Secret Swingers is an album by the American band Versus, released in 1996.[2][3] The band supported the album by participating in the Caroline All-Stars Fall Tour.[4]
| Secret Swingers | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1996 | |||
| Genre | Indie rock | |||
| Label | TeenBeat/Caroline[1] | |||
| Producer | Nicolas Vernhes | |||
| Versus chronology | ||||
| ||||
Production edit
The band added a second guitar player, James Baluyut, prior to the Secret Swingers recordings sessions.[5] The album was produced by Nicolas Vernhes, and was recorded over a month and a half.[6] The album title and many of the songs allude to double lives and secretive relationships.[7]
Critical reception edit
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [5] |
| Chicago Sun-Times | [8] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [9] |
| MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide |  [10] |
The Nashville Banner called the album "derivative of Sonic Youth," but wrote that "Versus still manages to bring its fair share of ideas to the table."[11] The Village Voice deemed it "as 'original' as guitar-bass-drums-vocals indie-rock music gets," declaring that "with equal boy and girl intensity, and ecstatic, near-schizophrenic tempo/volume changes, Versus have forged that rare commodity: a 'sound'."[6] The Sunday Times praised Fontaine Toups, writing that she "supplies the kind of motorised bass parts New Order's Peter Hook wouldn't have been ashamed of."[12] The Day noted Versus' "odd guitar tunings, bittersweet vocal harmonies and paranoid lyrics."[13]
AllMusic called the album "a superbly textured set more consistent and eclectic than anything else the band has done to date."[5] Magnet wrote that "Secret Swingers may not have been revolutionary, but like a good inside joke between friends, it stuck around."[14] Reviewing the band's 2010 album, On the Ones and Threes, Pitchfork thought that Versus' two Caroline releases "sound as close as most any other records to a definitive indie rock sound."[15]
Track listing edit
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Lose That Dress" | |
| 2. | "Yeah You" | |
| 3. | "Glitter of Love" | |
| 4. | "Ghost Story" | |
| 5. | "Use as Directed" | |
| 6. | "Double Suicide (Mercy Killing)" | |
| 7. | "Jealous" | |
| 8. | "Shower Song" | |
| 9. | "Angels Rush In" | |
| 10. | "One Million" | |
| 11. | "A Heart Is a Diamond" |
References edit
- ^ "Versus". Trouser Press. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
- ^ "Versus Biography & History". AllMusic.
- ^ Thompson, Stephen (31 Oct 1996). "More 'Ween Shows Than You Can Wave a Witch's Broom At". Rhythm. Wisconsin State Journal. p. 9.
- ^ Stifler, John (5 Sep 1996). "Count 'em, three bands touring". Daily Hampshire Gazette. p. 4.33.
- ^ a b c "Secret Swingers". AllMusic.
- ^ a b McGonigal, Mike (6 Aug 1996). "Suicide missionaries". The Village Voice. Vol. 41, no. 32. p. 59.
- ^ Perry, Jonathan (25 Oct 1996). "Versus: Ethereal pop at a hard-rock pace". Weekend. The State. p. 14.
- ^ Williams, Kevin M. (December 1, 1996). "Spin Control". Showcase. Chicago Sun-Times. p. 14.
- ^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 8. MUZE. p. 426.
- ^ MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 1197.
- ^ Gray, Michael (24 Oct 1996). "Versus". Nashville Banner. p. C4.
- ^ Lee, Stewart (1 Sep 1996). "Versus Secret Swingers Caroline". Features. The Sunday Times. p. 1.
- ^ Timberg, Scott (5 Sep 1996). "Plenty of alternatives for alternative rock". Music. The Day. p. 4.
- ^ "Lost Classics: Versus "Secret Swingers"". Magnet. February 14, 2009.
- ^ "Versus: On the Ones and Threes". Pitchfork.