Community hub
0 subscribers7 pages, 0 posts
Recent from talks
All channels
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Contribute something
Welcome to the community hub built to collect knowledge and have discussions related to Yerself Is Steam.
Nothing was collected or created yet.
Yerself Is Steam
View on Wikipediafrom Wikipedia
| Yerself Is Steam | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 14, 1991 | |||
| Recorded | 1990–1991 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 49:19 (UK) 57:09 (US) | |||
| Label |
| |||
| Producer | Mercury Rev | |||
| Mercury Rev chronology | ||||
| ||||
Yerself Is Steam is the debut studio album by American indie rock band Mercury Rev, released on May 14, 1991. The title is a mondegreen of the phrase "your self-esteem", and is taken from a recurring lyric in opening track "Chasing a Bee". "Car Wash Hair" was released as a single to follow the album. "Very Sleepy Rivers" is supposedly[weasel words] about a serial killer, with the river acting as a metaphor for the killer's relative calm and sudden tendency to snap.
A music video for "Chasing a Bee" was shot at an abandoned infectious disease hospital that once housed Mary Mallon on North Brother Island in New York City, and was directed by Jim Spring and Jens Jurgensen.
Dean Wareham of Galaxie 500 made a guest appearance on "Car Wash Hair" and assisted with recording, allegedly after bassist and engineer Dave Fridmann spent the band's advance on a holiday package.
Critical reception
[edit]| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [6] |
| Chicago Tribune | [7] |
| NME | 8/10[8] |
| Pitchfork | 9.3/10[9] |
| Q |  [10] |
| Record Collector | [11] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [4] |
| Select | 5/5[12] |
| Sounds | [13] |
| Uncut | 9/10[14] |
In Rolling Stone, David Fricke labeled Yerself Is Steam "slacker beat at its most extreme and hypnotic, a marvel of tortured self-absorption and compelling dissonance".[15]
"Music dictated not by logic but by intuition," wrote AllMusic critic Jason Ankeny in a retrospective review, "Yerself Is Steam is an album at war with itself, split by its desire to achieve both melodic pop bliss and white-noise transcendence within the same space; it succeeds brilliantly, avant-bubblegum fuel injected by fits and flourishes of prismatic chaos."[6] In 2016, Pitchfork ranked the record at number 16 on its list of "The 50 Best Shoegaze Albums of All Time", with staff writer Stuart Berman commenting that "Yerself Is Steam is really a shoegaze album in the inverse: Where their fuzz-pedaling peers obliterated the human presence in rock music through a cloud of distortion, Mercury Rev foregrounded the claustrophobic, panicky unease of being trapped inside it."[5]
Track listing
[edit]All tracks are written by Mercury Rev (credited to David Baker, Jonathan Donahue, Sean Mackowiak, and Suzanne Thorpe in the ASCAP Repertory).[16]
| No. | Title | Length in artwork (*) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Chasing a Bee" | 4:27 | 7:11 |
| 2. | "Syringe Mouth" | 3:27 | 4:04 |
| 3. | "Coney Island Cyclone" | 3:27 | 2:37 |
| 4. | "Blue and Black" | 4:27 | 6:00 |
| 5. | "Sweet Oddysee of a Cancer Cell t' th' Center of Yer Heart" | 5:27 | 7:41 |
| 6. | "Frittering" | 4:27 | 8:48 |
| 7. | "Continuous Trucks and Thunder Under a Mother's Smile"" | 2:27 | 0:43 |
| 8. | "Very Sleepy Rivers" | 12:27 | 12:15 **13:15 |
| 9. | "Car Wash Hair (The Bee's Chasing Me)" (hidden track**) | 6:44 |
Formatting notes
[edit]- (*) The back cover deliberately lists erroneous run times. They are listed above in italics.
- (**) On the Columbia/Sony Music CD edition.
