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Going Blank Again

 
Album Review: Going Blank Again

  • Artist: Ride
  • Rating: StarStarStarHalf Star
  • Release Date: 1992 03
  • Total Time: 50:22
  • Type: Lyrics are included with the album
  • Genre: Rock

Review

From the sounds of the cloistered, chaotic opener, "Leave Them All Behind," Going Blank Again sounds like it could be headed down the same Nowhere path. Guitars as far as the ear can hear -- not much different from the effect gained after riding a sit-and-spin for eight straight minutes -- are just as dizzying as the prior record's opener. But rather than sink into a thick underbelly of melancholy, Going Blank Again offers sunshiney melodies and gleaming, bold production. All the band's elements are more pliable, and overall it's pretty cheery. In fact, some of the album could be loosely classified as power pop. Bouncy tunes like "Twisterella," "Not Fazed," "Mouse Trap," and "Time of Her Time" each share more than a thing or two in common with the likes of Teenage Fanclub, but with more layered vocals and less-cutting guitars. Though Ride's guitars don't bite as much, there are loads of them everywhere; the band doesn't completely sacrifice their love of reverberating noise, but it's more done in the name of pop than to merely cause a blistering racket. Though the lyrics often read as overtly simple or obtuse (a common Ride foible), Mark Gardener's and Andy Bell's voices are too pretty to let this shortcoming mar things. They create enough of a mood with their proper instruments, and their sighing and random vocal intonations are undeniably lovely. No longer do they hide shortcomings with sheets of distortion, and there's a lot more focus and confidence on display throughout. Don't let a Ride fan tell you otherwise: Going Blank Again is anything but empty. [Going Blank Again was remastered and reissued by Ignition U.K. in 2001. Four B-sides are added; the only B-side from this era not included is an alternate version of "Chrome Waves."] ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track TitleComposersPerformersTime
Leave Them All Behind Mark Gardener Ride (8:17)
Twisterella Mark Gardener Ride (3:42)
Not Fazed Andy Bell Ride (4:20)
Chrome Waves Andy Bell Ride (3:54)
Mousetrap Mark Gardener Ride (5:16)
Time of Her Time Andy Bell Ride (3:16)
Cool Your Boots Andy Bell Ride (6:02)
Making Judy Smile Andy Bell Ride (2:37)
Time Machine Mark Gardener Ride (5:52)
OX4 (Lyrics) Mark Gardener Ride (7:06)

Credits

Ride (Producer), Ride (Main Performer), Alan Moulder (Producer), Alan Moulder (Engineer), Dick Derry (Assistant Engineer), Loz Colbert (Drums), Steve Queralt (Bass), Christopher Guson (Artwork), Mark Gardener (Guitar), Mark Gardener (Vocals), Andy Bell (Guitar), Andy Bell (Vocals), Matt Oliver (Engineer)
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Wikipedia: Going Blank Again
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Going Blank Again
Studio album by Ride
Released 9 March 1992
Recorded Chipping Norton Recording Studios, Chipping Norton & Blackbarn Studios, Ripley
Genre Alternative
Length 50:24 (Original 1992 release) 73:04 (2001 re-release)
Label Creation Records
Producer Alan Moulder
Professional reviews
Ride chronology
Today Forever (1991) Going Blank Again
(1992)
Carnival of Light
(1994)

Going Blank Again is the second studio album by British shoegazing band Ride, released in March 1992 on Creation Records. It was produced by Alan Moulder.

Contents

Album

Following Ride's 1990 debut album Nowhere, Ride released Going Blank Again as their second full-length record, accompanied by the singles "Leave Them All Behind" and "Twisterella".[1][2] The album consists of ten tracks, selected from twenty-five that the band had recorded.[3]

It has been said that Going Blank Again resembles the band's debut album but also has an upbeat, power pop factor.[4] In this sense the album has been compared to the music of Teenage Fanclub who were Creation Records labelmates of Ride, although it is pointed out that Ride's vocals are more layered, and that the guitars are not as sharp and cutting as those of similar bands of the same era, whilst retaining the reverberating sound that was typical of the shoegaze sound,[4] which was influenced by Phil Spector's Wall of Sound technique. The lyrics on the album have been criticised, but overall this was not seen as an important factor for the album given the nature of shoegaze.[4]

Reviewing the album at the time, British music weekly NME noted that they did not have high hopes for Going Blank Again but that Ride "did the business" and restored the magazine's faith in the band[5], noting particularly that they had taken on board a diverse set of influences and developed their sound:

This LP has some top punk rock bass guitar on it! Some new effects pedals! New ideas! It is not Going Nowhere Again which is the album we feared they'd make. Instead, GBA fills in the lines between Ride's beauty with cement and then builds like a demon. There is no stone left unturned, as they open up to new reference points... would you believe King Crimson? New Order? The Who? The Beach Boys? Ride have reinvented themselves whilst retaining all the cuteness of Haircut 100.

[5]

An academic study on My Bloody Valentine's seminal shoegazing album Loveless mentions that the tracks of Going Blank Again are "predictive" of later genres of indie rock, and notes that the seventh track "Cool Your Boots" is a "shoegazing classic".[6]

The band credit Christopher Gunson with creating the cover art for the album.[7]

The album was re-released on 24 September 2001 featuring 4 bonus tracks on the Ignition U.K. label.[3][4] The 2001 Release was longer than the 1992 Release, with Some tracks added.

Track listing

All songs credited to Ride. The liner notes give individual credits for lyrics.

  1. "Leave Them All Behind" (Ride/Gardener) - 8:18
  2. "Twisterella" (Ride/Gardener) - 3:42
  3. "Not Fazed" (Ride/Bell) - 4:24
  4. "Chrome Waves" (Ride/Bell) - 3:53
  5. "Mouse Trap" (Ride/Gardener) - 5:14
  6. "Time Of Her Time" (Ride/Bell) - 3:16
  7. "Cool Your Boots" (Ride/Bell) - 6:01
  8. "Making Judy Smile" (Ride/Bell) - 2:39
  9. "Time Machine" (Ride/Gardener) - 5:54
  10. "OX4" (Ride/Gardener) - 7:03

Bonus tracks taken from the "Leave Them All Behind" (track 4) and "Twisterella" (tracks 1-3) singles for the 2001 re-release:

  1. "Going Blank Again" - 3:21
  2. "Howard Hughes" - 4:03
  3. "Stampede" - 4:16
  4. "Grasshopper" - 10:56

References

External links


 
 

 

Copyrights:

Album Review. Copyright © 2009 All Media Guide, LLC. Content provided by All Music Guide ®, a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Going Blank Again" Read more