Search - Sleeper :: It Girl

Some albums you just love because you do

M. Lohrke | Provo, UT | 05/09/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"it wasn't very difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff when it came to mid 1990's britpop. for every stinker like menswe@r and the bluetones, you had pulp's cleverness, blur's gleeful laddism, suede's dark cynicism, supergrass' goofiness (although they've since proven themselves among the finest musicians ever), and elastica's rawness. and then there was sleeper.



sleeper didn't really fit the within the confines of traditional britpop. first of all, sleeper was one of the few female-fronted bands (along with elastica, echobelly, and catatonia) to actually make a name for themselves. what's more, damon albarn wasn't dating justine from elastica, and louise wener (while certainly not bad looking in the least) lacked sonya aurora maden's overt sexuality and feminist stance. maybe that's why sleeper never quite reached the same heights as their britpop peers.



it's a shame, really, because sleeper's second album, 'the it girl,' is one of the finest britpop albums--right up there with 'parklife,' 'urban hymns, 'dog man star,' and 'different class.' what sleeper *did* have going for them were incredibly good, catchy, melodic songs. 'the it girl' built on the success of their first single, 'inbetweener,' and the result was one of the most consistently gratifying albums of the era. stephen street (uber-britpop producer) should be given credit for harnessing louise wener's and andy mcclure's considerable writing talents. however, although mcclure was undoubtedly indispensable, it's clear 'the it girl' is louis wener's show. her narratives on 'the it girl,' are compelling and biting, revealing a woman coming to terms with loser boyfriends ('nice guy eddie'), uncertainty ('what do i do now?'), lost love and betrayal ('sale the century'). no, louise wener did have the greatest of voices, but her voice serves the songs well and she certainly can carry a nice melody. ultimately, 'the it girl,' is an album full of immediately memorable songs by a band, i fear, lost in the ashes of the britpop meltdown. it's a shame because i absolutely adore this album. it didn't leave my cd player for the better part of 1997. whenever i listen to it i have nothing but great memories of what it was like to be smack dab in the middle of the britpop explosion. it was the best summer of my life and this was my soundtrack.



thanks, louise."

Brainy , clumsy pop for those who enjoyed the early 90's

giovanni | Greece | 01/01/2004

(3 out of 5 stars)

"For all we know Louise Wener might be married and have lots and lots of kids now . What we do know for sure though is that after 1997's " Pleased To Meet You " she didn't try to write music ever again . Never was a solo project announced nor did their company ever imply that there was a new Sleeper album in the works . The Britpop era was over and there didn't seem to be any room left for them to breathe as artists and keep creating . Even if you were though one of the half million people who bought " The It Girl " back in 1995 you can't help but admitting that Sleeper were a band with more high I.Q than talent in melody . Still , it's obvious that this was the best of their three offerings and one of the coolest british releases of that time . From the delicious female cynism of " Nice Guy Eddie " ( " Yes I knew that you wanted me " ) to the honest lust and love of " Sale Of The Century " ( " Was it when i said i wanted to have children ? " ) , the lyrics have such a strong personallity of their own and the album's good points don't stop here . " Statuesque " is as catchy as they get while " Stop Your Crying " , even though it's quitte different from a typical Sleeper song , has that positive vibe that's hard to resist . Even the lo-fi ballad of " Click Off Gone " has a moody quality that makes it stand out . Overall The It Girl is a good pop record which never manages though to be anything truly gripping or eartshattering . Still , for me they were a guilty pleasure of some sort : a female fronted band with a singer who couldn't sing and a monsterlike confidence which you could never understand where it came from ."

One up's the amazing debut.

Donnie L. Tucker | usa | 06/13/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Though Sleeper's fine debut, Smart, was an instant classic, The It Girl does it one better. Better songs, better vocals, better variety, it's all here. And you gotta love the cheeky title."