''Dig Your Own Hole'' is the second studio album by the English

electronic music Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroac ...

duo

the Chemical Brothers The Chemical Brothers are an English electronic music duo formed by Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons in Manchester in 1989. They were pioneers (along with the Prodigy, Fatboy Slim, the Crystal Method, and other acts) in bringing the big beat genre t ...

. It was released on 7 April 1997 in the United Kingdom by Freestyle Dust and

Virgin Records Virgin Records is a record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman. It grew to be a worldwid ...

and in the United States by

Astralwerks Astralwerks is an American record label primarily focused on electronic music owned by Universal Music Group. Its material is distributed via Capitol Music Group in the United States. The label was founded in 1993 and, in its early years, featur ...

. It was recorded between 1995 and 1997, and features

Noel Gallagher Noel Thomas David Gallagher (born 29 May 1967) is an English singer, songwriter, and musician. He was the chief songwriter, lead guitarist, and co-lead vocalist of the rock band Oasis until their split in 2009. After leaving Oasis, he formed ...

Oasis In ecology, an oasis (; ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environment'ksar''with its surrounding feeding source, the palm grove, within a relational and circulatory nomadic system.” The location of oases has been of critical imp ...

and

Beth Orton Elizabeth Caroline Orton (born 14 December 1970) is an English musician, known for her "folktronica" sound, which mixes elements of folk and electronica. She was initially recognised for her collaborations with William Orbit, Andrew Weatherall, ...

as guest vocalists. ''Dig Your Own Hole'' was the first Chemical Brothers album to reach number one on the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...

. Five singles were released, two of which reached number one in the UK: " Setting Sun", " Where Do I Begin", "

Block Rockin' Beats "Block Rockin' Beats" is a song by British big beat duo the Chemical Brothers. Released in March 1997 as the second single and opening track from their second studio album, ''Dig Your Own Hole'' (1997), it topped the UK Singles Chart and peaked ...

", "

Elektrobank "Elektrobank" is a song by English electronic music duo the Chemical Brothers. It was released as a single from their second album, ''Dig Your Own Hole'' (1997), in September 1997. It peaked at number 17 on the UK Singles Chart. Spike Jonze dir ...

", and "

The Private Psychedelic Reel "The Private Psychedelic Reel" is a song by The Chemical Brothers. It was the closing track of their second album ''Dig Your Own Hole'' and was released as a numbered limited edition single. The B-side was a live version of " Setting Sun". An ...

". The album has been included in several British magazines' lists of the best albums ever. The success of the album led the Chemical Brothers to be much sought-after remixers, and they released a mix album in 1998, '' Brothers Gonna Work It Out''.

Background

After the Chemical Brothers' successful debut album, ''

Exit Planet Dust ''Exit Planet Dust'' is the debut studio album by English electronic music duo The Chemical Brothers. It was first released on 26 June 1995 in the United Kingdom by Junior Boy's Own, Freestyle Dust, and Virgin Records, and on 15 August 1995 in t ...

'', released in June 1995, the duo continued to tour but quickly sought to record new material. Following the release of " Life Is Sweet", the final single from that album, the duo had changed labels from

Junior Boy's Own Junior Boy's Own is an English record label specialising in electronic dance music. Underworld, The Chemical Brothers and X-Press 2 are its most successful artists. History The origins of the label go back to 1987, when a group of young club ...

Virgin Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...

, with Virgin getting credit on their album ''Exit Planet Dust'' as well under the liner notes. The duo released an EP, '' Loops of Fury'' in January 1996, consisting of new material and a remix of one of the band's earliest and signature tracks, "Chemical Beats". The songs "It Doesn't Matter" and "Don't Stop the Rock" were released in June 1996 on vinyl as "

Electronic Battle Weapon 1 "Electronic Battle Weapon" is a series of promotional records by The Chemical Brothers made for DJs to test in clubs. The songs have been used as tracks in several albums as well as B-sides The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phon ...

" and "

Electronic Battle Weapon 2 "Electronic Battle Weapon" is a series of promotional records by The Chemical Brothers made for DJs to test in clubs. The songs have been used as tracks in several albums as well as B-sides The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phon ...

" respectively as promos for DJs to test in clubs. The duo met up with

. They were interested in collaborating for a track. The Chemical Brothers had reportedly given him an instrumental track and he then wrote lyrics for the track. The song was released as the single " Setting Sun" on 30 September 1996. The song entered the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

at number one.

Stereogum ''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine. ''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several award ...

said that "the combination of rave sirens and

psych-rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...

far-outness n ''Exit Planet Dust''was probably what convinced people like Noel Gallagher and

Mercury Rev Mercury Rev is an American indie rock band formed in 1989 in Buffalo, New York.
Original personnel were " Where Do I Begin" was released as a promotional single in early 1997. "

" was released on 24 March 1997 and reached number one on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the duo's second number one single.

