The Holy Bible

This belongs in the conversation about one of the best albums of the ‘90s that captured that era of the fallout of Western austerity, rampant consumerism and the beginnings of stripping the soul from art. This should be considered a peer of Nirvana’s Nevermind.

Sumt fannst mér mjög fínt annað fannst mér mjög slæmt

Það er nú bara eitthvað við hljóminn í þessari sem að heillar mig.

punky uk lads, nice

I’ve got friends who were obsessed with the Manics, but I’ve never quite got it. A couple of killer singles aside, I find them a bit clunky. This hasn’t really converted me.

I should have anticipated a knock out performance from name recognition alone but oh man dude. Fucking incredible album. What a cool band. What a killer set of songs and lyrics. Just the whole thing impressed me from top to bottom. I'm always gonna be a mark for punk/post-punk shit but I was not ready for this one.

This was released the same day as Definitely, Maybe and the world decided Oasis was the band to fall in love with? No. Absolutely not. What is wrong with Britain.

You know, not a big fan of this one. Not memorable and the album art is... well, I'm still trying to decide what the idea was.

Didn't finish it but I thought what I heard was decent enough

Hit or miss

It’s not that this was bad, it’s that I really didn’t like listening to it. Calling your album “The Holy Bible” and having your message be fuck politics, fuck capitalism, fuck the world…just doesn’t do it for me. While I may agree, I really don’t care to listen to this music with that message. There’s enough problems in today’s political climate, I don’t care to listen to a Welsh band from the 90s singing about the same shit, different era.

I guess I understand the language that they sing, but I am unsure at the same time.... Otherwise good enough.

4/5

More interested in the story behind the band than the music

On the more boring end of post-punk/alternative rock. Wanted to like this more though there were definitely some pretty solid riffs here

Будет тяжело. Совершенно не моя музыка. Этот альбом ввел меня в паралич.

There’s some really enjoyable guitar riffs on display, and at times this much heavier than I expected. The Intense Humming of Evil even takes on a more industrial style. However, I’m just not a great fan of his vocals - they’re not a dealbreaker but they just seem indelibly linked to my perception of the band at their peak, frequenting the charts, which seemingly they leaned further into indie / pop when this album signals something far more interesting.

Really cool, not what I thought they would sound like based off of the few later singles I know. Very dark lyrically which was surprising

3.5

I like this album in the fact that I like this kind of rock. But I don't know if there's anything on this that I find exemplary. More of a fine example of the 12/10¢ modern rock infused classic rock sound of the time. 7.1 ★★★½

I find this to be quite boring mainstream rock. 2.5 stars

I'm not a huge fan of this band. There's sort of a glamminess to them that I don't quite love and the lead singer is a bit theatrical for me. There's a few good tracks here -- 4st 7lb is probably my favorite, but I had a hard time getting into a lot of it. 2.5 stars.

3.5

“Hats off, gentlemen - a masterpiece. An album that wants to rub your face in your own vomit and force yourself to look in the mirror and does just that. No features, a lot of 100% pure uncut rock plus some real epic cool psycho-feminist, anti-capitalist, serial killer, Holocaust, anorexia and suicide-themed bops here. The ‘Intense Humming Of Evil’? More like The Intense Humming of 5 stars!” Robert Schumann writing for Piano Monthly, September 1994.

This sounds like a lot of other bands. There's nothing awful here, but it's also just not all that good. The situation with Richey Edwards is sad and casts a pall over this.

I like Manic Street Preachers but not a huge fan. Might like it more if I gave it another go. Bit edgier than their later ones that I'm more familiar with in a good way

Genetischer Indirock mit spannender Hintergrundgeschichte!

Previously rated: #741 - Everything Must Go (4/5) ************************************ Album #1,076 First impression - what a hideous image to put on your album cover! Why?!? Oh geez, there is also a song titled Ifwhiteamericatoldthetruthforonedayit'sworldwouldfallapart? <rolls eyes>. I liked their previous album, so I'll try not to let it cloud my judgment on the music. I don't know what they are on about with their politics. Why are they complaining about Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher in 1994? Let's talk about the music instead. Hard rock, punk, pop, it's catchy, it's great. I just wish it wasn't so bleak and depressing. The singer has a terrific rock voice, sounding just like Lou Gramm when he hits certain notes. Another album I will mark for relisten down the line.

TapI liek a lot

Não sei muito o que pensar desse álbum. Músicas são legais, mas nada me chamou a atenção. Tem uma energia boa, mas ao mesmo tempo genérica. Talvez na época fosse mais impactante.

Es ist ein Album wie ein Schlag ins Licht: hart, kompromisslos, intellektuell scharfkantig. Die Manic Street Preachers verbinden hier post‑punkige Härte mit einer lyrischen Tiefe, die selten so schonungslos und politisch zugleich war. Die Songs wirken wie Dokumente eines inneren und äußeren Zerfalls, getragen von Richey Edwards’ radikaler Sprache und einer Band, die musikalisch bis an die Grenze der eigenen Belastbarkeit geht. Der Sound ist trocken, kantig, fast klinisch – und genau dadurch so eindringlich. Zwischen Wut, Verzweiflung und klarem Denken entsteht ein Werk, das nicht leicht zugänglich ist, aber umso nachhaltiger wirkt. Ein Album, das fordert, aber belohnt.

Listened to MSP early years, but haven’t ever listened to this a lot because well it was Richie Edward’s taking his multiple significant issues to a fair extreme, lyrically before he did so literally, and it’s props to Bradfield and Moores music that still makes the whole think work. God knows how they manage to fit those wordy lines in at times. My problem is, there is something about this list/critics in general that always seem to latch onto MH and other forms of tragedy that’s a little, maybe sensationalist rather than the actual realism and always seems to want to label it and view it as profound, there just seems to be that trend. Musically 3.5 Star

Pissed off post punk. Wall to wall great songwriting. With topical themes on trauma and politics. All time great rock album.

Наверное, это хорошо. Но не в моем вкусе. Для меня звучит, как любой рок/немного металл.

favorite song: of walking abortion vibe: yeahhhhhh queer punk but like. in your mid/late twenties not your teens rating: 82/100

I like the Preacher's sound, and I have no problem with the message that accompanies the sound. After a few tracks though, this album feels like it flatlines

He was going through a tough time wasn't he

didn’t enjoy

Very good album. There is pain and anger and politics. It’s an album that needs multiple listens I think to fully digest. The lyrics are strong point here. So crazy sad. A person who was using his ability to write as an outlet. I think I really like this album.

p742. 1994. 2 stars. Welsh U2. Generic and vaguely pretentious rock with no standout tracks. I always feel I should like MSP more than I actually do, but it seems they are one of my aural blind spots (if that's not mixing my metaphors too much). And it's bloody miserable, and goes on far too long.

I went into this not expecting much and was pleasantly surprised. I'd listen to this again.

I liked a lot of what's on here, definitely more than their subsequent album Everything Must Go. Sometimes some tight and polished rock music is what I'm in the mood for and this kind of fits that bill. 3.25/5

I didn't think I'd like this, after the other album on the list. However, it did win me over. I ended up liking it quite a bit and listened through it a couple times. It's too bad about the guy. 3.75/5

Superb

Never listened. Expectations: High - Verdict: Very Good - Yep, I was hoping to like it and I do. Took a few tracks to get going though. She Is Suffering and Mausoleum are highlights.

