Cast - All Change

Following the demise of The La's (some would call it self-destruction) John Power dusted himself off and formed Cast.. As with the majority of bands who emerged during the Britpop era Cast hark back to the Sixties of the Merseybeat, Carnaby Street, Haight-Astbury, Greenwich Village and Woodstock. They take a pinch of this and a taste of that, add a small amount of originality and, hey presto, a guarantee of a hit in an environment that saw the record buying public almost totally ignorant of their musical sources. In some respects it's easy to understand why Cast are Britpop's perennial whipping boys. The lyrics are as simple as a nursery reading book, the rhythms never raise themselves above a constant jogging pace and the guitars are strummed using only the basic of chords.

Fresh from the La's John Power turned front man and put together a group for his songs and frankly i'm glad he did. Pure pop riffs that grab you by the accompanied by storming guitar work and tunes that many an inferior but more successful bands would die for..If John Power had had a loudmouth, attention seeking brother with a big voice, Cast might have been hailed as the best band since The Beatles? All Change showcased John Power to be one of the best songwriters of the 90's. Power had served his musical apprenticeship under the now legendary Lee Mavers while bass player for The La's. however although Cast could match their contemporaries in songwriting one thing they couldn't match Blur, Oasis etc in was newspaper column inches. This was probably due to the fact that Power was never the kind of frontman that could captivate an audience but more came across as a guitarist playing rhythm guitar.

The story goes that despite not having a ticket to an Oasis gig at a Liverpool venue John Power convinced the club owner to let him in to meet the band. John Power found that Noel Gallagher was a huge fan of The La's (he has in fact stated that Oasis' goal as a band was to complete what the La's had started) and after playing a copy of Cast's demo tape the Gallagher brothers asked him to support the band on a forthcoming tour along with Shed Seven. It was during this tour that Polydor showed their interest in signing the band, which the band duly accepted. Their first single "Finetime", released at the height of the Britpop movement in 1995, proved a successful debut. This success was followed up by "Alright" showcasing a distinctive sound very similar to The La's. But when the band then released their debut album All Change it showcased a more diverse range of music than the two singles: psychedelic rock, guitar-tapping, heavier power-chord based songs, and slow-paced ballad songs. This album would produce three top ten hits for the band in "Sandstorm" (#8) "Walkaway" (#9)."Alright" (#13). The album shot to #7 in the UK, and went platinum. But the band never achieved anything else but attaining cult status. A stand-alone single was released in titled "Flying",(#4) which filled the void between the band's debut All Change and their follow-up Mother Nature Calls. ".

This is a nice little up beat album for lazy summer afternoons, its not a classic because there are too many fillers on the album but after one listen the songs that shine (The singles) will irritating stay in your head for days. If John Power was a more dynamic front man these guys could have been huge. Along with Shed Seven they are however undeservedly one of the lesser acclaimed bands of the era who have some how disappeared into musical obscurity.

Alright

Promised Land

Sandstorm

Mankind

Tell It Like It Is

Four Walls

Finetime

Back of My Mind

Walkaway

Reflections

History

Two of a Kind

click here