Submarine Bells
Submarine Bells | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 1990 | |||
Recorded | Jacobs Studios, Surrey, August–October 1989 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 35:52 | |||
Label | ||||
Producer | Gary Smith | |||
The Chills chronology | ||||
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Submarine Bells is an album by New Zealand group the Chills, released in 1990. This was the band's first album on a major label, as Martin Phillipps signed to Warner Bros. Records subsidiary Slash Records, to release the album in the U.S. The album reached #1 on the New Zealand album charts and had significant support from American college radio. The album was awarded gold status in New Zealand and represents the peak of the Chills' popularity at home. It is considered to be one of the defining albums of the Dunedin sound. The supporting tour for Submarine Bells culminated in a triumphant home-coming concert in Dunedin Town Hall.
Critical reception[]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Chicago Tribune | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Christgau's Consumer Guide | A[3] |
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Philadelphia Inquirer | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Spin Alternative Record Guide | 8/10[6] |
Uncut | 8/10[7] |
Trouser Press singled out the "splendorous title track", the "should-have-been-a-smash 'Heavenly Pop Hit'", and many other individual tracks, but chiefly praised the album for its overall cohesion and consistency – signs of the Chills' evolution from "a first-rate singles band" to a fully formed artistic venture with a "mature, restrained and affectingly personal approach".[8] In his book Music: What Happened?, musician and critic Scott Miller calls it "a dynamite whole album", and "the international star and culmination of" the Dunedin sound.[9] He also ranks "Heavenly Pop Hit" among the year's best songs.[9]
Awards[]
The album won Best Album at the 1990 New Zealand Music Awards, and "Heavenly Pop Hit" won Single of the Year.[10]
Track listing[]
All songs written by Martin Phillipps.
- "Heavenly Pop Hit"
- "Tied Up in Chain"
- "The Oncoming Day"
- "Part Past Part Fiction"
- "Singing in My Sleep"
- "I Soar"
- "Dead Web"
- "Familiarity Breeds Contempt"
- "Don't Be – Memory"
- "Effloresce and Deliquesce"
- "Sweet Times"
- "Submarine Bells"
Chart performance[]
Submarine Bells was a huge success in the Chills' home country. It entered the New Zealand album chart at No. 7 in June 1990 and reached No. 1 the following week, ultimately spending 14 weeks on the chart in total.[11] The single "Heavenly Pop Hit" was released in July and peaked at No. 2.[12] Elsewhere, however, it made minimal commercial impact. The album did not chart in Australia, the UK, or the U.S., although "Heavenly Pop Hit" achieved some success on the U.S. Alternative Songs chart.[13] "Part Past Part Fiction" was released by Slash as a single in Australia, but did not enter the chart.[14]
Album
Year | Country | Chart | Position | Citation |
---|---|---|---|---|
1990 | New Zealand | NZ Album Chart | 1 | [11] |
1990 | Australia | ARIA Charts | 90 | [15] |
Single
Year | Single | Country | Chart | Position | Citation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1990 | "Heavenly Pop Hit" | New Zealand | NZ Singles Chart | 2 | [12] |
1990 | "Heavenly Pop Hit" | U.S. | Billboard Alternative Songs | 17 | [13] |
1990 | "Heavenly Pop Hit" | UK | UK Singles Chart | 97 | [16] |
1990 | "Part Past Part Fiction" | Australia | Australian Singles Chart | – | [14] |
References[]
- ^ Raggett, Ned. "Submarine Bells – The Chills". AllMusic. Retrieved 2 April 2017.
- ^ Kot, Greg (29 March 1990). "The Chills: Submarine Bells (Slash)". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2 April 2017.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (2000). "The Chills: Submarine Bells". Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s. Macmillan Publishers. ISBN 0-312-24560-2. Retrieved 2 April 2017.
- ^ Larkin, Colin (2009). "Chills". The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-199-72636-1. Retrieved 2 April 2017.
- ^ Moon, Tom (1 April 1990). "The Chills: Submarine Bells (Slash/Warner Bros.)". The Philadelphia Inquirer.
- ^ Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig, eds. (1995). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
- ^ Mueller, Andrew (December 2015). "How to Buy... The Best of The Chills". Uncut (223): 64.
- ^ Robbins, Ira A.; Sprague, David, eds. (1997). The Trouser Press Guide to '90s Rock (5th ed.). New York: Simon & Schuster. The Chills. ISBN 9780684814377.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Miller, Scott (2010). Music: What Happened?. Alameda, CA: 125 Books. p. 147. ISBN 9780615381961.
- ^ "Awards 1990". Listing. NZ Music Awards. Archived from the original on 18 April 2014. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Submarine Bells (album)". charts.nz. Hung Medien. 2017. Retrieved 29 April 2017.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Heavenly Pop Hit (song)". charts.nz. Hung Medien. 2017. Retrieved 16 April 2017.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Alternative Songs: The Chills". Billboard. 2017. Retrieved 29 April 2017.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Part Past Part Fiction (song)". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. 2017. Retrieved 6 May 2017.
- ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (pdf ed.). Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
- ^ "Singles Charts: The Chills". Official UK Charts. 2017. Retrieved 29 April 2017.
External links[]
- Submarine Bells at Discogs (list of releases)
- 1990 albums
- Flying Nun Records albums
- Slash Records albums
- The Chills albums
- Dunedin Sound albums