Bricks Are Heavy | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | April 14, 1992 | |||
Recorded | 1991–92 | |||
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Genre | ||||
Length | 37:28 | |||
Label | Slash | |||
Producer |
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L7 chronology | ||||
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Singles from Bricks Are Heavy | ||||
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Bricks Are Heavy is the third studio album by American rock band L7, released on April 14, 1992, by Slash Records. The album peaked at number 160 on the US Billboard 200 [1] and number one on the Heatseekers Albums chart. [2] As of June 2000, Bricks Are Heavy has sold 327,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen Soundscan. [3]
Produced by the band and Butch Vig, musically the album is heavier and dirtier than the band's previous recordings and described as "catchy tunes and mean vocals on top of ugly guitars and a quick-but-thick bottom of cast-iron grunge" by Entertainment Weekly . [4]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Christgau's Consumer Guide | A [6] |
Encyclopedia of Popular Music | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Entertainment Weekly | A [4] |
Los Angeles Times | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
MusicHound Rock | 4.5/5 [9] |
Q | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Rolling Stone | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Spin Alternative Record Guide | 9/10 [13] |
In a contemporary review for Playboy , Robert Christgau regarded Bricks Are Heavy as an "object lesson in how to advance your music by meeting the marketplace halfway", although he believed it would not sell as much as it deserved. He said Vig helped L7 produce grunge-metal featuring "intense admixtures of ditty and power chord" that "never quite gathers Nirvana's momentum, but it's just as catchy and a touch nastier." [14] Greg Kot was less enthusiastic in the Chicago Tribune , writing that there were not many good songs such as "Slide" and "the performances-while certainly ferocious-aren't sufficiently varied enough to make up the difference." [15]
NME listed it as the 39th best album of 1992. [16] It was ranked at number 4 on The Village Voice 's "Pazz & Jop: Dean's List", [17] as well as number 32 on their "Pazz & Jop: Critics Poll". [18] In 2015, Spin placed it at number 249 on the "300 Best Albums of the Past 30 Years (1985-2014)" list. [19]
Bricks Are Heavy is now regarded as one of grunge music's best albums. Treble's Brian Roesler credited L7 with helping to define "the very best of early grunge" through the album's fusion of pop and metal musical elements. [20]
Publication | Country | Type | List | Year | Rank | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Treble | United States | All-time | The 30 Best Grunge Albums | 2016 | 15 | [20] |
Rolling Stone | 50 Greatest Grunge Albums | 2019 | [21] | |||
Far Out | United Kingdom | The 10 best grunge albums of all time | 2021 | 4 | [22] | |
Loudwire | United States | The 30 Best Grunge Albums of All Time | 2023 | 16 | [23] |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Wargasm" | Donita Sparks | 2:40 |
2. | "Scrap" | Sparks, Brett Gurewitz | 2:53 |
3. | "Pretend We're Dead" | Sparks | 3:53 |
4. | "Diet Pill" | Sparks | 4:21 |
5. | "Everglade" | Jennifer Finch, Daniel Rey | 3:18 |
6. | "Slide" | Suzi Gardner, Sparks | 3:37 |
7. | "One More Thing" | Finch | 4:07 |
8. | "Mr. Integrity" | Sparks | 4:06 |
9. | "Monster" | Gardner | 2:56 |
10. | "Shitlist" | Sparks | 2:55 |
11. | "This Ain't Pleasure" | Gardner, Phil Caivano | 2:42 |
Total length: | 37:28 |
Credits adapted from liner notes.
Album
| Singles
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