so, i'm curious if i started into suede the right way...

is there a definitive Suede album? i bought The London Suede a few days ago. i'm currently listening to it, and digging it. a lot more mellow than i expected it to be..

how would you rank their albums? who would you compare them to? etc. discuss, discuss, discuss.
-di doctor-

Suede is among the top Brit glam-revivalist bands of the 90's. They have some really awesome songs, but then some just plain suck; and Brett Anderson has the tendency to recycle lyrics here and there. I'd say that most of their best material was during their Bernard Butler years ("Suede" and "Dog Man Star"). He added a lot more texture to their songs that later replacements couldn't match.

I own all the Suede albums, and, surprisingly, the one that gets the most play is their b-sides collection, "Sci-fi Lullabies." A lot of their b-sides were very good, and they flow together nicely throughout the 2-CD set.

I'd say that you made a good move by starting with "Suede." From there, I'd move to "Dog Man Star" and "Sci-fi Lullabies." If you dig those, then it wouldn't hurt to move on to the rest of their catalogue ("Head Music," "A New Morning," "Coming Up").

Also, if you liked the first two albums, then you should also check out Bernard Butler's solo albums. And if you haven't already gotten into Pulp and Supergrass, I totally recommend both!

Sadly they peaked with their first album (IMO). It's a very good album though.

I agree, I'd have to say that a number of their b-sides are my favourites: "Europe is Our Playground", "Killing of A Flashboy", "The Sound of the Street" . I remember reading about a gig in London that was concert of just B-sides The recent album is a complete letdown but, again, the b-sides off the three UK singles and DVD's are surprisingly better than what were included on the actual album, go figure.

Their first album was great. The guitar sound on that album was really amazing., and "Animal Nitrate" is one of my favorite rock songs ever. The guitar player (Bernard Butler) left during the recording of their second album, and I don't think the new guy is as good. YMMV.

I'd agree with jonnyrocks, Suede sounds the best with Butler. I also purchased Butler's solo work but don't like them that much.

The post-Butler years have a few good songs too, but there are more bad ones. The songs tand to be simpler, and the guitar never lives up to what Butler had established before.

Not that they are very bad, but only by compariosn to their earlier work.

Pulp is a similar band that you definitely should try, and they are actually getting better and better.