Radish "Hello" (1994)

Before Ben Kweller was an indie household name, he formed a trio called Radish with John Kent and Ryan Green. Pioneering their own "Sugar Metal" sound in the early nineties altrock sphere, but unfortunately wasn't really enough for them to stand out at the time. Kweller was around the age of 13 or 14 at the time when Hello was recorded, as can be seen from his unusually high registered vocals on the album. Radish gained some minor popularity from their 1997 album, Restraining Bolt, but with the track "Rollercoaster" on Hello I became hooked to this album and everything Radish ended up making since around 10th grade (2004).

Don't expect an album by an inexperienced 13 year old here. And don't expect it to be similar to Ben Kweller's solo stuff. Grungy funk influenced melodic rock with pop lyrical style; I guess that's the best way to describe sugar metal. This is a rare album to find. Nothing absolutely stands out about this album for sure, but it carries a lot of nostalgia for me and hopefully you're afforded a similar enjoyment.

And if you were interested at all, Restraining Bolt is definitely worth a listen as well. It carries a different sound than their earlier work and more concise rock tunes than the flowing storytelling style of Hello.

http://www.mediafire.com/?tvxtxqmozhf

Radish "Hello" (1994)
1. Space Boy
2. Hello
3. Wooden Window
4. Leave
5. Kitty
6. You Can Run
7. Whatcha Gonna Do?
8. Rollercoaster
9. I Want You To
10. The Way

Favorite tracks are "Rollercoaster", "Space Boy" and "Kitty".