Peggy Suicide

Julian Cope, ein britischer Musiker aus England, veröffentlichte Peggy Suicide 1991 als siebtes Soloalbum. Die Aufnahmen entstanden 1990 in Londoner Studios mit mehreren Toningenieuren, unter anderem in Sessions mit Produzent Donald Ross Skinner und verschiedenen Technikern der Island-Produktion. Stilistisch bewegt sich das Album zwischen Psychedelic Rock, Art Rock und Indie-Rock und markiert eine Phase, in der Cope seine Musik stärker politisch und thematisch ausrichtete. Das Doppelalbum ist in vier Abschnitte gegliedert und kombiniert klassische Songstrukturen mit längeren, experimentellen Passagen. Zu den bekanntesten Titeln gehören „Beautiful Love“, „Safesurfer“, „East Easy Rider“ und „Head“. Besonders „Safesurfer“ fällt mit seiner ausgedehnten, repetitiven Struktur auf, während „Beautiful Love“ stärker an melodischen Alternative-Rock anknüpft. Inhaltlich tauchen immer wieder Themen wie Umweltfragen, Spiritualität und gesellschaftliche Kritik auf, ohne dass der musikalische Rahmen seine psychedelische Grundfarbe verliert. Die Produktion wirkt bewusst roh und direkt, was den Songs eine gewisse Unmittelbarkeit gibt. Gleichzeitig zeigt die große Zahl an Stücken eine breite stilistische Palette – von kompakten Rocknummern bis zu freieren, fast improvisierten Momenten. Ein umfangreiches Album, das Cope als eigenwilligen Songwriter zeigt und seine Vorliebe für psychedelisch gefärbten Rock mit persönlichen Themen verbindet.

It was much less abrasive than what I thought it would be based on it being a post-punk album and that album cover. Some songs really surprised me, like, East Easy Rider feels so out of place. But they were good songs, especially towards the first half of the album. But like others here have said, it's too bloated. There were a few nothing songs towards the end.

This was pretty strong and I will have to give a more attentive second listen.

Similar recipe as Echo and the Bunnymen: moody gothic 80s synthy post punk with a heavy dose of dreamy 60s psych swirling around - big atmospheres, dramatic vocals, layers and layers of guitars and organs, melodic bass. But this more eclectic. Cope adds in a bit of the baggy madchester dance sound (easy rider, leperskin) and a couple of slower more stripped back acoustic tracks that start at Billy Bragg and ultimately build back up to a big orchestral psych noise. Some harder charging garage punk stuff ala Modern Lovers (hanging out). Some of it sounds like a British version of the shaggy slacker sound of 90s US alt rock. I like everything on here, but there is still too much of it - still, what a discovery!

Not my favorite. Liked bits and pieces.

Pretty good.

Indulgent.

Meh.

This album is really interesting. I don't know what it is about it, but all the songs are different, and yet cohesive. I need to listen to this album more to figure it out. Pitchfork: n/a Rolling Stone: n/a Best Songs Hang Out And Hung Up On The Line Safesurfer Soldier Blue You Las Vegas Basement

That's not my taste in music - But ok

This guy wants to be Jim Morrison so bad, but he lacks the gravitas, and the music lacks any semblance of uniqueness.

Ive heard the name before, but only as a collaborator on a Sunn O))) album. Otherwise going in blind on this one. ...And its nothing like Sunn O)))! Quite a nice and diverse set of songs, mining that modern rock era of the 90s. Maybe a bit too long of an album, but that's not too big an issue. Solid 4/5.

There were things I liked about this album and things I didn't like. For one, it's just too long. There are quite a few strong tracks, but it has become a common refrain in my reviews that I would prefer a tighter selection of tracks to a long album with multiple weak tracks. Favorite track: "Safesurfer"

100% would have made a solid single album. Too much filler here on the double disc package.

"The devil is there at my right hand, Jesus too." - Promise Land. This is a new favorite that I'll be revisiting. It's alternative rock that could only come from the 90's. It's fascinating and polished, but with a rough indie edge. Great lyrics hinting at meloncholy and darkness. Highly recommended.

quite different to The Teardrop Explodes, I quite enjoyed this

strong punchy vocals

Pretty unenjoyable from start to end. Cope’s vocals are whiny and the music does little but serve are backing to this. The nearest there is to a highlight is ‘If You Loved Me At All’ Western front 1992 just sums this overlong experience up, when you’re album is already an hour long there is no need for crap like that (or the one immediately after it).

Just the biggest pile of wankery.

I really should get out of the habit of opening Amazon Music and instantly checking the length of the album. It means that when you instantly turn against a vocalist, you immediately get the double whammy of knowing there's going to be nearly 2 hours of this. I did not like this. Occasionally it musically sounded like a certain era of REM (see Leperskin as an example) and it just made me think about how great REM were. Beautiful Love reminded me of So You Wanna Be a Boxer from Bugsy Malone but with terrible sounding brass synths. One of the top reviews says "It feels aggressively artful." and I misread it as "aggressively awful" which is far more accurate. 1/5

Decent album, it just runs a little long for me. I do like how it bounces around stylistically, it doesn’t feel stuck in one lane, and that kept it interesting even when my attention started drifting. “Hanging Out & Hung Up on the Line” is a straight banger, easily my favorite thing here. And “Head” genuinely it sounded like something you’d hear from Sublime. If this thing was trimmed down a bit, I’d probably come back to it more.

Didn’t finish…

this album has the misfortune of being over 2 hours long and only having 1 song that's decent.

You is sferig

Really enjoyed this. It sounded like a mix of a lot of great British bands like I thought sometimes he sounded like Ian Curtis, then it would jump to pink Floyd then Paul Weller. I had never heard of Julian cope but think I’ll be listening to this more.

Actually really liked this, it was a nice surprise. Never heard of the album or the artist, but glad it was thrown up in this process. Such an interesting collection of sounds, hoping there's more by this guy in the list.

It was okay... can't say luch though i listened to it once

I don't know about this one. I didn't hate it but I didn't really like it either. 2.5 stars

Way better than I expected. Never heard of this dude. Enjoyed a lot of it.

Running out of patience for some of these albums that I don’t know why I must listen to.

Meh

Thought this was alright 40 minutes in until I looked and realised I had EIGHT TRACKS LEFT

not my tipe of music

"Fine", "Decent" and "Boring" are right next to each other in the keywords. I expected something weirder and more abrasive from my vague idea of who Julian Cope is. While I didn't want to turn it off, I know I won't listen to the whole 1:15 hour album (certainly not the 2:30 deluxe edition that people seem to be listening to) again.

Didn't hate it, didn't love it. Definitely some interesting tunes. Not sure I'll ever revisit as a whole album, but there's some choice tunes among the bunch.

This album is a real find - I loved it! The opening track is so spiteful and angry in its lyrics. "How much does it take, take to go down on someone you hate!" Yikes! With the exception of a few tracks, it reminded me of Nick Cave.

I enjoyed this album, it has a good pace and feel to it. Parts reminded me of Syd Barrett's sound, and agree that there's a bit of Nick Cave in there. I'll come back for another spin.

1 stern

Was this a good album? No. But did Julian Cope put something cohesive together? Also no. But did he at least keep me interested? Well, no. But did the songs sound like straight Crash Bandicoot loading page music? Yes.