- On the Columbia/Sony Music CD release, "Very Sleepy Rivers" is divided amongst tracks 8 through 98. Track 8 contains the first 7:15 of the song, while the rest is split amongst the following ninety four-second tracks, netting the song an additional minute in the process. The audio slowly fades out around track 83 and, around track 88, a voice starts saying 'pick' repeatedly with some barely audible laughter. During this quieter section, a low-level sub-bass signal (under 20 Hz) was mixed underneath.[citation needed] The unusual method of splitting the track was included on Pitchfork's 2010 list of "ten unusual CD-era gimmicks".[17] The bonus track "Car Wash Hair" follows as track 99 on this pressing.
Lego My Ego
[edit] |
In 1992, Mint Films/Jungle re-released Yerself is Steam with a bonus LP/CD entitled Lego My Ego. The title is a parody of the Eggo waffles ad slogan, and is taken from a piece of voice tape at the start of "Frittering," where one musician tells another to "let go of my fucking ego" after they tell him how to play a song. It consists of non-album tracks and a John Peel session from August 1991. Mint Films released another edition in 2007 consisting of both CDs plus an all-region DVD of the videos for "Chasing a Bee" and "Car Wash Hair."
CD version
[edit]All tracks are written by Mercury Rev, except "If You Want Me to Say" by Sly Stone and "Shhh/Peaceful" by Miles Davis. "Blood on the Moon" has no writer's credit, but is presumably also written by Grasshopper.
| No. | Title | Source | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "If You Want Me to Stay" | A-side single, March 1992 | 4:08 |
| 2. | "Shhh/Peaceful" / "Very Sleepy Rivers" | BBC live, June 1992 | 14:52 |
| 3. | "Frittering" | BBC Peel session, 27 Aug 1991 | 5:18 |
| 4. | "Coney Island Cyclone" | BBC Peel session, 27 Aug 1991 | 3:20 |
| 5. | "Car Wash Hair" | A-side single, 1991 | 7:25 |
| 6. | "Syringe Mouth" | BBC Peel session, 27 Aug 1991 | 3:11 |
| 7. | "Blood on the Moon" | 1990 motion picture Moonbuggy | 8:21 |
| 8. | "Chasing a Bee (Inside a Car)" | BBC Peel session, 27 Aug 1991 | 10:09 |
- Notes
- 1 is a cover of the Sly and the Family Stone song, originally released on the A-side of a 7" single in March 1992 by the Rough Trade Singles Club.
- 2 was recorded live by the BBC Mobile Recording Studio at Finsbury Park, London, June 1992. "Shhh/Peaceful" is a cover of the Miles Davis song (from In a Silent Way), which is only quoted briefly in the introduction.
- 3, 4, 6 and 8 are from a Peel Session recorded on August 27, 1991, produced by Mike Robinson, and first broadcast on October 5, 1991. 8 is "Chasing a Bee" with some changed lyrics. Some releases title it "Chasing a Girl (Inside a Car)," which is sung in the title line of this version. The liner notes comment, "Guitars should be much louder, but what can you do?"
- 5 is the same recording as the 1991 single version released by Mint Films, but with some extra material crossfaded in at the end. The whole album has unusual tapes (mostly voice) between all the songs.
- 7 is credited as being the "original theme from the 1991 motion picture 'Moonbuggy,' a film by Howard Nelson," and performed by Grasshopper.
LP version
[edit]Due to time constraints, the LP version eliminates the two previously released singles ("If You Want Me to Stay" and "Car Wash Hair"), and sequences all of the BBC Session tracks together on Side B.
- Side A
- "Shhh/Peaceful" / "Very Sleepy Rivers" – 14:52
- "Blood on the Moon" – 8:21
- Side B
- "Frittering" – 5:18
- "Coney Island Cyclone" – 3:20
- "Syringe Mouth" – 3:11
- "Chasing a Bee (Inside a Car)" – 10:09
Radio Whipped promotional edition
[edit] |
Sony/Columbia released a promotional double-CD version of the album in 1992. The first disc consists of the US version of the album. The second disc is the US "Chasing a Bee" CD single. A "Radio Whipped Sticker" on the back of the CD jewelbox numbers the nine tracks on the album as A, B, C, D, E, F, U, C, and K, and the six tracks of the single as:
A. "Chasing a Bee" – 7:09
B. "If You Want Me to Stay" – 3:37
S. "Coney Island Cyclone" – 2:40
U. "Frittering" – 4:26
R. "Syringe Mouth" – 3:09
D. "Chasing a Girl (Inside a Car)" – 6:56
S, U, R, and D are the Peel Session recordings, and are actually one continuous track for 17:53. The run times for B, S, U and D are shorter than on Lego My Ego because they don't contain the unusual tape material that was added to these songs on it.
