Libertad (Velvet Revolver album)

Libertad is the second and final studio album by American hard rock band Velvet Revolver, released on July 3, 2007. The name is Spanish and translates to "Liberty" or "freedom" in English. According to a 2007 interview with Rolling Stone, along with the Stone Temple Pilots albums Core and the self-titled 2010 album, Libertad is one of only three albums lead singer Scott Weiland wrote while sober.[2][3]

Libertad
Studio album by
Velvet Revolver
ReleasedJuly 3, 2007 [1]
RecordedDecember 11, 2006
to
February 25, 2007
at
Henson Recording Studios
Hollywood California
GenreHard rock
Length51:48
LabelRCA Records
ProducerBrendan O'Brien
and Velvet Revolver
Velvet Revolver chronology
Melody and the Tyranny (EP)
(2007)		 Libertad
(2007)
Singles from Libertad
  1. "She Builds Quick Machines"
    Released: May 21, 2007
  2. "The Last Fight"
    Released: August 20, 2007
  3. "Get Out the Door"
    Released: January 29, 2008
  4. "Let It Roll"
    Released: 2009

Release and promotion

Velvet Revolver originally announced their plans for a second album in late 2005, when lead singer Scott Weiland said that the band was planning on recording a concept album. Although it is not certain how concrete the concept album plans were,[4] they were eventually scrapped and the band began to work with producer Rick Rubin. However, the bandmembers felt that Rubin was not a good fit for the band and thus parted ways with him. In December 2006, Velvet Revolver began working with producer Brendan O'Brien, who had previously produced albums for Stone Temple Pilots, Weiland's former band. As Scott Weiland commented in Kerrang! magazine, "We were really excited about six months ago, when we first began writing. Then we really kind of flat-lined for a while, We didn't know which way we were going. Once Brendan (O'Brien) came on board, it was kind of like a shot in the arm. It was a new energy." Recording began on December 11 and continued through December, January, and February. The process was documented by a series of video blogs, or "Vlogs", available on the band's website.

On June 26, 2007, Velvet Revolver released a sneak peek of Libertad in its entirety.

Libertad was a released as an Enhanced-CD which includes a 10-minute video documentary called "Re-Evolution: The Making of Libertad" (Directed by Rocco Guarino). A deluxe Best Buy edition was also released which includes a DVD containing a 30-minute documentary called "Tierra Roja, Sangre Roja" (Directed by Rocco Guarino), that documented the band's journey across South America.

To promote the album, Velvet Revolver embarked on a South American tour with Aerosmith. The final performance saw 70,000 fans in attendance. Shortly thereafter, VR embarked on a North American club tour, revealing several new songs. The band also played major music festivals such as the Download Festival. On August 2007, they began a North American arena tour with Alice in Chains, and later toured Europe and Asia.

Songs from the album were featured at X Games XIII as being the official background music to the event. The track "Let It Roll" is also used as the official theme song for the 2007 WWE Diva Search. The song "American Man" has also been used in promotional ads for the popular drama Prison Break.

Reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic(68/100)[5]
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[6]
Billboard(Positive)[7]
Blabbermouth[8]
Entertainment WeeklyA−[9]
New York Post[10]
Rolling Stone[11]
The Austin Chronicle[12]
San Francisco Chronicle(Positive)[13]
USA Today[14]
Yahoo!(Positive)[15]

The album debuted at number five on the U.S. Billboard 200, selling 92,000 copies in its first week; as of October 12, 2007, it has sold 222,000 copies and had fallen off the charts. Compared to the multi-platinum success of Contraband, Libertad was seen as a commercial disappointment for the band.[16] The album is certified Gold in New Zealand and Canada. Upon its release, Libertad received generally positive reviews and was said to possibly be "THE rock record of the summer" according to the Associated Press. Rolling Stone also gave the album a good review, stating that "there is plenty of thrill in the fuzz-lined hard-rubber bends of Slash's guitar breaks and the way bassist Duff McKagan keeps time, like a cop swinging a billy club" and that the album had "honest depth."[11]

Controversy

Pinochet's regime allusion

The album's cover features a stylized 10 Chilean pesos coin produced from 1973 to 1990. The coin is an allusion to the Coup d'état in Chile in 1973 against the socialist president Salvador Allende.[17] During the Augusto Pinochet military dictatorship, the coin bore the image of the winged female figure. To her side, in small Roman numerals, the date of the coup d'état is marked (September 11, 1973), and underneath the word Libertad ("Freedom", meant as "freedom" from Marxism) is written in capitals. After the restoration of democracy, Pinochet's winged female was replaced with the portrait of the Chilean independence hero Bernardo O'Higgins.

It was later stated by Slash, in an interview in September 2007 by 102.1 The Edge in Dallas, the image came from a friend's old Chilean 10 pesos necklace. Slash reported that he had no idea what the significance of the image was until a concert in Brazil.

Track listing

All music is composed by Scott Weiland, Slash, Duff McKagan, Matt Sorum and Dave Kushner, except where noted. All lyrics written by Scott Weiland, except where noted.