Overall: 8/10 You can hear so many bands that these guys must have influenced in every single note of this album. They're mostly punk, but they seem unafraid of experimenting with different sounds as well. I hear lots of Against Me! and At the Drive-In with their sound. I may need some more time with this one, but I think it's awesome. Fav Song: Die in the Summertime

It is solid. Want to like it more than I do, despite many listens over the years.

Decent rock album, with a punk influence. The recording, at least on my gear, doesn't really sound the greatest, but the themes and songwriting are pretty good.

Standouts She is Suffering

Mostly harmless.

Although I much prefer the band's following two albums, this is rightfully considered a classic. Their last album before founding guitarist-lyrics Richey James vanished without a trace, who knows what happened to him. A very dark and depressing album, but not in an immediately appearent way. Key tracks: Yes IfWhiteAmericaToldTheTruthForOneDayItsWorldWouldFallApart She Is Suffering Revol

ovo je jako, nekako je ljuto, sarkasticno, odvratno i bas zato je dobro

I was hovering between 2 and 3 for a rating but the last song settled it higher. It's an ok album with PCP being the standout track. Sad story about the singer, he looks sad-confused in all his pics.

i find this band lightly annoying

I do have this, and it's a great album

Part of me really wants to like Manic Street Preachers more. In my last review of theirs, I was pleasantly surprised by their other album on this list. But I have to confess that this one really didn't do much for me at all. It felt a bit all over the place, a bit 80s rock ballads, a bit of grunge, a bit of Brit Pop, but also not really any of those things. I just couldn't really pin it down. It's obviously pretty dark which would normally be up my alley but yeah, I just couldn't connect here. Maybe I just need to be in the right mood but I just didn't like this one.

Some hard-hitting lyrics but musically I just couldn’t enjoy it. Even as someone who loves Wire and Gang of Four I found the total lack of harmonic resolution to be very grating.

pretty good....not bad...can't complain....but actually everything is just about the same.

Welsh indie rock. Some people hate it, but this list has helped me increase my exposure to music from across the pond. Reading up on the band reveals another trend among too many bands on this list: music visionaries, vocalist/lead guitarist Richie Edwards in this case, who suffer from metal illness and die (likely) much too early. This was the last record to feature Edwards before his disappearance and likely suicide. I quite liked this album. I’m a fan of post-punk and dissonant and dark music. Harsher sledgehammer power chords are interspersed with more jovial, serpentine riffs, which provides beautiful depth to tunes, more complex and interesting than most hard-driving efforts. The lyrics throughout are, dare I say it, profound. There are some real bangers on this one and the songs are consistently strong from start to finish, no filler here. I listened to the album several times and liked it a little more on each listen, which means it is an album I’ll be revisiting. I’m not sure how I missed this previously, but I glad I found it. Brilliant stuff here.

This was awesome. So gritty and loud but still melodic and musically innovative. It easily sounded like something from 2004 rather than 1994, it was so ahead of the status quo. I loved every minute of it and listened to it twice. Easily five stars.

woooow I hated this!! just pure noise!

Album #75 Manic Street Preachers: The Holy Bible I said in my review of Violent Femmes’ self-titled album that it is the ultimate teenage angst album, in the sense that it represents the angst that a teenager will experience as a result of their relationships. If Violent Femmes represent a teen expressing their anger towards all of those close to them, then The Holy Bible represents a teen’s anger towards the world. Whereas Violent Femmes are more concerned with personal issues, such as “my girlfriend left me, and now I’ll never love again” or “my parents are assholes”, Manic Street Preachers aim to tackle the issues at a global level. Richey Edwards bares his soul on this album, with each song being a vehicle to express a tirade against what he believes to be an injustice of the world, whether it be systemic like American racism, or something more personal like anorexia. The way he conveys this, however, is often quite juvenile, so it can read like someone just starting to understand politics and being overly passionate to the point where they can seem naive. Kind of like that one friend you had in high school who read the Wikipedia summary of Karl Marx and became an authoritarian communist. However, though Edward’s lyrics may seem juvenile and not particularly thought-provoking, that is only when they are being read in isolation from the music. The reason this album works is that the issues that Edwards writes about he is actually deeply passionate about, and that is conveyed through his vocal performance. So though it might seem overly edgy when you read lyrics about Stalin being gay, you quickly start to stop questioning the content and start feeling the intent. This album has become infamous in the same way that Closer by Joy Division has; both albums come from bands with questionable musical abilities, but cult-of-personality frontmen who know how to connect with the youth. Of course, in both cases, the frontmen were haunted and would go on to have tragic endings, and in the wake of that, the remaining band members would go on to reinvent themselves in a more accessible way. But in a morbid way, that makes their songs all the more powerful. One thing that may be overlooked in the discourse of this album, which often revolves around the subject matter, is just how good it sounds. There is a reason that this album was such a cultural force. Yes, Edwards became a spokesperson for the youth, but also, the songs were banging. Overall, this album, though hardly known outside the U.K is one of the most unique and interesting of the 90s. The Holy Bible was so bleak and enigmatic that the entire nation needed something to make them feel better, and thus Britpop rose to prominence as a dose of optimism. No real misses on this thing, except for the cover, of course. Best Tracks: Yes, Faster, 4st 7lb Worst Track: The Intense Humming of Evil Score out of 10: 9

This is a 90s band I'd heard of so thought it might be good. Unfortunately it just has a general 90s sound, nothing exciting at all. Will not rate it too low though as it would perhaps improve with a second listen.

Totally unfamiliar with Manic Street Preachers, but I enjoyed this. I was cooking while I listened, so I missed a lot of the lyrics, but the bits I did catch struck me as introspective and socially conscious. Regardless, the tracks were enjoyable and varied. I’ll definitely come back to this.

#282/1001. Quite a bit darker and heavier sound than what I expected. But does it help? Not really especially if the album is this long. First listen just numbed me, and today I didn't need to be numb. I don't have a clue what happened to the msp after the suicidality met its destiny and I don't want to find out. No points for being the suffering artists from me.

I was happy at first to hear something that felt pretty different than a lot of the music on this list. These guys have a pretty unique sound, it reminds me a lot of the skate music from the early 2000's, the So-Cal sound with bands like Rise Against and AFI. I was surprised to learn that these guys were actually from Whales. By midway through the album though I got a little tired of the sound, the singers voice is pretty sharp and the intrigue of a new type of sound on this list wore off. By the end I felt like I wasn't actually sure if this entirely warranted a spot on this list...

For some reason, every time I've seen the name Manic Street Preachers, I've pictured a ska band. No idea why, it just seems like such a great name for a ska band. Anyways, this clearly isn't ska. This is a really solid alternative / post-punk album with a lot of songs that feel all too relevant today. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this one and am definitely going to dive a bit deeper into their discography. I can't believe that this album came out the same day as Definitely Maybe; I am so disappointed in the generation that let Oasis gain more popularity than this band.

OMG I love this album. I worked at Sony when the Manic Street Preachers showcased this album to the whole company in Brighton. This is their most punk rock albums, the Americans thought there were not enough guitars (WTF) and they created an American mix which didn’t make a difference… one of the most political bands around with Rage Against The Machine. Guitarist Richey Evans was still on the record and then disappeared forever…

eher zu rockig für mich

Guter, schneller Rock. So gefällts.

nothing bad about its just not very good. It got a bit boring towards the end.

