Start Static

Start Static is the third studio album released by Sugarcult, released on August 21, 2001 by Ultimatum Music. It was their first album to receive mainstream success.

Start Static
Studio album by
Sugarcult
ReleasedAugust 21, 2001
RecordedMarch–April 2001
StudioRumbo Studios, Los Angeles, California
GenrePop punk, pop rock, power pop
Length36:34
LabelUltimatum
ProducerMatt Wallace, Ben Davis
Sugarcult chronology
Wrap Me Up in Plastic
(2000)		 Start Static
(2001)		 Palm Trees and Power Lines
(2004)
Singles from Start Static
  1. "Stuck in America"
    Released: August 6, 2001
  2. "Bouncing Off the Walls"
    Released: February 5, 2002
  3. "Pretty Girl (The Way)"
    Released: July 29, 2002

Background

Vocalist/guitarist Tim Pagnotta founded Sugarcult in Santa Barbara, California, in 1998 with drummer Ben Davis. Bassist Airin Older joined, followed by guitarist Marko DeSantis.[1] They released two albums, Eleven (1998) and Wrap Me Up in Plastic (2000), and two EPs, Get Street Cred (1999) and Songs About Girls (2000).[2] The band spent October 2001 to February 2002 working on new material, including tracks such as "Stuck in America", "Crashing Down" and "Lost in You". In total, they had 24 songs to choose from for inclusion on their next album.[3]

The group sent demos to record labels,[4] eventually signing to independent label Ultimatum Music in January 2001.[2] Recording for their next album took place at Rumbo Recorders in Los Angeles, California with producer Matt Wallace[5] in March and April 2001. He was helped by engineer Mike Landolt and assistant Posie Muliadi. Davis did additional production and engineering, as well as produce and engineer "I Changed My Name" and the hidden track. Wallace mixed the recordings with assistant Brett Nolan at Can Am Studios in May, before they were mastered by Alan Yoshida at Oceanway/JVC Mastering.[6]

Composition

Musically, Start Static has been described as pop punk,[7] pop rock[8] and power pop,[9] with influences from punk rock,[8][9] drawing a comparison to American Hi-Fi.[10] DeSantis gave the album its title, which Pagnotta said was a slang term for beginning a fight.[11] The songs tackle the themes of disbelief, escapism and recklessness.[9] With the lyrics, Pagnotta didn't feel comfortable being completely vulnerable and that he was unsure how to process his thoughts.[11] "You're the One" opens with an Elvis Costello-esque riff.[12] "Stuck in America" is about being young and wanting to leave your town.[13] "Saying Goodbye" is about wanting a change of scenery. "Lost in You" is a nostalgic view of a past relationship, and was compared to the Goo Goo Dolls.[7]

Release

On June 18, 2001, the band's next album was announced for release in August; its track listing was also revealed. On July 18, the group revealed the album's title: Start Static.[14] Preceded by the radio single "Stuck in America" on August 6,[5] Start Static was released on August 21. During the month, a music video was filmed for "Stuck in America", directed by Shawn Foster.[15] The band re-recorded "Bouncing Off the Walls" with producer Mark Trombino, which was released as a radio single on February 5, 2002;[16] the CD single featured "How Does It Feel" and "Killing Me".[17] The group filmed a music video for "Bouncing Off the Walls" in Hollywood.[16]

Around this time, they gained exposure when four songs from Start Static appeared in the film Van Wilder (2002), the soundtrack to which featured "Bouncing Off the Walls" and was also released through Ultimatum.[18] The "Bouncing Off the Walls" video, directed by Steven Oritt,[5] premiered on MTV's Total Request Live on April 4, and featured Tara Reid and Ryan Reynolds, both of whom had starred in Van Wilder.[16] "Pretty Girl (The Way)" was released as a radio single on July 29;[5] the CD single featured "Over Now", "Say I'm Sorry" and the music video for "Pretty Girl (The Way)".[19] The video was released online on August 6;[20] it was filmed in Trinidad by director Orbitt.[5]

