Scratch the Surface

Scratch the Surface
Studio album by
Sick of It All
ReleasedOctober 18, 1994
Recorded1994
StudioNormandy Sound, Warren, Rhode Island
GenreHardcore punk, Beatdown hardcore
Length35:20
LabelEast West
ProducerSick of It All, Billy Anderson[1]
Sick of It All chronology
Just Look Around
(1992) 		Scratch the Surface
(1994) 		Live in a World Full of Hate
(1995)
Singles from Scratch the Surface
  1. "Scratch the Surface"
    Released: 1994
  2. "Step Down"
    Released: 1995
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[3]
Kerrang![4]
MusicHound Rock[1]
Ox-Fanzine[5]
Rock Hard8.5/10[6]

Scratch the Surface is the third studio album by American hardcore band Sick of It All, released in 1994.[7] It was the band's first major label recording on East West Records, their first venture away from an indie label.

Scratch the Surface became Sick of It All's most successful release and produced two singles: "Scratch the Surface" and "Step Down".

The album peaked at number 9 on the Billboard Heatseekers – Middle Atlantic chart.[8] By 1997, it had sold 250,000 copies worldwide.[9] Vocalist Lou Koller attributed most of the album's sales to word-of-mouth and Sick of It All's two-year touring schedule, due to EastWest's lackluster promotion of the album.[9]

Critical reception

[edit]

Decibel called the album a "hardcore magnum opus" and a "slab of extraordinarily lithe, stylized aggression".[10] Trouser Press wrote: "As a blast of unreconstructed hardcore in a time and a place where such a thing was once impossible to imagine, Scratch the Surface makes Sick of It All's principled point loud if not clear."[11]

Track listing

[edit]
  1. "No Cure"  – 2:58
  2. "Insurrection"  – 1:50
  3. "Consume"  – 3:42
  4. "Who Sets the Rules"  – 2:45
  5. "Goatless"  – 1:21
  6. "Step Down"  – 3:15
  7. "Maladjusted"  – 2:25
  8. "Scratch the Surface"  – 2:51
  9. "Free Spirit"  – 1:53
  10. "Force My Hand"  – 2:28
  11. "Desperate Fool"  – 1:52
  12. "Return to Reality"  – 2:43
  13. "Farm Team"  – 2:22
  14. "Cease Fire"  – 2:58

Credits

[edit]
  • Lou Koller - vocals
  • Pete Koller - guitars
  • Craig Setari - bass
  • Armand Majidi - drums

Production

  • Billy Anderson - producer, mixing
  • Tom Soares - engineering
  • Fred Bortoloti - Assistant engineering
  • Thomas Bricker - Art direction
  • BJ Papes - photography
  • Howie Weinberg - mastering

Additional musicians

  • Fred Bortoloti - backing vocals
  • Billy Anderson - backing vocals
  • Timothy Shaw - backing vocals
  • Brian BTJ - backing vocals

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 1013.
  2. ^ Franck, John. "Scratch The Surface – Sick of It All – Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards – AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved April 29, 2013.
  3. ^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 7. MUZE. p. 442.
  4. ^ Chirazi, Steffan (November 12, 1994). "Albumz". Kerrang!. No. 520. EMAP. p. 43.
  5. ^ Hiller, Joachim (April–May 2014). "Review - Sick of It All - Scratch the Surface". Ox-Fanzine (in German). Retrieved August 29, 2024.
  6. ^ Jaedike, Jan (October 21, 1994). "Scratch The Surface". Rock Hard (Vol. 90) (in German). Retrieved August 29, 2024.
  7. ^ "Sick of It All | Biography & History". AllMusic.
  8. ^ "Sick of It All". Billboard.[dead link]
  9. ^ a b Winwood, Ian (April 1997). "Sick of It All: Fucking Hardcore!". Metal Hammer. UK: Dennis Publishing. pp. 36–37.
  10. ^ "Sick of it All – "Scratch the Surface"". Decibel Magazine. August 28, 2012.
  11. ^ "Sick of It All". Trouser Press. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
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