Vicious Circle (L.A. Guns album)
Vicious Circle | ||||
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Studio album by L.A. Guns | ||||
Released | October 4, 1994 | |||
Studio |
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Genre | Hard rock | |||
Length | 56:06 | |||
Label | Polydor[1] | |||
Producer |
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L.A. Guns chronology | ||||
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Singles from L.A. Guns | ||||
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Vicious Circle is the fourth album by the American hard rock band L.A. Guns.[2][3] The first single was "Long Time Dead".[4] The band supported the album with a North American tour.[5]
Production
Michael "Bones" Gersema drums on several songs.[1] "I'd Love to Change the World" is a cover of the Ten Years After song.[6]
Critical reception
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Calgary Herald | A−[6] |
Chicago Tribune | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal | 8/10[9] |
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Rock Hard | 8.0/10[10] |
The Tampa Tribune | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Chicago Tribune stated that the band "hasn't wandered a bit from the glam metal they helped popularize in the late '80s—a raunchy sound that makes the true headbanger cringe," but conceded that the album "also features some danceable tunes."[8] The Calgary Herald determined that "bow-taut guitar solos are slung against arrows of melody fired at the bulls-eye of '70s rock."[6] The Tampa Tribune opined that "guitarist Tracii Guns' trigger-finger riffs still fire faster than a speeding bullet."[11]
Track listing
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Face Down" | Kelly Nickels, Mick Cripps, Michael Gersema, Phil Lewis, Tracii Guns | 4:11 |
2. | "No Crime" | Nickels, Gersema, Steve Dior | 2:35 |
3. | "Long Time Dead" | Nickels, Cripps, Lewis, Guns | 3:22 |
4. | "Killing Machine" | Nickels, Cripps, Lewis, Guns | 3:27 |
5. | "Fade Away" | Nickels, Cripps, Gersema, Lewis, Guns | 4:11 |
6. | "Tarantula" (instrumental) | Nickels, Cripps, Lewis, Guns | 0:56 |
7. | "Crystal Eyes" (American and European bonus track) | Nickels, Cripps, Lewis, Steve Riley, Guns | 5:53 |
8. | "Nothing Better to Do" | Nickels, Cripps, Lewis, Guns | 2:52 |
9. | "Chasing the Dragon" | Nickels, Cripps, Gersema, Lewis, Guns | 4:50 |
10. | "Kill That Girl" | Nickels, Cripps, Lewis, Guns | 3:13 |
11. | "I'd Love to Change the World" (Ten Years After cover) | Alvin Lee | 3:39 |
12. | "Who's in Control (Let 'Em Roll)" | Nickels, Cripps, Lewis, Guns | 4:02 |
13. | "I'm the One" | Nickels, Cripps, Gersema, Lewis, Guns | 2:28 |
14. | "Why Ain't I Bleeding" | Nickels, Cripps, Lewis, Guns | 4:32 |
15. | "Kiss of Death" | Gersema, Lewis, Dior | 5:55 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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16. | "Death in America" | Nickels, Cripps, Gersema, Lewis, Guns | 3:41 |
17. | "Empire Down" | 3:29 | |
Total length: | 57:23 |
Personnel
- Phil Lewis – lead vocals except on "Nothing Better to Do", acoustic guitar
- Tracii Guns – lead guitar, acoustic guitar, backing vocals
- Mick Cripps – lead and rhythm guitar, piano, keyboards, bass on track 4, backing vocals
- Kelly Nickels – bass guitar, lead vocals on "Nothing Better to Do", backing vocals
- Additional musicians
- Guy Griffin – acoustic guitar on track 15
- Michael “Bones” Gersema – drums on tracks 1, 5, 9, 13–17, backing vocals on tracks 1, 13 and 14
- Myron Grombacher – drums on tracks 2, 10–12
- Nickey Alexander – drums on track 4
- Steve Riley – drums on track 7
- Doni Gray – drums on track 8
- Steve Councel – harmonica on track 8, 14 and 15, backing vocals on track 8
- Cliff Brodsky – piano on track 8
- Steve Dior – backing vocals on track 2
- Jim Wirt – backing vocals
- Production
- Jim Wirt – producer, engineer, mixing of tracks 6, 11 to 13
- Michael James Jackson – producer and engineer on "Crystal Eyes"
- Dan Daniel, Dennis Degher, Jeff Graham, Mark Shoffner, Marnie Riley, Tim Allison – assistant engineers
- Mick Guzauski – mixing of tracks 1 to 5, 7 to 10, 14, 15
- Stephen Marcussen – mastering
- Robert Bisbo – album cover art
Charts
Chart (1995) | Peak position |
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Japanese Albums (Oricon)[12] | 58 |
UK Rock & Metal Albums (OCC)[13] | 13 |
References
- ^ a b c Larkin, Colin (May 27, 2011). "The Encyclopedia of Popular Music". Omnibus Press – via Google Books.
- ^ "L.A. Guns Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic.
- ^ Maples, Tina (9 Feb 1995). "Fans of late '80s big-hair rock...". The Milwaukee Journal. p. D4.
- ^ Weatherford, Mike (10 Feb 1995). "On Tuesday, it's L.A. Guns...". Las Vegas Review-Journal. p. 2D.
- ^ Harrison, Tom (17 Mar 1995). "L.A. Guns aiming to be respected old guys". The Province. p. B16.
- ^ a b c McEwen, Mary-Lynn (5 Mar 1995). "RECENT RELEASES". Calgary Herald. p. C2.
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "L.A. Guns - Vicious Circle review". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
- ^ a b Golemis, Dean (2 Mar 1995). "Recordings". Tempo. Chicago Tribune. p. 8.
- ^ Popoff, Martin (1 August 2007). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 3: The Nineties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. p. 238. ISBN 978-1-894959-62-9.
- ^ "L.A. GUNS - Vicious Circle". ROCK HARD Heavy-Metal-Magazin.
- ^ a b Woitas, Nanette (March 10, 1995). "L.A. GUNS, Vicious Circle". FRIDAY EXTRA!. The Tampa Tribune. p. 21.
- ^ Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005 (in Japanese). Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
- ^ "Official Rock & Metal Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 25, 2024.
- v
- t
- e
- Guns/Lewis version members:
- Tracii Guns
- Phil Lewis
- Adam Hamilton
- Johnny Martin
- Ace Von Johnson
- Shawn Duncan
- Riley/Nickels version members:
- Kelly Nickels
- Steve Riley
- Scott Griffin
- Kurt Frohlich
Vocalists |
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Guitarists |
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Bassists | |
Drummers |
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Original |
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Re-recordings |
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- Collector's Edition No. 1
- Cuts
- Wasted
- Live! Vampires
- Live: A Night on the Strip
- Loud & Dangerous: Live from Hollywood
- Hellraiser's Ball: Caught in the Act
- Made in Milan
- Best Of: Hollywood a Go-Go
- Hollywood Rehearsal
- Black City Breakdown (1985–1986)
- Hollywood Raw: The Original Sessions
- Black List
- 20th Century Masters – The Millennium Collection: The Best of L.A. Guns