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Oct 29, 2018 The Cranberries By Frank Valish

From the moment I heard The Cranberries’ second single, “Linger,” the first of the band’s songs that had attracted my attention on radio, the band held a particular allure. With a sound that somehow mixed the pop melodies that I’d grown up on with the subtle shoegaze tendencies that I would soon find myself entranced with, the band’s debut single hauntingly drew me in. That was 25 years ago, when this writer was in his impressionable youth.

A quarter century later, the band has rereleased the debut album from which that single was released, reissued in a four-CD box set that fleshes out the band’s early years. The original album, presented here on Disc 1, has aged remarkably well. The harmonies and string orchestration on “Sunday,” the two-minute minimalism of “Pretty,” the dramatic build and release of “Not Sorry,” the warm embrace of “Linger,” the pop perfection of “Wanted” and “Still Can’t…”, and the subtle rock touches of “How”—all withstand the test of time, sounding like they haven’t aged a day.

The rest of this 25th anniversary set is integral in understanding the band’s nascent years and remarkable in providing a full picture of the early Cranberries. Disc 2 features album outtakes and B-sides, as well as the band’s debut EP and early demos recorded before it changed its name from the pun-tastic The Cranberry Saw Us. Early versions of “Dreams” and “Linger” are illuminating in their purest form. Another highlight is the spare, haunting “Them,” presented here in both B-side and debut EP form.

Discs 3 and 4 are comprised of early live performances. Disc 3 begins with three songs from the band’s first concert under the Cranberries name and finishes with a show from Tipperary in July of 1994, the latter which features several tracks from the band’s sophomore album, No Need to Argue. And Disc 4 features early radio sessions from 1992, ‘93, and ‘94, all which wonderfully illustrate the band’s early growth and development.

In all, this 25th Anniversary Edition of Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can’t We, is the perfect document of early Cranberries. The extensive liner note essay provides context and description for the sounds herein. And those sounds are magnificent (www.cranberries.com)

Author rating: 8/10