Mezcal Head

Mezcal Head is the second studio album by English alternative rock band Swervedriver. It was released on 27 September 1993 by Creation Records in the United Kingdom and on 5 October 1993 by A&M Records in the United States.^[4][5]

Background and release

In 1993, Swervedriver re-emerged with the core of Adam Franklin and Jimmy Hartridge, along with newly recruited drummer Jez Hindmarsh (a.k.a. "Jez"), and released Mezcal Head. The album gave them their most successful UK single at number 60, "Duel",^[6] which NME named its "single of the week" and for which a music video was released. Franklin and Hartridge both perform bass on the album, as they were left without a bassist when Adi Vines departed before recording began.

"Never Lose That Feeling", from the 1992 EP of the same name, and the extended instrumental "Never Learn" were added as a single bonus track to the US edition of the CD. Swervedriver toured US arenas with The Smashing Pumpkins and Shudder to Think in October and November 1993.

Reception

Alternative Press ranked Mezcal Head at numbers 39 and 90 on its "90 Greatest Albums of the '90s" and "Top 99 of '85–'95" lists respectively.^[7][8] It was also ranked at number 265 on Spin's "The 300 Best Albums of the Past 30 Years (1985–2014)" list.^[9] Pitchfork ranked the album at number 10 on its list of "The 50 Best Shoegaze Albums of All Time" in 2016.^[2]

More information

The UK CD has "Mickey" and "Dragging It Under" printed on the CD as tracks 4 and 6. The US CD has "Harry and Maggie (Dragging It Under)" printed on the CD as track 6. The US promo is identical to the official release except that it has the word "PROMOTIONAL" printed on the CD. The Japanese edition comes with a biography and lyrics.^[10]

The tracks "Duel" and "Last Train to Satansville" were featured in the Sega Saturn, Sony PlayStation and 3DO versions of the game Road Rash.

"Duel" was featured in the 1994 video game Road Rash and in the 2008 video game Burnout Paradise. "Mezcal" is censored from the song's album listing in the game due to connotations with alcoholic beverages.

Personnel

Credits for Mezcal Head adapted from liner notes.^[11]

Swervedriver

• Adam Franklin – vocals, guitar
• Jimmy Hartridge – guitar
• Jez Hindmarsh – drums, percussion
• Adi Vines – bass on "Never Lose That Feeling/Never Learn"
• Graham Bonnar – drums on "Never Lose That Feeling/Never Learn"

Additional musician

• Stewart Dace – saxophone on "Never Lose That Feeling/Never Learn"

Production

• Swervedriver – production
• Alan Moulder – production, mixing, engineering
• Nick Addison – engineering
• Jez Hindmarsh – engineering
• Ronan Keating – engineering assistant
• Howie Weinberg – mastering

Design

• Andy Vella – cover art

Charts

References

1. ^ "91 Essential Alternative Rock Albums of the ’90s". Treble. September 20, 2023.
2. ^ "The 50 Best Shoegaze Albums of All Time". Pitchfork. 24 October 2016. p. 5. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
3. ^ "Swervedriver: How we made Mezcal Head". 4 April 2018.
4. ^ Mezcal Head (press advertisement). Creation Records. 1993. Archived from the original on 28 June 2020. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
5. ^ Heim, Chris (1 October 1993). "Pipeline". Chicago Tribune
6. ^ "SCREWDRIVER [sic] - SINGLES". Official Charts Company. Archived 9 January 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 9 January 2021.
7. ^ "Top 99 of '85–'95". Alternative Press. No. 84. July 1995. p. 104.
8. ^ "The 90 Greatest Albums of the 90's". Alternative Press. No. 125. December 1998.
9. ^ Unterberger, Andrew (11 May 2015). "The 300 Best Albums of the Past 30 Years (1985–2014) — 265. Swervedriver, Mezcal Head (A&M, 1993)". Spin. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
10. ^ Swervedriver Discography Archived 2007-12-15 at the Wayback Machine
11. ^ Mezcal Head (liner notes). Creation Records. 1993. CRECD 143.

External links

• Mezcal Head at YouTube (streamed copy where licensed)