Senior Project Article #5: The Charlatans

If I were forced to sum up the 23-plus-year career of The Charlatans in four words it would be this: "the last band standing." Legal battles, member departures, arrests, death, distance, disease; these are things that lead to the demise of most bands… but not Northwich’s Charlatans.  Few bands in the annals of rock history have faced, and successfully stared down, the challenges that The Charlatans have, but then again, few bands have the tale to tell that they do either.  The band has risen like a phoenix from the ashes time and time again, always continuing to evolve and delight.  It seems no matter what has been thrown at The Charlatans; they have fought their way back, and maintained a steady workload along the way.  During the course of their ongoing career, the band has become one of the most loved and influential bands of their generation in their home country, and underrated cult-heroes abroad. 

Debuting in 1990, The Charlatans came up as contemporaries of The Stone Roses and Happy Mondays, taking flight during the ecstasy-fueled Mad-chester scene.  Hitting listeners with a Hammond organ driven, groove based dance music; the initial lineup consisted of Tim Burgess on vocals, Jon Baker on guitar, Martin Blunt on bass, Rob Collins on organ and keyboards, and John Brooks on drums and percussion.  The band hit early, their second single “The Only One I Know,” becoming a modern rock hit in 1990 on both sides of the Atlantic.  Shortly after the release, the band had to change their name in the U.S. territories to The Charlatans UK, to avoid a legal conflict with a San Francisco-based band from the late 60’s with the same name.  Despite this confusion “The Only One I Know” received airplay on MTV as well as alternative radio stateside, even ending up on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine's new faces issue in 1991.  Their debut album, Some Friendly was released in October of 1990 and helped build the growing rave culture rising in northern England.  The Charlatans energetic blend of house-based funk and Collins’ distinct C-3 organ attack would set them apart from their contemporaries, resulting in the only album from the Mad-chester scene to make it to number one on the UK album chart.  The album's closer, “Sproston Green,” has emerged as the bands’ anthem, closing nearly every concert they have played for the last 23 years. 

Jon Baker departed the band as they began recording the second album, quickly being replaced by guitarist Mark Collins (no relation to Rob Collins).  Released in March 1992, Between 10^th & 11^th featured the hit single “Weirdo,” but failed to achieve the success of its predecessor.  Produced by Flood, known for his work with U2, Depeche Mode, and Nine Inch Nails, he gave the album a sound that continues to stand as completely unique in the bands catalog.  Though the album was considered to be a disappointment by many critics at the time, it contains a subtlety that sets it apart from any other Charlatans album.  Much of the band's songbook that followed Between 10^th & 11^th is based on the conventions of rock and soul music, with vocal melodies following the instrumentation fairly closely; The Charlatans second album, however, stands today as some of the most melodically complex and musically experimental work of the band's career.  On the working-class anthem “The End Of Everything,” Burgess sings: “No education I want besides the one that I’ve got / Divorce me from the zeroes, what do they know? / Twentieth century cultureless stereotypes / Waving words worth nothing to me now,” continuing the theme of blue-collar resistance captured in much of the work of other North English bands.  Elsewhere, Burgess’ voice dances and skips gently over the music, weaving melodies that are almost contradictory to the musical melody: “When honesty is mine to ride / A gem dissolving, shadow-slide / Climb down, you better not drown / What are you gonna do when your sky falls out on this word,” his voice bobbing and weaving through the swirling, atmospherics of the band on the album's closer “(No One) Not Even the Rain.” 

