Reviews (page 11 of 13)
sounded kinda same-y at times but it was a vibe
Solid. I now know where Cold play stole their first songs.
Decent album that can't hold the high quality of its opening title nor of some other britrock staples
-Smooth flows, dodgy themes, no filler tracks.
One very Iconic Song, but too poppy for me.
Bitter Sweet Symphony & Lucky Man sind nice. Der Rest ist gesülze.
Starts with a bang with Bittersweet Symphony, then it's like "Oof, what happened?"
Good one, some great songs
Alternativ, 90’er, melankolsk, stryger, psykedelisk, indie
Knew the big song but pretty solid all around
"Bittersweet Symphony"
Alt rock/pop, 3,5/5
It's got a few good songs but the others are a bit weak in comparison
Its not bad, just a bit boring. Has a few classics on it though. Bitter Sweet Symphony is great, so is Sonnet and The Drugs Dont Work.
Inoffensive, but bloated and baggy - a few solid songs, and the rest sort of just washed over...
This album is one generational song followed by truly meaningless crap.
well, of course I knew bitter sweet symphony, so cool to see the other songs on the album.
This list is testing my patience with this one, I think because of the overabundance of Britpop. I am certainly no Britpop hater, but Urban Hymns suffers by comparison.
Да, первую песню я знаю, но даже её не готов слушать на повторе, как и все остальные
Fishmans vibe. Bittersweet symphony ofc goated. Pretty nice but bit repetitive and boring.
Zzzzzz
pissed me off besides the 1st song
Rating: 4/10 big oof on this one, it's obviously a sound I love but there are a lot of bands I want to listen to instead of The Verve. This one I find boring and the album goes on and on and I got tired of most songs before they finished, especially after the first four. It gets a point or two purely for its strongest run at the beginning
One ok song, the rest sounds the same, but not as ok.
The first song is great and a classic. The rest of the album is forgettable.
One iconic song overshadows all the others. Kinda boring
1,5
this album is straight ass I like bittersweet symphony but the rest was my grandad stinky ass
Lol ... bittersweet symphony brings back weird memories of college. But also my first thought on seeing this was 'oh no, another britpop album'. Beyond Bittersweet Symphony it sounds pretty generic. Wow, the awared for completely unnecessary hidden track goes to them.
1h15 de britpop é top much. Apesar do Banger que tem a abrir, como álbum é cansativo
how many bad british rock albums does one have to listen to i like some lyrics though
Two iconic songs, but not ones I would purposefully listen too. Rest of the album is all a similar sound, difficult to differentiate the songs and I don't like the tone of the main singer. Not for me
I can see why bittersweet symphony is the only song I know from this album
not good
This hasn't aged well. An hour and 16 minutes of meh!
Wasn’t expecting this to be so boring.
The Bittersweet Symphony guys are on this list? Is this some kind of sick joke? And the album is 75 minutes? Not on my watch.
This felt quite flat to me, and I didn’t really connect with it. I think this was due to the melancholic feel, the lack of groove, and the simpler rhythmic choices than I’m used to. It’s not an album I will return to.
Bittersweet symphony is the saving grace on this. I don’t care about the rest tbh!
I dunno, guys, I think I just don't like era of Brit rock. There were a few points where this surprisingly rocked out, which was cool, but overall the vibes were just too aloof and the songs went on too long.
Starts so strong then just kinda meh
This album is pretty boring.
opens with a song ive heard in ads my entire life but never been arsed about enough to google, got even less interesting after that
The first song works to the detriment of the entire album as nothing quite lives up to it.
Music is fine, would be much better with a different singer in my opinion
Lucky man? More like lacklustre man.
Bittersweet symphony is a classic no doubt. The rest of the album is completely forgettable.
This album knows exactly what it wants to be: a swirling miasma of flavorless Britpop. Britslop, as it were. Every song is equally forgettable and equally crammed with distortion. The only half memorable song opens the album, then I washed away in a see of bland. This album doesn’t feel groundbreaking or special. It just feels like filling up on complementary bread instead of eating a meal.
“Bitter Sweet Symphony” is too good for this album. “The Drugs Don’t Work” is another decent cut. But this album is mid. Only Verve album worth listening too imo is “A Storm In Heaven”.
A British Indie Rock/Britpop/Alt Rock/Pop Rock/Shoegaze album!?! Wow! It's crazy that every. single. album. in this category made this list. This is a one-hit wonder. Every other song on this album is effectively the same; same tempo, same (lack of) energy, same whinny lyrics, same boring music. This clear 2* album should be replaced with Seven Mary Three's American Standard. A one-hit-wonder contemporary with important differences. 7M3 had two singles chart, the album has a unique sound that I would categorize as Southern grunge, and it has variety in song music, lyrical themes, and tempo. That would be a 4*.
la primera cancion es famosa, tutitutitutii, titutii, titutiiii, en violín, es la unica buena, el resto okay pero meh, 2/5
Bitter Sweet Symphony was the only song of theirs I’d heard of before and it’s an absolute banger so was looking forward to this one. Turns out there’s a reason I hadn’t heard more from the Verve - rest of the album was just standard sad Brit Pop stuff. Album went on too long and did get a little bored soz. Bearable listen and the songs are decent but beyond Bitter Sweet Symphony there’s nothing special here
no
As soon as I hit play: oh shit it’s that song!
There's merit in these sort of albums - they're pretty inoffensive, the songwriting is solid, and they portray a certain vibe which is fine for the background, but... I am beginning to think I've had it with this whole list! Another day another middle of the road rock album of approximate CD length from a bunch of white dudes. I know a few of these albums are good for balance, but yet again I'm struggling for what makes this essential beyond a couple of radio singles? One star for how it made me feel about this list, but actually it's about 2.5*
Boomercore
put me to sleep
It’s unclear to me how Bittersweet Symphony can be so good and the rest of this so mediocre.