Personnel
[edit]- Jonathan Donahue – silver pickup guitar, vocals
- Grasshopper – unafon guitar reels
- Suzanne Thorpe – point red flute
- Dave Fridmann – bass explore, majestic bellowphone, additional engineering
- David Baker – vocals
- Jimy Chambers – drumming, blue-line
- C. Gavazzi – trumpet on "Car Wash Hair"
- Dean Wareham – additional vocals, production on "Car Wash Hair"
- Keith Cleversley – engineer
- Kristin Peterson – photography
- Mooneyham – artwork
References
[edit]- ^ Terich, Jeff (July 2, 2015). "10 Essential Neo-Psychedelia Albums". Treble. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
- ^ Shipley, Al (September 23, 2021). "30 Overlooked 1991 Albums Turning 30 This Year". Spin. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
- ^ Phares, Heather. "Mercury Rev Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
- ^ a b Kot, Greg (2004). "Mercury Rev". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 538. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
- ^ a b "The 50 Best Shoegaze Albums of All Time". Pitchfork. October 24, 2016. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
- ^ a b Ankeny, Jason. "Yerself Is Steam – Mercury Rev". AllMusic. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
- ^ Kot, Greg (February 4, 1993). "Medicine: Shot Forth Self Living (Def American) / Mercury Rev: Yerself is Steam (Columbia) / Lotion: Head/She is Weird City/Peachtree (KokoPop single)". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
- ^ Williams, Simon (March 9, 1991). "Mercury Rev: Yerself Is Steam". NME. p. 30.
- ^ Berman, Stuart (February 11, 2024). "Mercury Rev: Yerself Is Steam Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved February 11, 2024.
- ^ Mongredien, Phil (October 2007). "Mercury Rev: Yerself Is Steam / Lego My Ego". Q. No. 255.
- ^ Mackay, Emily (October 2007). "Yerself Is Steam/Lego My Ego | Mercury Rev". Record Collector. No. 341. Retrieved May 5, 2024.
- ^ Linehan, Graham (August 1991). "Mercury Rev: Yerself Is Steam". Select. No. 14. p. 56.
- ^ Robert, James (February 16, 1991). "Rev It Up". Sounds. p. 41.
- ^ Hermes, Will (October 2024). "Magnum Opus". Uncut. No. 330. p. 89.
- ^ Fricke, David (December 10–24, 1992). "On the Edge". Rolling Stone. No. 645–646. p. 177.
- ^ "ACE Repertory". ASCAP. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
- ^ "A Feature About Nothing: The 1990s in Lists". Pitchfork. September 7, 2010. p. 2.
