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{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2024}}
{{for|the Russian band|Kirpichi}}
{{Infobox album
{{Infobox album
| name = Bricks Are Heavy
| name = Bricks Are Heavy
| type = studio
| type = studio
| artist = [[L7 (band)|L7]]
| artist = [[L7 (band)|L7]]
| cover = L7 bricks are heavy.jpg
| cover = L7 bricks are heavy.jpg
| alt =
| alt =
| released = {{Start date|1992|04|14}}
| released = {{Start date|1992|04|14}}
| recorded = November 1991<ref>{{Cite web |date= |title=L7 Time Line |url=http://www.repriserec.com/L7/TimeLine/time.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19980123192505/http://www.repriserec.com/L7/TimeLine/time.html |archive-date=1998-01-23 |access-date=2024-08-02 |website=[[Reprise Records|repriserec.com]]}}</ref>
| recorded = 1991 - 1992
⚫
| studio = {{ubl|[[Smart Studios|Smart]] (Madison, Wisconsin)|[[Sound City Studios|Sound City]] (Van Nuys, California)}}
| venue =
⚫
| genre = {{flatlist|
⚫
| studio = [[Smart Studios]] in [[Madison, Wisconsin]]; [[Sound City Studios|Sound City]] in [[Van Nuys, California]]
| genre = *[[Grunge]]
* [[Grunge]]
*[[alternative metal]]
* [[riot grrrl]]
* [[punk rock]]
⚫
| length = {{Duration|m=37|s=28}}
* [[alternative metal]]
⚫
| label = [[Slash Records|Slash]]
}}
⚫
| producer = {{flatlist|
⚫
| length = {{Duration|m=37|s=28}}
⚫
| label = [[Slash Records|Slash]]
| producer = {{flatlist|
* L7
* L7
* [[Butch Vig]]
* [[Butch Vig]]
}}
}}
| prev_title = [[Smell the Magic]]
| prev_title = [[Smell the Magic]]
| prev_year = 1990
| prev_year = 1990
| next_title = [[Hungry for Stink]]
| next_title = [[Hungry for Stink]]
| next_year = 1994
| next_year = 1994
| misc = {{Singles
| misc = {{Singles
| name = Bricks Are Heavy
| name = Bricks Are Heavy
| type = Studio Album
| type = Studio Album
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}}
}}
}}
}}
'''''Bricks Are Heavy''''' is the third studio album by [[L7 (band)|L7]], released in April 1992 by [[Slash Records]].


The album peaked at number 160 on the [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' 200]] chart,<ref name=billboard200/> as well as number 1 on the [[Heatseekers Albums]] chart.<ref name=heatseekers/>
'''''Bricks Are Heavy''''' is the third [[studio album]] by American [[rock music|rock]] band [[L7 (band)|L7]], released on April 14, 1992, by [[Slash Records]]. The album peaked at number 160 on the [[Billboard 200|US ''Billboard'' 200]]<ref name=billboard200/> and number one on the [[Heatseekers Albums]] chart.<ref name=heatseekers/> As of June 2000, ''Bricks Are Heavy'' has sold 327,000 copies in the United States, according to [[Nielsen SoundScan|Nielsen Soundscan]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Inc |first=Nielsen Business Media |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rg8EAAAAMBAJ&dq=drain+sth+soundscan&pg=PA38 |title=Billboard |date=2000-06-24 |publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc. |language=en}}</ref>


==Production==
==Production==
Musically the album is heavier and dirtier than the band's previous recordings and described as "catchy tunes and mean vocals on top of ugly guitars and a quick-but-thick bottom of cast-iron grunge" by ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''.<ref name="ew"/>
Produced by the band and [[Butch Vig]], musically the album is heavier and dirtier than the band's previous recordings and described as "catchy tunes and mean vocals on top of ugly guitars and a quick-but-thick bottom of cast-iron [[grunge]]" by ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''{{'}}s [[Gina Arnold]].<ref name="Arnold"/>


