Sonic Stereotypes: The Lad

Sonic Stereotypes: The Lad Britpop brought us two things. Firstly, it made us, as a nation, proud of our pop again. For a brief moment in ‘95, it seemed like we’d inherited the earth. Then Menswear and Strangelove happened. The second thing, and probably the longest lasting of Britpop’s legacies, is The Lad. Even though Britain has grown up a fair bit (read: desperate to appear caring with recycling and bragging about tiny carbon footprints), in amongst all the yoghurt-weavers is a hardcore bunch still swilling Stella and shouting “‘Aaaave iiiiiiitt!”
Go to almost any gig and you’ll see some dunderhead in a laddy tee. Usually, these are Stone Roses or Oasis shirts. Hell, you might even catch an Ocean Colour Scene top! Yep. There are lads who are still locked in plastic Manc-dom, trying to ape Liam Gallagher and swaggering around like they’re simultaneously carrying two rolled up carpets and have shat their jeans. If you’ve seen Hollyoaks and you know who the Rhys character is, you’ll know the sort. Spot them in almost every pub, student union and gig… ‘aving it. For more Sonic Stereotypes, click here