This Station Is Non-Operational
Encyclopedia
This Station Is Non-Operational is a compilation album
by the El Paso, Texas
-based post-hardcore
band At the Drive-In
, released May 24, 2005 by Fearless Records
, four years after the band went on indefinite hiatus. Its tracks span the band's career from 1997 to 2000, with selections from El Gran Orgo
(1997), In/Casino/Out
(1998), Vaya
(1999), and Relationship of Command
(2000), as well as several rare tracks taken from single
s and a previously unreleased cover version
of The Smiths
' "This Night Has Opened My Eyes". The album also includes a DVD
with the music video
s for "Metronome Arthritis", "One Armed Scissor
", and "Invalid Litter Dept.
", an electronic press kit
, a discography
, and multimedia
content. It became the band's highest-charting release in the United States. Its title comes from a lyric in the song "One Armed Scissor".
The compilation does not contain any material from the band's releases prior to 1997, omitting the EP
s Hell Paso
(1994) and ¡Alfaro Vive, Carajo! (1995) as well as their 1996 debut album Acrobatic Tenement
. Guitarist Jim Ward
addressed these omissions in a 2006 interview:
and #3 on the Top Independent Albums chart. Critical reaction to the compilation was very positive. Johnny Loftus of Allmusic stated that it "really makes you miss the focused intensity of the band's salad days", and that because of the stylistic improvisations of the band members' post-At the Drive-In projects The Mars Volta
and Sparta
"it's easy to forget about At the Drive-In's capacity for convention. Their spectacular live show was a big part of their success. But as This Station Is Non-Operational continually points out, At the Drive-In wrote incredible songs, too." Mike Diver of Drowned in Sound
gave the album a perfect score of 10 out of 10, remarking that it "must be listened to with an absolutely open mind. Yes, those earliest efforts from El Gran Orgo are scratchy, gutterside punk at best and, well, utterly underwhelming in absolute fairness. But that's not what ATD-I will be remembered for - it's the tracks from In/Casino/Out and the straw that ultimately broke their collective back, Relationship of Command, that today's fashioncore 'punks' have plumbed almost endlessly for inspiration. And you know what? They still sound amazingly fresh and vital." He noted that the rare tracks make the release attractive to existing fans, but "To the newcomer, though, this record just about transcends essential; really, if you like contemporary punk rock
, even the MTV
-sanitised version, then you've no excuse whatsoever for not owning this."
Jason Crock of Pitchfork Media
noted that the release "aims to be a retrospective in the true sense of the word", ignoring some of the band's strongest songs and singles such as "Invalid Litter Dept." in favor of offering "a snapshot of the band's artistic growth, from class-act emo
to muscular modern rock." He criticized the B-side
tracks as "unrewarding" and "mildly compelling curios", but accepted them as "simply footnotes to the story told by the first 11 tracks" Remarking on the press' interpretation of the band members' post-At the Drive-In projects Sparta as "accessible" and The Mars Volta as "difficult", he noted that "the push/pull between the two extremes within the songs on This Station Is Non-Operational is seamless. This anthology begs the question: Why should rock fans have to settle for one or the other?" Christian Hoard of Rolling Stone
was more critical of the compilation, stating that "Where ATDI's later albums were art-punk cherry bombs packed with cascading shouts and tricky rhythms, most of these singles, rarities, B sides and live cuts sound unfocused -- long on arty twists and youthful bloodletting but short on explosiveness."
Additional musicians
Production
Artwork
Compilation album
A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
by the El Paso, Texas
El Paso, Texas
El Paso, is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States, and lies in far West Texas. In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 649,121. It is the sixth largest city in Texas and the 19th largest city in the United States...
-based post-hardcore
Post-hardcore
Post-hardcore is a genre of music that developed from hardcore punk, itself an offshoot of the broader punk rock movement. Like post-punk, post-hardcore is a term for a broad constellation of groups...
band At the Drive-In
At the Drive-In
At the Drive-In was an American rock band from El Paso, Texas, considered part of the post-hardcore genre and active from 1993 to 2001. They were known for their extremely energetic stage shows which hearkened back to the 1980s hardcore scene...