==Critical reception==
==Critical reception==
{{Album ratings
{{Music ratings
| rev1 = [[AllMusic]]
| rev1 = [[AllMusic]]
| rev1score = {{Rating|4.5|5}}<ref name="allmusic">{{cite web|last=Rivadavia|first=Eduardo|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/bricks-are-heavy-mw0000610622|title=Bricks Are Heavy – L7|publisher=[[AllMusic]]|accessdate=March 17, 2010}}</ref>
| rev1score = {{Rating|4.5|5}}<ref name="Rivadavia">{{cite web|last=Rivadavia|first=Eduardo|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/bricks-are-heavy-mw0000610622|title=Bricks Are Heavy – L7|website=[[AllMusic]]|access-date=March 17, 2010}}</ref>
| rev2 = ''[[Christgau's Consumer Guide]]''
| rev2 = ''[[Chicago Tribune]]''
| rev2score = A<ref name="CG">{{cite book|last=Christgau|first=Robert|authorlink=Robert Christgau|year=2000|page=185|chapter-url=https://www.robertchristgau.com/get_album.php?id=1977|chapter=L7: Bricks Are Heavy|title=Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s|publisher=[[Macmillan Publishers]]|isbn=0-312-24560-2|accessdate=February 5, 2017}}</ref>
| rev2score = {{Rating|2.5|4}}<ref name="Kot">{{cite news|last=Kot|first=Greg|author-link=Greg Kot|date=May 7, 1992|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1992/05/07/l7-bricks-are-heavy-slash-starstar-12heres/|title=L7: Bricks are Heavy (Slash)|newspaper=[[Chicago Tribune]]|access-date=February 5, 2017}}</ref>
| rev3 = ''[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]''
| rev3 = ''[[Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s|Christgau's Consumer Guide]]''
| rev3Score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name="Larkin">{{cite book|last=Larkin|first=Colin|authorlink=Colin Larkin (writer)|year=2011|chapter=L7|title=[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music|The Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]|edition=5th concise|publisher=[[Omnibus Press]]|isbn=0-85712-595-8}}</ref>
| rev3score = A<ref>{{cite book|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|year=2000|chapter=L7: Bricks Are Heavy|chapter-url=https://robertchristgau.com/get_album.php?id=1977|access-date=February 5, 2017|title=Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s|title-link=Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s|publisher=[[St. Martin's Griffin]]|isbn=0-312-24560-2|page=184}}</ref>
| rev4 = ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''
| rev4 = ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''
| rev4score = A<ref name="ew">{{cite journal|last=Arnold|first=Gina|authorlink=Gina Arnold|date=June 19, 1992|url=http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,310832,00.html|title=Bricks Are Heavy|journal=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|accessdate=May 9, 2013}}</ref>
| rev4score = A<ref name="Arnold">{{cite magazine|last=Arnold|first=Gina|author-link=Gina Arnold|date=June 19, 1992|url=https://ew.com/article/1992/06/19/bricks-are-heavy/|title=Bricks Are Heavy|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|issue=123|access-date=May 9, 2013|page=71}}</ref>
| rev5 = ''[[Los Angeles Times]]''
| rev5 = ''[[Kerrang!]]''
| rev5Score = {{Rating|3|4}}<ref>{{cite news|last=Gold|first=Jonathan|date=May 3, 1992|url=http://articles.latimes.com/1992-05-03/entertainment/ca-2063_1_rock-band|title=L7, 'Bricks Are Heavy', Slash|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]]|accessdate=February 5, 2017}}</ref>
| rev5score = 5/5<ref name="Chirazi">{{cite magazine|last=Chirazi|first=Steffan|date=April 4, 1992|title=Brick it up!|magazine=[[Kerrang!]]|issue=386|page=25}}</ref>
| rev6 = ''[[MusicHound|MusicHound Rock]]''
| rev6 = ''[[Los Angeles Times]]''
| rev6score = {{Rating|3|4}}<ref name="Gold">{{cite news|last=Gold|first=Jonathan|author-link=Jonathan Gold|date=May 3, 1992|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-05-03-ca-2063-story.html|title=L7, 'Bricks Are Heavy', Slash|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]]|access-date=February 5, 2017}}</ref>
| rev6Score = 4.5/5<ref>{{cite book|editor1-last=Graff|editor1-first=Gary|editor2-last=Durchholz|editor2-first=Daniel|title=[[MusicHound|MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide]]|edition=2nd|publisher=[[Visible Ink Press]]|location=Farmington Hills, MI|year=1999|isbn=1-57859-061-2|chapter=L7}}</ref>
| rev7 = ''[[Q (magazine)|Q]]''
| rev7 = ''[[NME]]''
| rev7Score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref>{{cite journal|date=April 1992|title=L7: Bricks Are Heavy|journal=[[Q (magazine)|Q]]|issue=67|page=76}}</ref>
| rev7score = 8/10<ref name="Lewis">{{cite magazine|last=Lewis|first=Angela|date=April 11, 1992|title=Kicking Against the Bricks|magazine=[[NME]]|page=32}}</ref>
| rev8 = ''[[Rolling Stone]]''
| rev8 = ''[[Rolling Stone]]''
| rev8score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref>{{cite journal|last=Berger|first=Arion|date=September 17, 1992|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/artists/l7/albums/album/111548/review/5941367/bricks_are_heavy|title=L7: Bricks Are Heavy|journal=[[Rolling Stone]]|accessdate=May 9, 2013|page=94|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071112180142/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/l7/albums/album/111548/review/5941367/bricks_are_heavy|archivedate=November 12, 2007|deadurl=yes}}</ref>
| rev8score = {{Rating|3|5}}<ref name="Berger">{{cite magazine|last=Berger|first=Arion|date=September 17, 1992|url=http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/l7/albums/album/111548/review/5941367/bricks_are_heavy|title=L7: Bricks Are Heavy|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|issue=639|access-date=May 9, 2013|page=94|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071112180142/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/l7/albums/album/111548/review/5941367/bricks_are_heavy|archive-date=November 12, 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref>
| rev9 = ''[[The Rolling Stone Album Guide]]''
| rev9 = ''[[The Rolling Stone Album Guide]]''
| rev9Score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name="Sheffield">{{cite book|last=Harris|first=Keith|year=2004|page=500|chapter=L7|editor1-last=Brackett|editor1-first=Nathan|editor2-last=Hoard|editor2-first=Christian|title=[[The Rolling Stone Album Guide|The New Rolling Stone Album Guide]]|edition=4th|publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]]|isbn=0-7432-0169-8}}</ref>
| rev9score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite book|last=Harris|first=Keith|editor1-last=Brackett|editor1-first=Nathan|editor1-link=Nathan Brackett|editor2-last=Hoard|editor2-first=Christian|editor2-link=Christian Hoard|year=2004|chapter=L7|title=The New Rolling Stone Album Guide|title-link=The Rolling Stone Album Guide|publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]]|edition=4th|isbn=0-7432-0169-8|page=[https://archive.org/details/newrollingstonea00brac/page/500 500]}}</ref>
| rev10 = ''[[Spin Alternative Record Guide]]''
| rev10 = ''[[Spin Alternative Record Guide]]''
| rev10Score = 9/10<ref>{{cite book|chapter=L7|editor1-last=Weisbard|editor1-first=Eric|editor2-last=Marks|editor2-first=Craig|year=1995|title=[[Spin Alternative Record Guide]]|publisher=[[Vintage Books]]|isbn=0-679-75574-8}}</ref>
| rev10score = 9/10<ref>{{cite book|last=Stovall|first=Natasha|editor1-last=Weisbard|editor1-first=Eric|editor1-link=Eric Weisbard|editor2-last=Marks|editor2-first=Craig|year=1995|chapter=L7|title=Spin Alternative Record Guide|title-link=Spin Alternative Record Guide|publisher=[[Vintage Books]]|isbn=0-679-75574-8|page=231}}</ref>
}}
}}
⚫
In a contemporary review for ''[[Playboy]]'', [[Robert Christgau]] regarded ''Bricks Are Heavy'' as an "object lesson in how to advance your music by meeting the marketplace halfway", though he believed it would not sell as much as it deserved. He said Vig helped L7 produce grunge-metal featuring "intense admixtures of ditty and power chord" that "never quite gathers [[Nirvana (band)|Nirvana]]'s momentum, but it's just as catchy and a touch nastier."<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Christgau|first=Robert|authorlink=Robert Christgau|date=June 1992|url=https://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/play/1992-06.php|title=L7, Roches, Yo Yo, Rosie Flores|magazine=[[Playboy]]|accessdate=February 5, 2017}}</ref> [[Greg Kot]] was less enthusiastic in the ''[[Chicago Tribune]]'', writing that there were not many good songs such as "Slide" and "the performances-while certainly ferocious-aren`t sufficiently varied enough to make up the difference."<ref name="Kot">{{cite news|last=Kot|first=Greg|authorlink=Greg Kot|date=May 7, 1992|url=http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1992-05-07/features/9202100450_1_star-axl-rose-smashing-pumpkins|title=L7: Bricks are Heavy (Slash)|newspaper=[[Chicago Tribune]]|accessdate=February 5, 2017}}</ref>