Modern day Syd Barret stuff. Album suffers from poor editing. Cut it down to 8 to 10 tracks and this could have been great. Way too much stuffing.

Ever had someone who is extremely high try to sing during what would be a really good concert? They're bad at singing though.

This was great, my vibes entirely, have saved some songs.

Really not for me, some decent stuff but nothing to grip you

There are some interesting spots on here and a good bit of junk.

Hate the album artwork and not fond of the initial track. But over 76(!) minutes of eccentric indie rock, this one won me over. It’s a 3.5 for me

An interesting album. I'll gladly listen to it again. 4/5

This is really excellent! I'm upset that I haven't heard this until now! But I'm really glad that I started this 1001 album journey!

Psych and art house rock pushing the boundaries to your ears.

If I had heard this when I was 21, I would almost certainly have loved it. It isn’t bad, but my musical tastes have changed since 1991. Could possibly try it again, but I’m not in a hurry. Good rhythms and layering of sound creates a disconcerting edge while keeping it interesting. Album title is off-putting. 3 stars

I’m surprised I never heard this before. It’s very good. There’s great variety in sound and style. That album is crazy long. 2.5 hours is too long.

Never heard this before. I like it

Kind of intrigued

Distinctive but not very exciting. I can see why Julian Cope has fans but he doesn't do much for me.

I’m somewhat familiar with the name Julian Cope, but I’ve never listened to his music before. The variety here definitely helps the 1hr 15min runtime from feeling too tedious. Overall, it was solid, but didn’t do a whole lot for me.

Cool, more obscure British pop rock with less than 100k monthly listeners. I still listened to the whole thing,.

Through the first eight songs, I thought that the general reaction of this being too disjointed was massively overstated. It seemed a bit eclectic, sure, but pretty well within the realm of what one could classify as "alternative rock". A bit of The Cure here, some U2 there, perhaps even a little Velvet Underground at points, so on and so forth. Pretty good stuff, too! Especially "Hanging Out & Hung Up on the Line", "Safesurfer", and "If You Loved Me at All". Then, as tracks nine and ten ("Soldier Blue" and "You...") continued, I began to understand a bit more where everyone was coming from. The dance elements of "Soldier Blue" definitely felt a bit out of place; perhaps if it was approached in a baggier Stone Roses/Happy Mondays fashion, it would have fit in better, but its distinct funkier nature lends to a more jarring experience in the context of the record. "You..." almost has a Zappa-esque quality that is equally confusing; I don't even necessarily think either of these songs are bad, but they absolutely signal a turning point in the album for me in terms of it as a listening experience. From that point on, I'm not sure it ever totally finds its footing again. There are some other great songs, particularly the closer "Las Vegas Basement", but there are also a couple of other left turns ("Beautiful Love") that remind you of the hodgepodge nature of it as a whole. 3.5/5

A really hard one to pin down. There were moments that I thought I was REALLY enjoying it, other moments where I really didn’t, but the majority of the time was just ok.

The instrumentals were ok but could not save the lyrics in my opinion.

Never heard this one before. Really good stuff. I'm gonna have to explore this guy some more.

It is WAY too long. The songs do not fit cohesively. It’s like each one was written by a different band.

not sure, some interesting songs but a bit of a drag

At first I thought the average score on this album was a bit harsh, since I heard quite some variation in the tracks and their influences. However this album is just too long and at some point I realized that each song had a cool idea or sound and then just did that until the end with little variation. Then the last half of the album just isn't all that good.

Pretty terrible overall, really starting to regret my choice to start this whole project

My rating 3.8. This was another surprise. I really enjoyed the whole album despite only knowing him from World Shut Your Mouth.

This record is all over the place, and much too long for an album without any sort of concept tying it together. 76 minutes is nowhere near as egregious as the Gershwin Songbook (Ella Fitzgerald), but at least that one combines an excellent genre/compositional style with some legendary singing, instrumentation, and showmanship. What does Peggy Suicide have going for it? Some decent grooves and a mediocre singer? At any given point, the album is generally enjoyable, but not anywhere near high-calibre enough to justify its inclusion on the list. Plus, there is a very clear-cut series of throwaways here that drag the average quality down significantly (You..., Leperskin, Western Front 1992 C.E., Hung Up And Hanging Out To Dry). I guess Pristeen works as a sort of Dylan tribute. It exceeds the bar despite the lyrics being very, very repetitive. But from Double Vegetation onward, we hit a (vocal) wall that persists for most of the follow-up tracks. Cope is a bad singer and he doesn't do much to hide it. Out of tune, very little control, and an absolutely deranged "rock scream". Some metal singers might give it a nod of approval, but not this guy. The rest of the sound construction is fine, if a little repetitive. Hanging Out And Hung Up On The Line reminds me of a late-era Doors tune (circa 1971). It's driving, rocking, and has a Morrison-esque vocal delivery with a bit of punk pizzazz (which weakens it slightly). Easily one of the strongest tracks here. Safesurfer is another strong contender. While some might consider it a filler instrumental, I understand it as a tribute to Bowie's Moonage Daydream, complete with the Ronson-esque otherworldly guitar playing. It's a great 8-minute jam. Beautiful Jam should also be mentioned for its horrific keyboard-trumpets. Fortunately, the rest of the song is pretty good. 3/5 Key tracks: East Easy Rider, Hanging Out And Hung Up On The Line, Safesurfer

Julian shut your mouth.

This is one of those albums that really pulls you in at first. The rock-leaning tracks had me straight away, but it does lose a bit of momentum in the middle. When it slows down, the songwriting doesn’t feel quite as sharp, and the length starts to show. That said, even when it’s a little messy, there’s a clear vision running through it especially on the more political or groove-driven songs which are easily the strongest moments. I didn’t feel like there was one huge statement screaming at me on first listen, but the atmosphere is strong enough that it feels like something that could open up over time. Weirdly, a couple of tracks even reminded me of Cave World by Viagra Boys with that slightly unhinged but purposeful energy. It’s not flawless, and it drags a touch, but I’d definitely revisit it.

I'll be honest. This did nothing for me. I can't recall a single track. I guess you can say I couldn't cope with it.

Did we really need a Teardrop Explodes and a Juilian Cope album on this list. Whoever made this list loves practically irrelevant British artists. First off, this album is way too long and is a slog to get through. Actually every individual song is a slog to get through mostly due to Julian's vocals. He has no energy and makes everything sound so boring. Every once and a while the instruments do something interesting, but they never really capitalize on it, or they will drag it out until I am bored. I think there is a 3/5 in here somewhere with a different singer and cutting half the tracks, but as is this isn't very good. Mid 2.

Did not finish; did not enjoy

Consistently solid

An interesting album but it was trying to do too much. Each song felt like a different genre.

I have a massive soft spot for the Drude, and this is one of his best. Safesurfer is a long time favourite

Really enjoyed this, couple of tracks I had not heard before have gone straight onto my favourites playlist

Am sure he's a general force for good but I didn't get on with this, and it was a slog getting to the end (I didn't listen to disc 2)

Never listened to this before, I enjoyed it

Not sure what this guy did wrong this was average

A bit inconsistent.

Nah. This is one of those albums where you think "God, it must be over soon, right?" and you're barely halfway. Hard to put it specifically, but in a way I felt this album just took itself a bit too seriously, like it tried a little too hard to be cool/profound.

