mode, which is why the best cut in there by a long shot is “when you’re gone”.

Alfred you forgot “Wanted”

listening back to the first album today I was struck by how much I used to love Waltzing Back. I don't think I've heard that song since probably 1994. Her Irish yelping really works on that.

Oh, interesting: "Zombie" is what everyone hates? That's the only one of the hits I ever really liked tbh and it still seems iconic of that time to me. Sad that she was so young.

waltzing back is fucking great

I don’t hate Zombie... I hate what it did to them on the following album.

last five or so songs on no need to argue are all wonderful

What really matters mystifies me is how the songwriting quality basically collapses for the entire stretch between “Ode To My Family” and that final remarkable home stretch.

Actually Everyone... seems really notable for its consistency given the band immediately became so inconsistent (though still capable of greatness) thereafter.

Alfred you forgot “Wanted”

I was listening to "Everybody Else Is Doing It" last night for the first time since the 90s. Very strong album, so dreamy and nostalgia-inducing. I really like "pretty" and "put me down"

RIP Dolores.

Dreams is an all-time favourite for me. The first album reminds me of moving to London in '93 and drinking with lots of Irish people.

I think Zombie was where a lot of people got off the bus. I remember they took some stick for releasing an anti-IRA protest song only a couple of weeks after the IRA ceasefire - like they could put the peace process at risk.

I remember they took some stick for releasing an anti-IRA protest song only a couple of weeks after the IRA ceasefire - like they could put the peace process at risk.

LOL

What really matters mystifies me is how the songwriting quality basically collapses for the entire stretch between “Ode To My Family” and that final remarkable home stretch.

Don't be daft - 'I Can't Be With You', 'Twenty One' and 'Empty' are three of the best tracks on there!

The first two LP's are near equal in consistency, and would be equal if 'Zombie' wasn't on there.

Yeah Sunday is a brilliant, giddy thing, i always thought it was called Sunday because it's their most obvious homage to The Sundays.

never pursued their albums but i had MTV for the mid 90s when they broke. i remember "Zombie" and "Linger" on constant rotation and i loved those songs.

last night i looked up the video to "Salvation" and holy crap yes there is the killer evil clown creeping at the window that haunted my dreams when i was a teen! i hadn't seen this video in 20 years, tbh im glad i didn't imagine it! really insane video. btw it's actually a pretty cool song

She looks seriously fucking ill in the video to 'Free to Decide' ...

This is nice, despite the sort of creepy and/or on-the-nose overtones of a lyric about a hotel in London.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=229&v=AG1LGI0Gf_Y

Four tracks into the new (and final) Cranberries album and admittedly I'm enjoying it a lot. For me, this is easily a better record than Roses... it might turn out to be their best since No Need to Argue, actually.