''Icky Mettle'' is the first studio album recorded by the

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

band

Archers of Loaf Archers of Loaf is an American indie rock band originally formed in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, in 1991. The group toured extensively and released four studio albums, one compilation, numerous singles and EPs, and a live album which was release ...

. It was produced and engineered by

Caleb Southern Caleb Southern (born December 26, 1969) is an American professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology, musician and record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching ...

at Kraptone Studios in

Chapel Hill, North Carolina Chapel Hill is a town in Orange County, North Carolina, Orange, Durham County, North Carolina, Durham and Chatham County, North Carolina, Chatham counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Its population was 61,960 in the 2020 United States Ce ...

, and released by Alias Records on September 7, 1993. A deluxe reissue of the album was released by

Merge Records Merge Records is an independent record label based in Durham, North Carolina. It was founded in 1989 by Laura Ballance and Mac McCaughan. It began as an outlet for music from their band Superchunk and music created by friends, and has expanded ...

in 2011. The album was recorded and mixed in seven days. According to

Eric Bachmann Eric Bachmann is an American multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and producer. He rose to prominence as the frontman of Archers of Loaf and Crooked Fingers. Originally a saxophone major at Appalachian State University, Bachmann’s music is disti ...

, "We spent like $5,000 to make it."

Reception

''Icky Mettle'' received generally positive reviews. ''

Interview An interview is a structured conversation where one participant asks questions, and the other provides answers.Merriam Webster DictionaryInterview Dictionary definition, Retrieved February 16, 2016 In common parlance, the word "interview" ...

'' declared it the "Best Indie Rock Album of the Year".

Legacy

''Icky Mettle'' ranked number 32 in ''

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''s original Top 100 Albums of the 1990s list, and ''

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'' ranked it at number 56 in their 100 Greatest Indie-Rock Albums Ever list. In a retrospective review, ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...

''s Mike Powell describes it as "an album of boyish fits and noisy guitar flurries. It's indie rock as hearty and art-free as oatmeal, before the line separating it from the mainstream dissolved, before it became so... eclectic." In a 2005 interview with '' The Triangle'', Eric Bachmann reflected on the album: "When we first came out we had that energy. It's a weird thing that you can't put your finger on... I listened to ''Icky Mettle'', and I almost cringe when I hear it. But what the people probably liked when they heard that record was the energy we were putting out." In 2011,

Chris Carrabba Christopher Ender Carrabba (born April 10, 1975) is the lead singer and guitarist of the band Dashboard Confessional, lead singer of the band Further Seems Forever, and is the vocalist for the folk band Twin Forks. Early life and education Bor ...

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covered "Web in Front" on his album '' Covered in the Flood''.

Track listing

All songs written by Eric Bachmann, Eric Johnson, Matt Gentling and Mark Price. #" Web in Front" – 2:09 #"Last Word" – 3:35 #"Wrong" – 3:40 #"You and Me" – 3:10 #"Might" – 2:04 #"Hate Paste" – 2:46 #"Fat" – 1:19 #"Plumb Line" – 2:09 #"Learo, You're a Hole" – 3:51 #"Sick File" – 1:42 #"Toast" – 4:38 #"Backwash" – 3:27 #"Slow Worm" – 3:32

Personnel

– vocals, guitar *Matt Gentling – bass *Eric Johnson – guitar *Mark Price – drums

Notes

# # #

References

{{Authority control 1993 debut albums Archers of Loaf albums Albums produced by Caleb Southern Alias Records albums Merge Records albums Fire Records (UK) albums