As the band sought to shift musical direction going into the sessions for their third album, 1994’s Up To Our Hips, incorporating more melodic influences from The Beatles and Mick Taylor-era Rolling Stones, as well as influence from hip-hop pioneers De La Soul.  The sessions for the album got off to a rocky start when keyboardist Rob Collins, the band's primary songwriter, was arrested and served a four month sentence for being an accessory to armed robbery; however, his initial absence allowed the rhythm section of Blunt and Brooks to come to the forefront of The Charlatans' sound.  The band continued its earlier, groove-based explorations on the songs “Come In Number 21,” “Patrol,” “Inside – Looking Out,” the instrumental “Feel Flows,” and the album’s title track, while the album's singles, “Can’t Get Out Of Bed,” “Jesus Hairdo,” and “I Never Want an Easy Life if me and he Were Ever to Get There” - showed the band relying more on melodic hooks and choruses.  In what would be an important development for the band’s sound, “Autograph” featured the band's first song based on acoustic instrumentation, a sound they would further explore on subsequent albums.  The band also acquired the rights to the name The Charlatans in the United States, allowing for the U.S. release to be under the same band name as the international release (The Charlatans, as opposed to The Charlatans UK). When Rob Collins rejoined the band after completing his sentence, he returned to a band that was in a major musical transition from the club-based grooves of its early work, to the Stones-like swagger that would dominate its sound through the rest of the decade.

The band tried to regain their lost momentum, but faced difficulties in the American markets, from relating to an American audience during the popularity of the much more aggressive grunge movement, to being constantly asked during promotional interviews if they were “…the same Charlatans as The Charlatans UK.”  When the large portion of the North American tour for Up To Our Hips had to be cancelled due to illness, the band made the decision to regroup back home and focus on writing for their next album, rather than try to carrying on promoting their third album. The subsequent album, released in 1995, would return the band to their previous levels of both critical and commercial success, and help usher in the sound that would become known in the press as Britpop. The band sought to cut through any lingering confusion by self-titling the album, accepting the UK moniker for the American release, and including both the song titles and the band's photo on the front cover, having not been pictured on one of their albums sleeves since their debut album's digitally altered cover. The Charlatans found the band reveling in their love for The Rolling Stones, with the album drawing comparisons to Exile On Main Street. The singles "Crashin' In" and "Just Lookin'" found the band in full big organ rock mode, while songs like "Tell Everyone" and the album's third single, "Just When You're Thinking Things Over" continued the proliferation of the warmer, more acoustic vibe introduced on the previous record. Elsewhere, the band took their earlier groove-based song styling to heavier depths, incorporating influences of electronic dance music on "Toothache," and The Charlatans opening and closing tracks: "Nine Acre Court" and "Thank You."

Their fourth album had returned The Charlatans to the stature they gained on their debut and the band began sessions for the following album in early 1996.  The band had set up a series of shows that summer supporting Oasis, who were currently the darlings of the British music scene, culminating in the pair playing at Knebworth, England at what was the fastest selling concert ever at the legendary concert site, selling out two nights at 150,000 people per night.  The Charlatans had scheduled the release of the first single, “One To Another,” from their forthcoming album to be released just prior to the concerts.  The band was entering the final stages of recording for the new album when they were dealt another tragic blow.

On July 22, 1996, Rob Collins was killed in a car crash in Wales.  He lost control of his BMW and was ejected through the windshield, on the way to the recording studio after a night of drinking.  The band had arrived at a crossroads, and felt that “One To Another” should still be released as scheduled, standing as a tribute to Collins.  The band also decided to keep the Knebworth dates, recruiting Primal Scream keyboardist Martin Duffy for their first live performance on August 11, less than three weeks after Collins’ death.  Following one of the fiercest sets of their career, the band convened to complete the album, deciding that they would at least finish the record and find a touring keyboard player to promote the album upon its release.

Tellin’ Stories was released on April 21, 1997 to rave reviews; the album was simultaneously a lasting tribute to their fallen keyboard player, and defiant statement about the future of the band.  “With No Shoes” opens the album with confidence, with driving blues licks and punchy hooks; a trio of singles that would become staples of the band's live repertoire to this day follows, with “North Country Boy,” the title track “Tellin’ Stories,” and “One To Another” all being performed at nearly every concert since 1997, and would become some of the band's highest charting singles of their career.  The album shows the lasting glory of Rob Collins on the Hammond-driven instrumental “Area 51,” and the album's remaining single, “How High,” (also a live staple) achieved the rock-star sneer and attitude that so many of the band's contemporaries were shooting for.  The Bob Dylan inspired “Get On It” morphs from harmonica fueled rock song to classic Charlatans organ driven funk.

