User:Chchcheckit/sandbox
1997 studio album by The Geraldine Fibbers
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Butch is the second and final studio album by American rock band The Geraldine Fibbers, released on July 1, 1997, through Virgin Records. The album was produced by the band and Steve Fisk and recorded at The Sound Factory in Los Angeles in December 1996. [...] Musically, Butch saw The Geraldine Fibbers depart from the country stylings of The Geraldine Fibbers' debut album Lost Somewhere Between the Earth and My Home (1995) towards a more experimental and abrasive one, which several critics attributed to the addition of guitarist Nels Cline to the band's lineup. Carla Bozulich's lyrics are more ambiguous and metaphor-laden, and explore themes of gender ambiguity and sexuality, female power, alienation, suppression, mortality, and death.
| Butch | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | July 1, 1997 | |||
| Recorded | December 1996 | |||
| Studio | The Sound Factory (Los Angeles) | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 53:10 | |||
| Label | Virgin | |||
| Producer |
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| The Geraldine Fibbers chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Butch | ||||
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Butch received positive reviews from music critics, who highlighted (songwriting/orginality?), Bozulich's (lyricism/performances) and Cline's (performances). The album placed at number 22 on The Village Voice's annual Pazz & Jop critics' poll. The album spawned one single, "California Tuffy", whose music video Bozulich directed. After embarking on tours of North America and Europe throughout 1997, The Geraldine Fibbers were dropped form Virgin's roster due to the album's poor sales and entered an indefinite hiatus in early 1998.
Background and recording
(insert image of nels cline: MANY critical sources note how his style influenced sound of butch)
In 1995, the Geraldine Fibbers released their debut album Lost Somewhere Between the Earth and My Home, which was critically acclaimed but [...] struggled to get airplay, no commercial success,(source) only sold 15,000 copies (damn).[1] Guitarist Daniel Keenan contracted tendonitis during the album's recording, which subsequently worsened
Whilst touring in support of the album, guitarist Daniel Keenan began suffering from ,
and stepped out [...] Nels Cline filed in for much of touring [...] Carla Bozulich met Cline during the recording of Mike Watt's solo album Ball-Hog or Tugboat? (1995) uhhh yeah. [...]
In early 1996, guitarist Daniel Keenan was forced to step back from touring due to worsening tendonitis and was replaced by for the remainder of the Geraldine Fibbers' tour dates that year.[2]
the Geraldine Fibbers brought Nels Cline to fill-in
Cline had first met [frontwoman] Carla Bozulich during the recording of
Cline was a fan of band/album.[a] [...]
Keenan left band a month before recording of Butch ... cline stepped in yeahh. co-wrote 2 songs but yeah influence apparent??
altough Butch was largely written by then??? Cline contributed to the writiing of "Seven or in 10" and the album's title track; he composed the latter's main riff during soundchecks.[4]
Cline said he didn't have massive involvement in songwriting, though his experimental style of guitar playing really did shake things up[4]
Bozulich generally did not write [lyrics for] songs consciously, except for "Trashman in Furs"[5] and "Folks Like Me", the latter of which she intended as a "70's-style Nashville country song" and spent a year working on.[6] She believed the Geraldine Fibbers were "subconsciously" influenced to write shorter songs after Virgin told the band they could not get any of Lost Somewhere Between the Earth and My Home's songs on the radio due to their length.[7]
The Geraldine Fibbers recorded Butch in December 1996 at The Sound Factory in Los Angeles with producer Steve Fisk,[8] who also worked on Lost Somewhere Between the Earth and My Home.(source) (anything else about recording?) ... In addition to electric guitar, Bozulich performed electric bass, glockenspiel, organwife, piano strings, and a Ensoniq EPS-16 Plus sampler across the album's songs.[9] Sally Browder mixed most of the album's tracks at Brooklyn Recording in Los Angeles between March and April 1997; "Trashman in Furs", "Swim Back to Me", and "Arrow to My Drunken Eye" were mixed by Bouzlich and John Siket at Greene Street in New York City in January 1997.[8] Shortly after recording was completed, violinist Jesse Greene left the Geraldine Fibbers to join The Jayhawks (sources) and was replaced by Leyna Papach.[9] Bozulich attributed Greene's departure to [...] and said that if she would not have let her perform on album if she knew she was going to leave thereafter. (source)
Composition
Overview
When I say 'butch' I'm not talking about a haircut. I'm talking about not being willing to lay down and take it, about being ready to fight, basically, and having it have nothing to do with what you look like... I think there's a lot of strength and a lot of power in the music and that's basically a word that reflects that.
