MovieChat Forums > Live Forever (2003) Discussion > What is you Brits' perception of how Bri...

What is you Brits' perception of how Britpop was received in the U.S.?


I was just a kid at the time, about 14 when the whole thing ended, but my perception of Britpop was pretty much nil. It seems like the whole thing was a much bigger deal in the UK than the US unlike, say, the Swingin' London phenomenon of the 60's. Not to say it wasn't a vital and exciting time, just that watching the movie, you'd think more of the culture was exported to America. I don't think it was.

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Britpop was HUGE in U.K, it was kinda like a way of life - an atmosphere etc, you can't describe it and I think you had to live it to fully understand it. Britain was a much different place from 1994-1998 to what it is now, I mean in terms of pop culture n that. It was just a really cool time to be young. I don't think Americans really 'got it' as such because it didn't really relate to them, it was more than music it was about celebrating the British way of life. The stuff the bands were singing about such as Blur, Pulp and Oasis - if you were British you would relate to them a lot more. Kinda like The Smiths in the 80s I'd imagine.

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Im glad the americans didnt "get it" cos they would have ruined it, tried to make it a brand whilst totally screwing up my teenage years. This film depicts the truth about the music that was around when I was a teenager and reminded me how *beep* good we were! Cant wait for the next revolution....its on its way.

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There's a line in the movie where someone says that often Americans don't give a stuff about British music whereas within Britain there's a pendulam that swings back & forth between American & British music as to which one is more popular at any given time. I think that in the mid 90's there was a general feeling amongst Brits and the British music scene in general that they were reclaiming their own backyard so to speak. For a very long time American music or 'Americanized' British music dominated the charts , all of a sudden British and British sounding bands began to takeover ie Oasis , Blur , Suede , The Verve etc.. and for many it was a breath of fresh air. Unfortunately exclusively British sounding bands have not traditionally had much success in the States , mainly due to their very 'Britishness'if you like eg. The Jam , The Smiths , Blur , Joy Division. Even Oasis's success was brief and didn't really have much lasting impact on the American market.
I think in many ways the nostalgia of the 60's , when everything British was in vogue and very popular all over the world , weighed heavily on the Britpop scene of the mid 90's. In many ways this made the movement seem kind of retrograde rather than forward looking & progressive and I think this lack of musical growth, added to the other problems associated with sucess, was the ultimate downfall of almost all the bands from that era. As far as I'm aware the only 'major' group still around from that scene are Oasis , most if not all the others have fallen by the wayside.

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I'm an American and often times I get so frustrated at the way American's treat rock music over here. I honestly love these british bands and I can't for the life of me understand why they aren't received better over here. And in the mid 90s there was a time when the likes of Oasis got really popular but it seemed to go away so quickly! And I remember the Verve was pretty big but then that went away when they broke up and Blur didn't really hit over here until they made "Song 2" which ironically seemed to parody the American rock scene at that time and it's a great tune but it makes Blur look like a one hit wonder over here. It's just a shame that we are constantly fed garbage over here. You brits don't know how lucky you have it!

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[deleted]

I was about 14 when i first heard blur (on an episode of Beavis and Butthead of all places) and that's what started it for me. As an American, yes i was still into the American rock, rap, etc. but After hearing blur, then seeing Jamiroquai on a virgin BET, i was hooked on England, Blur, Oasis, Pulp, Radiohead, Massive Attack, Goldie, Tricky, Portishead, PJ Harvey - i stocked up on as much Brit pop as humanly possible. Shame the Brit Pop era couldn't last, but then again, most great things never do last a long time.

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Just saw this movie last night, it brought back a flood of memories and smiles. First off, I'm an American and a drummer who was playing in typical American alt/grunge bands from '91-present. As far as the movie itself goes, I agree with the earlier comment, they missed out on a whole lot of other music. For one, I have always been a huge Catherine Wheel, Lush and Ride fan but could see how they might be more "shoegazer" than Brit-pop.

That said... this movie cracked me up. They've been off the scene for a while but I had forgotten just how utterly empty, ridiculous and ultimately hilarious both Gallagher bros. really are. It was a virtual "Spinal Tap moment" when the narrator tried in vain for almost five minutes to explain what "androgynous" means to Liam.

At the end of the day, though, I always regarded Blur as the clearly superior of the Brit-poppers of the '90s. I can't see how that isn't self-evident to anyone serious about music. Their depth of songwriting, ability/talent and longevity was far superior to that of Oasis. Oasis had a few great tunes, but other than that just not a whole lot there. Plus, Blur was a fantastic live act (as was Pulp) whereas Oasis simply sucked - big time.

I am also at a loss as to why these bands - especially Blur - didn't attain greater heights here in the States. I'm guessing it has to do with the heavy Brit accents, because I don't think the themes are so "British" that Americans can't relate to them.

Look at Blur's extraordinary "Modern Life is Rubbish," a slap in the face to consumerism, empty wealth and corporate drudgery. It was practically my soundtrack during the mid-90s.

It's too bad so many Americans missed the boat. But it's their loss.

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I'm American and I'll say that off the bat, but this documentary just glossed over too much. I do think that Blur and Supergrass are the best of the bands that I would consider Brit Pop. However, I would say that Radiohead and PJ Harvey are just amoung some of the best music to ever happen EVER! I don't think you can lump them with this group, I hate that not only did they try in this film, but that niether got any love. It focuses too much on the boring Blur vs. Oasis thing. ...and for all you Brits reading this, believe me there was a lot of amazing indie music being made here at the time that you folks did not get or even care too. Bands like Modest Mouse, Neutral Milk Hotel, Sleater-Kinney, Cat Power, Death Cab for Cutie, were all happening during the 90's. I'm just saying, I was able to like both and I do not understand the need to shun good music no matter where its from. I get the nationalistic feeling you were having at the time, but now what? I'd like to see something that really went into that. This documentary was not bad, but it could have been so much better.

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I'm an American, and I have to say that the best music of the 90's came out of Britain. I have always favored British bands over American bands. The music just seems to have that extra something that American bands lack. Even when I was a teenager during the early, early 80's, I favored the British bands. Like someone else posted, y'all just don't know how lucky you have it!! I can only imagine how much untapped talent there is in Britain.

Regarding the documentary-I was hoping for more in-depth coverage of the bands and music of this time period. Oh well...

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[deleted]

I loved Blur & Oasis but Pulp with 'Different Class' were top dog for me

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I think that nobody really gave a toss how it was perceived in America. The whole thing wasnt about America it was about the U.K.

Hey!! Where did my signature go?

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This film is a very narrow and biased look at what went on at the time. There was a hell of a lot more that you probably know of that wasn't featured in this film!

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Apart from the period of time this music came out by the bands who were associated with BritPop, I don't really see how different they were from the various 80s bands that arose out of the U.K. who also weren't afraid to sing in their natural English accents and expound British sensibilities. I never got the impression that Suede was the first to do this either, although the documentary seems to credit this attitude as strictly a Britpop one.

(¯`i´¯)´·¸.)‹^›

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