In 1997, the bubble burst on U2's POP, Be Here Now came and went, and OK Computer crashed into the top of the critics' list, establishing itself firmly as this year's rock 'n' role model. It was a year when rock artists reached for the pinnacle, some going higher than the sun, and some falling ignominiously into the mud-slinging.
U2 made a supreme leap of faith with their POP Mart extravaganza, gambling all on one massive, brightly-lit roll of the dice. The tour opened in Las Vegas last April to an underwhelming reception, and subsequent dates were dogged by tales of poor ticket sales and lacklustre performances. By the end of the summer, however, U2 had turned things round, returning in triumph to play two memorable shows in Dublin's Lansdowne Road. U2 had lost on the swings and won on the roundabouts - the album performed poorly in the shops and the review columns, and was easily outstripped by Radiohead, The Prodigy and The Verve, but POP Mart was the biggest and most talked-about show of the year, coming up trumps despite the odds stacked against it. When the tour finally grinds to a halt, U2 will have to go back and dream it all up again, but at least their lemon wasn't a complete turkey.
Oasis, last year's kings of Britpop, let their crowns slip, releasing a third album which, despite its big, blustery sound, failed to sweep the world off its feet. The band which had brought a quarter of a million people to Knebworth the previous year couldn't seem to rally the troops with the same level of enthusiasm, and their battle-cry of D'You Know What I Mean? was seen as an empty rock'n'roll gesture.
Ironically, Oasis have been ousted by a band which they once championed, and whose lead singer, Richard Ashcroft, inspired Noel Gallagher's lyrics for Cast No Shadow. The band is of course The Verve, and, like Oasis, they also had come back from the brink of breaking up. The string-drenched single, Bitter Sweet Symphony, became the anthem of Summer 1997, and the album, Urban Hymns, became one of the year's biggest-selling British albums, leaving Be Here Now trailing in its wake.
Meanwhile, the dance fans saved their nervous energy for The Prodigy, whose latest album, The Fat Of The Land, went to Number One in 22 countries. The techno-punk outfit were a law unto themselves in 1997, playing massive, manic gigs which didn't need any props to hold the audience's interest, and a crowd of 30,000 Irish fans went bananas for the band's headline appearance at the Day Trip To Tipp in Thurles, Co Tipperary. Relying solely on retina-scorching lights, stomach-pummelling beats, and a frontman who looked like Bozo The Axe-Killer, the Prodge kicked harder and faster than every other live act, and Keith Flint became the gurning poster boy for the chemical beat generation. The band then pushed the boundaries of good taste just a little too far with the release of Smack My Bitch Up, drawing accusations of misogyny from all quarters. The band replied by releasing the most graphic video ever shown on MTV, depicting drinking, drug-taking, vomiting, sexual harassment, strippers, an explicit sex scene and a surprise twist at the end. Boys (and girls) will be boys, eh?
Highlight:
U2 playing Lansdowne Road after months of on again/off again speculation.
Lowlight:
That woeful Elton John thingy becoming the biggest-selling single of all time.
Wishlist 1998:
New Irish bands putting more time into writing good songs instead of wasting it writing dreadful press releases. The outdoor gig scene coming back to life now that the planning permission mess has been sorted out. Radio Ireland finding its identity before next St Patrick's Day. BSE (Badly-Sung Europop) being completely eradicated by next summer.
