Summary
Going Blank Again is the second studio album by English rock band Ride, released on 9 March 1992 on Creation Records.[1] It was produced by Alan Moulder, and peaked at No. 5 in the UK Albums Chart.[4] In October 2009 the album was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry for sales of over 100,000 units.
| Going Blank Again | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 9 March 1992[1] | |||
| Studio | Chipping Norton Recording Studios, Chipping Norton Blackbarn Studios, Ripley | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 50:24 | |||
| Label | Creation/Sire | |||
| Producer | Alan Moulder, Ride | |||
| Ride chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Going Blank Again | ||||
| ||||
Background and production edit
Following Ride's 1990 debut album Nowhere, Ride released Going Blank Again as their second full-length record, accompanied by the singles "Leave Them All Behind" (10 February 1992)[5] and "Twisterella" (13 April 1992),[6] the latter named in reference to a song in the 1963 kitchen sink drama Billy Liar.[7][8] The album consists of ten tracks, selected from twenty-five that the band had recorded.[9]
It has been said that Going Blank Again resembles the band's debut album but also drawing comparisons to the power-pop style of Teenage Fanclub who were Creation Records labelmates of Ride, although it is pointed out that Ride's vocals are more layered, and that the guitars are not as sharp and cutting as those of similar bands of the same era, whilst retaining the reverberating sound that was typical of the shoegaze sound.[10] The album's lyrics have been criticised, but overall this was not seen as an important factor for the album given the nature of shoegaze.[10]
The band credit Christopher Gunson with creating the cover art for the album.[11]
Release edit
The album was re-released on 24 September 2001 featuring four bonus tracks on the Ignition label in the United Kingdom.[9][10] The four tracks were compiled from the two CD singles released from the album, "Leave Them All Behind" and "Twisterella". This omitted the original mix of "Chrome Waves", as found on the "Leave Them All Behind" CD single in February 1992 and the "Grasshopper" compilation EP in Japan in November of that year.[12] On 30 March 2012, a 20th Anniversary reissue of the album was announced, featuring the same track listing as the 2001 reissue, plus a bonus DVD of the band's 27/3/92 Brixton Academy concert, previously only released on VHS and LaserDisc, which had been out of print. According to a recent newsletter to fans, tracking down the original master of the video was no easy task:
After quite a lengthy stint of detective work, we managed to track down the original digital master tape of the Brixton live show. And it looks great! So we asked Catherine Marks and John Catlin at Alan Moulder's studio to mix the audio afresh from the 2″ master tapes of the gig. Catherine had worked under Alan's watchful eye on the Roxy LA mixes and so we were really happy that she could find time to mix and edit the Brixton audio. Needless to say, it sounds truly wonderful and we’re really pleased to now finally have a Ride release on DVD.[13]
Going Blank Again was re-issued in November 2022 by Wichita recordings. All the original audio reworked and refined, the reissue made available on vinyl and CD.
Reception edit
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [10] |
| Chicago Tribune | [14] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B+[15] |
| Los Angeles Times |  [16] |
| NME | 9/10[17] |
| Pitchfork | 8.7/10[18] |
| Q | [19] |
| Select | 5/5[20] |
| Uncut | 7/10[21] |
| The Village Voice | A−[22] |
Reviewing the album at the time, British music weekly NME noted that they did not have high hopes for Going Blank Again but that Ride "did the business" and restored the magazine's faith in the band,[17] noting particularly that they had taken on board a diverse set of influences and developed their sound:
This LP has some top punk rock bass guitar on it! Some new effects pedals! New ideas! It is not Going Nowhere Again which is the album we feared they'd make. Instead, GBA fills in the lines between Ride's beauty with cement and then builds like a demon. There is no stone left unturned, as they open up to new reference points... would you believe King Crimson? New Order? The Who? The Beach Boys? Ride have reinvented themselves whilst retaining all the cuteness of Haircut One Hundred.[17]
An academic study on My Bloody Valentine's seminal shoegazing album Loveless mentions that the tracks of Going Blank Again are "predictive" of later genres of indie rock, and notes that the seventh track "Cool Your Boots" is a "shoegazing classic".[23] "Leave Them All Behind" ranked number 273 in NME's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time,[24] whilst the album itself ranked at number 407 in the corresponding greatest albums list published a year earlier.[25]
Track listing edit
All songs composed by Andy Bell, Loz Colbert, Mark Gardener, Steve Queralt.
