Music from Another Dimension!

Overview and recording history

The album's release on November 6, 2012 marks six years since the band's last release of original material, the two tracks "Devil's Got a New Disguise" and "Sedona Sunrise", which were released as part of the band's compilation album Devil's Got a New Disguise in October 2006. In addition, it marked eight years since the band's last studio album, the mostly blues cover album Honkin' on Bobo (which also included the lone original song "The Grind"), released in March 2004, and eleven years since the band's last all-original studio album, Just Push Play, released in March 2001.

Reports suggest that the band has possibly been working on this album since at least 2006, and has had many recording sessions. However, it remains unknown how many recording sessions actually took place and how productive they were.

2006 sessions

Shortly after lead singer Steven Tyler recovered from throat surgery after the band had completed two legs on their "Rockin' the Joint Tour" (in support of the namesake live album Rockin' the Joint), the band entered the studio to begin work on a new album in May 2006. In October, the band's compilation Devil's Got a New Disguise was released; the album included the new songs "Devil's Got a New Disguise" and "Sedona Sunrise", songs that were written during the Pump and Get a Grip sessions that were re-worked and recorded for the compilation. The album was intended to help fulfill Aerosmith's contract with Sony and tide fans over until the band's final studio album on that contract was released. It is unknown how much work (if any) was done on material for the new album, or if the recording sessions consisted merely of work on the two new tracks on Devil's. In the fall of 2006, Aerosmith supported Devil's with the Route of All Evil Tour, with Mötley Crüe opening.

2007–2009 sessions

After a 2007 world tour, which ended in September of that year, it was reported that Aerosmith entered the studio in November 2007 to work on their new album again. At the time, it was believed that the album would include both re-recorded tracks left off previous albums, as well as brand new material. In an interview, guitarist Joe Perry revealed that in addition to creating a new album, the band was working closely with the makers of the Guitar Hero series to develop Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, a video game dedicated to the band's music. The game was released on June 29, 2008. Tyler announced on VH1 Classic Radio on September 4, 2008 that the band would enter the studio at the end of September 2008 to complete their album. A concert in Venezuela was planned for February 2009, but on January 15, 2009, Tyler said the band would be unable to play the gig because of a second knee injury of guitarist Joe Perry.

In mid-February 2009, it was announced that the album would be produced by Brendan O'Brien and that the album would likely be recorded live, like their earlier records. Although the band had hoped to finish the album before the Guitar Hero: Aerosmith Tour started in June 2009, Perry said that the group "realized there wasn't any chance of getting [the album] finished before we hit the road for the summer." The tour featured ZZ Top as the opening act for most of the tour. The tour was slated to take the band across North America from June to September 2009, but was plagued with many injuries and cancellations, and was ultimately cancelled on August 5, 2009, when Tyler spun around on a rain-soaked stage in Sturgis, South Dakota and ultimately fell from it, sustaining injuries that required him to be airlifted to a local hospital. Also in 2009, Perry completed work on his fifth solo album, Have Guitar, Will Travel and drummer Joey Kramer released his autobiography, Hit Hard.

Near-breakup of Aerosmith and Tyler (2009–2010)

After Tyler fell off the stage, he said that his fellow band members did not visit him in the hospital and he had little to no contact with them until a series of concerts in late October and early November 2009. He pulled out of a planned South American tour at the end of 2009 and seemed intent on pursuing solo projects. Tyler told Classic Rock magazine, "I don’t know what I'm doing yet, but it's definitely going to be something Steven Tyler: working on the brand of myself – Brand Tyler." Meanwhile, guitarist Joe Perry toured the United States at the end of 2009, and Japan and the UK early in 2010. In November 2009, Joe Perry stated that Tyler had not been in contact with the band and could be on the verge of quitting Aerosmith. Perry stated that the rest of the group was "looking for a new singer to work with." It had also been reported that singer Lenny Kravitz had been approached for Steven Tyler's position, which he then declined. However, despite the rumors of him leaving the band, Tyler joined The Joe Perry Project onstage, on November 10, 2009 at the Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza, and Tyler and Perry performed the Aerosmith single "Walk This Way" together. According to sources at the event, Tyler assured the crowd that he was "not quitting Aerosmith".

