''Strange Free World'' is the second album by British

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 Popular culture, mainstre ...

band

Kitchens of Distinction Kitchens of Distinction (sometimes shortened colloquially to KOD) are an English three-person alternative rock band formed in Tooting, South London, in 1986. They released four studio albums and a handful of singles and EPs before disbanding ...

, released on 19 February 1991 in the US by

A&M Records A&M Records was an American record label founded as an independent company by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss in 1962. Due to the success of the discography A&M released, the label garnered interest and was acquired by PolyGram in 1989 and began distr ...

and on 18 March 1991 in the UK by

One Little Indian Records One Little Independent Records (formerly One Little Indian Records) is an English independent record label. It was set up in 1985 by members of various anarcho-punk bands, and managed by former Flux of Pink Indians bassist Derek Birkett. In th ...

. It is the follow-up to their 1989 debut '' Love Is Hell''. Noted producer Hugh Jones, who worked with Echo & the Bunnymen (on their 1981 album ''

Heaven Up Here ''Heaven Up Here'' is the second album by the English post-punk band Echo & the Bunnymen, released on 30 May 1981. In June 1981, ''Heaven Up Here'' became Echo & the Bunnymen's first Top 10 release when it reached number 10 on the UK Albums Char ...

''), among many others, helped KOD to sound more at ease in the studio. Reviewer Ned Raggett 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 ...

notes that "Musically, the tunes sound quite ambitious in many ways, often steering away from conventional verse-chorus-verse formulas," and calling the album an overall excellent effort. It is often considered one of the group's best works, as well as possibly its most popular and commercially successful, peaking at number 45 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 ...

. The album also includes their first UK charting single "

Drive That Fast ''Drive that Fast'' is a 1991 EP by the UK alternative rock group Kitchens of Distinction Kitchens of Distinction (sometimes shortened colloquially to KOD) are an English three-person alternative rock band formed in Tooting, South London ...

," which peaked at number 93 on 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 ...

Track listing

Singles

*"Quick as Rainbows" (March 1990) ** UK single: *# "Quick as Rainbows" *# "Mainly Mornings" (Live) *# "In a Cave" (Live) *# "Shiver" (Live) ** US promo 12" single: *# "Quick as Rainbows" *# "These Drinkers" *# "Elephantiny" coustic version of "Elephantine"*# "Three to Beam Up" *"Drive That Fast" (January 1991) ** UK single: *# "Drive That Fast" (7" Edit) *# "These Drinkers" *# "Elephantiny" *# "Three to Beam Up" ** US promo 12" single: *# "Drive That Fast" *# "Railwayed"

Personnel

;Kitchens of Distinction * Patrick Fitzgerald – vocals, bass * Julian Swales – guitar * Dan Goodwin – drums with: *

Roddy Lorimer Roddy Lorimer (born 19 May 1953) is a Scottish musician who plays trumpet and flugelhorn. He has performed with a wide array of artists, including Blur, Gene, the Rolling Stones, Draco Rosa, the Who, the Style Council, Eric Clapton, Suede, Su ...

– trumpet on "Under the Sky, Inside the Sea" ;Technical * Hugh Jones – producer, engineer * Michael Ade – assistant engineer * Helen Woodward – mixing engineer * Richard Norris – assistant mixing engineer * Ken Perry – mastering * Colin Bell – photography * Art direction and design by Two Guys and Kitchens of Distinction * Mixed at Master Rock * Mastered at A&M Mastering

References

{{Authority control Kitchens of Distinction albums 1990 albums Albums produced by Hugh Jones (producer) One Little Independent Records albums