This album is way too long for no significant reason. I'm not sitting through all this
I’d only ever heard the singles. Turns out I hadn’t missed much.
Blah blah blah
Like, it's fine, I guess. I do recognize the first song. How do these guys have 16M monthly listeners on Spotify??? Why???
Cannot fault bittersweet symphony- absolutely timeless. Fell pretty flat after that for me
Nice soundscapes throughout but bittersweet symphony and lucky man are the only songs I really enjoyed
90s kills me in a bad way. Just entourage vibes always.
Blah. This list has made me realize that I do NOT like Brit pop. Not sure why this is on the list at all.
Bittersweet Symphony is my jam. The rest... has nice moments, but is pretty underwhelming. I was really looking forward to hearing the rest of the album, but it's an immediate, noticeable drop in quality.
Aside from Bittersweet Symphony this album was pretty unremarkable and unmemorable. And even then, the most memorable part of that song was not written by this band.
So, I mean, this album is fine, it's listenable. But I'm not sure why it is on this list. It is one popular late 90s alternate album, in a sea of popular late 90s alternative albums. Oh, that's right, by rule all 90s britpop is on the list.
In all the years that I've heard Bittersweet Symphony on the radio, I've never once thought "I want to hear more by this artist" the album is fine I guess but not really my thing.
very catchy (& ultimately annoying) song, absurd piece of popular music history for Richards/Jagger to get songwriting credit. a person could go through life never hearing any other Verve song and that's fine.
A good avatar for about a hundred British rock albums that have washed over me, more or less inoffensively
There are a couple of decent songs outside of Bitter Sweet Symphony, but I was disappointed overall.
meh
meh. I feel like we're playing a little fast & loose with the "must hear" designation. Nothing about this was a must
Also pretty boring. It sounds like typical mid-90s "rock". At times the singer sounds like Thom Yorke, in an almost mimicking fashion.
Bittersweet Symphony seems to have been a really happy accident ... if you listen to the rest of this album full of whiny low-energy music that is endlessly dragging on without going anwhere. The singer looks kinda cool on the album cover though.
favs: bitter sweet symphony the rolling people the drugs don’t work neon wilderness weeping willow rating 2/5
Drugs won't work is a banger of a tune, so is bittersweet symphony even if I've heard it a million times! Not convinced on this as an album as a whole though, there's not much that stands out..
Its alright, except the singer grinds my gears.
Not really much to say about this. The singles are obviously great for what they are. The album sold millions. Not really my thing though.
I like Bittersweet Symphony in the same way I love all 2000s ear worms. Otherwise this was lukewarm, moody, brit-pop with too long of songs and not much to say. Crazy that it wormed it's way onto this list.
Didn't like
Eh? Exactly what I thought of this album the first time I heard them.
bože, strašno, gdje početi... krenimo s ispoređenjem s prethodnim albumom (sjeverna duša - zašto se uopće tako zove? prije nevera kurčine): svaka pjesma opet traje predugo. i to duplo. neke pjesme od jedva pet minuta kao da traju petnaest. i glavna stvar, ali ne u jednakoj mjeri kao na prvom albumu: dosadno, jako dosadno. ipak postoje znatne razlike koje su u stvari nekakav napredak; bilo bi tužno da su ostali na istoj usranoj razini prethodnog albuma... prva stvar, radijskin iskasapljena, okej je, ali ništa posebno, mogla bi, kao i sve ostale pjesme, biti kraća; pjesma lucky man je isto tako prolazna, ali nećete past na guzicu. na zadnjoj pjesmi ton albuma napkon se mijenja (premda mi je pjesma zakurac), ali tada je već prekasno, samo usere dojam na kraju. u stvari dojam potpuno usere skrivena pjesma koja je potpuno pomodno instrumentalno izdrkavanje. sve u svemu ovo bi bio stoput slušljiviji album da je svaka pjesma duplo kraća, bez zajebancije. a i vokal bi mogao biti podnošljiv, ali jebiga, šta ćeš. ipak, dat ću dva jer su stvarno dogurali do nečeg trunku boljeg od prethodnog smeća. pretpostavljam da bolje od ovog dečkima ne ide, i to je okej
Bittersweet Symphony The Drugs Don’t Work Lucky Man
I hope listening to this turns out to have made me secretly better at karate or something.
Most of these songs are the same song.
The first half of the record was painfully mediocre, with maybe the exception of the first track, which was used in every 2000s YouTube video. The second half of the record is a little bit better. Overall, this was okay. I'm knocking off a point for running way longer than I think it should have. Favourite Track(s): Weeping Willow, One Day Least Favourite Track(s): The Drugs Don't Work, Catching the Butterfly
I have this album. I think it's okay, but the absolute only memorable thing is bittersweet Symphony.
This album was very boring. I can see why they only had one hit. At least they were nice enough to make their one hit the first track on the album.
ok men för mycket som oasis. för gnälligt, för långt
Varför har alla låtar samma rytm? Nä det här går jag inte på.
треки которые понравились: • bittersweet symphony • sonnet • the drugs don't work в остальном скучновато. как кто-то написал "группа одного хуесосного хита"
This album is alright, a few hits and catchy songs. Boy did their egos inflate behind their talent. I can't shake the idea that the Verve were the Razorlight of their time and Dick Ashcroft the Jonny Borrell.
With not being a psychedelic rock fan came the worst possible fate. That being that this albums sound is very consistent , usually a good thing. But, in this case it just wasn’t for me.
I can see why The Verve was a one-hit wonder. Despite my hopes that "Urban Hymns" would reveal The Verve to be one of those groups with many brilliant songs neglected by the mainstream, the majority of the tracks range from sounding like a knock-off Radiohead at best to a self-important bar band at worst. The fact that "Bitter Sweet Symphony" is the first song on the record does not do the album any favors, as every subsequent pales in comparison to that lead-off hit. I'm confused why the band didn't incorporate strings as prominently throughout the album; they made it work to perfection once, yet the orchestral arrangements immediately disappear besides some accents in a few other songs. Unsurprisingly, those songs with strings are the strongest: "The Drugs Don't Work" and "Lucky Man."