This has a great sound. It falls into the 90s trap of not being particularly catchy or having a standout track, so nothing especially makes you go WOW. Enjoyed it nonetheless.

Decent rock and roll album. Felt like a big hair band but not quite. Had a pretty good sign with this one.

Definitely not my style

Nice, forgettable, rock album.

2,5/3 Tweede helft was beter Laatste nummer ook wel oké

Not bad rock.

Liked this more than I was expecting, didn't really sound like the couple of other songs that I'd heard from them on compilations and stuff. Really liked "She is Suffering".

This surprised me a lot. I never knew the Manics had such a heavy sound or were so lyrically deep. Both of these things make this album very listenable. Plus I never knew their back story. I want to give this album a 5 for surprising me so much. But it's not quite there for me yet (after only 2 listens). I will listen again in a week or so and may come back and rescore...

A Brit Pop Classic, a masterpiece!

Really great album. Though I think it lulls in the middle a bit, the run of songs at the end is one of the best I've heard so far in this project. Really aggressive and creative stuff, and definitely an album I'll be coming back to to get more out of. Favorite Songs: "Yes", "She Is Suffering", "Die in the Summertime", "The Intense Humming of Evil", "P.C.P." Least Favorite Song: "Mausoleum" Mid 4.

There's a lot of conjecture about this project and how a lot of entries really do not live up to the moniker of an "album you must hear before you die". This is an album everybody should hear before they die. It is the most articulate and intelligent expression of disgust which you will ever find committed to record, with complex rhythms and stabbing guitars crashing up against monumental lyrics which resound with fierce nihilism. Not only is it a twisted, dark and horrifying dissection of our world but it also shows off deft songwriting (peel back the festering skin and you can tell this is a band who love The Temptations!) and a truly cohesive artistic vision. "You're obliged to pretend respect for people and institutions you think absurd. You live attached in a cowardly fashion to moral and social conventions you despise, condemn, and know lack all foundation. It is that permanent contradiction between your ideas and desires and all the dead formalities and vain pretenses of your civilization which makes you sad, troubled and unbalanced. In that intolerable conflict you lose all joy of life and all feeling of personality, because at every moment they suppress and restrain and check the free play of your powers. That's the poisoned and mortal wound of the civilized world." Favourite tracks: White America, Archives Of Pain, Revol, 4st7lb, Faster, PCP

Nice but nothing to write home about. Not wanting to add any songs to playlist. Story of guitarist is very interesting. I hope he's out there somewhere living a good life. This is very white noise to me. Something about these types of albums just play in the background to me I don't really hear them. It's just there. Nothingburger. They're just yelling. I honestly don't gaf. Favourite: idk Least favourite: idk

It's not that it's really bad, but it includes all the tropes that I don't like about Alternative Rock and nothing more aside. So this was a very annoying listen for me.

This was just a load of edgy, angry nonsense. Lyrics were edgy at best, gobbledegook at worst. Some decent drums and guitars at times and some of the songs had decent structure. Not sure who would enjoy this and why, all in all. Maybe it’s just not for me. 3/10

A bit long

It's a good album, but not great in comparison to others in the same genre. It has some very well written songs, and I never felt like it got boring. It kept me listening and it kept me interested.

2 A cacophonous mess of sound. Not a bad thing, but never really gelled for me

Champagne Communism at its most punk.

There was never any way I could be unbiased in a review of this. But listening to it with a purpose, as I did today, I found it even more brilliant.

very substantive i like it

Not my favourite Manics album. Very much of the same.

Not too bad, they just need someone that can sing

Interesting and listenable but not my favourite style of music

Knew them in name only. Seems a younger me would have been totally into this sound. Oops.

Dense and confrontational, this is an album that prioritizes atmosphere and lyrical intensity over easy accessibility. Its stark themes and abrasive edges can be demanding, but that tension is part of its impact. Even when it’s uncomfortable, it’s compelling in how clearly it commits to its vision.

This one will require a few more listens for me. The angst and punk sensibilities appealed to me, but the song structures seemed chaotic at times. The lyrics and topics were great, but would have jelled better with an angrier tone. Will definitely need more listening and exploration of their discography.

- Ok?

Noise.

Like a few of the Manics' songs, never really that into them, enjoyed th album not sure I would revisit

Coming out of left field with this one. This hit different

wasn't expecting this at all. pleasantly surprised

Pretty meh album to properly listen to, but it's alright leaving in the background. That's the typical music that was kind of popular at around that time, so it probably did pretty alright.

Das hat nichts mit "Weltklasse" zu tun.

These guys are amazing! A welsh 90s rock band, but while a lot of their peers were doing the Britpop thing, these guys feel more like a grunge version of Queen. Every song is good

Decent album!

nothing like a group of white guys from across the pond acting like they're morally superior

Interesting listen, especially after reading about the disappearance shortly after. Still got more to do. Manic definitely isn't my style of rock but maybe I'll discover some me songs through it

Punk goes Alternative. This is too edgy for me. They could use a real lead guitarist, too.

She Is Suffering Faster

hmm.. unknown

Need to re-listen to, but enjoyed

3.8 Feels kind of similar to Entertainment by Gang if Four in that it’s got fun political lyrics that I can’t really hear because they’re not enunciated and the music falls a little by the wayside for the lyrics. The lyrics are a bit more relevant since it’s two decades more recent, and the sound is a little more fun, so it’s better, but not amazing. It reminds me of Green Day, and I think maybe if I had listened to them when I was young I’d like it a lot. Also a different album of theirs came on after and I liked it quite a bit, so maybe I’d like their other or newer stuff. Also the album cover art made me think it was gonna be really weird and experimental, so I was pleasantly surprised

Nothing special

MSP have been a favourite of mine for decades. This album can be heavy going lyrically but James Dean Bradfield is an excellent tune smith. There are some real highlights that come when JDB’s music strains through with his melodic sensibilities against Richie Edwards lyrical content. Overall a great album that stands up for me even when a lyric like “he’s a boy, you want a girl so tear off his cock, tie his hair in bunches, fuck him, call him Rita if you want” is not the darkest on there! 4.2

It's decent enough. I've always been a passive fan of the manics and revisiting this album hasn't changed that. For me, they are one of those bands that have a solid greatest hits set, and that's as far as it goes for me.

The Good: Nothing The Bad: This album… The Ugly: Fucking ego’s of shit bands in ‘90s My fond memories from the ‘90s do not include bands such as MSP, mainly because they were totally unknown in the US… and rightfully so. I find this shit. Don’t like it. And will not rate it any higher than a 1*

Estos gallos me aburren. Sí, todo muy oscuro y triste, pero dónde están las melodías?

A little dated but some good songs. Definitely against the BritPop grain

Fave was Faster

8/10 – Very Good

you could totally deep dive into this album but for now I was only paying half attention so this might not be accurate

Yes She is Suffering Archives of Pain PCP

Not awful. But nothing outstanding either. Could have been a part of any 90s playlist.

Holy shit

Meh

3.3 1x

My favorite MSP album: dark and brutally honest as it gets.

