State of Euphoria

State of Euphoria
Studio album by Anthrax
Released September 19, 1988
Recorded Quadradial Studios, Miami, Florida, April–June 1988
Genre Thrash metal
Length 52:35
Label Megaforce, Island
Producer Anthrax, Mark Dodson, Alex Perialas, Jon Zazula, Marsha Zazula
Anthrax chronology

Among the Living
(1987)		 State of Euphoria
(1988)		 Persistence of Time
(1990)
Singles from State of Euphoria
  1. "Make Me Laugh"
    Released: 1988
  2. "Antisocial"
    Released: 1989[1]

State of Euphoria is the fourth studio album by the American thrash metal band Anthrax. It was released on September 19, 1988 through Megaforce/Island Records.

Album information

The album was produced by Anthrax and Mark Dodson, with Alex Perialas engineering. The album reached No. 30 on the Billboard 200 chart in late 1988 and was certified Gold by the RIAA on February 8, 1989.[2] The songs "Who Cares Wins", dealing with the plight of the homeless, and "Antisocial" were released as singles with accompanying music videos.

The song "Misery Loves Company" is based on the Stephen King novel Misery, while "Now It's Dark" was inspired by the David Lynch film Blue Velvet, specifically the behavior of the sexually depraved, self-asphyxiating, murderous sociopath Frank Booth, as played by Dennis Hopper. The song was years later made into simlish for the radio on the The Sims PC game. The song "Make Me Laugh" is critical of Televangelism, specifically of Jim and Tammy Fae Bakker, a popular target of thrash metal bands of that period. The song specifically mentioned minutiae such as the air-conditioned doghouse and Christian amusement park. The majority of the album's music was composed by drummer Charlie Benante while lyrics were composed by rhythm guitarist Scott Ian.

The back cover of the album contains a parody picture of the band drawn by Mort Drucker, a caricaturist best known for his artwork in the magazine Mad.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
AllMusic [3]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music [4]
Metal Forces 10/10[5]
The New Rolling Stone Album Guide [6]

Although the album contains some of what would become Anthrax's best known songs such as "Antisocial" and "Be All, End All", critical reception was lukewarm. The album failed to live up to the expectations, commercial and otherwise, set by the band's previous releases, Spreading the Disease, Among the Living and the I'm the Man EP.

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Anthrax, except "Antisocial" by Bernie Bonvoisin and Norbert Krief. 

Side one
No. Title Length
1. "Be All, End All"   6:22
2. "Out of Sight, Out of Mind"   5:13
3. "Make Me Laugh"   5:41
4. "Antisocial" (Trust cover) 4:27
5. "Who Cares Wins"   7:35
Side two
No. Title Length
6. "Now It's Dark"   5:34
7. "Schism"   5:27
8. "Misery Loves Company"   5:40
9. "13" (Instrumental) 0:49
10. "Finale"   5:47

Personnel

Band members
Additional musicians
Production

Certifications

Region Certification Sales/shipments
Canada (Music Canada)[7] Gold 50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[8] Silver 60,000^
United States (RIAA)[9] Gold 500,000^

^shipments figures based on certification alone

References

  1. ↑ http://www.metal-archives.com/albums/Anthrax/Anti-Social/7583
  2. ↑ "RIAA Gold and Platinum Search Results". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 2008-03-31.
  3. ↑ Huey, Steve. "Anthrax: State of Euphoria". AllMusic. Retrieved February 7, 2012.
  4. ↑ Larkin, Colin (2011). Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th ed.). Omnibus Press. p. 2006. ISBN 0-85712-595-8.
  5. ↑ Arnold, Neil (1988). "Anthrax: State of Euphoria". Metal Forces (31). Retrieved April 18, 2014.
  6. ↑ Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian David (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon and Schuster. p. 20. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  7. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Anthrax – State of Euphoria". Music Canada.
  8. ↑ "British album certifications – Anthrax – State of Euphoria". British Phonographic Industry. Enter State of Euphoria in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Select Silver in the field By Award. Click Search
  9. ↑ "American album certifications – Anthrax – State of Euphoria". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH