View source for 4-Track Demos

{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2020}}
{{Use British English|date=May 2015}}
{{Infobox album
| name       = 4-Track Demos
| type       = demo
| artist     = [[PJ Harvey]]
| cover      = 4-Track Demos.jpg
| alt        =
| released   = {{Start date|1993|10|19|df=yes}}
| recorded   = {{Start date|1991}}–{{End date|1992}}
| venue      =
| studio     =
| genre      = {{flatlist|
*[[Alternative rock]]
*[[indie rock]]
}}
| length     = {{Duration|m=47|s=24}}
| label      = [[Island Records|Island]]
| producer   = PJ Harvey
| prev_title = [[Rid of Me]]
| prev_year  = 1993
| next_title = [[To Bring You My Love]]
| next_year  = 1995
}}

'''''4-Track Demos''''' is an album of [[demo (music)|demos]] by the English singer-songwriter [[PJ Harvey]]. It was released in October 1993 by [[Island Records]]. It consists of eight demos of songs from her previous album, ''[[Rid of Me]]'', along with six demos of some unreleased tracks which never made it to release with the three-piece PJ Harvey line-up. According to interviews with Harvey, all fourteen of these songs were written and demoed at her home between mid-1991 and autumn 1992. ''4-Track Demos'' was Harvey's first entirely self-produced album; there would not be another such until 2004's ''[[Uh Huh Her (album)|Uh Huh Her]]''.

==Background==
{{Listen|pos = left
 |filename     = Ecstacy (P.J. Harvey song).ogg
 |title        = "Ecstasy"
 |description  = "Ecstasy" audio sample
}}

Prior to the release of ''4-Track Demos'', Harvey had a history of releasing early versions of her songs. The demo versions for the songs on her debut album ''[[Dry (album)|Dry]]'' (1992) were released with the studio album in a limited edition double album format called ''Dry (Demonstration)''. She briefly contemplated releasing ''Rid of Me'' as a double album, consisting of the studio album on one disc and the demo versions on another. However, considering that ''Rid of Me'' was to be her major label debut, a double album ended up being a move that neither Harvey nor Island wanted to make.<ref>{{Cite magazine |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |date=6 March 1993 |volume=105 |issue=10 |page=1 |last=Duffy |first=Thom |title=Eager Fans Await Sophomore Disc by PJ Harvey |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rw8EAAAAMBAJ&q=pj%20harvey%20sophomore%20billboard&pg=PA1 |access-date=1 September 2010}}</ref>

Harvey explained the reason for releasing this record to ''[[Filter (magazine)|Filter]]'' magazine in a 2004 interview: "''4-Track Demos''... was partly encouraged by [[Steve Albini]] [producer of ''[[Rid of Me]]'']. He loved the demos for that album so much he thought they should be out there and I tended to agree with him. It seemed like showing another side of what I do and introducing new songs that I hadn't recorded on a record. It was a lovely thing to do and it felt like the right time because my three-piece band had fallen apart and I was kind of in [[limbo]] before deciding where I was gonna be going again. So, it was just like a small interjection piece of me before I knew where I was going to be next."