On December 22, People magazine reported that Tyler had entered a rehabilitation facility to manage his addiction to painkillers, brought on by injuries to his knees, legs, and feet, that resulted from years of performing. In his statement, Tyler said he is grateful for the support he is receiving, is committed to getting things taken care of, and is eager to get back on stage and in the recording studio with his bandmates. On January 20, 2010, Perry confirmed the band were about to audition for a new singer to replace Tyler. Perry said that Tyler's surgery to his legs would "take him out of the picture" for up to a year and a half, and in the meantime, the rest of the band wanted to continue performing. Perry also said that the band would be willing to continue working with Tyler in the future if the singer wanted to. In response, Tyler's attorney sent the band and its manager a "cease and desist" letter and threatened further legal action against both if the band did not discontinue this effort to replace Tyler.

Cocked, Locked, Ready to Rock Tour and 2011–2012 sessions

However, in February 2010, Tyler and the rest of Aerosmith resolved their differences and announced a world tour, entitled the "Cocked, Locked, Ready to Rock Tour", which took the band to 42 locations through September 2010. On the tour, tension between the band members flared again due to a series of on-stage incidents between Tyler and Perry, and the announcement of Tyler as a new talent judge on the television program American Idol, which Tyler did not inform his band members about before signing on to the program. When announcing the 2010 tour, the band said that the next item on the agenda was the band's next studio album. It was also revealed that the group did in fact do some recording with producer Brendan O'Brien in 2008 but halted because of the health problems of band members. Bassist Tom Hamilton told the Boston Herald in September 2010 that Tyler believes he has the time and energy to continue fronting the band while also being a judge on American Idol. Hamilton explained, "Steven's been very emphatic in saying that the way his time is arranged on the show leaves room to work on a record. He's been taking great pains to remind everybody of that, so hopefully that's the way it will come out." On November 5, 2010, guitarist Brad Whitford said the recording sessions would probably be in Los Angeles, where American Idol is headquartered, and a world tour would follow.

In a November 2010 interview reported at NME.com, drummer Joey Kramer confirmed that the band had every intention to finish and release their long-delayed album in 2011, stating, "Really, at this point in time, the only thing that's going to stop us is if someone out-and-out dies. Other than that, we've already been through what we've been through and stood the test of time. What else is there?" On January 18, 2011, shortly before the start of Tyler's debut as an American Idol judge for the 2011 season, Tyler declared that "Joe (Perry) has got some licks and I've got a bunch of songs that I've written for solo and/or Aerosmith" and the band would start prepping the album that week. In June 2011, Joe Perry announced that the band was going to meet at the recording studio to produce the next album of the band in July. Throughout the summer of 2011, the band worked on the album and regularly provided video updates of the recording sessions to their fans. On August 30, it was announced that the new album would be released around May 2012 and that the album would be produced by Jack Douglas, who produced four albums for the band in the 1970s, and also helped provide production on 2004's Honkin' on Bobo. Aerosmith toured Japan and Latin America in the fall of 2011 In January 2012, Tyler said that all of the album had been written, but that he just had to finish writing and recording the lyrics for the album, which he did while in the midst of his second season as a judge on American Idol. Perry remarked "I never felt for a minute he was lagging in the studio because of his other job. He did his whole thing [on Idol] and then showed up at eight at night and was in the studio until two in the morning.

Release of new material (2012)

On May 22, 2012, the album's first single, "Legendary Child" was released and on May 23, the band performed the song on the season finale of American Idol. Immediately after the band debuted their new single "Legendary Child" on May 23, the band released the new album's track list, title, and release date. At the time, the track list consisted of only twelve songs and was scheduled for release on August 28, 2012. In June 2012, it was announced that the album's release date would be pushed back to November 6, 2012.

