HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''There's Nothing Wrong with Love'' is the second studio album released by American
indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...
band Built to Spill. ''There's Nothing Wrong with Love'' was recorded in May and June 1994, and released September 13, 1994, on the
Up Records Up Records was a Seattle based independent record label founded in 1994 by Chris Takino and Rich Jensen. Some of the label's best-known artists were Duster (band), Duster, 764-HERO, Built to Spill, Modest Mouse, Quasi (band), Quasi and Tad (band ...
label. It was produced by
Phil Ek Phil Ek is an American record producer, engineer and mixer. Ek began his career in Seattle, Washington in the early 1990s recording live sound in clubs. He then moved into studio recording, recording small projects and demos for local bands. Aro ...
. The songs "Car" and "Distopian Dream Girl" were released as singles.
Sub Pop Sub Pop is an independent record label founded in 1986 by Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman. Sub Pop achieved fame in the early 1990s for signing Seattle bands such as Nirvana (band), Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Mudhoney, central players in the gru ...
reissued the album on vinyl in 2015. This is the only album to feature drummer Andy Capps and the first to feature bassist Brett Nelson.


Background

The album has been considered a
concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...
based around a general theme of growing up. Among the topics: " rontman DougMartsch sings about everything from the erotic thrill of touching a girl's thumb during an elementary-school game of seven-up to the hip appeal of
David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...
." " Twin Falls" is named for the Idaho town. "That was the last record when I was able to make music without thinking a lot of people would hear it. It makes a difference. I’d like to think it doesn’t, but it does," Martsch later confided. The video for "In the Morning" was featured on ''
Beavis and Butt-head ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' is an American Adult animation, adult animated Animated sitcom, sitcom created by Mike Judge. The series follows Beavis and Butt-Head, both voiced by Judge, a pair of teenage slackers characterized by their apathy, Stupi ...
''. An unlisted final track is a satirical preview of the next Built to Spill album; none of the clips on the track are real Built to Spill songs.


Reception

Neil Strauss Neil Darrow Strauss (born March 9, 1969), also known by the pen names Style and Chris Powles, is an American author and journalist. His book ''The Game: Penetrating the Secret Society of Pickup Artists'', describes his experiences in the seducti ...
at ''
the New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' was positive in his 1995 assessment of the record, commenting: "With jagged layers of guitar, a piecemeal approach to pop music and sharp, introspective lyrics, the second album from this Boise, Idaho, band shined like a sequin on the dirty shirt of indie-rock." ''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...
'' Ethan Smith called it "top-shelf songwriting." John Bush at
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
wrote, "Beneath the wacky guitar fooling and somewhat nasal vocals, Built to Spill write great love songs, whether its bouncy pop or fragile melodies." In a
Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...
review, Steve Kandell writes, "Released in 1994, it’s an unassuming, lovely slab of lo-fi fuzz-pop about growing up, and not growing up, in
Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...
, with picaresque lyrics about playing seven-up with grade-school crushes, driving nowhere in particular, loneliness, and the childlike wonder of staring up at the stars." ''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
'' characterized the album as full of "simple, head-bobbing songs." Chris DeVille at
Stereogum ''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine. ''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several awar ...
ranked it the third best album by the band, calling it "a charmingly sophomoric sophomore release .Despite a few moments when the endearing tips over into the obnoxious, ''There’s Nothing Wrong With Love'' is the sound of scrappy mountain manchildren toying with their powers, pushing the limits of their form, setting the table for future tours de force." Upon its 2015 reissue, Jillian Mapes at
Vulture A vulture is a bird of prey that scavenges on carrion. There are 23 extant species of vulture (including condors). Old World vultures include 16 living species native to Europe, Africa, and Asia; New World vultures are restricted to Nort ...
opined: "The excitement Doug Martsch rings out of childhood anecdotes gone sideways with little more than his completely ordinary voice and his now-imitated guitar-playing (see: “Twin Falls”) is something to cherish, but so are the jangly, distorted rocking-out moments like “Big Dipper,” too."


