New Miserable Experience

New Miserable Experience is the second studio album by alternative rock band Gin Blossoms, released on August 4, 1992. The album was released to little fanfare and relatively lackluster reviews. However, nearly a year after its release the lead single "Hey Jealousy" entered the top 40.[1] With "Found Out About You" following a few months later, the album eventually reached multi-platinum status.[2]

New Miserable Experience
Studio album by
Gin Blossoms
ReleasedAugust 4, 1992
RecordedFebruary–March 1992
StudioArdent (Memphis, Tennessee)
Genre
Length45:02
LabelA&M
ProducerGin Blossoms
John Hampton
Gin Blossoms chronology
Up and Crumbling
(1991)		 New Miserable Experience
(1992)		 Shut Up and Smoke
(1994)
Alternate cover
Re-release cover
Singles from New Miserable Experience
  1. "Lost Horizons"
    Released: 1992
  2. "Mrs. Rita"
    Released: 1993
  3. "Hey Jealousy"
    Released: June 1993
  4. "Until I Fall Away"
    Released: August 1993
  5. "Found Out About You"
    Released: November 1993
  6. "Allison Road"
    Released: 1994

Background

The band's original lead guitarist, Doug Hopkins, was fired near the conclusion of the recording sessions for the album, ostensibly for his persistent alcohol problems. His replacement, Scott Johnson, is listed as a member of the band in the liner notes, but did not play on the album. Just as the album was becoming a success at the end of 1993, Hopkins died by suicide.

New Miserable Experience's initial release had completely different packaging. The album's original cover artwork depicted the Arizona desert. Several songs on the album were written with references to the area, people, and events surrounding the band at the time, such as "Mrs. Rita", which is a song about a local psychic from the Gin Blossoms' hometown of Tempe, Arizona. The majority of the songs rely on a melody-driven pop style, while the final track, "Cheatin'", leans into country.

The album was re-released with a new cover without the original Arizona desert photo, in late summer 1993, in conjunction with A&M's newfound support of the album. Lead singer Robin Wilson specifically requested artistic control over the new release, recalling, "I did insist that I have total control over the new cover. So what you see on New Miserable Experience, those are all my photographs. I did the layout, I handwrote all the lyrics and I made sure that I had control over that."[3]

Musical style

The album's music has been described as alternative rock,[4][5] and jangle pop.[6][2]

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[7]
Chicago Tribune[8]
Rolling Stone(favorable)[9]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[10]
The Village VoiceC+[11]

Rolling Stone praised the album, saying it "sounds both fresh and highly personal."[9] AllMusic called the album "a tight and lean collection of brilliant, edgy pop music."[7]

Track listing
  1. "Lost Horizons" (Doug Hopkins) – 3:20
  2. "Hey Jealousy" (Hopkins) – 3:56
  3. "Mrs. Rita" (Jesse Valenzuela, Jim Swafford) – 4:25
  4. "Until I Fall Away" (Robin Wilson, Valenzuela) – 3:51
  5. "Hold Me Down" (Hopkins, Wilson) – 4:50
  6. "Cajun Song" (Valenzuela) – 2:56
  7. "Hands Are Tied" (Valenzuela) – 3:17
  8. "Found Out About You" (Hopkins) – 3:53
  9. "Allison Road" (Wilson) – 3:18
  10. "29" (Valenzuela) – 4:18
  11. "Pieces of the Night" (Hopkins) – 4:33
  12. "Cheatin'" (Valenzuela, Hopkins) – 3:25

Reissue

To celebrate the album's tenth anniversary in 2002, a deluxe edition containing an extra disc of demos, outtakes and live performances was released by the label.[12] The Rarities Album was released separately in Abbreviated form in 2010 as Rarities, missing the three cuts from Dusted.

Reissue track listing
  1. "Something Wrong" (Valenzuela) - 2:40
  2. "Slave Dealer's Daughter" (Hopkins, Bill Leen) - 2:32
  3. "Fireworks" (Hopkins) - 3:05
  4. "Keli Richards" (Hopkins, Leen) - 3:04
  5. "Just South of Nowhere" (Valenzuela) - 3:26
  6. "Angels Tonight" (Hopkins) - 3:33
  7. "Blue Eyes Bleeding" (Hopkins) - 2:30
  8. "Soul Deep" (Wayne Carson Thompson) - 3:05
  9. "Heart Away" (Wilson) - 2:21
  10. "Cold River Dick" (Wilson, Valenzuela, Leen, Phillip Rhodes, Scott Johnson) - 1:16
  11. "Christine Irene" (Wilson, Valenzuela) - 2:42
  12. "Number One" (John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Neil Innes) - 2:35
  13. "Idiot Summer" (Wilson) - 4:13
  14. "Back of a Car" (Alex Chilton, Andy Hummel) - 2:43
  15. "Allison Road '94 (remix)" (Wilson) - 3:22
  16. "Hold Me Down (live)" (Hopkins, Wilson) - 4:55
  17. "Hey Jealousy (live)" (Hopkins) - 3:57
  18. "Mrs. Rita (live)" (Swafford, Valenzuela) - 4:20
  19. "29 (live)" (Valenzuela) - 4:07
  20. "Movin' On Up (live)" (Jeff Barry, Ja'net Dubois) - 2:57
  21. "Folsom Prison Blues (live)" (Johnny Cash) - 3:08
  22. "Pieces of the Night (with piano ending)" (Hopkins) - 4:20
  • Tracks 1-3: from Dusted (1989)
  • Tracks 4-6: from Up and Crumbling (1991)
  • Track 7: outtake from New Miserable Experience
  • Tracks 8-11: from Shut Up and Smoke (1994); "Soul Deep" also appears on the soundtrack album from the movie Speed
  • Track 12: outtake from Shut Up and Smoke
  • Track 13: from Music from the Motion Picture Wayne's World 2 (1993)
  • Track 14: previously unreleased; intended for a Big Star tribute album
  • Tracks 15, 22: alternate versions of songs from New Miserable Experience
  • Tracks 16-21: recorded live on May 13, 1993, at Solana Beach, California

