Icky Mettle
Encyclopedia
Icky Mettle is the first studio album
recorded by the indie rock
band Archers of Loaf
. It was produced and engineered by Caleb Southern
at Kraptone Studios in Chapel Hill, North Carolina
, and released by Alias Records
on November 23, 1993.
The album was recorded and mixed in seven days. According to Eric Bachmann
, "We spent like $5,000 to make it."
The album spent 22 weeks on the CMJ charts. Interview
declared it the "Best Indie Rock Album of the Year". Also, it ranked #32 in Pitchfork Media
's original Top 100 albums of the 1990s list. Blender
ranked it at #56 in their 100 Greatest Indie-Rock Albums ever list.
In a 2005 interview with The Triangle
, Bachmann reflected on the album: "When we first came out we had that energy. It's a weird thing that you can't put your finger on...I listened to 'Icky Mettle', and I almost cringe when I hear it. But what the people probably liked when they heard that record was the energy we were putting out."
gave "Icky Mettle" a score of 8/10. Reviewer Mike Powell describes it as, "an album of boyish fits and noisy guitar flurries. It's indie rock as hearty and art-free as oatmeal, before the line separating it from the mainstream dissolved, before it became so...eclectic."
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
recorded by the indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
band Archers of Loaf
Archers of Loaf
Archers of Loaf is an American indie-rock band originally from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, formed in 1990. The group toured extensively and released a total of four studio albums, a collection album, numerous singles and EPs, and a live album which was released after the band broke up in...
. It was produced and engineered by Caleb Southern
Caleb Southern
Caleb Southern is an American musician and record producer. He has worked with Ben Folds Five, Fear of Pop and Archers of Loaf. He currently lives in Downtown Durham, North Carolina, and is a member of Partners Against Crime, District 5.-References:...
at Kraptone Studios in Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Chapel Hill is a town in Orange County, North Carolina, United States and the home of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and UNC Health Care...
, and released by Alias Records
Alias Records
Alias Records is a small American indie-rock record label based in California.Alias has released albums by American Music Club, Archers of Loaf, Yo La Tengo, The Loud Family, Too Much Joy and Knapsack among others....
on November 23, 1993.
The album was recorded and mixed in seven days. According to Eric Bachmann
Eric Bachmann
Eric Bachmann is an American musician/producer who is currently the lead singer of Crooked Fingers and the Archers of Loaf. He hails from North Carolina and Florida, but currently lives in Athens, Georgia. His first solo effort, Short Careers was recorded as a score to the film "Ball of Wax."Saddle...
, "We spent like $5,000 to make it."
The album spent 22 weeks on the CMJ charts. Interview
Interview (magazine)
Interview is an American magazine which has the nickname The Crystal Ball Of Pop. It was founded in late 1969 by artist Andy Warhol. The magazine features intimate conversations between some of the world's biggest celebrities, artists, musicians, and creative thinkers...
declared it the "Best Indie Rock Album of the Year". Also, it ranked #32 in Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
's original Top 100 albums of the 1990s list. Blender
Blender (magazine)
Blender was an American music magazine that billed itself as "the ultimate guide to music and more". It was also known for sometimes steamy pictorials of celebrities....
ranked it at #56 in their 100 Greatest Indie-Rock Albums ever list.
In a 2005 interview with The Triangle
The Triangle (newspaper)
The Triangle is the independent student newspaper of Drexel University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Editions of the paper are printed early every Friday morning; they are distributed in buildings on Drexel's campus as well as in select locations in University City, Philadelphia.The Triangle was...
, Bachmann reflected on the album: "When we first came out we had that energy. It's a weird thing that you can't put your finger on...I listened to 'Icky Mettle', and I almost cringe when I hear it. But what the people probably liked when they heard that record was the energy we were putting out."
Reception
The album has received generally positive reviews. SpinSpin (magazine)
Spin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...
gave "Icky Mettle" a score of 8/10. Reviewer Mike Powell describes it as, "an album of boyish fits and noisy guitar flurries. It's indie rock as hearty and art-free as oatmeal, before the line separating it from the mainstream dissolved, before it became so...eclectic."
Track listing
- "Web in Front" – 2:09
- "Last Word" – 3:35
- "Wrong" – 3:40
- "You and Me" – 3:10
- "Might" – 2:04
- "Hate Paste" – 2:46
- "Fat" – 1:19
- "Plumb Line" – 2:09
- "Learo, You're a Hole" – 3:51
- "Sick File" – 1:42
- "Toast" – 4:38
- "Backwash" – 3:27
- "Slow Worm" – 3:32
Personnel
- Eric BachmannEric BachmannEric Bachmann is an American musician/producer who is currently the lead singer of Crooked Fingers and the Archers of Loaf. He hails from North Carolina and Florida, but currently lives in Athens, Georgia. His first solo effort, Short Careers was recorded as a score to the film "Ball of Wax."Saddle...
- vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with... - Matt Gentling - bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Eric Johnson - guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
- Mark Price - drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....