Therapy? - Troublegum

Malice

According to here, today (Feb 7th) marks the fifteenth anniversary of the release of what is in my opinion their best album - Troublegum. When I first heard this album I had the same jaw-dropping "WTF??" moment as when I first heard Metallica's Ride The Lightning. Something about just grabbed me and hasn't ever really let go .

So, in memory of a fantastic album, here is a quick selection of videos from Troublegum:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZYROCPg3Ww

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDVsIvvFtcs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQUR6-KdYag

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZwXCDqlE9I

Kess73

Was blown away by Troublegum when it was released. They played in the Theatre Royal in Limerick when touring the album, and it was awesome live.


Defo their best album by a mile.

ham_n_mustard

that gig in the theatre royal was great....i had my first few cans of scrumpy jack beforehand under sarsfield bridge. kerbdog were the support on the night, impressed by them too.

Malice

I was in Leisureland in Galway when they played there that year as well. I assume it was the same tour as Kerbdog were there as well. There was also a third band on the bill who for the life of me I can't remember :mad:.

Sephiroth_dude

great album,pity they dont gig as much any more.

YFlyer

ham_n_mustard wrote: »

that gig in the theatre royal was great....i had my first few cans of scrumpy jack beforehand under sarsfield bridge. kerbdog were the support on the night, impressed by them too.

Saw them in the Stables Club in UL back in 1990 or 91. The local punk rockers were calling them Melody at the time. Think there was only about 30 of us there. Great nite tho

Kess73

ham_n_mustard wrote: »

that gig in the theatre royal was great....i had my first few cans of scrumpy jack beforehand under sarsfield bridge. kerbdog were the support on the night, impressed by them too.

Damn I could have had a few cans with you Loved scrumpy Jack before heading to gigs at the Theatre Royal and to the original Termights. Although I tended to have a few cans at the side of Sarsfield Bridge across from the city side.


Kerbdog. Now that is a blast from the past. Themselves and the Cranberries were regulars at the free gig at three every Saturday at the Savoy.

boycey

Great band up to a point. Never really liked anything after Troublegum. Must have seen them 5 or 6 times back in the day and they always rocked. I remember one gig in particular in Belfast where Cop Shoot Cop shared the bill- that was awesome, they covered "Alternative Ulster" and the place went beserk. I must look for that "Merry Fcuking Christmas" split single where they did the U2 covers, must be knocking round the house somewhere.

John

Great album. Haven't spun it in a long time, must dig it out. They were patchy afterwards but Suicide Pact was bloody good.

ShawnRaven

Just a note, there's an alternate video done by Therapy, the video quality is kinda lousy as it's only ever been aired on MTV once. It's a fairly twisted video, due to those who may have a nervous disposition, i will refrain from posting up the link, but if you type in therapy banned isolation into youtube, you'll find it.

It was aired on Headbangers Ball in 1994 at around 1.55 just before the show went off, as Michael and Andy were guest presenters.

Troublegum was a letdown for me I have to say, I loved the earlier stuff, Babyteeth and Pleasure Death etc. It was tame by comparison to Nurse although looking back, it's aged well. If you like Therapy? though you'll avoid Infernal Love and keep listening from Semi Detatched onwards. In fact the Music Through A Cheap Transistor radio sessions are worth checking out too.

ShawnRaven

Kess73 wrote: »

Kerbdog. Now that is a blast from the past. Themselves and the Cranberries were regulars at the free gig at three every Saturday at the Savoy.

Saw them support Therapy? on the second night of their two SFX gigs in 1993 in support of the Opal Mantra EP. Cop Shoot Cop had suppored them the first night (and were supposed to have supported them the second too), so i got a really nice surprise with that as i'd seen them on Alternative Nation mere weeks beforehand with the video to End Of Green.

To bad everything they did after their debut album was utter rubbish.

Quigs Snr

Nurse was the album that got me into them. Loved the earlier stuff, and Troublegum when it came out, from being in Dublin in my first year of college and dropping down to HMV grafton street for the launch to the rather dubious performance of "Nowhere" on the The Word where the lads could barely play ! Been looking for a copy of "Pantapon Rose" which was a B-side on one of the singles (perhaps trigger inside). Like most, Infernal love didn't grab me the same way, but it grew on me and ultimately ended up as one of my favourites. To this day I don't know why. I remember seeing them gig at xmas 95 in the point depot with Mexican Pets, Joyrider and Ash as support. Amazing gig, one of the best.