On May 30, Aerosmith and Cheap Trick performed for Walmart shareholders and then began the "Global Warming Tour" on June 16 in Minneapolis, which took the band to 25 locations across North America through August 12. During the tour, Aerosmith performed new material from the album, including the single "Legendary Child", as well as the album track "Oh Yeah". In addition, "Beautiful" was played on the PA system before Aerosmith's show at the Hollywood Bowl on August 6.

On August 15, 2012 Aerosmith released a video with bassist Tom Hamilton on their official YouTube channel, asking fans which artwork he should choose for their second single, "What Could Have Been Love". However, both images shown were blurred out. "Lover Alot" and "What Could Have Been Love" were released on radio simultaneously on August 22 and on the iTunes Store on August 28. On August 28, a revised track list consisting of 15 songs was released. On August 31, Kramer premiered "Street Jesus" on an Austin, Texas radio station, where it was largely well received by hardcore fans.

On October 17, 2012, Rolling Stone premiered the opening track "LUV XXX". The entire album was premiered, track-by-track, leading up to the album's release on November 6, 2012. There was a major leak of the album on October 17 when Rolling Stone uploaded all of the songs to their media player without placing any type of protection on them. The fifteen songs on the regular edition of the album proceeded to circulate on the internet.

On October 20, 2012, as part of Pepsi's NFL Anthems project, Aerosmith released a rewritten version of "Legendary Child" titled, "Legendary Child - Patriots Anthem". The lyrics have been reworked as a tribute to the New England Patriots. The song is available for free download at www.pepsianthems.com.

Production and writing credits

The album was mostly produced by Jack Douglas, who produced five albums for the band in the 1970s and early 1980s (Get Your Wings, Toys in the Attic, Rocks, Draw the Line, Rock in a Hard Place) as well as helped produce the band's blues cover album Honkin' on Bobo (2004). Lead singer Steven Tyler and lead guitarist Joe Perry also co-produced the record, like they have on every record since 1997. Marti Frederiksen, who has produced and/or co-written much of the band's material since 1997, co-produced and/or co-wrote four of the album's tracks, including the singles "Lover Alot", "What Could Have Been Love", and "Can't Stop Lovin' You".

Tyler and Perry remain the band's principal songwriters, with Tyler having credits on eleven songs and Perry on seven songs; four of Perry's credits are solo credits. Every song, other than Diane Warren's "We All Fall Down" features at least one Aerosmith band member's songwriting credit. In addition, Tyler and Perry have renewed their exclusive songwriting partnership, writing the songs "LUV XXX" and "Out Go the Lights" together, without outside help. This marks the first time since "Fever" (1993) that this has happened. Rhythm guitarist Brad Whitford and bassist Tom Hamilton also have their first songwriting credits since Pump (1989), each of them co-writing three songs apiece. Drummer Joey Kramer has his first songwriting credits since Permanent Vacation (1987).

In addition to Diane Warren, who previously wrote "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" for the band (which remains their only #1 Billboard Hot 100 hit), the album also includes the return of familiar outside songwriting collaborators Desmond Child ("Another Last Goodbye") and Jim Vallance ("Legendary Child"), who each co-wrote one track apiece. This marked Child's first contribution since Nine Lives while Vallance had been absent since Get A Grip. New as an Aerosmith songwriting collaborator is Marco Moir (Brad Whitford's current guitar tech), who co-wrote "Lover Alot". Also garnering their first songwriting credits on Aerosmith songs are the band's touring keyboardist Russ Irwin (who co-wrote "What Could Have Been Love") and Kramer's son Jesse Sky (who co-wrote "Lover Alot").