Yerself Is Steam
View on Grokipediafrom Grokipedia
Background
Band Formation
Mercury Rev was formed in 1989 at the State University of New York at Buffalo (SUNY Buffalo) by media students Jonathan Donahue, Sean "Grasshopper" Mackowiak, David Baker, and Suzanne Thorpe, as an experimental collective initially dedicated to creating soundtracks for their student films. The group evolved from the earlier experimental project Shady Crady involving these members.[5][6][1] Dave Fridmann and Jimy Chambers soon joined the lineup. The group drew inspiration from the local experimental music environment, particularly the influence of drone-music pioneer Tony Conrad, who was a professor at SUNY Buffalo and shaped the avant-garde sensibilities of many students in the area during the late 1980s.[6] This period in Buffalo fostered a vibrant noise and indie rock community, where experimental sounds and DIY ethos prevailed amid the city's industrial backdrop and academic hubs.[5] These core members—Donahue, Grasshopper, Fridmann, Baker, Thorpe, and Chambers—began performing locally in Buffalo's underground venues, embedding themselves in the noise-oriented indie scene that emphasized improvisation and sonic exploration. While no formal independent releases emerged during this nascent phase, the group circulated home-recorded demos on cassettes, capturing their raw, psychedelic and noise-infused experiments that would later define their sound. By around 1990, Mercury Rev shifted from their soundtrack-focused origins to operating as a cohesive full band, preparing for their entry into the broader indie rock landscape with structured compositions and live performances that highlighted their chaotic yet innovative approach.[5] This evolution reflected the growing cohesion within Buffalo's creative community, where influences like drone and noise experimentation laid the groundwork for their debut work.[6]Album Conception
The conception of Yerself Is Steam originated from the experimental soundtrack work of Mercury Rev's founding members, who were media students at SUNY Buffalo creating unproduced scores for student films and nature documentaries. These early efforts, often captured on cassettes, emphasized improvisational noise and atmospheric soundscapes rather than traditional song structures, laying the groundwork for the album's chaotic energy.[1][3] The album's title emerged as a mondegreen of the phrase "your self-esteem," drawn from a lyric in the opening track "Chasing a Bee"—specifically, "Remember that yerself is steam"—exemplifying the band's playful and surreal linguistic approach to creativity. This choice reflected their intent to subvert expectations and embrace phonetic ambiguity as a core artistic element.[1][3] Thematically, the album drew from dreamlike and chaotic imagery inspired by Buffalo's post-industrial decay, including its harsh winters, abandoned factories, and economic recession, intertwined with the band members' personal experiences of emotional turmoil and academic influences from avant-garde figures like Tony Conrad. These elements fostered a psychedelic rock vision that pitted order against anarchy, ecstasy against terror, evolving the initial soundtrack experiments into a cohesive statement on confusion and beauty.[1][3][7] Opting to self-produce the debut album allowed the band—university friends bonded over shared musical urges—to preserve its raw, experimental essence without external commercial pressures, ensuring the fragmented, improvisational spirit of their origins remained intact.[3][7]Recording and Personnel
Recording Sessions
The recording sessions for Yerself Is Steam took place at the SUNY Fredonia studio facilities in Fredonia, New York, where engineer Dave Fridmann was completing his music production studies.[3][1] These sessions primarily occurred during off-peak hours from midnight to 8 a.m., secured through a special arrangement that provided the band with free or low-cost access to the space as part of Fridmann's senior thesis project.[3][8] Spanning approximately three years from around 1988 to 1991 with sporadic sessions, the process was marked by extensive experimentation, as the group self-produced the album while building dense, layered soundscapes through improvisation and instrument switching among members.[9][3] Unconventional techniques were central to the process, including heavy distortion achieved by pushing analog gear like Ampex tape machine preamps into the red for textural depth, layering sounds via cassette tapes bounced between machines, and incorporating environmental elements such as fireworks, coffeemakers, and household appliances to evoke psychedelic atmospheres.[8][3] Vocals and instruments were often captured in non-traditional spaces like kitchens or large rooms without isolation, further enhancing the raw, chaotic quality.[8][1] One key challenge arose from the fluid band dynamics, particularly Jonathan Donahue's initial status as a non-member during the early sessions; he contributed remotely by sending tapes from Oklahoma and providing conceptual diagrams before integrating fully into the process mid-recording.[3] This fragmented approach, combined with frequent lineup shifts and a lack of predefined roles, led to a protracted, iterative workflow that prioritized creative exploration over structured efficiency.[3][10]Key Personnel
