Liquid Skin

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Liquid Skin
One silhouette of a person laying on the floor while another is walking away
Studio album by
Gomez
Released13 September 1999
RecordedAugust 1998 – June 1999
StudioParr Street, Liverpool; Abbey Road, London
GenreBlues rock
Length55:28
LabelHut (Virgin)
ProducerGomez
Gomez chronology
Bring It On
(1998) 		Liquid Skin
(1999) 		Machismo E.P.
(2000)

Liquid Skin is the second album by English

the Grateful Dead, and Pearl Jam
.

Liquid Skin received generally favourable reviews from

UK Singles Chart
, with "Rhythm & Blues Alibi" peaking the highest at number 18.

Background

Gomez released their debut studio album

UK Singles Chart, with "Whippin' Piccadilly" reaching the highest at number 35.[3] It was promoted with a tour of the United States supporting Eagle-Eye Cherry.[2]

Based on the strength of the demos the band had made, their label let them self-produce their next album.[4] Sessions for it began at Parr Street Studios in Liverpool in August 1998.[5] By November 1998, the band were working at Abbey Road Studios, where they recorded strings, before moving to a mansion near Hastings. Guitarist Ian Ball said they moved so that they would be able to "recreate the home-recorded sound of the first album, but in grander surroundings".[6][7] They took a break to play a US tour with Mojave 3 in April and May 1999.[8][9][10] Gomez had collectively recorded 32 songs during the recording sessions; they had finished in June 1999.[11][12]

Composition and lyrics

Musically, the sound of Liquid Skin has been described as

Tom Gray, and guitarist Ben Ottewell).[5] Ottewell theorised that the band's experience travelling in Australia, Europe and the United States influenced their writing.[16] The album's title went through multiple names – God's Big Spaceship and Touching Up – before settling on Liquid Skin, which was inspired by a product they had found while in the United States.[11][12] They almost called it Liquid State, though Gray said that as a title it was "not as good as 'Liquid Skin'."[17] Ball described it as a "party record", with the "general theme" being "how many different ways we can play the same song in four minutes".[11]

The sitar-driven opening track, "Hangover", deals with love and being drunk, according to Gray.

Eastern rhythms.[18] Ball said it was written about a drunken night while in Las Vegas, Nevada, with Nuno Bettencourt's father.[29][30]

"We Haven't Turned Around" features cellos; it originally began under the title "Canderel" with a different chorus section.

West Hollywood.[35][36] The closing track, "Devil Will Ride", uses a vocoder and marching band horns, concluding with a Beatlesque fadeout.[37][38] Ball said the song was known under the working title of "God's Big Spaceship".[39]

Release

Gomez embarked on a tour of the US in April and May 1999, where they were supported by Mojave 3; they cancelled shows in Europe to focus on the US.[11][40] On 20 June 1999, Liquid Skin was announced for release in three months' time.[12] "Bring It On" was released as the lead single from the album on 28 June 1999.[11] Two versions were released on CD: the first with "Dire Tribe" and "M57", while the second included "Chicken Bones" and "Step Inside".[41][42] They then appeared at the Glastonbury, T in the Park and V Festivals over the next two months.[43] "Rhythm & Blues Alibi" was released as a single on 30 August 1999.[44] Two versions were released on CD: the first with "The Best in Town" and "So", while the second included a "pre-mellotron" version of "Rhythm & Blues Alibi", "ZYX", and a live version of "Tijuana Lady" (under the name "Tijuanalaska").[45][46]

Liquid Skin was released through Hut Records on 13 September 1999; its US release occurred a week later.[47][48] Coinciding with this, the band went on a tour of the US and then the UK in October and November 1999.[47][49] "We Haven't Turned Around" was released as a single on 8 November 1999.[50] Two versions were released on CD: the first with "Flight" and "Rosemary", while the second featured an "X-Ray" version of "We Haven't Turned Around", "Gomez in a Bucket (A Seaside Town Made of Ice Cream, Slowly Melting)", and "Emergency Surgery".[51][52]

"Bring It On" and "We Haven't Turned Around" were included on the band's second compilation album, Five Men in a Hut: A's, B's and Rarities 1998–2004 (2004).[53] Liquid Skin was packaged with Bring It On as a two-CD combo in 2003.[54] The band's first four studio albums and Five Men in a Hut: A's, B's and Rarities 1998–2004, were collected together as 5 Album Set in 2012.[55] Liquid Skin was reissued in 2019 as a two-CD set that included a live show, demos, and alternative versions.[56] Ball had become the band's archivist and helped bring the reissue to fruition.[7] Following this, the band toured across the UK and Australia, where they played the album in its entirety.[57][58]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[15]
Alternative Press3/5[59]
Entertainment WeeklyA[60]
The Guardian[61]
Los Angeles Times[62]
NME7/10[31]
PopMatters7.1/10[63]
Q[64]
Rolling Stone[27]
Spin8/10[65]

