Reinventing Axl Rose | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | March 5, 2002 | |||
Recorded | July 23, 2001 December 21 and 28, 2001 January 12, 2002 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 30:59 | |||
Label |
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Producer | Rob McGregor | |||
Against Me! chronology | ||||
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Against Me! Is Reinventing Axl Rose (often shortened to Reinventing Axl Rose) is the debut album by the American punk rock band Against Me!, released on March 5, 2002 under No Idea Records. It was the group's first release as a full band with electric guitars, bass guitar, and drums. The album was produced by Rob McGregor, who would also produce the band's second album Against Me! as the Eternal Cowboy (2003). The album's title references Guns N' Roses singer Axl Rose, illustrated on the cover.
Against Me! Is Reinventing Axl Rose was recorded in four sessions. Ten of the album's eleven songs were recorded on December 21 and 28, 2001, and January 12, 2002 at Goldentone Studios in Gainesville by Rob McGregor. [2] "8 Full Hours of Sleep" came from an earlier recording session on July 23, 2001 on which Jordan Kleeman played the Moog synthesizer. [2]
Five of the album's songs had previously been released on the band's EPs but were re-recorded for the album: "Walking Is Still Honest" had appeared on Against Me! (2000) and "I Still Love You Julie" had appeared on Crime as Forgiven By Against Me! (2001), both recorded when the band consisted of only singer/guitarist Laura Jane Grace and drummer Kevin Mahon. "Jordan's First Choice", "Those Anarcho Punks Are Mysterious...", and "Pints of Guinness Make You Strong" had appeared on Against Me! as acoustic versions recorded by Grace and bassist Dustin Fridkin. By the time of the album's recording Against Me! consisted of Grace, Fridkin, drummer Warren Oakes, and guitarist James Bowman, and the band re-recorded these five songs with full electric instrumentation.
Several guest singers provided backing vocals for "We Laugh at Danger (And Break All the Rules)" including Sam Jones, Todd "Bitchin'", Ryan and Patrick Quinney, Adam Volk, Rose O'Hara, and Jordan Kleeman. [2] Sam Jones also sang backing vocals on "Pints of Guinness Make You Strong" and "Jordan's 1st Choice". [2] "Baby, I'm an Anarchist!" dates back to one of Grace's previous bands:
"Baby, I'm an Anarchist!" was written by Laura Jane Grace, Cassidy Rist, and Rob Augman for a band that never happened, but was a really good idea. Although we played it live 2 or 3 times, it was never recorded. Cassidy was kind enough to come in and sing on this song; she was drunk. It was 11am. [2]
Remarking on the album's themes in 2008, Grace said: "you get to an age where you get discouraged with dreams like [playing in a band] and you're told you're never going to be able to do anything like that, and you start to feel like there's a closed door, and when I started to feel that way, I went ahead and started doing my own thing. We made our own way and that was kind of just what the title of the album and a lot of the album was about, really, was just doing it yourself and not taking 'no' for an answer, and reclaiming your dreams." [3]
At The Fest in October 2017, Against Me! played the album live in its entirety, with the band's original bassist Dustin Fridkin playing with the band. [4] Most of the songs have been regularly played in concert by the band since the release of Axl, with the exception of "The Politics of Starving", "Jordan's First Choice" and "Scream It Until You're Coughing Up Blood (Jamaican Me Crazy)", which prior to October 2017 were last played live in concert by Against Me! or Laura Jane Grace in May 2003, [5] November 2008 [6] and May 2003 [7] respectively.
