Bricks Are Heavy

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Bricks Are Heavy
Studio album by L7
Released April 14, 1992
Recorded 1991 & 1992 at Smart Studios in Madison, Wisconsin and Sound City in Van Nuys, California
Genre Grunge, alternative metal, heavy metal
Length 37:28
Label Slash Records
Producer L7 & Butch Vig
L7 chronology

Smell the Magic
(1990)		 Bricks Are Heavy
(1992)		 Hungry for Stink
(1994)
Singles from Bricks Are Heavy
  1. "Pretend We're Dead"
    Released: 1992
  2. "Everglade"
    Released: 1992
  3. "Monster"
    Released: 1992
Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic [1]
Entertainment Weekly A[2]
Kerrang! [3]
Piero Scaruffi (7.5/10)[4]
Q [5]
Robert Christgau A[6]
Rolling Stone [7]

Bricks Are Heavy is the third album by the Los Angeles band L7, released in April 1992 through Slash Records. Backed by the single "Pretend We're Dead", the album became a breakthrough hit and the band became the "poster girls" of grunge music.[citation needed]

The album was released shortly after grunge had broken into the mainstream with the surprise success of Nirvana's Nevermind. In July 1992, the song "Pretend We're Dead" gained popularity among American rock radio stations, where it received regular airplay. By late August, the album had reached No. 1 on Billboard's Heatseekers album chart, and two weeks later it peaked at No. 160 on the Billboard 200.

Musically the album is heavier and dirtier than the band's previous recordings. While the band retained its punk and hardcore punk roots, there was more emphasis on heavy metal than before. It was produced by Butch Vig, who is renowned for his work with bands such as Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, Sonic Youth and, later, Garbage.

Track listing

No. TitleMusic Length
1. "Wargasm"  Donita Sparks 2:40
2. "Scrap"  Sparks, Brett Gurewitz 2:53
3. "Pretend We're Dead"  Sparks 3:53
4. "Diet Pill"  Sparks 4:21
5. "Everglade"  Jennifer Finch, Daniel Ray 3:18
6. "Slide"  Suzi Gardner, Sparks 3:37
7. "One More Thing"  Finch 4:07
8. "Mr. Integrity"  Sparks 4:06
9. "Monster"  Gardner 2:56
10. "Shitlist"  Sparks 2:55
11. "This Ain't Pleasure"  Gardner, Caivano 2:42
Total length:
 37:28

Personnel

L7
Additional musician
  • Paul Ryan - bongos
Production
  • Butch Vig - producer, engineer, mixing
  • Howie Weinberg - mastering
  • Steve Marker - engineer
  • Mr. Colson - engineer
  • Elizabeth Hale - art direction
  • Jeff Price - art direction
  • Randall Martin - artwork
  • Vicki Berndt - photography
  • Arlan E. Helm - photography
  • Damion Romero - photography

Chart positions

Album
Chart Peak
Billboard Top Heatseekers 1 [1]
UK Albums Chart 24 [8]
Australian Album Chart 47 [9]
Billboard 200 160 [10]
Singles
Year Title Peak Chart positions
US
Mod		 AUS [11] UK [12]
1992 "Pretend We're Dead" 8 50 21
"Everglade" — — 27
"Monster" — — 33
"—" denotes singles that were released but did not chart.

Other success

The song "Pretend We're Dead" was used in the video games Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and Rock Band 2. It was also used in the US trailer for the movie Shaun of the Dead.

The song "Shitlist" was used in both the 1992 sequel Pet Sematary 2 and Oliver Stone's 1994 film Natural Born Killers and its soundtrack. The song is or was used by professional wrestlers Jon Moxley in CZW, and Brian Pillman in ECW. CM Punk, now under contract with WWE, used the song as his entrance theme while on the independent circuit.

Accolades

  • Rolling Stone: "The Essential Recordings of the 1990s"
  • The Village Voice: "Pazz & Jop 1992 Critics Poll: Albums" – No. 32
  • The Village Voice: "Pazz & Jop 1992 Critics Poll: Singles" – No. 11 ("Pretend We're Dead")

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Bricks Are Heavy - L7". Allmusic. Retrieved March 17, 2010. 
  2. ↑ Arnold, Gina (June 19, 1992). "Bricks Are Heavy Review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved May 9, 2013. 
  3. ↑ Chirazi, Steffan (4 April 1992). "L7 'Bricks Are Heavy'". Kerrang! 386. London, UK: EMAP. 
  4. ↑ Scaruffi, Piero. "L7". pieroscaruffi.com (Italian). Retrieved on March 17, 2010.
  5. ↑ "L7 - Bricks Are Heavy CD Album". CD Universe. Retrieved May 9, 2013. 
  6. ↑ Christgau, Robert. "CG: L7". RobertChristgau.com. Retrieved on March 17, 2010.
  7. ↑ Berger, Arion (September 17, 1992). "L7: Bricks Are Heavy : Music Reviews". Rolling Stone: 94. Archived from the original on November 12, 2007. Retrieved May 9, 2013. 
  8. ↑ , UK charts page for Bricks Are Heavy by L7
  9. ↑ "L7 - Bricks Are Heavy". australian-charts.com. Retrieved 2010-01-17. 
  10. ↑ "Bricks Are Heavy charts [albums]". billboard.com. Retrieved 2010-01-17. 
  11. ↑ "L7 Discography". austriancharts.at. Retrieved 2009-12-02. 
  12. ↑ "L7". chartstats.com. Archived from the original on 2013-01-19. Retrieved 2009-01-31. 

External links

L7
Studio albums
Compilation albums
Live albums
Singles and EPs
  • Shove
  • Pretend We're Dead
  • Everglade
  • Monster
  • Andres
  • Stuck Here Again
  • Can I Run
  • Drama
  • Off the Wagon
  • Freeway
  • Mantra Down
Video releases
  • Fast and Frightening
  • Pretend We're Dead
  • Everglade
  • Monster
  • Andres
  • Stuck Here Again
  • The Beauty Process
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