Pacer (album)

1995 studio album by The Amps

Pacer

Studio album by

The Amps

Released| October 1995
Recorded| 1995
Genre| Alternative rock, lo-fi
Length| 33:47
Label| 4AD (UK), Elektra (US)

Pacer is the only album by the Amps, led by Kim Deal. It was released in October 1995. The album was recorded as a side project to Kim Deal's group the Breeders. She recruited new musicians and naming the group the Amps, recorded Pacer at several studios in the US and Ireland, with different engineers, including Steve Albini, Bryce Goggin, and John Agnello.

The album received mixed reviews. Despite radio airplay for its single, "Tipp City", Pacer did not sell well. The Amps toured in 1995 and 1996 with Sonic Youth, Guided by Voices, and Foo Fighters. In 1996, Deal changed the band's name back to the Breeders, making Pacer the Amps' only album.

## Background

[edit]

Kim Deal's band the Breeders released Last Splash in August 1993;[1] the album was very successful, and its release was followed by much touring.[2] The Breeders then took an extended break from activity.[2] One reason was that Deal's sister Kelley, who was also in the group, was arrested on drug charges in November 1994.[3] Member Josephine Wiggs likewise took time away from the band, although Wiggs and Deal have different memories of the circumstances surrounding this.[4] Wiggs recalls offering to be involved if Deal's next album was going to be a Breeders record, but having the impression that Deal wanted to do a solo release;[4][5] Deal remembers Wiggs declining to be part of any immediate Breeders' recording, but offering to be on the one after that.[4]

Regardless, Deal envisioned her next album as a solo effort, and intended to play all instruments herself.[6] Back at her home in Dayton, Ohio, she practiced the drums and initially prepared six songs for recording. Around the same time, she produced some tracks for Guided by Voices at Easley-McCain Studios in Memphis, Tennessee.[3] While there, Deal used a portion of the studio time to record demos for some of her new songs.[3] As an attempt to distract her sister from her drug problems, Deal recruited Kelley to play on three songs at this initial recording session.[3][6] Kelley's involvement changed Deal's mind about playing all the instruments herself, and she began to conceptualize the album as a band project.[6]

After the Easley recording session, Deal returned to Dayton.[3] She asked Breeders' drummer Jim Macpherson to play drums in the new project, and Dayton musicians Luis Lerma and Nate Farley to play bass and guitar, respectively.[3][7] Deal adopted a stage persona for herself named Tammy Ampersand, and called the band "Tammy and the Amps"; this later evolved into simply "the Amps".[6] The group began by performing at small shows,[6] and learned the songs well to prepare for recording the album.[3] At some point during the recording sessions, Kelley's drug difficulties and rehabilitation prevented her from continuing as a member of the band.[6][8]

## Recording

[edit]

John Agnello was one of several engineers who helped to record Pacer.

Pacer was recorded at seven studios in total,[3] with different engineers each time.[9] The track "Tipp City" was used from the original session at Easley-McCain Studios,[3][10] recorded in February 1995 and engineered by Doug Easley and Davis McCain.[10] The Amps' next session was with engineer Steve Albini at his Chicago studio.[3][n 1] Deal had previously worked with Albini on the Pixies' Surfer Rosa and the Breeders' Pod releases.[12][13] The Amps and Albini recorded songs including further versions of "Tipp City", which are unreleased, and "Hoverin";[3] an earlier version of the latter song had previously been released on the Breeders' "Divine Hammer" single in October 1993.[14] Other recording sessions, whose various engineers included Bryce Goggin and John Agnello, took place at studios in Long Island and Woodstock, New York, as well as Dayton, Los Angeles, and Dublin, Ireland.[9]

In a 1996 interview, Deal said that for Pacer, she focused on the vocals: "Usually, I tend to spend more time with the instruments. Last Splash had quite a few instrumentals and quite a few songs where I might say five words. [On Pacer, the] songs are all vocal-heavy. The vocal leads, and if you take the vocal away, you don't have much of a song."[6] The sound of the album has been described as "lo-fi".[15][16]

## Release

[edit]

Pacer was released in late October 1995.[17][18] It was promoted with a full-page advertisement in NME in the UK,[19] where it peaked at No. 60 on the UK Albums Chart,[20] and No. 29 on the American Heatseekers Album chart.[21] "Tipp City" was released as the album's single and included an alternate version of "Empty Glasses", as well as a cover of the Tasties' "Just Like a Briar".[10] The single received some radio airplay in the USA,[22] and reached No. 61 on the UK Singles Chart,[20] but Pacer did not sell well.[6] Although Elektra pressed 300,000 copies of the album,[23] The New York Times reported in 2002 that it had sold 25,000 copies.[24] The album became prominent in second-hand shops.[23]