Liquid Skin was met with generally favourable reviews from music critics. Tom Sinclair of Entertainment Weekly noted that the band had been referred to as roots rock, "but one listen to their sophomore CD shows they’re twisting those roots into strange and marvelous shapes".[60] AllMusic reviewer Stephen Thomas Erlewine saw the album as a "cleaner, more streamlined version" of Bring It On, adding that they perform music "that they believe to be experimental or rootsy, but not quite going far enough in either direction".[15] NME Piers Martin also found it to be "very much like" their debut, "only bigger, even more confident and with far better production".[31]

Los Angeles Times writer Richard Cromelin said Gomez had "a free-ranging imagination, twisting and distorting and juxtaposing [their songs] with an exhilarating sense of freedom".[62] PopMatters editor Sarah Zupko wrote that band had "picked up a few new studio tricks or two and rounded out their sound with fuller textures and better-produced mixes". She added that the "back-to-the-country-sounding songs" had a "trippy vibe," and were "just as good as ever".[63] In a review for Rolling Stone, journalist Greg Kot wrote that "the arrangements on Liquid Skin are more substantial, beefed up with strings and horns, and the songs sturdier" than those on Bring It On.[27]

"Bring It On" reached number 21 in

singles chart. "Rhythm & Blues Alibi" reached number 18. "We Haven't Turned Around" reached number 38.[3] CMJ New Music Report ranked the album at number 13 on their list of the Top 30 Editorial Picks of 1999.[66] PopMatters included it on their Most Memorable Albums of the year list.[38]

Track listing

  1. "Hangover"  – 3:27
  2. "Revolutionary Kind"  – 4:32
  3. "Bring It On"  – 4:10
  4. "Blue Moon Rising"  – 4:48
  5. "Las Vegas Dealer"  – 3:55
  6. "We Haven't Turned Around"  – 6:29
  7. "Fill My Cup"  – 4:39
  8. "Rhythm & Blues Alibi"  – 5:03
  9. "Rosalita"  – 4:05
  10. "California"  – 7:24
  11. "Devil Will Ride"  – 6:56

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[75] Platinum 70,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

