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Inspiral Carpets - Cool As They might have described themselves as ‘cool as fuck’ but the Inspiral Carpets were never as cool as the Stone Roses, and rarely inspired the same sheep-like following of like-minded Madchester greats, the Happy Mondays, or the ‘little known’ band that involves the Inspiral’s former roadie…
Nevertheless, the Inspirals knew how to crack out a good tune or ten, and this collection includes tracks that would be hailed as classics, if only people had a bit more taste. Who could resist screaming along with the words to Dragging me Down and Saturn 5, while driving on a hot summer’s day? Who wouldn’t be moved by the exquisite harmonies and thoughtful vocals of This is How it Feels and Two Worlds Collide? And who wouldn’t be bemused at the thought of taking a perfectly great pop song—I Want You—and getting Mark E. Smith to drawl all over it, like a someone’s uncle, drunk at a wedding?
In fact, Cool As contains pretty much every single the band ever put out, along with a bunch of curiosity pieces. In the package, you get not one, not two, but three shiny discs. The first CD contains the aforementioned singles—more of an ‘all of’ than ‘best of’, which should cheer completists—and it also includes an obligatory unreleased ‘classic’ (which turns out to be the rather drab and lifeless Come Back Tomorrow, which should have stayed unreleased). Next up is ‘Rare As’, a selection of unreleased and rare tracks, some of which are from the pre-Mute era. This CD is… okay. Even rabid Inspiral fans are likely to be missing a few of the tracks, which range from early works to remixes and B-sides from vinyl-only outings.
The third disc is actually a DVD (PAL-based—the NTSC version should arrive this summer) that contains all the band’s promotional videos and an interview with them now they’ve all grown up (and in some cases, out). The promos are largely an uninspiring lot—unusual when you consider the band’s brand awareness and energy. If you want to see a bunch of videos of the Inspiral Carpets singing over various backgrounds, then this is your thing; if not…
To be fair, there are some decent ideas lurking within: This is How it Feels mirrors the sombre track, showing the band playing atop a hill on bleak landscape, with filters greying out the film. The Corbijn-esque Caravan, with saturated colours and interesting camera angles also impresses, but it largely falls to the live tracks to force value and interest into this disc. Here you get seven tracks from a legendary performance at the GMEX in Manchester. This mix is good, the band plays well, and the visuals are reasonable, if not outstanding. The final track on the DVD, the interview, is a rather brief, vague and shabby affair, and something of a missed opportunity, not really providing any insight into the band that a casual fan wouldn’t already know.
After looking at this offering, then the low price, and doing a swift burst of mental arithmetic, most people would imagine this set to be a pretty good deal. In many ways, this is true. The Inspiral Carpets are often the Manchester band people love to hate, but at least half the tracks on Cool As are real classics, which sound as fresh and catchy now as they did a decade ago, while the rarities CD and DVD, while inconsistent, are nice bonuses. Most fans will have the singles already, so will have to decide whether two discs of variable material justify the outlay, but for any interested parties lacking the band’s albums, this compilation shouldn’t be missed.
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