El Moodio

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El Moodio
Studio album by
Released1993
StudioSorcerer Sound
LabelAtlantic
ProducerJim Rondinelli
Eleventh Dream Day chronology
Two Sweeties
(1992)
El Moodio
(1993)
Ursa Major
(1994)

El Moodio is an album by the American band Eleventh Dream Day, released in 1993.[1][2] The band supported the album with a North American tour.[3] It was Eleventh Dream Day's final album for Atlantic Records.[4]

Production[edit]

Recorded in New York, the album was produced by Jim Rondinelli.[5] Nine of its 10 songs were written by Janet Beveridge Bean and Rick Rizzo.[6] Matthew O'Bannon joined as the second guitar player.[7] The band started the album with Brad Wood, in Chicago, and also recorded songs that were released on 2013's New Moodio.[8] Velvet Crush's Ric Menck played drums on "That's the Point".[9]

Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[10]
Calgary HeraldB+[11]
Robert Christgau(3-star Honorable Mention)(3-star Honorable Mention)(3-star Honorable Mention)[12]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[13]
Los Angeles Times[14]
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide[15]
Rolling Stone[16]
(The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide[17]

Rolling Stone concluded that "the lion's share of the material reveals a knack for emotionally charged scenes, underscored by Bean's brusque drums," writing that "the root of great rock & roll isn't originality but spirit—and Eleventh Dream Day has passion to burn."[16] The Washington Post determined that the album "still doesn't unite the band's influences—the Velvet Underground, Neil Young and the Dream Syndicate, to name just a few—into a distinctive whole."[18] Greil Marcus, in Artforum, wrote that "on 'Rubber Band', singer/guitarist Rick Rizzo asks the musical question, How far can a phrase be stretched before every trace of the meaning it began with is gone?, and doesn't answer it."[19]

USA Today praised "the shimmery harmonies, grabby melodies and guitar-rock intensity."[20] The Calgary Herald called the album "outsider rock that doesn't try to overthrow the system, that just wants to hang on and hope—and rock with a controlled rage."[11] The Gazette opined that "when Rizzo and Matthew O'Bannon's guitars work alchemy in the ballads, the band approaches grandeur."[21] The Virginian-Pilot deemed El Moodio "an album of moody, nervous guitars and edgy singing."[22]

Track listing[edit]

No.TitleLength
1."Makin' Like a Rug" 
2."Figure It Out" 
3."After This Time Is Gone" 
4."Murder" 
5."Honeyslide" 
6."That's the Point" 
7."Motherland" 
8."The Raft" 
9."Bend Bridge" 
10."Rubberband" 

References[edit]

  1. ^ Rogers, Ray (Apr 1993). "Sweet dreams are made of these — El Moodio by Eleventh Dream Day". Interview. 23 (4): 42.
  2. ^ Moran, Caitlin (Apr 17, 1993). "Albums — El Moodio by Eleventh Dream Day". Melody Maker. 69 (16): 30.
  3. ^ Rothschild, David (5 Feb 1993). "Family Affair". Friday. Chicago Tribune. p. R.
  4. ^ "Eleventh Dream Day Biography by Jason Ankeny". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 July 2023.
  5. ^ Kot, Greg (2 Apr 1993). "Eleventh Dream's (new) Day Chicago group on track with a hot album". Friday. Chicago Tribune. p. 5.
  6. ^ McDonnell, Evelyn (29 June 1993). "Drifting Away". The Village Voice. Vol. 38, no. 26. p. 74.
  7. ^ Eichenberger, Bill (March 4, 1993). "Rackety Rock". Weekender. The Columbus Dispatch. p. 8.
  8. ^ Mervis, Scott (17 Jan 2013). "Meanwhile, Eleventh Dream Day...". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. W8.
  9. ^ Smith, Andy (May 5, 1993). "Eleventh Dream Day keeps it rough and deep". The Providence Journal. p. E4.
  10. ^ "El Moodio Review by Ned Raggett". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 July 2023.
  11. ^ a b Muretich, James (11 July 1993). "Recent Releases". Calgary Herald. p. B9.
  12. ^ "Eleventh Dream Day". Robert Christgau. Retrieved 22 July 2023.
  13. ^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 3. MUZE. p. 255.
  14. ^ Tinkham, Chris (25 July 1993). "In Brief". Calendar. Los Angeles Times. p. 69.
  15. ^ MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 384.
  16. ^ a b Young, Jon (Jul 8, 1993). "Recordings — El Moodio by Eleventh Dream Day". Rolling Stone (660/661): 116.
  17. ^ (The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. 2004. p. 275.
  18. ^ Jenkins, Mark (30 Apr 1993). "Eleventh Dream Not Yet Realized". The Washington Post. p. N17.
  19. ^ Marcus, Greil (Mar 1993). "El Moodio". Artforum. 31 (7): 8.
  20. ^ Gundersen, Edna (19 Apr 1993). "Jamming tunes from out-of-towners". USA Today. p. 6D.
  21. ^ Lepage, Mark (21 Aug 1993). "Windy City band hits the ground running with a riff-rock twist". The Gazette. p. E2.
  22. ^ Morrison, Jim (June 11, 1993). "Reviews". Preview. The Virginian-Pilot. p. 18.