Kontiki | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | November 26, 1997 | |||
Recorded | 1995–1997 | |||
Studio | Music Lane (Austin, Texas) El Rancho Gordo (Austin, Texas) Alex the Great (Nashville, Tennessee) | |||
Genre | Rock and roll, pop rock, psychedelic rock | |||
Length | 40:01 | |||
Label | Copper Records | |||
Producer | Robert Harrison with Whit Williams and Brad Jones | |||
Cotton Mather chronology | ||||
|
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
The Austin Chronicle | [2] |
Boston Phoenix | [3] |
Mojo | favorable [4] |
MSN Music (Expert Witness) | B+ [5] |
NME | 7/10 [6] |
Option | favorable [7] |
PopMatters | 8/10 [8] |
Trouser Press | favorable [9] |
Uncut | [10] |
Kontiki (sometimes Kon Tiki) is the second studio album by American rock band Cotton Mather. The album incorporates rock, pop, and psychedelic music, as well as elements of found sound and field recordings, reflecting the group's origins as an experimental act. It was recorded on four-track cassette and ADAT, leading to a rough, homemade sound. Originally released in 1997, Kontiki did not see any success until a 1999 re-release in England. In 2012, it was reissued on the Star Apple Kingdom label, with a bonus CD of extra tracks, as Kontiki Deluxe Edition. [11] [12]
The album is named after the 1947 Kon-Tiki expedition, although band leader Robert Harrison deliberately condensed the name down to one word for the album's title.
Following the commercial failure of the group's first album, Cotton is King, bassist Matt Hovis and drummer Greg Thibeaux left the group and were replaced by George Reiff and Dana Myzer, respectively, both of whom were involved with several local bands around Austin. Initial recordings with producer Dave McNair did not yield the results that Harrison was looking for, leading McNair to suggest Harrison produce the album himself. [13]
Harrison's friend Joe McDermott owned a small house in Leander, Texas, which had a small recording setup. Harrison and Whit Williams began writing and recording what would become Kontiki at the house, on McDermott's ADAT machine and Harrison's 4-track cassette. At first, Harrison had doubts that the music would be taken seriously due to the quality of the recording gear, but the encouragement of former bassist Matt Hovis towards the material pushed him to continue the recording. Reiff, Myzer, and Darin Murphy contributed to the recordings made in Leander via overdubbing, but the basic tracks of "Camp Hill Rail Operator", "Password", and "She's Only Cool" were also recorded live to tape in Harrison's living room, with assistance from Dave McNair.
When the recording was done, Harrison contacted Nashville musician and producer Brad Jones, and the two assembled the album from the various cassettes and ADATs the songs existed on. For his assistance in assembling the album, as well as suggesting and recording several overdubs, Harrison gave Jones a co-production credit. Jones said that if he was listed as a producer, listeners would think that he had done the bulk of the production, rather than Harrison; years later, many sources still incorrectly cite Jones as the album's primary producer. [14]
Kontiki was released on November 26, 1997, on Copper Records. Despite receiving highly positive reviews and being played on independent radio stations, listeners had difficulty finding the album in stores because Copper had only produced a limited amount of CD copies. Harrison felt, based on the reviews, that the album could have been a success had it been distributed properly. The disappointment of this would inform his next batch of songs, which would become The Big Picture.
Following the album's muted release, a copy was played at a party hosted by Ron Wood of the Rolling Stones. Noel Gallagher of Oasis, in attendance at the party, tracked down a copy of the album and began to praise Cotton Mather in interviews. [13] Following this, the label Rainbow Quartz International licensed the album and released it in the UK in 1999, along with three singles from it. Cotton Mather performed in the UK, opening for Oasis, in 2000. An electric version of "Spin My Wheels", recorded during the early sessions with Dave McNair, was included on a bonus track on the Japanese CD edition, also released in 1999.
Cotton Mather entered a hiatus in 2003, following the muted reception of 2001's The Big Picture. During this period, artists such as Nicole Atkins and Britt Daniel of Spoon praised the album in interviews, and "Lily Dreams On" was used in the 2005 television series Veronica Mars. With copies of the CD becoming increasingly hard to find, Harrison launched a Kickstarter project in 2011 to reissue Kontiki with a second CD of bonus tracks. The campaign was a success, and the expanded reissue, titled Kontiki Deluxe Edition, was released on February 14, 2012. In addition to the bonus disc, Harrison wrote an essay in the CD booklet detailing the creation and recording of the album, which included contributions from George Reiff, Dana Myzer, Dave McNair, Darin Murphy, Whit Williams, and Brad Jones.