This was slightly better than the previous few albums and I liked a couple of songs on the album but the bar is so low at this point. I liked the sound a bit better but still wouldn’t listen to any of the songs on my own time.
4/10
65
2.4/5 I'd only heard the singles off this album but I enjoyed the album as a whole mostly.
Kinda mid? Idk man I didn't love it. It felt like noise after a while
Sounds monotonous to me. The strings are superfluous. Not for me.
Honestly, I was excited to give The Verve a proper listen. Naturally, I knew their most famous track so I was hoping for an underrated album of absolute bangers. Unfortunately, the only song I liked was the famous Bittersweet Symphony. Side A has a few tolerable songs alongside the great opening, but nothing else really stands out. Side B was a blur of droning Britpop nonsense. One-note. Although the lyrics are ok, I largely detest Ashcroft's vocal performance. It feels garage rock in quality, but with the polish of high-end production backing. Ultimately, I feel terrible rating this album so low, but I can't justify rating an album of this length any higher because I enjoyed a single song that I've previously heard.
Yet another way-too-long british indie pop album, how many of these are there gonna be? Its boring, monotonous, and just not fun to listen to.
I wish I could come on here and write “The album with the token Britpop song that everyone knows is actually a banger - they aren’t just a one hit wonder.” But unfortunately that’s not how I felt about this one.
4/10
The singles are great, especially Sonnet, but the rest is one big snoozefest. Why did they insist on every song being a minimum of 5 minutes long? Most of these songs start out ok but soon fall into the same dull, boring style. Meh. 2.5.
Убрать сэмпл оркестра и роллингов, кто ты без него?
It’s fine. It doesn’t stand out at all from the rest of the late nineties alternative pretenders.
Full disclosure that I have PTSD from having to endure Richard Ashcroft live and thought I wouldn't live through the extended disco version of Bitter Sweet Symphony he played, so this record was slightly triggering. It was also quite same-y and kinda felt like a lesser Oasis. Mid, with a point deducted for emotional damages.
Booooooooooooriiiiiiiiiiiing
Heard Before? Only "Bitter Sweet". Notes: - yet more midtempo britpop. hurrah. - the deeply layered, complex and often gorgeous production is lipstick on the pig of these underwritten songs. - the worst sin of the CD era was pointlessly long songs and albums that don't justify their runtime. - all the players are supremely competent, if lacking in imagination. - I just could not bring myself to care about anything Richard Ashcroft had to say. He started to sound like the adults in Peanuts. - WAS THEIR METRONOME STUCK? Verdict: Mostly these are immaculately polished turds. I got lost in the lovely details a few times, but none of the songs meant anything to me. Listen Again? Nope. Not awful but there's just no reason for me to pay attention.
BEST SONGS: - Velvet Morning - The Drugs Don't Work
There’s a reason you can only name one song by The Verve. Bittersweet Symphony is a great start and the rest is just long and forgettable
Not much of fan. One note music. Nothing too exciting
Well, I didn't hate it as much as some of y'all did. The opening track is fantastic, no doubt about it. I really wanted to latch on to something else but it felt uninspiring to me. A lot of mid-tempo plodding. Maybe you just need to be in a mellow mood for this one. 2.5 stars.
Sounds like knockoff oasis
gecko beats
Freshman year of high school, my biology teacher was going through something. He would lock himself in the supply closet and play Bittersweet Symphony on repeat every class period. That song gives me flashbacks. The rest of the album kinda sucks too. The singer had a whiny voice and the album goes on forever.
So one of my favorite songs is The Drugs Don't Work. They get a point for that song alone from me. I'm not sure if I truly like Bittersweet Symphony or if I just heard it so many times my brain gave up wanting to hate it. Seriously that song was played so much I think if you were alive around then you kinda just know it. The rest of the album is boring though. Very slow drivel honestly. Like if they wanted to just rock the hell out they could as they have the talent, but drugs or a producer told them no, embrace the super emo. It's an interesting album that is very much of it's time. I'm not sure if released at any other time it would gain traction. It's like all the millennials chose depression to listen to.
Good as it gets for late 90 s rock
Partly heard before Saved 3/13 Top track: Bitter Sweet Symphony
Meh. I find much of this whole Brit Pop thing to be so limited to a time...and not in a good way. Sounds like early Coldplay and a late Oasis. And I've got Blur and Radiohead...don't really need anything else. Though I'll admit that Bittersweet Symphony is an amazing song no matter how overplayed. The Hidden Track concept is a fun CD memory. But besides that, not much jumps out at me here. These songs are too long. The whole album is too long. And "The Verve" and "Urban Hymns" along with track titles like "Neon Wilderness," "Space and Time," and "Velvet Morning" feel like titles and names put together by ad people. There's a bit of classic rock psychedelia here that is a nice twist and squeeze on the old Brit Pop formula. But it's a far cry from the grit and kaleidoscopic brilliance of some of the other albums on this list. It all feels very safe here. Very classic rock. In a way that both millennial sons and boomer fathers can nod along too. And that sentiment is nice. It's just also a little boring. I honestly don’t want to put this on the same tier as Faust IV but I’m gonna have to go with a 2/5
meh, achtergrondmuziek op zn best
Overall: 6/10 Vocals: 5 Instruments/Melody/Sound: 7 Lyrics: 4 Likely to listen to it again: 3 Other: Good electric guitar solos. Good study music, just a lot of instrumental parts and same style.
It's ok, but a lot of it just isn't necessary and could be left out, like much of the britpop on this list.
