Ignition (The Offspring album)

Ignition is the second studio album by American punk rock band the Offspring, released on October 16, 1992, by Epitaph Records. Issued during the alternative rock and grunge era, the album brought the band small success in Southern California as they started to gather a following. This success would continue to grow with their next album, Smash (1994).

Ignition
Studio album by
the Offspring
ReleasedOctober 16, 1992
RecordedJune 1992[1]
Studio
GenreHardcore punk[2]
Length37:24
LabelEpitaph
ProducerThom Wilson
The Offspring chronology
Baghdad
(1991)		 Ignition
(1992)		 Smash
(1994)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Christgau's Consumer Guide(neither)[4]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[5]
Spin Alternative Record Guide5/10[6]

Ignition was certified gold on January 22, 1996, nearly two years after the release of Smash, and has sold over one million copies worldwide.[7] For the album's 20th anniversary in 2012, The Offspring played Ignition in its entirety for some selected concerts.[8][9] They also performed the album in 2017 at a benefit concert for 924 Gilman Street.[10]

The band re-recorded Ignition's sixth track "Dirty Magic" for their ninth studio album Days Go By, released twenty years later.

Background and recording

In 1991, The Offspring teamed up with producer Thom Wilson to record the Baghdad 7-inch EP. This EP was instrumental to the band's signing with Epitaph Records. Wilson had been trying to get The Offspring to switch to Epitaph, a label run by Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz. Gurewitz felt that The Offspring was just not quite pronounced enough for his label, but Baghdad convinced him to give the band a shot. Thanks to the success of Baghdad, The Offspring managed to record their second full-length album. The band entered two recording studios, Westbeach Recorders and Track Record, in June 1992 to record Ignition, in a similar fashion to the production schedule for The Offspring and Baghdad, which were both recorded in just one month (March 1989 and February 1991 respectively).

Some of the material (including "Take It Like a Man", which was originally recorded in 1991 for a Flipside magazine compilation, The Big One, and "Get It Right", which appeared on Baghdad) are updated versions of songs that were recorded around The Offspring/Baghdad-era. The album also had one outtake, "Mission from God", which was later slightly remixed and then released on the compilation album Punk-O-Rama Vol. 10 in 2005. "Mission from God" was then released as a bonus download when Ignition was reissued on vinyl, albeit in its original 1992 mix.

Release and reception

Ignition was released through Epitaph Records on October 16, 1992. Like their self-titled debut album, Ignition did not chart on the Billboard 200; however, The Offspring began to gather small success in the Southern region of California, mainly the areas of San Diego, Orange County and Los Angeles, and spent a-year-and-a-half touring relentlessly behind the album. Although no videos were released for Ignition, "Kick Him When He's Down" was released as an airplay-only single in 1995. Ignition was certified Gold on January 22, 1996, nearly two years after the release of Smash.

The album has received generally favorable reviews in the years since its initial release, with several reviewers having deemed Ignition one of The Offspring's best[11][12] albums. In October 2011, the album was ranked number two (between Alice in Chains' Dirt and Bad Religion's Generator) on Guitar World magazine's top ten list of guitar albums of 1992.[13]

On June 17, 2008, Epitaph re-released Ignition (along with Smash) in remastered form.[14] This reissue was released on the same day as then-current album Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace.

Touring and promotion

The Offspring toured for a-year-and-a-half to promote Ignition. Their audience continued to hone, supporting such bands as Youth Brigade,[15] The Vandals,[16][17] Bad Religion,[18][19] D.I.,[17][20] Guttermouth,[17][20] Voodoo Glow Skulls,[20] Glue Gun,[21] Momentum, Final Conflict, Face to Face, Pennywise, Rancid, Unwritten Law, RKL, Untrust, Cadillac Tramps and Korn.[22] The Offspring then managed to secure a slot in three major tours in 1993. They opened for NOFX on their White Trash, Two Heebs and a Bean tour, and in that summer, the band supported Lunachicks and Iceburn.[22] After the tour ended, The Offspring took a break and went back into the studio to record their third album Smash. In early 1994, The Offspring landed the opening slot for Pennywise on their Unknown Road tour. The Ignition tour ended on April 1, 1994, at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, just one week before the release of Smash.[22]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Dexter Holland,[23] except where noted

