No. 4 (album)

№ 4
Studio album by Stone Temple Pilots
Released October 26, 1999
Recorded 1998-1999
Genre
Length 42:17
Label Atlantic
Producer Brendan O'Brien
Stone Temple Pilots chronology
Tiny Music... Songs from the Vatican Gift Shop
(1996)Tiny Music... Songs from the Vatican Gift Shop1996		 No. 4
(1999)		 Shangri-La Dee Da
(2001)Shangri-La Dee Da2001
Singles from № 4
  1. "Down"
    Released: April 6, 1999
  2. "Sour Girl"
    Released: April 16, 2000
  3. "No Way Out"
    Released: May 2000

No. 4 (officially stylized as № 4) is the fourth album released by American hard rock band Stone Temple Pilots, released on October 26, 1999, by Atlantic Records. The album was a return to the band's earlier hard rock roots, while also blending elements of heavy metal, psychedelic rock, and alternative rock. Despite the lack of promotion due to singer Scott Weiland's one-year jail sentence shortly before the album's release, No. 4 was certified Platinum by the RIAA on August 7, 2000,[2] and by the CRIA in August 2001.[3] The song "Down" was nominated for Best Hard Rock Performance at the Grammy Awards. The album also produced one of STP's biggest hits, "Sour Girl", which charted at #78 on the Billboard Hot 100, their only song to appear on that chart.[4] The CD was originally released as a digipak, then later changed to a standard jewel case.

Musical style

No.4 displays a deliberate effort by the band to return to a more hard rock-oriented sound featured on its first two albums. Allmusic cited the album as STP's "hardest effort" since Core, remarking that "it's as if STP decided to compete directly with the new generation of alt-metal bands who prize aggression over hooks or riffs." Stephen Erlewine also wrote that No.4 "consolidates all [of STP's] strengths."[1]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Christgau's Consumer Guide[5]
CMJ New Music Monthly(favorable)[6]
Entertainment WeeklyC[7]
Rolling Stone[8]
Spin5/10[9]

Allmusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine rated the album four out of five stars, praising the opening tracks "Down" and "Heaven & Hot Rods".[1] Entertainment Weekly critic Rob Brunner graded it "C", calling the album "generic and phoned in" and mostly "unexciting and obvious". Brunner deemed the track "Down" as "dour", "No Way Out" as "dated", and "Atlanta" as "pretentious". Brunner further deemed the tracks "Sex & Violence" and "Pruno" as "hardly original" and resemblances to David Bowie but also as "well-crafted".[7] Rolling Stone critic Lorraine Ali rated it three out of five, calling the songs "strong pop-rock pieces but without the self-consciousness of previous efforts".[8] CMJ New Music Monthly critic M. Tye Comer called the album "powerful and cohesive", recommending readers to listen the tracks "Heaven & Hot Rods", "Church on Tuesday", "Sour Girl", and "No Way Out".[6]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Down"Scott Weiland, Robert DeLeo3:49
2."Heaven & Hot Rods"Weiland, Dean DeLeo3:26
3."Pruno"Weiland, R. DeLeo3:14
4."Church on Tuesday"Weiland, D. DeLeo3:00
5."Sour Girl"Weiland, D. DeLeo4:17
6."No Way Out"Weiland, R. DeLeo, D. DeLeo, Eric Kretz4:19
7."Sex & Violence"Weiland, R. DeLeo2:54
8."Glide"Weiland, R. DeLeo5:00
9."I Got You"Weiland, R. DeLeo4:15
10."MC5"Weiland, D. DeLeo2:42
11."Atlanta"Weiland, D. DeLeo5:19
Total length:42:17

Personnel

Stone Temple Pilots

Additional personnel

  • Brendan O'Brien – producer, mixing, keyboards
  • Barrett Martin – bass marimba
  • Nick DiDia – recording engineer
  • Russ Fowler – recording engineer
  • Dave Reed – engineer
  • Allen Sides – engineer
  • David Campbell – string arrangement
  • Suzie Katayama – contractor and cello
  • Joel Derouin – concertmaster
  • Evan Wilson – viola
  • Larry Corbett – cello
  • Charlie Bisharat, Gerry Hilera, Peter Kent – violins
  • Matt Funes – viola
  • Stephen Marcussen – mastering
  • Andrew Garver – digital editing
  • Erin Haley, Cheryl Mondello – production coordinators
  • Richard Bates, Andrea Brooks – art direction
  • Chapman Baehler – photography
  • Steve Stewart – management

Charts

No. 4 and its singles made several appearances on the North American Billboard charts.

Album

Year Chart Position
1999 U.S. Billboard 200 6
Canadian RPM Albums Chart 3
Top Internet Albums 1
Top Internet Albums 18

Singles

Year Single Mainstream Rock Tracks[10] Modern Rock Tracks[11] Adult Top 40[12] Hot 100 Top 40 Mainstream
1999 "Down" 5 9 107
2000 "Heaven & Hot Rods" 17 30
"No Way Out" 17 24
"Sour Girl" 4 3 37 78[13] 39

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/Sales
Canada (Music Canada)[14] Platinum 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[15] Platinum 1,000,000^

The album and its entire tracklisting is displayed in S1E7 of HBO's True Detective, during a scene in which Matthew Mcconaughey and Woody Harrelson's characters converse in a diner.[16]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 No. 4 at AllMusic
  2. ↑ "Gold and Platinum Database Search". Retrieved 2010-03-04.
  3. ↑ "Gold & Platinum Certification – August 2001". Canadian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 2010-08-17.
  4. ↑ http://www.allmusic.com/artist/stone-temple-pilots-mn0000626463/awards
  5. ↑ Christgau, Robert (2000-10-15). Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s. Macmillan. p. 297. ISBN 9780312245603.
  6. 1 2 Comer, M. Tye (November 1, 1999). "Must Hear the Essential Releases of the Week: Stone Temple Pilots – No. 4 (Atlantic)". CMJ New Music Monthly. p. 3. Retrieved June 26, 2017.
  7. 1 2 Rob Brunner (October 29, 1999). "No. 4 Review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved June 26, 2017.
  8. 1 2 Lorraine Ali (1999-11-11). "Stone Temple Pilots: No. 4 : Music Reviews". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2007-10-01. Retrieved 2012-08-23.
  9. ↑ Clover, Joshua (December 1999). "No. 4 Review". Spin. SPIN Media LLC.
  10. ↑ "Stone Temple Pilots – Mainstream Rock Songs chart history". Billboard. Retrieved June 25, 2017.
  11. ↑ "Stone Temple Pilots – Alternative Songs chart history". Billboard. Retrieved June 25, 2017. "Alternative Songs" was formerly "Modern Rock Tracks".
  12. ↑ "Stone Temple Pilots – Adult Pop Songs chart history". Billboard. Retrieved June 25, 2017. "Adult Pop Songs" was formerly "Adult Top 40".
  13. ↑ "Stone Temple Pilots – The Hot 100 chart history". Billboard. Retrieved June 25, 2017.
  14. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Stone Temple Pilots – No. 4". Music Canada.
  15. ↑ "American album certifications – Stone Temple Pilots – No. 4". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
  16. ↑ "Stone Temple Pilots And Depeche Mode Were Referenced On True Detective". Retrieved 2017-06-22.
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