==Release and critical reception==
{{Music ratings
| rev1       = [[AllMusic]]
| rev1score  = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/4-track-demos-mw0000102861 |title=4-Track Demos – PJ Harvey |publisher=[[AllMusic]] |access-date=28 June 2004 |last=Erlewine |first=Stephen Thomas |author-link=Stephen Thomas Erlewine}}</ref>
| rev2       = ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]''
| rev2score  = {{Rating|4|4}}<ref>{{cite news |url=https://chicagosuntimes.newsbank.com/doc/news/0EB4216E124499FD |title=P.J. Harvey, 'Four Track Demos' (Island) |newspaper=[[Chicago Sun-Times]] |date=26 December 1993 |access-date=11 May 2017 |last=Williams |first=Kevin Michael |url-access=subscription}}</ref>
| rev3       = ''[[Chicago Tribune]]''
| rev3score  = {{Rating|3.5|4}}<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1993/12/23/raw-cuts/ |title=Raw Cuts |newspaper=[[Chicago Tribune]] |date=23 December 1993 |access-date=11 May 2017 |last=Kot |first=Greg |author-link=Greg Kot}}</ref>
| rev4       = ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''
| rev4score  = A<ref name="EW1993">{{cite magazine |url=http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,308730,00.html |title=4-Track Demos |magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]] |issue=197 |date=19 November 1993 |access-date=21 February 2009 |last=Frost |first=Deborah |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121008031840/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,308730,00.html |archive-date=8 October 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
| rev5       = ''[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]]''
| rev5score  = {{Rating|5|5}}<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Raw power |magazine=[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]] |issue=324 |date=November 2020 |last=Rogers |first=Jude |author-link=Jude Rogers |page=94}}</ref>
| rev6       = ''[[NME]]''
| rev6score  = 8/10<ref>{{cite magazine |title=PJ Harvey: 4-Track Demos |magazine=[[NME]] |date=16 October 1993 |last=Fadele |first=Dele |author-link=Dele Fadele |page=32}}</ref>
| rev7       = ''[[Rolling Stone]]''
| rev7score  = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name="RS1993">{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/4-track-demos-247172/ |title=4-Track Demos |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |issue=670 |date=25 November 1993 |access-date=29 August 2007 |last=McDonnell |first=Evelyn |author-link=Evelyn McDonnell |page=112 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240101123750/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/4-track-demos-247172/ |archive-date=1 January 2024 |url-status=live}}</ref>
| rev8       = ''[[The Rolling Stone Album Guide]]''
| rev8score  = {{Rating|3.5|5}}<ref>{{cite book |chapter=PJ Harvey |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lRgtYCC6OUwC&pg=PA368 |access-date=18 October 2011 |last=Hoard |first=Christian |author-link=Christian Hoard |title=The New Rolling Stone Album Guide |title-link=The Rolling Stone Album Guide |editor1-last=Brackett |editor1-first=Nathan |editor1-link=Nathan Brackett |editor2-last=Hoard |editor2-first=Christian |publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]] |location=New York |edition=4th |year=2004 |isbn=0-7432-0169-8 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/newrollingstonea00brac/page/367 367–368]}}</ref>
| rev9       = ''[[Uncut (magazine)|Uncut]]''
| rev9score  = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite magazine |title=The Demo Recordings |magazine=[[Uncut (magazine)|Uncut]] |series=''The Ultimate Music Guide: PJ Harvey'' |year=2021 |last=Troussé |first=Stephen |pages=138–141}}</ref>
| rev10      = ''[[The Village Voice]]''
| rev10score = B+<ref name="VV1994">{{cite news |url=https://robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv294-94.php |title=Consumer Guide |newspaper=[[The Village Voice]] |date=1 March 1994 |access-date=15 November 2011 |last=Christgau |first=Robert |author-link=Robert Christgau}}</ref>
}}

As of 2005, ''4-Track Demos'' had sold 119,000 copies in the U.S.<ref>{{cite web |last=Caulfield |first=Keith |title=Ask Billboard: The Legend of Polly Jean |url=http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/60260/ask-billboard |work=[[billboard.com]] |date=27 December 2005 |access-date=6 June 2007}}</ref> The album charted in both the United Kingdom and the United States upon its release, peaking at number 19 on the [[UK Albums Chart]]<ref name="uk">{{cite web|url=http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/_/pj%20harvey/|title=PJ Harvey &#124; Artist|publisher=[[The Official Charts Company]]|access-date=10 August 2012}}</ref> and number 10 on ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]''{{'}}s [[Top Heatseekers|Heatseeker Albums]] chart.<ref name="us">{{AllMusic|class=album|id=mw0000102861|tab=awards|label=4-Track Demos – PJ Harvey: Awards|access-date=27 July 2005}}</ref> Some reviewers preferred this version to ''Rid of Me'', which they contended buried some of her vocal range and sonic experimentations under its noisy, in-your-face dynamics. For a side project, ''4-Track Demos'' received remarkably high praise: ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' called it "a chillingly intimate peek into the fierce musical ethic of an independent and compelling voice",<ref name="EW1993"/> ''[[Melody Maker]]'' hailed it as "viciously aggressive music with no numbing narcotic qualities",<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Demolition |magazine=[[Melody Maker]] |date=16 October 1993 |last=Jennings |first=Dave |page=41}}</ref> while ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' said in its four-star review that "its depth, range and conceptual completeness make you wonder why Harvey even bothered with such conventions as a band or a producer in the first place".<ref name="RS1993"/> ''[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]'' found that Harvey's vocals "stun, especially on those cuts that got the [[Steve Albini|Albini]] treatment" on ''Rid of Me''.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1XjH458f108C&pg=PA118 |title=PJ Harvey: 4 Track Demos |magazine=[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]] |volume=9 |issue=9 |date=December 1993 |access-date=30 September 2010 |last=Aaron |first=Charles |author-link=Charles Aaron |page=118}}</ref> [[Robert Christgau]], however, still preferred ''Rid of Me'' over ''4-Track Demos''.<ref name="VV1994"/>