Semi Detached was missing something, I knew it was wrong when I heard the first single, church of noise and didn't like it. The first Therapy single I didn't like. It just wasn't the same as it was a couple of years earlier when I had been bunking off in town avoiding studying for my leaving cert on release day of all the various EP's (short sharp shock, hats off to the insane, opal mantra etc.... ) The releases after that got progressively worse. They were ok, but they had lost that vital something that made them stand out. Sure there were one or two standout tracks from time to time. I wish I could put my finger on it.

I still keep them on my IPOD though to this day. Particularly the stuff from 1990 - 1995. And if anyone does come across pantapon rose on MP3 or the cover of seaside town, do let me know !

ShawnRaven

Quigs Snr wrote: »

I still keep them on my IPOD though to this day. Particularly the stuff from 1990 - 1995. And if anyone does come across pantapon rose on MP3 or the cover of seaside town, do let me know !

Pantopon Rose was on the Nowhere CD single i believe, not the remixes by Joey Beltram and Sabres Of Paradise, not sure I have it though.

Tatty Seaside Town was on the Trigger Inside single, which I do have, PM me.

Red Sleeping Beauty

I saw them support Motorhead.
Their version of Isolation was , erm.... different/interesting.

I saw/met the singer afterwards outside chatting to people , mainly Nothern Irish folks - he seems to have amassed a good few "friends" he used to work in factories with

---

Did anyone see them on their 1994 tour with the Manics ?

ShawnRaven

alan dunne 27 wrote: »

I saw them support Motorhead.
Their version of Isolation was , erm.... different/interesting.

Being a big Joy Division fan, i didn't like it. I'd heard it months before the album as well as they were playing it live a lot. Most of Troublegum had been written and recorded about two years in advance with a big portion of it being released as EP's (with the exception of Opal Mantra).

That said, it was better than Femtex or Brainsaw.

Red Sleeping Beauty

I meant to put some sort of rolley eyes smiley at the end of that sentence
Hearing Joy Division covers by anybody (even New Order) just sounds wierd.

ShawnRaven

alan dunne 27 wrote: »

I meant to put some sort of rolley eyes smiley at the end of that sentence
Hearing Joy Division covers by anybody (even New Order) just sounds wierd.

I actually didn't mind Orgy's cover of Blue Monday, Although New Order successfully manage to butcher Joy Division covers mainly because Bernard Sumner is not Ian Curtis. The only one who can replicate Curtis' voice faithfully, in my opinion is Kirk Brandon, when he, Mike Peters, Slim Jim Phantom and Captain Sensible (as Dead Men Walking) did a cover of Transmission. Musically it didn't live up to the original, but vocally, it was the closest one would get.

Although from what i've read & heard, Brandon is just too much of a complete dick to work with.

Red Sleeping Beauty

Swoooosh

Most of that went over my head :o
I gotta get searching

ShawnRaven

alan dunne 27 wrote: »

Swoooosh

Most of that went over my head :o
I gotta get searching

80's 101 for Alan Dunne!
Mike Peters is the vocalist for The Alarm
Kirk Brandon was the vocalist for Theatre Of Hate (also featured Nigel Preston & Billy Duffy from The Cult), and Spear Of Destiny
Slim Jim Phanton is the drummer for the Stray Cats and...
Captain Sensible is the guitarist for The Damned.

You're velcome

Red Sleeping Beauty

My girlfriend gave out to me for not knowing The Alarm!-We were going through her nanny's vinyl and there was loads of Alarm.
I know and like the Damned :cool: I don't think I know any releated bands though.
I've heard of SoD and of course The Cult

ShawnRaven

alan dunne 27 wrote: »

My girlfriend gave out to me for not knowing The Alarm!-We were going through her nanny's vinyl and there was loads of Alarm.

Just back from Gathering 17 in LLandudno, North Wales after seeing them, Met Mike Peters before the show too, he's still belting out 3 and a half hour sets after surviving cancer twice. I've a ton of respect for the guy.

I know and like the Damned :cool: I don't think I know any releated bands though.