⚫
In a contemporary review for ''[[Playboy]]'', [[Robert Christgau]] regarded ''Bricks Are Heavy'' as an "object lesson in how to advance your music by meeting the marketplace halfway", although he believed it would not sell as much as it deserved. He said Vig helped L7 produce grunge-[[heavy metal music|metal]] featuring "intense admixtures of ditty and [[power chord]]" that "never quite gathers [[Nirvana (band)|Nirvana]]'s momentum, but it's just as catchy and a touch nastier."<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Christgau|first=Robert|authorlink=Robert Christgau|date=June 1992|url=https://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/play/1992-06.php|title=L7, Roches, Yo Yo, Rosie Flores|magazine=[[Playboy]]|accessdate=February 5, 2017}}</ref> ''[[NME]]'' critic Angela Lewis called ''Bricks Are Heavy'' a "polished, virile white heat rock" record that "verifies their [[hard rock]] credentials completely" and demonstrates that L7 ought not to be pigeonholed as a grunge act in the vein of "[[Hole (band)|Hole]]–[[Babes in Toyland (band)|Babes]]–[[Calamity Jane (grunge band)|Jane]]".<ref name="Lewis"/> ''[[Kerrang!]]''{{'}}s Steffan Chirazi was most impressed by the album's "relentlessness" in "driving the frustrations of everyday life home",<ref name="Chirazi"/> and Gina Arnold said in ''Entertainment Weekly'' that L7 distinguish themselves from the musically similar Nirvana through the "clarity" of their lyrics. "Although the band's positive-plus stances on liberal issues may not instantly endear it to fuzzy-minded teen America," Arnold wrote, "L7 does manage to be simultaneously fun and furious, an intensely appealing combination."<ref name="Arnold"/>
''[[NME]]'' listed it as the 39th best album of 1992.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nme.com/bestalbumsandtracksoftheyear/1992-2-1045374|title=Albums And Tracks Of The Year: 1992|work=[[NME]]|date=October 10, 2016|accessdate=January 15, 2018}}</ref> It was ranked at number 4 on ''[[The Village Voice]]''{{'}}s "Pazz & Jop: Dean's List",<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/pnj/deans92.php|title=Pazz & Jop 1992: Dean's List|work=[[Robert Christgau]]|accessdate=January 15, 2018}}</ref> as well as number 32 on their "Pazz & Jop: Critics Poll".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/pnj/pjres92.php|title=The 1992 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll|work=[[Robert Christgau]]|accessdate=January 15, 2018}}</ref> In 2015, ''[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]'' placed it at number 249 on the "300 Best Albums of the Past 30 Years (1985-2014)" list.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.spin.com/2015/05/the-300-best-albums-of-the-past-30-years-1985-2014/|title=The 300 Best Albums of the Past 30 Years (1985-2014)|work=[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]|date=May 11, 2015|accessdate=January 15, 2018}}</ref>