In 1994, Island Records gave away the original Yamaha MT 2X 4-track recorder Harvey used to record ''4-Track Demos'' as a promotion in issue 67 of ''Alternative Press'' magazine. The winner was announced on the weekend of 19 March 1994 on ''[[JBTV]]'' as seen on Fox Net and [[Channel America]]. The winner, Thomas Wells of Vinton, Virginia, was picked from over 500 entries. In conjunction with being announced on TV, Thomas' name and photo were published in the April 1994 extra edition (number 71) issue of ''AP Wiretapping Newsletter''.

"Hardly Wait" is one of two PJ Harvey songs used in [[Kathryn Bigelow]]'s 1995 film ''[[Strange Days (film)|Strange Days]]'' (the other is "Rid of Me"). In the film it is sung by [[Juliette Lewis]].

==Artwork==
The photo on the album's cover was shot by [[Maria Mochnacz]] in June, 1993 while Harvey was touring to support the album ''Rid of Me''.<ref>The photo shoot is documented in the longform video ''Reeling With PJ Harvey'', Vision Video Ltd., 1994</ref> It shows Harvey in lingerie and sunglasses, raising her arm and exposing her [[Axilla#Natural hair|natural underarm]]. The picture was taken at the [[Watergate complex|Watergate]], in Washington, D.C.  The black-and-white photo that appears on the back of the album (also by Mochnacz) depicts Harvey naked and wrapped in plastic sheeting. When speaking about the picture, Mochnacz remarked "I suggested Polly was now a product so we wrapped her up like one".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://mariamochnacz.co.uk/pjharvey/19d_pjharvey.asp |title=mariamochnacz.co.uk |access-date=15 June 2010}}</ref>

==Tour==
PJ Harvey did not tour to promote ''4-Track Demos''. She had recently endured the break-up of the PJ Harvey trio and was contemplating the direction her next studio album would take. Some of the unreleased tracks, however, had been played live during the ''Rid of Me'' tour. "M-Bike", in particular, was included in many of those concerts and a live version can be found in the long-form video ''Reeling with PJ Harvey'', released in 1994. When Harvey toured in 1995 to promote ''[[To Bring You My Love]]'', she also included songs from ''4-Track Demos''. "Goodnight", for example, was used as the closing song for many of the shows on that tour. Additionally, "Goodnight" was performed on the music program ''The White Room'', which aired on [[Channel 4]] in 1995. This performance highlighted Harvey's use of stage props during that tour (she beat out the rhythm with a long stick of dowl) as well as the unique instrumentation of guitarist Joe Gore, who played the song's sliding guitar riff with a knife.

==Track listing==
{{Track listing
| total_length  = 47:00
| all_writing   = PJ Harvey.
| title1        = Rid of Me
| length1       = 3:42
| title2        = Legs
| length2       = 3:47
| title3        = Reeling
| note3         = previously unreleased
| length3       = 2:59
| title4        = Snake
| length4       = 1:56
| title5        = Hook
| length5       = 4:31
| title6        = [[50ft Queenie]]
| length6       = 2:48
| title7        = Driving
| note7         = previously unreleased
| length7       = 2:38
| title8        = Ecstasy
| length8       = 2:56
| title9        = Hardly Wait
| note9         = previously unreleased
| length9       = 2:48
| title10       = Rub 'til It Bleeds
| length10      = 5:10
| title11       = Easy
| note11        = previously unreleased
| length11      = 3:16
| title12       = M-Bike
| note12        = previously unreleased
| length12      = 2:43
| title13       = Yuri-G
| length13      = 3:53
| title14       = Goodnight
| note14        = previously unreleased
| length14      = 4:17
}}

==Charts==
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:left;"
! scope="col"| Chart (1993)
! scope="col"| Peak<br />position
|-
{{album chart|UK2|19|date=19931024|rowheader=true|access-date=8 December 2021}}
|-
{{album chart|BillboardHeatseekers|10|artist=PJ Harvey|rowheader=true|access-date=8 December 2021}}
|}

==References==
{{Reflist|35em}}

==External links==
{{MusicBrainz release group|id=850778ff-f726-33a5-9d67-2f36692887a5|name=4-Track Demos}}

{{PJ Harvey}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1993 albums]]
[[Category:1990s demo albums]]
[[Category:PJ Harvey albums]]
[[Category:Island Records albums]]