Too long and I don't really see any reason for it to be on here

Monotonus. Good voice

Background music. Didn't notice any song, and listened to the whole thing while working.

Had only ever heard of Julian Cope, this was my first time listening. Immediately knew I liked it, and after a few listens I think it's one of those albums that will continue to grow on you the more you listen. Love the mix of sounds and genres and originality.

Jules is a fuckwit in the best way

I rate this only through "Las Vegas Basement" where the original album ends. A great album. I listened to this a lot in my college years in the 90s. "Soldier Blue" is so pertinent at this moment in time with all of the atrocities ICE is committing.

A staggering work of genius

My only experience of Julian Cope up until today was listening to the single World Shut Your Mouth which I liked back in the day. So I was quite intrigued to have an album to listen too. And in the most part I enjoyed it. Too me he sounded like a British Nick Cave. A tad long maybe but on the whole very listenable.

At its best, an eclectic mix of experimental genres. But it feels very disjointed and over indulgent. Didn’t need to be as long, the songs didn’t really connect in a meaningful way, and parts felt like a stoned dude messing around with recording software in his basement.

This was too long and wasn’t it for me

A long and varied album. I feel like if it was edited down it would be tighter and more impactful.

I’m tired boss

I know little of Julian Cope beyond _World Shut Your Mouth_ which is regularly played on the little radio I listen to. I think I've heard one or two other tracks which I remember thinking were good but never delved further, so this was a nice opportunity to fill in a knowledge gap. And I had a nice time... this is good. I get some Nick Cave vibes, particularly in his voice and there's a good amount of experimentation across the songs. It's a bit long and does waver towards the end but there's enough here to enjoy and revisit

Not bad, I liked this more than I thought I would.

Some good songs

𝘗𝘦𝘨𝘨𝘺 𝘚𝘶𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦 feels like one of those great hidden gems — wildly ambitious, politically charged, and overflowing with Julian Cope’s eccentric charm. The album moves through psych-rock, ambient textures, and groovy, hypnotic jams with an ease that makes its scope genuinely impressive. The only real drawback is the sheer length; it’s a lot to take in at once, and some stretches feel more like mood pieces than essential songs. But even so, the highs are striking, and the album’s personality is unmistakable. A sprawling, rewarding trip.

Weird but I quite enjoyed it. Probably wouldn't listen again though.

PRISTINE, EAST EASY RIDER, IF YOU LOVE ME AT ALL, HEAD, LEPERSKIN, BEAUTIFUL LOVE, WESTERN FRONT 1992 C.E., LAS VEGAS BASEMENT

The oft-repeated lyrics on the first track, “How much can you take”, came off as a foreboding challenge that I failed

Too much, and too little, of something.

I always knew his previous successful song World Shut Your Mouth, but not enough to make me dig deeper into catalogue. This was really no different. Some ok songs and cool sounds here and there, but not enough to standout. On top of that it’s way too long. From hope to nope.

This just felt like a poor man’s version of some mix of the Smiths, maybe a little Lou Reed or REM at times even? This shouldn’t be in the convo with any of those, pretty avg album

I didn’t really enjoy this. Found it kind of annoying at parts. Some was cool but too much “meh” for me to go higher. 2.5

The song, Safesurfer, is a perfect encapsulation of this album: entirely too long, but def had bits I enjoyed. Props for variety even though not all of it connects. 3/5

Pretty decent. Wasn't sure what I was expecting but this was a solid listen. Kinda had some Pixies vibes to it, with some Cure and some 90's grunge. This seems like the album a hipster would listen to who's so contrarian they think the Pixies are "too popular" for their tastes. Not a knock on the album, just a knock on contrarians. I think I'll listen to this one again some time soon.

The composition of Peggy Suicide is quite astonishing: there are about forty minutes of skippable music, a few songs that just shouldn't have seen light, a few interesting ones, and Safesurfer (Chief's kiss). Don't know how such a combo came to exist and how to rate it, but Julian Cope deserves some appreciation for creativity.

this shit gay

Not bad. Probably better than The Black Album

1991. This album was really long and has interesting noise music elements. Kinda neutral singing in some songs and others that are unpleasant.

Enjoyed this so much more than I expected.

Like a lot of this

Meh. Tbh I didn’t listen to the whole thing. Had some folk-y things I liked; the lyrics I didn’t love.

Another random solid one. US roadtrip vibes yet again.

No thanks

Nice dive into psychedelia but it just didn’t work

A complete hidden gem. I never heard of Julian Cope or any of his previous band, but this album is great. Lots of funk, lots of classic rock, great lyrics and vocals throughout. What a buzz!

Unexpectedly good. Like Morrissey but with more oomph

I've heard of Julian Cope but I haven't ever listened to his music. I'm just not feeling this one. A lot of it just feels very amateurish.

Not sure what to make of this. Double Vegetation is a pretty decent alt-rock tune. East Easy Rider has a funky bassline and half spoken vocals and then Promised Land is country-folk before turning into a bit of an indie rocker. Very little cohesion between the tracks so far. Then Hanging Out is almost punk, but softer? I do like when there's organs - and Safesurfer has some pretty good guitar and piano too, but more spoken vocals again. I don't know man. It's still a cool track, but this is all over the place, which is a pretty good way to describe this album. And I'm barely scratching the surface... PSA: just because you can make a CD 76 minutes long doesn't mean you should. Listen, there's some stuff here that I think will appeal to many people. For that reason it's ** and not * but this needed an editor.

Interesting textures, nice variety and competently made - but no songwriting that really hooks me. Faves: Double Vegetation, Soldier Blue, Beautiful Love

huumorilevy josta en ymmärrä mitään mutta menevää meininkiä

There's enough going on here that it's no surprise some of it was intriguing and entertaining. I appreciated the musical diversity and sense of humor and the way it sometimes sounded like an alt rock adaptation of Motown. Nothing quite clicked for me, tho.

I found myself alternating between engagement and boredom/disengagement with almost every song.

I listened to half, but not the whole double album set. I could appreciate what he was doing, but wasn't drawn enough to commit to more than that. I gave it enough of a listen to treat it fairly, I think.

I didn’t hate this. Guy sounds like Echo and the Bunnymen sometimes and The Cramps at others and then he’ll hit you with some proto trip hop or some Primal Scream-esque song. He is clearly a musical omnivore. He likes some weird sucky music but he also likes pop and straight ahead rock and roll. This album is too long but the length gives him more space to make some good songs to go along with his bad ones. Overall, this wasn’t all that bad.

Not really a fan of this type of music but there were some decent tracks. Some corny lyrics and songwriting but tolerable

Weird art rock singer vibes - I liked it and would listen again

I feel like this album would be much better if they just used the latter half of it. The first half has a few good parts, but as a whole it feels like everything else from the 90s. The second half is amazing by comparison. It jumps a lot from idea to idea and all of it works pretty well. The last handful of songs is especially great, just sucks that I had to wait an hour to get there.

Worthy of another listen. Some interesting stuff and the good songs jump out. If the album were shorter it might not be as noticeable, sadly the album drags and is 6 songs too long. Would have been 4 stars with the best 12

I was dreading listening to this album knowing its runtime but the music wasn’t as bad as I thought it’d be. The length was definitely the worst part so it felt like a chore to listen to. There weren’t any songs I really latched onto but there were a few great moments throughout the album. The singer was just okay but I liked the production.

