Rocket (Primitive Radio Gods album)

Rocket is the Primitive Radio Gods' debut album, released on June 18, 1996, by Columbia Records.[2] "Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth with Money in My Hand" was a hit single.

Rocket
Studio album by
ReleasedJune 18, 1996
Recorded1991[1]
GenreAlternative rock
Length46:18
LanguageEnglish
LabelColumbia
ProducerChris O'Connor
Primitive Radio Gods chronology
Rocket
(1996)
White Hot Peach
(2000)
Singles from Rocket
  1. "Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth with Money in My Hand"
    Released: June 1996
  2. "Motherfucker"
    Released: 1996

Reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [3]
Pitchfork1.2/10[4]

Despite the critical acclaim surrounding the lead single, the album as a whole received negative reviews from critics. AllMusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote: "Most of Rocket sounds exactly like somebody messing around with a four-track, more intent on capturing sounds, not songs. Usually, this would at least result in some interesting sounds, but O'Connor hasn't even managed that. At its core, Rocket sounds like a demo tape with one promising song."[3]

Pitchfork writer Ryan Schreiber said, "At any rate, you don't want Rocket in your record collection now or ever since the music sounds like a third-rate, decaffeinated version of Ned's Atomic Dustbin and because, by reading Pitchfork, you've already proven you have better taste than that (I hope)." Schreiber gave it an extremely negative rating of 1.2/10, falling under "Awful, not a single pleasant track". However, Schreiber wrote that "Phone Booth" "as a single, is going to sell like the Rubik's Cube.", but that "as an album? Let's face it: Three minutes is enough for even the most mind-numbed, tasteless societal outcast."[4]

Track listing

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All songs written by Chris O'Connor, except where noted.

  1. "Women" – 4:18
  2. "Motherfucker" – 5:20
  3. "Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth with Money in My Hand" – 5:38
  4. "Who Say" – 3:24
  5. "The Rise and Fall of Ooo Mau" – 3:50
  6. "Where the Monkey Meets the Man" (O'Connor, Jeff Sparks) – 4:17
  7. "Are You Happy?" (O'Connor, Sparks)– 5:35
  8. "Chain Reaction" – 4:47
  9. "Skin Turns Blue" – 4:27
  10. "Rocket" – 4:42

Chart performance

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Album
Year Chart Position
1996 Billboard 200 36
Singles
Year Single Chart Position
1996 "Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth with Money in My Hand" Adult Top 40 19
1996 "Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth with Money in My Hand" Mainstream Rock Tracks 32
1996 "Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth with Money in My Hand" Modern Rock Tracks 1[5]
1996 "Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth with Money in My Hand" Top 40 Mainstream 7
1996 "Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth with Money in My Hand" Hot 100 Airplay 10[6]

References

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  1. ^ Norris, Chris (Aug 26, 1996). "Quit Your Day Job". New York. Vol. 29, no. 33. p. 142.
  2. ^ Locey, Bill (16 May 1996). "This Almost Never Works". Los Angeles Times. p. 1B.
  3. ^ a b Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Rocket". AllMusic. Retrieved 11 March 2012.
  4. ^ a b "Primitive Radio Gods : Rocket : [Columbia] : Rating: 1.2". Archived from the original on 21 April 2003. Retrieved 2022-03-26.
  5. ^ "Billboard" (PDF). Americanradiohistory.com\access-date=2022-03-26. 1996-07-27.
  6. ^ "Radio Songs". Billboard. 14 September 1996. Retrieved 11 March 2012.