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Lead vocals | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Leave Them All Behind" | Gardener | Gardener and Bell | 8:17 |
| 2. | "Twisterella" | Gardener | Gardener | 3:42 |
| 3. | "Not Fazed" | Bell | Gardener and Bell | 4:24 |
| 4. | "Chrome Waves" | Bell | Bell | 3:53 |
| 5. | "Mouse Trap" | Gardener | Gardener and Bell | 5:14 |
| 6. | "Time of Her Time" | Bell | Bell | 3:16 |
| 7. | "Cool Your Boots" | Bell | Bell | 6:01 |
| 8. | "Making Judy Smile" | Bell | Bell | 2:39 |
| 9. | "Time Machine" | Gardener | Gardener and Bell | 5:54 |
| 10. | "OX4" | Gardener | Gardener and Bell | 7:03 |
| Total length: | 50:24 | |||
- Additional tracks
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Lead vocals | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11. | "Going Blank Again" (from the Twisterella EP, 1992) | Bell | Bell | Gardener and Bell | 3:21 |
| 12. | "Howard Hughes" (from the Twisterella EP, 1992) | Bell | Bell | Gardener and Bell | 4:03 |
| 13. | "Stampede" (from the Twisterella EP, 1992) | Gardener | Gardener | Gardener | 4:16 |
| 14. | "Grasshopper" (from the Leave Them All Behind EP, 1992) | Bell, Colbert, Gardener, Queralt | 10:56 | ||
| Total length: | 73:04 | ||||
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Leave Them All Behind" | Gardener | Bell, Colbert, Gardener, Queralt | |
| 2. | "Taste" | Gardener | Bell, Colbert, Gardener, Queralt | |
| 3. | "Not Fazed" | Bell | Bell | |
| 4. | "Unfamiliar" | Gardener | Bell, Colbert, Gardener, Queralt | |
| 5. | "Like a Daydream" | Bell | Bell | |
| 6. | "OX4" | Gardener | Bell, Colbert, Gardener, Queralt | |
| 7. | "Perfect Time" | Gardener | Bell, Colbert, Gardener, Queralt | |
| 8. | "Twisterella" | Gardener | Bell, Colbert, Gardener, Queralt | |
| 9. | "Drive Blind" | Bell | Bell | |
| 10. | "Making Judy Smile" | Bell | Bell | |
| 11. | "Nowhere" | Colbert | Bell, Colbert, Gardener, Queralt | |
| 12. | "Vapour Trail" | Bell | Bell | |
| 13. | "Chrome Waves" | Bell | Bell | |
| 14. | "Mouse Trap" | Gardener | Bell, Colbert, Gardener, Queralt | |
| 15. | "Dreams Burn Down" | Bell | Bell | |
| 16. | "Time of Her Time" | Bell | Bell | |
| 17. | "Chelsea Girl" | Gardener | Bell, Colbert, Gardener, Queralt | |
| Total length: | 1:22:09 | |||
Charts edit
| Chart (1992) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA)[26] | 56 |
| UK Albums (OCC)[27] | 5 |
| New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[28] | 34 |
| Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[29] | 32 |
Certifications edit
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[30] | Gold | 100,000^ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
Release history edit
| Country | Date | Label | Format | Catalogue # | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 9 March 1992 | Creation Records | LP | CRELP074 | 10 tracks (double vinyl) |
| CD | CRECD074 | 10 tracks | |||
| United States | March 1992 | Sire Records | CD | 9 26836-2 | 10 tracks |
| United Kingdom | 24 September 2001 | Ignition Records | CD | IGN CD10 | 14 tracks |
| United States | 2011 | Obscure Alternatives | LP | OAR 1108 | 10 tracks (150-gram double vinyl) |
| United Kingdom | 14 February 2012 | Obscure Alternatives | LP | OAR 11081 | 10 tracks (150-gram double vinyl) |
| 13 August 2012 | Oxford Music | CD/DVD | 14 tracks + 17 track live DVD |
References edit
- ^ a b says, Skweekah. "Going Blank Again LP – RIDE". ride.band. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
- ^ "The 50 Best Shoegaze Albums of All Time". Pitchfork. 24 October 2016. p. 5. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
- ^ Pearis, Bill (9 March 2022). "Ride's 'Going Blank Again' turns 30, went beyond 'Nowhere' and shoegaze, brilliantly". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
- ^ "The Official Charts Company - Ride - Going Blank Again". Official Charts Company. 29 July 2012. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
- ^ "Leave Them All Behind EP – RIDE". ride.band. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
- ^ "Twisterella EP – RIDE". ride.band. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
- ^ Raggett, Ned. "Ride - Leave Them All Behind Album Reviews, Songs & More". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
- ^ Raggett, Ned. "Ride - Twisterella Album Reviews, Songs & More". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
- ^ a b Ride, Going Blank Again, Ride0x4.net Archived 14 January 2003 at archive.today.
- ^ a b c d Kellman, Andy. "Going Blank Again – Ride". AllMusic. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
- ^ "Q&A, Ride0X4.net". rideox4.net. Archived from the original on 27 August 2003. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
- ^ "Grasshopper EP – RIDE". ride.band. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
- ^ "Ride's 20th anniversary reissue of 'Going Blank Again' to feature 1992 concert on DVD".
- ^ Kot, Greg (2 April 1992). "Ride: Going Blank Again (Sire)". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
- ^ Browne, David (24 April 1992). "Going Blank Again". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
- ^ Hochman, Steve (29 March 1992). "Spring Album Roundup". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
- ^ a b c Lamacq, Steve (7 March 1992). "The Thames Lords". NME. Archived from the original on 4 June 2016. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
- ^ Cohen, Ian (17 August 2012). "Ride: Going Blank Again". Pitchfork. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
- ^ "Ride: Going Blank Again". Q (67): 82. April 1992.
- ^ Cavanagh, David (April 1992). "The Big Trip". Select (22): 71.
- ^ Richards, Sam (2 August 2012). "Ride reissues". Uncut. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (20 October 1992). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
- ^ Florida State University College of Music, thesis on |My Bloody Valentine's Loveless, by David R. Fisher, 2006. Archived 23 January 2015 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Barker, Emily (31 January 2014). "The 500 Greatest Songs Of All Time - 300-201". NME. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
- ^ Barker, Emily (21 October 2013). "The 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time: 500-401". NME. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
- ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 234.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
- ^ "Charts.nz – RIDE – GOING BLANK AGAIN". Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
- ^ "Swedishcharts.com – RIDE – GOING BLANK AGAIN". Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
- ^ "British album certifications – Ride – Going Blank Again". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
External links edit
- Going Blank Again at YouTube (streamed copy where licensed)