Oedipus Schmoedipus

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Oedipus Schmoedipus
Oedipus Schmoedipus cover.jpg
Studio album by
Barry Adamson
Released1996
StudioGT Eden; Worldwide Studios, London
Genre Art rock [1]
Label Mute [2]
Producer Barry Adamson
Barry Adamson chronology
Soul Murder
(1992)		Oedipus Schmoedipus
(1996)		As Above, So Below
(1998)

Oedipus Schmoedipus is an album by the English musician Barry Adamson, released in 1996. [3] [4] Like Adamson's previous albums, Oedipus Schmoedipus was conceived as a soundtrack to an imaginary film. [5] The album peaked at No. 51 on the UK Albums Chart. [6]

Contents

"Something Wicked This Way Comes" appears in the David Lynch film Lost Highway . [7]

Production

The album was produced by Adamson. [8] Nick Cave cowrote and contributed vocals to "The Sweetest Embrace", while Jarvis Cocker cowrote and sang on "Set the Controls for the Heart of the Pelvis". [9] [10] Billy Mackenzie sang on "Achieved in the Valley of Dolls". [11]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [12]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [2]
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [8]
Muzik Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [13]
NME 7/10 [14]
Pitchfork 8.1/10 [15]

NME called the album "too cool to be cringingly kitsch, too deep to be flaky." [14] Pitchfork stated that, "with 13 tracks that sound like they could take form and commit acts of homicide on their own, the former Bad Seed's creation is undeniably ... alive." [15]

The Guardian determined that "Adamson's psychogeographical soundtracks snag your head and won't let go: he's made a (bad) dream of a music that simulates mainstream accessibility but is drenched with the maker's own terrors, memories, fixations." [16] Rolling Stone thought that "Adamson can brilliantly—and without words—suggest entire movie scenes with dizzying combinations of dance beats, jazz phrases, finger-snapping big-band arrangements, luscious strings and even references to '60s French pop." [17]

AllMusic wrote that "Adamson's skill in layering and devising unusual sound textures still qualifies him as one of experimental rock's more imaginative composers and producers." [12] Dave Thompson referred to the album as a "supreme slab of disturbance-with-a-(bit of a)-beat." [18]

Track listing

All tracks composed by Barry Adamson, except where noted.

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Set the Controls for the Heart of the Pelvis"Adamson, Jarvis Cocker 5:37
2."Something Wicked This Way Comes"Adamson, Adrian Thaws, Andrew Vowles, Charles Blackwell, Grant Marshall, Harry Middlebrooks, Jacques Datin, Maurice Vidalin, Mike Shapiro, Robert Del Naja 4:32
3."The Vibes Ain't Nothin' but the Vibes" 4:48
4."It's Business as Usual"Adamson, Carla Bozulich, John Napier4:28
5."Miles" Miles Davis 5:26
6."Dirty Barry" 7:25
7."In a Moment of Clarity" 4:12
8."Achieved in the Valley of Dolls"Adamson, Billy Mackenzie 4:26
9."Vermillion Kisses" 3:02
10."The Big Bamboozle" 3:33
11."State of Contraction" 1:37
12."The Sweetest Embrace"Adamson, Nick Cave 4:46
13."Set the Controls Again" 1:32

Personnel

Technical

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References

  1. ↑ Keylock, Miles (2016). "Barry Adamson - Oedipus Schmoedipus". In Dimery, Robert (ed.). 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die . London: Cassell Illustrated. p. 784.
  2. 1 2 Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 1. MUZE. p. 51.
  3. ↑ "Barry Adamson Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic.
  4. ↑ Unsworth, Cathi (27 July 1996). "Mummy's boy". Melody Maker. Vol. 73, no. 30. p. 47.
  5. ↑ "Barry Adamson Oedipus Schmoedipus". Pop Albums. The Independent. 2 August 1996. p. 10.
  6. ↑ "Barry Adamson Full Official Chart History". Official Charts.
  7. ↑ Laderman, David; Westrup, Laurel (19 April 2014). Sampling Media. Oxford University Press. ISBN   978-0-19-994931-1.
  8. 1 2 MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 8.
  9. ↑ Dalziell, Tanya; Welberry, Karen (13 May 2016). Cultural Seeds: Essays on the Work of Nick Cave. Routledge. ISBN   9781317156253.
  10. ↑ Sturdy, Mark (15 December 2009). Truth And Beauty: The Story of Pulp. Omnibus Press. ISBN   9780857121035.
  11. ↑ "Memento Mori: The Strange World of... Barry Adamson". The Quietus.
  12. 1 2 "Oedipus Schmoedipus". AllMusic.
  13. ↑ Bush, Calvin (September 1996). "Barry Adamson: Oedipus Schmoedipus" (PDF). Muzik . No. 16. p. 132. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 April 2022. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
  14. 1 2 "Oedipus Schmoedipus – 27/7/1996". NME. 17 August 2000. Archived from the original on 17 August 2000.
  15. 1 2 "Barry Adamson: Oedipus Schmoedipus". Pitchfork. 16 August 2000. Archived from the original on 16 August 2000.
  16. ↑ Pennman, Ian (26 July 1996). "Barry Adamson at the controls". The Guardian. p. T10.
  17. ↑ Vincentelli, Elisabeth (31 October 1996). "Oedipus Schmoedipus". Rolling Stone. No. 746. p. 70.
  18. ↑ Thompson, Dave (19 December 2000). Alternative Rock. Hal Leonard Corporation. ISBN   9780879306076.
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