I bought this on cassette on a whim and all I knew was that he was formerly in the band the teardrop explodes, a band that o liked but wasn't particularly into.. It sounds as fresh as it did then. Solid all the way through and Pristine is one of my favorite songs

This album made me wanna shove glass in my eyes and jump off a building for the first several songs. I'd rather sit in a closet for 24 hours surrounded by buckets of vomit and diarrhea than listen to this garbage again. How can a musician get by with the same 4 measures over and over while repeating the same line? Trash.

I think I enjoyed

Not for me

pristeen 😐 pristeen 😐 pristeen 😐

Fine album.

Album #25 Julian Cope: Peggy Suicide This is not an album that was anywhere near my radar, as far as I can tell, it wasn’t on anyone else's either. From what I gather, Julian Cope is a cult-favourite eccentric singer-songwriter who never really broke into the mainstream, outside of his bubble in England. This album, Peggy Suicide, is his sixth studio effort, and certainly, from what I can gather, his most ambitious. A 75-minute behemoth consisting of everything that Cope’s mind had to offer, exploring a wide variety of genres and themes. To be completely honest, I was not looking forward to this, despite the genre listings being mostly up my wheelhouse. Maybe the lack of expectations is why I enjoyed this as much as I did. There is a lot to enjoy about this album, and the variety ensures that almost everybody will have at least one song which they like. Though the variety, and specifically the length, also hinder the album and prevent it from ranking too highly in my estimation, as the listen can feel a tad disjointed. The most comparable album that I have had on my list so far would be Guero by Beck; both Beck and Cope are eccentric style-benders who possess immense talent and seek only to appease themselves. However, that comes at the cost of mass appeal (which I’m sure they aren’t worried about). All in, though, there were definitely more songs I enjoyed than didn’t, but I’m not sure I’ll be too eager for a relisten anytime soon. Safesurfer and Beautiful love will likely join the rotation, however. Best Tracks: Safesurfer, Beautiful Love, Pristine Worst Track: Western Front 1992 C.E. Score Out of 10: 7

Not for me at all

Highs and lows - liked a lot of the instrumentals, really disliked the guy's voice. Overall I’m confused how I feel about the album, if it was a different singer then it might be higher.

After the demise of The Teardrop Explodes, Julian Cope seemed to veer away from pop-oriented albums to more esoteric output (and produced tomes about prehistoric sites in Britain!). This album has some pretty good tracks in it, but at 1h15m it kind of overstays its welcome. And I see there's even an expanded 2h20m version!

How Much Can I Take? Not much to be honest.

This wasn’t for me, I didn’t enjoy it

I haven't heard anything about this band or any songs from them. (I'm only listening to the first disc, cuz the whole album is 2.5 hours long yikes) Pristeen - I like the voice intro, lowkey the rest of the song is the same, and idk how I feel about the singer's tone but we shall see Double vegetation - ok this one sounds way better what happened to the other song, all the instruments sound great in this one, way more rich and powerful, more upbeat East Easy Rider - ok why is the beat lowkey reggae or hip hop a smidge, not rlly but like a little bit, just a nice beat, nice to listen to Promised land - lowkey reminds me of the mountain goats, I think from the synths in the background, ok Hanging out and hung up on the line - ok guitar!!!! big switch from previous song, more upbeat but has a nice ring to it Safesurfer - just a nice instrumental, the guitar is greeeaattttt, dang 10 whole minutes, it was actually fine it went into vocals like half way through If you love me at all - lowkey the instrumental reminds me of the cure but not rlly, it's still good but I prefer other songs Drive, she said - is that cowbell i hear ???? more upbeat, but bro I'm not even half through the half of the album Soldier blue - soulja boy, sounds like it could be from air a bit, still upbeat and fun to listen to You... - nice and short which i appreciate, only just got past the halfway point lol Not raving but drowning - i wasn't paying attention tbh, i had to take a break from the album cuz its SOOOO LONGG Head - ok im back, this one is fine, it was still good but I think they were just some better songs Leperskin - oh lowkey a bit groovy, the cowbell is back!!! I am getting a bit bored ngl Beautiful love - I just skimmed through Western front 1992 CE - all of these songs Hung up and hanging out to dry - because i couldnt take The american lite - how long this freaking Las vegas basement - album is jesus christ OVERALL: bro there's so many songs and this is just half of the album, lowkey doubted this album at the start cuz I didn't rlly like pristeen, but then it got wayyy better afterwards, all the songs after for the most part sounded good, but I just kept thinking about how long the album was, now the songs are getting a bit repetitive :( ⭐⭐/ 5

this album is "interesting" on paper but in practice it's one of the most boring I've heard. It occasionally shows flashes of good music but is just boring 90% of the time 4/10 probably the least justified double album I've heard

Hello, post-punk. Hello further UK musical influence. Especially on the upcoming scene. I like it. I wouldn't buy the album and I'm much more about the artists this kind of stuff influenced than the ones that started it, but it won't live on my vinyl shelf.

New to me. Really liked the chilled, groovy experimentalism

Somewhere between nick cave and the divine comedy, just goes on and on 2*

Never listened to a lot of Mr Cope, but this is truly excellent

Wild ride. Enjoyed it.

Need to give it some more listening. Saturdays are tough to rate a record on but there is some fun guitar work on this one.

Cool album, if not a little bit long on the play time. It's an interesting hour and sixteen, at least.

La primera canción es de las peores que he escuchado en mi vida. Con momentos pasables, es un disco muy malo. Se nos olvida a veces que las canciones deben tener melodía. Y este señor comenta las canciones con poca original y menos musicalidad. No lo he podido terminar.

Some of this very good but the wide range of styles works against it

12/22/25. Cool hidden 90s gem, well thought out songs and some catchy hooks. More pop than I expected, but still solid.

I don't really like Julian Cope. I get it I think but the music feels dated. Just not for me I guess

I'm not sure what this was, but it wasn't good.

El Intro de Double Vegetation es fantástico junto an Easy Easy Rider lo que mas me gusto .

Creativo, auténtico, imaginativo, juguetón, variado… se me acaban los calificativos para este álbum. Idolatraba a Julian Cloe desde que escuché “Fried” y un recopilatorio de su banda The Teardrop Explodes. Creo que al bueno de Julian no se le ha dado el crédito que se merece y sigue estando muy infravalorado. Bastante inclasificable, viniendo del post-punk, viviendo en el comienzo del indie-rock y compartiendo época con el auge del britpop, Julian a veces suena a Suede, otras a Eels pero la mayor parte del tiempo detectamos una gran convicción para soñar a sí mismo.

A bit of Velvet Underground inspired early nineties eclectic rock.

Cope reaching for the majestic kingdom of rock and roll - it does not all work, but I am all for albums that aspire to greatness

If you can't be arsed to write more than 8 lines of lyrics pr. track, maybe don't extend each one of them to go on for this long. I honestly think this got better around track 15, but that's really too late. Balancing between fine and annoying while it goes on, and absolutely forgettable the instant it ends.

I enjoyed the rock and roll in Hanging Out and Hung Up on the Line. I also liked If you Loved me At All. Very catchy! The funk undertones are appreciated! This album has many songs that are compelling and catchy. This is the kind of album that makes me excited about this journey. I had never heard of Julian Cope before. I would jam this again = 5.

Didn't really vibe with this album. Did not finish listening to the whole thing.