Personnel

Gin Blossoms

Additional Personnel

Production
  • Producers: Gin Blossoms, John Hampton
  • Engineer: John Hampton
  • Assistant Engineer: James "Left Of" Senter
  • Mixing: John Hampton
  • Mastering: George Marino
  • Art direction: Barrie Goshko
  • Design: Barrie Goshko
  • Photography: Jay Blakesberg, Robin Wilson
  • Crew: Jim Coleman, Scott Guess, Mike Chappell
  • Recorded at: Ardent Studios (Memphis, TN), except: "Allison Road" and "Mrs. Rita", recorded at: AB Recorders (Phoenix, AZ) By: Andy Barret

Original 1992 release:

  • Art direction and design: Rowan Moore
  • Photography: Dennis Keeley
  • Radiator: Kelly Ray

Chart performance

Weekly charts
Chart (1992–1994) Peak
position
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[13] 43
UK Albums (OCC)[14] 53
US Billboard 200[15] 30
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[16] 1

Year-end charts
Chart (1994) Position
US Billboard 200[17] 54

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[18] Gold 50,000^
United States (RIAA)[19] 4× Platinum 4,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. Hudak, Joseph (March 29, 2017). "Gin Blossoms' 'New Miserable Experience': The Dark History of a Nineties Classic". Rolling Stone. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  2. Masley, Ed (September 1, 2018). "Gin Blossoms' Robin Wilson on why 'Mixed Reality' is their best since 'Miserable' was new". AZCentral.com. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  3. Ryan, Jim. "Robin Wilson On New Gin Blossoms Album Mixed Reality, Celebrating New Miserable Experience On Tour". Forbes. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
  4. Beach, Connor (June 7, 2018). "Gin Blossoms Come Full Circle With Latest Record". Long-Islander News. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  5. Hudak, Joseph (March 29, 2017). "Gin Blossoms' 'New Miserable Experience': The Dark History of a Nineties Classic". Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 27, 2021. While Hopkins' presence is all over New Miserable Experience – he wrote several cornerstone tracks, including autobiographical opener "Lost Horizons," the Byrds-like "Pieces of the Night" and the Modern Rock Number One "Found Out About You" – Wilson and Valenzuela provided their own songs that further cemented the album as a Nineties alt-rock favorite.
  6. Meuth, Gary (April 27, 2017). "The Gin Blossoms define sound of jangle pop". Salina Journal. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  7. Anderson, Rick. "New Miserable Experience - Gin Blossoms". AllMusic.
  8. Herrmann, Brenda (August 20, 1992). "Gin Blossoms - New Miserable Experience". Chicago Tribune.
  9. "Gin Blossoms: New Miserable Experience : Music Reviews (Unfinished review)". Rolling Stone: 146. December 23, 1993. Archived from the original on December 30, 2007. Retrieved July 27, 2013.
  10. Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (2004). The Rolling Stone Album Guide. New York City, New York: Simon and Schuster. p. 332. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8. rolling stone gin blossoms album guide.
  11. Christgau, Robert (November 29, 1994). "Turkey Shoot". The Village Voice. New York. Retrieved September 23, 2015.
  12. Schabe, Patrick (November 7, 2002). "GIN BLOSSOMS: NEW MISERABLE EXPERIENCE (DELUXE EDITION)". PopMatters. Retrieved December 27, 2021.
  13. "Top RPM Albums: Issue 2420". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved November 7, 2021.
  14. "Gin Blossoms | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  15. "Gin Blossoms Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  16. "Gin Blossoms Chart History (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  17. "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1994". Billboard. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  18. "Canadian album certifications – Gin Blossoms – New Miserable Experience". Music Canada. Retrieved November 7, 2021.
  19. "American album certifications – Gin Blossoms – New Miserable Experience". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved November 7, 2021.
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