''Ruby Red'' is an album by the American
alternative rock
Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commerci ...
band
the Dambuilders
The Dambuilders was an indie rock band that began in Honolulu, Hawaii, USA, in 1989 and later relocated to Boston. They released seven LPs (six studio albums & one compilation) and a number of EPs before breaking up in 1998. Members have gone o ...
, released in 1995. It was the band's first major label album made up of completely new material.
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Production
The album was produced by Don Gehman
Don Gehman is an American record producer, engineer, and executive, best known for his work with John Mellencamp and Hootie & the Blowfish. He was one of "the most successful producers of the 1980s and 1990s." As a sound engineer, he also helped ...
.
Critical reception
''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 ...
'' wrote that "there are some good songs, and Derby does some nice things vocally—his falsetto on 'Down' would give Radiohead’s Thom Yorke a run for his money —but it’s a letdown from a band that has rarely disappointed in the past."[ '']SF Weekly
''SF Weekly'' was a free alternative weekly newspaper founded in the 1970s in San Francisco, California. It was distributed every Thursday, and was published by the San Francisco Print Media Company. The paper has won national journalism awards ...
'' thought that "Derby's lyrics alternately capture the urge to move (down the highway, into the stratosphere) and the realization that you're often literally or figuratively stuck in one space." The ''Nashville Scene
''Nashville Scene'' is an alternative newsweekly in Nashville, Tennessee. It was founded in 1989, became a part of Village Voice Media in 1999, and later joined the ranks of sixteen other publications after a merger of Village Voice Media with ...
'' deemed the album full of "bombastic would-be anthems and strained power ballads."
''CMJ New Music Monthly
CMJ Holdings Corp. is a music events and online media company, originally founded in 1978, which ran a website, hosted an annual festival in New York City, and published two magazines, ''CMJ New Music Monthly'' and ''CMJ New Music Report''. Th ...
'' called it "a crystal-clear confection of hooky, muscular guitar riffs and occasional flights of fiddle." ''The Boston Globe
''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
'' opined that the band "has shifted away from dissonance (good move) while retaining the punk, punch and power." The ''Wisconsin State Journal
The ''Wisconsin State Journal'' is a daily newspaper published in Madison, Wisconsin by Lee Enterprises. The newspaper, the second largest in Wisconsin, is primarily distributed in a 19 county region in south-central Wisconsin. As of September ...
'' stated that the songs "coolly incorporate violins and creative guitar work to create a uniquely creepy, undeniably compelling rock sound."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 databa ...
called the album "a raw, unpretentious indie masterpiece that seems to have had few champions."
Track listing
Personnel
*Dave Derby - vocals, bass
*Joan Wasser - violin
*Kevin March - drums
*Eric Masunaga - guitar
References
{{reflist
1995 albums
East West Records albums