Stranger than Fiction (Bad Religion album)
Encyclopedia
Stranger than Fiction is the eighth full-length studio album (tenth release overall) by Bad Religion
, released in 1994 (see 1994 in music
). It was their first album released on the major label Atlantic Records
(although that label re-released the previous album, Recipe for Hate
) and also its last release with guitarist Brett Gurewitz
, who left just prior to the 1994-1995 world tour, only to return to the band seven years later. On tour, Gurewitz was replaced by Brian Baker
, who would stay with the band permanently.
With sales continuing seventeen years after its release, Stranger Than Fiction is one of Bad Religion's most successful albums, featuring two of their well-known hit singles, "Infected
" and the re-recorded version of "21st Century (Digital Boy)
", which both earned airplay on MTV
and radio stations, such as KROQ
. The album included one more hit single, "Stranger Than Fiction
", though the last one, "Incomplete", failed to make any national chart. As of today, Stranger Than Fiction remains the only Bad Religion record to obtain gold status in the United States
. The album was re-released by Epitaph Records
on September 15, 2008.
In 2009, Rhino Records released a colored vinyl to coincide with this album's 15th anniversary.
and Recipe for Hate
and producing a fast and harmonic punk
record, perhaps in response to allegations of the band "selling out" when they signed with Atlantic Records
.
(of Nirvana
, Sepultura
and Slayer
fame), then entered Rumbo Recorders in April 1994, booking five weeks of studio time in which to record the album. This would be the first time Bad Religion had not recorded an album at Westbeach Recorders
since 1984's Back to the Known
. As far as the song selections, bassist Jay Bentley
commented:
The closing track (on the US
release), "21st Century (Digital Boy)", was originally recorded on Bad Religion's fifth full-length album Against the Grain
, released in 1990; four years before the release of Stranger Than Fiction. Sony wanted them to release it again because they couldn't "hear a single" on this album.
. On September 24 of that year, the album peaked at number 87 on the Billboard 200
album chart, and on March 4, 1998, also became Bad Religion's first (and only) album to be certified gold in the United States
.
Allmusic's Jack Rabid (The Big Takeover) praised this album as a "rare case of selling out in reverse" and songs such as "Leave Mine to Me", "Individual", "Tiny Voices" and "Marked", calling them "all uptempo barnburners, pulverizing in their rapid passion". He also criticizes "'Infected' and 'Television'" as "the two least effective songs of their 15 years, the former a third-rate 'Sanity'", referring to the seventh track on 1989's No Control
.
In November 2011, Stranger Than Fiction was ranked number one on Guitar World
magazine's top ten list of guitar albums of 1994, with The Offspring
's Smash in second place and Weezer
's Weezer in third place.
Bad Religion
Bad Religion is a punk rock band that formed in Los Angeles in 1979. Their current line-up consists of Greg Graffin , Brett Gurewitz , Jay Bentley , Greg Hetson , Brian Baker and Brooks Wackerman . Gurewitz is also the founder of the label Epitaph Records, which has released almost all of the...
, released in 1994 (see 1994 in music
1994 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1994.-January–February:*January 25 – Alice in Chains release their Jar of Flies album which debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, becoming the first ever EP to do so....
). It was their first album released on the major label Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
(although that label re-released the previous album, Recipe for Hate
Recipe for Hate
Recipe for Hate is Bad Religion's seventh full-length album, released on September 21, 1993. This was their last album on Epitaph Records and the band switched to Atlantic Records before its release....
) and also its last release with guitarist Brett Gurewitz
Brett Gurewitz
Brett W. Gurewitz , nicknamed Mr. Brett, is the guitarist and a songwriter of Bad Religion. He is also the owner of the music label Epitaph Records and sister-labels ANTI-, Burning Heart Records, Fat Possum Records, and Hellcat Records...
, who left just prior to the 1994-1995 world tour, only to return to the band seven years later. On tour, Gurewitz was replaced by Brian Baker
Brian Baker (musician)
Brian Baker is an American punk rock musician. He is best known as one of the founding members of the hardcore punk band Minor Threat, and as a guitarist in Bad Religion since 1994 alongside Greg Hetson...
, who would stay with the band permanently.
With sales continuing seventeen years after its release, Stranger Than Fiction is one of Bad Religion's most successful albums, featuring two of their well-known hit singles, "Infected
Infected (song)
"Infected" is a song written by Brett Gurewitz from the punk rock group Bad Religion. It was released in 1994 and appears on their eighth proper studio album Stranger Than Fiction...
