YOU would need a bus load of faith to believe the Britpop hype and here comes a double decker helping of new from the land which brought us Blur, Oasis, Pulp, Supergrass and just about every other band - that matters. The NME, Britain's top music weekly, has been banging on about Britpop long enough, but this time it's packing its brightest hopes; onto a big juggernaut and bringing them round to every corner of Britain and Ireland, just in case there's somebody out there who hasn't yet heard of the B word.
The Bratbus is well named, since it contains a coterie of arrogant young bucks and fillies, eager to stampede all over our sensibilities and kick our cynicism into the ground. Heading the pack is Hounslow band The Bluetones, whose caustic turn of phrase and cool, crystalline sound makes them a cross between The Smiths and The Stone Roses. The Bluetones were first heard on the legendary Fierce Panda EP, Return To Splendour, contributing a track entitled No II. The song was later renamed Bluetonic and it got its proper release last October, following their colourcoordinated debut, Are You Blue Or Are You Blind? The band's debut album is being released early this year and if there isn't a reference to the colour blue in the title, then I'll eat my Krzysztof Kiezlowski biography.
DON'T be fooled by Fluffy's cuddly name - the four girls from West London are not your playthings. Fluffy are a hardcore punk band with a soft centre and they're not afraid to talk dirty and play filthy. Their debut single, Hypersonic, is a manic eulogy to masturbation and much of their music deals with low life in high society. The band have been dismissed as "posh punks" but since they lost their former bass player with a double barrelled surname, they've been trying hard to ditch the "upper class tarts" tag. Fluffy's biggest problem isn't getting people to come to their gigs, it's getting the boys to stop rushing to the front of the stage to try and look up their extremely short skirts.
Heavy Stereo are hard rockers with a heart of Glam. Dig beneath their dirty guitar riffs and you'll uncover shades of Marc Bolan, Slade and even Gary Glitter in the stomping, Seventies-esque sound. Although based in London, Heavy Stereo prefer to avoid the Camden scene, concentrating instead on building up a fanbase far away from the cynicism and snobbery of London. They should be right at home on the Bratbus and their penchant for indoor acrobatics while on tour should add weight to their Brat reputation.
Finally, The Cardigans are not only cuddly and nice, they're not even bloody British! How this five piece from Sweden managed to stow away on the Bratbus is not exactly clear but their presence will be warmly welcomed by anyone who enjoys Sixties style pop with a distinctly jazzy feel. The Cardigans have been around since 1992, which makes them the veterans of the tour; they're also the only band on the bus to actually have an album out - two, in fact: their second album, Life, is currently in the UK album charts. Perhaps The Cardigans could lead a new wave of Swedish bands in 1996 - then we could call it Brittpop.