During the summer of 2019, Harrison provided an in-depth look at the process of writing and recording Kontiki via his Patreon. This included unlisted YouTube videos discussing the tracks in detail, a home-made CD-R containing the mixes Harrison originally sent to Brad Jones, instrumental mixes of several tracks, and a downloadable folder containing the stems for eight of the album's songs.
All tracks are written by Robert Harrison
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Camp Hill Rail Operator" | 3:21 |
2. | "Homefront Cameo" | 3:11 |
3. | "Spin My Wheels" | 3:29 |
4. | "My Before And After" | 2:53 |
5. | "Private Ruth" | 3:04 |
6. | "Vegetable Row" | 5:01 |
7. | "Aurora Bori Alice" | 2:38 |
8. | "Church of Wilson" | 2:01 |
9. | "Lily Dreams On" | 2:50 |
10. | "Password" | 3:12 |
11. | "Animal Show Drinking Song" | 1:16 |
12. | "Prophecy for the Golden Age" | 0:56 |
13. | "She's Only Cool" | 2:31 |
14. | "Autumn's Birds" | 3:37 |
Total length: | 40:01 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
15. | "Spin My Wheels (Electric Version)" | 4:07 |
Total length: | 44:08 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Homefront Cameo (4-Track)" | 3:12 |
2. | "Pine Box Builder (No. 1)" | 2:40 |
3. | "Camp Hill Rail Operator (Acoustic)" | 2:41 |
4. | "Little Star" | 5:36 |
5. | "Baby Freeze Queen (No. 1)" | 1:19 |
6. | "Altar Boy (Live to ADAT)" | 2:41 |
7. | "Flying Annie's Kite" | 3:06 |
8. | "Innocent Street (Acoustic)" | 3:11 |
9. | "Spin My Wheels (Electric)" | 3:32 |
10. | "Church Of Wilson (4-Track)" | 1:51 |
11. | "Private Ruth (Acoustic)" | 2:30 |
12. | "The Gold Gone Days" | 2:37 |
Total length: | 34:57 |
Coda is a rejected tracks album from various sessions during the band's twelve-year career. The album was released on 26 November 1982, almost two years after the group had officially disbanded following the death of drummer John Bonham. The word coda, meaning a passage that ends a musical piece following the main body, was therefore chosen as the title.
Definitely Maybe is the debut studio album by the English rock band Oasis, released by Creation Records on 29 August 1994. The album features Noel Gallagher on lead guitar, backing vocals and as chief songwriter, Liam Gallagher on lead vocals, Paul "Bonehead" Arthurs on rhythm guitar, Paul "Guigsy" McGuigan on bass guitar and Tony McCaroll on drums.
My Generation is the debut studio album by English rock band the Who, released on 3 December 1965 by Brunswick Records in the United Kingdom, and Festival Records in Australia. In the United States, it was released on 25 April 1966 by Decca Records as The Who Sings My Generation, with a different cover and a slightly altered track listing. Besides the members of the Who, being Roger Daltrey (vocals), Pete Townshend (guitar), John Entwistle (bass) and Keith Moon (drums), the album features contributions by session musician Nicky Hopkins (piano).
Venus and Mars is the fourth studio album by the British–American rock band Wings. Released in May 1975 as the follow-up to Band on the Run, Venus and Mars continued Wings' run of commercial success and provided a springboard for a year-long worldwide tour. The album was Paul McCartney's first post-Beatles album to be released worldwide by Capitol Records rather than Apple.
In the field of recorded music, a hidden track is a song or a piece of audio that has been placed on a CD, audio cassette, LP record, or other recorded medium, in such a way as to avoid detection by the casual listener. In some cases, the piece of music may simply have been left off the track listing, while in other cases, more elaborate methods are used. In rare cases, a 'hidden track' is actually the result of an error that occurred during the mastering stage production of the recorded media. However, since the rise of digital and streaming services such as iTunes and Spotify in the late 2000s and early 2010s, the inclusion of hidden tracks has declined on studio albums.
The Better Life is the debut studio album by American rock band 3 Doors Down, released on February 8, 2000. It has become 7× Platinum since release. This is the only album on which lead singer Brad Arnold played drums. "Kryptonite", "Loser", and "Be Like That" all reached the Billboard Hot 100 chart, peaking at No. 3, No. 55, and No. 24, respectively. The Better Life sold over six million copies worldwide.