, released May 24, 2005 by Fearless Records
Fearless Records
Fearless Records is an alternative rock-oriented record label that has been signing artists since 1994. Fearless is based in Westminster, California and are best known for their early pop-punk moments captured in the Fearless Flush Sampler and Punk Bites releases, as well as additional releases by...
, four years after the band went on indefinite hiatus. Its tracks span the band's career from 1997 to 2000, with selections from El Gran Orgo
El Gran Orgo
El Gran Orgo is the third EP by American post-hardcore band At the Drive-In. It was recorded and released in 1997 without the presence of Jim Ward, whose guitar duties were filled by Ben Rodriguez and Omar Rodríguez-López, who had previously played bass on Acrobatic Tenement.The Title "El Gran...
(1997), In/Casino/Out
In/Casino/Out
In/Casino/Out is the second full-length LP by American post-hardcore band At the Drive-In, released in 1998. It was recorded as a live studio album, with the intention of better capturing the energy and sound of their live shows....
(1998), Vaya
Vaya
Vaya is the fourth EP by American post-hardcore band At the Drive-In, released in 1999. The sound of the album bridges the musical gap between In/Casino/Out and their following album, Relationship of Command....
(1999), and Relationship of Command
Relationship of Command
Relationship of Command is the third and final studio album by the post-hardcore band At the Drive-In, and was released in September 2000. The band reached mainstream success through the album, if only for a short time before their indefinite break-up....
(2000), as well as several rare tracks taken from single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
s and a previously unreleased cover version
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
of The Smiths
The Smiths
The Smiths were an English alternative rock band, formed in Manchester in 1982. Based on the song writing partnership of Morrissey and Johnny Marr , the band also included Andy Rourke and Mike Joyce...
' "This Night Has Opened My Eyes". The album also includes a DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
with the music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
s for "Metronome Arthritis", "One Armed Scissor
One Armed Scissor
"One Armed Scissor" is a song by At the Drive-In. It was the first single from their album Relationship of Command, and was the first At the Drive-In song to be played regularly on a number of radio stations...
", and "Invalid Litter Dept.
Invalid Litter Dept.
"Invalid Litter Dept." was the third single released from At the Drive-In's album Relationship of Command. The CD release in March 2001 came in a variety of international formats, including the standard two CDs in the United Kingdom...
", an electronic press kit
Electronic Press Kit
An electronic press kit is a press kit equivalent in electronic form. An EPK usually takes the form of a website or e-mail, though they are also known to exist in CD and DVD form....
, a discography
Discography
Discography is the study and listing of the details concerning sound recordings, often by specified artists or within identified musical genres...
, and multimedia
Multimedia
Multimedia is media and content that uses a combination of different content forms. The term can be used as a noun or as an adjective describing a medium as having multiple content forms. The term is used in contrast to media which use only rudimentary computer display such as text-only, or...
content. It became the band's highest-charting release in the United States. Its title comes from a lyric in the song "One Armed Scissor".
The compilation does not contain any material from the band's releases prior to 1997, omitting the EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
s Hell Paso
Hell Paso
Hell Paso is the first EP released by the band At the Drive-In."In November of 1994, using Ward's college savings, the band released their first seven-inch single, 'Hell Paso', on their own Western Breed Records." The title is play on words of the band's hometown, El Paso.The track title "Grand...
(1994) and ¡Alfaro Vive, Carajo! (1995) as well as their 1996 debut album Acrobatic Tenement
Acrobatic Tenement
Acrobatic Tenement is the debut album from At the Drive-In, released in 1996. Only one of the album's tracks made it to the 2005 compilation album This Station Is Non-Operational, with "Initiation" appearing as a live BBC recording...