As preparations for the tour got under way, the band hired Tony Rogers to take over keyboard duties for the tour, saying at the time that they would continue as a quartet, with Rob Collins being irreplaceable.  By the end of the tour, however, Rogers' chemistry with the band had convinced them that there was a future for The Charlatans, and Rogers was brought on as a full member, as the band entered the studio in 1998 to work on their first album without their primary songwriter.

As sessions for Us and Us Only got under way, songwriting would become a more collaborative process for the group, and the result would be one of the strongest albums of the band's career.  Released in 1999, Us and Us Only would see the band develop every aspect of their previous styles, with fully matured takes on their early sound in “Forever,” to their Dylan-goes-Britpop song styling on “Impossible.”  “Senses,” the album's enigmatic centerpiece, slowly builds bass and piano lines with wailing harmonica, before exploding into one of Burgess’ most desperate sounding odes to love. 

As the band entered the next century, they would experiment with different influences from album to album, and they would continue to face bad luck and challenges along the way.  Burgess would move to the Los Angeles area, bringing the band out to record their next album, the Curtis Mayfield-inspired Wonderland.  In timing typical of the band’s luck, the album would be released in the United States on September 11, 2001, forcing the cancelation of the beginning portions of the albums promotion.

As The Charlatans' record contract expired, the next album, 2004’s Up at the Lake would fail to get a U.S. release, but the band would sign with Sanctuary Music Group to release their 2006 album, the dancehall reggae influenced Simpatico; however, the record company would file for bankruptcy before the band entered the studio to record 2008’s new-wave heavy You Cross My Path.  Fresh off the heels of Radiohead’s “pay what you like” internet release for their In Rainbows album, The Charlatans would release You Cross My Path for free download via the internet three months before the physical version would arrive in the shops.   In typical Charlatans fashion though, the U.S. tour dates would have to be cancelled due to drummer Jon Brooks needing surgery for a shoulder condition aggravated by drumming.

2010 found the band both looking back and moving forward, releasing an expanded and re-mastered 20^th anniversary edition of their debut, Some Friendly, as well a new album, Who We Touch, the strongest collection of songs the band had released since 1999’s Us and Us Only.  The band returned to the United States for the first time since 2006 in the fall of 2010 to promote the new record, and drummer Jon Brooks collapsed on stage halfway through the band's set in Philadelphia.  After being rushed to the hospital, Brooks was diagnosed with a brain tumor and flown home for emergency surgery, forcing the band to cancel yet another North American tour.  The Charlatans would regroup to promote the album in Europe with Peter Salisbury from The Verve filling in while Brooks recovered.  Brooks returned to the drummer’s throne for the encore of the band's New Year’s show that December. 

The Charlatans are currently readying their as-yet-untitled 12th studio album for release in late 2013, following a year of concerts celebrating the fifteenth anniversary of Tellin’ Stories.  The band is also set to release a documentary, Mountain Picnic Blues: the Making of Tellin’ Stories this spring.  Whatever direction the band pursues on their forthcoming effort, one thing is without question: after 23 years, The Charlatans stand as one of the most dependably consistent and strongest live acts of their generation, and deserve to be mentioned alongside the all-time greats of British rock.  They are the last band standing from Mad-chester, the last band standing from Britpop, and they show no signs of stopping anytime soon.

Senior Project Articl #4: Ride

Ride exploded as the band at the forefront of the shoegazer movement with hook-filled, Byrds inspired harmonies, and chaotic, distortion drenched guitars.  The band would come to define the sound and style of the genre with their early first two albums and early e.p.'s, then changing their sound and imploding; all while bookending their catalog with slices of perfect, driving noise-pop. 

