The Young Gods (album)

The Young Gods is the eponymous debut studio album by the Swiss industrial rock band The Young Gods, released in 1987 by Play It Again Sam, Organik and Wax Trax! Records.[3] The album employs a sample-based approach to rock music: the tracks are composed from samples from metal guitar riffs and classical compositions. The Young Gods was produced by Roli Mosimann, who went on to become a frequent collaborator of the band. It is the band's only record to feature their original drummer, Frank Bagnoud.

The Young Gods
Studio album by
The Young Gods
ReleasedApril 1987
RecordedArtag Studio (Zurich)
Genre
Length34:10
Label
ProducerRoli Mosimann
The Young Gods chronology
The Young Gods
(1987)		 L'eau rouge
(1989)
Singles from The Young Gods
  1. "Did You Miss Me?"
    Released: February 1987

The Young Gods met with a critical acclaim, with a particular interest from the British music press: it was named as the "Album of the Year" by Melody Maker. The album peaked at number 14 on UK Independent Albums Chart, while its sole single, "Did You Miss Me?," charted on the UK Independent Singles Chart.

Background and recording

The Young Gods formed in Geneva in 1985, after Fribourg-native guitarist Franz Treichler decided to assemble a band for his sound collage compositions. The band started rehearsing and performing with the inclusion of sampler player Cesare Pizzi and drummer Frank Bagnoud.[4][5] After a series of early gigs, the trio signed to the Swiss label Organik, which was a subsidiary of RecRec Music. Their self-financed debut single, "Envoyé!," was released in 1986 to positive reviews and publicity. It was named as "the Single of the Week" by Melody Maker; the band soon started touring in Europe and the United Kingdom.[6] The success of the single won the band a recording deal with the Belgian label Play It Again Sam.[7]

The band soon started recording their debut album with Roli Mosimann.[7] Treichler had previously met with Mosimann during the latter's tenure as the drummer of Swans.[8] The album was recorded at the Artag Studio in Zurich, Switzerland.[9] According to Treichler, Mosimann was heavily involved in the songwriting and arrangement process.[8]

Music and lyrics
The band's sampler player, Cesare Pizzi, in 2019

On The Young Gods, the band used the sampler as a compositional tool: the tracks are constructed from classical and rock/metal guitar samples.[10] On the band's arrangements, David Stubbs of The Quietus wrote: "They used artifice and synthesis, mechanically retrieving the sounds of the dead rock (and classical) past, but forging them in such a way as to create something bold, grandiose and absolutely new under the sun."[11] Treichler's vocals were described as "leering" and "guttural."[3] The tracks often deviate from the standard verse–chorus form.[11] The band have described their music as "new sonic architecture."[12]

The track "Nous de la lune" features a martial beat, tolling bells, and "a vomiting, bass growl" by Treichler.[11] "Jusqu'au About" was characterized by "exhaust fume sputters of revving guitar," while the track "A ciel ouvert" features "Treichler's melodramatic, pterodactyl-like screams."[11] "Did You Miss Me?," a cover of Gary Glitter's "Hello, Hello, I'm Back Again," was constructed from string samples[10] and was compared to the works of Laibach. The track features an audience sample from a Yello live album.[11] "Jimmy" was described as a "furious punk" track.[12] The tracks "Percussione" and "Feu" are driven by "primitive, muscle-powered percussion" and "a looped riff", respectively.[11] "Envoyé!," featured on the CD version, consists of a "motorik percussion, gunshots, an abbreviated hair metal riff;"[10][11] the track was likened to "techno played by a speed-metal band."[3] "Comme si était la dernière fois," another CD bonus track, features a slowed down guitar riff from The Ruts.[13]

The lyrics on The Young Gods are sung in French, except for "Did You Miss Me?" and "The Irrtum Boys."[11][14]

Release and reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[10]
Robert Christgau[15]
Uncut[16]

The Young Gods was released in April 1987 on Play It Again Sam and Organik. Wax Trax! Records handled the North American release.[3][9] The record received a critical success in the United Kingdom[6][7] and peaked at number 14 on UK Independent Albums Chart.[17] The band regularly relocated to London for the accompanying tour.[4]

AllMusic critic Ned Raggett wrote: "Even if the uniqueness of the Young Gods' sample-based compositional and playing method of heavy rock wasn't a question, the band's debut would still have caught many a discerning ear." Raggett further added: "While not consistently strong throughout, this self-titled effort has far more hits than misses to its overall credit."[10] Music critic Robert Christgau noted the tracks "Feu" and "Did You Miss Me" as notable cuts from the record.[15] Simon Reynolds of Melody Maker praised the record, stating that the record "looks like the most creative record released this year." Reynolds further stated that the band "takes sampling beyond the dance functionalism which limits hip hop. Where most pop is linear, horizontal, The Young Gods open up space along the vertical."[12] Trouser Press wrote: "'Bombastic' would be a gross understatement, but when ability matches ambition, The Young Gods has a uniquely menacing majesty."[3]