" and the re-recorded version of "21st Century (Digital Boy)
21st Century (Digital Boy)
"21st Century " is a song by the punk rock group Bad Religion. It was originally recorded in 1990 on their fifth full-length studio album Against the Grain and rerecorded on the 1994 album Stranger Than Fiction...
", which both earned airplay on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
and radio stations, such as KROQ
KROQ-FM
KROQ-FM — branded 106.7 KROQ — is a commercial modern rock radio station licensed to Pasadena, California serving the Greater Los Angeles. The call sign is pronounced "kay rock." It is the flagship station of Loveline hosted by Dr...
. The album included one more hit single, "Stranger Than Fiction
Stranger Than Fiction (song)
"Stranger Than Fiction" is a song by American punk rock band Bad Religion, featured on their 1994 album with the same title. It was also the album's third single and is widely considered to be one of their best known songs....
", though the last one, "Incomplete", failed to make any national chart. As of today, Stranger Than Fiction remains the only Bad Religion record to obtain gold status in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The album was re-released by Epitaph Records
Epitaph Records
Epitaph Records is a Hollywood, California based independent record label owned by Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz. The label was originally "just a logo and a P.O. box" created in the 1980s for the purpose of selling Bad Religion records, but has evolved into a large independent record...
on September 15, 2008.
In 2009, Rhino Records released a colored vinyl to coincide with this album's 15th anniversary.
Musical style
The album found the band retreating from the experimentation of GeneratorGenerator (Bad Religion album)
In October 2011, the album was ranked number three on Guitar World magazine's top ten list of guitar albums of 1992.-Track listing:#"Generator" - 3:21#"Too Much to Ask" - 2:45#"No Direction" - 3:14#"Tomorrow" - 1:56...
and Recipe for Hate
Recipe for Hate
Recipe for Hate is Bad Religion's seventh full-length album, released on September 21, 1993. This was their last album on Epitaph Records and the band switched to Atlantic Records before its release....
and producing a fast and harmonic punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
record, perhaps in response to allegations of the band "selling out" when they signed with Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
.
Production and marketing
After the Recipe for Hate tour ended, Bad Religion immediately began writing songs for their eighth studio album. The band teamed up with producer Andy WallaceAndy Wallace (producer)
Andy Wallace is a Grammy Award-winning music studio engineer with a long track record of successful productions, beginning with the 1986 production of the Run-DMC/Aerosmith collaboration on "Walk This Way" with Rick Rubin...
(of Nirvana
Nirvana (band)
Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
, Sepultura
Sepultura
Sepultura is a Brazilian heavy metal band from Belo Horizonte, formed in 1984. The band was a major force in the death metal, thrash metal and ultimately groove metal realms during the late 1980s and early 1990s, with their later experiments melding nu metal, hardcore punk and industrial.Sepultura...
and Slayer
Slayer
Slayer is an American thrash metal band formed in Huntington Park, California, in 1981 by guitarists Jeff Hanneman and Kerry King. Slayer rose to fame with their 1986 release, Reign in Blood, and is credited as one of the "Big Four" thrash metal acts, along with Metallica, Megadeth and...
fame), then entered Rumbo Recorders in April 1994, booking five weeks of studio time in which to record the album. This would be the first time Bad Religion had not recorded an album at Westbeach Recorders
Westbeach Recorders
Westbeach Recorders is a recording studio in Hollywood, California famous for recording punk rock groups, such as Bad Religion, NOFX, Rancid, The Offspring and Pennywise. It was established in 1985 by Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz and re-located to Hollywood, California in February 1987 and...
since 1984's Back to the Known
Back to the Known
- Trivia :* Track 3, "Bad Religion", is actually a remake of the song from their 1981 self-titled EP.* A recent fan poll cited "Along The Way" as one of the band's best songs.- Credits :* Greg Graffin – vocals, production* Greg Hetson – electric guitar...
. As far as the song selections, bassist Jay Bentley
Jay Bentley
Jay Dee Bentley is the bassist and co-founding member of the punk rock group Bad Religion. He has played with the band through its whole existence with a small break between 1983 and 1985.-Bad Religion:...
commented:
The closing track (on the US
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
release), "21st Century (Digital Boy)", was originally recorded on Bad Religion's fifth full-length album Against the Grain
Against the Grain (Bad Religion album)
-Release history:-Personnel:* Greg Graffin – vocals* Brett Gurewitz – guitar, backing vocals* Greg Hetson – guitar* Jay Bentley – bass guitar, backing vocals* Pete Finestone – drums* The Legendary Starbolt – mixing...