The album Yerself Is Steam was created by the core lineup of Mercury Rev, a band formed in Buffalo, New York, whose members handled the majority of instrumental, vocal, and production duties in a collaborative effort reflective of their DIY approach.[1] Jonathan Donahue served as the lead vocalist and played silver pickup guitar, providing the melodic and lyrical core that blended psychedelic whimsy with noise elements across the record.[1][2] Sean "Grasshopper" Mackowiak contributed unafon guitar reels, emphasizing experimental textures and feedback that defined the album's chaotic soundscapes.[1][2] Suzanne Thorpe added point red flute, introducing ethereal and improvisational layers that contrasted the heavier guitar work.[1][2] Dave Fridmann played bass explore and majestic bellowphone while also taking on engineering and production responsibilities, shaping the album's dense, amplified mixes through hands-on technical contributions that amplified the band's raw energy.[1][2][11] Jimmy Chambers handled drums and blue-line performances, delivering propulsive rhythms that underpinned the tracks' frenetic pace.[1][2] David Baker provided additional vocals, enhancing the harmonic and vocal experimentation on select songs.[1] Overall production was credited to Mercury Rev as a collective, underscoring the band's self-reliant ethos without external producers, though Fridmann's multifaceted role was pivotal in realizing their vision during the late-night sessions.[2][11]Musical Style and Composition
Genre Influences
Yerself Is Steam draws primarily from neo-psychedelia, noise pop, and early shoegaze elements, incorporating alternative rock structures with experimental noise techniques to create a dense, immersive soundscape. The album's noisy squall juxtaposed against major-chord melodies exemplifies noise pop's core aesthetic, while its swirling distortions and feedback loops prefigure shoegaze's wall-of-sound approach. These genres converge in tracks that blend chaotic improvisation with melodic anchors, reflecting the band's experimental roots in Buffalo's underground scene.[3][1] The album's influences trace back to 1960s psychedelia, particularly the expansive, mind-altering explorations of early Pink Floyd and the raw, emotive energy of The Flaming Lips, with whom vocalist Jonathan Donahue had previously collaborated. Buffalo's local noise scene, shaped by the city's post-industrial bleakness and DIY ethos, infused the record with abrasive textures and unconventional sound sources, such as fireworks and household appliances manipulated for sonic effect. Contemporaries like My Bloody Valentine further informed the distorted, guitar-heavy aesthetic, emphasizing melody buried within layers of reverb and feedback. Industrial and ambient elements also contribute to the album's eerie, atmospheric quality, drawing from manipulated field recordings and ambient noise to evoke a sense of disorientation.[3][1][7] As a pivotal release, Yerself Is Steam serves as a bridge between the aggressive noise rock of the 1980s—evident in parallels to bands like Butthole Surfers and Pere Ubu—and the ethereal dream pop and shoegaze movements of the 1990s. Band members described their sound as "part Pink Floyd and part Pere Ubu; half Butthole Surfers and half Brian Wilson," highlighting this transitional role where noise and melody coexist without resolution. This fusion not only captured the era's experimental spirit but also anticipated the genre-blending innovations that would define indie rock's evolution.[3][1]Instrumentation and Themes
The album Yerself Is Steam prominently features flute contributions from Suzanne Thorpe, which add ethereal, floating layers to the arrangements, often weaving through the dense sonic textures to create a sense of otherworldly detachment. Heavy guitar distortion, handled primarily by Jonathan Donahue and Grasshopper, dominates the mix, producing walls of feedback and fuzz that evoke a raw, industrial edge. Unconventional percussion elements, including contributions from Jimy Chambers on drums and additional processed sounds from household items like fireworks, fire extinguishers, and coffeemakers, introduce erratic rhythms that disrupt traditional beats and heighten the album's unpredictable energy.