New Hope for the Wretched
New Hope for the Wretched | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
File:New Hope For The Wretched.jpg | ||||
Studio album by Plasmatics | ||||
Released | 1980 | |||
Recorded | 1980 | |||
Genre | Punk rock | |||
Length | 37:21 | |||
Label | Stiff | |||
Producer | Jimmy Miller, Ed Stasium | |||
Plasmatics chronology | ||||
|
Professional ratings | |
---|---|
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
Allmusic | [1] |
Rolling Stone | [2] |
New Hope for the Wretched is the debut album by punk-metal band The Plasmatics, fronted by Wendy O. Williams.
Jimmy Miller, former producer of The Rolling Stones, was the initial producer for the album. He had a heroin addiction from the day he arrived in New York City and he was virtually useless to the project, nearly bringing the whole project down with him. Stiff Records fired Miller, and the album was finished by engineer Ed Stasium and manager Rod Swenson over in England. In addition to songs like "Corruption" and "Living Dead", linked to TV smashing and automobile destruction, the song "Butcher Baby" featured, as with the live shows, a chainsaw sawing through a guitar in place of a guitar solo. Stiff released it as single and it peaked at No. 55 on the UK Singles Chart,[3] with the album reaching the same position on the UK Albums Chart.[4]
The liner notes for the record proudly proclaimed that during the recording of the cover of "Dream Lover" (originally by Bobby Darin) the musicians were isolated from each other while recording and, during the instrumental break, could not hear what each other were playing.
The album was re-released in 2001 by Plasmatics Media, Inc. with bonus tracks and the Metal Priestess EP on the same disc. In 2002, Cherry Red Records re-released the complete album. In 2014, Let Them Eat Vinyl re-released the album (including the 2002 CD bonus tracks) as two coloured discs.
Track listing
All tracks written by Danny Axeman and Richie Stotts, except where indicated
- Side one
- "Tight Black Pants"- 1:47
- "Monkey Suit" (Axeman, Wes Beech) - 3:27
- "Living Dead"- 1:36
- "Test Tube Babies" - 1:54
- "Won't You" - 2:28
- "Concrete Shoes" (Axeman, Chosei Funuhara) - 2:55
- "Squirm" (live) (Axeman, Beech) - 3:29
- Side two
- "Want You Baby" - 1:55
- "Dream Lover" (Darin) - 5:41
- "Sometimes I..." - 3:58
- "Corruption" - 2:39
- "Butcher Baby" - 3:32
2002 CD edition bonus tracks
- "Sometimes I..." (live)- 3:58
- "Living Dead" (live) - 1:36
- "Tight Black Pants" (live) - 1:47
- "Butcher Baby" (live) - 3:32
- "Corruption" (live) - 2:39
- "You Think You're Comin'" - 1:50
- "Fast Food Service" - 2:39
Personnel
- Band members
- Wendy O. Williams - vocals, saxophone, chainsaw, machine gun
- Richie Stotts - lead guitar
- Wes Beech - rhythm guitar
- Jean Beauvoir - bass guitar
- Stu Deutsch - drums, synthdrums
- Production
- Jimmy Miller - producer, percussion
- Ed Stasium - producer, engineer, mixing
- Trevor Hallsey - engineer
- Rod Swenson - management, mixing