Catherine Wheel

Posted over 5 years ago
Wow, I just posted a little "blast from the past" on Anna's MOG, and it got me thinking about my old favorite (aw hell, still high up there) band, Catherine Wheel. I watched a movie a few months back called "Millions," which, among other things was about a young boy who was obsessed with saints. One day in school, he spoke of St. Catherine of Alexandria. I'm not Catholic, so I knew nothing of Saints, but I liked the little boy's description of the Catherine Wheel, so I did a little basic reading up:The legend of St. Catherine was that she was condemned to death on the breaking wheel (an instrument of torture), but that it broke when she touched it, so she was beheaded. Centuries later, a firework was invented, called the Catherine Wheel, which, when ignited, rotates quickly, producing a display of sparks and coloured flame. (this info comes from Wikipedia).Anyway, back to the band... I had a fuller understanding of their name and how it is such a lovely way of describing their shiny, fuzzy, swirly sound. Few albums stand the test of time as well as "Ferment," Catherine Wheel's debut album, and a major staple of my college years. As much as I have listened to this album (and still do today), I could barely tell you one clear lyric. But the lyrics are not so important; the vocals are just a part of the landscape as far as I'm concerned. You just have to close your eyes and let the music carry you up and out into the undertow... and you'll simply get it.

Comments (6)

  1. BMichael says Isn't that a photo of dave matthews, though? I'd suppose it's not; but I think it is. Eh.
    Permalink posted 10/23/2006
  2. edieandy says Nope, that's Rob Dickinson, the lead singer of the band. He happens to be the cousin of Bruce Dickinson from Iron Maiden.. weird! Dave Mathews?! Blasphemy!!!
    Permalink posted 10/23/2006
  3. tnstranger says "Crank" is one badass song! got heavy rotation in my shoegazer days... That Cats and Dogs cd is good too, "wish you were here" was actually pretty good... Other bands similar: My Bloody Valentine Ride Pale Saints Lush
    Permalink posted 10/24/2006
  4. Angry Bear says I used to listen to Catherine Wheel all the time. Chrome remains my favorite CW album.
    Permalink posted 10/24/2006
  5. the blue period says best album is deffinatly Happy Days. the Catherine Wheel is one of those bands who's albums are made of a bunch of 80's metal-sounding songs, with some randome (but revolutionary) pop songs in the mix that got all the airplay, lol. (example: jawbox, smashing pumpkins, boo radlys.) if you like the catherine wheel, check out Adorable.
    Permalink posted 11/17/2006
  6. astronot says Just got all my Catherine Wheel CDs out and I'm getting into them once again. What quality output they had, right up to the end! "Ferment" is definitely a brilliant album, and one of the finest debut records by any band. I actually prefer it to "Chrome", which I never understood why, but is the most praised CW album..
    Permalink posted 03/22/2008

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