, released in 1990; four years before the release of Stranger Than Fiction. Sony wanted them to release it again because they couldn't "hear a single" on this album.
Reception
Stranger Than Fiction was released on September 6, 1994 and became the first Bad Religion album distributed via Atlantic RecordsAtlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
. On September 24 of that year, the album peaked at number 87 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
album chart, and on March 4, 1998, also became Bad Religion's first (and only) album to be certified gold in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Allmusic's Jack Rabid (The Big Takeover) praised this album as a "rare case of selling out in reverse" and songs such as "Leave Mine to Me", "Individual", "Tiny Voices" and "Marked", calling them "all uptempo barnburners, pulverizing in their rapid passion". He also criticizes "'Infected' and 'Television'" as "the two least effective songs of their 15 years, the former a third-rate 'Sanity'", referring to the seventh track on 1989's No Control
No Control (Bad Religion album)
- Release history :- Notes/Trivia :* Track 2, "Big Bang" was featured on video game Tony Hawk's Underground.* Track 3, "No Control" quotes Scottish natural historian James Hutton, "no vestige of a beginning, no prospect of an end."...
.
In November 2011, Stranger Than Fiction was ranked number one on Guitar World
Guitar World
Guitar World is a monthly music magazine devoted to guitarists. It contains original interviews, album and gear reviews and guitar and bass tablature of approximately five songs each month. The magazine is published 13 times per year...
magazine's top ten list of guitar albums of 1994, with The Offspring
The Offspring
The Offspring is an American punk rock band from Huntington Beach, California, formed in 1984. Known as Manic Subsidal until 1986, the band consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Dexter Holland, lead guitarist Kevin "Noodles" Wasserman, bassist Greg K. and drummer Pete Parada...
's Smash in second place and Weezer
Weezer
Weezer is an American alternative rock band. The band currently consists of Rivers Cuomo , Patrick Wilson , Brian Bell , and Scott Shriner . The band has changed lineups three times since its formation in 1992...
's Weezer in third place.
Track listing
- "Incomplete" (Gurewitz) - 2:28
- "Leave Mine To Me" (Graffin) - 2:07
- "Stranger Than FictionStranger Than Fiction (song)"Stranger Than Fiction" is a song by American punk rock band Bad Religion, featured on their 1994 album with the same title. It was also the album's third single and is widely considered to be one of their best known songs....
" (Gurewitz) - 2:20 - "Tiny Voices" (Graffin) - 2:36
- "The Handshake" (Graffin) - 2:50
- "Better Off Dead" (Gurewitz) - 2:39
- "InfectedInfected (song)"Infected" is a song written by Brett Gurewitz from the punk rock group Bad Religion. It was released in 1994 and appears on their eighth proper studio album Stranger Than Fiction...
" (Gurewitz) - 4:08 - "Television" (Gurewitz/Johnette NapolitanoJohnette NapolitanoJohnette Napolitano is an American singer, songwriter and bassist best known as the lead vocalist/songwriter and bassist for the alternative rock group Concrete Blonde.- Solo career :...
) - 2:03 - "Individual" (Graffin) - 1:58
- "Hooray for Me..." (Gurewitz) - 2:50
- "Slumber" (Graffin) - 2:39
- "Marked" (Gurewitz) - 1:48
- "Inner Logic" (Graffin) - 2:58
- "What It Is" (Graffin) - 2:08
- "21st Century (Digital Boy)21st Century (Digital Boy)"21st Century " is a song by the punk rock group Bad Religion. It was originally recorded in 1990 on their fifth full-length studio album Against the Grain and rerecorded on the 1994 album Stranger Than Fiction...
" (Gurewitz) - 2:47
Bonus tracks
- "News from the Front" (Gurewitz/Bentley/Schayer) - 2:22 (Europe, Brazil and Japan bonus track)
- "Markovian Process" (Graffin) - 1:29 (Europe, Brazil and Japan bonus track)
- "Leaders and Followers" (Graffin) - 2:40 (Japan only bonus track)
Personnel
- Greg GraffinGreg GraffinGregory Walter Graffin, Ph.D. is an American punk rock musician, college professor, and author. He is most recognized as the lead vocalist and songwriter of the noted Los Angeles band Bad Religion, which he co-founded in 1979 and is the band's only constant member, even though it now features two...