''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' writer [[Jonathan Gold]], while finding ''Bricks Are Heavy'' "a very good, sometimes brilliant hard-rock album", expressed reservations about Vig's polished production, saying that although it suited "a [[pop music|pop]] band at heart" like Nirvana, "L7 is a ''rock'' band, less like [[the Byrds]] than like the [[MC5]], less about pop craft than about sheer aggression."<ref name="Gold"/> Arion Berger of ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' felt that the production's "neatly modulated dynamics" rendered the album "merely raucous where it might have been apocalyptic."<ref name="Berger"/> In the ''[[Chicago Tribune]]'', [[Greg Kot]] opined that there were not many good songs such as "Slide" and "the performances—while certainly ferocious—aren't sufficiently varied enough to make up the difference."<ref name="Kot"/>

''NME'' listed ''Bricks Are Heavy'' as the 39th best album of 1992.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.nme.com/features/1992-2-1045374|title=1992 – The Loved Albums|magazine=[[NME]]|date=December 19–26, 1992|access-date=January 15, 2018|pages=56–57}}</ref> It placed at number 32 in ''[[The Village Voice]]''{{'}}s [[Pazz & Jop]] critics' poll,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://robertchristgau.com/xg/pnj/pjres92.php|title=The 1992 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll|newspaper=[[The Village Voice]]|date=March 2, 1993|access-date=January 15, 2018}}</ref> with the poll's creator Robert Christgau ranking the album fourth on his ballot.<ref>{{cite news|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|date=March 2, 1993|url=https://robertchristgau.com/xg/pnj/deans92.php|title=Pazz & Jop 1992: Dean's List|newspaper=[[The Village Voice]]|access-date=January 15, 2018}}</ref>

===Legacy===
Reviewing ''Bricks Are Heavy'' for [[AllMusic]], Eduardo Rivadavia said that Vig helped L7 "obtain a tight, compact sound" and sharpen their songwriting on what would be their "crowning achievement" and "an impossible act to follow".<ref name="Rivadavia"/>