Music critics categorized the album and its songs as alternative rock,[11] alternative country, art rock,[12] noise rock,[11] and punk rock.[13] Michael E. Ross of People described the album as "[frustrating] easy genre labels",[14] whilst Robert Wilonsky of the Houston Press likened the album to a compilation given its stylistic diversity between songs.[5] Kevin Hopper of the Albuquerque Journal believed that labelling the album "would be doing its greatest injustice" due to the "myriad of elements at work".[15] A near-complete stylistic departure from the country-oriented Lost Somewhere Between the Earth and My Home, the album features a rock and punk-oriented sound[16] whilst retaining some country influences.
genres range: rock,[16] pop,[17] punk,[16] country,[17] funk[17]
Musically, the album almost completely departs from the country-based sound of towards a more experimental and abrasive one rooted in rock and punk rock,
The album largely (but not completely) diverges from the , rock and punk-oriented one [...]
more melody?[18]
stated that when writing the album, the Geraldine Fibbers [6]
She additionally viewed "Folks Like Me" and "Pet Animal" as the album's only country-oriented songs,[4] an assessment shared by several critics.[19][20]
Mike Joyce of The Washington Post described both songs as "subvert[ing] and celebrat[ing] honky-tonk traditions at the same time".[17]
Musically, Butch departs from the sound of whilst retaining some country sensibilities.
replaces grandeur with confrontation, courtesy of nels cline[21]
"more attention to expansive mood and sound" than pre-cline fibbers.[12]
Salon: balancing both punk and country.[22] (NOT cowpunk fuck that)
ent weekly: "Fans of the The Geraldine Fibbers’ Patti Smith-gone-country debut will almost certainly be disappointed: Their second album largely dispenses with hillbilly posturing for straightforward rock riffs and punk bravado."
emphasising cline's guitar work over violins???[21]
viewed as leaning more towards rock than country according to seevral sources inc. cmj, wall of sound?? idk [...] some said country, others disagreed.??
Lisa Weingarth of Punk Planet described its tracks as progressing from "spitting, seething punk" in its first half, to the "pure country" songs "Folks Like Me" and "Pet Angel", into "darker territory" at its end.[11]
Bozulich's lyrics on Butch are more ambiguous than those on Lost Somewhere Between the Earth and My Home, instead placing an emphasis on metaphors, imagery, and symbolism,[23] and center on themes of gender ambiguity and sexuality, female power,[24] alienation, suppression,[25] mortality,[3] and death.[11][3] The lyrics were inspired by Bozulich's personal experiences and those of her friends,[26] particularly those surrounding AIDS.[10] (friends deaths)[27] She viewed her lyrics as relating to women generally (probably?).[28] [...] less about bozulcih's past from lost somewhere but still personal. [...] Regarding its title, Bozulich said that viewed the word "butch" as referring to a mentality rather than an identity...[24][10] the illustration on the cover is not of a "butch" either lmao.[10]
Spin: more in control, less self lacerating[1] [...] some of its songs referencing incest[11][1]
also given all the misinformation surrounding lost somewhere, be cautious of how you talk about those lyrics yeah??
Songs (0/14)
"California Tuffy" [...] alternating between surf rock/pop and dissonance[11] (other sources pls?)
"Toybox" [...] abrasive as fuck (allmusic, others, i bet) [smth smth], with
lyrics referencing abuse and incest.[9] Silja J.A. Talvi of ROCKRGRL wrote that whilst "the lyrics are packed with references to the loss of a girl's innocence and instances of abuse, the girl doesn't appear as a complete victim."[9] Bozulich said it was about "the fact that people and whatever we experience change us" and turning the hurt [my words... not sure???] one receives against those who inflicted it.[9]
called it "one of the world's strongest daddy-bashing songs" (i probably shouldn't),[1]
"I Killed the Cuckoo" [...] thrashy [...] interspersed(?) with music-less "asides"[29] where Bozulich states: "You might think I hate you!" with her "husky" vocals shifting to a "harrowing" cauterwaul.[21] Bozulich believed its lyrics were either discussing herself or "talking about the way a girl could feel about herself", and that its chorus was self-mocking about [...] ("I'd say it's probably about me making fun of myself for getting sucked up into something to do with sex that wasn't good for me. But I'm just guessing -- I could be totally wrong.")[28]
"Trashman in Furs" was written as a tribute to former Ethyl Meatplow dancer Jim Reva, who died of AIDS [...] there's a source that explains the POV etc., and Houston Press also explains who Reva was etc [...] The song's title was a reference to Reva's ability to (make things??) , and to The Velvet Underground song "Venus in Furs".[5] [...] music [...] Cline was instructed to make his guitar solo on the song "sound like it was played by a very sincere but incompetent 14-year-old".[30]
"Swim Back to Me"
"Seven or in 10" [...] RJ Smith of Spin [...] the song showcases Bozulich "in control, if only from within a fantasy life that erupts into violence".[1] (comments may be too general but it could work)
The instrumental track "Claudine" is named after actress and singer Claudine Longet, who shot and killed her boyfriend Spider Sabich in 1976.[31] [...] instrumention is "esoteric, almost quaint"[19]
"Folks Like Me" is a country song[3] built around Cline's slide guitar[22] that tells the story of an alien who is sent to Earth in the form of a man from Nashville to study humans and falls in love with a woman, but is forced to leave her behind due to their body's limited lifespan and because their government does not understand.[28] "Pet Angel" is a waltzy murder ballad displaying influences from Appalachian[11] and Mexican ranchera music.[32] Several critics described the song's lyrics as subverting the traditional tropes of murder ballads in featuring a woman as the killer instead of a man.[29][33]
"Butch" [...]