## Reception

[edit]

Professional ratingsReview scores

Source| Rating
AllMusic| [17]
Entertainment Weekly| C+[25]
NME| 7/10[26]
Pitchfork| 8.2/10[16]
Rolling Stone| [27]
Spin (1996)| 7/10[28]
Spin (2008)| [29]
The Village Voice| B+[30]

Critical appraisal of Pacer has been mixed. Reviewing for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine describes the album as "exciting, gut-level rock & roll".[17] The Rough Guide to Rock calls Pacer "satisfyingly lo-fi".[15] In Spin magazine, reviewer Joy Press writes that the album includes "a half-dozen gems" but that its overall "foggy sound" and "indecipherable lyrics" prevent the listener from fully embracing the work.[28] Village Voice critic Robert Christgau considers the album's songs to be "definitely slight" and "uneven" but praises the vocals, stating that "speedy or dreamy, Kim Deal sounds so sane, so unpretentious, so goddamn nice that you want to take her home and give her a shampoo".[30] In The Trouser Press Guide to '90s Rock, critic Ira Robbins writes that "Other than the fine title track and a few others, the performances are forced and lackluster; the production varies between flat and colorless."[31] The New Rolling Stone Album Guide similarly praises the title song while dismissing the rest of the album as "forgettable".[32] In the first ever Pitchfork review,[33] Ryan Schreiber found the album's lo-fi sound initially off-putting but praised the lyrics and "awesome rock".[16]

Pacer is a favorite album of actor Elijah Wood, who said "I think Pacer has everything. It's kind of experimental; there's a lot of vocal experimentation on the record. I love the recording. [...] The drums are very abrasive and raw, and it has everything. There's an incredible mix of pop songs and weird, kind of abrasive almost punk rock songs, and there's real beauty I think on this record."[34] In 2003, Chris Ott of Pitchfork included the album in a list of "The 20 Worst Post-Breakup Debacles", arguing that the Amps were "an interim project" whose album should not have been released; "clamoring for pennies still falling from a sky 'Cannonball' had blown open, their sloppily assembled, barely written album was a mistake."[23]

## Aftermath

[edit]

Kim Deal playing guitar with the Amps in 1995

The Amps toured in 1995 and 1996, supporting Guided by Voices, Sonic Youth, Helium,[35] and Foo Fighters.[6] Later in 1996, they recruited Carrie Bradley (who had played on Pod), and Deal changed its name back to the Breeders.[2][35] The band's lineup continued to evolve, and within a few years, Deal was the only of the former Amps left in the group.[2][35] Pacer is the sole album that the Amps released.[35]

A number of artists have covered songs from Pacer. The Muffs included a version of "Pacer" on their compilation albums Hamburger[36] and Kaboodle.[37] On Gigantic: A Tribute to Kim Deal, released on American Laundromat Records, the German Art Students covered "Bragging Party" and Tara King Theory, "Tipp City".[38] Musician Girl Talk included a sample of "Tipp City" on "Touch 2 Feel" on his album Unstoppable.[39] The Breeders themselves released a new version of "Full on Idle" on Title TK (2002)[40] and over the years have sometimes performed Amps' songs at their concerts.[n 2]

## Track listing

[edit]

All tracks are written by Kim Deal, except where noted.

No.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

1.| "Pacer"|  | 2:31
2.| "Tipp City"|  | 2:08
3.| "I Am Decided"| Robert Pollard, Kim Deal[9][n 3]| 2:28
4.| "Mom's Drunk"|  | 1:42
5.| "Bragging Party"|  | 4:32
6.| "Hoverin'"|  | 2:46
7.| "First Revival"|  | 2:53
8.| "Full on Idle"|  | 2:18
9.| "Breaking the Split Screen Barrier"|  | 3:07
10.| "Empty Glasses"|  | 2:39
11.| "She's a Girl"|  | 1:50
12.| "Dedicated"|  | 4:12

## Chart positions

[edit]

Chart (1995)  | Peak
position

|

UK Album Chart | 60[20]
US Heatseekers Album Chart | 29[21]