''Bricks Are Heavy'' is now regarded as one of grunge music's best albums. ''Treble''{{'}}s Brian Roesler credited L7 with helping to define "the very best of early grunge" through the album's fusion of pop and metal musical elements.<ref name="TrebleList16"/>

In 2015, ''[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]'' placed ''Bricks Are Heavy'' at number 249 on its list of the "300 Best Albums of the Past 30 Years".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.spin.com/2015/05/the-300-best-albums-of-the-past-30-years-1985-2014/|title=The 300 Best Albums of the Past 30 Years (1985–2014)|website=[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]|date=May 11, 2015|access-date=January 15, 2018|page=1}}</ref>

===Accolades===
{|class="wikitable sortable"
|+ Critical rankings for ''Bricks Are Heavy''
! Publication
! Country
! Type
! List
! Year
! Rank
! class="unsortable"|{{abbr|Ref.|Reference}}
⚫
|-
| ''Treble''
| scope="rowspan" rowspan=2|United States
| scope="rowspan" rowspan=4|All-time
| The 30 Best Grunge Albums
| 2016
| scope="rowspan" rowspan=2|15
| <ref name="TrebleList16">{{Cite web|url=https://www.treblezine.com/32089-the-30-best-grunge-albums/|author=''Treble'' staff|date=October 6, 2016|title=The 30 Best Grunge Albums {{!}} Treble|work=Treble|access-date=May 20, 2023}}</ref>
|-
| ''[[Rolling Stone]]''
| 50 Greatest Grunge Albums
| 2019
| <ref name="RSList19">{{Cite web|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/50-greatest-grunge-albums-798851/|date=April 1, 2019|title=Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden: 50 Best Grunge Albums|work=[[Rolling Stone]]|access-date=May 20, 2023}}</ref>
|-
| ''[[Far Out (magazine)|Far Out]]''
| United Kingdom
| The 10 best grunge albums of all time
| 2021
⚫
| 4
| <ref name="FOList21">{{Cite web|url=https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/10-best-grunge-albums-of-all-time/|last=Starker|first=Arun|date=May 12, 2021|title=From Pearl Jam to Nirvana: The 10 best grunge albums of all time|work=[[Far Out (magazine)|Far Out]]|access-date=May 20, 2023}}</ref>
|-
| ''[[Loudwire]]''
| United States
| The 30 Best Grunge Albums of All Time
| 2023
| 16
| <ref name="LoudwireList23">{{Cite web|url=https://loudwire.com/top-grunge-albums-all-time/|author=''Loudwire'' staff|date=January 10, 2023|title=The 30 Best Grunge Albums of All Time - Loudwire|work=[[Loudwire]]|access-date=May 20, 2023}}</ref>
|}


==Track listing==
==Track listing==
Line 83: Line 136:
| title5 = [[Everglade (song)|Everglade]]
| title5 = [[Everglade (song)|Everglade]]
| length5 = 3:18
| length5 = 3:18
| writer5 = [[Jennifer Finch]], Daniel Ray
| writer5 = [[Jennifer Finch]], [[Daniel Rey]]
| title6 = Slide
| title6 = Slide
| length6 = 3:37
| length6 = 3:37
Line 108: Line 161:


;L7
;L7
* [[Donita Sparks]] – guitar, lead vocals (on tracks 1, 2, 3, 4, 8 and 10)
* [[Donita Sparks]] – guitar, lead vocals (tracks 1, 2, 3, 4, 8 and 10)
* [[Suzi Gardner]] – guitar, lead vocals (on tracks 6, 9 and 11)
* [[Suzi Gardner]] – guitar, lead vocals (tracks 6, 9 and 11)
* [[Jennifer Finch]] – bass guitar, lead vocals (on tracks 5 and 7)
* [[Jennifer Finch]] – bass, lead vocals (tracks 5 and 7)
* [[Demetra Plakas]] – drums, backing vocals (on track 3)
* [[Demetra Plakas]] – drums, backing vocals (track 3)


;Additional musician
;Additional musician
Line 131: Line 184:
{{col-begin}}
{{col-begin}}
{{col-2}}
{{col-2}}

