Whales And Dolphins (The Best Of Terrorvision) - Terrorvision

Early 2001 was a dark time for fans of British rock. Terrorvision, the self-proclaimed "best band from Bradford starting with a T" announced that they were to split up later in the year, following a farewell tour and the release of a Greatest Hits album. Not having missed either a tour or an album by the band in years, I made sure to get my hands on both.

"Whales and Dolphins - the Best of Terrorvision" isn't a ...
...by EMI, who had dropped the band a couple of years previously in an attempt to reclaim some of the money they'd lost in the band, it was done virtually without the input of the band. In real terms, what this means is that the inlay card is badly designed and doesn't give an overview of the band's career, written by a music journalist, as does nearly every other "Greatest Hits" albums around, and also that there are no new tracks on the ... more

Early 2001 was a dark time for fans of British rock. Terrorvision, the self-proclaimed "best band from Bradford starting with a T" announced that they were to split up later in the year, following a farewell tour and the release of a Greatest Hits album. Not having missed either a tour or an album by the band in years, I made sure to get my hands on both.

"Whales and Dolphins - the Best of Terrorvision" isn't a great album for the fans. It was put together by EMI, who had dropped the band a couple of years previously in an attempt to reclaim some of the money they'd lost in the band, it was done virtually without the input of the band. In real terms, what this means is that the inlay card is badly designed and doesn't give an overview of the band's career, written by a music journalist, as does nearly every other "Greatest Hits" albums around, and also that there are no new tracks on the album, providing nothing extra for the fans who were devoted to the band throughout their career.

The album opens, appropriately enough, with "Perseverance", the song that provides the album title. It's also totally indicative of Terrorvision's sound, being a straight out, bouncy rock-pop track with some pretty silly lyrics and a catchy sing along chorus and it's hardly surprising that this was their second biggest hit, reaching the top 5 way back in 1996.

Next up is the band's biggest hit, the single version of "Tequila" that reached number 2 in January 1999 and resulted in the band losing their record deal shortly afterwards. The record company wanted this track, a far more pop than rock influenced song, to be the direction band went in. Terrorvision refused and their record deal was lost.

"Alice, What's the Matter?" is the kind of song the band's fans wanted them to keep recording. It's a far more rock influenced track, with an up-tempo and bouncy guitar riff running through it and some nonsense lyrics, which made the whole song a great live favourite.

The next track, "Discotheque Wreck" is taken from the same album and has even more of a rock feel to it than the previous one for the most part. It's got some very 1960s influenced lyrics, particularly in the chorus but it's more of a straight rock song than much of Terrorvision's other songs, despite the sing along chorus.

Terrorvision weren't a band known for the quality of their ballads, partly because they didn't write than many, but largely because Tony's voice was more suited to all out rockers. "Some People Say" is an attempt to put this right, which is only partly successful. It's as close as Terrorvision ever got to the big 1980s style stadium rock ballad, but Tony's vocal descends into screaming out the words towards the end, which takes the edge off a little.

"Bad Actress" was a more successful attempt at writing a ballad. Tony's voice is a lot more controlled this time around and the inclusion of a string section gives it more of a stadium rock ballad feel. However, Terrorvision prefer to rock out, which makes the chorus a little too overdone for that genuine ballad feel. Lyrically speaking, however, it's Terrorvision at their rather silly best.

The pace picks up a little bit, with "Easy" being more of a mid-tempo number. It's Terrorvision's turn to have a dig at the kind of bands that are plucked from obscurity, only to return there just as quickly. Whilst it's perhaps the most hard-hitting they got lyrically, the song itself is little more than a slightly slower version of their usual sound, a rock track with a slight pop edge and a bouncy guitar. Whilst this works very well in the faster numbers, it's less effective at a slower tempo.

"Pretend Best Friend" proves that when they got it right, Terrorvision were immense. Tony almost seems to be rapping the superbly naff lyrics rather than singing them, but the whole song is underpinned by a bouncy rock-pop guitar riff and this is a song that always used to drive the mosh pit wild. This is proof that when a band is having fun making music, it's a very good thing indeed.

Next up is the single that was released before "Tequila" and it's a huge injustice that this was virtually ignored whilst the latter nearly topped the charts. "Josephine" is another great up-tempo rock-pop number with Terrorvision's standards jaunty, bouncy guitar riff and a great sing along chorus with a rather silly lyric.