Saw em earlier this year at the Button Factory, i think the place was kinda half full, but decent enough gig. Them, along with The Alarm are doing a UK tour this year I believe.

I've heard of SoD and of course The Cult

I'd actually go out and shoot you if you didn't, just to put you out of your misery.

Great album alright but everything else they released was a complete shambles and embarressing

ShawnRaven

rarnes1 wrote: »

Great album alright but everything else they released was a complete shambles and embarressing

Can't fully agree there i'm afraid. Infernal Love was bloody dire, but Semi Detatched and One Cure Fits All were somewhat returns to form. They weren't as pop-rock as half of Troublegum was, but they were definitely along the lines of Babyteeth and Pleasuredeath.

Quigs Snr

Thinking of it now, it was never the same after fife left. Hopkins was pants, they went from a unique sounding band, to a typical irish rock act. I think that was it.

Bluefoam

I really believe that fyfe was the best element of the band - he was a unique drummer...

ShawnRaven

Quigs Snr wrote: »

Thinking of it now, it was never the same after fife left. Hopkins was pants, they went from a unique sounding band, to a typical irish rock act. I think that was it.

Yeah, Fife's sound was quite distinctive for the band, even if it did sound like bottles and bin lids at times, you knew it was a Therapy? track that was playing as a result of it.

Sadly, it still couldn't save Infernal Love

Quigs Snr

Quigs Snr wrote: »

Thinking of it now, it was never the same after fife left. Hopkins was pants, they went from a unique sounding band, to a typical irish rock act. I think that was it.

god i hate that saying

lord lucan

never got into therapy in a big way,was impressed by them live though. seen them in 94 or 95,not sure,at sunstroke in dalymount with the chili's and helmet,sounded great live. can't believe it's 15 years since that album came out,i feel old!:(

ShawnRaven

lord lucan wrote: »

never got into therapy in a big way,was impressed by them live though. seen them in 94 or 95,not sure,at sunstroke in dalymount with the chili's and helmet,sounded great live. can't believe it's 15 years since that album came out,i feel old!:(

Was there for that gig too, Sunstroke 94 at Dalymount Park. Soundgarden were also billed but had to bail cos Cornell's throat gave out and had to give up the european festival tour, which included Reading too if i recall correctly. Ice Cube was also on the bill and was turfed off the stage after 5 minutes at the request of the Gardai for starting a "f*ck the police" chant.

Good times.

iseethelight

15 years. I too feel old now Be great if they did a tour playing all of it. Everyone else seems to be doing it so why not i'd go for sure

Quigs Snr

Pants, pants, pants. Thats a special request for rarnes1 ;-)

Anyway Fyfe, yes, he was different, I don't think Nurse would have happened without him. The drums made that album. I do remember the metal press being confused as to what to label Therapy? as at the time of Nurse. Industrial was what I think was settled on. Somewhere near Ministry and NIN. Troublegum put them back into a more mainstream place and they took off from there.

I do remember the band being interviewed after Fyfe left and saying that it was so much better, there was a looser feeling, that when Fyfe was on his form it was great and when he was off, then it was a disaster. Funny enough, around the same time another band was talking about things being much better now that they were looser. That band were Metallica who were promoting LOAD at the time.

Since then I have taken "Loose" to be a literal translation of "we have lost it". Therapy lost their fire and become a standard Irish rock band, albeit one I still had a soft spot for. Metallica on the other hand tried to become Bon Jovi.

All this therapy talk got me into my attic this morning and lo and behold I found all of the EP's (on cassette), complete with all bonus cards / artwork etc... and even dug out a 12" Short Sharp Shock EP (the one with the flourescent green and pink) and the Teethgrinder 12" single. They bring back memories, I tell you.

lord lucan

ShawnRaven wrote: »

Was there for that gig too, Sunstroke 94 at Dalymount Park. Soundgarden were also billed but had to bail cos Cornell's throat gave out and had to give up the european festival tour, which included Reading too if i recall correctly. Ice Cube was also on the bill and was turfed off the stage after 5 minutes at the request of the Gardai for starting a "f*ck the police" chant.

Good times.

christ i'd forgotten all about that:eek: aaaahhhh,the good old days.:D

ShawnRaven

lord lucan wrote: »

christ i'd forgotten all about that:eek: aaaahhhh,the good old days.:D

I was so drunk at that gig, and everyone seemed to be at it, I bumped into a number of ex's (some i was with again that day) in Dalymount that year.

