Perpetual Motion Machine (album)

Perpetual Motion Machine is an album by the Canadian alternative rock band 13 Engines, released in 1993.[1][2] It was the band's fourth album, and the second one released by a major label.[3] The album's first single was "More".[4]

Perpetual Motion Machine
Studio album by
Released1993, Canada
1994, United States
StudioLe Studio
GenreAlternative rock
LabelEMI Music Canada
Atlantic Records
ProducerJohn Critchley, Glen Robinson
13 Engines chronology
A Blur to Me Now
(1991)
Perpetual Motion Machine
(1993)
Conquistador
(1995)

Production

The album was produced by frontman John Critchley, with help from Glen Robinson.[5] It was recorded at Le Studio, in Morin-Heights, Quebec.[6] Compared to sessions for their previous albums, the band spent a longer period of time in the studio, exploring overdubbing and trying different mixes.[5] The cellist Anne Bourne contributed to the album.[7]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[8]
Calgary HeraldB[9]
The State[10]

Trouser Press wrote that "the unpretentiously arty album lacked only a marketing gimmick (or a transcendent single, although 'Smoke & Ashes' comes mighty close) to get 13 Engines onto the alt-hit parade."[11] Billboard also praised "Smoke & Ashes", calling it "the perfect two-minute rock song."[12] The Philadelphia Inquirer called the album "much-improved," writing that 13 Engines displayed a "willingness to adapt elements of grunge to their songwriting."[13] The State considered the album "a 14-track trip through the subtlety and simplicity that was once rock 'n' roll."[10]

The Washington Post deemed the album "unadorned folk-rock that suggests, without slavishly imitating, Neil Young and Crazy Horse."[14] The Calgary Herald thought that "ambiguous lyrics are delivered in a Morrison monotone style and then sung in wavering half-whispers, buoyed by guitars that slide from grungy psychedelia to hard-rock backbeats."[9] The Edmonton Journal chose Perpetual Motion Machine as the fourth best Canadian album of 1993, describing it as "energetic, original guitar rock with sneaky hooks and sometimes confusing lyrics."[15]

AllMusic called Perpetual Motion Machine "a record that, while perhaps a bit cleaner sonically than their debut, finds the band still creating a glorious racket."[8]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."Bred in the Bone" 
2."Saviour" 
3."More" 
4."Unconscience" 
5."The Golden Age" 
6."Smoke & Ashes" 
7."What If We Don't Get What We Want?" 
8."Unbound" 
9."Perpetual Motion Machine" 
10."Moment of Clarity" 
11."Dirty Little Rat" 
12."The Estrangement" 
13."Going Under" 
14."Lift You Up" 

References

  1. "13 Engines Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 2021-10-28. Retrieved 2021-10-15.
  2. Muretich, James (6 June 1993). "POP-ROCK WITH MUSCLE: 13 ENGINES PUSHES BRAIN ACTIVITY AND ATMOSPHERE". Calgary Herald. p. C2.
  3. Saxberg, Lynn (15 Apr 1993). "13 Engines hitting on all cylinders". Ottawa Citizen. p. D2.
  4. Krewen, Nick (16 Apr 1993). "Solar flare cool touch for 13 Engines' album". The Hamilton Spectator. p. C2.
  5. Jones, Owen (20 May 1993). "13 Engines crank out volume". Windsor Star. p. C15.
  6. Barclay, Michael; Jack, Ian A. D.; Schneider, Jason (June 15, 2011). "Have Not Been the Same: The CanRock Renaissance, 1985-1995". ECW Press. Archived from the original on November 13, 2021. Retrieved October 15, 2021 via Google Books.
  7. Stoute, Lenny (22 Apr 1993). "13 Engines back on main track after record-deal derailment". Toronto Star. p. WO4.
  8. "Perpetual Motion Machine - 13 Engines | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". Archived from the original on 2021-10-28. Retrieved 2021-10-15 via www.allmusic.com.
  9. Phillips, Shari (11 Apr 1993). "RECENT RELEASES". Calgary Herald. p. C2.
  10. Miller, Michael (March 18, 1994). "NEW RELEASES". The State. p. 12D.
  11. "13 Engines". Trouser Press. Archived from the original on 27 October 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  12. "Album reviews -- Perpetual Motion Machine by 13 Engines". Billboard. 106 (8): 56. Feb 19, 1994.
  13. Moon, Tom (24 Mar 1993). "THE SUITS DOMINATE AT NEW-MUSIC CONFERENCE". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. F1.
  14. Jenkins, Mark (18 Mar 1994). "13 Engines Powered By Folk-Rock Riffs". The Washington Post. p. N22.
  15. Howell, David (26 Dec 1993). "The year 1993 in entertainment". Edmonton Journal. p. E1.
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