Track Listing
Bitter Sweet Symphony
Sonnet
The Rolling People
The Drugs Don’t Work
Catching The Butterfly
Neon Wilderness
Space And Time
Weeping Willow
Lucky Man
One Day
This Time
Velvet Morning
Come On
My Rating
8.5/10
Average Critic Rating
9/10
Overview
Unmistakably ’90s, ‘Urban Hymns’ helped define an era, with The Verve shaping a sound that now feels completely nostalgic. Richard Ashcroft’s voice is a massive part of that, carrying a familiar ache even when everything around him feels triumphant. There are some absolutely huge tunes here, but the Psychedelic textures make the album particularly easy to get lost in. Nick McCabe’s guitar work drifts and swirls around the melodies, giving the music a hazy, dreamlike quality without losing its bite. The band can make everything feel enormous, then pull you into something surprisingly intimate and vulnerable. At its best, it’s hauntingly beautiful, with enough emotional depth to make those big choruses hit even harder - don’t be surprised if you produce a tear or two. There’s space to sit with the sadness, but also plenty of warmth and release. An album that can soundtrack a crowd singing their hearts out or an afternoon spent quietly getting inside your own head.
Recommended for the 90s kids who want a singalong, a little psychedelia and an existential crisis on the bus home.
Featured Song
Bitter Sweet Symphony
Most Streamed
Bitter Sweet Symphony
Least Streamed
Come On
Underrated
Weeping Willow
TVV Top 3 Songs
Bitter Sweet Symphony | Sonnet | Lucky Man
Singles
Bitter Sweet Symphony | Sonnet | The Drugs Don’t Work | Lucky Man
TVV Top 3 Non-Singles
The Rolling People | Space And Time | Weeping Willow
Listen to Again?
Yes
No-Skip Album?
Yes
Album Artwork Rating
7.5/10
Now that’s a 90s album cover. Sometimes all you need is a photo of the band looking cool to create something iconic. Simple, unmistakably of its era and no need to overcomplicate it. I’d just love to know what they’re all looking at, or are they just trying to look ‘cool’.
Genre
Britpop
RL
Hut Records
Recording Studio
Olympic Studios (London, England)