Grace stated the album name was a "kill your idols" proclamation: "Guns N' Roses were my favorite band when I was a kid. The title was meant as a tribute in a way. It was also about destroying your heroes." [8]
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
Ox-Fanzine | 8/10 [9] |
Pitchfork | 8.6/10 [10] |
Punknews.org | [11] |
Critic Corey Apar of AllMusic gave Against Me! Is Reinventing Axl Rose four and a half out of five stars, calling it "an impressive debut that manages to combine fist-in-the-air singalong choruses, lagered-up rhythms, and urgent drumbeats with the underground, raw intensity these punks are known for live" and "a true classic that brings listeners right into the dirty basements and dive bars that birthed the band — and serves as the foundation to where they would head next." [1] Exclaim! gave a positive review, calling the album a "missing link between the Clash and Bob Dylan". [12]
All tracks are written by Laura Jane Grace except where noted:
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Pints of Guinness Make You Strong" | 2:40 | |
2. | "The Politics of Starving" | Grace, Bowman, Oakes | 3:06 |
3. | "We Laugh at Danger (and break all the rules)" | Grace, Bowman, Oakes | 3:17 |
4. | "I Still Love You Julie" | 3:12 | |
5. | "Scream It Until You're Coughing up Blood" | Grace, Bowman, Oakes | 2:29 |
6. | "Jordan's 1st Choice" | 2:08 | |
7. | "Those Anarcho Punks Are Mysterious..." | 2:24 | |
8. | "Reinventing Axl Rose" | 2:25 | |
9. | "Baby, I'm an Anarchist!" | Grace, Cassidy Rist, Rob Augman | 2:40 |
10. | "Walking Is Still Honest" | 2:37 | |
11. | "8 Full Hours of Sleep" | 4:00 | |
Total length: | 30:59 |
Against Me! is an American punk rock band, formed in 1997 in Naples, Florida by singer and guitarist Laura Jane Grace. That same year, Grace moved to Gainesville, Florida, which is considered the band's hometown. Since 2001, the band's lineup has also included guitarist James Bowman. After releasing three studio albums through independent record labels, Against Me! moved to Sire Records for 2007's New Wave, which reached no. 57 on the Billboard 200. In 2011, the band launched the record label Total Treble.
Searching for a Former Clarity is the third album by the Gainesville, Florida punk rock band Against Me!, produced by J. Robbins and released on September 6, 2005, by Fat Wreck Chords. Supported by singles and music videos for the songs "Don't Lose Touch" and "From Her Lips to God's Ears ", it was their first album to chart on the Billboard 200, reaching #114. It also reached #9 on Billboard's Top Independent Albums chart. Singer/guitarist Laura Jane Grace has described Searching for a Former Clarity as a concept album.
"Patience" is a song by American rock band Guns N' Roses from their second studio album, G N' R Lies (1988), released as a single in April 1989. The song peaked at number four on the US Billboard Hot 100. The song is a ballad, played using three acoustic guitars and was recorded in a single session by producer Mike Clink. A music video of the song was shot and appears on the band's music video DVD, Welcome to the Videos.
"The Disco Before the Breakdown" is the first single by the Gainesville, Florida-based punk rock band Against Me!, released in November 2002 by No Idea Records. It was the band's first release with bassist Andrew Seward, replacing original bassist Dustin Fridkin who had left the group several months prior. The lineup of Seward, Laura Jane Grace, James Bowman, and Warren Oakes would remain in place until 2009. The single was released as both a vinyl 7" and a compact disc. It is typically listed as an EP, though its format is typical of a single.
Against Me! as the Eternal Cowboy is the second studio album by the punk rock band Against Me!, released on November 3, 2003 by Fat Wreck Chords. It was the group's first release for the label and their first album with bassist Andrew Seward, who had replaced original bassist Dustin Fridkin the previous year. The album was produced by Rob McGregor, who had also produced their first album Against Me! Is Reinventing Axl Rose (2002). Two singles were released in support of the album, "Cavalier Eternal" and "Sink, Florida, Sink", though each features different versions of the songs than those found on the album. As the Eternal Cowboy was Against Me!'s first album to reach the Billboard charts, reaching No. 36 on Top Independent Albums.
Against Me!, also known as The Acoustic EP, is the second widely distributed release by the punk band Against Me!. No tracks on the album contain any electric instruments or drums, only acoustic guitars and an acoustic bass. The original vinyl version, released November 2001, had four tracks, and two extra songs were included on the CD version released in February 2003. Electric versions of several songs appeared on the band's debut full-length Against Me! Is Reinventing Axl Rose.
Crime as Forgiven by Against Me!, or just Crime, was the second EP released by punk band Against Me!. It was one of the first releases to achieve any level of circulation, due to their previous self-titled 12" only having sold 145 copies. The CD version contains six songs, although only four were on the vinyl edition that was released by Against Me!'s Sabot Productions. The CD version was released by Plan-It-X Records with two more songs, Impact and Burn. The CD was re-pressed by Sabot to include the bonus tracks.
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"Chinese Democracy" is a song by the American rock band Guns N' Roses, and the title track from their sixth studio album. It was released as a radio single on October 22, 2008 and was released on the iTunes Store on November 9, 2008. It was primarily written by Axl Rose and Josh Freese. It was the band's first single of original material since "Estranged" was released in 1994 as the final single off the 1991 album Use Your Illusion II.
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