The Stone Roses first album came out in 1989, and it took me 29 years to finally hear this record. I avoided them for two decades due to their hype. I must remember not to run away from the hype, but to accept the hype, because "The Stone Roses" is an exceptional rock n' roll classic. They're a great band because if you separate them they are not as good as when they are in this band. When all the parts fit and make a beautiful aural expression, it is magic.
The drip painting by John Squire expresses wildness, but the music he writes with Ian Brown is very formal with strong or catchy choruses. There is a structure in place with the sound of a strong bassist, Mani, and an imaginative drummer/percussionist Reni. Square's guitars are multi-tracked and dreamy but can have the intensity of a Steve Stills/Neil Young guitar dual in the classic Buffalo Springfield. Brown's vocals are whispy with a great deal of masculinity melted into his soft singing. At times it reminds me of early Simon and Garfunkel records, with its expression of its surroundings, that is folk music like in its intimacy.
Many consider "The Stone Roses" an incredible and classic debut record for a band, and I have to admit that is true. The fact that they couldn't really make a follow-up album, or self-exploded is interesting because their talent or genius was caught in a jar, but it's hard to reproduce that jar or moment. The thing is an artist or musician shouldn't study it too carefully, because it is magic, and sometimes you just have to admit that this is great and move on with one's life.
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