American Thighs | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | September 27, 1994 | |||
Studio | Idful, Chicago, Illinois | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 52:24 | |||
Label | Minty Fresh | |||
Producer | Brad Wood | |||
Veruca Salt chronology | ||||
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Singles from American Thighs | ||||
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American Thighs is the 1994 debut studio album by American alternative rock band Veruca Salt.[3] The album features the single "Seether".
Singer-guitarists Nina Gordon and Louise Post started working together in 1992.[4] They eventually formed Veruca Salt with bassist Steve Lack and drummer Jim Shapiro, and the four had been a full band less than a year when they signed with the independent label Minty Fresh.[5] In 1994, they released the single "Seether"/"All Hail Me". "Seether" became a hit on college and alternative radio stations, and the band recorded the album American Thighs with producer Brad Wood.[4][5] The album was released through Minty Fresh on September 27, 1994, the title a reference to a line from the AC/DC song "You Shook Me All Night Long".[6][7]
Veruca Salt then signed with the major label Geffen Records, which re-released the album. "Seether" became a hit on MTV. Two more singles, "Number One Blind" and "Victrola", were released from the album, but neither matched the success of "Seether". American Thighs was eventually certified gold.[4][8]
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [9] |
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [10] |
MusicHound Rock | [11] |
NME | 7/10[12] |
Rolling Stone | [13] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [14] |
The Village Voice | A−[15] |
American Thighs received generally positive reviews from critics. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic gave the album 4 stars out of 5, calling it "a pure pop album masquerading as the next big thing."[9] Nick Kelly of Hot Press said, "Given that this is their first record, you can't help asking yourself how a band so young can sing songs so good."[16] Eric Gladstone of CMJ New Music Monthly wrote that "the album works an infectious formula: thick harmonies layered over attack-formation guitars and drums, with lyrics shifting from childlike innocence to guiltless brutality."[5]
Spin ranked it number 8 on its list of the 20 best albums of 1994.[17] In 2014, Rolling Stone ranked it number 21 on its list of the 40 best alternative rock albums of 1994.[18]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Get Back" | Nina Gordon | 3:12 |
2. | "All Hail Me" | Louise Post | 3:05 |
3. | "Seether" | Gordon | 3:16 |
4. | "Spiderman '79" | Post | 5:16 |
5. | "Forsythia" | Gordon | 4:45 |
6. | "Wolf" | Post | 4:19 |
7. | "Celebrate You" | Post | 4:20 |
8. | "Fly" | Post | 3:38 |
9. | "Number One Blind" |
| 3:43 |
10. | "Victrola" | Post | 2:19 |
11. | "Twinstar" | Gordon | 3:16 |
12. | "25" | Gordon | 7:56 |
13. | "Sleeping Where I Want" (CD release only) | Gordon | 3:19 |
Total length: | 52:24 |
Credits adapted from liner notes.
Veruca Salt
Additional musicians
Production
Chart (1994–95) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (ARIA)[19] | 26 |
UK Albums (OCC)[20] | 47 |
US Billboard 200[21] | 69 |
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[22] | 1 |