This album suffers mightily from pacing. Like a lot of 90s albums, this album is both too long as a whole and each song individually. This last point is where this album really fails. Each songs stops developing after 2 minutes, but then we're subjected to 5 minutes of a repeating chorus to end the song. But even if the band had managed to write with better pacing, the vocal melodies are predictable and there's nothing special about the music either. 2.0/5.0: Disappointing
mehhh blijft niet echt hangen ofzo buiten 1 basic banger!
2,5 1 goeie banger, de rest is vergeetachtig. 13 in een dozijn album.
Overall, a pretty good listen. There were a few songs that sounded like they were going towards Oasis. Some that sounded a little newer.
I
Bittersweet ist ein tolles Lied der Rest ist typisch Rock belanglos bis nervig. Schade eig!
I never understood how this band, and Bitter Sweet Symphony in particular, got to be so popular. It's all just mush. Corporate sound, corporate lyrics, and sold to be filler in commercials and movie credits.
My second album by The Verve. I read my review for A Northern Soul after listening to all of Urban Hymns and I could write the same thing about this one. The sound is so rounded and muted that even the parts that 'rock' sound listless. There are a few songs that have a build-up that goes from quiet boring to loud boring. And they are LONG. One thought i had is that this is what depression sounds like, and maybe that's what they were going for? If so, mission accomplished, but this was not something that I personally enjoyed.
Play with my worm till it burps on you
Bittersweet Symphony one of my all time favourites the rest of the album is very forgettable though
Very depressing and kinda boring britpop. I liked a couple of songs but it’s nothing special as an album.
Not for me
I'd never listened to much past Bittersweet Symphony, but I can see why. There wasn't a lot for me here, nothing really stuck out.
didnt leave an impression on me tbh
Nice album
I actually liked a few of these cuts. I knew nothing of this band. Won't be a repeat listen.
A handful of good songs.
Britpop sucks butt and should stay dead. This album is a great representation of it: boring, lifeless, emotionless, bloated, and wildly overrated. There is literally nothing good-great on this album (not even “Bittersweet Symphony”). He just drones on and on and on and on with zero emotion or talent for 70+ minutes. And that pretty much sums up Britpop for yah.
Nothing special, the first song was really good then it just went downhill because they all just sounded the same. Reminded me of a worse version of Radiohead and Oasis.
I gunna agree with ap.
Eh, ai like the two hits that I already knew, everything else was pretty forgettable, nothing really held my attention for long. Favorite tracks- “Bittersweet Symphony” “The Drugs Don’t Work”
One song ... not sure if it's a must listen album
It was certainly a product of it's time. Bittersweet Symphony is the standout track, and the only one I can really remember.
It was ok, a bit generic
Landfill indie.
Это не плохая музыка. Но это и не хорошая музыка. Это никакая музыка. Ничего не цепляет. Это могло бы быть лучше и значительнее короче. Лучшая песня: Bitter Sweet Symphony
Kept on losing stars as the album progressed. Too long and not as good as the first track.
Britpop/10
I see why they were a one hit wonder. (2.5)
A few decent sections but pretty bland and boring overall. (2.5)
The first track starts and I’m like “hey, I know this tune, this album will be good”. And then it plods on for track after track, each song disappointingly very much like the last. The vocalist’s range has no higher register, nor lower register, every track smack dap in the annoying sweet spot of mid-range, each melody the same boring 3 or 4 chord tune played over and over while the mid- range vocals talk through the “songs”. And then, when you’ve plodded through all that you get treated to disc 2 which is the band playing the same songs “live” - although the bands energy, and for that matter the crowds energy, are both typically British, which is to say barely above a resting pulse. In all 2 hours and 27 minutes of repetitive tedium. The album summarized well what has become of British music since about 1980, the longer you listen the worse it gets.
Another boring Verve album. Slightly better than the one I was forced to listen to yesterday, though.
Feel like the album cover does a pretty good job summing-up the overall vibe of this one.
Obviously Bittersweet Symphony is great. I'm looking at that 1 hour 15 runtime and I'm wondering if the rest of the album will justify the length It doesn't. This is boring. Sorry. Songs added to playlist: - Bittersweet Symphony - Come On Although! I added a different version of Come On (Loco Studio Session) because I did not like Deep Freeze. Not strictly from this album, but I truly don't need 8 minutes of silence and then Deep Freeze in my playlist.
Bitter-sweet symphony is a banger but its the only one. Kind of knock off oasis
It's got that one song on it and the rest is just pretty forgettable 90's Oasis-adjacent songs that are apparently catnip for Robert Dimery
Started out good but sooo repetitive
Honestly thought this was super boring. It sounded fine, but yeah just nothing really there for me. I do think there's maybe something to this being a 90s sound that I grew up with so it feels more derivative and boring than a similar straight down the middle rock record from the 70s say.
Really pushing the middle of the pack here. Could you get more album than this album? 4/10
nothing really notable outside the single
This was lackluster alt rock for me. Nothing terrible, but you have to bring something special when you are on a list like this. Favorite track was weeping willow
bitter sweet symphony is definitively the best song on this album. the rolling people was good for a minute and a half.. and then they repeated the same thing for another five and a half minutes.
Not my favorite. Bittersweet Symphony couldn’t elevate this album enough. Just forgettable in all regards.
I hope I never hear bitter sweet symphony again. Otherwise very excruciating and Oasis-like.
fine.
I'd be mad if someone gave me this album and said something hyperbolic like: "no matter what, you need to hear this album before you die". That said, Bittersweet Symphony is absolutely a single you should hear before you die
Big feelings, bigger strings, and lyrics that sound profound until you actually listen to them. One immortal song doing community service for the rest.
So boring man. First song is of course iconic, but even that’s boring
This album opens with one good song, and then manages to die out pretty quickly. It's too long, and mediocre, forgettable rock music. Nothing to write home about, and certainly not something everyone must hear before they die.
