# Source Tags & Codes

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***Source Tags & Codes*** is the third album by American [rock](/source/Rock_music) band [...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead](/source/...And_You_Will_Know_Us_by_the_Trail_of_Dead) and the first distributed by a major record label. It was released on February 26, 2002 to wide critical acclaim. The album is often cited as the band's finest work.

[Music videos](/source/Music_video) were produced for "Another Morning Stoner" and "[Relative Ways](/source/Relative_Ways)", which saw airplay on [MTV2](/source/MTV2).

## Recording and production

After releasing two albums on indie record [imprints](/source/Imprint_(trade_name)), Trail of Dead signed a multi-release deal with Interscope Records and began recording a follow-up to 1999's *[Madonna](/source/Madonna_(...And_You_Will_Know_Us_by_the_Trail_of_Dead_album))* with the same producer, [Mike McCarthy](/source/Mike_McCarthy_(producer)).[1][2] Their major label budget improved recording quality and allowed intricate orchestral pieces, yielding a sound texture unlike previous records.[3] *Source Tags & Codes* was recorded in [Cotati, California](/source/Cotati,_California) and mixed in [Nashville, Tennessee](/source/Nashville,_Tennessee) on a budget of 150,000 dollars.[4]

## Music

The song 'Baudelaire' refers to the French poet, [Charles Baudelaire](/source/Charles_Baudelaire), and 'Days of Being Wild' is named after the [Hong Kong film](/source/Hong_Kong_film) of the [same name](/source/Days_of_Being_Wild). "After the Laughter" samples the song "[Someday (You'll Want Me to Want You)](/source/Someday_(You'll_Want_Me_to_Want_You))". The song "Homage" is a homage to [Unwound](/source/Unwound). On the day "Homage" was recorded, producer Mike McCarthey woke Keely up that morning by throwing cold water in his face for him to be aggressive enough to record the drum track.

In "It Was There That I Saw You": "Keely had intended to conjure up the intoxicating thrill of living in Austin Texas in the mid-nineties, before America had gone to shit. The inspiration came from a girl he used to work with that he had a crush on, and several late nights spent in the company of people on drugs" [\[1\]](https://web.archive.org/web/20140729044148/http://trailofdead.com/annotated-lyrics/source-tags-codes/)

The title of "Another Morning Stoner" refers to getting an erection in the morning or smoking marijuana. The song is inspired by Keely's relationship with his ex-girlfriend who was raised Christian. "It recalls a moral dilemma he underwent when he realized that eventually theology would drive them apart more than anything else, because of his strong negative feelings towards organized religion."[\[2\]](https://web.archive.org/web/20140729044148/http://trailofdead.com/annotated-lyrics/source-tags-codes/)

## Critical reception

*Source Tags & Codes* was met with critical acclaim, receiving a score of 85 out of 100 on review aggregate site [Metacritic](/source/Metacritic), indicating "universal acclaim".[5] *[The Austin Chronicle](/source/The_Austin_Chronicle)'*s Michael Chamy called *Source Tags & Codes* "an album that absolutely cannot be ignored",[6] while *[Billboard](/source/Billboard_(magazine))**s [Annie Zaleski](/source/Annie_Zaleski) stated that "what makes*****Source Tags & Codes*such an amazing album is how the band teeters on the edge of this implosion but always yanks its songs back from collapse at the very last second."[7] Noel Murray of*[The A.V. Club](/source/The_A.V._Club)*wrote that the band "plays imaginative alt-rock with intense passion, and*Source Tags & Codes*lets the pressure build exquisitely."[8] Noting its "angular, Sonic Youth-style guitar and earnest anger",*[Blender](/source/Blender_(magazine))**s Michael Leonard credited the album for being "more engaging than many of [the band's] post-rock peers",[9] while *[Uncut](/source/Uncut_(magazine))* similarly wrote that "compared to so many noisemongers, TOD understand that restraint enables unleashed firepower to be exhilarating and awesome."[10] Matt LeMay of *[Pitchfork](/source/Pitchfork_(website))* awarded *Source Tags & Codes* a [perfect score](/source/List_of_albums_awarded_10_by_Pitchfork) and wrote that the album "will take you in, rip you to shreds, piece you together, lick your wounds clean, and send you back into the world with a concurrent sense of loss and hope,"[11] though Conrad Keely considers this rating to be "preposterous" as "it is clearly nowhere close to a perfect album".[4]

