Happy Hour (King Missile album)

Happy Hour is the fifth studio album by experimental music band King Missile, and released on December 15, 1992 by Atlantic Records.[1][2] The album is exactly one hour long, hence its title.

Happy Hour
Studio album by
ReleasedDecember 15, 1992 (1992-12-15)
Genre
Length59:58
LabelAtlantic
Producer
King Missile chronology
The Way to Salvation
(1991)
Happy Hour
(1992)
King Missile
(1994)
Singles from Happy Hour
  1. "Detachable Penis"
    Released: 1992
  2. "Martin Scorsese"
    Released: 1992
  3. "(Why Are We) Trapped?"
    Released: 1993

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[3]
Entertainment WeeklyA[4]
Rolling Stone[5]
Spin Alternative Record Guide8/10[6]
The Village Voice[7]

Ned Ragget of AllMusic awarded the album four out of five stars and said "due in part to the return of Kramer to production – or in this case co-production – duties, along with a slew of more immediately memorable songs, Happy Hour trumps The Way to Salvation as the peak of the band's high-profile days, an inspired collection of tunes ranging from deranged pop to full-on epic metal stomp." The critic also said "thanks to a catchy arrangement via Rick's clipped, stuttered guitar riff and the sweetly sung title phrase in the background, the result is giddy left-field nonsense." and "it's the blessed liveliness of the whole album – at a premium in the days of full-on grunge when it came out, still rare enough years later – that makes it stand up so well."[3] Trouser Press said "Hall's surreal accounts have the vivid sense of purpose previously absent; he’s not aiming at eliciting wan smiles, he’s trying to provoke intelligent thought" and "meanwhile, the band (drummer Roger Murdock is that new face in the booklet photo) locks into diverse rock grooves that would be worth hearing even without the vocals."[8] Robert Christgau chose the band's hit single "Detachable Penis" as the album's "choice cut".[7]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by John S. Hall.

No.TitleMusicLength
1."Intro"0:11
2."Sink"
  • Hall
  • Murdock
  • Rick
2:59
3."Martin Scorsese"
  • Hall
  • Murdock
  • Rick
1:58
4."(Why Are We) Trapped?"Murdock4:30
5."It's Saturday"
  • Hall
  • Murdock
  • Rick
  • Xefos
2:33
6."VvV (VulvaVoid)"
  • Hall
  • Murdock
  • Rick
  • Xefos
3:26
7."Metanoia"
  • Hall
  • Murdock
  • Rick
  • Xefos
3:19
8."Detachable Penis"
  • Hall
  • Murdock
  • Rick
  • Xefos
3:22
9."Take Me Home"
  • Murdock
  • Rick
  • Xefos
6:16
10."Ed"
  • Murdock
  • Rick
  • Xefos
6:02
11."Anywhere"Rick3:34
12."The Evil Children"
  • Murdock
  • Rick
  • Xefos
5:47
13."Glass"Hall0:23
14."And"
  • Hall
  • Murdock
  • Rick
  • Xefos
2:49
15."King Murdock"
  • Hall
  • Murdock
0:54
16."I'm Sorry"
  • Murdock
  • Rick
  • Xefos
3:03
17."Heaven"Murdock3:14
18."Happy Hour"
  • Murdock
  • Rick
  • Xefos
5:39

Personnel

Adapted from the Happy Hour liner notes.[9]

King Missile

Additional performers

Production and design

Release history

Region Date Label Format Catalog
United States 1992 Atlantic CD, CS 7567-82459
Canada CD
Germany
Japan 1993 AMCY-549

References

  1. Thompson, David (November 1, 2000). Gravy. Alternative Rock: Third Ear – The Essential Listening Companion. Miller Freeman, Inc. p. 784. Retrieved September 6, 2020.
  2. Blum, Joshua; Holman, Bob; Pellington, Mark (March 30, 1996). John S. Hall. United States of Poetry. Harry N. Abrams. p. 171.
  3. Raggett, Ned. "King Missile: Happy Hour > Review". AllMusic. Retrieved September 6, 2020.
  4. Ali, Lorraine (1993-02-12). "Happy Hour". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2017-12-08.
  5. Harris, Michael C. (1993-03-18). "King Missile: Happy Hour : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2009-02-16. Retrieved 2017-12-08.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  6. Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig (1995). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. ISBN 9780679755746.
  7. Christgau, Robert (October 1, 1991). "King Missile: The Way to Salvation (Atlantic)". The Village Voice. Retrieved September 6, 2020.
  8. Gehr, Richard; Robbins, Ira. "King Missile (Dog Fly Religion)". Trouser Press. Trouser Press LLC. Retrieved September 6, 2020.
  9. Happy Hour (booklet). King Missile. New York City: Atlantic Records. 1992.CS1 maint: others (link)
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