| Product Summary | | Label: Uni/interscope | | UPC: 00606949087227 | | Release Date: 3/20/2001 | | Buy.com Sku: 60467406 | | Item#: M9X9VX | Format:  CD |
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(P) 2001 Interscope Geffen (A&M) Records A Division of UMG Recordings Inc.
(C) 2001 Interscope Records
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| | Album Notes and Credits |
Notes & Personnel Info |  | Toadies: Todd Lewis (vocals, guitar); Clark Vogeler (guitar, piano); Lisa Umbarger (bass); Mark Reznicek (drums, percussion). | | Additional personnel: Elliot Smith (piano). | | Recorded at Sunset Sound, Los Angeles, California in March 2000. | | Personnel: Todd Lewis (vocals, guitar); Clark Vogeler (guitar, piano); Elliott Smith (piano); Mark Reznicek (drums, percussion). | | Audio Mixer: Andy Wallace. | | The Toadies' first album since their 1995 RUBBERNECK finds the band with a new guitarist aboard, but otherwise stylistically unchanged. This is alt-rock that doesn't sound like all the other alt-rock out there, mainly because the band has a knack for stringing together simple but devastatingly effective rock hooks. | | Witness "Motivational," whose "get your head around it..." chorus doesn't really go on for several hours, merely seeming to because you can't get it out of your mind (the concluding drop down to a distantly heard Spanish radio station is a particularly good trick). Perhaps because lead singer Todd Lewis is the son of a Baptist minister, some people claim to hear religious imagery or themes in his lyrics: if there are any here (as in, perhaps, "Little Sin"), they're pretty oblique. Pick hit: The title song, which mates buzzsaw guitars and punk attack to the cutest Queen style harmonies you've ever heard. |
Producer: Rob Schnapf; Tom Rothrock |
Engineer: Monique Mizrahi; Monique Mizrahi |
Musical Guests | | Elliott Smith |
| | Compilation Appearances |
| | Technical Info | | Release Date : 03/20/2001 | | Original Release Date : 2001 | | Catalog ID : 490872 | | Label : Interscope Records (USA) | | Number of Discs : 1 | | Studio/Live : Studio | | Mono/Stereo : Stereo | | SPAR Code : n/a | | UPC : 00606949087227 |
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| | Professional Reviews | | CMJ (3/26/01, p.5)
- "...An all-around pleasure that shows a healthy maturationi n style and form..." |
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| | Bio | | Hell Below/Stars Above's raw-nerved potency is consistent with the hard-driving sense of mission that's driven these hearty road dogs ever since frontman Todd Lewis, a preacher's son who grew up in a strict Christian home that didn't have a radio until he was 13, and headbanging bassist Lisa Umbarger formed the original Toadies lineup in early 1989. The band made its live debut that April, quickly establishing a foothold on the Dallas club scene, thanks to incendiary live performances, as well as a series of locally-distributed cassettes and the self-released EP Velvet, which helped spread the band's reputation beyond its hometown. Following a series of short-term drummers, Mark Reznicek joined in May 1990. In 1992, the Toadies became the first act to sign to the New York-based indie label Grass, on which they released the CD EP Pleather and the vinyl single "Mr. Love". The Toadies' regional success led to a deal with Interscope, which released Rubberneck in August of 1994. The band then hit the road with a vengeance, spending the next two and a half years expanding its fan base the old-fashioned way, sharing stages with the likes of the Red Hot Chili Peppers and the Butthole Surfers. It was while touring behind the album that guitarist Clark Vogeler, formerly of the Dallas combo Funland, completed the toadies' frontline, replacing guitarist Darrel Herbert. Meanwhile, the darkly infectious ghost story "Possum Kingdom" became a ubiquitous national hit, even earning the bemused combo an unexpected vampire/goth following, and the band also contributed songs to several film soundtracks, including The Cable Guy, and The Crow: City Of Angels. By the end of 1996, Rubberneck had sold a million copies. The band recorded Hell Below/Stars Above at Los Angeles' legendary Sunset Sound studio, seeking and finding a workable middle ground between the first album's raw, unadorned approach and the creative options afforded by the recording medium.
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