Chosen Words: U is for Underworld

Fat Roland's A-Z guide to the most important words or phrases in electronica and their associated "facts"

POST MODERN POST MODERN UNDERWORLD SPACEBOY DUB NO BASS WITH MY HEAD MAN SHOUTY SHOUTY MUSIC MANS.

FREUR SO EIGHTIES SO HYDE AND SMITH GO NINETIES UNDER WORLD GO BUST BUT LONG HAIR HIPPY MAN EMERSON REINVENTS THE SOUND RAZOR SHARP INTERRUPTED LEMON COLOUR INSIDE THE LINES FOR TOMATO TOMATO DIRTY TOMATO.

DUB NO BASS WITH MY HEAD MAN LOVES A SKYSCRAPER I WANNA GIVE YOU EVERYTHING EVERYTHING EVERYTHING SPOONMAN GETS HIS KICKS ON SPOONMAN CHANNEL SIX AND THE REZ GOES LOUDER AND LOUDER GOODBYE MOTHER EARTTTTTHTHHHHHH.

CHOOSE LAGER CHOOSE TRAINSPOTTING A BEAUTIFUL FRIDGE AND THE SECOND TOUGHEST HIT IN THE CHARTS WITH THE YELLOW MAN FURRY HAT TOO MUCH LAGER MAN HYDE. MEGA MEGA WHITE FISH PUSHED SNAKE DOWNSTAIRS ON A HUNDRED DAYS OFF FOR EMERSON THEN OBLIVION CALLS OBLIVION WITH BELLS ON.

TWENTY TEN NO BASS WITH MY ALBUM MAN MUST BE BARKING HIGH CONTRAST SCRIBBLES THE FUTURE AND IF ALL OF THIS MAKES NO BLOODY SENSE, YOU'D BETTER START LISTENING TO UNDERWORLD BECAUSE THEY'RE ONE OF THE BEST BANDS EVER.

Top five Underworld hit singles:

- Born Slippy (Nuxx), #2 in 1996 (that one with the "lager, lager")
- Push Upstairs, #12 in 1999 (great glass-smashy bit in the video)
- Two Months Off, #12 in 2002 (possibly their housiest single)
- King Of Snake, #17 in 1999 (what I call their Donna Summer rhythm)
- Pearl's Girl, #22 in 1999 (a.k.a. the "water on concrete" track... when I scratched my Second Toughest In The Infants CD, this was the one track that skipped all the time)

For more Chosen Words, click the tag at the bottom of this post.