Great album with cool production, nice riffs, and potent lyrics. A tad long, but the rest is too good to not earn five stars. 4.5/5.0: Excellent

This album was a great listen. I considered dropping it a point for the narration but ultimately enjoyed this enough for a five anyway.

Unexpected alternative rock album for me, deep lyrics about various issues, heavy rock in some songs and overall, a pleasant surprise.

The body of goddess. I honestly had never even heard of Manic Street Preachers. Not once. But this album is phenomenal. There’s so much anger and grit packed into it. You can tell it’s from the 90s within five seconds of the first guitar kicking in. It would not surprise me at all if songs like “She Is Suffering” were a big inspiration for artists like Turnstile. The vocals across this entire record are incredible. It feels like a mix of 90s grunge and punk, but also something bigger and more dramatic. Almost over the top rock or metal. The instrumentals stand out just as much. “Archives Of Pain” has one of the dirtiest bass tones you can possibly get. “4st 7lb” is a track I cannot fully explain. I do not know why it works, but it absolutely does. One of my favourites on the album for sure! After reading more about the band, it made the whole experience heavier. Why is it always the most impactful, best lyricists who end up with the saddest endings? Rest in peace Richard James Edwards. I am genuinely happy I stumbled upon these Welsh lads. I will definitely be coming back. 9/10.

a few good songs but not their best

Man, the Manics are just a killer rock band. They are easily one of my favorite artists I have discovered from doing this challenge.

3,5 - Die erste Hälfte ist richtig stark und intensiv düster. Danach wird es leider etwas belanglos. Insgesamt aber empfehlenswert! Highlights: ifwhiteamericatoldthetruthforonedayit'sworldwouldfallapart, She Is Suffering

Well…..it’s not a terrible album. They sound very much like many artists that were around in 1994. Nothing terrible and nothing spectacular. I was surprised this was a Welsh and not an American band for what it is worth. I did a deep dive on Richey Edward’s - very sad and tragic. Brings the movie Eddie and the Crusers to mind.

This was about as good as the previous Manic Street Preachers album.

Good rock sound!

Cover turnt ab! Das Auge isst mit. Probier ich nicht!

I enjoyed the punkier elements. Not terrible, but not all that notable either?

Nope.

i like it

When they first appeared, I took a fairly immediate disliking to the Manics as I found their posturing and sloganeering all a bit forced and cliched. They piqued my interest though when I saw them live at a free festival in '93, then they released this album and I sort of clicked with them. At the time, I enjoyed the edgy urgency of this record, and the tunes really struck me and kept me coming back to it. I hadn't listened for years and looked forward to giving it a go again but it just doesn't have the spark I remembered. I accept that after all this time, it's most likely me that's lost the spark, but I found it a bit of a slog - something about the production of it maybe, that just feels heavy, in a dour kind of way, and a bit... exhausting. I'm not a Manics fan, but I like that they exist, and they seem like good people, but think I'll just stick with the Best Of...

Manic Street Preachers really frustrate me. I have always loved their attitude, their lyrics are often spot on, but I tend to find the majority of their songs.... disappointing. I don't recall listening to this album before. Listening now it seems to epitomise all of the above which is bloody annoying.

Pretty fucking good. Need to show this to my dad to see if he knows it.

Sounds like the bands I used to listen to live in the early 2000's (hat tip to Grand Theft Bus). Poppy, punky, spacey, exultant and angry. And often happy, somehow. My brain really engaged when 'Ifwhiteamericatoldthetruthforonedayit'sworldwouldfallapart' came on. Don't mind the name; it was 1994 and being weird was cool. Vocals (James Dean Bradfield) have just the slightest edge of rawness. The guitars (Richey Edwards and Bradfield, again) start out bright and biting with liberal additions of lush modulation (sounds like a flanger effect; the instrument could be anything but sounds vaguely Tele-like). The bass tone is phenomenal -- I'm told Nicky Wire's growling attack comes from a Rickenbaker 4003, here. Sean Moore's drumming is propulsive but unobtrusive. The whole record is prototypical of the sound of 90's alt-rock. There are blues and middle-eastern influences, politics (especially some anti-imperial sentiments), a synthesis of grunge and post-punk and a playful, textural but not smothering use of instrument effects and post-processing. You can view the vocal work, arranging and drumming all in the same light as the application of effects: things vary from smooth to ragged, nice to strange all in the service of the emotional content of the song. I will say that the album is mildly uneven. I find the middle, heaviest stretch ('Archives of Pain' through 'Mausoleum') a bit more tedious than the rest, but they're not bad songs. Just not as strong as some of the others. To cap it off, the album closer, 'P.C.P.' is a straight-ahead punk song. It could easily be from a California skate punk band from the same era (it's just not quite funny enough to be a NOFX song). The slight unevenness is entirely forgivable in light of its ambitious variation. Folks often categorize this as a punk record and, while I think that is one of the most prominent traditions in which the work is in conversation, I think that's a gross underestimation of the content herein. This is a fucking great one. Under-sung, over-delivering and comes with a dramatic legacy in light of Richey Edwards's later disappearance. 5/5, The List delivered today.

Weird story to go with this album, look up the lyricist. I can't really tell the lyrics but the music sounds pretty good, especially on the beginning songs. 2.5

not good not bad

Really nice album.

Heilt på da jevne

Solid

Meh

WOW. I was not expecting that. I’ve always assumed Manic street preachers music was pop rock. But this album ROCKS. The guitars, drums and the vocals are all great. Very pleasantly surprised

Enough! Brit pop sucks. 1

Hard rock (punk ?) boring Flemme de la pochette

Je ne connaissais pas, il y a un mélange de Weezer, des strokes, et d’autres groupes pop rock C’était sympa

J'ai mieux aimé qu'anticipé, quelques bonnes pistes !

It was okay

Richey Edwards has an interesting and sad story, which in no way helps in making this album any more palatable. The instrumentation is fine, although the sound dates itself firmly as being mid-90's with half the songs sounding like pale imitations of Nirvana's "Nevermind" from 3 years prior, but the vocals are whiny and not even kind of pleasant to listen to. 2 stars but only barely.

Not bad, just boring. I can't really understand the words either. I'm not sure if that's bad singing, poor mixing, or just the lead singer being Welsh. Just another UK band nobody on my side of the pond has ever heard of. Also, nobody wants to see that album art.

When to listen: feeling edgy and punky and cooler than I am. I genuinely enjoyed this album—would listen again!

With spontaneous rock ramblings such as these, the band assuredly lives up to their name There's an aura of wild chaos that I don't recall from big songs like Motorcycle Emptiness or If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next A good thrill

Couldn’t understand a word he was singing.

48/1089 3.2399* Wow, what a nice surprise from the opening note. The singer was obviously heavily influenced by Fred mercury, you can really hear some Fred throughout but it almost seems as the album plays on it gets more noticeable. There was no song that got me pumped but it was nice 90s rock with guitar, singer, drums and bass.