WE DIDN'T NEED 0X*G3N, WE HAD DALYMOUNT F*CKING PARK!!

peter1892

Sunstroke 94 - I was stone cold sober, and Ice Cube played 45 minutes!

He was great, I've never been a rap fan but he really worked the crowd brilliantly.

Terrorvision were great too, Frank Black was dull & RHCP were pretty good (I wouldn't cross the road to see them now). I think My Little Funhouse were on that bill too...

Therapy? rocked the place - Page Hamilton joined them for 'Unbeliever', they really were at the peak of their popularity that day.

I saw them a few more times after that, they weren't great at the Point in 1995, although later gigs in the likes of the Ambassador & Olympia were good alright.

ShawnRaven

peter1892 wrote: »

Sunstroke 94 - I was stone cold sober, and Ice Cube played 45 minutes!

I only remember a couple of songs! Of course alcohol and memory tend to distort things.

He was great, I've never been a rap fan but he really worked the crowd brilliantly.

I enjoyed him as well, i'd liked N.W.A stuff anyway and had heard Lethal Injection which i really must dig back out sometime.

Terrorvision were great too, Frank Black was dull & RHCP were pretty good (I wouldn't cross the road to see them now). I think My Little Funhouse were on that bill too...

Yeah Terrorvision had a good set, although they were pretty much at the tail end of their life as far as decent albums were concerned. Frank Black was utter rubbish, Just didn't fit in there with the line up. I don't remember My Little Funhouse at Dalymount that year, which was a shame cos Standunder still holds up as an awesome album today.

Therapy? rocked the place - Page Hamilton joined them for 'Unbeliever', they really were at the peak of their popularity that day.

Yeah, the EP's were the best way for the band to go from Nurse to Troublegum. By the time 1994 had ended, they were on top and it seemed like they were going to stay there for a bit too, MTV played their stuff on heavy rotation, Screamager and Trigger Inside were on radio quite a lot too.

Then Infernal Love came around and it was just blah. Of course, their appearance on the Late Late show was hysterical as 200 shocked faces sat there when their performance of "Stories" was finished. Priceless.

I saw them a few more times after that, they weren't great at the Point in 1995, although later gigs in the likes of the Ambassador & Olympia were good alright.

I dodged that gig, and many said I dodged a bullet, Didn't Fyfe leave the band too not long after that gig?

peter1892

ShawnRaven wrote: »

I dodged that gig, and many said I dodged a bullet, Didn't Fyfe leave the band too not long after that gig?

Yeah, I think they did one more gig with him (Ulster Hall the same week) and after that he was gone. He's such a unique drummer & it was never quite the same without him.

boycey

Do any of you remember 'On The Waterfront' - the manager from The Commitments used to present it. That was my introduction to Therapy?
I wore out my VHS copy of that , and it was only a two or three song set. Andy rockin a Tele and a Marshall- best sound he ever had.
Actually I always loved the samples which was a big part of their sound too- used to spend ages trying to figure out what movies they were from!

buck65

Saw Therapy? in Leisureland on that tour also saw them at Oxygen an't remember the year and some tiny pub in Limerick on the Semi detached tour with about 200 people there best gig I was ever at.
Troublegum for me was a mixed bag - the first 7 songs are great but Isolation, Femtex, Brainsaw and Lunacy booth are all very dodgy.
Nurse, Babyteeth, Pleasuredeath and some of Semi detached and Suicide Pact were great though.

Bluefoam

I saw them in Sunstroke, Point, The Mean Fiddler (I think) & Donnington Monsters of Rock '95 - the last gig I was at was at The Point just after Infernal Love & the crowd had changed completely, full of teeny boppers - I trew myself off one of the metal barriers they have in the crowd & where I was expecting to be caught and carried over the crowd - instead the crowd opened like the dead sea & I snotted myself on the concrete...

Always a great band live - I'd still love a pogo on a nazi t-shirt, or to be able to fit into my Therapy?/Masrshall T...

ShawnRaven

Bluefoam wrote: »

the crowd had changed completely, full of teeny boppers - I trew myself off one of the metal barriers they have in the crowd & where I was expecting to be caught and carried over the crowd - instead the crowd opened like the dead sea & I snotted myself on the concrete...