Gotta listen to it more but love the krauty droning approach to pop/rock music. But yeah this is too long.

Dudes definitely going for it but I dig it.

Rich, layered music tinged with psycehdelics and covered in tasty sprinkles.

The bad side of average.

That was not very good 2/5

Fuck, already? Bro, I just got the Teardrop Explodes album not even two weeks ago. What is this fucking website? Whatever. You know what else is whatever? This album. It's fine. It's certainly more interesting than the Teardrop Explodes album on account of it not being yet another 80s new-wave album, but interesting doesn't always mean better. I'd say this is a bit better than Kilimanjaro, but not by much. This album upsets me a little because it has moments where the music could be really cool, but then the flaws become more apparent over the course of the album and it kinda diminishes the feelings that the album gives me. There are moments here that I actually enjoy. "Safesurfer" interested me a good deal, but mostly because the chord progression and the key reminded me of Pink Floyd's "Echoes," which is one of my favorite songs of all time. Some songs have solid compositions to them, but the album just has these noticeable flaws that drag it down. For one, I still don't care for Julian Cope's vocals. I don't think I need to elaborate on that. Secondly, the album is far too long. While this is far from the worst 76 minute album I've heard, it also does nothing to warrant that runtime. In fact, I'm starting to run out of things to say about the album. The writing doesn't speak to me. The music itself isn't bad, but also has these occasional annoying moments. Like, why is there are part where he says his own name? I don't know but it takes me out of the album because it's kinda jarring. This album is just okay. I don't really see why it has to be here. Low 3/5.

The more I listen to this, the worse it gets.

I just can’t seem to climb on to the JC wagon! I can see the appreciation but I don’t share it! Part of it is his voice and the durgy nature of the rock music composition. There is a lack of interest there for me. I did quite like Hanging on the line.

I accidentally saw Julian Cope at a festival about ten years ago and was mesmerised by his set. The man’s a freak, but he feels like he’s our freak and one of the last true eccentric oddballs left still making music. Great album this, a tad long, but this man cannot be expected to contain his ideas.

High potential for me to really like this

Feels self indulgent and a little shallow

Eclectic album. Other than that I'm not sure why we're listening to this

Ihan passelia musiikkia. Vähän ohuelta kuulostaa, mutta ei hassumpaa... taustamusiikkia.

More interesting than I expected. Seems like low reed type. Seems like his ideas and creativity are more impressive than his vocal abilities. There was good music here.

It was okay.

Some good tracks here, but vocals did not agree with my ear 'oles. It's long too. I liked "Safesurfer", at least until the vocals kicked in.

Hard album for me to pin down, some stuff that I was vibing with but then it would switch up on me real quick. IDK didn't really flow well for me. 5/10

I couldn’t cope with this. Dude just isn’t very interesting, and some of the choruses being sung are so repetitive and dull that I started to get really aggravated. I went to see how long I’d have to put up with this, and upon seeing the album was over 1 hour and 15 minutes long, I just dipped out.

sad that it’s so forgettable

Listening to this album, I'm downright shocked this thing is rated less than a 3. I can generally get a vibe of what the rating will be for an album while listening to it. Absolutely floored at it being 2.77, was not expecting that. It should honestly be up around 3.2 minimum. Maybe it's trying to do too much, and that's why people are bouncing off it, yet it feels cohesive anyway, and I'm not seeing complaints about that specifically. Mostly just people accusing it of being too long and pretentious. Every song on this album (or almost everything, Pristeen kinda sucks) has something awesome going on. Sure, its long, but it's class. From the Bowie/Pink Floyd vibes of Safesurfer to the 90's as hell groove of If You Loved Me At All to the very REM sounding Drive, She Said to the Chili Peppers-esque East Easy Rider to [Insert the next sound Julien tackles on every song on this album], with a somewhat Nick Cave/Depeche Mode singing type voice. It's just a fantastic, varied, something-for-everyone album. Probably not something I'm gonna go back to, but still a great record.

Super interesting album with a lot of variety and different musical styles. Some misses but definitely a lot more hits from an artist and album I've never heard of. Also I like the odd album cover. Favorites: East Easy Rider, Safesurfer, Soldier Blue, Western Front 1992 C.E. Least Favorite: Pristeen

Another of those albums that I loved parts of and other parts I didn't really like.

Fuck it man I liked this!! This strikes me as a situation where this guy just made whatever the hell he wanted to, regardless of what would sell or be popular. So, yeah, it's weird as fuck. The transition from "Beautiful Love" to "Western Front 1992 C.E." is like getting flash-banged in the Disneyland parking lot. And some of these songs absolutely do not work. But a lot of them really, really do. It's interesting, artistic, and a lot of times, really really cool. Fave tracks: - Double Vegetation - East Easy Rider - If You Loved Me At All - Soldier Blue - Head - Hung Up And Hanging Out To Dry - The American Lite - Las Vegas Basement

6/10 - pleasantly surprised, great to have in the background

An ok album, too long with some good songs dotted between some ok ones

I wasn't really paying attention to the first like 6 songs cause I was doing some college stuff, but once I started listening to it for real this was pretty alright. I feel like it's very standard for British alt rock, especially of the time, but that doesn't make it bad. I still enjoyed it, but it's not something I'd hear again. Favorites: Safesurfer, If You Loved Me At All, Leperskin

New Artist! A lot of history with Julian Cope. I'll be interested to look through and listen to other bands he was connected with. Really enjoyed this album, the composition was really viby and I emjoy the british of all of it.

Wasn't even that bad at first, but it just went on for so long and I couldn't even bring myself to listen anymore.

..

No private session used for Spotify. I found this album kind of bland, though I did find myself grooving on some of the guitar. I was going to give it a second listen, but at 1hour 16 minutes, one listen is all I have time for and I have to stick with my first impression.

Who turned down the bass?

Listened on our drive to relatives for Thanksgiving. It's okay.

I made it to track 13. To quote Chunk from The Goonies, "That's all I can stand... and I can't stand no more!" This fucking SUCKED ⭐.5

It was alright

I'm not sure how much Christine was able to take, but I kinda liked this. To a point. I'm not likely to go back to it, though I may check out more J Cope.

i went into this with a bad attitude - why is it so long? why is it a meandering worse echo & the bunnymen? but talked myself off the ledge and gave it an honest chance. it's fine. it's extremely fine. deeply okay. certainly an album. that's all i got. i'm coping with julian ok.

while there are some decent tracks on here, the whole thing way outstays its welcome, practically begging for acknowledgement and praise of how intelligent and artful it is. ultimately, it's not worthy of any such accolades. favorites: double vegetation, east easy rider, hanging out and hung up on the line, beautiful love, hung up and hanging out to dry, the american lite

it was good but it felt like i was browsing r/atheism and that's never really a feeling that i want to have

hollyyyyyy shiiiiitttttt do not EVER ATTACK ME LIKE THIS. i didn't even continue to disc 2 sorry

Just ok,

Definitely had it's moments. The problem is with the length of the album, and song count, there's also a lot of non-moments. Ended on a high note though.

Long album. There’s some interesting tunes and sections but I’m just not a fan of his voice.

That’s a lot of Cope.