The best days of this challenge are the ones that leave me pleasantly surprised. My knowledge of the Manics was limited to their mid-to-late 90s singles. Not keen. Fine but boring. Then I generated Everything Must Go a couple of weeks ago and within the context of the album, it was no better really. Listenable but about as expected. Fast forward to today, which is actually a rewind by two years but, significantly, before the loss of guitarist and primary songwriter Richey Edwards. I enjoyed this album so much more than their polished, catchy, safe Britpop stuff. There's a real edge and urgency; even as someone who doesn't pay a great deal of attention to lyrics on the first few listens, I can feel the anguish. Musically, it's bold and loud and rough, but still full of hooks and very engaging. I'm glad I finally gave this album a proper go, it's fantastic. Such a tragedy that Richey didn't get the help he clearly needed. The guy was dealing with alcoholism, anorexia, depression and all kinds of demons. He used his writing as a vehicle to escape from them all and then, although nobody can be certain how, he slipped into the night and was never seen again. While I've never been invested in them as a band, I have always found his plight and disappearance terribly sad and strangely fascinating. I hope he is actually alive somewhere, that he found a way to leave his old life and pain behind and start again somehow.

Houmous & Chutney once challenged Manic Street Preachers to an ‘album off’ - who could release the worst album intentionally. Houmous & Chutney released their famous ‘Hour of Silence’ album. To their surprise they lost to this album by the manics. 1.7 6/13 Revol

This album didn't really do anything for me.

Not for me

Didn't really enjoy this - don't mind the Manics too much on a good day but I don't feel like this is one of their better albums.

I bet if I had ever listened to this around when it came out I'd have a nostalgic feeling about it, but I didn't, and I don't. This is extremely bog standard 90s alt-rock stuff. Some of the riffs are good, some of the lyrics pop, but you could jam any one of these songs between Candelbox, Dishwalla, and Spacehog right after the umpteenth playing of "Basket Case" on alt-rock radio and it would go totally unnoticed. This begs for a 2.5 rating. Rounding up because I'm nice, and it sounds really tragic what happened to that one guy, which I just learned about today.

Pretty good album. Learning about the lead guitarist's mental health struggles really put some of the songs into context. Overall I enjoyed it and would listen to it again, but it's not going to be everyone's cup of tea.

In many of the songs, it seems like they're trying to say something deep, political or societal. Reading on the background of this album, it seems that the bandmembers were all undergoing a lot of internal turmoil. I can sense that in the music and singing, for sure. It's not an unenjoyable album. They are all talented musicians and artists. Sort of a post-punk, brit-pop, pseudo glam rock vibe.

Not for me, not my type of music unfortunately

I’ve always heard of this band but I never knew what they sounded like until today. The first few songs really caught my attention, but that began to fade as the album went on.

I like them but definitely questioning whoever made this list

Aggressively fine

Is this The Killers making a Mars Volta album, or is it the Mars Volta making a Killers album? Whichever it is, I fuck with this

Great alt album

These must have been great live back then. Doesn't quite translate to record but I like the energy

The cover really turned me off, but the actual contents are great.

Interesting lyrics. Too bad they’re set to music blander than boiled potatoes

OVERALL: I generated this album on New Years Day, 2026, and heard the first two songs. I finished listening to this on May 7th after listening to 92 other albums. I think this will probably be the last review where I individually rate every song. Super dark, super dystopian, super political. Some of these lyrics are absolutely amazing, great messages and disturbing parts of society are really shown here. I was really stretching to try and find things I didn’t like about the songs here (except for the weird bird thing in The Intense Humming of Evil), there are basically no flaws other than the vocals which make the lyrics hard to understand. SONG AVG: 9.02/10 PERSONAL RATING: 9/10 Yes: Reminds me of Shoreline by Broken Social Scene. A lot of the lyrics are pretty questionable, and it’s pretty hard to tell what he’s saying, but it sounds really good. Great guitar, pretty good drums. I think the message, while weird, is pretty good, and the sample is used pretty well. 9.25/10 Ifwhiteamericatoldthetruthforonedayit'sworldwouldfallapart: Such a banger, such a powerful message. I really like this one, and I think anyone should regardless of their political beliefs. It also sounds really good. 9.75/10 Of Walking Abortion: So fire. I still can’t really understand the vocals, but the lyrics page looks pretty good. 9.25/10 She Is Suffering: This one feels a lot safer and simplistic compared to the previous songs in basically every way. It sounds good and the lyrics are still great, but it feels like they were playing it safe here. 8.75/10 Archives of Pain: The hook is so good, but it sucks that you can’t really tell what the lyrics are while listening. There are some super cool bars here, and they are paired really well with great guitar playing. The transitions into the hooks are pretty awkward, but otherwise the song is incredible. 9.75/10 Revol: This has some of the best instrumentation yet, but also the worst performance vocally and lyrically. The name thing was cool last time, but this time it feels too drawn out. There also are just not that many lyrics in it. Sounds good though. 9/10 4st 7lb: I didn’t realize that “4st” meant 4 stone, so I was confused for a bit. This is a pretty sad and disturbing story. I like this one a lot. 9.5/10 Mausoleum: This is less focused on a specific problem of the world like the other songs, but it is probably one of the best from a musical view. Compared to the other songs, this isn’t as good lyrically, but it’s still really good. 8.75/10 Faster: Songs like this make me astonished by the fact that this was made over 30 years ago. The guitars on this are absolutely perfect. This feels less of a statement about the world’s problems and more of a rebuttal to Edwards’ critics. Also, how do we still not know what happened to him? 9.75/10 This Is Yesterday: Big tonal shift from everything else except for maybe the outro of 4st 7lb. Definitely the most basic song on the album. The lyrics and vocals are much more simple than everything before it, but it still sounds really good. 7.75/10 Die in the Summertime: I normally like songs with this topic, but it feels so much weaker than everything leading up to it. This one should sound either very dark or very sad, but this is the same sound as many of the tracks leading up to it. It’s good, but slightly disappointing. 8/10 The Intense Humming of Evil: The intro is so cool sonically, but is so corny when combined with the sample. This sounds so dark and haunting, but the weird bird noise things are not good. The vocals also sound pretty dry here. I think that everything else sonically is absolute perfection, and the lyrics are some of the darkest yet somehow. It does drag on for a bit. 8.75/10 P.C.P.: This is really good, but it’s the outro? I feel like the last song feels much better as an ending, but this is a nice credit roll I guess. It definitely has the message of basically the entire album condensed into this one song, and it also sounds super good. Surprisingly upbeat. 9/10

I had some preconceived notion of this band by only hearing the name and then following up by listening to them. Whatever my preconceived notion had been was wrong. I liked it more than I thought I would but there weren't really any standout tracks. It also wasn't really head-and-shoulders above any other music coming out in that genre at that time so I'm not sure I would put it on the list. Okay album nonetheless.

Manche Bands kann man nicht mega mögen weil sie schon jemand anderes entdeckt und zum Teil seiner Teenager Identität gemacht hat. ...25 Jahre später schon. Masterpiece

Find ich gut.

Zum ersten Mal gehört, bisher sehr auf "This is my truth..." fokussiert gewesen - verstehe nicht warum. Muss mir noch mehr MSP anhören. Gefällt großartig.

Tense, hard-edged grooves built from jagged, serrated guitars, cold bass patterns, tight martial drumming, and urgently barked vocals between fury and collapse cutting trough the performance. This alternative rock album feels like stumbling upon an apocalyptic prophecy scrawled across a cracked biblical tablet—severe, unyielding, and gripping in the stark severity of its despair.

It's the same song over and over but slightly worse as it goes on. Not that great.

