Mantra (Shelter album)

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Mantra
Studio album by
ReleasedAugust 8, 1995
GenreMelodic hardcore, hardcore punk, Krishnacore
Length30:29
LabelRoadrunner, Supersoul
ProducerTom Soares, John "Porcell" Porcelly
Shelter chronology
Attaining The Supreme
(1993)
Mantra
(1995)
Beyond Planet Earth
(1997)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Drowned in Sound9/10[2]

Mantra is an album by New York City hardcore punk band Shelter.[3][4] Released in 1995, it was the band's first album for Roadrunner.[5][6]

Lyrically the album focuses mainly on Hare Krishna religious philosophy and social commentary on Western civilization — including a manifesto entitled Supersoul in the album's booklet, authored by band's frontman Ray Cappo. The first song, "Message of the Bhagavad", is introduced by an excerpt of a Bhagavad Gita verses reading.

Mantra was distributed in Brazil featuring two bonus tracks, expanding the listing from 11 to 13. Howerever, the lyrics for tracks #12 and #13 were not included in the booklet. By the time of the release, the band hadn't played live in the country yet, which happened for the first time in 1996.[7]

Critical reception[edit]

Trouser Press wrote that Cappo "is an articulate and principled spokesman for transcendental thought set to a tough 4/4 beat."[5] In a retrospective review, Ox-Fanzine called Mantra "a tame rock album from another time."[8]

Track listing[edit]

All tracks are written by Shelter except where noted

No.TitleLength
1."Message of the Bhagavat"3:00
2."Civilized Man"2:37
3."Here We Go"2:38
4."Appreciation"2:08
5."Empathy"3:33
6."Not the Flesh"2:45
7."Chance"1:15
8."Mantra"3:09
9."Surrender to Your T.V."2:32
10."Letter to a Friend"3:19
11."Metamorphosis"3:33
Total length:30:29
Brazilian and reissue bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
12."Progressive Man"4:23
13."We Can Work It Out" (Lennon/McCartney)2:23
Total length:37:15

Credits[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Mantra - Shelter | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.
  2. ^ "Album Review: Shelter - Mantra". DrownedInSound. November 2001.
  3. ^ "Shelter | Biography & History". AllMusic.
  4. ^ Strauss, Neil (December 23, 1995). "POP REVIEW;Hates Meat And Calls Its Fans 'Murderers' (Published 1995)". The New York Times – via NYTimes.com.
  5. ^ a b "Shelter". Trouser Press. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
  6. ^ Cogan, Brian (2006). Encyclopedia of Punk Music and Culture. Greenwood Press. pp. 200–201.
  7. ^ "Grupo Shelter deve fazer show no Brasil". Folhateen. 1996. Retrieved May 30, 2014. In Portuguese
  8. ^ "Review". www.ox-fanzine.de.