Hobey Echlin of *[The Village Voice](/source/The_Village_Voice)* wrote that *Source Tags & Codes* "captures the fuzzy-math sound from too many gray-area indie bands—and it rocks hard where geezers like [Mercury Rev](/source/Mercury_Rev) just drift away."[2] *[Mojo](/source/Mojo_(magazine))* described the album as "not a crossover record, but invigorating."[12] Among average reviews, *[Q](/source/Q_(magazine))* felt that the band "has reached a point where the need for convention outweighs the joy of using guitars as weapons."[13] In *The Village Voice*, [Robert Christgau](/source/Robert_Christgau) awarded the album a "dud" rating,[14] indicating "a bad record whose details rarely merit further thought."[15] While noting that "there's a fantastic EP in here somewhere", Maddy Costa of *[The Guardian](/source/The_Guardian)* nonetheless felt that the album "is ablaze with emotion – it roars and pulses and oozes angst – but it never inspires".[16]

*[Kludge](/source/Kludge_(magazine))* included it on their list of best albums of 2002.[17]

By 2005, *Source Tags & Codes* sales had surpassed 100,000 units.[18]

## Legacy

In 2009, *Source Tags & Codes* was placed at number 100 in *Pitchfork'*s list of the top 200 albums of the 2000s.[19]

In a 2011 article, the [BBC](/source/BBC)'s Mike Driver calls it "one of the very finest rock albums of recent history," and "a masterpiece of its time, *Source Tags & Codes* really does deserve to be held in as high regard as *[In Rainbows](/source/In_Rainbows)* or *[Funeral](/source/Funeral_(Arcade_Fire_album))*, or any other critical triumph of recent history."[20]

## Track listing

**Notes**

## Charts

Chart (2002) Peak position

## Personnel

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.[21]

**...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead**

- [Conrad Keely](/source/Conrad_Keely) – [lead vocals](/source/Lead_vocals) (on "It Was There That I Saw You", "Another Morning Stoner", "How Near How Far", "Relative Ways", "Source Tags & Codes" and "Blood Rites"), guitar, drums (on "Homage", "Heart in the Hand of the Matter", and "Days of Being Wild") string arrangements, art direction, artwork
- [Jason Reece](/source/Jason_Reece) – lead vocals (on "Homage", "Heart in the Hand of the Matter" and "Days of Being Wild"), drums, artwork
- [Neil Busch](/source/Neil_Busch) – lead vocals (on "Baudelaire" and "Monsoon"), bass
- Kevin Allen - guitar

**Additional personnel**

- David Angel – violin
- David Bryant – engineering
- John Catchings – cello
- Sharon Corbitt – management
- Gene Cornelilus – engineering
- Larry Cragg – guitar and amplifier rental
- [Eric Darken](/source/Eric_Darken) – additional percussion, bells, timpani
- David Davidson – violin
- Jason D'Ottavio – management
- Connie Ellisore – violin
- Carl Gorodetsky – violin
- Traci Goudie – art direction, layout
- [David Grissom](/source/David_Grissom) – guitar and amplifier rental
- Jim Hoke – tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone, bass harmonica
- Anthony Lamarchina – cello

- Roger Lian – editing
- Jim Lightman – engineering
- [Mike McCarthy](/source/Mike_McCarthy_(producer)) – engineering, production
- James Olsen – artwork, backing vocals
- Tetsuya Otani – management, voice translation
- John Painter – string arrangements, flugelhorn, trumpet
- Jennifer Quinn – management
- Cheryle Rennick – recording
- Mooka Rennick – recording
- Leslie Richter – engineering
- Pam Sixfin – violin
- Jim Vollentine – engineering
- Howie Weinberg – mastering
- Kristen Wilkinson – viola
- King Williams – shortwave radio rental

## References

1. ["Artist Biography - ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead"](https://www.billboard.com/bbcom/bio/index.jsp?pid=259564&aid=379531). *Billboard.com*. Retrieved 2009-02-23.[dead link]

1. Echlin, Hobey (March 5, 2002). ["Atomic Prog"](https://web.archive.org/web/20081016121512/http://www.villagevoice.com/2002-03-05/music/atomic-prog/1). *[The Village Voice](/source/The_Village_Voice)*. Archived from [the original](http://www.villagevoice.com/2002-03-05/music/atomic-prog/1/) on October 16, 2008. Retrieved July 3, 2013.

1. ["Trail of Dead's Source Tags & Codes, 02.28.02"](https://archive.today/20120731023808/http://www.flakmag.com/music/trail.html). *[Flak Magazine](/source/Flak_Magazine)*. February 28, 2002. Archived from [the original](http://www.flakmag.com/music/trail.html) on July 31, 2012. Retrieved February 23, 2009.

