| The Help Machine | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | July 31, 2019 | |||
| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 36 minutes | |||
| Label | 33 1/3 Records | |||
| Producer | Steve Berlin | |||
| Fastball chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from The Help Machine | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| The Austin Chronicle | [2] |
| The Alternate Root | [3] |
The Help Machine is the seventh studio album by American rock band Fastball.
Produced by Steve Berlin of Los Lobos, Berlin personally selected the tracks [4] for the album from a list of songs provided to him by Tony Scalzo and Miles Zuniga. [5] Berlin recruited bassist Bruce Hughes to play bass, [6] reuniting Hughes with band, and allowing him to take over bass duties from Scalzo. [7] This freed Scalzo to concentrate on keyboards and guitar. [8]
This album marks the first time since The Harsh Light of Day that a Fastball album does not feature songs co-written by Scalzo and Zuniga. [5]
The first single off of the album, The Help Machine, addresses the effects of consumerism. According to Zuniga, "[the song is] just about emptiness and the feeling that things that are supposed to make us happy don't." [9]
Described as "ethereal", [10] the album also features the band's signature sound with comparisons to Elvis Costello [11] and the Beatles. [12] Pop Matters magazine referred to the album as "pop perfection." [13] The album features a "thick modern sound" [14] and is considered to be a great introduction to the band's catalog. Critics called the album "near perfect" [15] and considered it one of the best albums of 2019. [16]
To support the album, Tony Scalzo and Miles Zuniga performed live tracks for Paste Magazine. [17]
Guest musicians
Fastball is an American rock band that formed in Austin, Texas in 1995. The band originally called themselves Magneto U.S.A. but changed their name after signing with Hollywood Records.
Tony Scalzo is an American rock musician and songwriter best known as a founding member of the band Fastball.
All the Pain Money Can Buy is the second studio album by American rock band Fastball, released on March 10, 1998, on Hollywood Records. The album includes the hit singles "The Way" (1998), "Fire Escape" (1998), and "Out of My Head" (1999). The album was certified Gold by the RIAA in June 1998 and went Platinum in September of the same year, making it Fastball's most successful release.
Pocket Symphonies is an American, Austin indie rock band, formed in 2000. Their debut album Leaving Is Believing was well received by the Austin Chronicle. Also, the recording of the album attracted Fastball vocalist Tony Scalzo and Young Heart Attack guitarist Chris "Frenchie" Smith, both who took part in the recording. The Pocket Symphonies are currently recording their next album Echo Park which was released in 2006.
"The Way" is a song by American alternative rock band Fastball. It was released on January 7, 1998, as the lead single from their second studio album, All the Pain Money Can Buy (1998). The song was written by the band's lead vocalist, Tony Scalzo, and was produced by the band and Julian Raymond. Scalzo was inspired to write the song after reading about the disappearance of an elderly couple who were found dead in their car many miles away from their original destination.
The Harsh Light of Day is the third studio album by pop-rock band Fastball, released in September 2000 by Hollywood Records. It contained the single release "You're an Ocean," which spent eight weeks on the Billboard Bubbling Under chart and peaked at #101 during the fall of 2000. It also reached #25 on Radio & Records.
"Out of My Head" is a song by the American band Fastball from their second studio album All the Pain Money Can Buy. The song is a rock ballad with gospel influence, dominated by Hammond organ and piano. Bassist Tony Scalzo is the lead singer on the song, with guitarist Miles Zuniga coming in with harmony during the last chorus. The song was released to American contemporary hit radio in March 1999.
Make Your Mama Proud is the debut album released by the rock band Fastball. The track "Are You Ready For The Fallout?" was issued to some radio stations as the single for the record.
Keep Your Wig On is the fourth studio album released by the rock band Fastball. It was released by the indie label Rykodisc and the record was mixed by Bob Clearmountain. Adam Schlesinger produced Someday and Red Light during the band's New York recording sessions.
Red Letter Year is the 16th studio album by singer-songwriter Ani DiFranco, released on September 30, 2008.
Little White Lies is the fifth studio album by American rock band Fastball. It was released on April 14, 2009, and was recorded through the year 2008. It was originally to be released on March. It was produced by Miles Zuniga and CJ Eiriksson, mixed by Bob Clearmountain. It is their first album since 2004. The album is distributed by MRI/RED Distribution.
Sorry for Partyin' is the seventh studio album by American pop punk band Bowling for Soup. It is the band's sixth and final album to be released by Jive Records. It was released on October 12, 2009. It debuted at No. 104 on the Billboard 200 and No. 47 on Rock albums. No single was released to the radio for the album.
Toy Soldiers were an American rock band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The group's sound melds elements of folk, roots rock, blues, and soul.
My Favorite Year is the debut solo album by American singer, guitarist and keyboardist Tony Scalzo of Fastball fame. It was engineered by Joe Blaney, who helped to engineer The Clash's fifth album Combat Rock. Work on the album started on 2011, when Tony started a Kickstarter program. According to Tony, the songs he co-wrote with his Fastball colleague Miles Zuniga were originally created as Fastball tracks, but were not included in any of the band's records. He defined the genre of the album as "melodic pop".
This Is My Hand is the fourth studio album from the American rock group My Brightest Diamond.
SALT is a French-American band that was formed in 2016 by producer Ken Stringfellow (guitar), Anton Barbeau, and songwriter Stéphane Schück (guitar).
Formless/Functional is a 1998 album by Minneapolis alternative rock band Polara, their third full-length album and their last for Interscope Records.
Jetpack Blues is a 2002 album by Minneapolis alternative rock band Polara, their fourth full-length record, and first after breaking with Interscope Records and going independent. It was released on bandleader Ed Ackerson's Susstones Records label, and produced by Ackerson at his recording studio, Flowers, which he founded by reinvesting the money from the band's Interscope deal as well as an otherwise unsuccessful deal with Chris Blackwell's Palm Pictures.
Step Into Light is the sixth studio album by American rock band Fastball and called "the must have album of the summer [of 2017]." Their first album since 2009, it was released in 2017. The album was recorded over a two-week period. The album was produced by the band, Chris "Frenchie" Smith, and mixed by Bob Clearmountain.
Soundtrack is the first EP released by American rock band Fastball. All four songs debuted previously through their Patreon page before being released on all streaming platforms.
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