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ The Pacer liner notes list the engineer for this session as "Fluss".[9] AllMusic writer Mark Derning notes that this was the name of Albini's cat, and that Albini sometimes used this name for his engineering and production work.[11]
2. ^ Reviews of Breeders' concerts in 1997,[41] 2000,[42] 2001,[43] 2002,[44] 2008,[45][46] 2009,[47][48] 2010,[49] and 2017[50][51] have noted the inclusion of Amps' songs in the band's set lists.
3. ^ Former Guided by Voices bassist James Greer notes that the Amps' "I Am Decided" was an amalgamation of two Guided by Voices songs: "I Am Decided" and "Are You Faster", both of which Deal was given permission to use.[52] The Guided by Voices versions later appeared on the compilation Suitcase 2: American Superdream Wow, where they are credited to band songwriter Robert Pollard.[53]

## Footnotes

[edit]

1. ^ Phares: Last Splash Review
2. ^ a b c d Erlewine: The Breeders Biography
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Moore 1996
4. ^ a b c Petrusich 2013
5. ^ Aston 2013, p. 481
6. ^ a b c d e f g h i Gettelman 1996
7. ^ Ashare 1995
8. ^ Aaron 1995, pp. 86–88
9. ^ a b c d Pacer liner notes
10. ^ a b c "Tipp City" single liner notes
11. ^ Derning
12. ^ Surfer Rosa Credits
13. ^ Pod Credits
14. ^ The Breeders: Divine Hammer
15. ^ a b Clifton 2003, pp. 136–137
16. ^ a b c Schreiber 1996
17. ^ a b c Erlewine: Pacer Review
18. ^ The Amps (4AD)
19. ^ Pacer (advertisement), p. 2
20. ^ a b c Amps: Singles/Albums
21. ^ a b The Amps: Chart History (Billboard)
22. ^ Borzillo 1995
23. ^ a b c Ott 2003
24. ^ Smith 2002
25. ^ Browne 1995
26. ^ Kessler 1995, p. 53
27. ^ Appleford 1998
28. ^ a b Press 1996, pp. 82–83
29. ^ Kandell 2008, p. 74
30. ^ a b Christgau 1996
31. ^ Robbins 1997, pp. 115–116
32. ^ Brackett 2004, p. 104
33. ^ Dombal et al. 2021
34. ^ Graham 2016, p. 8
35. ^ a b c d Phares: The Amps Biography
36. ^ Mason
37. ^ Kaboodle Overview
38. ^ Gigantic: A Tribute to Kim Deal Overview
39. ^ Stewart 2004
40. ^ Bryant 2002
41. ^ Outhier 1997, p. SHOW 10
42. ^ Freek 2000
43. ^ Klein 2001
44. ^ Dentler 2002, p. 9
45. ^ Schroeder 2008
46. ^ Herrera 2008
47. ^ Stryker 2009
48. ^ Dosanjh 2009)
49. ^ Horn 2010
50. ^ Blackcondorguy 2017
51. ^ iChris 2017
52. ^ Greer 2011
53. ^ Bealmear

## References

[edit]

