''Afoot'' is the debut six-song EP by the American

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

band

Let's Active Let's Active is an American rock group formed in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, in 1981, and often identified with the jangle pop guitar work of the group's frontman and songwriter Mitch Easter. After disbanding in 1990, the group reformed in Augus ...

, first released in 1983 by I.R.S. Records.

Recording

The music on ''Afoot'' was recorded from June 1982 through March 1983. Recording was done at bandleader

Mitch Easter Mitchell Blake Easter (born November 15, 1954) is a musician, songwriter, and record producer. Frequently associated with the jangle pop style of guitar music, he is known as producer of R.E.M.'s early albums from 1981 through 1984, and as frontm ...

's home recording studio, Drive-In Studio in

Winston-Salem, North Carolina Winston-Salem is a city and the county seat of Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States. In the 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the second-largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region, the 5th most populous city in N ...

. The songs were presented as a demo to I.R.S., who quickly signed the band. The six songs were packaged as a

mini album A mini-LP or mini-album is a short vinyl record album or LP, usually retailing at a lower price than an album that would be considered full-length. It is distinct from an EP due to containing more tracks and a slightly longer running length. A ...

debut for the band and released in 12" vinyl EP format in late 1983.

Track listing

All six songs were composed by

: #"Every Word Means No" – 2:57 #"Make Up with Me" – 3:40 #"Edge of the World" – 4:00 #"Room with a View" – 3:48 #"In Between" – 3:55 #"Leader of Men" – 4:22

Personnel

Let's Active: *

– Guitar, vocals *Faye Hunter – Bass, vocals *Sara Romweber – Drums

Production

Easter produced all six tracks at Drive-In Studio.

Scott Litt Scott Warren Litt (born March 10, 1954) is an American record producer who mostly works with artists in the alternative rock genre and is best known for producing six R.E.M. albums in the late 1980s and early to mid-1990s during the band's most suc ...

provided assistance with mixing. Bassist Faye Hunter painted the

cover art Cover art is a type of artwork presented as an illustration or photograph on the outside of a published product such as a book (often on a dust jacket), magazine, newspaper ( tabloid), comic book, video game (box art), music album (album art), ...

, musician/friend

Richard Barone Richard Barone is an American rock musician who first gained attention as frontman for the Bongos. He works as a songwriter, arranger, author, director, and record producer, releases albums as a solo artist, tours, and has created concert events ...

contributed additional photography, and the album design was credited to Carl Grasso.

Reception

Although it sold only modestly, the EP was a prominent critical success. ''

Trouser Press ''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who Dave Schulps and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference to ...

'' described the record as giving "new meaning to such overused pop adjectives as crisp, bright and ringing". In a particularly effusive retrospective review,

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

said "the entire EP is simply flawless" and called all six songs "brilliantly catchy". ''Afoot'' was a major hit on college radio stations in late 1983–early 84. The opening track, "Every Word Means No", was particularly popular, and came to be regarded as a

signature song A signature (; from la, signare, "to sign") is a Handwriting, handwritten (and often Stylization, stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and ...

for the group. In the late 1990s it was covered by

Smash Mouth Smash Mouth is an American rock band from San Jose, California. The band was formed in 1994, and was originally composed of Steve Harwell (lead vocals), Kevin Coleman (drums), Greg Camp (guitar), and Paul De Lisle (bass). With Harwell's depar ...

and featured on the '' Friends Again'' soundtrack (1999). It lent its name (partially) to the multi-band compilation ''Every Word: A Tribute to Let's Active'' (2003), and continues to endure as "a mainstay of '80s pop retrospectives". ''Afoot'' was followed by the full-length album ''Cypress'' in 1984, and the two were combined in a single CD release in June 1989. This CD included two extra tracks, "Two Yous" and "Grey Scale," which had been available previously only on the UK vinyl release of ''Cypress''.

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1983 debut EPs I.R.S. Records EPs Jangle pop EPs Let's Active albums