Perpetual Motion Machine | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 1993, Canada 1994, United States | |||
Studio | Le Studio | |||
Genre | Alternative rock | |||
Label |
EMI Music Canada Atlantic | |||
Producer | John Critchley, Glen Robinson | |||
13 Engines chronology | ||||
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Perpetual Motion Machine is an album by the Canadian band 13 Engines, released in 1993. [1] [2] It was the band's fourth album, and the second one released by a major label. [3] The album's first single was "More". [4]
The album was produced by frontman John Critchley, with help from Glen Robinson. [5] It was recorded at Le Studio, in Morin-Heights, Quebec. [6] Compared to sessions for their previous albums, the band spent a longer period of time in the studio, exploring overdubbing and trying different mixes. [5] The cellist Anne Bourne contributed to the album. [7] "Saviour" is about the Second Coming. [8]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Calgary Herald | B [10] |
The State | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Trouser Press wrote that "the unpretentiously arty album lacked only a marketing gimmick (or a transcendent single, although 'Smoke & Ashes' comes mighty close) to get 13 Engines onto the alt-hit parade." [12] Billboard also praised "Smoke & Ashes", calling it "the perfect two-minute rock song." [13] The Philadelphia Inquirer called the album "much-improved," writing that 13 Engines displayed a "willingness to adapt elements of grunge to their songwriting." [14] The State considered the album "a 14-track trip through the subtlety and simplicity that was once rock 'n' roll." [11]
The Washington Post deemed the album "unadorned folk-rock that suggests, without slavishly imitating, Neil Young and Crazy Horse." [15] The Calgary Herald thought that "ambiguous lyrics are delivered in a Morrison monotone style and then sung in wavering half-whispers, buoyed by guitars that slide from grungy psychedelia to hard-rock backbeats." [10] The Edmonton Journal chose Perpetual Motion Machine as the fourth best Canadian album of 1993, describing it as "energetic, original guitar rock with sneaky hooks and sometimes confusing lyrics." [16]
AllMusic called Perpetual Motion Machine "a record that, while perhaps a bit cleaner sonically than their debut, finds the band still creating a glorious racket." [9]
No. | Title | Length |
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1. | "Bred in the Bone" | |
2. | "Saviour" | |
3. | "More" | |
4. | "Unconscience" | |
5. | "The Golden Age" | |
6. | "Smoke & Ashes" | |
7. | "What If We Don't Get What We Want?" | |
8. | "Unbound" | |
9. | "Perpetual Motion Machine" | |
10. | "Moment of Clarity" | |
11. | "Dirty Little Rat" | |
12. | "The Estrangement" | |
13. | "Going Under" | |
14. | "Lift You Up" |