Primal Scream’s career could in many ways be read as a microcosm of British indie rock in the ’80s and ’90s. Bobby Gillespie formed the band in the mid-’80s while drumming for goth-tinged noise rockers the Jesus and Mary Chain, who were the exact opposite of Primal Scream — the latter specialized in infectious, jangly pop on its early records. After a brief detour to punky hard rock, the group reinvented itself as a dance band in the early ’90s, following through on the pop and acid house fusions of the Stone Roses and Happy Mondays. With the assistance of producers Andrew Weatherall and Hugo Nicholson, Primal Scream created the ultimate indie pop and dance fusion album, Screamadelica, in 1991. Screamadelica broke down boundaries and changed the face of British pop music in the ’90s, helping to make dance and techno acceptable to the rock mainstream. Instead of following through on the promise of the album, Primal Scream retreated to Stonesy boogie for their 1994 follow-up, Give Out but Don’t Give Up. When that record was greeted with indifference, they returned to dance-rock fusions with 1997’sVanishing Point, which re-established the group as a major force in British rock.
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Initially, Blur were one of the multitude of British bands that appeared in the wake of the Stone Roses, mining the same swirling, pseudo-psychedelic guitar pop, only with louder guitars. Following an image makeover in the mid-’90s, the group emerged as the most popular band in the U.K., establishing itself as heir to the English guitar pop tradition of the Kinks, the Small Faces, the Who, the Jam, Madness, and the Smiths. In the process, the group broke down the doors for a new generation of guitar bands that became labeled as Brit-pop. With Damon Albarn‘s wry lyrics and the group’s mastery of British pop tradition, Blur were the leader of Brit-pop, but they quickly became confined by the movement; since they were its biggest band, they nearly died when the movement itself died. Through some reinvention, Blur reclaimed their position as an art pop band in the late ’90s by incorporating indie rock and lo-fi influences, which finally gave them their elusive American success in 1997. But the band’s legacy remained in Britain, where they helped revitalize guitar pop by skillfully updating the country’s pop traditions.