Generator (Bad Religion album)

1992 studio album by Bad Religion

Generator

Studio album by

Bad Religion

Released| March 13, 1992
Recorded| May 1991
Studio| Westbeach Recorders, Hollywood, California
Genre| Hardcore punk,[1] melodic hardcore[2]
Length| 30:04
Label| Epitaph
Producer| Bad Religion
Bad Religion chronology
| 80–85
(1991)  | Generator
(1992)  | Recipe for Hate
(1993)

|
|

Singles from  Generator

1. "Atomic Garden"
Released: 1991[3]

Generator is the sixth studio album by the punk rock band Bad Religion. Although the album was completed in the spring of 1991, it was not released until 1992; the band was not happy with the artwork and packaging, and went through several ideas that were eventually scrapped.[4] Generator was the band's first release with drummer Bobby Schayer, who replaced Pete Finestone during the Against the Grain tour.

Generator includes some fan favorites and concert staples, such as, "Generator", "No Direction", "Heaven Is Falling", "Atomic Garden", and "The Answer". The album was promoted with Bad Religion's first music video, which was filmed for the song "Atomic Garden".[5]

## Background and production

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This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (June 2008)

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Following the release of Bad Religion's fifth studio album Against the Grain (1990), drummer Pete Finestone left to focus on his other band the Fishermen. His position was filled by fan Bobby Schayer.[6]

Writing sessions for Generator began around late 1990/early 1991. After Schayer joined in April 1991, the band immediately started work on their follow-up to Against the Grain. With an intended release date of mid-to-late 1991, they recorded it at Westbeach Recorders in Hollywood, California in May of that year.

Generator was recorded almost live in the studio,[4] because, at the time, guitarist Brett Gurewitz had moved Westbeach to larger premises, and for the first time, the entire band could play in the studio at the same time. He stated that it was "time to change" and the band "did it in a different studio, but as far as the songwriting, it was a deliberate effort to try something different".[4]

Generator marked a shift in songwriting-style for the band. Although many songs hold true to their hardcore-punk roots ("Generator", "Tomorrow", "Fertile Crescent"), select tracks suggested the band moving towards a slower, more experimental route ("Two Babies In The Dark", "The Answer"), as well as a darker one ("Atomic Garden"). While not as dark, this experimental period would continue through their next album, 1993's Recipe For Hate.

## Reissue

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Along with Bad Religion's first five albums (minus Into the Unknown), Epitaph Records released a remastered version of Generator on April 6, 2004, with two exclusive tracks that were taken from the split 7-inch with Noam Chomsky, New World Order: War #1, issued by Maximum Rock'N Roll in 1991. These versions feature Finestone on drums, making it his final recordings with Bad Religion.

## Reception and awards

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Professional ratingsReview scores

Source| Rating
AllMusic| [1]
Alternative Rock| 8/10[7]
Christgau's Consumer Guide| [8]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music| [9]
Spin Alternative Record Guide| 8/10[10]

Author Dave Thompson, in his book Alternative Rock (2000), wrote that the band "offer up complexity and experiment while the slower tempos actually let you hear what the band are singing about — a valid consideration for a band with so much to say."[7]

According to The Bad Religion Page, 100,000 copies of the album were shipped.[4] By April 1992, Generator had sold approximately 85,000 copies, becoming Bad Religion's third best-selling album at the time (their previous album Against the Grain had sold 90,000 copies, while Suffer and No Control sold approximately 88,000 and 80,000 respectively).[11]

In October 2011, the album was ranked number three on Guitar World magazine's top ten list of guitar albums of 1992.[12]

## Track listing

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No.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
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1.| "Generator"| Brett Gurewitz| 3:21
2.| "Too Much to Ask"| Greg Graffin| 2:45
3.| "No Direction"| Graffin| 3:14
4.| "Tomorrow"| Graffin| 1:56
5.| "Two Babies in the Dark"| Gurewitz| 2:25
6.| "Heaven Is Falling"| Gurewitz| 2:04
7.| "Atomic Garden"| Gurewitz| 3:10
8.| "The Answer"| Graffin| 3:21
9.| "Fertile Crescent"| Graffin| 2:08
10.| "Chimaera"| Graffin| 2:28
11.| "Only Entertainment"| Graffin| 3:12
Total length:| 30:04

### 2004 CD reissue bonus tracks

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No.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

12.| "Fertile Crescent" (original version)| Graffin| 2:18
13.| "Heaven Is Falling" (original version)| Gurewitz| 2:18
Total length:| 34:40

* Prior to the recording of the album, these tracks were part of the 7-inch split with Noam Chomsky, issued by Maximum Rock 'N' Roll in 1991 as part of an anti-Gulf War benefit.