Oh, The Verve have more than 1 song? Just joking, I know they have 2 songs... Well, I honestly think the 3 hit tracks are great and I was disappointed to find out the rest of the catalogue is extremely samey-samey, and the comparison with Oasis is accurate. Some brilliant songs but the rest is incredibly dull. I wouldn't describe this as an album experience, and especially not a "must listen before you die". A low 2.5
One hit wonder, el resto de canciones son de grupo un poco indie/emo estandar
This album sounds like many other britpop albums. It's nothing interesting (in any way) and it becomes very repetitive. It is so bland and, in some way, uninspired too. Yes, it may have songs that are good, or, at least, not that bad, but, overall, the album is very long for what it really has to offer. The songs are not good at all. Some are more enjoyable, but this does not mean that they are actually good. So, this is a very forgettable album with very basic and generic songs.
Bittersweet Symphony is so catchy but... is it good? I'd argue not really. It always strikes me as a medium hit from Coldplay. Spotify calls this band a revolutionary band and I really don't hear it. It's not a bad album but it's just so mid to me.
Favorite tracks: Bitter Sweet Symphony, Lucky Man, Sonnet, The Drugs Don't Work Whenever I get to an album where all of my favorite tracks are the ones I already know, I have to question if the only reason I actually like them is for nostalgia's sake. Overall the songs sound largely the same, and the lead singer often drones more than he sings.
Sometimes a band catches lightning in a bottle and you get a "Bitter Sweet Symphony." That, then, produces the false expectation of more advanced songwriting and production on Urban Hymns. But then you are treated to mostly simple ballads. If the album were more like "The Rolling People," I would be inclined to like it a lot better. However, the album wants to be more like "The Drugs Don't Work" which does not work for me. Also, minus one for including a hidden track, making me think something was wrong with the playback.
knew of the verve going into this but didn't know enough to realize the first track - bitter sweet symphony - was theirs!! it's a good enough song despite being crazy overplayed, though the rest of the album didn't have too much more to offer. for a band called THE verve, their panache was... milquetoast - bordering on the kind of acceptable if routine decency you get with U2, and i couldn't help but compare this to U2 whilst listening to this (or coldplay, for that matter!!). didn't love this didn't hate this but... didn't feel much about this one either way. highlights - bitter sweet symphony, catching the butterfly, weeping willow, this time
Best part was the bass grooves subtly in the background. Songs crafted well but not catchy choruses and didn’t seem too inventive. Wouldnt return to listen but i do like the main hit from the album.
enjoyed sonnet disliked rolling people don't mind weeping willow
The type of shite dull Britpop that makes me thankful Nirvana’s “I Hate Myself and I Want to Die” exists Also, The Verve really aren’t interesting enough to be having hidden tracks
Ten stars for Bitter Sweet Symphony, but negative nine for the rest of the album
Boring and the parts with the classical music are lame.
There's only one good song on this album, the rest are disappointing and boring.
A quote from my "Blur" review: "This is the kind of album you'd buy for one track and then spend months trying to convince yourself you liked the rest of it so you didn't feel ripped off." While it's not as janky as the other Britpop albums we've had thus far, it is pretty boring and (like several of its individual songs) runs too long. If I had no basis for comparison, I'd have given this a lower score; so, it definitely benefits from its place in the algorithm.
Cancun edition: Listened to this by the pool in Mexico. Needless to say it probably wasn’t the right vibe. The album was overshadowed by late 90s music where Middle Aged women were trying to dance to Britney Spears “baby, one more time” in between their espresso martinis….. and I know what you are thinking. Drinking espresso martinis poolside in Mexico seems so gross. Why would someone do it? The same is to be said about listening to this nonsense while watching this train wreck all day. The verve certainly missed the mark on overall ambiance, and I guess I can’t fault them that I’m in Mexico. I can fault them though for me being more invested in these messy women falling into the pool, than this emo bore.
Love the strings on Bitter Sweet Symphony. Otherwise, way too long and sounds an awful lot like U2 (not a good thing). +1 star for not actually being U2. Listened before? N Saved to library? N Favorite track(s): Bitter Sweet Symphony ⭐⭐: Didn't like it, didn't hate it. Saved no tracks.
It’s an okay album. I feel like there is some real bias by the author of the list on this one. Does having 1 hit song mean the whole album is worry of one’s time? Most of the album is rather flat and uninspired. 2.5/5 Probably won’t listen again
Ohja! Dat nummer! Zo begint dit album, en ik was best enthousiast, want Bitterrsweet Symphony is een goed nummer toch? Toch? Eerst zei ik ja, maar na de rest te hebben gehoord... Eh? Is het een goed nummer omdat het een goed nummer is of meer omdat ik het zo vaak heb gehoord dat ik het wel ok vind? Ik laat het nu bij mn FAVO,maar pfoe, dit album is wel ff door worstelen hoor. Dit is precies de muziek waar ik niet van hou, van die hele trage indie rock. Het voelt nietszeggend, maar toch ook zeikerig en ik kan hier nooit echt iets moois in ontdekken. Nu dus helaas ook niet als ik eerlijk ben. Is het allemaal slecht? Nee, maar mijn god, wat is het saai. Oh en ik heb de hidden track geskipt, die had prima verborgen kunnen blijven. Niemand heeft na een uur zaaddodende muziek nog een kwartier toegift nodig jongens. Had dan Bittersweet Symphony gewoon nog eens gespeeld, das het enige nummer waarbij ik tenminste iets voelde. FAVO: Bittersweet Symphony,
I've always found The Verve to be SUPER forgettable, with Bitter Sweet Symphony being the only track that is remotely memorable. 2⭐️
Bittersweet Symphony is a classic, banger to kick off the album. Regrettably thats the only highlight. Tough to put my finger on this one, nothing stood out I think because they have too many songs on the album and many sound similar to eachother. I'm conflicted on this one. Didnt hate it, but didnt like it. I'm not mad at the album, I'm dissappointed in it. Would I recommend it? No. So it gets a 2, but could have snuck into a 3 if I were in a different mood.
