''Stabbing Westward'' is the fourth studio album by the American

industrial rock Industrial rock is a fusion genre that fuses industrial music and rock music. It initially originated in the 1970s, and drew influence from early experimental and industrial acts such as Cromagnon, Throbbing Gristle, Einstürzende Neubauten a ...

band Stabbing Westward. It is their first album to be produced by

Ed Buller Edmund Wilbur Hudson "Ed" Buller (born 9 August 1962 in Reigate, Surrey) is an English record producer and former musician. He has primarily worked with English bands including Suede, Pulp, The Raincoats and The Courteeners. Biography Buller fir ...

and released on

Koch Records MNRK Music Group (pronounced "monarch", formerly known as Koch Records and eOne Music) is a New York City-based independent record label and music management company. It was formed in 2009 from the music assets of Koch Entertainment, which had b ...

. The album was released on May 22, 2001. The album shows a change in direction for the band. The album's songs are much less heavy and aggressive, while the industrial focus has given way to a more melodic sound. Before the album was released, lead singer Christopher Hall said in an interview that Stabbing Westward wrote great pop-rock songs, but the band had always ended up making them ugly by adding effects and screaming, etc. On this album, he claimed, they decided to write what they wanted, regardless of fan expectation. "The Only Thing" is a love song for Christopher Hall's wife. The album did well in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, but ultimately failed to sell worldwide.

Track listing

There is a US release that was a

Best Buy Best Buy Co. Inc. is an American multinational consumer electronics retailer headquartered in Richfield, Minnesota. Originally founded by Richard M. Schulze and James Wheeler in 1966 as an audio specialty store called Sound of Music, it was rebra ...

exclusive. This package contains a bonus disk featuring previously unreleased acoustic versions of "So Far Away" and "Wasted". On the second disk, there is a misprint: it says "Perfect" instead of "Wasted". This two-disc set was only available at Best Buy stores in 2001 and only during the first week of its release.

Personnel

Stabbing Westward * Christopher Hall – vocals * Derrek Hawkins – guitar, acoustic guitar * Jim Sellers – bass, baritone guitar * Walter Flakus – keyboards, synthesizer, programming * Andy Kubiszewski – drums, vibraphone, marimba, synthesizer, acoustic guitar Additional *

– production, engineer * Kent Matcke – editing, engineer * Enrique Gonzales – editing, assistant engineer * Howie Weinberg – mastering * Tom Lord-Alge – mixing * Matthew Welch – photography * Paul McMenamin – art direction, design, artwork (CD package) * Scott Rivera – artwork (design assistance)

Charts

References

2001 albums Albums produced by Ed Buller E1 Music albums Stabbing Westward albums {{2000s-metal-album-stub