''Methodrone'' is the debut studio album by American

psychedelic 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 ...

band

The Brian Jonestown Massacre The Brian Jonestown Massacre is an American musical project and band led and started by Anton Newcombe. It was formed in San Francisco in 1990. The group was the subject of the 2004 documentary film called '' Dig!'', and have gained media noto ...

, released in 1995 by record label Bomp!.

Content

The title of the album is a portmanteau of the drug

methadone Methadone, sold under the brand names Dolophine and Methadose among others, is a synthetic opioid agonist used for chronic pain and also for opioid dependence. It is used to treat chronic pain, and it is also used to treat addiction to heroin ...

, used in treatment of

heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a potent opioid mainly used as a recreational drug for its euphoric effects. Medical grade diamorphine is used as a pure hydrochloride salt. Various white and brow ...

addiction, and the word "drone". The album's dreamy

shoegaze Shoegaze (originally called shoegazing and sometimes conflated with "dream pop") is a subgenre of indie and alternative rock characterized by its ethereal mixture of obscured vocals, guitar distortion and effects, feedback, and overwhelming volu ...

rock sound is comparable to that of

Spacemen 3 Spacemen 3 were an English neo-psychedelia space rock band, formed in 1982 in Rugby, Warwickshire, by Peter Kember and Jason Pierce, known respectively under their pseudonyms Sonic Boom and J Spaceman. Their music is known for its brand of "tr ...

and My Bloody Valentine. ''Methodrone'' is the only album to feature vocalists Elise Dye and Paola Simmonds. Drummers

Brian Glaze The Brian Jonestown Massacre is an American musical project and band led and started by Anton Newcombe. It was formed in San Francisco in 1990. The group was the subject of the 2004 documentary film called '' Dig!'', and have gained media noto ...

and Graham Bonnar were also brought into the line-up to replace

Ricky Maymi Ricky Rene Maymi (; is an American rock musician, best known as an original member of the psychedelic rock band The Brian Jonestown Massacre. The Brian Jonestown Massacre A founding member and original drummer of The Brian Jonestown Massacre, h ...

who had begun playing bass in the band. It was also Graham Bonnar's only appearance in the band.

Cover artwork

The faces featured on the cover artwork are, clockwise from top left,

Matt Hollywood Matt Hollywood (born June 11, 1973) is an American indie rock guitarist and singer. He was a founding member and leader of the Portland-based indie rock band The Out Crowd, as well as a founding member of the psychedelic rock band The Brian Jones ...

, Anton Newcombe and Dean Taylor. The water ripple effect resembles the artwork of

Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philo ...

's 1971 record ''

Meddle ''Meddle'' is the sixth studio album by English rock band Pink Floyd, released by Harvest Records. The album was produced between the band's touring commitments, from January to August 1971 at a series of locations around London, including EMI ...

''.

Release

"She Made Me" and "Evergreen" were previously released as a double A-side single in 1992. ''Methodrone'' was released in 1995 by record label Bomp!. The album was released following the departure of guitarist and founding member Travis Threlkel. The album was re-released in 2007 on Anton Newcombe's A Records. "Wisdom" was later re-recorded on the band's first and only album with

TVT Records TVT Records (Tee-Vee Tunes) was an American record label founded by Steve Gottlieb. Over the course of its 24-year history, the label released 25 Gold, Platinum and Multi-Platinum releases. Its roster included Nine Inch Nails, Ja Rule, Lil Jon, ...

, ''

Strung Out in Heaven ''Strung Out in Heaven'' is the seventh full-length album by American psychedelic rock band The Brian Jonestown Massacre. It was released in June 1998 and was the band's first and only recording with the large independent label, TVT Records. Bac ...

''. "Wisdom", "She's Gone", "That Girl Suicide" and "Evergreen" were included on the band's greatest hits compilation '' Tepid Peppermint Wonderland: A Retrospective''.

Critical reception

''Methodrone'' was largely ignored upon its release, but managed to garner a favorable review in '' CMJ New Music Monthly'', with Brian Bannin writing: "Everything moves with the slowness and presence of a disgraced monarch in exile... At its best, ''Methodrone'' has the tormented grace of accepting doom". In 2018, ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to th ...

'' ranked ''Methodrone'' at number 33 on its list of "The 50 Best Shoegaze Albums of All Time".

Track listing

Personnel

The Brian Jonestown Massacre * Anton Newcombe – guitar, bass, drums, vocals * Jeffrey Davies – guitar * Rick Maymi – bass *

– bass, vocals *Brian Glaze – drums *Graham Bonnar – drums *Elise Dye – vocals *Paola Simmonds – vocals Engineering and mixing *Anton Newcombe *David Deresinski *Eric Holland *John Karr *Jessica Wing *Adriene Gulyassy

References

External links

* 1995 debut albums The Brian Jonestown Massacre albums {{1990s-rock-album-stub