Smell the Magic
Template:Use mdy dates Script error: No such module "Unsubst-infobox". Template:Music ratings
Smell the Magic is the second studio album by American rock band L7, released in 1990 by Sub Pop.[1] Originally issued as a 12" EP containing only the first six songs, it was reissued on CD in July 1991, expanded to album length with three more tracks: "Packin' a Rod," "Just Like Me," and "American Society." The opening track Shove was released as the band's first single.
Critical reception
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music called the album "a raucous, grunge-flavored blast."[2] Trouser Press wrote that "L7 still brings the noise, but with a melodicism that isn’t as evident on the first album."[3]
Rolling Stone placed Smell the Magic at #37 in their list of the 50 Greatest Grunge Albums, noting that "they were one of the few non-Seattle bands signed to Sub Pop," and the album "was an electric shock in a sea of grey." Likewise, the article mentions L7's formation out of Los Angeles' metal scene, then acting as a crossover act, and states conclusively that Smell the Magic is one of the "most widely cited as an inspiration by the next wave of punk and riot grrrl bands".[4]
Track listing
Personnel
- L7
- Donita Sparks - guitar, vocals, lead vocals on tracks 2,4,5,7,9
- Suzi Gardner - guitar, lead vocals on tracks 1,5,6,9
- Jennifer Finch - bass guitar, lead vocals on tracks 3,8,9
- Demetra Plakas - drums
- Guest
- Mike Patton - guest vocals
- Production
- Jack Endino - producer
- Michael James - engineer
- Daniel Rey - engineer
- Randall Martin - logo
- Charles Peterson - photography
- Howard Rosenberg - photography
- Jeff Price - art director