. Guitarist Jim Ward
Jim Ward (musician)
James David Ward is an American musician. A self-taught guitarist and pianist, he was the lead singer and rhythm guitarist for the band Sparta; he was also the co-founder of the seminal post-hardcore band At the Drive-In.-At the Drive-In:While in At the Drive-In, Ward played rhythm guitar and...
addressed these omissions in a 2006 interview:
I was just adamant about certain things staying off it. There was just some stuff I wanted to stay special, like those early seven-inches. If you have them, then you have them because you were in a certain place at a certain time. I wanted to keep it special for those people if it makes sense. It's not that they’re embarrassing to me, it's because I wanted them to remain intimate with those people who were there when we slept on their floors. We were putting out 500 seven-inches even though people sell them on eBayEBayeBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
for more than I had to put them out with. I still prefer it that way. I like that culture; I’m part of that culture. I didn’t want everything homogenized into one album. I'm not a big [fan] of "greatest hits" or whatever, but I understand that's part of what labels do. I wasn't really a big part of it to be honest with you.
Reception
This Station Is Non-Operational became At the Drive-In's highest-charting release in the United States, reaching #95 on the Billboard 200Billboard 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...
and #3 on the Top Independent Albums chart. Critical reaction to the compilation was very positive. Johnny Loftus of Allmusic stated that it "really makes you miss the focused intensity of the band's salad days", and that because of the stylistic improvisations of the band members' post-At the Drive-In projects The Mars Volta
The Mars Volta
The Mars Volta is a Grammy award winning American progressive rock band from El Paso, Texas. Founded in 2001 by guitarist Omar Rodríguez-López and vocalist Cedric Bixler-Zavala, the band incorporates various influences including progressive rock, krautrock, jazz fusion, Latin American music, and...
and Sparta
Sparta (band)
Sparta is an American band from El Paso, Texas, formed in 2001. Founding members Jim Ward and Tony Hajjar are former members of post-hardcore group At the Drive-In...
"it's easy to forget about At the Drive-In's capacity for convention. Their spectacular live show was a big part of their success. But as This Station Is Non-Operational continually points out, At the Drive-In wrote incredible songs, too." Mike Diver of Drowned in Sound
Drowned in Sound
DrownedinSound.com or DiS is a UK based music webzine financed by artist management company Silentway . The site is an editorially independent music website.-History:...
gave the album a perfect score of 10 out of 10, remarking that it "must be listened to with an absolutely open mind. Yes, those earliest efforts from El Gran Orgo are scratchy, gutterside punk at best and, well, utterly underwhelming in absolute fairness. But that's not what ATD-I will be remembered for - it's the tracks from In/Casino/Out and the straw that ultimately broke their collective back, Relationship of Command, that today's fashioncore 'punks' have plumbed almost endlessly for inspiration. And you know what? They still sound amazingly fresh and vital." He noted that the rare tracks make the release attractive to existing fans, but "To the newcomer, though, this record just about transcends essential; really, if you like contemporary punk rock
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...
, even the 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....
-sanitised version, then you've no excuse whatsoever for not owning this."
Jason Crock of Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
noted that the release "aims to be a retrospective in the true sense of the word", ignoring some of the band's strongest songs and singles such as "Invalid Litter Dept." in favor of offering "a snapshot of the band's artistic growth, from class-act emo
Emo
Emo is a style of rock music and its associated subcultureEmo may also refer to:- Businesses :* Emo , an Irish oil company and filling station chain* Emo Speedway, a racetrack in Emo, Ontario...
to muscular modern rock." He criticized the B-side
A-side and B-side
A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or...
tracks as "unrewarding" and "mildly compelling curios", but accepted them as "simply footnotes to the story told by the first 11 tracks" Remarking on the press' interpretation of the band members' post-At the Drive-In projects Sparta as "accessible" and The Mars Volta as "difficult", he noted that "the push/pull between the two extremes within the songs on This Station Is Non-Operational is seamless. This anthology begs the question: Why should rock fans have to settle for one or the other?" Christian Hoard of Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
was more critical of the compilation, stating that "Where ATDI's later albums were art-punk cherry bombs packed with cascading shouts and tricky rhythms, most of these singles, rarities, B sides and live cuts sound unfocused -- long on arty twists and youthful bloodletting but short on explosiveness."