Tug of War is the third solo studio album by English musician Paul McCartney, released on 26 April 1982. It is his 11th album overall following the break up of the Beatles in 1970, his first album released after the dissolution of his band Wings the previous year, and his first album following the murder of his former songwriting partner John Lennon. The cover features an abstract oil painting by the artist Brian Clarke, a frequent McCartney collaborator, incorporating an overpainted transparency of a portrait of Paul taken by Linda McCartney.
Barenaked Ladies Are Me is the seventh full-length original-material studio album by Barenaked Ladies. It was their first original-material album since Everything to Everyone in 2003. It was released in September 2006 internationally. The album was also the first full-length original-material album from the band following their decision to become independent rather than re-sign with Reprise. The cover art was created by a group of artists called Team Macho. The name has been cited by the band as a double entendre for "Barenaked Ladies Army".
Stop the Clocks is a compilation album by English rock band Oasis. It was released on 20 November 2006 by Big Brother Recordings. The "retrospective collection" is an 18-track double album with the featured songs chosen by Noel Gallagher. It was certified 5× Platinum in the United Kingdom.
Rockin' the Rhein with the Grateful Dead is a Grateful Dead triple live album released in 2004. It was recorded April 24, 1972, at "Rheinhallen", in the German town of Düsseldorf, during the band's European tour of 1972. The complete concert is included, but the order of the tracks on the CD was altered to fit the show on three discs, while preserving groups of segued tracks.
Kontiki or Kon-Tiki may refer to:
Cotton Mather is an American rock band from Austin, Texas, founded by Robert Harrison in 1990. Although the group started out as an experimental duo featuring guitar and cello, they evolved into a four-piece rock group with a sound centered around guitars and vocal harmonies. The group was initially active from 1990 to 2003, but returned from a nine-year hiatus in 2012 and have been active ever since. They have drawn comparisons to the Beatles, Elvis Costello and the Attractions, Squeeze, and Guided by Voices. In his 2007 book, Shake Some Action, John Borack rated the Kontiki album at number 26 of his Top 200 Power Pop Albums of all time, comparing the album to Revolver-era Beatles, Big Star, and The Apples in Stereo. NME suggested Cotton Mather might be "the most exciting guitar pop band since Supergrass."
Hold on Now, Youngster... is the debut studio album by Welsh indie pop band Los Campesinos!, released through Wichita on 22 February 2008. It debuted at number 72 on the UK Album Charts. The album was preceded by three singles – "Death to Los Campesinos!" (February), "My Year in Lists" (May), and most notably, "You! Me! Dancing!" released in June 2007.
"Slide Away" is a song by the English rock band Oasis, taken from their debut studio album Definitely Maybe (1994). It was written by lead guitarist Noel Gallagher and serves as the tenth track on the album.
You Broke My Heart So ... I Busted Your Jaw is an album by Spooky Tooth, first released in 1973 on Island Records. It was the first album to be released after the band re-formed, following their 1970 breakup. Founding guitarist Luther Grosvenor did not rejoin the band, as he had joined Mott The Hoople as a guitarist, adopting the stage name of Ariel Bender. Grosvenor was replaced by Mick Jones, who later co-founded Foreigner, while founding drummer Mike Kellie was replaced by Bryson Graham. The album was remastered and re-released on compact disc (CD) by Repertoire in January 2005, with a bonus track.
Craig Marshall is an Austin, TX based singer-songwriter originally from Syracuse, New York.
Long Live the Kings is the tenth studio album by American hip hop group Kottonmouth Kings. It was released on April 20, 2010, via Suburban Noize Records. Recording sessions took place at the "Cannibus Cabin" in Tehachapi, California and at the Subnoize Compound and Electric Ghetto in Los Angeles, with additional vocals recorded at Spidey Hole Studios in Bend, Oregon. Production was handled by Mike Kumagai, Jim Perkins, and member Daddy X, who also served as executive producer together with Kevin Zinger. It features guest appearances from Big B, BJ Smith, Dogboy, Insane Clown Posse, Tech N9NE, Vicky Calhoun, Jason Nava and Sonny Tipton.
Cornerstone is the twenty-first album in the live praise and worship series of contemporary worship music by Hillsong Live. It reached No. 2 on the ARIA Albums Chart, debuted at No. 32 on the Billboard 200 chart, and became the No. 1 album on the Billboard Christian Albums chart.
Wild Kingdom is the fifth full-length studio album by American rock band Cotton Mather. It is the third release in Robert Harrison's "Songs from the I Ching" project.
Death of the Cool is the fourth full-length studio album by American rock band Cotton Mather, and the first new album from the group since 2001's The Big Picture. Death of the Cool was the first official release from band leader Robert Harrison's "Songs from the I Ching" project.