1. ["Source Tags & Codes"](https://web.archive.org/web/20140729044148/http://trailofdead.com/annotated-lyrics/source-tags-codes/). TrailOfDead.com. Archived from [the original](http://trailofdead.com/annotated-lyrics/source-tags-codes/) on July 29, 2014. Retrieved March 3, 2016.

1. ["Reviews for Source Tags & Codes by ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead"](https://www.metacritic.com/music/source-tags-codes/and-you-will-know-us-by-the-trail-of-dead). *[Metacritic](/source/Metacritic)*. Retrieved July 3, 2013.

1. Chamy, Michael (April 12, 2002). ["...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead: Source Tags & Codes (Interscope)"](https://www.austinchronicle.com/music/2002-04-12/85550/). *[The Austin Chronicle](/source/The_Austin_Chronicle)*. Retrieved July 3, 2013.

1. Zaleski, Annie (February 25, 2002). ["...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead: Source Tags & Codes"](https://web.archive.org/web/20020409041353/http://www.billboard.com/billboard/reviews/review_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1353296). *[Billboard](/source/Billboard_(magazine))*. Archived from [the original](https://www.billboard.com/billboard/reviews/review_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1353296) on April 9, 2002. Retrieved July 3, 2013.

1. Murray, Noel (March 29, 2002). ["...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead: Source Tags & Codes"](https://web.archive.org/web/20100110093030/http://www.avclub.com/articles/and-you-will-know-us-by-the-trail-of-dead-source-t,22069/). *[The A.V. Club](/source/The_A.V._Club)*. Archived from [the original](https://www.avclub.com/articles/and-you-will-know-us-by-the-trail-of-dead-source-t,22069/) on January 10, 2010. Retrieved February 9, 2011.

1. Leonard, Michael (February–March 2002). ["...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead: Source Tags & Codes"](https://web.archive.org/web/20040808051218/http://www.blender.com/reviews/review_1290.html). *[Blender](/source/Blender_(magazine))*. '***(5): 110. Archived from [the original](http://www.blender.com/reviews/review_1290.html) on August 8, 2004. Retrieved July 6, 2016.***

1. "...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead: Source Tags & Codes". *[Uncut](/source/Uncut_(magazine))*. '***(59): 111. April 2002.***

1. LeMay, Matt (February 28, 2002). ["And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead: Source Tags and Codes"](https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/178-source-tags-and-codes/). *[Pitchfork](/source/Pitchfork_(website))*. Retrieved July 3, 2013.

1. "...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead: Source Tags & Codes". *[Mojo](/source/Mojo_(magazine))*. March 2002.

1. "...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead: Source Tags & Codes". *[Q](/source/Q_(magazine))*. '***(187): 104. February 2002.***

1. Christgau, Robert (June 10, 2003). ["Consumer Guide: Eating Again"](https://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv603-03.php). *[The Village Voice](/source/The_Village_Voice)*. Retrieved February 9, 2011.

1. Christgau, Robert. ["Key to Icons"](https://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/bk-cg90/grades-90s.php). RobertChristgau.com. Retrieved January 30, 2014.

1. Costa, Maddy (March 1, 2002). [". . . And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead: Source Tags and Codes (Interscope)"](https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2002/mar/01/shopping.artsfeatures4). *[The Guardian](/source/The_Guardian)*. Retrieved July 3, 2013.

1. ["The Best of 2002"](http://www.kludgemagazine.com/articles.php?id=186). *[Kludge](/source/Kludge_(magazine))*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20040722004721/http://www.kludgemagazine.com/articles.php?id=186) July 22, 2004 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved November 25, 2015.

1. Hilburn, Robert; Hochman, Steve; Heckman, Don; Nichols, Natalie (2005-02-06). ["Trail of Dead's new path"](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2005-feb-06-ca-rack6-story.html). *The Los Angeles Times*. Retrieved 2019-06-24.

1. *Pitchfork* staff (September 28, 2009). ["The Top 200 Albums of the 2000s: 200–151"](https://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/7708-the-top-200-albums-of-the-2000s-100-51/). *[Pitchfork](/source/Pitchfork_(website))*. Retrieved October 1, 2009.

1. Driver, Mike (2011). ["…And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead Source Tags & Codes Review"](https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/pgm5/). *BBC Music*. Retrieved 2019-06-18.

1. *Source Tags & Codes* (CD liner notes). [Interscope Records](/source/Interscope_Records). 2002. 493 248-2.

## External links

- [...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead official website](https://web.archive.org/web/20000303193627/http://www.trailofdead.com/)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Source Tags & Codes](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Source_Tags_%26_Codes) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Source_Tags_%26_Codes?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.