[3][1][12] Song structures on the album typically blend gentle acoustic intros—often led by sparse guitar or flute—with explosive noise builds, transitioning from quiet introspection to overwhelming crescendos of distortion and feedback. This creates cacophonous yet melodic progressions, where simple two-chord frameworks (primarily E and A) serve as anchors amid the chaos, allowing tracks to unfold over extended durations with punk-like bursts interrupting opiate-like lulls. For instance, acoustic refrains give way to sudden shocks of static and overload, mirroring the band's experimental ethos of balancing fragility and ferocity.[3][1] Thematically, Yerself Is Steam explores surrealism, personal turmoil, and dream states, drawing from the stream-of-consciousness style of vocalist David Baker to conjure fragmented narratives of inner conflict and altered realities. Lyrics evoke chaotic imagery, such as the metastatic journey in "Sweet Oddysee of a Cancer Cell t' th' Center of Yer Heart," symbolizing emotional decay, and the deceptive calm of violence in "Very Sleepy Rivers," where rivers represent a killer's sudden snaps amid innocence. These motifs reflect broader influences of post-industrial bleakness and childhood anxieties clashing with adult distortions, delivered in quirky, demented phrasing that blends innocence with menace.[3][1][13] Overall, the album's sound manifests as a beautiful cacophony, harmonizing tuneful psychedelia—rooted in major-chord melodies and hypnotic hooks—with white-noise maelstroms of feedback and appliance hums, resulting in a nerve-wracking yet awe-inspiring clash of order and anarchy. This duality captures the band's Buffalo origins, channeling harsh winters and urban decay into a sonic landscape that pivots between comic malevolence and ethereal reverie.[1][3]Release and Promotion
Commercial Release
_Yerself Is Steam was released on May 14, 1991, serving as Mercury Rev's debut album through the independent labels Mint Films and Jungle Records in the UK and Europe, while the US version followed in 1992 on the major label Columbia Records after the initial North American distributor Rough Trade declared bankruptcy.[1][3][14] The deal with Jungle Records originated from demo tapes the band submitted, which convinced the label to advance $1,000 for completing the masters, marking an indie breakthrough despite prior rejections from US labels like Homestead and SST.[3] The album appeared in multiple formats, including CD, vinyl LP, and cassette, with initial pressings handled by Mint Films featuring colored vinyl variants such as blue and pink editions for the UK and European markets.[2][15] Regional editions differed notably in content and length: the UK and European CD version totals 49:19 and adheres to the core eight-track sequence, whereas the US Columbia CD extends to 57:09 by incorporating longer mixes and the bonus track "Car Wash Hair" from the band's earlier EP.[1][2] Initial commercial performance was modest, with limited sales that failed to achieve mainstream alt-rock traction despite UK press hype, though it gradually cultivated a dedicated cult following among psychedelic and indie rock enthusiasts.[1][6]Promotional Efforts
To promote Yerself Is Steam, Mercury Rev released "Chasing a Bee" as a single in 1992, accompanied by a music video filmed on the abandoned North Brother Island in New York City, which captured the band's chaotic and surreal aesthetic through visuals of derelict buildings and frenzied performance energy.[3][16] In the UK, where the album gained significant traction via Jungle Records, the music press generated substantial hype by positioning the Buffalo-based band as an emerging force in indie rock, with enthusiastic coverage in outlets like Melody Maker that amplified their experimental, psychedelic sound and led to sensationalized stories about the group's volatile live dynamic.[3][15] Promotional efforts extended to limited-edition formats, including a UK advance cassette and a light blue marbled vinyl pressing, distributed to build anticipation among European tastemakers and radio stations ahead of the album's wider rollout.[2][17] Supporting the release, Mercury Rev undertook live performances in 1991, including headline shows at venues like the Mean Fiddler and a slot at the Reading Festival, where their high-energy, improvisational sets further cemented the album's reputation for raw intensity, as well as a 1993 UK tour opening for Spiritualized that strengthened ties to the shoegaze scene.[3][18]Critical Reception
Contemporary Reviews
