Songs (Click the -icons for some small realaudio-samples)

1. No Mind's World
2. Faling Birds
3. Simple
4. Una Corbata (One Tie acoustic)
5. Goodbye to my hero
6. Drunken Butterfly
7. Lazy King
8. Really fucked up ... too much
9. Black
10. Sonny
11. Zoe
12. Sadco
13. Gaelic
14. So Shy
15. Ordinary man
16. Like a Girl's crime

Songs : Vanilla Coke

Musicians:
- Pablo cremers : vocals / guitar
- Giovianni Capizzi : drums
- Olivier Dardenne : bass, keyboards, trumpet
- François Plisnier : guitar, bass, keyboards, backing vocals

Recorded by Phil Hall
Produced by Vanilla Coke & Rudy Coclet
Artwork : Frederick M. (hypnotized.org)

My opinion

This is by far the worst CD that I've been reviewing in these last couple of years... Not very objective, perhaps, and certainly not very gentle, but can I help it? I hate it!
Vanilla Coke isn't starved of good intentions, enthousiasm or cheerfullness. And the group won the biggest talent contest of Wallonia "Concourt-circuit" two years ago. And they are mentioned in that part of the country in one breath with talented newcomers such as Ghinzu, Grandpiano, Sharko and others all the time. But these are served badly by doing so.
After perhapes 15 spins or more, I still can't name more than a handful of songs that stuck in my mind (and my memory seems to still be working OK, thanks for the concern...). That's because the main part of the songs suffers from a lack of colour, bland melodies, and overdose of clichés and on top of all that an english accent that is so gross that even the producers of Allô Allô would have hesitated when hearing it. Listen to "Really fucked up .. too much" or"Gaelic", and feel your toes curl out of vicarious shame. Presidents of the United States of Amnesia.
Rather nicer are the humour of the cd-booklet (a sort of advertising leaflet for a small supermarket , offering a "flexible guitar player, can be used as a useful table or organ player", a"singer delivered with a beer-stuffed belly & striped tie" and "long-haired percussion man very useful to pick-up girls after show"), and with a bit of goodwill the songs "Una Corbata", "Goodbye my Hero", "Drunken Butterfly" and"Sonny" (that last one the only that isn't suffering from the baroc of their "baroc'n'roll").
This "Supermarket" will be having a bargain sale soon, I guess. And I'm afraid there are preciously little "Happy Days" points to be won.

And your opinion?
Did I get it all wrong, or was I spot-on ? Do you want to share your opinion about this cd ? Send it in, and I'll put it up here !

This Album in the Press

- Laurent Hoebrechts in La Libre Belgique : "Un album qui arrive à capturer l'énergie des scènes écumées depuis 2ans. Typiquement le genre de plaque qui-ne-révolutionne-rien-mais-qui-fait-du- bien-là-où-ça-passe. Tout en permettant d'affiner la perception que l'on pouvait avoir du groupe que l'on avait souvent tendance, au vu de ses concerts, à classer dans la catégorie rigolo."
- RTBf : "Déjà solidement rompu à l'exercice de la scène, Vanilla Coke franchit le cap du premier album, avec panache. Le CD "Supermarket" rassemble tout ce qui caractérise ce groupe atypique : audace, générosité, trouvailles et auto-dérision. Voilà une bien bonne affaire pour le rock belge."
- bb in Rif-Raf (ed.ned.) : "Baroc'n'roll, zo noemen de heren van Vanilla Coke hun stijl. Deze groep brengt inderdaad een soort met kitsch overgoten rock'n'roll ... Helaas is drie vierde van "Supermarket" doordeweeks en soms zelfs saai. Het ontbreekt Vanilla coke gewoon aan een eigen smoel".

Did you see a good (or bad) review of this album ? Tell me about it !

Where to buy this CD ?

You can order this CD from a number of locations (prices researched on May 5th, 2001, but nothing guarantees they still are the same when you read this).

Shop	Price of the CD	Shipping + other expenses	Total	Direct Link
Frontstage	669	0	669 Bef.	Frontstage
Azur	658	80	738 Bef.	Azur
Proxis	603	0	603 Bef.	Proxis
Atrecordings	--	3$	--
Netbeat	--	2,77 euro	--

The lowest price is in yellow, the highest in red. This price comparison doesn't take things into account like deduction of shipping expenses when ordering more than 1 cd, bonus points, differences in guarantees ... Shipping prices are those for customers in Belgium.

Have you seen this record elsewhere on the net, do you own an online-CD-shop with Belgian products in it, or if there's something wrong with my calculations : let me know.

More about this group :

- website : www.progressagency.com/vanilla
- Management : progress music. Tel +32 2 411 18 18. Mail progress@bulb.be
- distribution : Distrisound (tel +32 2 523 17 71. Mail distrisound@infonie.be)

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