There's a story behind "New Policy One" that may not be true, but if it is it would sum up the band admirably. Supposedly, this song was being played at one of their early shows but because it hadn't been given a title, it was on the set list as "New Police-y one". When it came around, Tony misread this and announced the song as "New Policy One", which then stuck. You can see how it got the name, though, as it does a very Police sounding guitar riff, which then explodes into a standard Terrorvision bouncy rock-pop tune when the chorus kicks in.

There's a driving, bouncy rock intro to "Celebrity Hit List" that you can spot a mile away. This is again Terrorvision as their silly best; stupid lyrics, a bouncy rock-pop song and a catchy sing along chorus. British rock may get better than this, but it doesn't get a lot more fun.

If it's fun you're looking for, "Fists of Fury" has that in abundance. Tony once called this song "the best pop song you never heard" as it was Radio 1's failure to add this track to their play list that finally caused the band's demise. Like "Tequila", it's perhaps a little more towards to pop end of the pop-rock spectrum that Terrorvision were used to inhabiting, but it's a great track. There's a twangy guitar riff, a very pop sounding backing vocal, a very silly lyric, a sing along chorus and a bouncy riff holding the whole thing together. The overall sound is pretty much a slightly heavier version of Busted, but far more fun than anything they ever released.

The next track is Terrorvision's first ever single, "My House". It's got quite a laid back sound for the band, but having their first and last singles back to back proves that the band were at least consistent over their career. This is a slightly more rock sounding song than "Fists of Fury", but the bouncy guitar riff, the silly lyrics, the catchy chorus and the strangely pop sounding backing vocal are all present here, as they were to be at the end.

"3 Wishes" was the single that followed "Tequila" and never really stood a chance, given the difference in the sound. Yes, it's perhaps a little more pop sounding than some of the band's older work, but it just doesn't have the immediate appeal of its predecessor, as it's a pop song that's trying very hard to be a rock song, whereas "Tequila" settled for being a pop song with a slight pop edge and was more successful as a result.

It's back to the slightly slower songs for "Middleman", with another bass heavy almost Police sound to it, although not as obviously as on "New Policy One". It's a slower song that most of the others, but really more mid-tempo than a ballad. The riff is perhaps a little more jaunty than bouncy this time around, but it's still a decent rock-pop tune with a sing along chorus as the band always did so well.

It's back to the early days again, with the band's second single, "American TV". It's got a deceptively quite and poppy start before expanding into the standard early Terrorvision sound of that bouncy guitar riff leading a rock-pop track with a catchy chorus. Predictable but so good.

The album goes from their second single, to their second last and the last one that actually got radio play. "D'Ya Wanna Go Faster?" has a hugely bouncy guitar riff driving through what is almost a rock-dance tune, thanks to a very dance drum beat. This is another one that always gets the crowd going wild at gigs and has another great sing along chorus.

If you don't recognise "Oblivion" from the opening riffs, you almost certainly will from the opening Hanson-esque "doo-wop" vocals or the most insane opening lyrics of all time in "If all the people in the world camped out in your back garden/Would you write and tell the King or would you grab a tent and join 'em". In fact, whether you recognise the song or not, and this was the one that really first bought Terrorvision to a wider audience. It's a wonderfully bouncy pop-rock track that you can have as much fun bouncing around to or sitting and listening to the admirably stupid lyrics. You couldn't ask for a better song to finish an album or a live show with, and you're desperate for more by the end.

There's not a great deal of variation with Terrorvision. Very early on, they worked out that they were best suited to performing bouncy rock tracks with a pop edge and catchy choruses and that's more or less what they stuck to doing. Whilst it does make for a decent listen, it can get a little repetitive over an album such as this, with 18 tracks and a running time of slightly over an hour.

Given that there's no new material here, fans of the band may find better value in buying the double CD and DVD of the band's final concert, which at 27 tracks long, offers a much better listening experience for the fan. However, this is the perfect album for someone who already has one of the band's albums, knows they like them a little and would like a little more. It may also appeal to those with a passing interest in the band or in decent rock-pop music generally, although I'd suggest an Amazon Marketplace price of £3.43 or the eBay price of £3.00 as being the one to pay, as opposed to an Amazon price of £6.99.

For a fan, there are some wonderful songs missing and a lack of new material which makes it less worthwhile than most "Greatest Hits" albums are for fans of the artist. For people willing to take a chance on new music, the album is perhaps a little too expensive to be worth taking a completely blind risk on. But for those caught between these two camps, or for fans of the Wildhearts or Dirty Americans, it's an hour of quality rock-pop music that you'd be a fool to miss. 

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