Upon its release in May 1991, Yerself Is Steam garnered enthusiastic praise from the UK music press for its noisy innovation and shoegaze elements. Melody Maker's Chris Roberts praised the album highly.[19] Similarly, the UK press, including NME, hyped the album as a groundbreaking work from upstate New York, positioning Mercury Rev as a key player in the emerging shoegaze scene.[15] In the United States, where the album saw an initial limited release in 1991 followed by a broader reissue in 1992, reviews were mixed yet often enthusiastic, emphasizing the record's psychedelic chaos. Early traction came from college radio stations, such as WRUB at SUNY Buffalo, which played tracks and helped build underground buzz.[3] Critics appreciated the ambition behind the dense, experimental soundscapes.[3] Band members, in a June 1991 Melody Maker interview, underscored their experimental intent, describing the album as an "ugly lovely mess of noise" that magnified personal emotions into epic proportions.[20] Jonathan Donahue explained, "Mercury Rev is something small but to us it blows everything up. It’s a magnifying glass, it’s epic," influencing reviewers' interpretations of the record's chaotic yet joyful ambition.[20] This emphasis on treating the studio as an instrument further shaped contemporary views of the album's innovative, boundary-pushing approach.[3]Retrospective Assessments
In the decades following its release, Yerself Is Steam has garnered significant retrospective acclaim for its innovative blend of psychedelic experimentation and melodic structure, often hailed as a cornerstone of early 1990s indie rock. Pitchfork's 2024 review awarded the album a 9.3 out of 10, praising it as a "heroic dose of psychedelic rock" that remains "equal parts nerve-wracking and awe-inspiring," highlighting its chaotic yet captivating sound that prefigured later art-rock developments.[1] AllMusic's assessment underscores the album's ability to balance "tuneful psychedelia" with overwhelming noise, rating it 4.5 out of 5 stars for its raw, immersive energy that distinguishes it within the shoegaze and noise rock canon. The album also secured the #16 position on Pitchfork's 2016 list of the "50 Best Shoegaze Albums of All Time," noted for its unique incorporation of unconventional elements like flutes, trumpets, and even a coffee percolator as percussion, which amplified its otherworldly atmosphere.[21] A 2015 feature in Magnet Magazine reflected on the album's visionary role in indie history, with frontman Jonathan Donahue describing it as "some of the most outré and influential psych/pop of the 20th century, a monument to chaos and beauty," emphasizing its enduring influence despite initial commercial obscurity. Today, Yerself Is Steam is widely regarded as a cult classic, experiencing renewed interest through streaming platforms like Spotify and recent reissues, such as the 2025 expanded edition pairing it with the band's debut EP Car Wash Hair.[3][22]Track Listing
Standard Tracks
The standard track listing of Yerself Is Steam consists of eight principal songs, blending psychedelic rock elements with noise and melody, and includes a hidden track on select editions.[12]- "Chasing a Bee" (7:11): This trippy opener begins with an acoustic refrain evoking campfire tranquility and builds to a noise-laden climax around the three-minute mark, featuring contrasting verses and choruses with flute accents; the title derives from a mondegreen in its recurring lyric "yerself is steam," a mishearing of "your self-esteem."[1][3][23]
- "Syringe Mouth" (4:05): A frenetic burst of punk-infused energy with distorted, malfunctioning tape recorder-like vocals over a driving rhythm, contrasting starry-eyed serenades and chaotic noise akin to a kindergarten sing-along amid a raucous concert.[1][3][23]
- "Coney Island Cyclone" (2:38): A short, chaotic instrumental that evokes the frenzy of an amusement park ride through high feedback, amp noise, and dynamic punk energy, fading abruptly to underscore its whirlwind intensity.[3][12]
- "Blue and Black" (6:00): This melancholic psych-folk piece layers guitars over affected, monotone vocals delivering nursery rhyme-like melodies, building to a menacing noisescape that reflects Buffalo's brutal winters while maintaining an upbeat, concise structure amid noisy layers.[3][23][12]
- "Sweet Oddysee of a Cancer Cell t' th' Center of Yer Heart" (7:41): An epic, surreal narrative track structured in classically inspired "movements" with falsetto melodies, prog-like percussion, repetitive chords, and explosive guitar noise, creating a sweeping sonic canvas of reflective depth.[3][23][12]
- "Frittering" (8:48): An extended noisy jam starting with light acoustic riffs that progress to shoegaze-like epic proportions, incorporating flute accents, buried vocals, and a minor-key progression conveying melancholy and loss in a cinematic, dark calm.[1][3][23]
- "Continuous Trucks and Thunder Under a Mother's Smile" (0:44): A brief ambient interlude providing a momentary respite with subtle, atmospheric textures amid the album's denser soundscapes.[12]
- "Very Sleepy Rivers" (12:20): The lengthy closer unfolds in a dreamlike progression over a seasick groove and hypnotic rhythms, featuring freestyled Dr. Seuss-like couplets in a creepy register, processed guitars, eerie flutes, and guitar improvisation that narrates a sinister story with ebb-and-flow melody.[1][3][23]