* Aaron, Charles (July 1995). "Raw Deal". Spin. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
* "The Amps: Chart History". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
* "Amps: Singles/Albums". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on May 5, 2019. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
* "The Amps". 4AD. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
* Appleford, Steve (February 2, 1998). "The Amps: Pacer". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on May 8, 2006. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
* Ashare, Matt (December 21, 1995). "The Amps: Kim's New Deal". Boston Phoenix. Archived from the original on October 11, 2015. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
* Aston, Martin (2013). Facing the Other Way: The Story of 4AD. The Friday Project. ISBN 978-0-00-748961-9.
* Bealmear, Bart. "Suitcase 2: American Superdream Wow Review". AllMusic. Archived from the original on May 5, 2019. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
* Blackcondorguy (October 31, 2017). "The Breeders @ La Gaîté Lyrique (Paris), 27/10/17" (in French). exitmusik.fr. Archived from the original on December 30, 2017. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
* Borzillo, Carrie (November 11, 1995). "Popular Uprisings". Billboard. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
* Brackett, Nathan, with Christian Hoard (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Fireside. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.`{{cite book}}`: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
* "The Breeders: Divine Hammer". 4AD. Archived from the original on March 12, 2012. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
* Browne, David (November 3, 1995). "Pacer; Return of the Rentals". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on June 18, 2018. Retrieved June 3, 2019.
* Bryant, Will (May 30, 2002). "The Breeders: Title TK". Pitchfork Media. Archived from the original on May 5, 2019. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
* Christgau, Robert (January 23, 1996). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on May 5, 2019. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
* Clifton, Piers (2003). Peter Buckley (ed.). The Rough Guide to Rock. Rough Guides. ISBN 978-1-84353-105-0. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
* Dentler, Matt (August 15, 2002). "Feeling the need to breed on". The Daily Texan. Retrieved May 10, 2019 – via Newspaperarchive.com. (subscription required)
* Derning, Mark. "Fluss". AllMusic. Archived from the original on May 5, 2019. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
* Dombal, Ryan; Gaca, Anna; Greene, Jayson; Herrera, Isabelia; Hogan, Marc; Larson, Jeremy D.; Patel, Puja; Pelly, Jenn; Phillips, Amy; Richardson, Mark; Sherburne, Philip (May 25, 2021). "The History of Pitchfork's Reviews Section in 38 Reviews". Pitchfork. Retrieved September 5, 2021.
* Dosanjh, Ash (May 27, 2009). "Live Review: ATP Curated By The Breeders". NME. Archived from the original on May 5, 2019. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
* Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "The Breeders Biography". AllMusic. Archived from the original on May 5, 2019. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
* Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Pacer Review". AllMusic. Archived from the original on May 5, 2019. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
* Freek, Jim (December 13, 2000). "After Five-Year Layoff, Breeders Return to the Stage". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on May 19, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
* Gettelman, Parry (April 12, 1996). "A Chat With Amps' Kim Deal: Eclectic, Electric And Fun". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on May 5, 2019. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
* "Gigantic: A Tribute to Kim Deal Overview". AllMusic. Archived from the original on March 13, 2016. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
* Graham, Ben (May 27, 2016). "An Unexpected Journey: Elijah Wood's Favourite Albums". The Quietus. Archived from the original on May 10, 2019. Retrieved May 10, 2019.
* Greer, James (November 13, 2011). "Guided By Voices – Trendspotter Acrobat". North of Onhava: The Official Charterhouse of Jim Greer. Archived from the original on March 19, 2012. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
* Herrera, Dave (May 29, 2008). "Last Night… the Breeders and the Montana Boys @ the Ogden Theatre". Westword. Archived from the original on June 17, 2019. Retrieved June 29, 2019.
* Horn, Mark C. (September 4, 2010). "The Breeders hit Beachland Ballroom". Buzzbin Magazine. Archived from the original on May 9, 2012. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
* iChris (October 30, 2017). "The Breeders @ Trix – le 23 octobre 2017" (in French). Indiepoprock. Archived from the original on July 28, 2018. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
* "Kaboodle Overview". AllMusic. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved May 7, 2019.
* Kandell, Steve (April 1, 2008). "Discography: Kim Deal". Spin. Retrieved May 7, 2019.
* Kessler, Simon (October 28, 1995). "This is a Lo-Fi". NME.
* Klein, Joshua (July 16, 2001). "The Breeders return in rehearsal-like fashion". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
* Mason, Stewart. "Hamburger Review". AllMusic. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
* Moore, Lisa (March 1, 1996). "Deal with It: An Interview with Kim Deal". Boston Rock. No. 158.
* Ott, Chris (June 2003). "So Much for the Afterglow: The 20 Worst Post-Breakup Debacles". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on December 3, 2003. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
* Outhier, Craig (May 12, 1997). "The new Breeders offer the same old (Kim) Deal – crowd-pleasing rock". Orange County Register. Retrieved May 10, 2012 – via Newspaperarchive.com. (subscription required)
* Pacer (CD booklet). The Amps. New York: Elektra Records. 1995.`{{cite AV media notes}}`: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
* "Pacer (advertisement)". NME. November 4, 1995.
* Petrusich, Amanda (May 15, 2013). "Splashdown! The Breeders' Cannonball-like Re-entry". Spin. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
* Phares, Heather. "The Amps Biography". AllMusic. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
* Phares, Heather. "Last Splash Review". AllMusic. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
* "Pod Credits". AllMusic. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
* Press, Joy (January 1996). "The Amps: Pacer". Spin. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
* Robbins, Ira (1997). The Trouser Press Guide to '90s Rock (5th ed.). Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-684-81437-4.
* Schreiber, Ryan (1996). "The Amps: Pacer". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on August 16, 2000. Retrieved September 5, 2021.
* Schroeder, Audra (May 9, 2008). "The Breeders: Emo's, May 5". The Austin Chronicle. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
* Smith, Ethan (March 17, 2002). "The Breeders Are Still at It". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 23, 2014. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
* Stewart, Justin (May 10, 2004). "Girl Talk: Unstoppable". Splendid. Archived from the original on September 19, 2006. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
* Stryker, Cole (October 7, 2009). "The Breeders: 21 August 2009 – Washington DC". PopMatters. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
* "Surfer Rosa Credits". AllMusic. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
* "Tipp City" (CD booklet). The Amps. London: 4AD. 1995.`{{cite AV media notes}}`: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group

|

*[No.]: Number