– lead vocals - Greg HetsonGreg HetsonGreg Hetson is an American guitarist. He was born in Brooklyn, New York and has lived in Los Angeles, California since he was 2 years old...
– guitar - Brett GurewitzBrett GurewitzBrett W. Gurewitz , nicknamed Mr. Brett, is the guitarist and a songwriter of Bad Religion. He is also the owner of the music label Epitaph Records and sister-labels ANTI-, Burning Heart Records, Fat Possum Records, and Hellcat Records...
– guitar, backing vocals - Jay BentleyJay BentleyJay Dee Bentley is the bassist and co-founding member of the punk rock group Bad Religion. He has played with the band through its whole existence with a small break between 1983 and 1985.-Bad Religion:...
– bass guitar, backing vocals - Bobby SchayerBobby SchayerBobby Schayer was born on December 23, 1966 in Los Angeles, California. He was the drummer for Bad Religion from 1991 to 2001. He was a resident of Encino, a suburb in the San Fernando Valley...
– drums, percussion - Tim ArmstrongTim ArmstrongTimothy Lockwood Armstrong is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer, best known for his work with punk rock bands Rancid, Operation Ivy, Downfall, and the Transplants. He is also the owner and operator of Hellcat Records.-Personal life:Armstrong was born November 25, 1965 and was...
of RancidRancid (band)Rancid is an American punk rock band formed in Berkeley, California in 1991. Founded by Tim Armstrong and Matt Freeman, both of whom previously played in the ska punk band Operation Ivy, Rancid is credited—along with Green Day and The Offspring—for reviving mainstream interest in punk rock in the...
– guest vocals on "Television" - Jim LindbergJim LindbergJames William Lindberg is an American singer and guitarist. Active since the 1980s, when he played in local bands in his early career, Lindberg is best known for being the frontman and songwriter of the influential punk rock band Pennywise, where he had remained as a member for 21 years...
of PennywisePennywise (band)Pennywise is a Californian punk rock band from Hermosa Beach, California, formed in 1988. The name is derived from the monster, It, from the Stephen King novel of the same title....
– guest vocals on "Marked" - Andy WallaceAndy Wallace (producer)Andy Wallace is a Grammy Award-winning music studio engineer with a long track record of successful productions, beginning with the 1986 production of the Run-DMC/Aerosmith collaboration on "Walk This Way" with Rick Rubin...
– production - Norman Moore – art direction
Collaborations
- Wayne KramerWayne Kramer (guitarist)Wayne Kramer is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, producer and film and television scorer....
(of the MC5MC5The MC5 is an American rock band formed in Lincoln Park, Michigan and originally active from 1964 to 1972. The original band line-up consisted of vocalist Rob Tyner, guitarists Wayne Kramer and Fred "Sonic" Smith, bassist Michael Davis, and drummer Dennis Thompson...
) plays lead guitar on opening track "Incomplete". - Tim ArmstrongTim ArmstrongTimothy Lockwood Armstrong is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer, best known for his work with punk rock bands Rancid, Operation Ivy, Downfall, and the Transplants. He is also the owner and operator of Hellcat Records.-Personal life:Armstrong was born November 25, 1965 and was...
(of Operation IvyOperation Ivy (band)Operation Ivy was an American ska punk band that formed in Berkeley, California, and was often credited with spurring the 1990s punk revival in California. It is well-known as one of the first bands to "mix" hardcore punk with elements of ska, known as ska-core...
, RancidRancid (band)Rancid is an American punk rock band formed in Berkeley, California in 1991. Founded by Tim Armstrong and Matt Freeman, both of whom previously played in the ska punk band Operation Ivy, Rancid is credited—along with Green Day and The Offspring—for reviving mainstream interest in punk rock in the...
and eventually The Transplants) contributed lead vocals on "Television", which Concrete BlondeConcrete BlondeConcrete Blonde is an alternative rock band based in the United States. They were initially active from 1982 to 1995, and again from 2001 to 2004, and once again in 2010.-Biography:...