Ride formed while attending the Oxfordshire School of Art and Design in 1988, and consisted of rhythm section Steve Queralt on bass and drummer Laurence Colbert, along with Mark Gardner and Andy Bell sharing guitar and vocal duties.  The band quickly signed with Creation Records, and would become the labels most successful band until the label signed Oasis in 1994. 

Ride would garner critical acclaim and crack the UK top 75 (the first release from the Creation label to do so) in January 1990, with their self-titled debut e.p.  "Take me for a ride away from places we have known...," Gardner sings on the e.p.'s opener, "Chelsea Girl," a hazy noise-pop gem that captures the longings of youth.  "Drive Blind" is a methodical psychedelic drone, while "All I Can See" and "Close My Eyes" close out the e.p., building to an epic climax with reckless abandon.  This would quickly be followed by the Play e.p. a couple of months later, featuring the whirring rush of “Like a Daydream.”

October 1990 would see Ride release both the Fall e.p., as well as their debut album Nowhere.  The vinyl release of Nowhere feature eight songs, including the epic “Dreams Burn Down” from the Fall e.p.  The cassette and CD editions would add the remaining three songs from the e.p., “Taste,” “Here and Now,” and the psychedelic title track “Nowhere” to the end of the album.  The album would catapult Ride to the top of the list of bands to watch in music circles, and has since appeared on several best albums of the 1990’s lists for various publications.  Opening with “Seagull,” a noisy, swirling tribute to The Beatles “Taxman” riff, the album veers between noisy hallucinogenic jams, chaotic blasts of power-pop bliss, and gentle, melodic ballads, like the single “Vapour Trail,” which would become the band’s best known song.

The following year, Ride would release the Today, Forever e.p., while recording their second album and promoting Nowhere, touring the U.S. with fellow Oxford shoegazers Lush.  As 1991 gave way to 1992, the British music press began a short-lived love affair with the shoegazer genre, bringing attention to bands like Lush, Slowdive, Chapterhouse, My Bloody Valentine, Blur, Catherine Wheel, and The Verve.  The press had high hopes for the genre and all eyes were on Ride with high expectations for their second album.

Going Blank Again, the follow up to Nowhere was released in March 1992, and would reach number five on the UK album charts.  It features a less murky, more accessible sound, while not shortchanging the experimental elements of their first record.  Going Blank Again is a more diverse album than Nowhere, in both sound and influences, taking inspiration from both their noise-pop contemporaries, as well as 60’s and 70’s-era rock music ranging from Pink Floyd and The Who, to The Beach Boys and The Byrds.  The album opens with “Leave Them All Behind;” a jittery keyboard, reminiscent of The Who’s “Baba O’Riley,” gives way to a driving drum and bass groove; then... the guitars.  The guitars blast open in a dizzying kaleidoscope of sound and color, building and layering before Bell and Gardner come in singing in perfect harmony.  The song ends with guitars roaring like jet engines, before giving way to the perfect ‘60’s pop of “Twisterella.”  “Chrome Waves” features lush, sweeping keyboard lines over ringing acoustic guitars, while “Cool Your Boots” finds the band paying tribute to the British cult film Withnail and I.  “Never been so far away / Just lost the last thought in my head / What happens now? / Some fantasy you’ve been / Pick up the pieces in my mind / I’m going home” Gardner sings on the albums closing number “OX4,” as the album gallops off into the sunset, and with it, so went the collaborative efforts by the band.

As Ride entered the studio for their third album, they sought changes in style and sound.  They replaced Alan Moulder, the producer of Nowhere and Going Blank Again, with John Leckie, who was known for his work with The Stone Roses.  The band also approached writing differently, with Bell and Gardner writing separately, and then bringing their works to the band, rather than the group effort of their previous albums.  Tensions within the band started to build between the two singers over who’s songs would get top billing; the compromise being reached to feature Gardner’s songs on the first half of the album, and Bell’s on the second, another change from the first two albums, which feature the respective songwriters songs interspersed amongst each other.

