Breaking Things

Last updated
Breaking Things
All - Breaking Things cover.jpg
Studio album by
All
ReleasedAugust 16, 1993 (1993-08-16)
RecordedMarch–April 1993
Studio Ardent Studios, Memphis, Tennessee
Genre
Length28:44
Label Cruz (CRZ-031)
Producer Bill Stevenson, Stephen Egerton, John Hampton
All chronology
Percolater
(1992)		Breaking Things
(1993)		 Pummel
(1995)
Singles from Percolater
  1. "Shreen"
    Released: 1994
  2. "Guilty"
    Released: 1994
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [3]
Punk NewsStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [4]

Breaking Things is the fifth studio album by the American punk rock band All, released August 16, 1993 through Cruz Records. It was the band's first album with singer Chad Price and their last released through Cruz. The songs "Shreen" and "Guilty" were both released as singles from the album, the former supported by a music video.

Contents

Background

I knew it was going to be tough being a singer. It’s obvious, there’s someone new, but I think I was just so stoked to be in my favorite band. Really the stressful thing was just me being so shy, but obviously you get to know people pretty quick when you’re practicing four hours a day every day.

–Chad Price [5]

Singer Scott Reynolds had left All following their 1992 album Percolater . [6] As their new singer they recruited Chad Price, a friend and fan of the band who had sung backing vocals on Percolater. [7] [8] "Chad had been sort of a fan that we just got to be friends with", said guitarist Stephen Egerton. "I'd say there are few people with more of a lucky, natural gift for singing than Chad." [7] Bassist Karl Alvarez remarked that "Chad was really good to have come into play at that time, because he was very laid back. Chad's very laconic, to the point of speechlessness. We didn't really know he was that good of a singer." [7] Drummer Bill Stevenson contacted Milo Aukerman, singer of All's precursor band the Descendents, for his opinion of Price's singing: "Bill said 'Hey, we're trying this guy out for All, what do you think?' and I heard his voice and was like 'Yeah! Get that guy!'" [7] "It was killer", remembered Price. "I was a huge All fan, I grew up with Descendents and stuff." [7]

Writing

As with their prior records, all four band members contributed to the songwriting of Breaking Things. [9] "When Chad joined, we had kind of a backlog," recalled Egerton, "and we all learned each other's songs to get ready for what became Breaking Things. [5] Price wrote "Original Me" and "Stick", as well as lyrics to "Crucified" and "Politics". [9] Alvarez wrote five of the album's songs, more than he had on any previous All album. [9] Egerton wrote the nine-second "Strip Bar" as well as the music for "Rosco" and "Crucified". [9] Rob Williamson of the Tacoma, Washington band My Name, who had opened for All on tour the previous year, wrote the lyrics for "Rosco". [9] [10]

In addition to the album's two singles, "Shreen" and "Guilty", Stevenson penned "Birthday I.O.U." which described his feelings after Sarina Matteucci, his girlfriend of several years, had an abortion: [1] "There really wasn't a choice / Seventeen was just too young [...] I know you could have been a girl, baby / Now you can't be anything / We needed you to prove our love / We used you, then we killed you". [9] "I remember Sarina got real mad about that song", he said in 1996. "That song is about abortion, and she and I went through this thing where she had an abortion, and that's just my feelings about it. She wasn't too stoked, because she kind of thought I was being right wing about it. It's like, 'Dude, it's not politics; it's just my feelings about it.' I don't give a fuck about politics." [1]

Stevenson and Price's lyrics to "Politics" demand "Keep your politics out of my life / Your politics out of my face / Your politics out of my music". [9] Alvarez described the intent of the song:

I think maybe one of the purposes of music is to transcend politics, and I think when you're judging music with a political criteria, you're ignoring a lot, because music is not political. Music is notes and things swirling around in the air. I think that the bulk of the critical establishment favorably reviews music because of a political slant, not because of the music at all, and it kind of misrepresents what the thing is about. Also, I feel like any time a magazine favorably reviews a left-wing band, à la maybe The Mekons or The Clash, that just opens up the door to the right-leaning bands, "Oh, it's cool to be political in a rock band? Cool, we'll start Skrewdriver.” It gets so asinine, and it was only our statement to keep your politics out of our music and my music. [11]

Musically, Breaking Things leaned toward a more aggressive sound than the band's previous efforts. Alvarez later said "In the '90s, the bands The Lemons and Zeke came into our orbit. It definitely was a much-needed bitch slap in the face to our band musically, because it was very cool to hear bands addressing the stuff with the right amount of aggression." [5] "We fused that really well on Breaking Things with some interesting melodies", said Stevenson. [5] "Breaking Things was an accomplishment for us. I think I was harboring some yearning for that kind of Black Flag power in the guitars, but I don't think it has the intrigue of musical diversity that Allroy Saves (1990) or Allroy's Revenge (1989) has. You're comparing and contrasting these things, but it doesn't work that way, because ultimately it's just us expressing our ideas in our bedroom and then playing them in a garage together, and there's no direction for that." [12]

