The Venus Trail

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The Venus Trail
Studio album by
Released1993
LabelFlying Nun Records[1]
The 3Ds chronology
Beautiful Things EP
(1993)
The Venus Trail
(1993)
Caterwauling
(1994)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Spin Alternative Record Guide7/10[3]

The Venus Trail is an album by the New Zealand band the 3Ds, released in 1993.[4] The album was released by Merge Records in the United States.[5]

Production[edit]

The recording sessions took place at the Grand Masonic Lodge, in Dunedin, New Zealand.[6]

Critical reception[edit]

The New Zealand Herald called The Venus Trail "a more refined and accomplished album."[7] Stylus Magazine called the album's first single, "Hey Seuss", "a fantastic scuzzed-up pop song of a track built around a simple descending guitar riff, but for all the sophistication of its recording, it still sound like it was done on Chris Knox’s four track."[8] Trouser Press wrote that the album "can’t match Hellzapoppin’s amazing gusts of energy — not even with the angry, two-minute sock in the face 'Hey Seuss' — yet it attains nearly the same level of accomplishment in the expanded range of sounds."[9] Spin wrote that "beautiful melodies fight to be recognized over the twin guitar delirium."[10]

Track listing[edit]

Side one

  1. "Hey Seuss" – 2:22
  2. "Philadelphia Rising" – 4:50
  3. "Cash None" – 3:08
  4. "The Golden Grove" – 2:45
  5. "The Venus Trail" – 2:12
  6. "Beautiful Things" – 3:32

Side two

  1. "Man on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown" – 4:07
  2. "Jane Air" – 3:08
  3. "The Young and the Restless" - 3:18
  4. "Summer Stone" – 2:40
  5. "Ice" – 6:05
  6. "Spooky" – 4:54

Personnel[edit]

  • David Mitchell – guitar, vocals
  • Denise Roughan – bass guitar, keyboards, vocals
  • David Saunders – guitar, vocals
  • Dominic Stones – drums

References[edit]

  1. ^ "FN281 3Ds - The Venus Trail (1993)". Flying Nun.
  2. ^ Raggett, Ned. "The 3Ds – The Venus Trail". AllMusic.
  3. ^ Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. 1995. p. 440.
  4. ^ "3Ds | Biography & History". AllMusic.
  5. ^ McGibney, Matthew (22 July 2009). "Merge's sizable discography". INDY Week.
  6. ^ "The 3Ds - AudioCulture". www.audioculture.co.nz.
  7. ^ "Return of the oddballs". NZ Herald. 6 October 2023.
  8. ^ "In Love With Those Times: Flying Nun and the Dunedin Sound - Article - Stylus Magazine". stylusmagazine.com. Archived from the original on 24 July 2020. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  9. ^ "3Ds". Trouser Press. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  10. ^ "Heavy Rotation". SPIN. SPIN Media LLC. 24 December 1993 – via Google Books.