Smell the Magic
| Smell the Magic | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1990 | |||
| Studios |
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| Genres | ||||
| Length | 29:36 | |||
| Label | Sub Pop[1] | |||
| Producer | Jack Endino[2] | |||
| L7 chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Smell the Magic | ||||
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Smell the Magic is the second studio album by American rock band L7, released in 1990 by Sub Pop.[3] Originally issued as a 12" EP containing only the first six songs, it was reissued on CD in July 1991, expanded to album length with three more tracks: "Packin' a Rod," "Just Like Me," and "American Society." The opening track "Shove" was released as the band's first single.
Critical reception
[edit]| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [4] |
| Christgau's Consumer Guide | A[5] |
| The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal | 7/10[6] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [7] |
| Kerrang! | [8] |
| MusicHound Rock | [2] |
| NME | 8/10[9] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [10] |
| Spin Alternative Record Guide | 8/10[11] |
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music called the album "a raucous, grunge-flavored blast."[7] Trouser Press wrote that "L7 still brings the noise, but with a melodicism that isn’t as evident on the first album."[12]
Rolling Stone placed Smell the Magic at #37 on their list of the 50 Greatest Grunge Albums, noting that "they were one of the few non-Seattle bands signed to Sub Pop," and the album "was an electric shock in a sea of grey." Likewise, the article mentions L7's formation out of Los Angeles' metal scene, then acting as a crossover act, and states conclusively that Smell the Magic is one of the "most widely cited as an inspiration by the next wave of punk and riot grrrl bands".[13]
Track listing
[edit]| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Shove" | Suzi Gardner, Donita Sparks | 3:10 |
| 2. | "Fast and Frightening" | Gardner, Sparks | 2:37 |
| 3. | "(Right On) Thru" | Jennifer Finch | 3:13 |
| 4. | "Deathwish" | Sparks, Finch, Demetra Plakas | 3:45 |
| 5. | "Till the Wheels Fall Off" | Gardner, Sparks | 3:43 |
| 6. | "Broomstick" | Gardner, Sparks, Finch | 3:49 |
| 7. | "Packin' a Rod" | Scott Morrow | 2:08 |
| 8. | "Just Like Me" | Gardner, Sparks, Finch, Plakas, Dusty | 3:32 |
| 9. | "American Society (Eddie and the Subtitles cover)" | Eddie Joseph, Mike Patton | 3:53 |
| Total length: | 29:36 | ||
Personnel
[edit]L7
- Donita Sparks – guitar, vocals, lead vocals on tracks 2,4,5,7,9
- Suzi Gardner – guitar, lead vocals on tracks 1,5,6,9
- Jennifer Finch – bass guitar, lead vocals on tracks 3,8,9
- Demetra Plakas – drums
Guest
- Mike Patton – guest vocals
Production
- Jack Endino – producer
- Michael James – engineer
- Daniel Rey – engineer
- Randall Martin – logo
- Charles Peterson – photography
- Howard Rosenberg – photography
- Jeff Price – art director
References
[edit]- ↑ "L7's Smell the Magic: 30th Anniversary Edition featuring all 9 songs remastered & available together on vinyl for the first time". Sub Pop Records.
- 1 2 MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 698.
- ↑ "The Rough Guide to Rock". Rough Guides. November 8, 2003.
- ↑ Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Smell the Magic - L7". AllMusic. Retrieved March 17, 2010.
- ↑ Christgau, Robert (2000). "L7: Smell the Magic". Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s. Macmillan. p. 185. ISBN 0-312-24560-2. Retrieved February 5, 2017.
- ↑ Popoff, Martin (2007). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 3: The Nineties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. p. 252. ISBN 978-1-894959-62-9.
- 1 2 Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 5. MUZE. p. 48.
- ↑ Wilding, Phil (November 24, 1990). "Rekordz". Kerrang!. No. 317. Spotlight Publications. p. 26.
- ↑ Wells, Steven (November 17, 1990). "Long Play". NME. IPC. p. 35.
- ↑ Brackett, Nathan; Christian Hoard (2004). The Rolling Stone Album Guide. New York City, New York: Simon and Schuster. p. 500. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
- ↑ Spin Alterna¹tive Record Guide. Vintage Books. 1995. p. 231.
- ↑ "L7". Trouser Press. Retrieved November 8, 2020.
- ↑ Grant, Sarah. "50 Greatest Grunge Albums". Rolling Stone. Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved October 20, 2023.