No.TitleLength
1."Let It Roll"2:32
2."She Mine"3:24
3."Get Out the Door"3:14
4."She Builds Quick Machines"4:03
5."The Last Fight"4:03
6."Pills, Demons & Etc."2:54
7."American Man"3:56
8."Mary Mary"4:33
9."Just Sixteen"3:58
10."Can't Get It Out of My Head" (Music and lyrics by Jeff Lynne)3:57
11."For a Brother"3:26
12."Spay"3:06
13."Gravedancer" (contains hidden track "Don't Drop That Dime" from 4:40)8:42
Total length:51:48
Enhanced edition
No.TitleLength
14."Re-Evolution: Making of Libertad" (making-of video)10:13
Total length:62:01
Japanese edition
No.TitleLength
13."Gravedancer"4:40
14."Gas & a Dollar Laugh [18]" (contains hidden track "Don't Drop That Dime" from 3:20)7:23
15."Re-Evolution: Making of Libertad" (making-of video)10:13
Total length:55:05
iTunes edition
No.TitleLength
14."Messages"4:48
15."Psycho Killer" (Talking Heads cover. Music and lyrics by David Byrne, Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth)4:17
Total length:60:53
Special edition DVD
No.TitleLength
1."Tierra Roja, Sangre Roja" (South American tour footage)28:40
Total length:28:40

Personnel

Charts
Chart (2007) Peak

position

Australian Albums (ARIA)[19] 10
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[20] 22
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[21] 62
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[22] 2
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[23] 27
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[24] 34
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[25] 4
French Albums (SNEP)[26] 66
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[27] 36
Italian Albums (FIMI)[28] 13
Mexican Albums (Top 100 Mexico)[29] 19
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[30] 3
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[31] 14
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[32] 44
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[33] 14
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[34] 21
UK Albums (OCC)[35] 6
US Billboard 200[36] 5

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[37] Gold 50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[38] Silver 60,000^

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

Miscellaneous
  • Slash used a Vox AC30 amplifier to record some parts.
  • Slash played "The Last Fight" and "Gravedancer" clean parts with a Gretsch 6120 Setzer.[39]
gollark: If I ever make that turtle laser mining robot ninja pirate swarm, we can obliterate that gravel desert.
gollark: It's especially cheap since we just mine the gravel and sand and I provide dyes.
gollark: Not sure about "by myself".
gollark: I plan to eventually redo Chorus City's roads in glorious shining concrete.
gollark: Plus I actually paved many of the roads too.

References
  1. Discogs - Libertad - 2007-07-03rd enhanced CD, RCA (82876 88859-2RE1) US
  2. Aveling, Nick (June 1, 2010). "Scott Weiland on his new, sober album with Stone Temple Pilots". The Vancouver Sun. CanWest News Service. Archived from the original on June 11, 2010. Retrieved June 11, 2010.
  3. Michaels, Levi (September 6, 2007). "Velvet Revolver Drummer Matt Sorum Checks In from the Road". Santa Barbara Independent. Archived from the original on June 11, 2010. Retrieved June 11, 2010.
  4. Pt2. Metal Hammer in conversation with Duff McKagan on YouTube
  5. Metacritic score
  6. Allmusic review
  7. "Billboard review". Archived from the original on July 3, 2007. Retrieved July 5, 2007.CS1 maint: unfit url (link)
  8. Blabbermouth review
  9. Entertainment Weekly review
  10. New York Post review Archived 2007-07-04 at the Wayback Machine
  11. Rolling Stone review
  12. The Austin Chronicle review
  13. San Francisco Chronicle review
  14. USA Today review Archived July 5, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  15. "Yahoo! review". Archived from the original on July 3, 2007. Retrieved May 11, 2012.
  16. Katie Hasty, T.I. Is Top Dog Again On The Billboard 200, Billboard.com, July 11, 2007.
  17. "VR Reveals Artwork but Pushes Back Release". gnrdaily.com. 2007-05-10. Retrieved 2007-05-10.
  18. Discogs - Libertad - 2013 enhanced 2CD, Legacy / RCA (SICP 30400) Japan
  19. "Australiancharts.com – Velvet Revolver – {{{album}}}". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  20. "Austriancharts.at – Velvet Revolver – {{{album}}}" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  21. "Ultratop.be – Velvet Revolver – {{{album}}}" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  22. "Velvet Revolver Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  23. "Danishcharts.dk – Velvet Revolver – {{{album}}}". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  24. "Dutchcharts.nl – Velvet Revolver – {{{album}}}" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  25. "Velvet Revolver: {{{album}}}" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  26. "Lescharts.com – Velvet Revolver – {{{album}}}". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  27. "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  28. "Italiancharts.com – Velvet Revolver – {{{album}}}". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  29. "Mexicancharts.com – Velvet Revolver – {{{album}}}". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  30. "Charts.nz – Velvet Revolver – {{{album}}}". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  31. "Norwegiancharts.com – Velvet Revolver – {{{album}}}". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  32. "Spanishcharts.com – Velvet Revolver – {{{album}}}". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  33. "Swedishcharts.com – Velvet Revolver – {{{album}}}". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  34. "Swisscharts.com – Velvet Revolver – {{{album}}}". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  35. "Velvet Revolver | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  36. "Velvet Revolver Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  37. "Canadian album certifications – Velvet Revolver – Libertad". Music Canada. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  38. "British album certifications – Velvet Revolver – Libertad". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 28 February 2020. Select albums in the Format field. Select Silver in the Certification field. Type Libertad in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  39. "Libertad on SlashParadise". www.slashparadise.com. February 12, 2013.
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