;Album
===Album===
{|class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" style="text-align:center;" border="1"
{|class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" style="text-align:center;" border="1"
!scope="col"| Chart
!scope="col"| Chart (1992)
!scope="col"| Peak<br />position
!scope="col"| Peak<br />position
|-
|-
{{album chart|Australia|47|artist=L7|album=Bricks Are Heavy|rowheader=true|access-date=August 18, 2022}}
⚫
!scope="row"| US [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' 200]]<ref name=billboard200>{{cite web|url=http://www.billboard.com/music/L7/chart-history/billboard-200|title=L7 - Billboard 200|work=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]|accessdate=January 15, 2018}}</ref>
| 160
⚫
|-
!scope="row"| US [[Heatseekers Albums]] (''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'')<ref name=heatseekers>{{cite web|url=http://www.billboard.com/music/L7/chart-history/heatseekers-albums|title=L7 - Heatseekers Albums|work=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]|accessdate=January 15, 2018}}</ref>
⚫
| 1
|-
|-
!scope="row"| UK Albums ([[Official Charts Company|OCC]])<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/27454/l7/|title=L7|work=[[Official Charts Company]]|accessdate=January 15, 2018}}</ref>
!scope="row"| UK Albums ([[Official Charts Company|OCC]])<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/27454/l7/|title=L7|work=[[Official Charts Company]]|accessdate=January 15, 2018}}</ref>
| 24
| 24
|-
|-
!scope="row"| Australian Albums ([[ARIA Charts|ARIA]])<ref>{{cite web |url=http://australian-charts.com/showinterpret.asp?interpret=L7|title=L7|work=australian-charts.com|publisher=Hung Medien|accessdate=January 15, 2018}}</ref>
!scope="row"| US [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' 200]]<ref name=billboard200>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/l7/chart-history/tlp/|title=L7 - Billboard 200|magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]|accessdate=January 15, 2018}}</ref>
| 47
| 160
|-
|-
⚫
!scope="row"| US [[Heatseekers Albums]] (''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'')<ref name=heatseekers>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/l7/chart-history/tln/|title=L7 - Heatseekers Albums|magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]|accessdate=January 15, 2018}}</ref>
| 1
|}
|}


{{col-2}}
{{col-2}}

;Singles
===Singles===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
!rowspan="2"|Year
!rowspan="2"|Year
Line 158: Line 211:
|-
|-
!width=25px|{{small|[[Hot Modern Rock Tracks|US]]}}<br /><sup>[[Hot Modern Rock Tracks|Mod]]</sup>
!width=25px|{{small|[[Hot Modern Rock Tracks|US]]}}<br /><sup>[[Hot Modern Rock Tracks|Mod]]</sup>
!width=25px|{{small|[[ARIA Charts|AUS]]}} <ref name="aust">{{cite web |url=http://australian-charts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=L7&titel=Pretend+We%27re+Dead&cat=s |title=L7 Discography |accessdate=2009-12-02 |publisher=austriancharts.at |date= }}</ref>
!width=25px|{{small|[[ARIA Charts|AUS]]}} <ref name="aust">{{cite web |url=http://australian-charts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=L7&titel=Pretend+We%27re+Dead&cat=s |title=L7 Discography |accessdate=2009-12-02 |website=australian-charts.com}}
* "Everglade": {{cite Ryan|page=159}}</ref>
!width=25px|{{small|[[UK Albums Chart|UK]]}} <ref name="ukchart">{{cite web |url=http://www.chartstats.com/artistinfo.php?id=6478 |title=L7|accessdate=2009-01-31 |publisher=chartstats.com |date= }}</ref>
!width=25px|{{small|[[UK Albums Chart|UK]]}} <ref name="ukchart">{{cite web |url=https://www.officialcharts.com/artists/ |title=L7|accessdate=2009-01-31 |publisher=[[Official Charts Company]] |date= }}</ref>
|-
|-
|rowspan="3" align="left"|1992
|rowspan="3" align="left"|1992
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|align="left"| "[[Everglade (song)|Everglade]]"
|align="left"| "[[Everglade (song)|Everglade]]"
|| — || — || 27
|| — || 85 || 27
|-
|-
|align="left"| "[[Monster (L7 song)|Monster]]"
|align="left"| "[[Monster (L7 song)|Monster]]"
|| — || — || 33
|| — || — || 33
|-
|-
|colspan=5 style=font-size:8pt;|"—" denotes singles that were released but did not chart.
|colspan="5" style="font-size:85%"|"—" denotes singles that were released but did not chart.
|}
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{{col-end}}
{{col-end}}
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{{L7}}
{{L7}}

{{Authority control}}


[[Category:1992 albums]]
[[Category:1992 albums]]
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[[Category:Albums produced by Butch Vig]]
[[Category:Albums produced by Butch Vig]]
[[Category:Slash Records albums]]
[[Category:Slash Records albums]]
[[Category:Decibel Magazine Hall of Fame inductees]]
[[Category:Albums recorded at Sound City Studios]]

