Smell the Magic | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | September 1, 1990 | |||
Recorded | 1989 | |||
Studio |
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Genre | ||||
Length | 29:36 | |||
Label | Sub Pop[1] | |||
Producer | Jack Endino[2] | |||
L7 chronology | ||||
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Smell the Magic is the second studio album by American rock band L7, released in 1990 by Sub Pop.[9] Originally issued as a 12" EP containing only the first six songs, it was reissued on CD in July 1991, expanded to album length with three more tracks: "Packin' a Rod," "Just Like Me," and "American Society." The opening track "Shove" was released as the band's first single.
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music called the album "a raucous, grunge-flavored blast."[6] Trouser Press wrote that "L7 still brings the noise, but with a melodicism that isn’t as evident on the first album."[10]
Rolling Stone placed Smell the Magic at #37 in their list of the 50 Greatest Grunge Albums, noting that "they were one of the few non-Seattle bands signed to Sub Pop," and the album "was an electric shock in a sea of grey." Likewise, the article mentions L7's formation out of Los Angeles' metal scene, then acting as a crossover act, and states conclusively that Smell the Magic is one of the "most widely cited as an inspiration by the next wave of punk and riot grrrl bands".[11]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Shove" | Suzi Gardner, Donita Sparks | 3:10 |
2. | "Fast and Frightening" | Gardner, Sparks | 2:37 |
3. | "(Right On) Thru" | Jennifer Finch | 3:13 |
4. | "Deathwish" | Sparks, Finch, Demetra Plakas | 3:45 |
5. | "Till the Wheels Fall Off" | Gardner, Sparks | 3:43 |
6. | "Broomstick" | Gardner, Sparks, Finch | 3:49 |
7. | "Packin' a Rod" | Scott Morrow | 2:08 |
8. | "Just Like Me" | Gardner, Sparks, Finch, Plakas, Dusty | 3:32 |
9. | "American Society (Eddie and the Subtitles cover)" | Eddie Joseph, Mike Patton | 3:53 |
Total length: | 29:36 |