Recording and release

Breaking Things was recorded in March and April 1993 at Ardent Studios in Memphis, Tennessee with record producer and recording engineer John Hampton. [9] Stevenson and Egerton also produced the album, and Skidd Mills and Jeffrey Reed served as assistant engineers. [9] Milo Aukerman, who was living in Madison, Wisconsin at the time, joined the band in the studio to sing backing vocals on the album. [9] [13] Breaking Things was mastered by John Golden at K-Disc in Hollywood, and released August 16, 1993 through Cruz Records in LP, cassette, and CD formats. [9] "Shreen" and "Guilty" were released as the album's singles, and a music video was released for "Shreen". Breaking Things was All's last album for Cruz; they would sign to Interscope Records for their next release, 1995's Pummel .

Reception

The album received mixed reception. Mike Daly of The Aquarian Weekly called the album "Loud, fast, rough, serious, funny, [and] beautiful [,,,] Not since Bad Religion's Recipe for Hate have I heard a record that kicked such major ass, yet had such sweet melodies." [14] Suburban Voice called it "a return to form after the somewhat disappointing Percolator." [11] Mike DaRonco of Allmusic gave Breaking Things three stars out of five, saying "With Chad Price handling the microphone in a deeper, more powerful tone in comparison to previous singer Scott Reynolds, the music has a bit more of a backbone to it. Not to say that All have gone heavy metal (although they do come pretty close with 'Guilty' and 'Crucified'), they're still the same playful, heartbroken teenagers (in the bodies of middle-aged men by now) who continue to share their love for food and fishing. The only significant difference is that the tone isn't as wimpy while they sing about their latest girl trauma." [3] Julie River from Punk News gave the album three out of five stars, saying, "Breaking Things doesn’t hold up to a lot of the best albums in the Descendents/All catalogue, but it has some really great moments and really did churn out a number of All’s greatest classic hits." [4]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Original Me" Chad Price 2:46
2."Right" Karl Alvarez 1:55
3."Shreen" Bill Stevenson 2:35
4."'Cause"Alvarez2:31
5."Bail"Alvarez0:52
6."Excuses"Alvarez2:06
7."Strip Bar" Stephen Egerton 0:09
8."Horizontal"Alvarez1:23
9."Guilty"Stevenson3:19
10."Birthday I.O.U."Stevenson2:41
11."Rosco"Rob Williamson (lyrics), Egerton (music)2:08
12."Stick"Price2:19
13."Crucified"Price (lyrics), Egerton (music)3:03
14."Politics"Stevenson (music and lyrics), Price (lyrics)0:56
Total length:28:44

Personnel

Band [9]
Additional performers [9]
Production [9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Stevenson (musician)</span> American musician

John William Stevenson is an American musician and record producer. He is the drummer, main songwriter, and the only constant member of the California punk rock group Descendents since its inception. In late December 1981, he played a few concerts with the hardcore punk band Black Flag because their drummer ROBO was detained in England after a tour there. He went on to record with Black Flag on several of their albums until 1985, including the highly influential My War. After this he focused his attention on Descendents and played with the band until lead singer Milo Aukerman left in 1987. After Milo's departure, Bill and the other members of Descendents, Karl Alvarez and Stephen Egerton, recruited singer Dave Smalley of Dag Nasty, moved to Fort Collins, Colorado, and formed All. All went on to have two more singers, Scott Reynolds (1989–1993) and Chad Price (1993–present). Aukerman came back for the 1996 album Everything Sucks, the 2004 album Cool to Be You, 2016's Hypercaffium Spazzinate and the newest album 9th and Walnut. All and Descendents continue to tour between Stevenson's and Aukerman's respective careers as a recording engineer and a biochemist. Stevenson was born in Torrance, California and attended Mira Costa High School, with fellow members of the Descendents.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Descendents</span> American punk rock band

The Descendents are an American punk rock band formed in 1977 in Manhattan Beach, California, by guitarist Frank Navetta, bassist Tony Lombardo and drummer Bill Stevenson. In 1979, they enlisted Stevenson's school friend Milo Aukerman as a singer, and reappeared as a punk rock band, becoming a major player in the hardcore punk scene developing in Los Angeles at the time. They have released eight studio albums, three live albums, three compilation albums, and four EPs. Since 1986, the band's lineup has consisted of singer Milo Aukerman, guitarist Stephen Egerton, bassist Karl Alvarez, and drummer Bill Stevenson.

All is an American punk rock band originally from Los Angeles, currently based in Fort Collins, Colorado. The group was formed by three members of Descendents.

<i>All</i> (Descendents album) 1987 studio album by the Descendents

All is the fourth album by the American punk rock band the Descendents, released in 1987 through SST Records. It was the band's first album with bassist Karl Alvarez and guitarist Stephen Egerton, who brought new songwriting ideas to the group. The album is titled after the concept of "All" invented by drummer Bill Stevenson and friend Pat McCuistion in 1980. Based on the goals of achieving "the total extent" and "to not settle for some, to always go for All", the philosophy was the subject of the one-second title track, the two-second "No, All!", and "All-O-Gistics".

