Split (Lush album)

Split is the second studio album by English rock band Lush, released on 4AD on 13 June 1994 in the United Kingdom and a day later in the US. Unusually, the two singles from the album, "Desire Lines" and "Hypocrite", were both released on the same day: 30 May 1994. Split was reissued by 4AD on CD in July 2001.

Recording
Lush chose to work with producer Mike Hedges because they "loved" his work on Sulk by the Associates, A Kiss in the Dreamhouse by Siouxsie and the Banshees, and Seventeen Seconds by the Cure, according to Miki Berenyi. They first recorded at Rockfield in Wales and then mixed at Hedges's house in France, but as Phil King remembered it, "it sounded as flat as a pancake, no dynamics at all". They finally decided to have the entire album remixed by Alan Moulder, because he had already worked with My Bloody Valentine and Ride. Berenyi's verdict was positive, "Alan was brilliant".

Reception
Select's Roy Wilkinson gave the album a negative review, describing it as "mid-paced stuff, fitting between melancholy and listlessness". The review went on to state, "There's nothing wrong with a dose of heavyweight introspection per se. But a pretty deft touch is needed to translate it movingly to the recording studio".

In a retrospective review, Andy Kellman, writing for AllMusic, was far more positive: "Split touches on most forms of emotional turbulence. A legitimizing stunner, the record prevented the band from being lost amidst the bunker of form-over-function dream pop bands. Split shattered every negative aspect of those failed acts with flying colors. A fantastic record within any realm." In 2018, Pitchfork ranked the album at number 27 on its list of "The 30 Best Dream Pop Albums".

Singles

 * "Hypocrite" (30 May 1994)
 * CD (BAD 4008 CD); 12" vinyl (BAD 4008)
 * "Hypocrite" – 2:58
 * "Love at First Sight" – 5:12 (The Gist cover, written by Stuart Moxham)
 * "Cat's Chorus" – 3:23
 * "Undertow (Spooky Remix)" – 9:13
 * 7" vinyl (AD 4008)
 * "Hypocrite" – 2:58
 * "Cat's Chorus" – 3:23
 * "Desire Lines" (30 May 1994)
 * CD (BAD 4010 CD); 12" vinyl (BAD 4010)
 * "Desire Lines" – 7:29
 * "White Wood" – 4:14
 * "Girl's World" – 4:56
 * "Lovelife (Suga Bullit Remix)" – 8:15
 * 7" vinyl (AD 4010)
 * "Desire Lines" – 7:29
 * "Girl's World" – 4:56
 * "When I Die" (promo only, June 1994)
 * Radio promo CD (PRO-CD-7048)
 * "When I Die (Scott Litt Remix)" – 4:20
 * "Light from a Dead Star (Album Version)" – 3:17
 * "Lovelife (Album Version)" – 3:57
 * "Lovelife" (promo only, 1994)
 * Radio promo CD (PRO-CD-7092)
 * "Lovelife (Album Version)" – 3:56
 * "Lovelife (Suga Bullit Remix Edit)" – 5:28
 * "Lovelife (Suga Bullit Remix)" – 8:15

Personnel
Personnel credits adapted from the album's liner notes.

Lush
 * Chris Acland – drums
 * Emma Anderson – guitars, vocals
 * Miki Berenyi – vocals, guitars
 * Phil King – bass

Additional personnel
 * Chris Bigg – art direction, design
 * Richard Caldicott – photography
 * Martin Ditcham – percussion
 * Mike Hedges – engineering, production
 * Chris Ludwinski – engineering
 * Martin McCarrick – string arrangements (6, 12)
 * Melodie McDaniel – photography
 * Alan Moulder – mix engineering
 * Vaughan Oliver – art direction, design
 * Lance Phillips – engineering
 * Paul Read – engineering
 * Audrey Riley – string arrangements (1, 9)
 * Curtis Schwartz – engineering
 * Ronen Tal – engineering assistance