Recorded August–September 1993 Producer Pavement Artist Pavement Label Big Cat Records | Length 42:16 Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain
(1994) Wowee Zowee
(1995) Release date 14 February 1994 | |
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Released February 14, 1994 (1994-02-14) Studio Random Falls Studios
(New York City, New York) Genres Indie rock, Alternative rock Similar Pavement albums, Indie rock albums | ||
Pavement silence kit
Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain is the second studio album by American indie rock band Pavement. The album, released on February 14, 1994, saw the band move on towards a more accessible rock sound than that of their more lo-fi debut Slanted and Enchanted and achieve moderate success with the single "Cut Your Hair". The album also saw original drummer Gary Young replaced by Steve West. It was a UK Top 20 hit upon release, although it was not so successful in the US charts. As of 2007, the album had sold almost 500,000 copies.
Contents
Legacy
In 2003, the album was ranked number 210 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time and number 10 on their best albums of the Nineties. In 2003, it was ranked number 8 on Pitchfork Media's list Top 100 Albums of the 1990s, and in 2010, the song "Gold Soundz" was listed as number one on Pitchfork Media's 200 Greatest Songs of the 1990s. In July 2014, Guitar World ranked Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain at number 21 in their "Superunknown: 50 Iconic Albums That Defined 1994" list. The photo in the middle of the cover was taken from the March 1978 issue of National Geographic Magazine. The album was also included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.
Reissue
The album was reissued on October 26, 2004 by Matador Records under the name Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain: LA's Desert Origins. The re-released version contains two discs: the first is the original album as well as B-sides and compilation tracks from that era. The second disc is a collection of previously unreleased tracks featuring former drummer Gary Young and live BBC Sessions. The collection features forty-nine tracks, culled from various previous recordings, including the original album, the single "Cut Your Hair", "Range Life", "Gold Soundz", the "Gold Soundz" Australia-N.Z. French Micronesia Tour '94 EP, the "Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain" bonus 7", and other recording sessions at Random Falls, NY, Louder Than You Think in Stockton, CA, and Waterworks, NY over the course of 1993.
Track listing
All songs written by Stephen Malkmus unless otherwise noted.
- "Silence Kid" – 3:01
- "Elevate Me Later" – 2:51
- "Stop Breathin'" – 4:28
- "Cut Your Hair" – 3:07
- "Newark Wilder" – 3:53
- "Unfair" – 2:33
- "Gold Soundz" – 2:41
- "5-4=Unity" – 2:09
- "Range Life" – 4:54
- "Heaven Is a Truck" – 2:30
- "Hit the Plane Down" (Scott Kannberg) – 3:36
- "Fillmore Jive" – 6:38
Due to an ink splodge on the back of the original artwork, the song "Silence Kid" has become erroneously known as "Silence Kit". This misnomer persisted when designer Mark Ohe printed it onto the back of the reissue Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain: LA's Desert Origins, despite the interior artwork showing the correct name in print several times, including written in Stephen Malkmus' own handwriting.
Personnel
All personnel credits adapted from the album's liner notes.
Songs
1Silence Kid3:01
2Elevate Me Later2:51
3Stop Breathin4:28