The resulting album, Carnival of Light, released in 1994, was an uneven album that attempted to move the band away from the shoegazer label, embracing the emerging Britpop sound.  Though the album does feature some of the band’s best work: the epic psychedelic opener “Moonlight Medicine,” the driving groove of “From Time to Time,” and the guitar assault of “Birdman,” the album overall lacks cohesiveness, and fails to capture the magic of their early works.

By 1995, Ride had one album left on their contract with Creation Records, but tensions were so high between Bell and Gardner that they agreed to split up before their final album had even been finished.  Tarantula was released in 1996, and might as well have been titled “Contractual Obligation;” it is the sound of a band who has no interest in working together any longer.  In a perfect statement on the bands lack of cohesiveness, Gardner only contributed one song to the album, the unimaginative “Deep Inside My Pocket.”  The album is largely a bland collection of mediocre 70’s rock songs, with riffs lifted here and there from The Faces and Lynyrd Skynyrd.  The album’s lone bright spot is the punk-fueled opening track “Black Night Crash,” which brings the band around to their beginnings full circle, fitting perfectly alongside “Chelsea Girl,” from their debut e.p.  Tarantula was initially only in print for only a week, as Ride had announced their split two months before the album’s release.  However, their early albums remain some of the most highly acclaimed British albums of the 1990’s. 

Senior Project Article #3: My Bloody Valentine

My Bloody Valentine is one of those artists that fall into the category of being an acquired taste.  They do not write songs that have any chance of appealing to an audience any wider than their dedicated cult following and other musicians.   

With the release of their 1988 debut album, Isn’t Anything, My Bloody Valentine helped define the shoegazer sound; named for the performers tendency to look at their effect pedals, while creating dense, wall-of-sound atmospherics.  Their second album, 1991’s Loveless, is one of the genre’s defining masterpieces, a cornerstone of guitar experimentation in the late 20^th century.  While their influence can be heard in, or has been acknowledged by, the likes of U2, David Bowie, The Cure, Radiohead, Nine Inch Nails, Smashing Pumpkins, and Phish, My Bloody Valentine were equally influential on their contemporaries, fellow shoegazer bands like Ride, Slowdive, and Chapterhouse, who helped develop a style that continues to mark the work of Sigur Rós and Godspeed You! Black Emperor today.

Founded in Dublin, Ireland in 1983 by singer and guitarist Kevin Shields and drummer Colm Ó Cíosóig, My Bloody Valentine were joined by Belinda Butcher on guitar and vocals, and Debbie Googe on bass in 1987.  From there the quartet signed to British independent Creation Records, releasing two albums for the label.  Released in November, 1988, Isn’t Anything is chaotic and noisy; it combines early hip-hop influenced drum loops with the lush, dream pop atmospherics of mid 80’s indie groups like The Jesus & Mary Chain and Cocteau Twins, then submerges it all under an ear-bleeding wall of sound influenced by noise rock pioneers Dinosaur Jr.  “Soft as Snow (But Warm Inside)” combines rhythmic samples and bass fills with churning guitars; elsewhere “Lose My Breath” and “No More Sorry” drift along lazily with Butchers soft intonations.  “(When You Wake) You’re Still in a Dream” and “Feed Me With Your Kiss” drives forcefully into noise, while “Nothing Much To Lose” revels in the loud-quiet-loud dynamic prominent at the time in the works of the Pixies. 

Shields took nearly two years to deliver the follow up to Isn’t Anything, and it was rumored that the band nearly drove Creation Records into bankruptcy.  Whether or not this is true is debated, but what is certain is the subsequent album is one of the defining albums of its genre.  Released in November 1991, Loveless is the masterpiece vision of one extraordinary artist.  Although Butcher contributes vocals, and drummer Ó Cíosóig plays on two tracks, all of the music on the album is played by Shields.  The drum tracks on built from samples and loops of Ó Cíosóig playing, rather than actual live drum tracks.  For the unique, aquatic sound of the album, Shields developed a style he called “glide guitar,” which involved playing the guitar while holding the tremelo bar.  The album is a master class in studio technique; with many listeners believing Shields used more guitar effects than he actually did, simulating the feel of certain guitar effects by drastically working with tone and pitch to attain similar feels.