Steeped in early-90s British indie, ‘Peggy Suicide’ blends baggy rhythms with hazy psychedelia. Sprawling and frequently inconsistent, flawed and messy, I still admire the breadth and scope of what Cope is trying to do here, even if it doesn’t all come together. There’s something here that just compels you to keep coming back. I’m giving 3 for the music, and an extra point for the ambition. 4/5

There are a few tracks on this record that I think are decent. The rest of the record is kind of a dumpster fire. Favourite Track(s): Pristeen Least Favourite Track(s): Western Front 1992 C.E., Hung Up And Hanging Out To Dry

Quite interesting. Every song was quite different. Julian has a cool voice. There were one or two songs that really caught my ear but even without the bonus disc, this is very long!

Here it is officer. Here's the fucker that's bringing down the brit average. Nick him lads. I'll quote my ex-wife. Too vapid, too British, and so long it almost hurts. Glad to see it gone.

Again it's not bad, just not great either. I like the variety of styles, sometimes it sounds like Alan Parsons Project, Pulp, David Bowie, or any other big British band.

Hørt og glemt.

Langt - kedeligt - weird

Not really feeling this one. What are we trying to achive? The length is completely egregious and so for none of the tracks has been even close to good.

This is actually great. Despite it's length, it grew on me more and more as it played, and I found myself admiring the scope and talent behind it as it went on. There's lots of range in here, with different styles and approaches. Lots of different instruments. Running through the whole thing you get a great tempo, tons of personality, and the sense of real quality and commitment. Musically it's really on-point. There's lots of surprises in there, with little notes of difference, a choir at one point, brass, synths, talked-over bits. It's so vibrant. I just think it's really accomplished, and you get a sense of a true artist at work. I hadn't heard of this guy at all, or his previous band, so it's nice to have access and knowledge of this whole other scene that I was completely unaware of.

bonkers. i enjoyed.

It grew on me. I liked it by the end but definitely a slow starter. Really groovy, I could easily imagine this being wonderful to see in concert.

Did not care for this one. Songwriting is unfocused, production is weak, and runtime is bloated. This feels like an amateur basement project

non siamo riusciti ad ascoltarlo tutto perché molto monotono forse non era nel mood recupererò vibe generale positivo

Definitely interesting and different, a little long, but going to give it 4 stars so I come back to it.

I feel like one day with this album is not enough to really appreciate it. I will probably get back to it at some point.

Nice

It's interesting how this whole album is consistently good, but I can't listen to any of Cope's other music. Listening on Spotify, I miss the four phases of the album that Cope originally set up. It really sets the tone of the different parts of the album. Having said this, Peggy Suicide, criminally underrated here, is a classic. Liked Songs Added: East Easy Rider If You Loved Me At All Drive, She Said Soldier Blue Not Raving But Drowning Beautiful Love American Lite Las Vegas Basement

Meh, but thank you

Better than I would have thought from the Exploding Teardrops guy! Prob won’t come back but my ears will perk up if I hear Julian Cope.

Feels like what we'd get if Jim Morrison had come out the other side of the 80s. I listened to this probably 5 times, unsure what to rate it. It's too long and there's lots of filler, but I think anything that makes me want to listen to it 5 times gets at least a 4. It has a strangeness to it I find compelling. Also, in Pristeen the line about going down on someone you hate made me laugh.

Overall, not upset that this was included, but I didnt connect strongly with it. More interesting to me was Julian Copes obsession with krautrock.

A bit of a wild ride that started off poorly but mostly won me over with its charms.

I automatically slump whenever I see a double album, especially from someone with descriptors like "experimental" in their biography. This guy is fine but I didn't need 2+ hours of him. I've said it before, but artists who produce double albums better have something amazing otherwise it's just plain narcissism. Since the second disc seems all remixes and club music, I stopped after the first.

I was not previously familiar with the artist or album. It's a sort of rock that has a dark but fast vibe. I didn't mind this at first, but I feel that it went on a bit too long and was a bit too repetitive, and I got tired of it by the end. I won't listen to this again.

Pretty hokey and dissonant - somewhat hard to listen to. I can appreciate why it’s important though.

When this came out; wife, children, work, university. Left little time for this one to hit my radar. First listen makes, wonder how I would have reacted hearing then? I like it now.

Yeah it's got some parts I like but they are few and far between. Kinda lands with a thud for me. It doesn't even make me want to listen to it again later and see. It's just there taking up time.

I’d never heard of Julian Cope before but I’m partial to these 80s post punk acts. Kind of a punk Frank Zappa vibe, I liked it.

1.5 I wonder how bad the first take of Pristeen was if they used the 2nd...

Really, this is one of the 1001 albums one must listen to? Of all albums and all music varieties in the world? No, that is simply not true. As is the case with so many other albums on this list. Still, the album is ok. But is in no way special. It is comparable to thousands of other albums out there.

I like a good bit of the music, but generally found myself disliking the vocals and lyrics most of the time. And even the music had highs and very low lows. So a really uneven experience. I’d give it a 2.5 if I could.

jojo, cool gubbe. men musiken var rätt schizo om du frågar mig

Political psych rock with post-punk vibes and Madchester grooves. Obviously that's a 5.

Even taking out the “bonus” disc that’s in the only version I could find, this is too long. But musically I enjoyed it – much to my surprise. I suspect I should really try to spend more time with it. So it’s a shame it’s effectively a double album which means I probably won’t.

The opening track Pristine reminded me of the Velvet Underground, and there were a few other songs where I found myself wondering “who does this sound like?” It's not bad, and I really liked a couple of tracks, but I'm not sure it's quite good enough to justify the length (or maybe it's place on this list).

so, so bad

This seems to be one of those albums where the artist and story behind it are more interesting than the album itself. Cope's life as a best-selling archaeology writer, a once LSD-burnout, a survivor of the 1966 Aberfan disaster, and a musician constantly on the periphery of international breakout and bumping shoulders with famous musicians lends him to a certain mythology and air of self-importance. This album was made in the aftermath of the Poll Tax Riots which he participated and was photographed in, and he expounds on his anti-police and anti-Thatcher sentiments, his rejection of religion, his reflections on the occult, and some pseudo-scientific and spiritual reckonings on humanity's relationship to Earth and nature. It is all over the place, and feels like an unorganized dump of ideas and sentiments that sound important when you're high and the main character, but aren't as profound to an outsider looking in. All of this stuff lines up with him calling John Sinclair's Guitar Army his holy book while making this album. Perhaps the above is a bit harsh. Its jumble of ideas is not necessarily bad. What comes to mind is that it is "Pynchon-esque"-- a whirlwind of hippie counterculture reflected on and reinterpreted, with many threads of story and style that the listener gets lost in. It's long (75 mins) and a bit dense (not as dense as Gravity's Rainbow and surely not as well-researched) in the sense that so much is going on and so many sounds and styles are colliding. Perhaps some Zappa is there too, at least in sentiment and wah pedal, i.e. without the virtuosic compositions. There are quite a few styles and song structures here; it never is boring. I think the most memorable song is "Soldier Blue" which actually has this kind of pop funk flavor to it. Most of it is blues-inspired psychedelia and pop rock with uninspiring droll vocals over top which range between bored Nick Cave and bog standard Britrock inflections. This is all to say, I wasn't a fan of his singing but enjoyed most of the instrumentals. Overall, I just found little to latch onto, but I respect the scope and daring in ideas. I expect this is an album that needs more than one listen to really sink in.

Not unlistenable, but not really my style.