This album is the grandest tier of meh, I like the entire story around Bitter Sweet Symphony; the debacle about the songwriting credits. I just can't help but feel they chose to extend the album out to the CD's maximum length, which is lame - It's good value if you like the album - but its lame for me and others who aren't a fan. And of course because it's a 90s album it has to have a hidden track which is also lame. I feel a bit of a jerk giving it a 2 star, as the band members of The Verve seem like humble guys, from having seen some interviews here and there. But ultimately I'm not a fan of the album.
Bittersweet Symphony does all the heavy lifting on this album.
2 only because c likes that one song bc it was in the ending of Cruel Intentions
Not sure what to say about this one. It's not objectively bad but I'm surprised how little it moved me. It might have gone down a little smoother at half the length but the 75 minute playtime made this album really tiresome. After the opening track I didn't find the album did anything to grab me. It's some melodramatic indie brit-pop but doesn't have any of the energy that I typically enjoy in the genre. Even Bitter Sweet Symphony which is undoubtedly the biggest and best song from this album appears to have lost a lot of its appeal to me nearly 30 years down the line. I understand why this album may have had its moment in 1997 but man did it underwhelm me in 2025. A surprising 1.78 stars.
Booo
Bah
I bought this on CD back when it was new. I feel the same way now as I did then - I wish I could have heard the rest of the album beyond the first track first. Bittersweet symphony is, and was, huge. Then the rest is just average Britpop of the era. Not bad, not good. Without that first track, none of us would know who this band is.
kinda great value oasis
super boring to me it wasn’t really relaxing like ik they were going for that vibe but it just didn’t hit for me. idk why in the world bitter sweet symphony is on this album it’s a banger. also a 15 minute song is insane the last 9 mins is just silence idk what’s up with that
I like bittersweet symphony but the rest of this was not my thing
Eeeeeer y'know it was definitely an album, but probably not for me Micah
Better but not as many songs I liked. A bit too slow, nothing hype or groovy
Bittersweet Symphony is perfect. Space and Time I quite like too. The rest though... really wears me down. The second half of the record I enjoyed more, but it is very repetitive and murky, with songs that go on too long. Sounds very Oasisy, but in a bad way. 2.5
the orchestral shoegaze epicness of "Bittersweet Symphony" is unfortunately never replicated/expanded upon for a full album experience.
I am probably going to be a little more harsh on this one than I normally would, only because I was given another The Verve album less than a week ago. I really don't think The Verve should have two albums on this arbitrary list of 1001 albums that I should listen to before I die. Maybe they were more influential in the UK. As an American, they are a one-hit wonder. For good or ill that hit is here with "Bittersweet Symphony" a song that I have heard way too much and that I am not even a fan of. The rest of the album is a duller version of the standard Britpop of the era. t least the other Verve album had a youthful energy that I could respect. This one is just dull.
Boring
I recognize some of this, but not a fan of this sort of whiney rock. Really wish it were shorter, so a 2.
Pretty bland and largely forgettable. Kept having to drag myself To pay attention to it and let it just be background music.
I always thought of The Verve as brit-pop for your Dad, this didn't particularly change my mind. Some good moments but not for me really.
Fine
Starts out strong with their big hit then the rest of the songs are meh to okay.
I feel like I'm being slowly bashed over the head with an inflatable mallet with 'Britpop' written on it: It doesn't hurt but it gets annoying after an hour and 15 minutes. Even Bitter Sweet Symphony sounds dull to me and I don't think anyone would remember it if not for the violin. Apparently BBC Radio 1 listeners voted it the third best song ever... in 1998, one year after its release. 'Whatever' by Oasis is a better use of violin and that's a largely forgotten song. All in all, the album is fine. I think it could have been a low 4 if it was shorter, but there really aren't any songs that warrant that score.
Not a very memorable album, nothing much to add 2/5
Pretty dull, nothing particularly memorable other than that song (you know the one). Not sure I needed 75 mins of britpop..
I won’t apologize for still liking “Bittersweet Symphony” but the rest of this album is a bore. 2/5
I like lucky man and deep freeze, bittersweet Symphony, and the drugs don’t work. For neon wilderness and some of the music was a little too industrial feeling for me, but when there is more of a Melody in the music, I enjoyed it.
Sooooo boring.... Generous 2 stars.
I love their song. And maybe that other song. 2.5 rounded down
Never understood the appeal based on the single. Maybe you had to be in he uk in the late 90s. The rest of the album is a bit better but pretty bland.
Meh
quite monotonous and uninspiring except for bittersweet symphony and the drugs don’t work. Wouldn’t actively listen to this album again except for those songs.
It’s…fine? It seems inessential and the only songs I really enjoy were the ones that made me wish I was listening to R.E.M.
Fairly boring. Had heard bitersweet symphony and lucky man before, with lucky man being my favorite but the songs kind of blend and I wouldn't go back to it.
Bitter Sweet Symphony is a great one hit wonder track. The rest of this album? My 2 and 3 ratings are blending in to one. Do I even like music anymore?
A trip down memory lane. Bit samey though.
Did not care for this
The drugs don't work is an anthem, but for the rest I always found it a bit annoying. Hasn't really become more interesting with time. One of those records that everyone of our age had, and put on during dinner parties. A bit yawn for me...
It was ok
Some good ones but mostly boring 2/5
They really do sound like an Oasis clone. For a long time all I knew was Bittersweet Symphony, and then a friend played Lucky Man and I realized that they managed to have two good songs. The rest of this album? Eh.
