''Ass Cobra'' is the third full-length studio album by Norwegian

punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

band

Turbonegro Turbonegro (Turboneger in Norway) is a Norwegian rock band, active from 1989 to 1998 and from 2002 to the present. The band combines glam rock, punk rock, and hard rock into a self-described "deathpunk" musical style. History Early years (19 ...

. It was first released in May 1996, with subsequent reissues in the following years. The album title and cover art is a reference to the

AC Cobra The AC Cobra, sold in the United States as the Shelby Cobra and AC Shelby Cobra, is a sports car manufactured by British company AC Cars, with a List of Ford engines#8 Cylinder, Ford V8 engine. It was produced intermittently in both the Uni ...

sports car and ''

Pet Sounds ''Pet Sounds'' is the eleventh studio album by the American Rock music, rock band the Beach Boys, released on May 16, 1966, by Capitol Records. It was produced, arranged, and primarily composed by Brian Wilson with guest lyricist Tony Asher. R ...

'' by

the Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their f ...

respectively.

Overview and release

''Ass Cobra'' was recorded at Nesodden Musikkverksted in

Nesodden Nesodden is a municipality in Akershus in Akershus county, Norway. It is part of the Greater Oslo Region and many residents of the peninsula Nesodden commute to work in Oslo. It is part of the traditional region of Follo. The administrative ...

, with the exception of "Imorgen Skal Eg Daue" and "Raggare Is A Bunch Of Motherfuckers", which was recorded at the Green Room in

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is the List of municipalities in Wisconsin by population, second-most populous city in the state, with a population of 269,840 at the 2020 Uni ...

. The album saw the band move towards mid-1970s

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

and

glam Glam is a shortened form of the word glamour. Glam or GLAM may also refer to: Film * ''Glam'' (film), a 1997 experimental drama film Institutions * University of Glamorgan, founded in 1913 and merged into the University of South Wales in 2013 ...

territory, in the style of

the Dictators The Dictators are an American rock band formed in New York City in 1973. Known for their acerbic and provocative approach in their music, the Dictators underwent several changes in their lineups. Its founding members included musicians Andy " ...

Ramones The Ramones were an American punk rock band formed in the New York City neighborhood Forest Hills, Queens in 1974. Known for helping establish the punk movement in the United States and elsewhere, the Ramones are often recognized as one of th ...

and late

the Stooges The Stooges or Iggy and the Stooges, originally billed as the Psychedelic Stooges, were an American rock band formed in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1967 by singer Iggy Pop, guitarist Ron Asheton, drummer Scott Asheton, and bassist Dave Alexande ...

, and features covers of songs by punk bands the Lewd and the Rude Kids. ''Ass Cobra'' was released in May 1996 through

Amphetamine Reptile Records Amphetamine Reptile Records (or AmRep Industries) is a record label founded in 1986 by Tom Hazelmyer in Washington state. The label specializes in noise rock and also released ''Strap It On ''Strap It On'' is the debut studio album by Amer ...

in Europe and Boomba Records in Germany. The album was released in the United States by

Sympathy for the Record Industry Sympathy for the Record Industry (also known as Sympathy Records or Sympathy 4 the R.I.) is a mainly independent garage rock and punk label formed in 1988 by John Mermis, known as Long Gone John. Notable artists who started on Sympathy and went ...

in 1997 and included two bonus tracks, "Screwed And Tattooed" and a cover of the

Dicks Dick, Dicks, or Dick's may refer to: Media * ''Dicks'' (album), a 2004 album by Fila Brazillia * Dicks (band), a musical group * ''Dick'' (film), a 1999 American comedy film * "Dick" (song), a 2019 song by Starboi3 featuring Doja Cat * '' D ...

' song "Young Boys Feet". The album was re-released in 1998 on Bitzcore Records in Germany and on

Get Hip Records Get Hip Records is an independent Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Penn ...

in the US. Following

's reunion in 2002, ''Ass Cobra'' was reissued the in 2003 through

Epitaph Records Epitaph Records is an American independent record label owned by Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz. A large portion of the record label, known as Hellcat Records, is owned by Tim Armstrong, frontman of the punk rock band Rancid. Several ...

in the US and

Burning Heart Records Burning Heart Records is an independent record label formed in 1993 in Fagersta, Sweden, and currently based in Örebro. It has a close affiliation with Californian label Epitaph Records, who own the rights to distribute Burning Heart's output ...

in Sweden.

Critical reception

Patrick Kennedy of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

wrote that the album "paves the way or ''Apocalypse Dudes''">Apocalypse_Dudes.html" ;"title="or ''Apocalypse Dudes">or ''Apocalypse Dudes''harshly, with a sinister wash of cymbals, loud guitars and articulate riffs — think Poison Idea meets Alice Cooper. It is here also where Turbonegro developed their signature look: sailor caps, denim from head to toe, mustaches all around, and decidedly butch homoerotic accoutrements. ..Though Turbonegro did quite a bit of recording prior to this album, this was the one that set the pace, and the one that enabled them to record their masterpiece, ''Apocalypse Dudes''". ''Moshable'' magazine remarked that the album was "the very best in obnoxious drunk punk, already a classic buy-or-die thing!" ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

'' rated ''Ass Cobra'' 9 out of 10.

Track listing

Personnel

Turbonegro *

Hank von Helvete Hans-Erik Dyvik Husby (15 June 1972 – 19 November 2021), also known as Hank von Helvete in Norway and Hank von Hell internationally, was a Norwegian singer best known as the lead vocalist of the rock band Turbonegro. He was a member of Turbone ...

(Hans Erik Dyvik Husby) – vocals *Pål Pot Pamparius (Pål Bøttger Kjærnes) – guitar *Rune Rebellion (Rune Grønn) – guitar *Bingo (Bengt Calmeyer) – bass guitar *

Happy-Tom Thomas Seltzer (born 27 July 1969), also known by his stage name Happy-Tom, is a Norwegian-American musician and television presenter. He is best known as the bassist (temporarily drummer) and chief songwriter of the rock band Turbonegro. Ear ...

(Thomas Seltzer) – drums Additional personnel * Christian A. Calmeyer – engineer *Erik Hanisch – engineer (track 13 and 14) *Rich Burnette – engineer (track 13 and 14) *Sean Bovine – engineer (track 13 and 14) *Günter Pauler – direct metal mastering *Morten Andersen – photography *Schlossnose – art direction *Phil "King Irwin" The Whiskey Rebel" Irwin – liner notes

References

{{Authority control 1996 albums Turbonegro albums Burning Heart Records albums Sympathy for the Record Industry albums