Recorded March 1993 (1993-03) Label 4AD | Length 43:52 Perfect Teeth
(1993) Cath Carroll
(1993) | |
Released August 9, 1993 (1993-08-09) Studio Pachyderm, Cannon Falls, MI | ||
Perfect Teeth is the seventh and final studio album by Washington, D.C. Indie band Unrest, released in August 9, 1993 through 4AD. The album was recorded at Pachyderm Studios. Unrest initially joked with their management about having Simon Le Bon of Duran Duran produce the album, which led to him coming into the studio, but not being involved with production.
Contents
Perfect Teeth was Unrest's highest selling album, and was initially released as a box set of 7" vinyl records before being released in other formats such as compact disc and cassette. The album received positive reviews from Select, Spin and the Chicago Tribune but was dismissed by Entertainment Weekly who found that the music lacking depth. Retrospective reviews in AllMusic referred to the album as Unrest's peak while Spin echoed Entertainment Weekly's opinion.
Production
Perfect Teeth was recorded at Pachyderm Studios in Minneapolis where it was recorded in five days. Simon Le Bon, the lead vocalist of Duran Duran is credited as the producer of Perfect Teeth. Robinson stated that they initially joked about getting him to produce the album, but then the label 4AD contacted Le Bon. This led to Le Bon coming into the studio for two days, but did not produce the album in any form.
Release
Perfect Teeth was released on August 9, 1993 as a box set of 7" vinyl records. It was later released on compact disc, 12" vinyl and cassette on August 24, 1993. In 2010, Billboard stated that the groups albums "never managed to sell big" and that Perfect Teeth was their best selling album which sold about 15,000 copies according to Nielsen SoundScan. Following the release of Perfect Teeth, Unrest embarked on a tour where they opened for Stereolab.
Perfect Teeth was re-issued by Teen Beat Records in 2012. The reissue was similar to the original vinyl release of the album as it was issued in a 7" vinyl box set with six colored records and six additional non-album tracks. It also included a 24-page booklet photographs taken by Mark Robinson during the recording of Perfect Teeth.
Reception
From a contemporary review, Erik Davis (Spin) praised the songwriting and opined the group could not "resist drawing out the pretty parts of its songs" Select noted the albums "great songs that were hinted at on last year's overrated Imperial ffrr" and while disliking a track described as "a token wine-glass drone type track", it was "soon forgotten in the midst of such potent, fully realised music." The Chicago Tribune noted that Unrest "employs guitars that jangle engagingly and fresh voices that recall a more innocent age, intoxicated by possibility" and that "there's an undercurrent of melancholy to "Perfect Teeth" that makes these deceptively modest tunes resonate." Chuck Eddy (Entertainment Weekly) spoke negatively about the album, finding that the guitar playing "solethargic it’s almost not there" and that the album only contained "some vaguely pretty moments", specifically on the song "Make Out Club".
From retrospective reviews, Heather Phares (AllMusic) gave the album four and a half stars out of five, finding that the group's tendencies of both pop and experimental music "come together with terrific success on Perfect Teeth" and declared it the high point of the groups career. The Spin Alternative Record Guide described the album as "edgy but restful" but found the songs did not take time to assert themselves, noting that Robinsons' songs "had become a series of pretty cloud-puffs. They went poof too soon if you thought about them too much."
Track listing
All lyrics written by Mark Robinson, except "Light Command" and "Stylized Ampersand" by Bridget Cross and "West Coast Love Affair" by Phil Krauth; all music composed by Unrest.
Personnel
Adapted from the Perfect Teeth liner notes.