California (Mr. Bungle album)
This article contains too many or overly lengthy quotations. (August 2020) |
California | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Warner Bros. | ||||
Producer | Mr. Bungle | |||
Mr. Bungle chronology | ||||
|
California is the third
Musical style and writing
The album's 1999
The songwriting process for California was much less collaborative than the band's previous albums.[4] Despite having a more accessible sound than prior releases, saxophonist Clinton McKinnon has stated, "It wasn’t some attempt at reconciling how much we’d previously tortured our audiences with white-noise [...] it wasn’t some conscious attempt to normalise our music or make it all the more palatable."[5] On the album's writing and sound, Trevor Dunn stated in a 2017 interview that, "[we] never discussed our projected direction. We never sat down and said, 'ok the last record was like that so now let’s attempt this.' Instead we individually brought things to the collective table that somehow coalesced without premeditation."[6] He goes on to state that "the recording of California was a bit of a nightmare. We attempted frugality by recording a lot in our rehearsal space which [our guitarist] Trey [Spruance] had partially turned into a recording studio. But we also spread the work out over various outside studios with a number of engineers as well as additional musicians. In the end we had two 24-track tape machines and two ADAT machines linked. That record would have been much easier to manage had Pro Tools come along a bit sooner."[6]
Regarding the album's title, drummer Danny Heifetz said in 1999, "More than anything, that title really sums up sonically what's going on on the record. It's very pleasant at times, and then there are a lot of little disasters that come up and present themselves, then blow over and go away like a storm. I would tend to explain it more like that, rather than, "Oh, California is this very deceptive place; it's bright on the outside and a really dark place on the inside." I mean, let's let the Chili Peppers do that."[5] Trey Spruance, who had recently covered the Beach Boys' "Good Vibrations" with Secret Chiefs 3 for the album Smiling Pets, said that the work of Brian Wilson (particularly Smile) was "definitely" an influence, "especially when it comes to the Faustian scale of it."[7]
Promotion and touring
To support the album, Mr. Bungle embarked on a large scale tour covering North America, Europe and Australia.
Red Hot Chili Peppers conflict
A controversy with the
As a result of the concert removals, Mr. Bungle parodied the Red Hot Chili Peppers on Halloween 1999, in Pontiac, Michigan (the home state of Kiedis). Patton introduced each Mr. Bungle band member with the name of one of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, before covering the songs "Give It Away", "Around the World", "Under the Bridge" and "Scar Tissue", with Patton deliberately using incorrect lyrics, such as "Sometimes I feel like I'm on heroin" and "Sometimes I feel like a fucking junkie" on "Under the Bridge".[20] Patton impersonated Kiedis by wearing a blonde wig and speaking with a lisp, and while pretending to be Kiedis, mockingly said to the crowd: "Don't you call me Mike, my name is Anthony. How dare you make that mistake. Mike has been ripping me off for many years."[20] The other members of Mr. Bungle, amidst their on-stage antics, satirized many of the mannerisms of the band and simulated heroin injections, as well as mocking deceased guitarist Hillel Slovak and deceased friend of the band River Phoenix. In between "No One Knew They Were Robots" and "The Air-Conditioned Nightmare", Dunn (dressed as Flea) walked up to Spruance (dressed as the ghost of Hillel Slovak) and simulated injecting him with heroin, which Patton interrupted by shouting "You can't shoot up a ghost!".[20]
Regarding the Halloween show, Trey Spruance said, "It was pretty weird, having been fans of the first two RHCP albums, realizing that somehow something personal had gone amiss somewhere. So amiss that a decade and a half after we’d liked this now hugely popular band’s music (and hadn't thought much about since), we'd be dealing with the fact that they were unmistakably trying to bury us. Why keep quiet? I remember drawing everybody’s tattoos. James Rotundi our touring keyboardist knew the band's more recent music, and he's a great guitarist, so he did those duties."[21] Dunn reflected "We had a member of the tour crew buy the most recent album of them (Californication) and then we proceeded to learn it in the back of the stage before the show. It wasn't hard. The hardest part was copying his tattoos with a permanent marker. I remember it was very funny to ridicule them without thinking about whether they would be aware or not. We were pretty pissed off for all the financial and personal damage that they caused to us based on their egos and freaks of power. We should probably have sued them."[22]
Kiedis responded to the Halloween parody by having Mr. Bungle removed from the 2000 Big Day Out festival in Australia and New Zealand.[16][17] He said of the festival shows, “I would not have given fucking two fucks if they fucking played there with us. But after I fucking heard about [the] fucking Halloween show where they mocked us, fuck him and fuck the whole fucking band. I hope they all die”.[23] Patton went on to claim that Kiedis' actions had "ruined" Mr. Bungle's career during a 2001 interview,[24] while Trevor Dunn remarked, "It really screwed us up. It screwed up my life in a personal way."[18]
The band officially split in 2004, although they had been on hiatus since playing their final concert on September 9, 2000 in Nottingham, England.