[...] Cline's "dreamy" guitarwork [...] Bozulich said the song's lyrics were "total stream-of-consciousness" and that she wrote them in 10 minutes.[28]
"Arrow to My Drunken Eye" [...] Westword: "disturbing chamber rock whose melody is outlined by the dark tones of cello, viola, celeste and acoustic bass"[7] and [...][29] viola-driven[33] Natasha Stovall of Salon described as "a sketch in barely repressed anger".[22]
The Geraldine Fibbers' cover of Can's "Yoo Doo Right" condenses the song from the original's 20-minute length,[11] and sees Bozulich "commandingly leading [the band] through a fierce take", according to AllMusic's Ned Raggett.[34] (band had previously covered the song it seems) "The Dwarf Song" [...] orchestral.[35]
Butch ends with the atmospheric instrumental "Heliotrope", [...][36]
Release and promotion
Butch was released in the United States on July 1, 1997, through Virgin Records, with Sympathy for the Record Industry handling its release on vinyl,[36] and in the United Kingdom on October 6, 1997.[37] According to Bouzlich, Virgin did not promote the album at radio until after its release as they were focused on breaking the English bands Blur and The Verve in the United States. Following repeated demands from the Geraldine Fibbers,[38] the label serviced "California Tuffy" to radio as Butch's lead single[39][b] on August 11, 1997,[40] and released a limited 7" single of the song with "Folks Like Me" as its B-side.[36] Bouzlich directed the song's music video, which was intended to "lovingly make fun of the genre of videomaking".[23] The Geraldine Fibbers' touring plans for Butch [...] were nearly disrupted by Greene's departure. .... band toured united states, europe etc throughout [...] returned to the United States and Canada for a tour from November 9 to December 13, 1997.[41] (tower recs show jun 30, tour jul-dec 97)
Virgin's head of radio promotions produced a radio edit of "California Tuffy" without the band's knowledge or input that removed ten seconds of an instrumental section in a different time signature to the rest of the song;[39] Kevin McAlester of the New Times LA believed there was "no good reason" for the edit, given the song's short length and lack of swearing.[39] The Geraldine Fibbers disliked the edit, with Bouzlich criticizing it as being "completely unmusical"; she unsuccessfully attempted to persuade the Geraldine Fibbers' manager and Virgin to recall and re-release the single with a press release blaming the edit on a fictional staff member suffering a psychotic episode as a publicity stunt.[38]
Butch and "California Tuffy" recieved little airplay,[7][39] and the album sold a similar amount of copies to Lost Somewhere Between the Earth and My Home.[c] Bouzlich said that for six months after its release, Virgin attempted to persuade her to drop the Geraldine Fibbers and sign her as a solo artist under the same contractual terms (from which she would have earned $350,000) but (repeatedly?) turned it down as she (1. didnt want to leave geraldine fibbers and 2. because it was "gross").[38] Virgin ultimately dropped the Geraldine Fibbers from its roster in February 1998 owing to the poor sales of their albums.[42] The band subsequently entered an indefinite hiatus, with Bozulich and Cline [...] taking a break and going on to form Scarnella.[42]
Critical reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [34] |
| The Austin Chronicle | [43] |
| Chicago Tribune |  [44] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B+[16] |
| Los Angeles Times | [31] |
| NME | 7/10[45] |
| Pitchfork | 8.5/10[46] |
| Rolling Stone | [13] |
| Spin | 9/10[29] |
| Wall of Sound | 70/100[18] |
Butch received positive reviews from music critics.[42][47]
Matt Ashare of Artforum [...] [48]
Barry Walters of The Advocate [...] [49]
John Krewson of The A.V. Club [...] similar to advocate: bozulich may be off-putting but doesn't discount from merits. [50]
Neal Weiss of MTV News [...] calling The Geraldine Fibbers "truly one of the most original bands in the land".[21]
Sydney Pokorny of The Boston Phoenix [...] [51] (BTW. this is the person who founded Thee Geraldine Fibbers Shrine... so we may have to replace for COI)
