Vinyl love: Gene “Olympian”

(Vinyl Love is a series of posts that quite simply lists, describes, and displays the pieces in my growing vinyl collection. You can bet that each record was given a spin during the drafting of each corresponding post.)

Artist: Gene
Album Title: Olympian
Year released: 1995
Year reissued: 2015
Details: 20th anniversary limited edition, gatefold, 180 gram, blue vinyl

The skinny: Back when Gene’s debut album, “Olympian”, was released in 1995, they were being hailed by the British press as the next coming of The Smiths. Of course, they weren’t the first band to have bestowed upon them this dubious and weighty comparison, but in Gene’s case, they not only had the jangly guitars but also a secret weapon in Martin Rossiter, whose vocals rang very similar to those of Morrissey. Close comparison or no, I loved “Olympian”, as did a host of others, and it sold very well. Unfortunately, Gene’s fortunes were tied to that of Britpop’s popularity, like many other bands at the time, and when it waned, so did Gene’s listenership, and their latter albums didn’t sell nearly as well. Nevertheless, when I saw this 20th anniversary pressing on blue vinyl by Demon Records online, I knew I had to have it. And yes, it sounds as lively and fun as it did back then.

Standout track: “Haunted by you”