Track 1. (Yes) I love this 90s rock vibe, with crazy lyrics that actually have a deeper meaning. I've just finished 'Heated Rivalry,' so I'm loving the closeted gay trope right now, and I love this song. Great guitarist and drummer, totally killing it. This is the first time I've heard of this band, so it's a pretty good first impression. 8/10 Track 2. (Ifwhiteamericatoldthetruthforonedayit'sworldwouldfallapart) Crazy long title, but I guess it's true, wouldn't know all the way here in little old New Zealand lol. So far, I can tell this is a very woke band, which is great. Not my favourite, I understand the lyrics, but I don't love listening to this word throw-up. Great guitarist, again. 6.8/10 Track 3. (Of Walking Abortion) Relatable intro lol. Great fucking instrumental. I feel like there is another meaning to the lyrics, but I guess I'm not smart enough to pick it up. I think it's the singer I'm not totally digging, but everything else is fine. 6.8/10 Track 4. (She Is Suffering) Finally, I differant vibe, like when an album is somewhat diverse. I think the lead singer's voice sounds a lot better in this song. Sounds a little like Deftones, which I love. Definitely my favourite so far. 8.7/10 Track 5. (Archives of Pain) Don't know what to write lol. A solid rock song. 7/10 Track 6. (Revol) 7.8/10 Track 7. (4st 7lb) I feel like this would be a good song for a superhero fight montage is that random? Most relatable lyrics ever wtf. 9.3/10 Track 8. (Mausoleum) 8/10 Track 9. (Faster) 8.7/10 Track 10. (This Is Yesterday) 7/10 Track 11. (Die in the Summertime) Incredible guitar riff, best on the entire album, so definitely a standout song for me. 9.5/10 Track 12. (The Intense Humming of Evil) 5.8/10 Track 13. (P.C.P.) Interesting instrumental. 9/10 Overall Score: 7.9/10

Naaaja

🌟🌟 MCR if it was created by Disney

Uh, not bad, some parts I liked, some parts weren’t my jam.

This was cool, I felt hints of several bands I used to like a lot. I think if I would have come across this band back in my teens, I would have really enjoyed it :) It's not really my style of music anymore, so it's closer to a 3 than a 4, but I want to listen to it again, so I'm flagging it for replay.

interesting. great

Despite being very into alterna-rock and Brit-pop in the late 90s and early 2000s, this was always a band that eluded me. Listening to this record now I'm kinda blown away by just how capital-R Rockin' it is.

I had a different album from these guys earlier in the 1001 and didn't find it all that compelling, so I had low expectations for this one. Amusingly, I liked it quite a bit.

Great instrumentals and overall a fun, energetic album!

Just a really good time. Every song felt unique but had a strong connecting thread to the others. The percussion in particular is phenomenal.

Rv

3.5

This is the best Manics album imo, I like this fiery rage version of them over the orchestral cinematic grandeur.

Hey! Finally an album that's unique and cool enough to be on this list. Only took listening to 100, so likely 1% of this list is actually worth listening too. Enjoyed the difference.

Dishwater indy.

Fine

Great album. I'd love to listen to it again. I had pigeonholed the band as pop, but I was wrong. 4/5

Surprisingly great! a perfect mix of simplicity, melody, and crunchy guitar.

Punk lyrics but make it sound more like pop music.

Gave me nirvana vibes. Pretty good album.

Punk

Grunge vibe

Intense lyrics, well crafted music.

Started listening at work and wasn't really feeling it, but finished the album while doing a workout on my training bike, and it was perfect for that!

That song is not on here

Manic Street Preachers’ The Holy Bible feels strangely unmoored from its own era, pulling from ’70s arena rock swagger, ’80s post-punk angularity, traces of hair metal, and even early-2000s tension while rarely sounding like a product of the ’90s. The album’s jarring spoken-word interludes aim for provocation but mostly disrupt its momentum, adding to the sense that something essential never quite clicks. Still, there are flashes of brilliance: “Yes” comes out swinging with propulsive energy; “Archives of Pain” builds around a muscular bass-and-drum groove reminiscent of “Smooth Criminal”; and “This Is Yesterday” offers the rare moment of warmth, with James Dean Bradfield’s low-register vocal echoing shades of Freddie Mercury's lower register. Meanwhile, the brittle funk of “Ifwhiteamericatoldthetruthitsworldwouldfallapart” nods to Gang of Four, and “Revol” dives into late-’70s post-punk minimalism. Unfortunately, there's just something about this that doesn't click for me, though I can't put my finger on it.

I first discovered the Manic Street Preachers through this generator and really loved 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘔𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘎𝘰, which led me to explore more of their work and the Britpop scene :> I appreciate 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘏𝘰𝘭𝘺 𝘉𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦 for its beautiful, rich production and gritty political commentary. It is a lot bleaker than its successor for sure, grappling with themes of anorexia, corruption, self-harm, and suicide. Fly high, Richey Edwards. You were well-loved.

Enjoyed this more than the latter album I listened to by them. Could have done without all the narrative between songs but otherwise liked it.

It was just a big boring. Nothing stood out and sounded kind of the same. Dont really have mutch else tosay about the album. Feels like a filler album which is strange.

Wait this album doesn't sing the praise of the lord?!? They hate Reagan and Thatcher and I like that. Pretty standard good rock. Not much to dislike or like about it though.

Progressive punk-rock was not something I thought existed, but it does and is quite fun. It was for me again the more experimental tracks that really pulled me in especially the intense humming of Evil. 7/10

Three stars, pretty solid,

60

this seems to be a UK thing. This album didn't do it for me but I listened to some other tracks from their later (and more popular in the UK) albums that were good.

Never heard of them and I'd be happy if it stayed that way.

The music is generally good, and I appreciate the attempt on social commentary, but some of the lyrics are confusingly right wing.

De heren doen hard hun best om ongenoegen van zich af te spelen en te zingen. En geef ze eens ongelijk. Muzikaal is het niet altijd even interessant. Raggen en schreeuwen geeft niet altijd de beste resultaten, en ook hier blijft het wat steken in de middelmaat. Dan vond ik die ene hit van ze veel beter, pakkende titel, tekst en dito muziek, maar die staat hier natuurlijk weer niet op.

Weer een band die ik vrij vroeg in de collectie had, door de Chemical Brothers. Die mixte een en ander van deze band, waaronder 'Faster'. Dat nummer lijkt ergens weinig digitale versterking nodig te hebben. Net als het meeste op dit album heeft het al kracht genoeg van zichzelf. Ik snap het ook wel. Het is heerlijk gebruiken, die uitgespuugde harde medeklinkers: "I am an arKiteK-T". De zanger doet het erom, of hij moet Hollandse roots hebben. Maar in de delen met rustigere delen, is dit accent verdwenen. Dan heeft hij een zachtere radio-rock-klank. Het stomme is; op de een of andere manier werkt het. Het tilt het album boven de vergeetbare 3.

