So Tonight That I Might See
1993 studio album by Mazzy Star
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So Tonight That I Might See is the second studio album by American alternative rock band Mazzy Star, released by Capitol Records on September 27, 1993 in the United Kingdom,[4] and on October 5, 1993 in the United States.[5]
| So Tonight That I Might See | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | September 27, 1993 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 51:36 | |||
| Label | Capitol | |||
| Producer | David Roback | |||
| Mazzy Star chronology | ||||
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| Singles from So Tonight That I Might See | ||||
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The album's first track, "Fade into You", became the band's first and only single to make the Billboard Hot 100 chart, peaking at number 44, and also charted at number 48 on the UK Singles Chart, and is today the band's best-known song and record.
The release achieved widespread acclaim both contemporarily and retrospectively, and today the album is considered one of the greatest of the 1990s.[6]
Music
So Tonight That I Might See has been characterized as "a dream pop album with a gothic core." The album's style has also been described as "a nexus point between country, folk, psych, and classic rock all shrouded in mystery." According to Evan Rytlewski of Pitchfork: "It plays out in a hallucinogenic swirl: Glimmers of warmth peek through the album’s lurching psychedelia, but they’re ephemeral, interrupted by stern, almost contemptuous blues riffs that glare into the distance. The harder you try to make eye contact with these songs, the more pointedly they avert your gaze."[6][7]
Critical reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [7] |
| Entertainment Weekly | A[8] |
| Los Angeles Times | [9] |
| NME | 8/10[10] |
| Pitchfork | 9.4/10[1] |
| Rolling Stone |  [11] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [12] |
| Uncut | 10/10[13] |
| Vox | 8/10[14] |
Los Angeles Times critic Steve Hochman raved that So Tonight That I Might See "may be the culmination" of the Paisley Underground scene from which Mazzy Star originated, deeming the album "far more narcotic and hypnotic than anything the whole techno-trance universe has digitally blipped up to date."[9] In NME, Keith Cameron called it "an even more lustrous, becalmed work" than Mazzy Star's 1990 debut She Hangs Brightly,[10] and the magazine later ranked it as the 44th-best album of 1993.[15] Lorraine Ali was more critical in Rolling Stone, writing that the album's initially intriguing qualities grow "increasingly monotonous",[11] while Robert Christgau of The Village Voice dismissed it as a "dud".[16]
In a retrospective review for AllMusic, Ned Raggett said that "So Tonight That I Might See remains the group's undisputed high point, mixing in plenty of variety among its tracks without losing sight of what made the group so special to begin with."[7] In 2010, Pitchfork listed "Fade into You" as the 19th-best track of the 1990s,[17] while So Tonight That I Might See was ranked second on the website's 2018 list of the best dream pop albums,[18] and 116th on its 2022 list of the best albums of the 1990s.[6]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Hope Sandoval and David Roback, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Fade into You" | 4:55 | |
| 2. | "Bells Ring" | 4:32 | |
| 3. | "Mary of Silence" | 6:02 | |
| 4. | "Five String Serenade" | Arthur Lee | 4:24 |
| 5. | "Blue Light" | 5:10 | |
| 6. | "She's My Baby" | 4:25 | |
| 7. | "Unreflected" | 3:42 | |
| 8. | "Wasted" | 5:31 | |
| 9. | "Into Dust" | 5:36 | |
| 10. | "So Tonight That I Might See" | 7:19 | |
| Total length: | 51:36 | ||
Personnel
Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.[19]
- Hope Sandoval
- David Roback
- Keith Mitchell
- William Cooper
- Jason Yates
- Dale Everingham – engineer, technical assistance
Charts
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| New Zealand (RMNZ)[27] | Gold | 7,500‡ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[28] BPI cert 1 |
Silver | 60,000^ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[29] BPI cert 2 |
Gold | 100,000‡ |
| United States (RIAA)[30] | Platinum | 1,000,000^ |
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^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||