Pulp
This Is Hardcore 2LP

"This is the sound of someone losing the plot/you're gonna like it, but not a lot." So says Jarvis Cocker on "The Fear", the opening track on This Is Hardcore, the ambitious follow-up to Pulp's breakthrough Different Class, thereby providing his own review for the album. Cocker doesn't quite lose the plot on This Is Hardcore, but this ominous, claustrophobic track makes it clear that this is a different band, one that no longer has anthems like "Common People" in mind. The shift in direction shouldn't come as a surprise - Pulp were always an arty band - but even the catchiest numbers are shrouded in darkness.

This Is Hardcore is haunted by disappointments and fear - by the realisation that what you dreamed of may not be what you really wanted. Nowhere is this better heard than on "This Is Hardcore", where drum loops, lounge piano, cinematic strings, and a sharp lyric create a frightening monument to weary decadence. It's the centrepiece of the album, and the best moments follow its tone. 

NEW / Released in 1998 / Reissue 2016

Tracklist:

A1 The Fear

A2 Dishes

A3 Party Hard

A4 Help The Aged

A5 This Is Hardcore

B1 TV Movie

B2 A Little Soul

B3 I'm A Man

B4 Seductive Barry

C1 Sylvia

C2 Glory Days

C3 The Day After The Revolution

D1 Tomorrow Never Dies (Rough Mix)

D2 Laughing Boy

D3 The Professional

D4 This Is Hardcore (End Of The Line Remix)