Music

Perry says that 2004's Honkin' on Bobo was actually supposed to be this album, but the energy wasn't right at the time. However, like Honkin' on Bobo, Perry says that this album was recorded with "live, in-the-room excitement". He also says that, like with their albums from the 1970s (and unlike their albums from the 1980s and 1990s), he found himself going back and listening to the completed tracks constantly. He also revealed that the album does indeed include older material, including a riff that is at least 20 years old, stating that it may end up in several songs, "in a mini-opera kind of way". During the recording process, Perry described the sound of the music as "[It] sounds like dinosaurs eating cars - musical dinosaurs with [a] sick beat. Is that a good thing?" "Legendary Child", "Lover Alot", and "Oh Yeah" are described as rockers. The former two have been released as singles and have garnered airplay on rock radio. American Idol runner-up Lauren Alaina provides backing vocals to "Oh Yeah", a song that was a nightly staple throughout the band's "Global Warming Tour". "What Could Have Been Love" is described as a ballad, and has already been released as a single and has garnered airplay on adult contemporary radio stations. "LUV XXX" is described by Steven Tyler as "Beatlesque" and includes backing vocals from John Lennon's son Julian Lennon. "Freedom Fighter" is described as a "politically conscious rocker" and also includes backing vocals by Johnny Depp. Country star Carrie Underwood duets with Tyler on "Can't Stop Lovin' You", which is described as "a country-western crossover ballad". In addition, former Aerosmith guitarist Rick Dufay (who was in the band from 1981–84) plays on the song "Shakey Ground", which is a cover of an R&B song originally done by The Temptations in 1975. "Shakey Ground" is now slated to appear on the Walmart exclusive version of the record. Tom Hamilton is also set to have his first-ever lead vocal on the song "Up on a Mountain", which is planned for release as a bonus track.

Album cover

The album features two different covers: one for the regular release, and one for the deluxe release. The vinyl version features a similar cover to the deluxe edition, though the vinyl includes the same track listing as the standard edition of the CD release, spread out over two red vinyl albums (a standard release CD is also included inside one of the sleeves of the vinyl release).

Differences on the deluxe version:

Commercial and critical reception

Music From Another Dimension debuted at #5 on the Billboard 200 selling just 63,000 copies its first week, a sharp contrast to previous debuts. The album received mostly mixed reviews from music critics, with online review site Metacritic calculating an aggregate score of 54/100 based on 22 reviews.

Small clips

Before the first trailer was released, two small clips of the band in the studio were released, the first an interview with a guitar solo, and the second a jam in the Boneyard (Joe Perry's home recording studio).

Trailer one

On August 24, 2012, Aerosmith released the first trailer for the album on YouTube. It included pro-shot live footage (possibly from the upcoming bonus DVD for the album), interviews with the band, scenes of the band inside the studio, and snippets from the single "Legendary Child".

Trailer two ("Episode One: The Beginning")

On September 7, 2012, Aerosmith released the second trailer for the album on Vimeo. The beginning of the video was made to look like a comic-book with pictures of Aerosmith recording and discussing the album, a new song, "LUV XXX" played in the background. After a thirty-five second clip of the new song, the video transferred into a room where the members and producer, Jack Douglas, were tossing around ideas. Then, it cut to several studio clips of the band rehearsing and recording the album with a commentary by Tom Hamilton. Following that, the video cut to another clip of the new song and then finished.

Trailer three ("Episode Two: The Writing")

On September 17, 2012, Aerosmith released the third trailer for the album on Vimeo. The preview started off with Joe Perry and producer, Jack Douglas, in the studio discussing a song from the upcoming album, then it cut to the same opening in the episode one. After the intro, the video cut to a clip filmed in the summer of 2011 of Tom Hamilton, Joe Perry and Joey Kramer discussing one of Perry's contributions to the album and working out the guitar riffs. The third clip in the video was of the band at Vindaloo Studios with a voice-over commentary by Kramer; the commentary lasted for two more clips. The second to last clip was of the band discussing a few songs in an office with Douglas; it included Steven Tyler playing guitar. The last clip was a montage of small studio sessions.

Personnel