''Scatter the Rats'' is a studio album by American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band L7, released on May 3, 2019 through

Blackheart Records Blackheart Records is an American record label founded by rock musicians Joan Jett and Kenny Laguna. Artists include The Eyeliners, Girl in a Coma, the Cute Lepers, the Dollyrots, The Vacancies, Fea (band), Fea, Jackknife Stiletto, L7 (band), L7, ...

. It is the band's first album in almost 20 years, following the band's 2014 reunion. It has received positive reviews.

Recording and release

''Scatter the Rats'' is the first L7 studio album in 20 years and was recorded with

Norm Block Plexi was an American gothic noise rock band consisting of Michael Angelos (vocals, songwriting, bass), Michael Barragan (guitar, Echoplex, Moog) and Norm Block (drums, percussion). Formed in 1993, their original name was Godseed. Their sound ...

and

Nick Launay Nicolas Launay is an English record producer, composer and recording engineer. He is one of the most sought after record producers in the world due to his success with recent albums by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Anna Calvi, IDLES, Black Reb ...

at Happy Ending Studios and

Sunset Sound Sunset, also known as sundown, is the daily disappearance of the Sun below the horizon due to Earth's rotation. As viewed from everywhere on Earth (except the North and South poles), the equinox Sun sets due west at the moment of both the spring ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, California, United States. It was preceded by the singles "Burn Baby" on February 28 and "Stadium West" on April 22. The band announced a 21-date tour to support the release, covering the United States in mid-2019. The release follows the band reforming in 2014 and releasing the non-album singles "Dispatch from Mar-a-Largo" in 2017 and "I Came Back to Bitch" in 2018.

Reception

Pitchfork Media ''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music publication (currently owned by Condé Nast) that was launched in 1995 by writer Ryan Schreiber as an independent music blog. Schreiber started Pitchfork while working ...

gave the album a 6.6; Dayna Evans' review criticized the lyrics on one track, "Murky Water Cafe", as ("lines that resort to cliché or grab at low-hanging cultural fruit feel not only dated, but cringeworthy") and musicianship ("They sell themselves short by assuming they were just another meat-and-potatoes rock band, and on ''Scatter the Rats''’ weakest moments, they actually sound like one."). Neil Z. Yeung of

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 ...

gave ''Scatter the Rats'' 3.5 out of five stars, writing that they are "cramming crunchy guitars and lurching rhythms into an updated stew of nasty punkabilly bounce, heavy metal muscle, and no-frills rock & roll" while stating that L7 "still snarl and pack a vicious punch". ''

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 ...

'' praised the album citing the strength of the band's "pile-driving guitar riffs and quirky ear candy." ''

LA Weekly ''LA Weekly'' is a free weekly alternative newspaper in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1978 by Jay Levin, who served as president and editor until 1991. Voice Media Group sold the paper in late 2017 to Semanal Media LLC, whose paren ...

'' singled out the song "Stadium West" as "classic L7: punk fuzz and drone, with spit and fire in all the right places". ''

Exclaim! ''Exclaim!'' is a Canadian music and entertainment publisher based in Toronto, which features in-depth coverage of new music across all genres with a special focus on Canadian and emerging artists. The monthly Exclaim! print magazine publishes 7 ...

''s review from Zahraa Hmood gave the album a seven out of 10 but criticized it for being inconsistent, with immature songwriting in the middle tracks. James Thornhill of '' Under the Radar'' gave a middling five out of 10, praising the guitar work and punk attitude of select tracks but noting that this is a weak outing for an iconic punk band and that the songwriting here does not live up to their 2017 and 2018 reunion singles.

Track listing

#"Burn Baby" (

Donita Sparks Donita Sparks (born April 8, 1963) is an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter most notable for being the co-founder of the band L7. Sparks also initiated, performed, and released original material with her solo project, the band Donita S ...

) – 2:31 #"Fighting the Crave" (

Suzi Gardner Suzanne Gardner (born August 1, 1960) is an American musician and creative director best known for being a guitarist, vocalist, and co-founder of the punk rock band L7. Early life Gardner was born in Altus, Oklahoma on August 1, 1960 to A ...

, Sparks) – 3:22 #"Proto Prototype" (Gardner, Sparks) – 3:12 #"Stadium West" (Sparks) – 3:43 #"Murky Water Cafe" (Gardner) – 4:00 #"Ouija Board Lies" (Sparks) – 2:59 #"Garbage Truck" (

Jennifer Finch Jennifer Finch (born August 5, 1966) is an American musician, designer, and photographer most notable for being the primary bass player of the punk rock band L7. Active in L7 from 1986 to 1996, Finch also wrote music and performed with her band ...

) – 2:27 #"Holding Pattern" (Sparks) – 3:06 #"Uppin' the Ice" (Sparks) – 3:33 #"Cool About Easy" (Gardner) – 3:22 #"Scatter the Rats" (Finch, Gardner,

Demetra Plakas Demetra Plakas (born November 9, 1960) is an American musician, best known for being the drummer in the rock band L7. Early life Plakas was born November 9, 1960 in Chicago, Illinois. Her parents immigrated independently from Greece and late ...

, Sparks) – 4:27

Personnel

L7 *

– bass guitar, vocals *

– guitar, vocals *

– drums, vocals *

– vocals, guitar Other personnel *

–

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 ...

– production

References

External links

* * {{Authority control 2019 albums Albums produced by Nick Launay Blackheart Records albums L7 (band) albums