Ik had vooraf de zeurderige Britpoep verwacht, die we kennen van "if you tolerate this, then your children will be next". Tuurlijk, Motorcycle Emptiness is een prima nummer (van hun debuutalbum, dat niet in deze lijst is opgenomen, wederom een gekke keuze ergens). Maar de muziek is veel harder dan ik had verwacht, het rockt echt zoals je zou verwachten van 90s (post)-grunge. Het heeft daarmee veel elementen waardoor ik dit supervet zou moeten vinden. Zou moeten. Want je merkt het al, het doet me weinig. Ik kan moeilijk omschrijven waarom. Alsof ze een trucje doen dat ik niet geloof, ze proberen zich stoerder voor te doen, dan ze daadwerkelijk zijn. Ik verwacht ergens dat ze dan meer een soort Weezer-muziek zouden moeten maken, of zeurderige Britpop a la Blur. Misschien is het de stem, die niet past bij de hardere rock. Ik weet het niet. Maar ik vind het dus maar meh. Noem me een zure broeder, maar ik kan het niet hoger geven dan een vergeetbare 3. Terwijl het qua stijl ook een 5 had kunnen worden.

Another pf those bands that I'd heard the name, but never heard the music. Now, I wish I had heard them earlier. While I don't think they're like the Best Band Ever or anything, it's definitely worth the listen. I've listened to it three times over the last few days and there is some great music here. His voice is interesting and good for the most part, but he does seem to try channeling Johnny Lydon sometimes and that's less than good. His high singing voice and his yellier bits are good. But, his mid-voice is a little whiny. I read about their writing style and thought how hard it must have been hard for them to come up with music for these fully formed word salads But the music is quite good throughout. Good guitars and the bass shows up pretty strong in a couple of them, I'll listen to this again and some made it onto playlists already. Let's give it a 4.

Hadn’t heard of them until now and they’re solid!

I've heard of these guys, but never listened to them before. I dig the early 90s dirty alt rock sound. Honestly reminds me a bit of the J-Rock band The Pillows.

I truly don’t know where to rank this. It’s somewhere between a 4 & a 2. You might be thinking that’s 3, but it’s not. This is either four stars, or two. Notably the first album where the lyrics really give it a boost for me, this was some dirt, dark weird bad vibes.

The British have never done anything worthwhile with music

Suena como una banda sonora de una pelicula/anime. Pero a la vez se le nota como un album antiguo rockero, bueno hace el intento pero le falta algo de esencia (revol, pero me ha gustado la cancion). Poco a poco va evolucionando a un rock mas puro, pero es como que el genero o las canciones no me terminan de entrar, no lo veo iconico.

Second album proposé après 'Everything Must Go' que j'avais assez apprécié (noté 3/5). Ce second album est au moins aussi intéressant que le premier : l'harmonie et la structure des morceaux sont bien plus recherchées que dans la majorité des groupes pop/rock. La section rythmique est très bonne, avec une basse bien en avant, et la guitare est variée. Le chant est acceptable et se marie bien avec l'accompagnement. Il rejoindra ma collection ! Par contre l'album est un peu long, certains morceaux sont un peu moins créatifs ('This is yesterday' par exemple), ce qui lui évite la note maximale. =>4/5

ou puta que pariu o dev disso aqui atualizou a interface e ficou uma bosta hein 100% faltou na aula de ui/ux dito isso eu esperava mais desse

pô, até achei que gostaria, mas não me pegou muito não. longe de ser das piores coisas que já apareceram aqui, mas não eh pra mim não... apesar das letras boas, nao eh nada demais, bem mediano.

Really surprised by this, will give there other albums a losten

Manic Street Preachers are a first-time listen for me. It seems a lot of the discussion of this album revolves around Richey Edwards and what happened after to him, but what I hear listening to it is a great punk album, one that (some contemporary lyrical references aside) I would not have guessed was released in 1994. The sound is aggressive, melodical, and cathartic, as easy to appreciate for it's musical elements as it's (appropriately blistering) lyrical content. One of the best discoveries I've made so far with this exercise.

The last album with Richey. Not my favourite album, but superb all the same. It's amazing how they've flourished continuously throughout the years, maintaining those political views, moulding a different sound without Richey, yet somehow holding on to that familiarity that would make you believe he's still playing with the band. Top band, top album.

Tool meets Green Day on a sex pistol agenda!

Some parts are OK, but others feel too long. Wouldn't listen to more by them. 2,6/5.

Decent 3.5/5

Never heard of these guys before but this was cool. I nice departure from some of the lame ducks we have had the last couple months. Will listen to this again and dive deeper into their other offerings.

A nice surprise and departure from a lot of the other 90s stuff, this was a band I knew of from a distance but never really listened to. There were definite influential sounds a la The Jam, Wire and Buzzcocks, but also some new wave and late 80s feel…all wrapped up with 90s drive. The dreary lyrics (oof) and tragic story of the lyricist/guitarist only adds to its intrigue. Still, there were a lot of interesting non-predictable moments and guitar tones that really help this album successfully bridge a lot of gaps between decades.

Glad to be introduced to this, and had never heard the sad story adjacent to it. Good pace, and the beats songs on here are pretty great. There’s some stuff on hear that wore me down and can’t say the vocals are my favorite.

Really nice surprise. Had heard of these guys and very much enjoyed this. Good energy, guitar and vocals. A couple parts were a little rough on the ear holes but fortunately they didn’t lean in on that. A lot of grunge feels and a couple parts gave me system of the down type feels. Will be checking out more of this band. 3.75

A nice surprise. Unknown to me and I enjoyed it quite a bit. Nice tunes, haunting lyrics. Def one to revisit. 3.75/5

This is like Green Day, only way darker and without any hooks.

I don't like them but this is good

There's a reason only one track from this made it on to their best of album.

Heavy and catchy and so many excellent riffs and melodies. Another exciting new find. I’m giving 4s out like candy this week

Heavy lyrics, big melodies and memorable hooks. Under serious suspicion of being my jam. Listened twice and loved it.

Doesn’t do it for me, but I can say it’s more than just noise and whines from another pissy bloak. I know the Richey Edwards story but his work is usually too dark, manic and depressing for my taste, yet he’s somehow able to make music that isn’t bleak on the surface and can give you a decent ride through his mentality and lyrics. I also understand there are people who deeply connect with this. But to me, it can come off as just another average hardcore punk/britpop rock band with a tortured singer that doesn’t stick out and make me come back to it.

Incredibly dark and sad -- what a tragic story about the lyricist. But I'm glad I know the album, which I certainly didn't until now.

Was pretty indifferent to this album after the first few tracks, but the second half of the album was punchy with strong vocals and intriguing and catchy riffs

I like my manics more when they remember the tunes

Nope.

Brilliantly underrated.

As said on the other Manic's album. I liked the first album when they were young & a bit dumb & fun. This is just a bit too portentious and joyless for me. I enjoyed it a bit more than Everything Must Go - but it doesn't really get me going.