One good song
Not bad this Oasis tribute act, but I don’t understand why they play so few of the hits. Needs more Champagne Supernova
many of the bands of the early to mid 60’s made a seemingly conscious decision to sound like the beatles because they were arguably the biggest band of the era. fast forward to the mid 90’s. there seemed to be several bands that emulated the sound of oasis, one of the biggest bands of the 90’s. enter the verve. i don’t like oasis, and i damn sure don’t like an off brand knockoff version.
Wow, this was boring.
Bitter Sweet Symphony - ja Den Rest braucht niemand.
2nd rate Oasis. Oasis is 3 star to me. I gave their other album on the list 2 stars. Must have been a low 2 stars. This is a medium 2 stars, because at least it has the only relevant song they ever made, Bitter Sweet Symphony, which is really only good because they picked a good sample.
I liek the first track, the rest I was waiting for the album to end. Its fine, just not my vibe, the Britpop or whatever you call this genre isn’t my bag, so 2 stars for me
biggest L in music for sure
Bloated, safe, and stuck in the shadow of its own biggest hit. 𝘜𝘳𝘣𝘢𝘯 𝘏𝘺𝘮𝘯𝘴 rides the emotional weight of 𝘉𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘚𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘵 𝘚𝘺𝘮𝘱𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘺 so hard that nearly every track feels like a lesser rewrite. Richard Ashcroft delivers each vocal line with the same strained earnestness, as if chasing the same moment again and again. The instrumentation is lush and polished, no doubt — but it lacks invention or urgency. Where others in 1997 pushed boundaries, The Verve chose to inflate familiar ideas. And the hidden track? Best left hidden. A few good melodies can’t disguise the overall sense of missed opportunity.
Mediocre
This was pretty profoundly boring. (2)
No more brtipop please. I'm over it. lol
Did you know they had to turn all royalties for bittersweet to The Rolling Stones up until like last year? Super interesting story, they sampled the strings from a cover of a Rolling Stones song and got that cleared but their manager claimed the chorus is too similar to a different Rolling Stones song (it’s not similar at all) so Keith and Mick got full writing credits and all royalties for that song for years and years. There’s a very good YouTube video on it highly recommend watching it and how old school music managers are villains. Anyways that’s the only thing interesting about this album.
Boooooooring
point9.
mehh and ehhh
In 1997 "Bittersweet Symphony" was playing everywhere. Along with "The Drugs Don't Work" and "Lucky Man", Urban Hymns spoke to millions... just not me. The songs seem to bleed into each other, but not in a good way, by the time I got to the end, I was hard pressed to say what I liked or didn't like. It was all just "meh".
I would have enjoyed this quite a bit more if it were a tighter experience. Not only is the album too long, but pretty much every song is roughly two minutes overlong. That said, this is a heavy vibes record, so if you're not feeling it the album will seem interminable. That said Bittersweet Symphony holds up, even if I never really need to hear it again. If I could give half stars, I would, but alas.
I had this album in grad school and listened to it over and over through a painful breakup. Now I just think it’s whiny and twee.
MAWR BRI'ISH! this is a band for me where, like, it played in Sears and shit like that for years, and you think you know this band, but it just blends together which a buncha other bullshit that i can be super cynical about... but its okay. is it Oasis? U2? Snow Patrol? who knows. now i got that outta my system, i can go over the songs i don't know. Sonnet is very chill. very British pop rock of the 90's. some parts have some energy like The Rolling Papers. kinda whiny, even though this is the kinda stuff i grew up with.
Not more Brit pop! I never realized exactly how overrated the genre was until I started this project. I did re-appreciate “Lucky Man,” and “Bittersweet Symphony” is canonical, but that’s about it for me.
First song is the iconic bittersweet symphony and it was an easy listen throughout. 2
Heard it before. Sadly, they peaked with their Rolling Stones rip off and did nothing too interesting otherwise 2/5
Kind of bland. A little long and slower then i was looking for.
For me, Bittersweet Symphony is interesting, the rest is just so-so.
Everything about this album is okay
This album set a high bar for itself with “bittersweet symphony” being the opening track. It never got close to reaching that point again.
It's fine, but mostly just standard 90's alt-rock fare
I've always hated this album...especially Bittersweet Symphony. Annoying AF.
I'm plowing through this long, boring album and I finally get to the last song...and it's 15 minutes long! No thanks. One or two pretty tunes, though.
Kinda boring
90s albums are always too long. Unfortunately, every song on this album sounds the exact same, and none of them are as good as Bittersweet Symphony (which is a good but not a great song).
This just bored the absolute pants off me. No wonder I've only ever heard their 2 biggest songs
I remember getting this album in high school because of the song Bittersweet Symphony and being disappointed with the rest of it. When it came up yesterday I was excited to listen again hoping that I would find some more on here that I liked. Still no. Nothing is inherently bad, but it just feels like a mess. It doesn't really go together except its late 90's emo. We have tech to alt to rock but none are great. Bittersweet symphony feels effortless and real. For the rest they are trying to hard making them so forced sounding that it looses much of the feelings in the song.
So this is the band that sings Bitter Sweet Symphony (a pretty good song). Sometimes you can find some hidden gems besides "that one hit". And sometimes the rest of the album just sucks.
It didn't pain me to listen to this one, unlike most Britpop albums, and a couple of songs I actually thought were pretty decent, such as The Rolling People. But 75 minutes of Britpop gets to you eventually. Maybe a harsh 2, probably would be higher if it was shorter
This album felt pretty empty to me, despite its length. None of the tracks really grabbed me, aside from "Weeping Willow" and (of course) "Bitter Sweet Symphony." Other than that, this seemed like a pretty generic album.
Starts good, but not a fan of most of the songs.
Did not age that well.
(36 known/80 new)
an album called urban hymns with a white guy in a bucket hat on the front cover….WHEW. bittersweet symphony really props up the rest of this thing. it feels like every single song, except for the one (1) that is under three minutes, overstays its welcome.