Extremely pleasant surprise. This man is a ruffian that wears a sailor’s hat and this album is wonderfully eclectic. Honestly flirting with 5 territory but it is indeed too long. But will revisit happily and had some real standout songs

This feels like an album for snobs who know better than you, explaining this is Cope's breakout album. But who the fuck is Cope and why should I care about his breakout if this is the result. It wasn't bad, just long, and felt like an artsy-fartsy grunge album. I guess 1001 albums leaves a lot of room for filler too ...

I like this. Music with an odd quality. A good old-fashioned English eccentric.

I tried to listen to this... 2h33m of tedious, pretentious, repetitive garbage. I tried to listen to at least half of each track, but when you get to disc 2, there's a bunch of tracks that are a ridiculous 8+ minutes.

a decent listen but i prefer Jehovahkill 3.5 stars

I dig it

Favorite Tracks: Soldier Blue, If You Loved Me at All Cope cuts an interesting figure in the British music scene. One of the many skinny long-haired post-punk 80s figures who leaned more into the esoteric the further he grew away from the scene. His books are maybe more interesting than his music; his Krautrocksampler and The Modern Antiquarian books being massively influential in 2000s blog culture. I'm cold on the music though. It's quite long and split up across a few different sounds, none of which it sticks with for long enough for me to get the spirit. The best songs are Mancunian imitations; The Fall and Happy Mondays but not as singular. Soldier Blue, with its Lenny Bruce samples, and dark trippy sound is the album's highlight pulling on Cope's own exploding political consciousness and his love for history.

Not sure how this one made the list. It’s just kind of there.

grrrrrroooooovvvvyyyyy, something i would make my breakfast for. Sounds like a tease. BUTTERFLY E is everything omg, the riff is so sexy!

My one star is merely to allow me to put this pile of shit in the past and move on to the next album. If I never hear any of these songs again, it’ll be too soon.

I did not love all songs but still rate 4/5 because I thought it was really varied, original and overall super modern!

That was like 5 albums in one

Cover 8.5 Long album, even if you don't count the extra deluxe tracks. Over an hour. I begrudgingly like Pristeen. But it's repetitive. It's a straight line from the beginning to the end. But it's kinda catchy. Still, I can see most people finding it boring, going nowhere. Then Double Vegetation threatened to do the same thing. But then it didn't. At the end, it picked up and got to where it seemed to promise it would go. But there was a lack of plot. Basically an instrumental with a bit of screaming. It was ok. Overall, he sounds like Jim Morrison doing 80s rock. It's not all bad but I can see why he didn't make much of an impression on the music scene.

Not bad, but probably wouldn’t put on.

Double albums so very rarely justify their existence, and whilst Julian Cope manages to produce some truly stellar music on this, the runtime is just too long.

Sometimes it feels like to make a respected 90s rock album, you don’t need great musicianship or powerful songwriting, you just needed the right "vibe." When people point to the decade as the last time rock had mainstream relevance, I don’t think it’s because the music was so good and successful. I think it’s because, with some very notable exceptions, it was too self-absorbed and fractured for people to care about. Was going to give this 1 star but I like the guitar work on "Hanging Out and Hung Up On the Line."

Every album is a time capsule and this project is a time machine. Once again I'm presented with an artist I had never heard of and once again I'm left knowing why. There are moments on this album that I found myself enjoying, some good bass lines. I really only enjoyed one track "If You Loved Me At All". Otherwise it was forgettable...for me anyway.

Changed to a 4 on reflection

Not for me. The songwriting seems very amateurish and there are some songs where his voice does not fit the style

Julian Cope is a bit of a sage. Among other things, he was blowing the whistle about climate change here, in 1991. I found this record to be an exercise in the endurance of tedium though.

A little folky, a little rock and roll with some cool guitar playing. He's got a rich, deep voice. Lyrics can be a little out there.

Interesting ebb and flow. Trippy

Idk bout all this

Not my thing and way too long

Насправді альбом дуже посередній,хітових пісень немає,слова це дитячий садок,є гарні зачатки,а так це не те щоб я слухав 2 з 5

This is pretty good post-punk, but really just makes me want to listen to Iggy Pop or Joy Division instead.

Everything about this was bad. It is 154 minutes of bad songs with very little listens, the cover art is weird and semi-offensive, like most of the music on here and lastly it is another British artist. It is hard to Cope with this Nope

Ok

Pristeen - 3/5 Double Vegetation - 4/5 East Easy Rider - 3/5 Promised Land - 3/5 Hanging Out & Hung Up on the Line - 3/5 Safesurfer - 1/5 If You Loved Me at All - 4/5 Drive, She Said - 5/5 Soldier Blue - 3/5 You... - 3/5 Not Raving but Drowning - 3/5 Head - 4/5 Leperskin - 2/5 Beautiful Love - 1/5 Western Front 1992 CE - 3/5 Hung Up & Hanging Out to Dry - 1/5 The American Lite - 1/5 Las Vegas Basement - 3/5 Average score: 2.8/5 (rounding down) for some reason i had high hopes i'd enjoy this more than i did. maybe just cuz the album art looked interesting i didn't like this enough to justify rounding up my score

No começo nao gostei, no final ate que tava gostando...lembrou um pouco de happy mondays 2,5

Peggy? As in JPEGMAFIA? I like this. Not every song hits, but on average, they’re pretty good, not generic and with some standouts too. I do think this album would’ve benefited from shaving off a couple of minutes, though. It starts to drag a little bit towards the end, and later songs are not that interesting, in my opinion. It's ostensibly and concept album. I don't know what the concept is, but cool, I guess. 7/10

Super interesting wiki on this dude. Not sure about the music

Really good!

I delayed listening to my album for the day for 2 or 3 months because I so didn't want to listen to this album (that I'd never heard of). Finally listened today and it's not nearly as bad as I had thought it would be. It's fine, I guess, but the only interesting song is Beautiful Love. Marginally. I don't expect I'll ever listen to another song from this album.

The first song feels like some sort of meditation, very slow and repetitive. The vibe is cool but not super memorable. The next one is going for more dramatic but the instrumentation isn't strong enough to back it up. Hanging out and Hung up On the Line was a highlight for me as it has one of the better performances, and the riff on Safesurfer reminds me of a Smashing Pumpkins song which is pretty cool. Soldier Blue also had some interesting soundscapes on it. Overall the sounds are quite good but they're not really combined into great songs. The choruses are quite weak and don't really pop, the songs try to build up to something but the buildups usually aren't very rewarding and the use of repetition usually makes the songs drag on instead of achieving something interesting. I wouldn't call this album boring or bad but rather quite frustrating because it could have been a lot better.

First two songs had very different vibes. The 8min song was good but a little too noisy for me in the end. I hate the cover. And the name.

Very good!

Un pirado como Julian Cope, bine se merece estar en el listado, y este puede que sea el disco que más se disfrute. Sino es Julian que sean los The Teardrop Explodes aquney Hanging Out And Hung Up On The Line suene a ellos. East Easy Rider tiene el ritmo sincopado y guitarras del Madchester de finales de los 80. Algo parecido a Soldier Blue que resuena a New Fast Automatic Daffodils, otros insgines olvivados. Promised Land es una odisea donde la voz de Cope encaja a la perfección con el órgano y ese sonido psicodélico que tan bien le queda. Hanging out and hanging up on the line ya saben cómo ha influido entre otros en Fontaines D.C. (o no suena lo suficiente a Boys in the better land???)