Release

''Dig Your Own Hole'' was released on 7 April 1997 by record labels

and Freestyle Dust. "

" was released on 8 September 1997 and reached number 17 in the UK Singles Chart. "

" was released on 1 December 1997. A numbered release, it was ineligible for the UK Singles Charts. Further physically released promotion for the album include a DJ mix and interview set. Chemical Brothers

The album was certified platinum by the

British Phonographic Industry British Phonographic Industry (BPI) is the British recorded music industry's Trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards, the Classic BRIT Awards, National Album Day, is home to the Mercury Prize, and co-owns the Official Charts Company with th ...

(BPI) on 21 January 2000. In 2004, the album was packaged with 1995's ''Exit Planet Dust'' in a limited edition

box set A box set or (its original name) boxed set is a set of items (for example, a compilation of books, musical recordings, films or television programs) traditionally packaged in a box and offered for sale as a single unit. Music Artists and bands ...

as part of

EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...

's "2CD Originals" collection. ''Dig Your Own Hole'' was nominated for a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

for

Best Alternative Music Album The Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album is an award presented to recording artists for quality albums in the alternative genre at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. H ...

, at the 40th Annual Grammy Awards.

Legacy

In 1998, ''Q'' readers voted ''Dig Your Own Hole'' the 49th greatest album of all time, and was also included in

Q TV Q was a UK music channel based on Q Magazine, launched on 2 October 2000. It was operated by Box Television, and specialised in indie, rock and alternative. It was available in the UK on Sky channel 364 and Virgin Media channel 338. In Irelan ...

's "Top 100 Albums of All Time" list in 2008. In 2000, the same magazine placed it at number 42 in its list of the 100 Greatest British Albums Ever. ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' ranked it at number 414 in its 2014 list of

the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is a recurring opinion survey and music ranking of the finest albums in history, compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and indust ...

. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' included it in their list of the "100 Best Albums of the Nineties", as did ''Spin''.

Track listing

Sample credits * "Block Rockin' Beats" contains samples of "Gucci Again", written and performed by

Schoolly D Jesse Bonds Weaver Jr. (born June 22, 1962), better known by the stage name Schoolly D (sometimes spelled Schooly D), is an American rapper from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Career Schoolly D teamed up with DJ Code Money in the mid-1980s. His ...

. * "It Doesn't Matter" contains samples of "It Comes On Anyhow", written by Paul Conly, John Emelin, Tom Flye, Rusty Ford and Kim King, and performed by

Lothar and the Hand People Lothar and the Hand People were a late-1960s American psychedelic rock band, known for their spacey music and pioneering use of the theremin and Moog modular synthesizer. The band's unusual appellation refers to a theremin nicknamed "Lothar", wi ...

. * "Get Up on It Like This" contains samples of "Money Runner", written by

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...

and performed by John Schroeder.

Personnel

Credits for ''Dig Your Own Hole'' adapted from album liner notes. The Chemical Brothers * Tom Rowlands –

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

* Ed Simons – production Additional musicians *

– vocals on "Setting Sun" *

– vocals on "Where Do I Begin" *

DJ Kool Herc Clive Campbell (born April 16, 1955), better known by his stage name DJ Kool Herc, is a Jamaican-American DJ who is credited with contributing to the development of hip hop music in the Bronx, New York City, in the 1970s through his "Back to ...

– vocals on introduction of "Elektrobank" *

Keith Murray Keith Omar Murray (born May 29, 1974) is an American rapper from New York. Murray grew up on Carleton Ave, in Central Islip, which is located on the South Shore of Long Island in Suffolk County. Murray was a known member of a local rap collec ...

– sampled vocals on "Elektrobank" * Ali Friend – bass on "Elektrobank" and "Dig Your Own Hole" * Seggs – bass on "Lost in the K-Hole" *

Jonathan Donahue Jonathan Daniel Donahue (born May 6, 1966) is an American rock musician. He is best known as the frontman and a founding member of Mercury Rev, with whom he has released nine studio albums since 1991. He is also a former member of The Flaming Lips ...

– clarinet on "The Private Psychedelic Reel" * Simon Phillips – drums Additional technical personnel * Cheeky Paul – compiling, editing * Steve Dub –

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

* Jon Collyer – engineering (assistant) * Jon Dee – engineering on "Setting Sun" * Tim Holmes – engineering on "Get Up on It Like This" * Mike Marsh – mastering Design * Negativespace – design

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

References

{{Authority control The Chemical Brothers albums 1997 albums Virgin Records albums