Legacy

Christopher Hess at ''
The Austin Chronicle ''The Austin Chronicle'' is an alternative weekly newspaper published every Thursday in Austin, Texas, United States. The paper is distributed through free news-stands, often at local eateries or coffee houses frequented by its targeted demogra ...
'' called it a "landmark indie album" in 1999. Mark Richardson, in a retrospective piece for Pitchfork, suggested that ''Love'' "has come to define a certain strand of indie rock, leaving a cluster of threads picked up by
Modest Mouse Modest Mouse is an American rock music, rock band formed in 1993 in Issaquah, Washington, and currently based in Portland, Oregon. The founding members were lead singer/guitarist Isaac Brock (musician), Isaac Brock, drummer Jeremiah Green and ba ...
,
Death Cab for Cutie Death Cab for Cutie (commonly abbreviated to DCFC or Death Cab) is an American rock music, rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington, in 1997. Death Cab for Cutie's music has been classified as indie rock, indie pop, and alternative rock. The ...
, and many more." Strauss mentioned it among the "CD's That Still Sound Good Years Later" in a 2004 ''New York Times'' ranking. Jon Dolan from '' Spin'' ranked it among the best albums of the 1990s: " tchallenged slacker cynicism with basement-band symphonies that turned his own private Idaho into indie-rock’s last unknown country. ..''There’s Nothing Wrong With Love'' did for the guitar hero what
Kurt Cobain Kurt Donald Cobain (February 20, 1967 – ) was an American musician. He was the lead vocalist, guitarist, primary songwriter, and a founding member of the grunge band Nirvana (band), Nirvana. Through his angsty songwriting and anti-establis ...
had done for the rock star: subvert ego with touching vulnerability." The album was the first album PUP singer Stefan Babcock learned to play. ''
Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...
'' ranked ''There's Nothing Wrong with Love'' No. 24 on its Top 100 Albums of the 90s list. The band announced a thirtieth anniversary tour of the album in 2024, alongside
Yo La Tengo Yo La Tengo (Spanish language, Spanish for "I've got it"; also abbreviated as YLT) is an American indie rock band formed in Hoboken, New Jersey, in 1984. Since 1992, the lineup has consisted of Ira Kaplan (guitars, piano, vocals), Georgia Hubley ...
and Kicking Giant.


Track listing

All songs written by Built to Spill except where noted. # "In the Morning" – 2:37 # "Reasons" – 3:46 # "Big Dipper" – 4:09 # "Car" – 2:59 # "Fling" – 2:33 # "Cleo" (Karena Youtz, Doug Martsch) – 4:35 # "The Source" – 3:20 # "Twin Falls" – 1:49 # "Some" – 5:57 # "Distopian Dream Girl" (Martsch, Brett Nelson, Andy Capps, James Christensen) – 4:24 # "Israel's Song" (Youtz, Martsch, Nelson, Capps) – 3:47 # "Stab" – 5:29 # "Bonus Track" (unlisted track) – 1:23


Personnel

Built to Spill * Doug Martsch – lead vocals, guitar *Brett Nelson – bass *Andy Capps – drums Additional musicians *Wayne Rhino Flower –
guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...
on "Big Dipper" and
bass guitar The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an Electric guitar, electric but with a longer nec ...
on "Cleo" *John McMahon –
cello The violoncello ( , ), commonly abbreviated as cello ( ), is a middle pitched bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), tuned i ...
on "Fling" and "Stab" *Gretchen Yanover –
cello The violoncello ( , ), commonly abbreviated as cello ( ), is a middle pitched bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), tuned i ...
on "Car" *Eric Akre –
percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a percussion mallet, beater including attached or enclosed beaters or Rattle (percussion beater), rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or ...
on "Source" and "Twin Falls" *Chad Shaver –
guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...
on "Midnite Star" (one of the songs in the unlisted preview track) *
Phil Ek Phil Ek is an American record producer, engineer and mixer. Ek began his career in Seattle, Washington in the early 1990s recording live sound in clubs. He then moved into studio recording, recording small projects and demos for local bands. Aro ...
– speaking voice on "Preview" *Luke W. Midkiff –
piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...
and keyboards


References

{{Authority control Built to Spill albums 1994 albums Albums produced by Phil Ek Up Records albums