On his personal website, Dunn later wrote, "Everything you've ever heard about the Red Hot Chile Poppers [sic] screwing us is true. I'm not sure why they did it other than a non-singer's jealousy. They kept us off of festivals in Europe, Big Day Out in Australia and they had the release date of our record postponed while they released Californication. Ultimately they screwed ME out of a lot of money for which I will forever harbor anger. The best part is they had full support from their record label."[13]
Live performances
On previous tours, Mr. Bungle were known for their characteristically unconventional stage shows, where the band members would dress up in costumes and masks. The 1999-2000 shows in support of California usually featured Dunn dressed as a blonde girl resembling Goldilocks or The St. Pauli Girl,[26] although for the other members this period was largely devoid of masks and outfits due to the increased demands of the music.[27]
As with the previous "Disco Volante Tour", songs from the group's self-titled debut and independent demos were largely absent, with the exceptions of "
Critical reception and legacy
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Pitchfork | 7.3/10[30] |
Spin | 7/10[31] |
California was well received by critics. A positive review came from
Experimental artist Igorrr was greatly influenced by the album, especially by its track "Ars Moriendi".[33] The 2005 single "Unretrofied" (from the album Miss Machine) by The Dillinger Escape Plan, who toured with Mr. Bungle in 1999, was inspired by the feelings that the song "Retrovertigo" evoked in guitarist Ben Weinman after listening to it every night.[34] On June 30, 2017, the metal band Avenged Sevenfold released a studio cover of "Retrovertigo".[35]
Accolades
Year | Publication | Country | Accolade | Rank |
---|---|---|---|---|
1999 | Rolling Stone | Germany | "Albums of the Year" | 15 |
Track listing
All lyrics are written by Mike Patton, except where noted
No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Sweet Charity" | Patton | 5:05 | |
2. | "None of Them Knew They Were Robots" | Trey Spruance | Spruance, Patton, Danny Heifetz | 6:03 |
3. | "Retrovertigo" | Trevor Dunn | Dunn | 4:59 |
4. | "The Air-Conditioned Nightmare" | Patton, Clinton "Bär" McKinnon | 3:55 | |
5. | "Ars Moriendi" | Patton | 4:10 | |
6. | "Pink Cigarette" | Spruance, Patton | 4:55 | |
7. | "Golem II: The Bionic Vapour Boy" | Spruance | Spruance | 3:34 |
8. | "The Holy Filament" | Dunn | Dunn | 4:04 |
9. | "Vanity Fair" | Dunn, Patton | 2:58 | |
10. | "Goodbye Sober Day" | Patton, McKinnon | 4:29 | |
Total length: | 44:16 |
Personnel
Mr. Bungle
- Trevor Dunn – bass guitar, artwork concept and production
- Danny Heifetz – percussion, drums, keyboards and production
- Clinton "Bär" McKinnon – saxophone, keyboards, French horn and production
- Mike Patton – vocals, keyboards, artwork concept and production
- Trey Spruance – guitar, engineering, production strategy and production
Additional personnel
- Bill Banovetz – English horn
- Sam Bass – cello
- Ben Barnes – violin and viola
- Henri Ducharme – accordion
- Timba Harris – trumpet
- Marika Hughes – cello
- Eyvind Kang – violin, viola
- Carla Kihlstedt – violin and viola
- Michael Peloquin – harmonica
- David Phillips – pedal steel guitar
- Larry Ragent – French horn
- Jay Stebley – cymbalom
- Aaron Seeman – piano
- tam tam and bass drum
- Billy Anderson – engineering
- Gibbs Chapman – mixing
- Ryan Cooper – publicity
- Elizabeth Gregory – legal representation
- Josh Heller – engineering
- Malcom Hillier – sleeve photography
- George Horn – mastering
- Adam Muñoz – engineering, mixing and editing
- Mackie Osborne – sleeve layout and graphic design
- Justin Phelps – engineering
- Rob Worthington – mixing
References
- ^ a b c d Huey, Steve. "California - Mr. Bungle : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards : AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved August 22, 2012.
- ^ a b "1999". CMJ. Vol. 78, no. 847. January 5, 2004. p. 41.
