Repercussion (album)
| Repercussion | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1981 | |||
| Recorded | 1981 | |||
| Studio | Power Station, New York and Ramport Studios, London; mixed at George Martin's Air Studios | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 38:44 | |||
| Label | Albion (original release) I.R.S. (1989 CD reissue) | |||
| Producer | Scott Litt | |||
| The dB's chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Robert Christgau | B+[2] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide |  [3] |
Repercussion is the second studio album by American power pop band the dB's, released in 1981[4] by Albion Records. Like its predecessor, Stands for Decibels, the album was commercially unsuccessful but critically acclaimed.[5]
This was the band's final album with the original lineup, as Chris Stamey left in early April 1982.[6]
Background and production[edit]
Stamey and Peter Holsapple, the band's dual singers/guitarists, each ended up contributing six songs on the album. As was the case on their debut, Stamey's songs veered towards more experimental melodies and rhythms, while Holsapple's songs were more traditionally in a pop vein.[5]
The album was produced by Scott Litt (later famous for his association with the band R.E.M. and for remixing Nirvana's album In Utero), giving it a "fuller, more modern overall sound".[5]
The first track, Holsapple's "Living a Lie", featured a horn section, the Rumour Brass.[5]
Stamey's "ridiculously catchy" song "Ask for Jill" was about the process of mastering an album.[7]
Holsapple's composition "Amplifier" (about a suicidal man reflecting on how his significant other left him and took all his belongings, save for the titular object) became the band's lead single and also their first video.[8] "Amplifier" was later rerecorded and included on the band's next album, Like This. The original version was later included on Rhino Records' box set Left of the Dial: Dispatches from the '80s Underground.
A video for the second single, "Neverland", was completed but went unreleased until the band uploaded it to their website in 2008.[9]
Track listing[edit]
Side 1
- "Living a Lie" – 3:26 (Peter Holsapple)
- "We Were Happy There" – 2:39 (Holsapple)
- "Happenstance" – 4:07 (Chris Stamey)
- "From a Window" – 2:34 (Stamey)
- "Amplifier" – 3:08 (Holsapple)
- "Ask for Jill" – 2:33 (Stamey)
Side 2
- "I Feel Good (Today)" – 4:28 (Stamey)
- "Storm Warning" – 2:32 (Holsapple)
- "Ups and Downs" – 3:03 (Stamey)
- "Nothing Is Wrong" – 4:16 (Holsapple)
- "In Spain" – 3:02 (Stamey)
- "Neverland" – 2:46 (Holsapple)
Different versions of the album have been reissued on CD with different bonus tracks, usually either Holsapple's instrumental B-side "PH Factor" or Stamey's "Soul Kiss".
Personnel[edit]
The dB's[edit]
- Chris Stamey – guitar, vocals
- Peter Holsapple – guitar, vocals
- Gene Holder – bass guitar
- Will Rigby – drums
Additional musicians[edit]
- Andy Clark – additional keyboards
- The Rumour Brass:
- Chris Gower – trombone
- Dick Hansen – trumpet
- John "Irish" Earle – saxophones
References[edit]
- ^ AllMusic Review
- ^ "Robert Christgau: CG: The dB's". www.robertchristgau.com.
- ^ The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. p. 184.
- ^ Billboard, December 26 1981, p. 87
- ^ a b c d "TrouserPress.com :: dB's". www.trouserpress.com.
- ^ Gimme Indie Rock: 500 Essential American Underground Rock Albums 1981-1996 by Andrew Earles
- ^ Repercussion at AllMusic
- ^ "The dB's: Stands for Decibels/Repercussion". Pitchfork.
- ^ "The dB's "Neverland" Video by Phil Marino, Jake Gorst – The dB's Online". thedbs.com.
