Piece of Cake (album)

Recorded at Seattle's Egg Studios, the album was produced by Conrad Uno and the band.^[9][10] Mudhoney spent $15,000 to record it; unlike previous albums, the band completed it at one time, instead of spending non-consecutive weeks in the studio.^[11][12] Reprise granted Mudhoney full artistic freedom in the making of Piece of Cake.^[13]

Mudhoney reserved four of the album's tracks for each individual band member to do what he saw fit.^[14] "Youth Body Expression Explosion" is an instrumental track.^[15] The band used an organ on many of the songs.^[16] Piece of Cake was the first Mudhoney album that bass player Matt Lukin was satisfied with.^[17]

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[18]
Calgary Herald	A−[19]
The Indianapolis Star	[20]
Los Angeles Times	[21]
Rolling Stone	[22]
Toronto Sun	[23]

The Toronto Star wrote that the songs "are leavened with hooks and humor, and mostly free of extraneous axework."^[24] The Calgary Herald determined that "it takes time to grow on you because [Mudhoney] eschews more over-the-top metal influences in favor of punkish garage-rock glory."^[19] The Toronto Sun opined that "the majority of the 13 songs sound artlessly tossed together, as though the group felt a lack of effort, in and of itself, somehow constituted a statement about signing with a big corporation."^[23]

The Washington Post concluded: "Where other Seattle bands seem to embrace going under, this one fights back ... Mudhoney is too noisy, too punchy and just plain too contrary to curl up and die."^[25] The Indianapolis Star stated that, "in his minor-key yelp, Mark Arm frequently equates love with death ... Some listeners may be reminded of a similar album thematically, X's Under the Big Black Sun."^[20]

The Rocky Mountain News listed Piece of Cake as the sixth best album of 1992.^[26] Spin included the album on its list of the 20 best records of the year.^[27]

All tracks are written by Mudhoney, except where noted.

1. "[Untitled 1]" – 0:38
2. "No End in Sight" – 3:34
3. "Make It Now" – 4:25
4. "When in Rome" – 3:55
5. "[Untitled 2]" – 0:25
6. "Suck You Dry" – 2:34
7. "Blinding Sun" – 3:39
8. "Thirteenth Floor Opening" – 2:31
9. "Youth Body Expression Explosion" – 1:59
10. "I'm Spun" – 4:04
11. "[Untitled 3]" – 0:40
12. "Take Me There" – 3:32
13. "Living Wreck" – 3:30
14. "Let Me Let You Down" – 3:57
15. "[Untitled 4]" – 0:29
16. "Ritzville" – 2:38
17. "Acetone" – 4:15

18. "Over the Top" (Lemmy Kilmister, Eddie Clarke, Phil Taylor)– 2:35 *
19. "King Sandbox" – 2:43 **
20. "Baby o Baby" (Martin Rev) – 3:45 **
21. "In the Blood" – 3:08 ***
22. "No Song III" – 4:11 ***
23. "Between Me and You Kid" – 3:38 ***
24. "Six Two One" – 2:34 ***
25. "Make It Now Again" – 4:35 ***
26. "Deception Pass" – 2:54 ***/*/**
27. "Underide" – 2:07 ***/*

• * originally appeared as a B-Side to "Suck You Dry" (1992)
• ** originally appeared as a B-Side to "Blinding Sun" (1993)
• *** originally appeared on the E.P. Five Dollar Bob's Mock Cooter Stew (1993)
• Tracks 21–25 recorded August 1, 1993, at Hanszek Audio, Ballard, Washington. Produced by Kurt Bloch and Mudhoney, engineered by Kurt Bloch.
• Tracks 26 and 27 recorded at Egg Studios with Conrad Uno at the Helm, 1992.