- ^ a b c Press Kit for Mr. Bungle's California Warner Bros. Records, 1999
- ^ "CALIFORNIA". www.trevordunn.net. Retrieved October 13, 2018.
- ^ a b Followers, Faith No More (July 13, 2020). "Mr. Bungle 'California' Was Released 21 Years Ago!". FNM Followers. Retrieved July 29, 2020.
- ^ a b "MR. BUNGLE - Trevor Dunn talks about the making of 'California'". www.faithnomorefollowers.com. August 5, 2017. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
- ^ "TREY SPRUANCE 'CALIFORNIA' 20TH ANNIVERSARY INTERVIEW". Faith No More Followers. July 17, 2019. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
- ^ a b c "Mr. Bungle - Gig Database - 1999". An Aussie Music Fan. Retrieved January 23, 2017.
- ^ a b c "Mr. Bungle - Gig Database - 2000". An Aussie Music Fan. Retrieved January 23, 2017.
- ^ "Fear Factory, Kittie, Frog Brigade Set For SnoCore Tours". MTV. Retrieved January 23, 2017.
- ^ a b "Tomahawk's Trevor Dunn on Oddfellows, Mike Patton, and His Favorite Moment Touring with Mr. Bungle". March 3, 2013. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
- ^ a b Spruance, Interview: Trey; said, Pt 1 | That Was Then/This Is Yesterday; October 23, on; PM, 2014 at 12:22 (October 23, 2014). "Interview: Trey Spruance (April 2002), Pt. 2". Retrieved July 16, 2020.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ a b "Mr Bungle - California". Trevor Dunn. Retrieved July 29, 2020.
- ^ "Conan Neutron's Protonic Reversal-Ep195: Buzz Osborne & Trevor Dunn (Melvins, Fantomas, Mr. Bungle) - YouTube". YouTube.
- ^ a b Kangas, Chaz (April 21, 2015). "Do Faith No More and the Red Hot Chili Peppers Still Hate Each Other?". Retrieved August 6, 2017.
- ^ a b "Mr. Bungle Frequently Asked Questions". www.bunglefever.com. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
- ^ a b Canak, Danny (July 2, 2003). "Bungle No More? Mike Patton Interview". Absolut Metal. Retrieved May 5, 2007.
- ^ a b "Mr. Bungle Radio Interview with WQFS, Greensboro, NC". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
- ^ "FAITH NO MORE VS RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS". faithnomorefollowers.com. August 24, 2016. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
- ^ a b c Mr. Bungle - Clutch Cargo's, Pontiac, MI, USA (1999)
- ^ "TREY SPRUANCE HALLOWEEN INTERVIEW". November 2016. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
- ^ "A series of interviews about Mr. Bungle's 'California' PART 2". July 18, 2019. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
- ^ "The feud between Mike Patton and Anthony Kiedis". December 9, 2021.
- ^ Penny L (2001). "Mike Patton (Fantômas) on Anthony Kiedis". Archived from the original on March 11, 2014. Retrieved January 23, 2017 – via YouTube.
- ^ "Mr. Bungle Concert Setlists". setlist.fm.
- ^ "Mr. Bungle Beats Queen; Neil Young Under the Stars - Manhattan, New York, NY - News". nypress.com. Retrieved February 17, 2017.
- ^ Gadino, Dylan. "Leap from Faith: Mike Patton Strikes Again with Mr. Bungle". Rockpile. Retrieved September 2, 2012.
- Alternative Press: 93. August 1999.)
{{cite journal}}
: Missing or empty|title=
(help - ^ "NME Album Reviews - California". nme.com. December 7, 1999. Retrieved August 22, 2012.
- ^ Pitchfork. Archived from the originalon January 29, 2001. Retrieved August 22, 2012.
- ^ Norris, Chris (November 1999). "Primus - AntiPop / Mr. Bungle - California". Spin. Retrieved August 22, 2012.
- ^ "An Essential Guide to Faith No More, Mr. Bungle and the World of Mike Patton". exclaim.ca. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
- ^ Gricourt, Nicolas (March 30, 2020). "Igorrr : laboratoire d'émotions". Radiometal.com (in French) (published April 24, 2020). Archived from the original on April 28, 2020. Retrieved August 27, 2020.
- ^ Mazzeo, Adriano (July 11, 2019). "Mr. Bungle, rock alternativo experimental (Primera parte)". Mondo Sonoro (in Spanish). Archived from the original on June 5, 2020. Retrieved August 8, 2020.
- ^ "AVENGED SEVENFOLD Releases Cover Of MR. BUNGLE's 'Retrovertigo'". BLABBERMOUTH.NET. June 30, 2017. Retrieved July 16, 2020.