Ixnay on the Hombre

Ixnay on the Hombre
Studio album by The Offspring
Released February 4, 1997
Recorded June 24[1]- October 11,[2] 1996 at Eldorado Recording Studios, Hollywood, CA
Genre Punk rock, skate punk, alternative rock, ska punk[3], post-grunge[4]
Length 42:14
Label Columbia, Epitaph (Europe)
Producer Dave Jerden
The Offspring chronology
Smash
(1994)		 Ixnay on the Hombre
(1997)		 Americana
(1998)
Singles from Ixnay on the Hombre
  1. "All I Want"
    Released: December 1996
  2. "Gone Away"
    Released: March 1997
  3. "Cool to Hate"
    Released: 1997
  4. "The Meaning of Life"
    Released: 1997
  5. "I Choose"
    Released: 1997
Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic [5]
Kerrang!
Robert Christgau [6]
Rolling Stone [7]

Ixnay on the Hombre is the fourth studio album by the American punk band The Offspring. Produced by Dave Jerden, the album was released on February 4, 1997 through Columbia Records (their former label Epitaph released it in Europe). After the massive commercial success of their previous album, Smash, The Offspring entered the studio in the middle of 1996 to record a new album. Asked about the title, frontman Dexter Holland claimed that Ixnay on the Hombre means either "fuck authority" or "fuck The Man".[8] ("Ixnay" is the Pig Latin version of the word "nix", familiar in 1940s Hollywood movies.)

Ixnay on the Hombre was a moderate success debuting at #9 on the Billboard 200 chart and it was well received by both critics and fans. The album was certified platinum in the US. The album contains the hit singles "All I Want", "Gone Away" and "I Choose", while "Cool to Hate" and "The Meaning of Life" also received radio airplay. The first two singles later appeared on The Offspring's Greatest Hits album.

Contents

Background and recording

Following the widespread commercial success of the band's previous album, Smash, and the subsequent touring to support the album, the band signed a recording contract with Columbia Records and began writing new songs at their practice space. Recording took place from June to October 1996 at Eldorado Recording Studios with producer Dave Jerden (Alice in Chains, Anthrax, Jane's Addiction, Social Distortion).

On the recording process of the album, guitarist Noodles stated:

“ We recorded a few more songs than we needed, and if we had used some of the other ones that were left off, it would have ended up a little more risky. But we're not disappointed in what we kept. I think it's a great record and I love these songs. Maybe we'll save the limb-walking for the next one.[9] ”

"Change the World" is a further development of the unnamed hidden track that appeared at the end of the previous album Smash. "Change the World" itself contains a hidden track, a brief spoken piece by Larry "Bud" Melman of the David Letterman Show.

Release and reception

Ixnay on the Hombre was released on February 4, 1997, and is the first Offspring album distributed via Columbia Records. In Europe, this is their last release on their former label Epitaph Records. This was due to contract disagreements between the band and the co-founder of Epitaph and then-former and now-current Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz. The band was able to release its album on Columbia for the US and other international releases but had to complete the album release in Europe through Epitaph. All subsequent albums were released on Columbia.

Ixnay on the Hombre peaked at number 9 on the Billboard 200 album chart.[10] Although the album was less successful than its predecessor or successor, it also went Platinum soon after its release.[11]

The Allmusic review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine awards the album 2.5 stars and states: "Ixnay on the Hombre sounds like a competent hard rock band trying to hitch themselves to the post-grunge bandwagon."[12]

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Dexter Holland [13], except "Intermission" lyrics by Irving Caesar, music by Vincent Youmans. 

No. Title Length
1. "Disclaimer"   0:44
2. "The Meaning of Life"   2:55
3. "Mota"   2:56
4. "Me & My Old Lady"   4:32
5. "Cool to Hate"   2:47
6. "Leave It Behind"   1:56
7. "Gone Away"   4:27
8. "I Choose"   3:54
9. "Intermission"   0:48
10. "All I Want"   1:54
11. "Way Down the Line"   2:35
12. "Don't Pick It Up"   1:52
13. "Amazed"   4:25
14. "Change the World"   6:23
Total length:
 42:24

In popular culture

Charts and certifications

Charts

Chart (1997) Peak
position
Australian Albums Chart 2
Canadian Albums Chart 3
Japanese Albums Chart 3
Finland Albums Chart 2
French Albums Chart 3
New Zealand Albums Chart 2
U.S. Billboard 200 9

Certifications

Region Certification Sales/shipments
Australia (ARIA)[14] 2× Platinum 140,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[15] 2× Platinum 200,000^
Finland (IFPI Finland)[16] Gold 26,511[16]
United States (RIAA)[17] Platinum 1,000,000^

^shipments figures based on certification alone

Personnel

The Offspring
Additional musicians
Others

Charting singles

Year Song Chart Position
1996 "All I Want" Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks 18
Hot Modern Rock Tracks 13
Australian Singles Chart 15
Austria Singles Chart 25
UK Singles Chart 31
1997 "Gone Away" Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks 1
Hot Modern Rock Tracks 4
Australian Singles Chart 16
UK Singles Chart 42
1997 "I Choose" Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks 5
Hot Modern Rock Tracks 24

External links

References

  1. ^ Letter from Dexter "People have also been asking about what we're doing now..."
  2. ^ Letter from Dexter "Offspring: New Album "
  3. ^ Ixnay On The Hombre Review | Offspring | Compact Discs | Reviews @ Ultimate-Guitar.Com
  4. ^ [1]
  5. ^ http://www.allmusic.com/album/r246792
  6. ^ Robert Christgau: CG: the offspring
  7. ^ The Offspring Rolling Stone Jan 10, 1997
  8. ^ Ixnay on the Hombre
  9. ^ Gula, Bob (March 1997). "Oodlesnay on Ixnay on the Hombre". Guitar. 
  10. ^ "Ixany on the Hombre's entry at Billboard.com". Billboard.com. Archived from the original on 2008-04-25. http://web.archive.org/web/20080425033119/http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/discography/index.jsp?pid=23138&aid=196463. Retrieved 2007-11-30. 
  11. ^ "RIAA Certification (type in "Offspring" in the artist box)". RIAA. http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?table=SEARCH. Retrieved 2007-11-30. 
  12. ^ Stephen Thomas Erlewine. "Review for Ixnay on the Hombre". Allmusic.com. http://www.allmusic.com/album/r246792. Retrieved 2010-05-21. 
  13. ^ http://repertoire.bmi.com/writer.asp?fromrow=1&torow=25&keyname=HOLLAND%20BRYAN%20KEITH&querytype=WriterID&keyid=158459&page=1&blnWriter=True&blnPublisher=True&blnArtist=True&affiliation=BMI&cae=227455957
  14. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1997 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association. http://www.aria.com.au/pages/aria-charts-accreditations-albums-1997.htm. 
  15. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Offspring – Ixnay on the Hombre". Music Canada. http://www.musiccanada.com/GPSearchResult.aspx?st=Ixnay+on+the+Hombre&sa=Offspring&smt=0. 
  16. ^ a b "Finnish album certifications – Offspring – Ixnay on the Hombre" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. http://www.ifpi.fi/tilastot/artistit/Offspring. 
  17. ^ "American album certifications – Offspring – Ixnay on the Hombre". Recording Industry Association of America. http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?artist=%22Ixnay+on+the+Hombre%22.  If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
The Offspring
Dexter Holland • Noodles • Greg K. • Pete Parada
Ron Welty • Atom Willard • James Lilja • Jim Benton • Doug Thompson
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