"Stand Up" by Underworld

Song#:  4009

Date:  08/26/1989

Debut:  95

Peak:  67

Weeks:  8

Genre:  Rock

Pop Bits:  This UK band made a little blip in the US when their single "Underneath the Radar" spent a couple months on the Pop chart peaking at #74. The song was from their debut album of the same name, which was able to reach #139. The album and single were bigger successes in Australia so that most likely gave the band the ability to record a second album for their label Sire Records. They would come out of the studio with Change the Weather and this first single got things kicked off. The track performed fairly well at Modern Rock getting to #14. On the Pop chart it could only do slightly better than their previous charting single. This time around it wasn't enough to sell albums and it would fail to chart. The LP and single also failed to do much in Australia and with that the band folded - for the time being.

ReduxReview:  This shufflin' anthemic tune had a Euro rock flare that was nothing like what the band would be doing a few years later. It's an engaging tune, but I think it would have benefited from a more robust arrangement. The chorus on this should have really popped, but it doesn't quite get there. I think part of the reason is that the lead vocal wasn't as forceful or strong as it needed to be. The song should have made me want to jump out of my chair and stand up, but it made me sort of think - eh, I'll stand up when I get to it.

ReduxRating:  5/10

Trivia:  After Underworld split up, the originators of the band Karl Hyde and Rick Smith moved on to do other work. During that time, Smith got connected up with DJ Darren Emerson. The pair began to work on dance/electronic music tracks. Hyde would reconnect with Smith and heard what the pair were working on. It wasn't long before the trio started collaborating. They would record and release a few tracks starting in '92 under the name Lemon Interupt while also doing a few remixes as Steppin' Razor. Signed to the indie dance/electronic label Junior Boy's Own, the trio would revert to the Underworld name for a 1994 debut album titled Dubnobasswithmyheadman. Its acid house/techno sound thrilled critics and pretty much made folks forget about the first version of Underworld. A second effort, 1996's Second Toughest in the Infants, would garner even more praise and would break the band further thanks to the LP being released around the same time as the soundtrack to the cult British film Trainspotting. That popular soundtrack included a pair of Underworld tracks including "Born Slippy .NUXX," which was released as a single and became a major #2 platinum hit in the UK (#27 US Dance). Underworld would then hit their commercial peak with 1999's Beaucoup Fish. It would reach #3 in the UK and spawn a pair of Top 20 hits. Emerson would later depart Underworld leaving Hyde and Smith to continue on. They would record more albums and even write music for the 2012 Summer Olympics that were held in London. In the US, the techno era of Underworld was never able to get a song on the Pop chart. However, they would earn three Dance Top 10s. Beaucoup Fish would do the best on the album chart peaking at #93.

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