The Vertigo of Bliss

The Vertigo of Bliss is the second studio album by Scottish rock band Biffy Clyro. Produced with the band by Chris Sheldon, it was released by Beggars Banquet Records on 16 June 2003. The album reached number 48 on the UK Albums Chart, and spawned four singles. A deluxe remastered edition was released in 2012, which featured, in addition to the original 13 album tracks, a number of B-sides from the album's singles.

The Vertigo of Bliss
Studio album by
Biffy Clyro
Released16 June 2003 (2003-06-16)
Recorded2002–2003 at Great Linford Manor (Great Linford), Eden Studios (London), The Church Studios (London) and Sanctuary Westside Studios (London)
GenreAlternative rock, post-hardcore, experimental rock
Length62:04
LabelBeggars Banquet
ProducerBiffy Clyro, Chris Sheldon
Biffy Clyro chronology
Blackened Sky
(2002)		 The Vertigo of Bliss
(2003)		 Infinity Land
(2004)
Singles from The Vertigo of Bliss
  1. "Joy.Discovery.Invention"/"Toys, Toys, Toys, Choke, Toys, Toys, Toys"
    Released: 15 July 2002
  2. "The Ideal Height"
    Released: 24 March 2003
  3. "Questions and Answers"
    Released: 26 May 2003
  4. "Eradicate the Doubt"
    Released: 22 September 2003

Cover artwork

The album cover for The Vertigo of Bliss was designed by comic book artist Milo Manara. Despite raising some controversy, the artwork was praised by music magazine ShortList who named it in their list of "The 50 Coolest Album Covers Ever", explaining that the "erotic and controversial" cover "only endeared [Biffy] more to the small but loyal fanbase they were beginning to cultivate".[1] In an interview with ShortList, Neil said of the cover "we got quite a bad reaction to that artwork when it first came out [...] that was our first kind of lesson learned that perhaps not everyone shares your perspective on life, or what you value as art, because we were naive enough to be taken by surprise, and then I was naive enough that when people started saying, "Oh this is fucking schoolboy shit," I got really annoyed because I was like, "It's so not that - you're actually being schoolboy here by judging it on just a shallow level."[2]

Reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Drowned in Sound8/10[3]
The Guardian[4]

Critical reception to Biffy Clyro's second album was generally positive. Sean Adams of Drowned in Sound wrote "[The band's] angular, lottery ball-bumbling popcore is special [...] ‘The Vertigo of Bliss’ is everything you want it to be and more. Promise. Spread the love, instil it into the hearts of all you know, give it time, and enjoy."[3] Writing for newspaper The Guardian, Betty Clarke awarded the album four out of five stars, calling it "inventive and sublime".[4] Praising singles "Questions and Answers" and "Eradicate the Doubt" in particular, Clarke praised the band for "juggling anger with adoration as they take indie sensitivity and embolden it with blistering rock fury", and said that the album "crackles with certainty".[4]

Ex-Oceansize/Biffy Clyro touring guitarist Mike Vennart named the album as one of his favourites in 2016, saying "This is pretty much the perfect album. It’s long and sprawling. It’s got all those fanciful, silly ticks and twitches which make Biffy so strange. This record gave me a new love for spidery, wiry clean guitar."[5]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Simon Neil; all music is composed by Biffy Clyro.

No.TitleLength
1."Bodies in Flight"5:17
2."The Ideal Height"3:41
3."With Aplomb"5:29
4."A Day Of..."2:24
5."Liberate the Illiterate/A Mong Among Mingers"5:28
6."Diary of Always"4:04
7."Questions and Answers"4:02
8."Eradicate the Doubt"4:26
9."When the Faction's Fractioned"3:36
10."Toys, Toys, Toys, Choke, Toys, Toys, Toys"5:28
11."All the Way Down: Prologue / Chapter 1"6:43
12."A Man of His Appalling Posture"3:25
13."Now the Action Is on Fire!" (features hidden track "Ewen's True Mental You")8:01
Total length:62:04
2012 remastered edition bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
14."Ewen's True Mental You"1:37
15."...And with the Scissorkick Is Victorious"5:24
16."Do You Remember What You Came For?"3:31
17."Good Practice Makes Permanent"4:19
18."Let's Get Smiling"3:04
19."Muckquaikerjawbreaker"4:10
20."I Hope You're Done"3:40
Total length:87:49

Personnel

Release history
Region Date Label Format Catalog Ref.
United Kingdom 16 June 2003 Beggars Banquet Records CD album BBQCD233 [6]
LP record BBQLP233 [7]
11 June 2012 Double LP BBQLP2090 [8]

References
  1. "The Vertigo of Bliss". The 50 Coolest Album Covers Ever. ShortList. Retrieved 27 September 2013.
  2. "Biffy Clyro: "Why are kids not f**king raging right now?"". ShortList. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
  3. Adams, Sean (11 June 2003). "Album Review: Biffy Clyro - Vertigo of Bliss". Drowned in Sound. Retrieved 27 September 2013.
  4. Clarke, Betty (13 June 2003). "CD: Biffy Clyro: The Vertigo of Bliss". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 September 2013.
  5. Astley-Brown, Michael (17 March 2016). "Mike Vennart: the 10 records that changed my life". MusicRadar. Retrieved 27 August 2020.
  6. "Biffy Clyro - The Vertigo of Bliss (CD, Album)". Discogs. Retrieved 27 September 2013.
  7. "Biffy Clyro - The Vertigo of Bliss (Vinyl, LP, Album)". Discogs. Retrieved 27 September 2013.
  8. "Biffy Clyro - Blackened Sky (Vinyl, Album, LP)". Discogs. Retrieved 27 September 2013.
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