My first Julian Cope album and, while it was a tad elongated, it was fine. A mess of styles, yet it works.

All brilliant, a treat from my musical formative years. One of my personal top ten.

This makes double albums two days in a row. This one was terrible - 2.5 hours of my life I’ll never back. Julian Nope creating “music” nobody will ever listen to again. I’d bet I was the only one in the world listening to that album in that moment.

Julian Cope's 1991 album *Peggy Suicide* is a ambitious double album that marked a creative rebirth for the artist. It blends sharp political and ecological themes with diverse musical styles, though its extensive length presents a key consideration. For a quick overview, here are the album's essential details: | **Category** | **Details** | | :--- | :--- | | **Release Year** | 1991 | | **Album Type** | Double-Length Studio Album (18 tracks) | | **Overall Theme** | A meditation on humanity's relationship with Mother Earth, addressing ecology, politics, and spirituality . | | **Musical Style** | Art rock, psychedelic rock, with elements of funk, noise, and krautrock . | | **Critical Reception** | Widely praised as a career high point and an artistic rebirth . Included in the book *1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die* . | ### 🎵 Music and Production The album's music represents a significant shift from Cope's earlier, more polished pop work . The sound is loose, raw, and features a homespun, "cracking chamber-garage" quality that values rhythmic precision alongside guitar chaos and first-take immediacy . Key musical elements include Cope's use of a wah-wah pedal on an Ovation 12-string guitar, a "Clintonesque bass grumble," and "Loki-esque" percussion from drummer Rooster Cosby . The album is musically diverse, ranging from the Funkadelic-inspired epic "East Easy Rider" and the motorik krautrock of "Safesurfer" to the acoustic psychedelic folk of "Pristeen" and the Motörhead-like riffage of "Hanging Out & Hung Up On The Line" . ### 📝 Lyrics and Themes *Peggy Suicide* is a fiercely political and ecological protest album . The title refers to "Mother Earth... throwing her head back in pain and confusion at the treatment that Mankind [has] chosen to mete out to her" . Cope's lyrics are direct and confrontational, laying bare his personal convictions . Major themes include: * **Environmental Crisis**: Tracks like "Pristeen" (where "Pristeen" represents the Earth) and "Western Front 1992 CE" directly address pollution and humanity's destruction of the planet . * **Political Protest**: "Leperskin" is a venomous attack on Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, whom Cope labels an "apostolic hag," while "Soldier Blue" samples the Poll Tax Riot as a tirade against police brutality . * **Social Issues**: "Safesurfer" is an eight-minute meditation on the AIDS crisis, using the repeated mantra "You don't have to be afraid, love/'Cause I'm a safesurfer, darling" to imply sexual menace and promote safe sex . * **Spirituality and Rights**: The album also explores Cope's hatred of organized religion and his interests in women's rights, animal rights, paganism, and goddess worship . ### ✨ Influence and Legacy *Peggy Suicide* is generally seen as the beginning of Julian Cope's trademark sound and a turning point as a maturing artist . It heralded a new, more visionary phase in his career, establishing him as a voice of "righteous living" for a post-rave, pre-millennial audience . The album's successful fusion of pointed socio-political concerns with expansive, psychedelic-influenced rock paved the way for the even more focused follow-up, *Jehovahkill*, and set the template for his subsequent work . It demonstrated that a "protest album" could be sonically diverse, home-spun, and wildly creative . ### ⚖️ Pros and Cons **Pros:** * **Ambitious Scope**: The album is a epic, cohesive statement that successfully merges political rage with psychedelic adventure . * **Musical Diversity and Creativity**: It covers a wide range of styles without losing its core identity, from pop to funk to noise, keeping the listening experience engaging . * **Powerful Lyrics**: Cope's direct and passionate approach to themes of ecology and social justice gives the album a lasting relevance . * **Raw, Energetic Production**: The first-take, garage-band feel is a strength, making the music feel immediate and vital compared to his earlier, over-produced work . **Cons:** * **Length and Demanding Nature**: With 18 tracks spanning over 75 minutes, the album can be overwhelming for some listeners. Its sheer scale requires patience and multiple listens to fully absorb . * **Acquired Taste**: Cope's vocal delivery and the album's general "shaggy, shambolic" nature may not appeal to everyone. Some listeners find certain tracks too experimental or dislocated . *Peggy Suicide* is a demanding but rewarding listen. If you appreciate ambitious, politically charged rock that is both melodic and experimental, this album is a stone-cold classic. If you prefer more concise records, its length may be challenging.

Yeah, I'm not sure what to expect when I get these weird and obscure albums on the generator. It really is not great. I don't know, I don't really have much to say, it's just really long and dull. It's just a snoozer, that's it. Favorite Tracks: Pristeen, Promised Land Rating: 2/5

REM for incels.

Music was good but couldn’t take his voice.

Perfectly fine - some fun listens, nothing spectacular

I liked this more than I expected. It definitely grew on me with a second listen. I don't know if it'll ever reach a four star rating, but my initial reaction wasn't all that great... was debating two or three... but it's a strong three now.

Somewhat artsy pop rock

Interesting listen. Flip flopped alot on this one, at points it seemed like Great Value Radiohead (not a diss necessarily) and at others I lost interest slightly. Had some great moments though, especially on the guitar. Could've been a bit shorter. I feel like its definitely an album that'll grow on me over time. Safesurfer was the best track easily.

it's hard to review this as all one project. This project feels all over the place in a great way. Sometimes, it feels a little overkill with the weird vocals, but overall, it has some awesome instrumentals and great guitar parts as well. It feels wrong to review this one after just one listen. Some of the lyrics are awesome, and I like the overall themes and message. This album makes me really wish there was a 3.5 option. but I'll round up because of how unique it was, and how much i did like a few of the songs.

This record is comfortable with its influences and is interesting in that it leans hard on noisy, cult predecessors - the Velvet Underground, most obviously, but with more time I’d pick others out - for songs that don’t lack edge, but are perhaps easier to hang out with, less intrusive: derivative. These thoughts are half-formed: only time for one listen; not sure this needed to be a double album.

Inevitable that the Arch Drude would show up here. Bluesy, folky, psychedelic, tuneful, antiquarian, mysterious and unfocused, song for song "Peggy Suicide" is pretty representative of the great man if not quite as good as "Jehovakill". Lots of ground covered in this epic, totally deserving of its 60+ min esp. the extended wig-out of "Safesurfer". 2nd disc is inessential but quite proto-Screamadelica

Can't find a single reason why this would be an essential album to listen to

Not what I expected at all. A hyperamalgom of REM, Bush, Bowie, Grateful Dead, and britpop standards all turned into one surprisingly cohesive album. Lots of dissonance and irregular resloutions melodically. Can be off putting temporaryily but always comes back sounding pleasant. I wish it wasn't so long and some of the fluff was paired down. There is some good songs here. Worth a listen, not sure I'll return for this or seek more of it. But its kinda like the Kinks circa 1990's.

2.5 maybe

Artiste inconnu. Absolument aucun intérêt. Génère un ennui profond qui m’a fait arrêter avant la fin (album beaucoup trop long). =>1/5

78% Best: Double Vegetation; East Easy Rider; Drive, She Said; Not Raving But Drowning Must-Hear? Not quite. It's too long. There is a great 40 minute album in there, though.