“Only Shallow,” the albums explosive opener, saturates the listener with layers of pitch-shifting guitars and Butcher’s soft, angelic voice.  “Look in the mirror / She’s not there / Where she won’t care / Somewhere,” she sings, the vocals painting more of an emotional tone poem than any sort of narrative.  Much of Loveless flows from one song into the next seamlessly, creating a seething mass of sound as blurry as the album’s cover.  Psychedelic loops of guitar and keyboards weave in and out on “To Here Knows When,” while “When You Sleep” is straight-ahead driving indie-noise.  Shields glide guitar becomes a full on sonic assault on “I Only Said,” curling up and down like a yo-yo, before settling into a diesel-like hum.  The album’s closer, “Soon,” had nearly single-handedly defined the shoegazer sound when it appeared the previous year on the band’s Glider e.p.; the song stands today as a groundbreaking sonic explosion, mixing pure guitar white noise with electronic rhythms, loops and samples.

The prolonged and reportedly expensive recording process for Loveless caused Creation Records to part ways with My Bloody Valentine following the album’s release.  However, if Creation had frowned on Shields taking two years to record the follow up to Isn’t Anything, it’s a good thing they got out when they did, because other than Shields contributing music to the soundtrack for Sophia Coppola’s Lost In Translation, My Bloody Valentine would remain absent from the music scene until a brief reunion tour in 2008.  The band wouldn’t release any new music until February 2013, over 21 years after the release of Loveless.

Released in 2013, M B V finds Shields up to similar tricks as he was on Loveless; and though it’s not the sonic groundbreaker its predecessor was, M B V maintains the quality of Loveless.  It is as rich and layered as anything likely to come out this year, and it is the kind of album one can spend days getting lost in.

Senior Project Article #2: The Wonder Stuff

"These are stuff as dreams are made of..." - with a Shakespearean paraphrase and a bounce, The Wonder Stuff's debut album springs to life.  "Red Berry Joy Town," the opening salvo of impish snarl from the Stourbridge quartet, leading way to the cut-time drive of "No, for the 13th Time."

Formed in 1986, The Wonder Stuff's original lineup consisted of Miles Hunt on vocals and guitar, Malcolm Treece on guitar and backing vocals, "The Bass Thing" Rob Jones on bass guitar, and Martin Gilks on drums and percussion.  Their debut album is full of hooks, grooves, and Hunt's trademark mischievous attitude.  Influenced in equal parts by The Clash, The Jam, and the Sex Pistols; The Eight Legged Groove Machine brought a modern spin on classic British power pop. 

Though the album contains many of Hunt's angst filled rants on "Unbearable," "Give, Give, Give Me More, More, More," and "Poison," there are also melodic ballads, such as "Rue The Day" and "Some Sad Someone."  When the album has its softer moments, though, it quickly springs back with the boisterous glee of songs like "A Wish Away," "It's Yer Money I'm After, Baby," and "Ruby Horse."

The Wonder Stuff followed their debut album with the single "Who Wants To Be The Disco King?" in early 1989, and their sophomore album HUP!, a few months later, preceded by the single "Don't Let Me Down, Gently".  HUP! saw the band adding more reliance on drum loops, as well as the addition of Martin Bell on fiddle, mandolin, accordion, and guitar.  Bell's contributions, on "Unfaithful," "Cartoon Boyfriend," and the albums second single, "Golden Green," was inspired by the fiddle playing on Bob Dylan's Desire album, and would add a new color to the bands repertoire.

Following a U.S. tour supporting The Mission U.K., Jones left the band following the recording of the fiddle-driven single "Circlesquare."  Despite his departure, the band would not be idle, replacing Jones with Paul Clifford on bass in 1991.