No.TitleLength
1."Session" (Jill Eckhaus, Dexter Holland, Kristine Luna)2:32
2."We Are One"4:00
3."Kick Him When He's Down"3:16
4."Take It Like a Man"2:55
5."Get It Right"3:06
6."Dirty Magic"3:48
7."Hypodermic"3:21
8."Burn It Up"2:42
9."No Hero"3:22
10."L.A.P.D."2:45
11."Nothing from Something" (Marvin Fergusen, Holland)3:00
12."Forever and a Day"2:37
Total length:37:23

Certifications and sales
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[24] Gold 35,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[25] Gold 50,000^
United States (RIAA)[26] Gold 500,000^
Summaries
Worldwide — 1,000,000[7]

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Accolades
Publication (2011) Rank
Guitar World Magazine's Top 10 2

Personnel

The Offspring
  • Dexter Holland - lead and backing vocals, rhythm guitar (uncredited for rhythm guitar and backing vocals)
  • Noodles -ead guitar, backing vocals (uncredited for backing vocals)
  • Greg K. - bass, backing vocals (uncredited for backing vocals)
  • Ron Welty - drums

Other
  • Recorded and mixed by Thom Wilson at Westbeach Recorders, Hollywood, USA
  • Recorded and mixed by Ken Paulakovich at Track Record, North Hollywood, USA
  • Produced by Thom Wilson
  • Assistant engineered by Donnell Cameron and Joe Peccerillo
  • Mastered by Eddie Schreyer

References

Notes
  1. Ignition (liner notes). The Offspring. US: Epitaph Records. 1992. E-86424-1.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  2. "Smash by The Offspring". Classic Rock Review. Retrieved March 4, 2023. Unlike the group's first two releases, which were close to hardcore punk in genre, this third independent album leans more towards the emerging grunge rock and pop punk sound..
  3. https://www.allmusic.com/album/r169096
  4. Christgau, Robert (2000-10-15). "The Offspring". Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s. Macmillan Publishing. ISBN 9780312245603.
  5. Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian, eds. (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  6. Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig (1995). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. ISBN 9780679755746.
  7. Epitaph Announces Re-issues of Smash and Ignition by Offspring. Alarm. Retrieved February 19, 2015.
  8. "The Offspring Adds Special "Ignition" Club Shows To 2012 European Tour". Archived from the original on January 8, 2018. Retrieved May 31, 2020.
  9. "The Offspring - Alex's Bar - 5/3/12". Retrieved May 31, 2020.
  10. "We're Playing 'Ignition' Live in Berkeley to Benefit 924 Gilman". Archived from the original on 2017-08-02. Retrieved 2018-01-07.
  11. Tom. "Review for Ignition". Sputnikmusic.com. Retrieved 2010-04-21.
  12. ChemicalWarfare. "Review for Ignition". Punknews.org. Retrieved 2010-04-21.
  13. Grassi, Tony. "Photo Gallery: The Top 10 Guitar Albums of 1992". GuitarWorld.com. Retrieved 2011-10-24.
  14. Records, Epitaph. "The Offspring - Smash (Re-Mastered)". Retrieved May 31, 2020 – via epitaph.com.
  15. "Youth Brigade — Berkeley — 924 Gilman — 05 September 1992". Songkick.com. Retrieved 2014-05-30.
  16. "The Vandals — West Hollywood — Whisky A Go Go — 28 October 1992". Songkick.com. Retrieved 2014-05-30.
  17. "Orange County Punk Festival 1993 with The Offspring, The Vandals, Guttermouth, D.i., and more..." Songkick.com. Retrieved 2014-05-30.
  18. "Bad Religion — Santa Monica — Santa Monica Civic Auditorium — 23 January 1993". Songkick.com. Retrieved 2014-05-30.
  19. "01/23/1993 - Santa Monica, CA - Tours & shows". thebrpage.net. Retrieved 2014-05-30.
  20. "D.i. — Los Angeles — Hong Kong Café — 30 January 1993". Songkick.com. Retrieved 2014-05-30.
  21. "NOFX — West Hollywood — The Roxy Theatre — 14 March 1993". Songkick.com. Retrieved 2014-05-30.
  22. "The Offspring - Tour". offspring.com. Retrieved 2014-05-30.
  23. "BMI | Repertoire Search". Archived from the original on October 16, 2015. Retrieved May 31, 2020.
  24. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1998 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association.
  25. "Canadian album certifications – Offspring – Ignition". Music Canada.
  26. "American album certifications – Offspring – Ignition". Recording Industry Association of America.

Sources
  • Ignition (CD liner). The Offspring. Epitaph Records. 1992.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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