1989-1996 Ciao! Best Of Lush [Best of]

Organised in reverse chronological order, CIAO! opens with "Ladykillers" from their last album LOVELIFE. While by this album in 1996 the band had moved to a britpop sound that some perceived as a bid for public attention, the crystal-clear production of the LOVELIFE material and the excellence of the performance makes Lush's material to the uninitiated attractive from the start. The incredible drumming of the late Chris Acland on "Ladykillers" and Phil King's powerful bass on "Single Girl" can only thrill a person hearing them for the first time.

From there, the songs on CIAO! in my opinion only get better. Six tracks are present from the era of their 1994 album SPLIT, the first of which is the gorgeous "Light From A Dead Star." Concisely packing its glory into 3 minutes, this is nearly perfect song is one of Lush's best efforts. One of my few nitpicks is that on CIAO! "Light From A Dead Star" is not followed by "Kiss Chase", as those two songs formed a great combination on SPLIT. But instead of that, we get "Love At First Sight" is here from one of the singles released to promote SPLIT and is relatively entertaining. "Hypocrite" is a friendly piece of pop goodness where Acland again shines. "Desire Lines" is one of the several longer pieces found on SPLIT which built from simple rhythms, grow into long jams, and finish with a lovely use of strings.

I find the selection of tracks from Lush's 1992 album SPOOKY to be less satisfying. "Ocean" and "Covert", that album's most hyponotic songs, are missing. We get instead simpler, more radio-friendly tracks. "Nothing Natural", "Untogether", and "For Love" aren't bad, they just aren't Lush's best material from that period in my opinion. Nonetheless, "Monochrome" is here to give a glimpse of what Lush's strongest output sounded like during that time.

CIAO! closes with selections from Lush's three debut EPs that were later released together as GALA. "De-Luxe" and "Sweetness and Light" are typical of Lush's shoegazing style during this first era. To my chagrin, the version of "Thoughtforms" here is the first version Lush did, the quiet and badly produced one that shouldn't have been put here in favour of the second version that would blow any listener away and which is one of Lush's best songs. Finally, this compilation closes with "Etheriel", a track from SCAR, their debut EP. Showing a band still begin to explore their musical abilities, "Etheriel" is a fitting conclusion to CIAO!

Lush was one of the 4AD label's best bands, and listening to CIAO! is a sober reminded of how much was lost with Chris Acland's suicide and the band's subsequent breakup. Lush had incredible musical talent. The duo of Miki Berenyi and Emma Anderson on guitar constantly pushed the bounds of what etherial rock should sound like. Phil King, the bassist on Lush's post-1992 work, provided a steady base to the sound but displayed excellent improvisation as well. Finally, Chris Acland was one of rock's finest drummers, capturing the attention of drumming greats such as Neil Peart as soon as Lush began performing publically. While Lush fans know all this already, I would recommend getting CIAO! if you're curious about the band, or a long-time fan who wants to turn other people on to Lush.