A mere 23 years after its release, the debut album by Rachel Stamp gets a souped-up reissue. Given their “should have been huge” status, and the current, prolific solo career of main man David Ryder Prangley, it’s about time. Released on CD and pink vinyl, there’s 17 tracks to please both ardent fans and newcomers. I’m somewhere in the middle, owning all but this album, so it’s a treat to hear the songs that don’t feature on the ‘Now I’m Nailed To Your Bedroom Wall…’ compilation.

Such as ‘Brand New Toy’, which has all the requisite sleaze you’d expect, as well as hiding an Alice Cooper album title in it’s lyrics. Both ‘Ladies And Gents’ and ‘Spank’ tip a slight nod of the head towards Mr Stuart Goddard, while ‘Pink Skab’ is a more in-yer-face tribute. I remember the live review of him joining the band onstage for ‘Beat My Guest’ and kicking myself for not being there. So, it’s no wonder that David and Will have both been part of the Ant family, and rightly so.

However, Rachel Stamp were impossible to categorise, which I imagine gave the record labels a headache, as they do like an easy time. After being dropped by WEA in 1997, it took the band a while to find their footing. Originally recorded in two weeks, this sounds surprisingly fresh, partly from the mix and partly because they’re great songs. Because they never fitted into a neat box, they haven’t aged.

In spite of the ‘glam’ tag, there are some monster riffs here, from ‘Girl, You’re Just A Slave To Your Man’ to the downright filthy ‘Dirty Bone’, which dares to rhyme ‘sinner’ with ‘Pinner’. Thankfully, they have no shame. But there’s also the acoustic, Hispanic-tinged ‘Carmelita’ and ‘Take A Hold Of Yourself’ could almost be the Manics at their most appealing. Add to that the classics ‘Monsters Of The New Wave’, ‘Black Tambourine’ and ‘My Sweet Rose’, plus two savage live versions of ‘I Got The Worm’ and ‘Please Don’t Touch’, and what you have is a fine example of their unique sound.

Living in France meant that it was always unlikely that I would make the London gig, but at least this album is available now for all of us strange children.

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Author: Martin Chamarette