Perpetual Motion Machine (album)

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Perpetual Motion Machine
Studio album by
13 Engines
Released1993, Canada
1994, United States
StudioLe Studio
GenreAlternative rock
LabelEMI Music Canada
Atlantic
ProducerJohn Critchley, Glen Robinson
13 Engines chronology
A Blur to Me Now
(1991) 		Perpetual Motion Machine
(1993) 		Conquistador
(1995)

Perpetual Motion Machine is an album by the Canadian band 13 Engines, released in 1993.[1][2] It was the band's fourth album, and the second one released by a major label.[3] The album's first single was "More".[4]

Production[edit]

The album was produced by frontman John Critchley, with help from Glen Robinson.[5] It was recorded at Le Studio, in Morin-Heights, Quebec.[6] Compared to sessions for their previous albums, the band spent a longer period of time in the studio, exploring overdubbing and trying different mixes.[5] The cellist Anne Bourne contributed to the album.[7] "Saviour" is about the Second Coming.[8]

Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[9]
Calgary HeraldB[10]
The State[11]

Trouser Press wrote that "the unpretentiously arty album lacked only a marketing gimmick (or a transcendent single, although 'Smoke & Ashes' comes mighty close) to get 13 Engines onto the alt-hit parade."[12] Billboard also praised "Smoke & Ashes", calling it "the perfect two-minute rock song."[13] The Philadelphia Inquirer called the album "much-improved," writing that 13 Engines displayed a "willingness to adapt elements of grunge to their songwriting."[14] The State considered the album "a 14-track trip through the subtlety and simplicity that was once rock 'n' roll."[11]

The Washington Post deemed the album "unadorned folk-rock that suggests, without slavishly imitating, Neil Young and Crazy Horse."[15] The Calgary Herald thought that "ambiguous lyrics are delivered in a Morrison monotone style and then sung in wavering half-whispers, buoyed by guitars that slide from grungy psychedelia to hard-rock backbeats."[10] The Edmonton Journal chose Perpetual Motion Machine as the fourth best Canadian album of 1993, describing it as "energetic, original guitar rock with sneaky hooks and sometimes confusing lyrics."[16]

AllMusic called Perpetual Motion Machine "a record that, while perhaps a bit cleaner sonically than their debut, finds the band still creating a glorious racket."[9]

Track listing[edit]

No.TitleLength
1."Bred in the Bone" 
2."Saviour" 
3."More" 
4."Unconscience" 
5."The Golden Age" 
6."Smoke & Ashes" 
7."What If We Don't Get What We Want?" 
8."Unbound" 
9."Perpetual Motion Machine" 
10."Moment of Clarity" 
11."Dirty Little Rat" 
12."The Estrangement" 
13."Going Under" 
14."Lift You Up" 

References[edit]

  1. ^ "13 Engines Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 2021-10-28. Retrieved 2021-10-15.
  2. ^ Muretich, James (6 June 1993). "Pop-Rock with Muscle: 13 Engine Pushes Brain Activity and Atmosphere". Calgary Herald. p. C2.
  3. ^ Saxberg, Lynn (15 Apr 1993). "13 Engines hitting on all cylinders". Ottawa Citizen. p. D2.
  4. ^ Krewen, Nick (16 Apr 1993). "Solar flare cool touch for 13 Engines' album". The Hamilton Spectator. p. C2.
  5. ^ a b Jones, Owen (20 May 1993). "13 Engines crank out volume". Windsor Star. p. C15.
  6. ^ Barclay, Michael; Jack, Ian A. D.; Schneider, Jason (June 15, 2011). Have Not Been the Same: The CanRock Renaissance, 1985-1995. ECW Press. Archived from the original on November 13, 2021. Retrieved October 15, 2021.
  7. ^ Stoute, Lenny (22 Apr 1993). "13 Engines back on main track after record-deal derailment". Toronto Star. p. WO4.
  8. ^ Randall, Neil (8 Apr 1993). "Perpetual Motion Machine 13 Engines". The Kitchener-Waterloo Record. p. D11.
  9. ^ a b "Perpetual Motion Machine". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 2021-10-28. Retrieved 2021-10-15.
  10. ^ a b Phillips, Shari (11 Apr 1993). "Recent Releases". Calgary Herald. p. C2.
  11. ^ a b Miller, Michael (March 18, 1994). "New Releases". The State. p. 12D.
  12. ^ "13 Engines". Trouser Press. Archived from the original on 27 October 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  13. ^ "Album reviews — Perpetual Motion Machine by 13 Engines". Billboard. Vol. 106, no. 8. Feb 19, 1994. p. 56.
  14. ^ Moon, Tom (24 Mar 1993). "The Suits Dominate at New-Music Conference". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. F1.
  15. ^ Jenkins, Mark (18 Mar 1994). "13 Engines Powered By Folk-Rock Riffs". The Washington Post. p. N22.
  16. ^ Howell, David (26 Dec 1993). "The year 1993 in entertainment". Edmonton Journal. p. E1.
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