Track listing
Personnel
Band- Cedric Bixler-ZavalaCedric Bixler-ZavalaCedric Bixler-Zavala is a Grammy Award-winning Mexican-American musician known for his work as frontman and lyricist of the progressive rock band The Mars Volta, and previously as frontman and occasional guitarist of the post-hardcore punk group At the Drive-In...
– lead vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments... - Jim WardJim Ward (musician)James David Ward is an American musician. A self-taught guitarist and pianist, he was the lead singer and rhythm guitarist for the band Sparta; he was also the co-founder of the seminal post-hardcore band At the Drive-In.-At the Drive-In:While in At the Drive-In, Ward played rhythm guitar and...
– guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, keyboardKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
s, backing vocals - Omar Rodríguez-LópezOmar Rodriguez-LopezOmar Alfredo Rodríguez-López is a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, producer, writer, actor and film director who was born in Bayamón, Puerto Rico...
– guitar, backing vocals - Paul HinojosPaul HinojosPablo J. Hinojos-Gonzalez is a Grammy award winning musician, and former member of The Mars Volta, Sparta and At The Drive In. Sometimes credited under the name Paul Hinojos, he was the bass guitarist of At the Drive-In...
– bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Tony HajjarTony HajjarTony Hajjar is a Lebanese American drummer, best known for playing in At the Drive-In and Sparta.-Biography:...
– drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
Additional musicians
- Ben Rodriguez – guitar on "Fahrenheit" and "Picket Fence Cartel"
- Marcelo Rodche – percussion on "Chanbara"
- Iggy PopIggy PopIggy Pop is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Though considered an innovator of punk rock, Pop's music has encompassed a number of styles over the years, including pop, metal, jazz and blues...
– intro vocals on "Enfilade"
Production
- Mike Major – recordingAudio engineeringAn audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
and mixing engineerMixing engineerA mix engineer is the person responsible for incorporating all the different recorded elements of music to make the final version of a song. These mixing professionals have many years of experience and training with audio equipment which has enabled them to master the art of audio mixing...
of tracks 1, 2, 7, 8, and 15, producerRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
and engineer of track 14, mixing engineer of track 16 - Alex Newport – recording and mixing engineer of tracks 3–6 and 13
- Ross RobinsonRoss RobinsonRoss Robinson, son of Byron Katie, is an American multi-platinum music producer, who has discovered successful acts such as Korn, At the Drive-In, Glassjaw, Repeater, Slipknot and Limp Bizkit. Robinson has also worked with Machine Head, Vanilla Ice, The Cure, Sepultura and many others...
– producer of tracks 9–12 - Andy Wallace – mixing engineer of tracks 9–12
- Chuck Johnson – engineer of tracks 9–12
- Kevin Bosley and Zak Girdis – assistant engineers of tracks 9–12
- Justin Leah and Bobby Torres – engineers of track 16
- Steve LamacqSteve LamacqSteve Lamacq , sometimes known by his nicknames Lammo or "The Cat" is an English disc jockey, currently working with the BBC radio stations BBC 6 Music and BBC Radio 2.-Early career:He was born in Basingstoke, Hampshire...
– recording engineer of tracks 17 and 18 - Simon Askew – producer of tracks 17 and 18
- Paul Noble – assistant producer of tracks 17 and 18
- Brad Vance – masteringAudio masteringMastering, a form of audio post-production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device ; the source from which all copies will be produced...
Artwork
- Jason Farrell – design
- Paul Drake, Daniëlle van Ark, Pat Graham, Alberto Polo, Jeff Gros, Justin Borucki, and Paul Delia – photography
Charts
| Year | Country | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Billboard 200 (U.S.) 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... |
95 |
| 2005 | Australian Albums Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
34 |