Latest revision as of 07:04, 19 November 2024

For the Russian band, see Kirpichi.
Bricks Are Heavy
Studio album by
L7
ReleasedApril 14, 1992 (1992-04-14)
RecordedNovember 1991[1]
Studio
Genre
Length37:28
LabelSlash
Producer
L7 chronology
Smell the Magic
(1990) 		Bricks Are Heavy
(1992) 		Hungry for Stink
(1994)
Singles from Bricks Are Heavy
  1. "Pretend We're Dead"
    Released: 1992
  2. "Everglade"
    Released: 1992
  3. "Monster"
    Released: 1992

Bricks Are Heavy is the third studio album by American rock band L7, released on April 14, 1992, by Slash Records. The album peaked at number 160 on the US Billboard 200[2] and number one on the Heatseekers Albums chart.[3] As of June 2000, Bricks Are Heavy has sold 327,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen Soundscan.[4]

Production

[edit]

Produced by the band and Butch Vig, musically the album is heavier and dirtier than the band's previous recordings and described as "catchy tunes and mean vocals on top of ugly guitars and a quick-but-thick bottom of cast-iron grunge" by Entertainment Weekly's Gina Arnold.[5]

Critical reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[6]
Chicago Tribune[7]
Christgau's Consumer GuideA[8]
Entertainment WeeklyA[5]
Kerrang!5/5[9]
Los Angeles Times[10]
NME8/10[11]
Rolling Stone[12]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[13]
Spin Alternative Record Guide9/10[14]

In a contemporary review for Playboy, Robert Christgau regarded Bricks Are Heavy as an "object lesson in how to advance your music by meeting the marketplace halfway", although he believed it would not sell as much as it deserved. He said Vig helped L7 produce grunge-metal featuring "intense admixtures of ditty and power chord" that "never quite gathers Nirvana's momentum, but it's just as catchy and a touch nastier."[15] NME critic Angela Lewis called Bricks Are Heavy a "polished, virile white heat rock" record that "verifies their hard rock credentials completely" and demonstrates that L7 ought not to be pigeonholed as a grunge act in the vein of "Hole–Babes–Jane".[11] Kerrang!'s Steffan Chirazi was most impressed by the album's "relentlessness" in "driving the frustrations of everyday life home",[9] and Gina Arnold said in Entertainment Weekly that L7 distinguish themselves from the musically similar Nirvana through the "clarity" of their lyrics. "Although the band's positive-plus stances on liberal issues may not instantly endear it to fuzzy-minded teen America," Arnold wrote, "L7 does manage to be simultaneously fun and furious, an intensely appealing combination."[5]

Los Angeles Times writer Jonathan Gold, while finding Bricks Are Heavy "a very good, sometimes brilliant hard-rock album", expressed reservations about Vig's polished production, saying that although it suited "a pop band at heart" like Nirvana, "L7 is a rock band, less like the Byrds than like the MC5, less about pop craft than about sheer aggression."[10] Arion Berger of Rolling Stone felt that the production's "neatly modulated dynamics" rendered the album "merely raucous where it might have been apocalyptic."[12] In the Chicago Tribune, Greg Kot opined that there were not many good songs such as "Slide" and "the performances—while certainly ferocious—aren't sufficiently varied enough to make up the difference."[7]

NME listed Bricks Are Heavy as the 39th best album of 1992.[16] It placed at number 32 in The Village Voice's Pazz & Jop critics' poll,[17] with the poll's creator Robert Christgau ranking the album fourth on his ballot.[18]

Legacy

[edit]

Reviewing Bricks Are Heavy for AllMusic, Eduardo Rivadavia said that Vig helped L7 "obtain a tight, compact sound" and sharpen their songwriting on what would be their "crowning achievement" and "an impossible act to follow".[6]

Bricks Are Heavy is now regarded as one of grunge music's best albums. Treble's Brian Roesler credited L7 with helping to define "the very best of early grunge" through the album's fusion of pop and metal musical elements.[19]

In 2015, Spin placed Bricks Are Heavy at number 249 on its list of the "300 Best Albums of the Past 30 Years".[20]

Accolades

[edit]
Critical rankings for Bricks Are Heavy
Publication Country Type List Year Rank Ref.
Treble United States All-time The 30 Best Grunge Albums 2016 15 [19]
Rolling Stone 50 Greatest Grunge Albums 2019 [21]
Far Out United Kingdom The 10 best grunge albums of all time 2021 4 [22]
Loudwire United States The 30 Best Grunge Albums of All Time 2023 16 [23]

