''The Human Atom Bombs'' is the fourth album by the punk rock band,

Randy Randy is a given name, popular in the United States and Canada. It is primarily a masculine name. It was originally derived from the names Randall, Randolf, Randolph, as well as Bertrand and Andrew, and may be a short form (hypocorism) of the ...

, released in August 2001 by

Epitaph Records Epitaph Records is an American independent record label owned by Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, most acts signed to the label were punk and pop punk acts, while there are many post-hardcore and emo bands ...

Burning Heart Records Burning Heart Records is an independent record label formed in 1993 in Fagersta, Sweden, and currently based in Örebro. It has a close affiliation with Californian label Epitaph Records, who own the rights to distribute Burning Heart's output i ...

. It is the band's first release on Epitaph Records.

Critical reception

''The Human Atom Bombs'' received critical acclaim. Most reviews praised the band for crafting their own original sound that borrowed from the founders of

rock n' roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm an ...

and punk rock, while also praising the band for shifting and maturing their sound from previous albums that were more in line with

melodic hardcore Melodic hardcore is a broadly defined subgenre of hardcore punk with a strong emphasis on melody in its guitar work. It generally incorporates fast rhythms, melodic and often distorted guitar riffs, and vocal styles tending towards shouting and ...

and

skate punk Skate punk (also known as skatecore and skate rock) is a skater subculture and punk rock subgenre that developed in the 1980s. Originally a form of hardcore punk that had been closely associated with skate culture, skate punk evolved into a mo ...

. In her review of the album,

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 ...

's Jo-Ann Greene awarded the album a score of 4.5 out of 5 stars, praising the band's ability to be "smart and witty, well-read but not pretentious, equally adroit at addressing everyday concerns and larger societal issues," while still " oastingstrong melodies and storming performances. Plus, their music is anthemic but still kicks butt." Greene favorably compares the band's efforts in their previous 1998 album, '' You Can't Keep a Good Band Down'', with their efforts in ''The Human Atom Bombs'', complimenting the band's maturity into "a more diverse and evolved sound to support their militant message." Greene also points out the band's homage to previous bands in their style, including

The Stooges The Stooges, originally billed as the Psychedelic Stooges, also known as Iggy and the Stooges, was an American rock band formed in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1967 by singer Iggy Pop, guitarist Ron Asheton, drummer Scott Asheton, and bassist Dave ...

The Clash The Clash were an English rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave movements that emerged in the wa ...

, and the founders of

Little Richard Richard Wayne Penniman (December 5, 1932 – May 9, 2020), known professionally as Little Richard, was an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He was an influential figure in popular music and culture for seven decades. Described as the " ...

and

Eddie Cochran Ray Edward Cochran (; October 3, 1938 – April 17, 1960) was an American rock and roll musician. Cochran's songs, such as "Twenty Flight Rock", "Summertime Blues", " C'mon Everybody" and " Somethin' Else", captured teenage frustration and desire ...

. In concluding the review, Greene calls the album "a wild ride across past and present." In his review of the album for PunkNews, Chris Moran, who awarded the album 4 out of 5 stars, points out that the track "Addicts of Communication" gave him "a Clash flashback" and compliments the album for offering "not your normal Swede-Pop-Punk" in the midst of other Swedish punk rock bands like

No Fun at All No Fun at All (often abbreviated to just NFAA) is a Swedish punk rock band. History The band formed in the summer of 1991 in Skinnskatteberg. The group initially consisted of Mikael Danielsson (guitar), Jimmie Olsson (vocals, drums) and Henri ...

Millencolin Millencolin is a Swedish punk rock band that was formed on 12 October 1992 by Nikola Šarčević, Mathias Färm, and Erik Ohlsson in Örebro, Sweden. In early 1993, drummer Fredrik Larzon joined the band. The name Millencolin is derived from t ...

, and

Bombshell Rocks Bombshell Rocks is a Swedish band that was founded in 1995, in Västerås, Sweden. History The group was formed in 1995 with a line-up of singer Mårten Cedergran, guitarists Richard Andersson and Sami Korhonen, bassist Mathias Lindh, and drum ...

. Moran praises the band for their "powerful politically charged lyrics" and for " eliveringtheir feelings of anarchy in a swagger that has not been heard for some time." Moran cites "Karl Marx and History," "Proletarian Hop," "Freedom Song," "Summer of Bros," "Shape Up," and "Rockin' Pneumonia and the Punk Rock Flu" as stand-out tracks. While not awarding the album with a star rating, ''Exclaim!'' reviewer Rob Ferraz called the album "an excellent collection of catchy anthems with a message worth hearing" and complimented the band for "

ranching A ranch (from es, rancho/Mexican Spanish) is an area of land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of a farm. These terms are most often ...

out compared to their G7 release in 1999." He continues in the review to say, "One of the coolest things about this is the '50s rock n' roll influence," pointing out the evident influences from Little Richard, Eddie Cochran, and

Amos Milburn Joseph Amos Milburn (April 1, 1927 – January 3, 1980) was an American rhythm-and-blues singer and pianist, popular in the 1940s and 1950s. He was born in Houston, Texas, and died there 52 years later. One commentator noted, "Milburn excel ...

throughout the album: "instead of a bunch of former straightedge 20-somethings who slick their hair back in pompadours and sport Buddy Holly glasses, these guys actually know their music history." He concludes the review by saying, "If Randy were the Clash, this would be their ''

London Calling ''London Calling'' is the third studio album by English rock band the Clash. It was originally released as a double album in the United Kingdom on 14 December 1979 by CBS Records, and in the United States in January 1980 by Epic Records. The C ...

''." In their review of the album, ''Ox Fanzine'' (a subsidiary of Germany's music-focused ''Fuze Magazine'') praised the album, calling ''The Human Atom Bombs'' "incredible" and positively juxtaposing the record with Randy's previous "not bad, but also rather unoriginal" output. They praised the album for its musical diversity and said that while Randy reminded them of The Clash, the comparison was "unfair" because the band had crafted a unique and original style blending "

garage A garage is a covered structure built for the purpose of parking, storing, protecting, maintaining, and/or repairing vehicles. Specific applications include: *Garage (residential), a building or part of a building for storing one or more vehicle ...

, pop, rock n' roll, and

hardcore Hardcore, hard core or hard-core may refer to: Arts and media Film * ''Hardcore'' (1977 film), a British comedy film * ''Hardcore'' (1979 film), an American crime drama film starring George C Scott * ''Hardcore'' (2001 film), a British documen ...

." The review does not name any standout tracks or award the album with a formal rating.

Track listing

Information

* Recorded and mixed at Pelle Gunnerfeldt Studio (Pelle's Place) * Produced by Pelle Gunnerfeldt * Mastered at

Polar Studios Polar Studios was a recording studio in Stockholm, Sweden, which operated from 1978 through 2004. The studio was formed by ABBA musicians Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson and the band's manager Stig Anderson, owner of the Polar Music recording ...

by Henrik Jonsson * Artwork by Henrik Walse and Torbjörn Persson

Credits

* Fredrik Granberg - drums * Johan Gustafsson - bass, background vocals * Stefan Granberg - lead vocals, guitar * Johan Brändström - guitar, background and lead vocals *

- primary artist, producer

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Human Atom Bomb, The 2001 in Swedish music 2001 albums Randy (band) albums Burning Heart Records albums Epitaph Records albums Pop punk albums by Swedish artists