The subsequent album, Never Loved Elvis, and the singles released during this period, would see the band reach their highest chart position with the singles "The Size of a Cow," "Caught in my Shadow," and "Welcome to the Cheap Seats."  Opening with "Mission Drive," the album starts off gently before jumping into a rush of fiddle and guitar driven excitement.  Many of the singles had a tongue-in-cheek irreverence, but these were tempered with Hunt's fierceness on "Donation," and "Here Comes Everyone."  Never Loved Elvis succeeded in taking the new territory explored on HUP! and bringing in the spirit of fun found on the bands debut. 

This period also saw the band get their biggest U.K. hit, which almost came by accident.  The band reached number 1 on the U.K. singles chart, dethroning U2's "The Fly," with a cover of the Tommy Roe song "Dizzy," featuring comedian and television personality Vic Reeves on lead vocals.  The band had graduated to festival headliners, had gained critical and commercial acclaim, and all seemed to be coming up roses.  However, as they began recording the follow up, word came that "The Bass Thing" Rob Jones had passed away in New York as result of an undiagnosed heart condition.  This put a damper on the sessions and tensions amongst the band over the success of the band began to rise. 

In late 1993 the band released its final album for Polydor Records, Construction for the Modern Idiot.  The album would feature a less buoyant sound than it's predecessor, featuring a leaner, angrier sound than any of their previous albums.  The singles "Full of Life (Happy Now!)" and "Hot Love Now" would lighten the mood, but tracks like "I Wish Them All Dead" and the album's first single, "On the Ropes," would capture the tension the band was going through internally.  As the tour wound down in the spring of '94, the band entered the studio in an attempt to explore new material, but was unsatisfied with the results.  They accepted an offer to headline the first day of the 1994 Phoenix Festival in Stratford Upon Avon and announced their farewell performance would be on July 14th of that year.  The band bid their fans adieu with a whirlwind performance of 28 classics ranging from their first single "It's Not True" to their more recent material, even bringing out Reeves for a spin through "Dizzy." 

Following the split, Hunt did a short stint as a V.J. on MTV Europe, before recording an album with a new group, Vent 414, while Treece, Gilks, and Clifford formed We Know Where You Live with Ange Doolittle of the recently split U.K. band Eat.  By the late 1990's Hunt embarked on an acoustic tour of the U.S. accompanied by Treece.  Hunt would begin releasing solo e.p.'s (short for "extended play") and albums with help from Treece and Bell.

In December 2000, The Wonder Stuff, with Clifford being replaced by Stewart Quinnell, reunited in London for five sold out shows at The Forum. The reunion lasted into the summer, with the band playing a handful of festivals.  The band launched summer and winter tours over the next few years, but tensions over whether or not to record new material and the growth of the tour costs began to arise between Hunt and Gilks.  In 2004, Hunt announced that he and Treece had recorded a new album with Mark McCarthy and Andres Karau, and intended to release it as The Wonder Stuff.  Escape From Rubbish Island marked the first Wonder Stuff album in 10 years, but dissolved the relationship between Hunt, Gilks, and Bell. The band recruited Erica Nockells to take over Bells duties of fiddle, and recorded Suspended by Stars in 2006.  Just after the albums release, Martin Gilks was killed in a motorcycle accident.  

The Wonder Stuff marked the 20th anniversary of The Eight Legged Groove Machine in 2008 by performing the album in its entirety at a series of shows, and also recording the album live in the studio, along with a selection of era b-sides.  They enjoyed the process so much they decided to do the same for the 21st anniversary of HUP!, two years later.  In 2011, they booked shows for the 20th anniversary of Never Loved Elvis, but announced shortly before the shows that Malcolm Treece had decided to leave the band.

In 2011 and 2012, they released a series of 7" singles titled From the Midlands with Love that celebrated other groups from the same area.  In March 2013, The Wonder Stuff, now featuring only Hunt from the bands original lineup, released its 7th studio album, Oh No! It's...The Wonder Stuff.