That was exactly the same reason i stopped going to fibbers in 95/96 actually. Because it became a dwelling for teenyboppers and students who the closest they got to metal was the Oasis album their better halves got them for christmas.

A dull time for metal indeed. Thankfully Bruxelles was always an option.

Yakult

listening to therapy now again after reading this thread. I was about 12-13 when I first listened to it and just thought it was awesome.

Such a great album and will always be one of my top bands, for that album alone.

davylee

buck65 wrote: »

Saw Therapy? in Leisureland on that tour also saw them at Oxygen an't remember the year and some tiny pub in Limerick on the Semi detached tour with about 200 people there best gig I was ever at.
Troublegum for me was a mixed bag - the first 7 songs are great but Isolation, Femtex, Brainsaw and Lunacy booth are all very dodgy.
Nurse, Babyteeth, Pleasuredeath and some of Semi detached and Suicide Pact were great though.

+1 with the exception of isolation love that track but your right the first half of the album is deadly. does weaken a bit after that

Bluefoam

I picked up the new album 'Crooked Timber' & its not bad - it doesn't have the same pop feel of Troublegum but its certainly better than the efforts from Metallica & (the alleged) Guns N' Roses this year...

ADTR

Their best album.

ShawnRaven

davylee wrote: »

+1 with the exception of isolation love that track but your right the first half of the album is deadly. does weaken a bit after that

Bleugh, i'm sorry, but i can't agree with Isolation. It should have stayed a Live only track, or maybe a b-side, but it had no right on the album, nor as a single release. The only good thing it did was introduce a few more people to the music of Joy Division, but that was about it.

Malice

I have to say I love Isolation. The drums are just so chaotic and their sound meshes really well with the guitar and bass. Now that I have the song in my head I wish I had it to hand so I could listen to it now .

I do think that the last few songs on the album (Brainsaw in particular) are a bit of a let down but that's probably because the rest of the album is so good.

ShawnRaven

malice_ wrote: »

I have to say I love Isolation. The drums are just so chaotic and their sound meshes really well with the guitar and bass. Now that I have the song in my head I wish I had it to hand so I could listen to it now .

I do think that the last few songs on the album (Brainsaw in particular) are a bit of a let down but that's probably because the rest of the album is so good.

For me, i was a Joy Division fan before I was a Therapy? fan, so i figured it was just down to me being petrified of change when it came out. But when this thread kicked off, i listened to the album a couple of times and i still feel exactly the same about Isolation. It just doesn't fit in to me. It sounded more like it should have been a b-side with their cover of Breaking The Law and C.C Rider (which i actually could have lived with on the album)

I do agree with you on Femtex and Brainsaw, although Lunacy Booth grew on me.

Malice

Fair enough, if you were a Joy Division fan first then you were always going to have a different take on that song. When I got the album first I didn't even know it was a cover. As I said earlier, I love the the mix of the instruments and the lyrics tie in nicely with the whole angst-ridden vibe that runs through the rest of the album.

Up until 5 minutes ago I had never even heard the original fully . I dug it out on Youtube while typing up this post.

For anyone else who might be unfamiliar with the original here it is along with the cover version so you can draw a comparison:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOdNRGuX9g8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZwXCDqlE9I

Bluefoam

I got into Joy Division after listening to the Therapy? version. I love Therapy?s one...

ShawnRaven

malice_ wrote: »

Fair enough, if you were a Joy Division fan first then you were always going to have a different take on that song. When I got the album first I didn't even know it was a cover. As I said earlier, I love the the mix of the instruments and the lyrics tie in nicely with the whole angst-ridden vibe that runs through the rest of the album.

Up until 5 minutes ago I had never even heard the original fully . I dug it out on Youtube while typing up this post.

Don't get me wrong. I can appreciate Joy Division covers, Warrior Soul's cover of Interzone, i thought was done really well. And you don't get more anger and angst than Kory Clarke.

I first heard Therapy's version live at the SFX in 1993, and it is a good live track. I just think some covers should be kept live, because it makes them that more special to hear. But that's just me.

biko

Great great album. Haven't listened to it in ages, must find and play in the car again now Best driving fast music ever!