<i>Everything Sucks</i> (Descendents album) 1996 studio album by the Descendents

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<i>Cool to Be You</i> 2004 studio album by the Descendents

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<i>Merican</i> 2004 EP by the Descendents

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<i>Somery</i> 1991 compilation album by the Descendents

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Tony Lombardo is an American musician who was the original bassist in the punk rock band the Descendents. He joined the band in 1979 and played on their debut single, the Fat EP (1981), and the albums Milo Goes to College (1982) and I Don't Want to Grow Up (1985). After leaving the band, he performed in other acts and worked for the United States Postal Service until 2005. He collaborated with the Descendents' successor band, All, writing two songs for their album Allroy's Revenge (1989) and teaming up with them for an album of his own songs, New Girl, Old Story (1991), credited to "TonyAll". He also collaborated with the reunited Descendents on their 1996 album Everything Sucks.

<i>Allroy Sez</i> 1988 studio album by All

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<i>Allroy Saves</i> 1990 studio album by All

Allroy Saves is the third studio album by the American punk rock band All, released in 1990 through Cruz Records. It was the first album that the band members recorded, mixed, and produced entirely on their own. A music video, the band's first, was released for the song "Simple Things".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">She's My Ex</span> 1989 single by All

"She's My Ex" is a song by the American punk rock band All, released as a single from their 1989 album Allroy's Revenge. Written by drummer Bill Stevenson, the song describes an ex-girlfriend with whom he had a tumultuous romance. The B-side track "Crazy?", written by bassist Karl Alvarez, is from the Allroy's Revenge recording sessions but was not included on the album.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shreen</span> 1993 single by All

"Shreen" is a song by the American punk rock band All, written by drummer Bill Stevenson and released as the first single from the band's 1993 album Breaking Things. Released in advance of the album, the single also includes two more songs from Breaking Things: "Original Me", written by singer Chad Price, and "Crucified", written by Price and guitarist Stephen Egerton. A music video was also released for "Shreen".

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"Guilty" is a song by the American punk rock band All, written by drummer Bill Stevenson and released as the second single from the band's 1993 album Breaking Things. The single also includes two more songs recorded during the Breaking Things session that were left off the album: "All's Fair", written by Stevenson, and "Man's World", written by Stevenson, singer Chad Price, and bassist Karl Alvarez.

<i>New Girl, Old Story</i> 1991 studio album by All with Tony Lombardo

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">All discography</span>

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<i>Filmage</i> 2013 American film

Filmage: The Story of Descendents/All is a 2013 independent documentary film chronicling the history of the American punk rock bands the Descendents and All. It was written by Matt Riggle, who produced and directed it with Deedle LaCour. The film uses an oral history format, telling the bands' stories through the use of interviews with over 40 subjects, as well as new and archival footage. It stars drummer Bill Stevenson, singer Milo Aukerman, bassist Karl Alvarez, and guitarist Stephen Egerton, and features nearly all past and present members of both bands. Filmage also features numerous musicians who were contemporaries of, worked with, or were influenced by the Descendents and All.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Crain, Zac (1996-10-31). "Don't Call It a Comeback". Dallas Observer . Retrieved 2015-03-14.
  2. ↑ "50 Greatest Pop-Punk Albums". Rolling Stone. 2017-11-15. Retrieved 2021-12-08.
  3. 1 2 DaRonco, Mike. "Review: Breaking Things". Allmusic . Retrieved 2015-03-14.
  4. 1 2 River, Julie (2019-03-10). "All - Breaking Things". Punk News. Retrieved 2021-12-28.
  5. 1 2 3 4 LaCour, Deedle (Director); Riggle, Matt (Director) (2013). "Bonus Cut". Filmage: The Story of Descendents/All (DVD). Manchester: Rogue Elephant Pictures. Event occurs at 25:32.
  6. ↑ Filmage: The Story of Descendents/All. Event occurs at 50:25.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Filmage: The Story of Descendents/All. Event occurs at 51:09.
  8. ↑ Percolater (CD booklet). All. Long Beach, California: Cruz Records. 1992. CRZ-022.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Breaking Things (CD booklet). All. Long Beach, California: Cruz Records. 1993. CRZ-031.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  10. ↑ Proefrock, Stacia. "Biography: My Name". Allmusic . Retrieved 2015-03-14.
  11. 1 2 "All – Interview". allcentral.com. Suburban Voice. 1993. Archived from the original on 2001-07-17. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
  12. ↑ Filmage: The Story of Descendents/All. Event occurs at 52:15.
  13. ↑ Rabid, Jack. "Review: Shreen". Allmusic . Retrieved 2015-03-14.
  14. ↑ Daly, Mike (1993). "Review: All – Breaking Things". The Aquarian Weekly . allcentral.com. Archived from the original on 2001-07-17. Retrieved 2015-03-14.
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