Cuckoo (album)

Cuckoo is the second studio album by English alternative rock band Curve. It was released on 13 September 1993 and was issued by Anxious Records and Charisma Records. A musically more varied but significantly darker release than Curve's 1992 debut album Doppelgänger, Cuckoo was less commercially successful than the band's previous releases.

Cuckoo
Studio album by
Curve
Released13 September 1993 (1993-09-13)
RecordedDecember 1992 – March 1993
StudioTodal (London)
GenreShoegaze[1]
Length45:46
Label
Producer
Curve chronology
Radio Sessions
(1993)		 Cuckoo
(1993)		 Come Clean
(1998)
Singles from Cuckoo
  1. "Blackerthreetracker"
    Released: 23 August 1993
  2. "Superblaster"
    Released: 8 November 1993
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Chicago Tribune[3]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[4]
Los Angeles Times[5]
NME5/10[6]
The Philadelphia Inquirer[7]
Q[8]
Select5/5[9]
Vox6/10[10]

Release

Cuckoo was released in the United Kingdom on 13 September 1993 by Anxious Records,[11][12] and in the United States on 21 September 1993 by Anxious and Charisma Records.[11][13] Two singles were issued from the album: "Blackerthreetracker" (which featured the Cuckoo song "Missing Link" as its lead track)[11] on 23 August 1993,[14] and "Superblaster" on 8 November 1993.[15] In the UK, Cuckoo underperformed commercially compared to previous Curve releases,[16] peaking at number 23 on the UK Albums Chart.[17] Several months after the album's release, Curve disbanded, though they would reform in 1996.[16]

In the August 1996 issue of Select magazine, Curve frontwoman Toni Halliday said: "I still think our second album was our best. It got to the point where Dean didn't want to tour. We did reach that point of hedonistic head-fuckery, glugging JD, hollering 'Where's the schnozz?' You finally get that out of your system and think, 'This is sad.' We couldn't have gone on like that."[18]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Dean Garcia and Toni Halliday.

No.TitleProducer(s)Length
1."Missing Link"
4:59
2."Crystal"
  • Curve
  • Flood
4:02
3."Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus"
  • Curve
  • Flood
4:36
4."All of One"
  • Curve
  • Flood
4:19
5."Unreadable Communication"
5:51
6."Turkey Crossing"
  • Curve
  • Osborne
4:53
7."Superblaster"
  • Curve
  • Flood
4:01
8."Left of Mother"
  • Curve
  • Flood
4:10
9."Sweetest Pie"
  • Curve
  • Flood
3:59
10."Cuckoo"
  • Curve
  • Osborne
4:56
Total length:45:46

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.[19]

Curve

Additional musicians

  • Flood – electronics
  • Sally Herbert – violin on "Superblaster" and "Left of Mother"
  • Alex Mitchell – guitar
  • Steve Monti – drums on "Crystal", "Superblaster" and "Sweetest Pie"
  • Alan Moulder – guitar
  • Steve Osborne – guitar
  • Debbie Smith – guitar

Production

  • Darren Allison – mixing (assistant)
  • Curve – production
  • Flood – production
  • Alan Moulder – mixing
  • Steve Osborne – production on "Unreadable Communication", "Turkey Crossing" and "Cuckoo"

Design

  • Andrew Catlin – band photography
  • Flat Earth – sleeve design, cover photography
  • Vaughan Matthews – cover photography

Charts
Chart (1993) Peak
position
European Top 100 Albums (Music & Media)[20] 77
UK Albums (OCC)[17] 23
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[21] 2
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[22] 18

References
  1. Halligan, Benjamin (2013). "Shoegaze as the Third Wave: Affective Psychedelic Noise, 1965–91". In Goddard, Michael; Halligan, Benjamin; Spelman, Nicola (eds.). Resonances: Noise and Contemporary Music. Bloomsbury Academic. p. 57. ISBN 978-1-4411-1054-1.
  2. Simpson, Paul. "Cuckoo – Curve". AllMusic. Retrieved 26 December 2015.
  3. Webber, Brad (11 November 1993). "Curve: Cuckoo (Virgin)". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  4. "Curve: Cuckoo". Entertainment Weekly. No. 194. 29 October 1993. p. 65.
  5. Hochman, Steve (21 November 1993). "Curve, 'Cuckoo,' Anxious/Charisma". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  6. Dalton, Stephen (11 September 1993). "Revolting Clocks". NME. Retrieved 26 December 2015.
  7. Wood, Sam (14 December 1993). "Curve: Cuckoo (Anxious/Charisma)". The Philadelphia Inquirer.
  8. Aston, Martin (October 1993). "Curve: Cuckoo". Q. No. 85. p. 105. Retrieved 26 December 2015.
  9. Collins, Andrew (September 1993). "The Lunatic Fringe". Select. No. 39. pp. 86–87. Retrieved 26 December 2015.
  10. O'Brien, Lucy (October 1993). "Sand Blasted". Vox. No. 37. Retrieved 26 December 2015.
  11. Sexton, Paul (9 October 1993). "Virgin Execs See Straight Path to Success for Curve" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 105, no. 41. pp. 1, 119. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  12. "Ad Focus" (PDF). Music Week. 11 September 1993. p. 10. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  13. Cuckoo (liner notes). Curve. Anxious Records / Charisma Records. 1993. 7243 8 39061 2 3.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  14. "Single Releases" (PDF). Music Week. 21 August 1993. p. 23. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  15. Curve. "Superblaster single". Bandcamp. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  16. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Curve". AllMusic. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  17. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  18. Male, Andrew (August 1996). "Didn't We Used to Be Famous?". Select. No. 74. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  19. Cuckoo (liner notes). Curve. Anxious Records. 1993. ANXCD 81.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  20. "European Top 100 Albums" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 10, no. 40. 2 October 1993. p. 12. Retrieved 28 May 2021.
  21. "Independent Albums" (PDF). Music Week. 2 October 1993. p. 20. Retrieved 28 May 2021.
  22. "Heatseekers Albums". Billboard. 9 October 1993. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
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