Stain
Studio album by
Living Colour
ReleasedMarch 2, 1993 (1993-03-02)
Recorded1992
StudioBearsville Studios, Bearsville, New York and Long View Farm, North Brookfield, Massachusetts
Genre
Length44:56
LabelEpic
ProducerRon Saint Germain, Living Colour
Living Colour chronology
Biscuits
(1991)		 Stain
(1993)		 Pride
(1995)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Rolling Stone[4]
Robert ChristgauA−[5]
Entertainment WeeklyC−[6]
Spin Alternative Record Guide6/10[7]

Stain is the third studio album by American rock band Living Colour. It was released on March 2, 1993, by Epic Records. It is the first album to feature bassist Doug Wimbish. Stain features a generally heavier sound with more pessimistic themes, the songs representing a range of genres. It peaked at #26 on the Billboard 200.

The song "Leave It Alone" was nominated for Best Hard Rock Performance at the 36th Annual Grammy Awards in 1994, but lost to "Plush" by Stone Temple Pilots.

From the mid-1990s through the early 2010s, the album was out of print due to rights issues after a lawsuit from Jon Stainbrook of the band The Stain forced Sony to cease production of the album.[8][9] In November 2013, the album was reissued by Music On CD and is also available as an MP3 download. In June 2018, the album was reissued on limited edition green vinyl.

The album has retrospectively been considered a "dark horse" in the alternative rock, hard rock, and heavy metal genres.[10]

Background

In 2015, Corey Glover explained, "Stain was a darker turn for us. Muzz was out of the band at that point, and Doug had taken over, and we kind of got really dark. I think about songs like 'Postman,' and just how menacing and dark that song is. It had some very interesting things about it, and I think it was a turn. And part of that I think was about how far we had gotten to that point...I don't know if 'jaded' is the word, but we were sort of worn out by the world that we lived in. And just reflecting how worn out we were getting. I think it holds up. If you want to hear some really good hard rock - closer to the metal parts of our existence - I think Stain is the record that has the most of that."[11]

Album cover

The cover art features a woman, the model Mouri Mbonika, wearing a scold's bridle.

Critical reception

At the time of the album's release, reviews were mixed, including David Browne in Entertainment Weekly giving it a C- rating, and saying "What happened to the lively, spunky, and essentially good-humored band of Living Colour’s debut, Vivid? Stain doesn’t flow; it clots."[12] That year, the album did not even make the top-25 'albums of the year list' in Kerrang!, whereas both Vivid and Time's Up had in previous years.[13] But there were also positive reviews, including renowned music critic Robert Christgau giving it an A- rating in Consumer Guide Album, and saying "The best thing about this excellent record is how hard it crunches."[14] And in an interview with Vernon Reid in Rolling Stone that year, journalist David Breskin praised Stain as "by far their best record."[15]

Legacy

Stain was included in the 2014 book Overlooked/Underappreciated: 354 Recordings That Demand Your Attention.[16] In 2018, Loudwire said "But twenty-five years later, the album seems more relevant than it ever was in its day."[17] In 2023, Stain came in at #423 of a "Best 1,000 Albums Ever" list on the PopThruster site. [18] In a retrospective album review, AllMusic said that "The tracks were more focused and streamlined when compared to the all-encompassing compositions on 1990's Time's Up, but were just as hard-hitting and thought provoking."[19]

Possible album re-recording

In 2022, the Metal Injection site reported the band may be re-recording the album, after a post on Instagram that showed Vernon Reid recording guitar parts for a new rendition of the song "Nothingness".[20]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Go Away"Calhoun, Glover, Reid, Wimbish4:03
2."Ignorance Is Bliss"Calhoun, Glover, Reid, Wimbish3:17
3."Leave It Alone"Glover, Reid, Wimbish3:29
4."Bi"Calhoun, Reid4:46
5."Mind Your Own Business"Reid3:17
6."Ausländer"Calhoun, Glover, Reid, Wimbish2:38
7."Never Satisfied"Glover, Reid4:06
8."Nothingness"Calhoun3:30
9."Postman"Reid3:31
10."WTFF" (stands for What-The-Fuck Factor)Betts, Calhoun, Glover, Reid, Wimbish2:15
11."This Little Pig"Calhoun, Glover, Reid, Wimbish3:04
12."Hemp"Reid, Fairley1:36
13."Wall"Calhoun, Glover, Reid, Wimbish5:23
European CD Bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
14."T.V. News"4:20
15."Love Rears Its Ugly Head" (Live)4:18

Personnel

Living Colour

Guest musicians

Technical Personnel

  • Ron Saint Germain – production, recording, mixing
  • Andre Betts – additional production
  • Bob Ludwig – mastering
  • Carol Chen – art direction
  • Amy Guip – photography
  • Mouri Mbonika – cover model

Charts

References

  1. ↑ "Living Colour - Stain".
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Living Colour - Stain". Metal Storm. Retrieved June 19, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Stain Review". Almusic.com. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
  4. ↑ Stain Review. Rolling Stone. 2004. ISBN 9780743201698. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
  5. ↑ "Living Colour Review". Robert Christgau. Retrieved April 28, 2011.
  6. ↑ "Stain Review". EW.com. March 5, 1993. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
  7. ↑ Norris, Chris (1995). "Living Color". In Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig (eds.). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. pp. 226–227. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
  8. ↑ "Man Sues Rock Band Over Use of Word 'Stain'". Associated Press.
  9. ↑ "STAIND Settles Court Case With THE STAIN". October 5, 2006.
  10. ↑ "Living Colour's 'Stain': Underrated and Ahead Of Its Time". loudwire.com. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
  11. ↑ Prato, Greg (2015). Survival of the Fittest: Heavy Metal in the 1990s. Kindle Direct. p. 530. ISBN 9781500328184.
  12. ↑ "Stain". Entertainment Weekly. March 5, 1993. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
  13. ↑ "Rocklist.net...Kerrang! End of Year Lists". Rocklistmusic.co.uk. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
  14. ↑ "Living Colour: Stain [Epic, 1993]". robertchristgau.com. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
  15. ↑ "Voodoo Child: The Rolling Stone Interview with Living Colour's Vernon Reid" (PDF). davidbreskin.com. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
  16. ↑ Prato, Greg (2014). Overlooked/Underappreciated: 354 Recordings That Demand Your Attention. Kindle Direct. p. 115-116. ISBN 9781500328184.
  17. ↑ "Living Colour's 'Stain': Underrated and Ahead Of Its Time". loudwire.com. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
  18. ↑ "LIVING COLOUR – STAIN: #423 OF BEST 1,000 ALBUMS EVER!". popthruster.com. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
  19. ↑ "Living Colour - Stain Album Review". allmusic.com. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
  20. ↑ "Is LIVING COLOUR Re-Recording Stain?". metalinjection.com. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
  21. ↑ "Australiancharts.com – Living Colour – Stain". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 23, 2017.
  22. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Living Colour – Stain" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved September 23, 2017.
  23. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Living Colour – Stain" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved September 23, 2017.
  24. ↑ "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH. Retrieved September 23, 2017.
  25. ↑ "Charts.nz – Living Colour – Stain". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 23, 2017.
  26. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Living Colour – Stain". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 23, 2017.
  27. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Living Colour – Stain". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 23, 2017.
  28. ↑ "Living Colour | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved September 23, 2017.
  29. ↑ "Living Colour Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved September 23, 2017.
  30. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten – Album 1993". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved January 18, 2022.
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