Track listing

[edit]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Wargasm"Donita Sparks2:40
2."Scrap"Sparks, Brett Gurewitz2:53
3."Pretend We're Dead"Sparks3:53
4."Diet Pill"Sparks4:21
5."Everglade"Jennifer Finch, Daniel Rey3:18
6."Slide"Suzi Gardner, Sparks3:37
7."One More Thing"Finch4:07
8."Mr. Integrity"Sparks4:06
9."Monster"Gardner2:56
10."Shitlist"Sparks2:55
11."This Ain't Pleasure"Gardner, Phil Caivano2:42
Total length:37:28

Personnel

[edit]

Credits adapted from liner notes.

L7
Additional musician
  • Paul Ryan – bongos
Production
  • Butch Vig – production, engineering, mixing
  • Howie Weinberg – mastering
  • Steve Marker – engineering
  • Mr. Colson – engineering
  • Elizabeth Hale – art direction
  • Jeff Price – art direction
  • Randall Martin – artwork
  • Vicki Berndt – photography
  • Arlan E. Helm – photography
  • Damion Romero – photography

Charts

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "L7 Time Line". repriserec.com. Archived from the original on January 23, 1998. Retrieved August 2, 2024.
  2. ^ a b "L7 - Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
  3. ^ a b "L7 - Heatseekers Albums". Billboard. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
  4. ^ Inc, Nielsen Business Media (June 24, 2000). Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. {{cite book}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  5. ^ a b c Arnold, Gina (June 19, 1992). "Bricks Are Heavy". Entertainment Weekly. No. 123. p. 71. Retrieved May 9, 2013.
  6. ^ a b Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Bricks Are Heavy – L7". AllMusic. Retrieved March 17, 2010.
  7. ^ a b Kot, Greg (May 7, 1992). "L7: Bricks are Heavy (Slash)". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved February 5, 2017.
  8. ^ Christgau, Robert (2000). "L7: Bricks Are Heavy". Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s. St. Martin's Griffin. p. 184. ISBN 0-312-24560-2. Retrieved February 5, 2017.
  9. ^ a b Chirazi, Steffan (April 4, 1992). "Brick it up!". Kerrang!. No. 386. p. 25.
  10. ^ a b Gold, Jonathan (May 3, 1992). "L7, 'Bricks Are Heavy', Slash". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 5, 2017.
  11. ^ a b Lewis, Angela (April 11, 1992). "Kicking Against the Bricks". NME. p. 32.
  12. ^ a b Berger, Arion (September 17, 1992). "L7: Bricks Are Heavy". Rolling Stone. No. 639. p. 94. Archived from the original on November 12, 2007. Retrieved May 9, 2013.
  13. ^ Harris, Keith (2004). "L7". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 500. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  14. ^ Stovall, Natasha (1995). "L7". In Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig (eds.). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. p. 231. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
  15. ^ Christgau, Robert (June 1992). "L7, Roches, Yo Yo, Rosie Flores". Playboy. Retrieved February 5, 2017.
  16. ^ "1992 – The Loved Albums". NME. December 19–26, 1992. pp. 56–57. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
  17. ^ "The 1992 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. March 2, 1993. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
  18. ^ Christgau, Robert (March 2, 1993). "Pazz & Jop 1992: Dean's List". The Village Voice. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
  19. ^ a b Treble staff (October 6, 2016). "The 30 Best Grunge Albums | Treble". Treble. Retrieved May 20, 2023.
  20. ^ "The 300 Best Albums of the Past 30 Years (1985–2014)". Spin. May 11, 2015. p. 1. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
  21. ^ "Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden: 50 Best Grunge Albums". Rolling Stone. April 1, 2019. Retrieved May 20, 2023.
  22. ^ Starker, Arun (May 12, 2021). "From Pearl Jam to Nirvana: The 10 best grunge albums of all time". Far Out. Retrieved May 20, 2023.
  23. ^ Loudwire staff (January 10, 2023). "The 30 Best Grunge Albums of All Time - Loudwire". Loudwire. Retrieved May 20, 2023.
  24. ^ "Australiancharts.com – L7 – Bricks Are Heavy". Hung Medien. Retrieved August 18, 2022.
  25. ^ "L7". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
  26. ^ "L7 Discography". australian-charts.com. Retrieved December 2, 2009.
    • "Everglade": Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 159.
  27. ^ "L7". Official Charts Company. Retrieved January 31, 2009.
[edit]
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