Citations

  1. ^ Prato, Greg. "Bring It On – Gomez | Release Info". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 30 July 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  2. ^ a b Prato, Greg. "Gomez | Biography & History". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 30 July 2021. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  3. ^ a b c "Gomez | full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  4. ^ Basham, David (29 September 1999). "Gomez On Maintaining Complete Control Over 'Liquid Skin'". MTV. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  5. ^ a b "Gomez – In the studio". Dotmusic. 14 September 1998. Archived from the original on 3 November 2003. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  6. ^ "Gomez: Get in the Boat". NME. 17 November 1998. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  7. ^ a b c Millar, Mark (10 July 2019). "Interview: Gomez' Ben Ottewell Talks 20 years of 'Liquid Skin'". Xs Noize. Archived from the original on 2 October 2022. Retrieved 2 October 2022.
  8. ^ "Tour Dates". Consumable Online. 5 April 1999. Archived from the original on 21 June 2002. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  9. ^ "Tour Dates". Consumable Online. 12 April 1999. Archived from the original on 21 June 2002. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  10. ^ "Tour Dates". Consumable Online. 26 April 1999. Archived from the original on 18 July 2001. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  11. ^ a b c d e "Sorted Foe E, Whizz, Hash, H, Acid, Ketamine and Viagra". NME. 17 May 1999. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  12. ^ a b c "Gomez Skin Up". NME. 20 June 1999. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  13. ^ Citations for the sound of Liquid Skin:
  14. ^ a b Rusak, Gary (1 October 1999). "Gomez: Liquid Skin". Exclaim!. Archived from the original on 26 July 2021. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  15. ^ a b c Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Liquid Skin – Gomez | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 25 July 2021. Retrieved 25 July 2021.
  16. ^ Thornhill, James (13 October 2019). "Gomez on the 20th Anniversary of 'Liquid Skin'". Under the Radar. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  17. ^ "Gomez: The Fannish Inquisition". NME. 22 September 1999. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  18. ^ a b Simon, Richard B (4 October 1999). "English Psychedelic-Rockers Gomez Wrap Short U.S. Tour". MTV. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  19. ^ a b c Gulla, Bob. "Review: Liquid Skin". Wall of Sound. Archived from the original on 6 April 2001. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  20. ^ Ball, Ian (3 June 2020). "Ian Ball on Twitter: '"It's OK, I'll be in a minute" The fabulous Ken Nelson gloriously...'". Twitter. Archived from the original on 3 June 2020. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  21. ^ Walsh, John (31 March 2001). "Liquid Skin". Hot Press. Archived from the original on 30 July 2021. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  22. ^ Hinton 2012, p. 735
  23. ^ Gray, Tom (3 June 2020). "Tom Gray on Twitter: 'I started writing Revolutionary Kind in a house on Ash Grove...'". Twitter. Archived from the original on 3 June 2020. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  24. ^ Gray, Tom (3 June 2020). "Tom Gray on Twitter: 'So we were recording in this old hall and a lot of it burned...'". Twitter. Archived from the original on 3 June 2020. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  25. ^ a b Shoup, Brad. "Gomez: Liquid Skin - Playing God". Stylus. Archived from the original on 14 August 2007. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  26. ^ Ball, Ian (3 June 2020). "Ian Ball on Twitter: 'Looks like this song was written the same week as Tijuana...'". Twitter. Archived from the original on 3 June 2020. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  27. ^ a b c Kot, Greg (14 October 1999). "Gomez: Liquid Skin". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2 November 2007. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  28. ^ Gray, Tom (3 June 2020). "Tom Gray on Twitter: 'I wrote this song in response to the death of Princess Di...'". Twitter. Archived from the original on 4 June 2020. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  29. ^ Ball, Ian (3 June 2020). "Ian Ball on Twitter: 'About a pissed evening with Nuno's dad in Las Vegas...'". Twitter. Archived from the original on 4 June 2020. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  30. ^ Ottewell, Ben (3 June 2020). "Ben Ottewell on Twitter: 'This song was written about an encounter with Nuno Bettencourts...'". Twitter. Archived from the original on 3 June 2020. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  31. ^ a b c Martin, Piers (9 September 1999). "Gomez – Liquid Skin". NME. Archived from the original on 17 August 2000. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  32. ^ Gray, Tom (3 June 2020). "Tom Gray on Twitter: 'A song with two middle eights. Don't do drugs kids...'". Twitter. Archived from the original on 3 June 2020. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  33. ^ "How I wrote 'Rhythm & Blues Alibi' by Gomez's Ben Ottewell". Songwriting. 13 February 2020. Archived from the original on 30 August 2021. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  34. ^ Gray, Tom (3 June 2020). "Tom Gray on Twitter: 'A misunderstood song IMHO. Sure we were having a side...'". Twitter. Archived from the original on 3 June 2020. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  35. ^ Ottewell, Ben (3 June 2020). "Ben Ottewell on Twitter: 'This song was finished backstage at the Crocodile Cafe Seattle...'". Twitter. Archived from the original on 3 June 2020. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  36. ^ Gomez (3 June 2020). "Gomez on Twitter: 'Yeah, it was definately backstage at the Troubador...'". Twitter. Archived from the original on 3 June 2020. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  37. ^ SD (9 September 1999). "Gomez – reviews – 'Liquid Skin'". Dotmusic. Archived from the original on 3 January 2004. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  38. ^ a b Langager, Ross (11 June 2020). "The Most Memorable Albums of 1999 (Part 4)". PopMatters. Archived from the original on 27 July 2021. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  39. ^ Ball, Ian (3 June 2020). "Ian Ball on Twitter: 'This tune was known as God's Big Spaceship up til the last minute...'". Twitter. Archived from the original on 3 June 2020. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
  40. ^ "Gomez To Tour North America". MTV. 15 March 1999. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
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  44. ^ "Hot New R&B". NME. 15 June 1999. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  45. ^ "Rhythm & Blues Alibi" (sleeve). Gomez. Hut/Virgin Records. 1999. HUTCD114/724389617726.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  46. ^ "Rhythm & Blues Alibi" (sleeve). Gomez. Hut/Virgin Records. 1999. HUTDX114/724389617825.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  47. ^ a b "Gomez Mariachi Near You". NME. 13 July 1999. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
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  50. ^ "Gomez Not for Turning". NME. 20 September 1999. Archived from the original on 29 July 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2021.
  51. ^ "We Haven't Turned Around" (sleeve). Gomez. Hut/Virgin Records. 1999. HUTCD117/724389632323.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  52. ^ "We Haven't Turned Around" (sleeve). Gomez. Hut/Virgin Records. 1999. HUTDX117/724389632521.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  53. ^ Five Men in a Hut: A's, B's and Rarities 1998–2004 (sleeve). Gomez. Hut/Virgin Records. 2006. CDHUTD 87/00946 372061 2 6.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  54. ^ Liquid Skin / Bring It On (sleeve). Gomez. Virgin/Hut Records. 2003. 8502122.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  55. ^ 5 Album Set (sleeve). Gomez. EMI Records. 2012. 50999 978415 2 4.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  56. ^ Liquid Skin (sleeve). Gomez. Virgin EMI Records. 2019. 7753419.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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Sources

External links
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