Q Magazine, September, 1997
THE WEDDING PRESENT
Evening Sessions 1986-1994
STRANGE FRUIT SFR SCD029
As incongruous as it may seem, The Wedding Present are one of the country's most enduring indie bands, 1997 signifying their 12th year together. Although bestowed with a loyal cult following and occasional mainstream success, the biggest gripe against them is that all their songs sound the same. And, yes, as this collection of Radio 1 sessions amply confirms, indeed they do. Practically every song features extended - and very tinny - guitar solos, intermittently broken up with David Gedge singing gruffly about his inability to keep his woman a) happy, and b) faithful. And yet they remain a sweetly endearing proposition, a kind of Nick Hornby version of pop who, despite their best of efforts, are constricted by their very ordinariness. **
Nick Duerden