I used to think that pop music revolutions happened overnight; that three bands, a journalist and John Peel would sneak out during the dead of night - like a cross between Guy Fawkes and the punk rock tooth fairy - and stage a coup d'etat while the rest of the industry was asleep. Not only that, but each new scene was almost Stalinist in its rewriting of musical history.
Having been back to Merseyside for the second time this year and spoken to some of the bands who have benefited from the current media interest in the 'Pool, it's apparent that the thriving musical scene there now, has been built on the foundations set down more than a decade ago.
At the start of the '90s we ran a series of articles in the NME predicting that Liverpool was about to usurp Manchester as the North's capital of New Music. Following on from Merseyside's baggied-up popsters The Farm, there were all kinds of bands waiting in the wings to entertain and shock the rest of the country - from the post Stone Roses pop of The Real People, Rain and Top to the edgy, brooding indie-soundscapes of Breed and the hardcore punk-pop of Drive.
If you've never heard any of these bands, then never mind. That pretty much explains what happened next to Liverpool at the beginning of the last decade. For all the promise these groups showed, they were either too naive or badly-advised or didn't get the breaks to compete on a national platform.
It was a dark time for Merseyside. But in spite of this apparent era of disappointment, Liverpool 's musical fortunes started to look up from this point in time. After licking their wounds various musicians and A&R staff from the early '90s have picked themselves up and - having learnt from their failings - now have an understanding of how the Industry works.
The Liverpool scene of the early '90s lacked contacts. Compared to Manchester it didn't have an infrastructure of rehearsal rooms, managers, pluggers and journos to give it the basis from which to push forward.
Merseyside appeared to be stuck in a no-man's land where bands harked back to past glories (don't whatever you do mention The Beatles!) or took a determinedly punk rock stance to their careers which often left them isolated and unsupported.
Not now though. Whether you go to launch pad venues like The Picket or The Bandwagon, or you drop by Deltasonic Records - home of The Coral - which is steered by a former, now much wiser, member of Top, Liverpool has the air of a city which is starting to understand the politics of the Music Industry.
Not only this but Liverpool is musically more diverse than ever. Apart from new groups like The Zutons (another of Deltasonic's signings) and Mountaineers, there is a whole scene based around promoters Inner City Sumo. ICS started at the Masque venue just over a year ago but has already spawned a cracking 16 track compilation including melodic thrashers Voo and the crazed experimentalists Stig.
The album also features one of our current favourite up and coming Liverpool bands Flamingo 50 who are just about to release their new single on Keith Records (the label which is being endearingly described as "the Sub Pop of The Wirral"!).
The ICS shows have become places for all sorts of innovators to hang out - run in the same spirit as Liverpool's long-lost punk venue Erics (which helped nurture Liverpool's '80s hipsters like The Teardrop Explodes and Wah! Heat).
It may have taken the city 20 years to replace it, but now, once again, the Revolution will be Merseyside.
Steve Lamacq
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/onemusic/lamacq/220903.shtml
Having been back to Merseyside for the second time this year and spoken to some of the bands who have benefited from the current media interest in the 'Pool, it's apparent that the thriving musical scene there now, has been built on the foundations set down more than a decade ago.
At the start of the '90s we ran a series of articles in the NME predicting that Liverpool was about to usurp Manchester as the North's capital of New Music. Following on from Merseyside's baggied-up popsters The Farm, there were all kinds of bands waiting in the wings to entertain and shock the rest of the country - from the post Stone Roses pop of The Real People, Rain and Top to the edgy, brooding indie-soundscapes of Breed and the hardcore punk-pop of Drive.
If you've never heard any of these bands, then never mind. That pretty much explains what happened next to Liverpool at the beginning of the last decade. For all the promise these groups showed, they were either too naive or badly-advised or didn't get the breaks to compete on a national platform.
It was a dark time for Merseyside. But in spite of this apparent era of disappointment, Liverpool 's musical fortunes started to look up from this point in time. After licking their wounds various musicians and A&R staff from the early '90s have picked themselves up and - having learnt from their failings - now have an understanding of how the Industry works.
The Liverpool scene of the early '90s lacked contacts. Compared to Manchester it didn't have an infrastructure of rehearsal rooms, managers, pluggers and journos to give it the basis from which to push forward.
Merseyside appeared to be stuck in a no-man's land where bands harked back to past glories (don't whatever you do mention The Beatles!) or took a determinedly punk rock stance to their careers which often left them isolated and unsupported.
Not now though. Whether you go to launch pad venues like The Picket or The Bandwagon, or you drop by Deltasonic Records - home of The Coral - which is steered by a former, now much wiser, member of Top, Liverpool has the air of a city which is starting to understand the politics of the Music Industry.
Not only this but Liverpool is musically more diverse than ever. Apart from new groups like The Zutons (another of Deltasonic's signings) and Mountaineers, there is a whole scene based around promoters Inner City Sumo. ICS started at the Masque venue just over a year ago but has already spawned a cracking 16 track compilation including melodic thrashers Voo and the crazed experimentalists Stig.
The album also features one of our current favourite up and coming Liverpool bands Flamingo 50 who are just about to release their new single on Keith Records (the label which is being endearingly described as "the Sub Pop of The Wirral"!).
The ICS shows have become places for all sorts of innovators to hang out - run in the same spirit as Liverpool's long-lost punk venue Erics (which helped nurture Liverpool's '80s hipsters like The Teardrop Explodes and Wah! Heat).
It may have taken the city 20 years to replace it, but now, once again, the Revolution will be Merseyside.
Steve Lamacq
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/onemusic/lamacq/220903.shtml