(replace with) Robert Wilonsky, in the Houston Press, described it as being "among the finest CDs" of 1997, as well as "one of the oddest [...], one of the most honest, one of the most disorienting, one of the most beguiling, one of the most enthralling" of the year.[5]
Monica Kendrick of the Chicago Reader [...] [3]
Richard Cromelin of Los Angeles Times [...] said that the album's "urgency, originality and candor" confirmed the Geraldine Fibbers "as a legitimate successor to X, Concrete Blonde and Jane’s Addiction – L.A.’s indispensable messengers from the emotional frontier."[31]
Michael E. Ross of People [...] [14]
James Coyne of Pitchfork [...] [46]
Jason Fine of Rolling Stone [...] [13]
Nick Johnstone of Melody Maker [...] [12]
Natasha Stovall of Salon said that Bouzlich's "wondorous" use of her "gravely, angelic instrument" gave Butch its "unity" ... whilst also saying band played well.[22]
Sarah Vowell of Spin [...] [29]
Barry Walters of The Advocate [...] [49]
Krewson similar to advocate: bozulich may be off-putting but doesn't discount from merits. [50]
Jason Cherkis of the Washington City Paper [...][52] BY THE WAY. this is the guy who wrote the "unethically written exploitation piece" (ben is dead 1999). prolly wont cite unless descriptions because fuck you
Mike Joyce of The Washington Post [...] [17]
Rob Brunner of Entertainment Weekly described Butch as the work of "a very good band trying to work up the confidence to be themselves"; he believed that whilst the album would dissapoint fans of Lost Somewhere Between the Earth and My Home, it largely "matches that [album]'s intensity".[16] Ned Raggett of AllMusic [...] [34] [...] Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune [...] album's second half suffered from "droning arrangements and ludicrous pseduo-poetic lyrics".[44] Gary Graff of Wall of Sound felt that the album's variety = lack of focus [...] but saved by performances of Bozulich/Cline/Greene.[18]
Butch placed at number 22 on The Village Voice's annual Pazz & Jop critics' poll,[53] and at number 37[d] on Addicted to Noise's poll of "Critics' Top 100 Albums of the Year".[54] The album was also ranked as the sixth best album of 1997 by the Los Angeles Times,[55] seventh-best by The Morning Call,[56] and seventeenth-best by Spin.[57] Wilonsky and Gary Indiana also included the album in their end-of-year lists for the Dallas Observer and Artforum, respectively.[58][59] In a 2004 retrospective review for Punk Planet, Lisa Weingarth called Butch a "genre-bending masterpiece" whilst highlighting Bouzlich's "fiery fury and vulnerability" and Cline's "virtuoso guitar-stylings".[11] In a 2008 interview, Eels frontman Mark Oliver Everett said that if he were a mayor, he would older the construction of a hall of fame in the album's honor.[60] The Stranger included Butch on its 2017 list of 70 albums made by women they believed "deserve[d] substantial listening time and, in good time, canonical status".[61] Writing in Vice that same year, Al Shipley said that he felt the album was "great [...] in its own right" despite being not as good as Lost Somewhere Between the Earth and My Home, stating: "its punk songs are more frenzied, its country songs are prettier, and its experimental tracks are more unpredictable".[62]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "California Tuffy" | Carla Bozulich | 3:17 |
| 2. | "Toybox" |
| 3:11 |
| 3. | "I Killed the Cuckoo" |
| 2:10 |
| 4. | "Trashman in Furs" |
| 3:43 |
| 5. | "Swim Back to Me" |
| 3:25 |
| 6. | "Seven or in 10" |
| 2:26 |
| 7. | "Claudine" | The Geraldine Fibbers | 2:19 |
| 8. | "Folks Like Me" | Bozulich | 3:30 |
| 9. | "Pet Angel" |
| 3:39 |
| 10. | "Butch" |
| 6:09 |
| 11. | "Arrow to My Drunken Eye" |
| 2:32 |
| 12. | "You Doo Right" (Can cover) | Can | 5:20 |
| 13. | "The Dwarf Song" | Bozulich | 5:12 |
| 14. | "Heliotrope" | Bozulich | 6:11 |
| Total length: | 53:10 | ||
Personnel
Personnel per liner notes.[8]
Musicians
Artwork
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Production
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Release history
Notes
- According to Bozulich and New Times LA, both of the Geraldine Fibbers' albums sold around 20,000 copies;[38][39] however, the Los Angeles Times reported that the band had sold a total of 32,000 albums at the time of their disbandment in early 1998.[42]
- Tied with The Velvet Rope by Janet Jackson and Pop by U2