## Personnel

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Adapted from the album liner notes, except where noted.[13]

Bad Religion

* Greg Graffin – lead vocals, backing vocals, additional guitar on track 12[14]
* Greg Hetson – guitar
* Brett Gurewitz – guitar, backing vocals, piano on track 7[14]
* Jay Bentley – bass guitar, backing vocals
* Bobby Schayer – drums, percussion

Additional musicians

* Pete Finestone – drums, percussion on tracks 12 and 13

Technical

* Bad Religion – production
* The Legendary Starbolt – engineering
* Donnell Cameron – engineering
* Joe Peccerillo – assistant engineering
* Eddie Schreyer – mastering
* Norman Moore – art direction, design, photography
* The Douglas Brothers – cover photography
* Merlyn Rosenberg – photography
* Gregor Verbinski – photography

## Charts

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Chart (1992)  | Peak
position

|

German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[15] | 49
Chart (2022)  | Peak
position

|

US Top Album Sales (Billboard)[16] | 87

## See also

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* List of anti-war songs

## References

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Citations

1. ^ a b "Generator - Bad Religion". AllMusic. Archived from the original on March 16, 2021. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
2. ^ "The 15 best punk albums of 2002, from Sleater-Kinney to the Used". Alternative Press Magazine. December 20, 2021. Archived from the original on May 16, 2022. Retrieved March 5, 2023.
3. ^ "Atomic Garden (1991)". The Bad Religion Page. Archived from the original on February 7, 2024. Retrieved February 7, 2024.
4. ^ a b c d "Generator -the album". The Bad Religion Page. Archived from the original on February 13, 2012. Retrieved November 15, 2007.
5. ^ "Epitaph Records: Videos". Epitaph.com. Archived from the original on February 20, 2012. Retrieved May 20, 2012.
6. ^ Thompson 2000, p. 169
7. ^ a b Thompson 2000, p. 170
8. ^ Christgau, Robert (October 15, 2000). "Bad Religion: Generator". Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s. Macmillan Publishing. ISBN 9780312245603.
9. ^ Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press. ISBN 9780857125958.
10. ^ Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig (1995). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. ISBN 9780679755746.
11. ^ "Any Religion Is Better Than None". The Big Takeover. April 1992. Archived from the original on June 10, 2017. Retrieved February 14, 2013.
12. ^ Grassi, Tony. "Photo Gallery: The Top 10 Guitar Albums of 1992". GuitarWorld.com. Archived from the original on October 26, 2011. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
13. ^ Generator (Media notes). Bad Religion. Epitaph. 2004.`{{cite AV media notes}}`: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
14. ^ a b Rabid, Jack (1992). "The Big Takeover #32 - Bad Religion: Any Religion Is Better Than None". The Bad Religion Page. Retrieved February 7, 2024.
15. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Bad Religion – Generator" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved June 30, 2024.
16. ^ "Bad Religion Chart History (Top Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved June 30, 2024.

Sources

* Thompson, Dave (2000). Alternative Rock. Third Ear: The Essential Listening Companion. San Francisco, California: Miller Freeman Books. ISBN 0-87930-607-6.

## External links

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* Generator (reissue) at YouTube (streamed copy where licensed)

* v
* t
* e

Bad Religion

* Greg Graffin
* Brett Gurewitz
* Jay Bentley
* Brian Baker
* Mike Dimkich
* Jamie Miller

* Jay Ziskrout
* Pete Finestone
* Paul Dedona
* Davy Goldman
* Greg Hetson
* Tim Gallegos
* John Albert
* Lucky Lehrer
* Bobby Schayer
* Brooks Wackerman

Studio albums|

* How Could Hell Be Any Worse?
* Into the Unknown
* Suffer
* No Control
* Against the Grain
* Generator
* Recipe for Hate
* Stranger Than Fiction
* The Gray Race
* No Substance
* The New America
* The Process of Belief
* The Empire Strikes First
* New Maps of Hell
* The Dissent of Man
* True North
* Age of Unreason

EPs|

* Bad Religion
* Back to the Known
* Christmas Songs

Other releases|

* 80–85
* All Ages
* Tested
* Punk Rock Songs
* 30 Years Live

Videos and DVDs|

* Along the Way
* Live at the Palladium

Singles|

* "American Jesus"
* "21st Century (Digital Boy)"
* "Infected"
* "Stranger than Fiction"
* "A Walk"
* "Punk Rock Song"
* "Sorrow"
* "Los Angeles Is Burning"
* "The Devil in Stitches"

Related articles|

* Discography
* Members
* Epitaph Records
* Punk rock in California
* Hardcore punk
* Warped Tour

* Category

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group

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