The Bluetones

The Bluetones came to prominence at the tail end of the 90s britpop era. Some attribute the group’s popularity to their ability to ride off the success of this exploding scene; however they well proved their importance within its infrastructure as well as reminded us why 90s britpop was so appealing in the first place. Their sound was straightforward and catchy, but included enough psychedelic experimentalism to keep things interesting. Their music is not revolutionary so to speak, but this isn’t really what the Bluetones music is concerned about. They are a group who places their attention on creating well structured pop songs and they have proven themselves to be masters at this task. Their live set up is modest, but is highly organized and at times even edgy. They have the traditional bass, drum, guitar, lead vocalist setup but they do wonders with it.
Guitarist Adam Devlin builds lush and multifaceted tones with his guitar, leaving the impression you are listening to much more than just a single six string instrument. His style fluctuates between shimmering pop riffs to crunchy distorted leads. The band attentively follows the direction of each other, toning things down as needed with jazz drum strokes, slowly pulsing bass lines, soft vocal harmonizations or kicking things into overdrive with fast guitars and aggressive vocals. The band makes do with what they have, but nothing they put out is complacent. It is fresh and interesting and exploding with sincerity and purpose. They may have not left as strong as an impression as Blur or Oasis; however, their debut album “Expecting to Fly” did knock them off the number 1 spot on the UK charts. The group has solidified its place in the Britpop cannon as well as left a mark on the underground and indie scene. With their direct and potent approach it is little wonder why.