The Holy Bible From asinine allusions to religion and suffering with Ministry to something far more real and moving, and a truly excellent album. I haven’t listened to this in a while, and it’s been great revisiting and remembering how great it is. I like Generation Terrorists’ and Gold Against The Soul’s more GnR inspired sound, but I really like the return to their more British, punk and new wave roots on this. The terseness, scratchiness and immediacy of the music powerfully complements the lyrical and thematic despair, making a simultaneously great to listen to and hard to listen to album. The lyrical content is of course notable, and without labouring the point, puts the lyrics of so many (US) edgelord heavy bands into a cocked hat, covering suicide, self harm, US cultural imperialism, racism, fascism, disordered eating, and the cheery subject of the holocaust. But it never feels exploitative and despite the bleakness I’ve never found it depressing, it being much more expressive and an expression of Richey’s mental state and obsessions. I don’t want to necessarily go song by song, but I always loved Yes, Of Walking Abortion, Revol, 4st 7lb, Faster and This is Yesterday (although I never noticed the Jam influence until today), but it struck me how there’s not really a weak song, and James’s guitar playing is as always superb, whether going fully overdriven or doing more sparse riffs and new-wave grooves. Easily a 5, fantastically earnest and brilliantly put together, there’s not really anything else like this that I like. ✝️✝️✝️✝️✝️ Playlist submission: Revol

Fantastic listening to this again. I remember getting this album when I was about 15. 'Yes' fired up; I was pretty disturbed by the lyrics that are akin to the most death of metal bands - shock value, abject despair, abortions, holocaust, anorexia, death, disease. Quotes are played in the intros - the one at the beginning of 'Archives of Pain' I found the most chilling ("I wonder who you think you are - do you damn well think you're God or something? God give life, gid taketh it away not _you_", in a thick Yorkshire accent (seemingly set on the howling Yorkshire Moors). Until this point I had only ever known kindly Yorkshire accents talking about great bread. '4st 7lb' wasn't far behind and remains a very challenging listen. As a teenager thinking The Doors were edgy, this knocked me sideways - but most of all petrified me. I don't think I came back to it for a good ten years. Bradfield is such an underrated guitarist. The angular riff on 'Yes' is mesmerisingly excellent. His vocal really is fantastic - clear, melodic on that opening track, and yet he can crank up power at the drop of a hat. On guitar and vocal his ability to switch up this way is superb. I maintain the Manics are the best thing Wales has produced since the equals sign (invented by Welsh mathematician Robert Recorde in 1557). I don't know about Robert Recorde, but this is a remarkable record. This album = five stars.

ugly pretentious edgelord shit lyrics-wise (and artwork-wise), the music is occassionally nice, at least, but not exceptional really

Great album, fantastic messaging and theming, but sonically got a bit boring by the end

Bad boston, some back story

Didn't know this band before getting it here on this list. Very nice, like it very much. Reminds me a bit of Incubus and partly Billy Talent as well, which I used to listen to a lot.

a blunt, powerful and emotional alternative rock album. the guy who wrote the lyrics and performed ended up mysteriously disappearing soon after this album came out. definitely not an album that's gonna hold your hand. meaty guitar riffs, punchy drums, and a lot of samples from movies, broadcasts and such that only add to the specific theming of each song. the "street preacher" name is right, they certainly have a preaching energy when they sing. while it lacks a bit in variation, this album overall i think is solid.

Pretty solid

Yeah it was good but utterly unmemorable

At times I like their style, which is unique. But I can’t quite learn to enjoy their lyrics

A surprising album. Very different from Everything must go. Glad it was included.

An interesting listen. I enjoy how the Manics have blended a series of rock genres into something which is theirs alone. There are some stray artifacts from music of the time that’s not so much to my tastes but fall in the same ballpark as their Welsh countrymen Stereophonics. Talking of the Welsh, it’s nice to hear fragments of the native tongue on Revol, I only wish there was more of this. The best bits are when it gets really wiry and angry. The worst bits are when its so-so lyrics are put under the spotlight.

Not quite sure what I make of this manics album, my first time listening to them, it’s pretty interesting and a blend not quite like anything else I know - a low 4!

Good

I liked it at first, but the vocalist’s screaming eventually got tiresome

As its name would suggest. The Holy Bible is an album that sits at the top of music. Unlike most albums to come out of this sphere of music in Britain in the mid-90s, this is a bleak look at the darkest aspects of human life. Prostitution, politics, mental disorders, and genocide are amongst the many topics that this album rages about throughout its 56-minute runtime. Richey Edwards, who is perhaps described as the band’s lead lyric conceptualist (as it was primarily his fellow bandmates who would arrange his ideas into viable songs) would disappear from the globe, presumably dead a few months after this record released. In terms of the music, one of the most striking features here is that every song here is a driving rock banger, creating a perfect juxtaposition to the subject material of the album. The guitars sound phenomenal here and James Dean Bradfield’s vocals are perfect here. I don’t think anyone else could have performed these lyrics here any better as they manage to encapsulate the disillusion with life that this album was written with. The lyrics themselves are expertly written, where they convey the disposition in their writer while also retaining a bit of poetry and without being extremely in-your-face about it that one might expect with this kind of album. These elements combine to make one of the greatest listening experiences of the 90s. This is one of the few albums that I call perfect, a 100/100.

Just ok

Pretty good. I need to listen to it earnestly again.

Not my cup of tea, although I did enjoy yes and faster. I'm pretty sure I didn't understand a single lyric.

Gah. This is not fun. Force more words into that line.

Just not a fan I guess

It was okay in parts but not the greatest thing ive ever heard

This sounded like standard 90s rock. Not tracks stood out and at the same time nothing was outwardly bad.

No me convence la voz del cantante. No es mal disco pero se indigesta.

Seems like a good version of itself, not my cup of tea but good music.

It's kind of cool proto emo punk stuff, nice guitar work, not totally my thing tho 2.5

I guess a big part of the draw for this album is the lyrics, which were essentially all lost on me. I found myself really enjoying the sound though; much more interesting than most Brit rock. 4.0

It was ok, blended together by the end. Standout song Walking abortion

Another one I bought when it was released. I didn't particularly like it at the time but my tastes have changed over time. This is a brilliant album, to be honest. Do yourself a favour and head to Wikipedia to read about the disappearance of Richey Edwards, the MSP lyricist. Then look at the paintings on the cover (they are by Jenny Savile). And pay attention to the tension between the lyrics and the music. Nothing is accidental with this album. I'm both sad and happy that I grew into this album.

*Strong lyrics and an intense listen *Good punk/alternative sounds at times but pretty abrasive *Would need several listens to get into

There was definitely some cool creative stuff mixed in with some mid stuff.

Never heard of this band, and I'm not surprised, nothing to write home about

I liked this way more than I thought but its not a standout by any means

3.5

meh

More of a 3.5 but there a few very cool songs that put it in 4star range for me

ok. chill. mellow. rocky.

Came into this not knowing who this band is or anything about them. Did a little search on the band and came across the story of Richey Edwards. Suffice to say was super interesting and was pleasantly excited to this album. The first song kicks off with great vibes very early 90's ATL rock, get some emo vibes specifically Jimmy Eat World. The rest of the album gets nasty, heavy, angry lyrics. We're this guys in punk bands as teenagers?? Ifwhiteamericatoldthetruthforonedayitsworldwouldfallapart is the best track on the album. Tough messages, beautiful melodies, fantastic lyrics just check out these titles: Of walking abortions She is Suffering Die in the Summertime The Intense Humming of Evil Got to check out more of these guys, clearly they had critical success and commercial output but this album seems unlike anything else they have done. Highly recommend!! 5/5 stars

Did not like anything about this.

I didn’t mind the first song or two, but really tired of it towards the end.

I think a later poppier MSP CD might have been my first ever album. Interesting to listen to their punkier stuff. I liked a few songs but found most of it wasn't very catchy.