's Johnette NapolitanoJohnette NapolitanoJohnette Napolitano is an American singer, songwriter and bassist best known as the lead vocalist/songwriter and bassist for the alternative rock group Concrete Blonde.- Solo career :...
co-wrote with Brett Gurewitz. - Jim LindbergJim LindbergJames William Lindberg is an American singer and guitarist. Active since the 1980s, when he played in local bands in his early career, Lindberg is best known for being the frontman and songwriter of the influential punk rock band Pennywise, where he had remained as a member for 21 years...
(of PennywisePennywise (band)Pennywise is a Californian punk rock band from Hermosa Beach, California, formed in 1988. The name is derived from the monster, It, from the Stephen King novel of the same title....
) contributing backing vocals on "Marked"
In pop culture
- "21st Century (Digital Boy)" is a downloadable song for the Rock Band video game. "Infected" also appeared on the very first Guitar Hero.
- The Japan only bonus track "Leaders and Followers" was featured in the movieFilmA film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
ClerksClerksClerks is a 1994 independent comedy film written and directed by Kevin Smith, who also appears in the film as Silent Bob. Starring Brian O'Halloran as Dante Hicks and Jeff Anderson as Randal Graves, it presents a day in the lives of two store clerks and their acquaintances...
. - The song "Inner Logic" was included on the soundtrack for the video game Crazy TaxiCrazy TaxiCrazy Taxi is a sandbox racing video game developed by Hitmaker and published by Sega. It is the first game in the Crazy Taxi series. The game was first released in arcades in 1999 and was ported to the Dreamcast in 2000. Subsequently, it was ported to the PlayStation 2 and Nintendo GameCube by...
. - Kubo Tite chose "News From the Front" as the theme song of Ichigo KurosakiIchigo Kurosakiis a fictional character in the anime and manga franchise Bleach by Tite Kubo. He is the story's main character. The series begins with Ichigo receiving Soul Reaper powers as a result of a run-in with Rukia Kuchiki, the Soul Reaper assigned to patrol his city, Karakura Town...
, the main character of his manga BleachBleach (manga)is a Japanese shōnen manga series written and illustrated by Noriaki "Tite" Kubo. Bleach follows the adventures of Ichigo Kurosaki after he obtains the powers of a —a death personification similar to the Grim Reaper—from another Soul Reaper, Rukia Kuchiki...
. - Progressive rock band AnathemaAnathema (band)Anathema are an English band from Liverpool primarily known for their ever evolving sound. Beginning as pioneers of the death/doom metal sub-genre, their later albums have been associated with genres such as alternative rock, progressive rock, art rock, new prog, and post-rock.-History:Anathema...
covered the song "Better Off Dead" with female vocals. Anathema's version is very slow and involves mostly piano. - New York melodic hardcore punk band After the Fall mentioned Stranger Than Fiction in their song "1994", which appears on their 2009 album Fort Orange.
Re-releases
Stranger Than Fiction was re-released several times, with different labels, covers and formats in different countries (see the table below).| Year | Country | Format | Label | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Europe Europe Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting... |
CD Compact Disc The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,... |
Sony 477343 2 | Bonus Tracks |
| 1994 | USA United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
Vinyl Gramophone record A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove... LP |
Atlantic Atlantic Records Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz... 82658-1 |
|
| 1994 | Germany Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... |
CD | Dragnet DRA 477343 6 | Alternative Cover; Bonus Tracks; Collector's Edition |
| 1994 | USA | Cassette Compact Cassette The Compact Cassette, often referred to as audio cassette, cassette tape, cassette, or simply tape, is a magnetic tape sound recording format. It was designed originally for dictation, but improvements in fidelity led the Compact Cassette to supplant the Stereo 8-track cartridge and reel-to-reel... |
Atlantic 82658-4 | |
| 1994 | USA | CD | Atlantic 82658-2 | |
| 1995 | Germany | CD | Dragnet DRA 477343 60 | Bonus Tracks |
| 2009 | USA | Vinyl LP | Rhino R1 82658 | Reissue; Colored Vinyl |
Charts
Album - Billboard (North America)| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | The Billboard 200 | 87 |
Singles - Billboard (North America)
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | "21st Century (Digital Boy)" | Modern Rock Tracks | 11 |
| "Stranger Than Fiction" | Modern Rock Tracks | 28 | |
| 1995 | "Infected" | Mainstream Rock Tracks | 33 |
| Modern Rock Tracks | 27 |