++: Bitter Sweet Symphony, The Rolling People, Catching the Butterfly, Neon Wilderness, Come On, Deep Freeze +: This Time, Velvet Morning +-: Weeping Willow, Lucky Man -: Sonnet, The Drugs Don't Work, Space and Time, One Day 5,4/10
Like everyone else, I only knew Bittersweet Symphony going into this. After giving it a listen, I feel like Bittersweet Symphony was the apex. It's a pity they started with that, because it was all down hill after. This sounded like background music. It didn't make me feel anything. It was a bit boring and over-serious. Lighten up, everyone. Shorten your songs and make them more interesting. Forgettable and bland.
This is what it would sound like of Colin Robinson were to start a band influenced by Oasis and REM. Except for the chorus in Sonnet, there wasn’t much to enjoy. The songs dragged on for way too long
Haven't heard this one before but I doo t care. Bitter-sweet symphony is a perfect song. It rules and there is nothing you can say about it. OK the rest of the tracks are fine but I don't want to listen to them again. I wasn't angry or upset I just wandered away. I couldn't stop thinking about a book im reading and not listening to the music. It's just boring. It's fine but im bored to tears
I keep getting albums where there’s like one phenomenal song and that’s it, dunno how that’s a whole album that you must listen to before you die.
This thing bored my pants ON!! I am wearing pants to this day!
It's a bittersweet symphony this life......
not only did this suck... but it was also long as fuck
Way WAY better then their debut. Some good songs and a couple snoozers. It's ok 6/10
Starting off a little hot: secret tracks are stupid and I don't think they add much value to the CD other than lying about the length time. You shouldn't have a 15 minute song on your album where roughly 8 minutes is silence because maybe I forgot to start the CD over. And frankly, if I'm being honest, I don't even think I'd want to start this CD over. Bittersweet Symphony slaps for the first two minutes and then the rest of it drags on. I shouldn't be confronted with multiple songs that have over 6 minute run times. It doesn't mean they can't exist. But I suppose I want something a little more tucked. I want the wheat and not the chaff. I want something polished and dense and not necessarily 60 minutes of music that sounds roughly the same. I might change my mind as the day goes on but I wasn't really looking forward to this listen. Starting play through two now so fingers crossed I am able to uncover my true feelings about this album. Listened to it a second time and thought it was still mid. Everything kinda blended together, but nothing really captured my attention. It’s not that the music was bad. It’s just more that I didn’t find it original, or appealing, or very engaging. Maybe I’ve heard these songs a bunch in the milieu of living and the appeal has worn thin over the years. Or maybe it’s because it’s just not what I’m into. I don’t doubt the talent of the musicians, but the final product wasn’t for me.
Not a huge fan, but I can see the appeal
I will admit right off the bat that Bitter Sweet Symphony is one of my least favorite songs ever. (I also find the music video just as annoying.) So, when I saw that Urban Hymns by The Verve was my album for the day, I didn’t expect this to be a pleasant experience. Based on my disdain for Bitter Sweet Symphony, I never took the time to listen to this album before today. About halfway through Urban Hymns and this is not as bad as I expected. Some decent songs on here. I’m not crazy about Ashcroft’s voice but it’s not a deal breaker. I knew of a Ben Harper version of The Drugs Don’t Work. I didn’t know this was a Verve song originally. Whether this is a fair assessment or not, my initial reaction to Urban Hymns is that it reminds me of a mix between Oasis and The Stone Roses. Overall, there are songs on here I don’t mind but I’m not sure this a full album I want to listen to again. I’m going with a 2 rating. 2/5.
Een Britpop-album die in eerste instantie aanvoelt als de standaard blauwdruk van het genre rond die tijd, maar na een aandachtige luisterbeurt zie je wel in hoe The Verve met deze plaat echt een eigen niche bekleden. Het is veel orkestraler en psychedelischer dan hun tijds- en genregenoten. Dat gezegd hebbende is het ook een album dat lijdt onder een grote kloof tussen goede en slechte nummers. Ik merk dat ik er nooit echt lekker in kom door die inconsistentie. Daarnaast zeuren de meeste nummers ook net iets te lang door. Muzikaal gezien is het soms wonderschoon, maar als totaalstuk doet het me niet veel. 6/10 Highlights: Bitter Sweet Symphony Sonnet
Way too long and boring. Yes, Bittersweet sticks in your head. But the rest is forgettable.
Lori- 5 Mike- 5 Michael- 5 Miles- 6 Cole- 6
I listened to this album a lot during a very down period — it did not make my life better. Obviously, because I listened to it frequently, I won’t say it’s not a good album — in fact, it performs best because it is an album. But if i wanted to listen to the Lament of the Heroin Addict, I’d listen to Pink Floyd instead. This is a two.
Bittersweet symphony is good but everything else is mid to terrible
This ones a bit of a mixed bag. It felt like Psychedelic brit pop meets 90s dance music with some top 40 alternative rock thrown on top. The songs that leaned more towards dance music were definitely the better tracks. Overall the record wasn't weird/psychedelic enough to be interesting (except maybe the hidden track with the baby crying vocal)... or poppy enough to stick with me. I feel like the debut record from the Stone roses is such a better combination of these ideas. It's weirder and it's catchier. I hope it's on this list. Highlights: The drugs don't work - good pop song, good lyrics This time - good mix of dance music, good beat Velvet morning was solid And ofcourse.... Bitter Sweet Symphony is a classic... love a pop song with really bleak/existential lyrics In general the hits of strings in the background across the record were nice (i wanted to give it a 2.5 but you can only give whole numbers)
Honestly, I just don’t see the appeal. It’s just a copy of everybody else. There is nothing original or compelling with this band. Posers.
So bland. Sounds like a cheap imitation.
stinker
Boring
You can definitely date this thing. Not for me but there are a few good tunes.