The album was chosen as the "Album of the Year" by Melody Maker in 1987.[18] It was also included on Sounds magazine's lists of "Albums of the Year" and "The Top 80 Albums from the '80s" in 1987[19] and 1989,[20] respectively. In 2010, Spin featured the record on its list of essential industrial metal albums.[2]

Track listing

All tracks are written by The Young Gods, except "Did You Miss Me?" by Gary Glitter and Mike Leander.

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Nous de la lune" ("We of the Moon")4:33
2."Jusqu'au bout" ("All the Way")2:35
3."A ciel ouvert" ("In the Open Air")1:46
4."Jimmy"2:41
5."Fais la mouette" ("Do the Seagull")4:46
Side two
No.TitleLength
1."Percussionne" ("Percussion"[lower-alpha 1])5:28
2."Feu" ("Of Old")3:04
3."Did You Miss Me?" (Gary Glitter cover)3:22
4."Si tu gardes" ("If You Keep")5:55
CD bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
10."The Irrtum Boys"2:38
11."Envoyé!" ("Sent"[lower-alpha 2])1:53
12."Soul Idiot"4:23
13."Comme si était la dernière fois" ("As If It Were the Last Time")5:09
Notes
  1. Translated as "Let the Trial Begin" on the liner notes.[14]
  2. Translated as "Go For It and Fuck Off" on the liner notes.[14]

Personnel

Adapted from The Young Gods liner notes.[14]

Chart positions

Chart (1987) Peak
position
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[21] 22
UK Indie Chart[17] 14

Release history

Region Date Label Format Catalog Notes
Belgium 1987 PIAS CD, LP LD 8821
Switzerland Organik ORG 87/9
United States Wax Trax! WAX 7135
1995 Interscope CD 92653
France 2001 Intoxygene LD 8821
Europe 2012 Two Gentlemen TWOGTL 018 Deluxe edition; includes the previously-unreleased live album, Live at Fri-Son (1987)[9]

References

  1. Nash, Rob (30 November 2005). "The Young Gods: Sounds like heaven". The Independent. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
  2. Eddy, Chuck (1 April 2010). "Essential: Industrial Metal". Spin. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
  3. Aswad, Jem; Fasolino, Greg (2007). "Young Gods". Trouser Press. Retrieved April 19, 2016.
  4. Stewart-Panko, Kevin (12 September 2019). "Everybody Should Know: An Interview with The Young Gods". Decibel. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
  5. de Roguin, Vincent, ed. (2017). The Young Gods: Documents 1985-2015. La Baconnière. p. 694. ISBN 9782940431540.
  6. Jason, Ankeny (5 March 2009). "Interview: The Young Gods". Panagram Magazine. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  7. Bousfield, Jonathan (2003). Buckley, Peter (ed.). The Rough Guide to Rock. Rough Guides. pp. 1208–1209. ISBN 9781843531050.
  8. Zappa, François (21 March 2020). "Interview: The Young Gods". elgarajedefrank.es. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
  9. "The Young Gods (Deluxe Edition), 2012". younggods.com. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
  10. Raggett, Ned. "The Young Gods: The Young Gods Review". AllMusic. Retrieved April 19, 2016.
  11. Stubbs, David (22 May 2012). "25 Years On: The Young Gods' Debut Revisited". The Quietus. Retrieved 3 September 2020.
  12. Reynolds, Simon (20 June 1987). "The Young Gods - The Young Gods". Melody Maker.
  13. "Interview: The Young Gods' Franz Treichler on 30 Years of Music". Red Bull Music Academy. 2015. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
  14. The Young Gods (booklet). The Young Gods. Zürich, Switzerland: Organik. 1987.CS1 maint: others (link)
  15. Christgau, Robert. "The Young Gods". Robert Christgau.com. Retrieved April 19, 2016.
  16. columnist (September 2002). "The Young Gods: The Young Gods". Q: 127.
  17. Lazell, Barry (1997). Indie Hits 1980-1989. Cherry Red Books. Archived from the original on May 14, 2008. Retrieved April 19, 2016.
  18. "The Vinyl Curtain - Melody Maker Best Albums of 1987". Melody Maker. 19 December 1987. p. 56.
  19. "Albums of the Year (1987)". Sounds. December 1987.
  20. "The Top 80 Albums from the '80s". Sounds. December 1989.
  21. "Swisscharts.com – The Young Gods – The Young Gods". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 19, 2016.
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