Davis went to rehab[11] and was temporarily replaced by Lefty drummer Kenny Livingston in September;[21] Davis officially left the group by Thanksgiving.[22] In January 2003, the band signed to Epitaph Records to release Start Static in Europe.[23] While in London, a second video for "Bouncing Off the Walls" was made, directed by Orbitt, and featured live footage and the band around the city.[5] "Stuck in America" was released as a single in the UK on March 10;[24] the CD single featured "You're the One", "No Action" and the music video for "Stuck in America".[25] On March 17, Epitaph made the album available for streaming, before releasing it in Europe on March 24.[26] In 2011, the band played 10th anniversary show for Start Static, which included Davis performing with them.[27]

Touring

Following the album's mixing sessions, the band played a handful of regional shows in May and June 2001. The group had initially planned to only play the first eleven shows of the Warped Tour, until they were added to the remaining dates from late June to early August, save for a one-week support slot for Blink-182 in late July.[14] They embarked on a month-long US tour, running into mid-September when they began played radio station festivals until early October.[15] In October and November, the group toured the US with Reel Big Fish, Goldfinger and Lefty, before embarking on a two-week tour with Good Charlotte and Mest in November and December. The band closed the year with a handful of headlining shows.[28] In January 2002, the band toured with Home Grown on their US tour.[16]

Following this, the group went on a five-week national US tour supporting Unwritten Law in February and March, before spending the remainder of March playing headlining shows.[16] The band played an assortment of shows with Fairview and Lefty in April, before embarking on a six-week US tour. Older dropped off the tour, citing personal reasons, with Billy Lee from the 65 Film Show and Tim Cullen from Summercamp filling in his position. The band took a short break, before playing a two-week stint on the Warped Tour in July. After Warped, the group went on a US tour with Less Than Jake in August.[16] Between October and December, the band supported the Ataris on their headlining US tour.[29] Following this, the band supported Reel Big Fish on their headlining UK tour in January and February 2003.[24]

Reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[9]
CMJ New Music ReportFavorable[10]
Drowned in Sound4/5[30]
Ink 19Favorable[12]
Melodic[8]
New York PostFavorable[31]
PopMattersFavorable[7]
Rock Hard9/10[32]
Sacramento News & Review4/5[33]
SortedUnfavorable[34]

By December 2003, the album had sold 300,000 copies.[35]

Track listing

Track listing per booklet.[6]

  1. "You're the One" – 1:50
  2. "Stuck in America" – 2:55
  3. "Hate Every Beautiful Day" – 3:26
  4. "Bouncing Off the Walls" – 2:19
  5. "Saying Goodbye" – 3:22
  6. "Daddy's Little Defect" – 3:12
  7. "Lost in You" – 3:32
  8. "Pretty Girl (The Way)" – 3:28
  9. "Crashing Down" – 3:38
  10. "How Does It Feel" – 3:14
  11. "I Changed My Name" – 3:41
  12. "Underwear" (hidden track) – 2:24

Personnel

Personnel per booklet.[6]

Charts

Album

Chart Peak
position
Heatseekers 4
Billboard 200 194
Top Independent Albums 6

Singles

Year Single Chart Position
2002 "Pretty Girl (The Way)" Modern Rock Tracks 30
"Bouncing Off The Walls" Modern Rock Tracks 40
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References

Citations

  1. "Ultimatum Music Press Release". Sugarcult. Archived from the original on April 9, 2001. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  2. "Sugarcult Biography". Sugarcult. Archived from the original on March 2, 2001. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  3. "Sugarcult News Archive Starting October 16, 2000". Sugarcult. Archived from the original on July 20, 2001. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  4. Bielich, Brandon (April 23, 2004). "Sugarcult Aims To Build On First CD's Success". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  5. "Biography". Sugarcult. Archived from the original on October 2, 2003. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  6. Start Static (booklet). Sugarcult. Ultimatum Music. 2001. 0766732.CS1 maint: others (link)
  7. Ellis, Andrew. "Sugarcult: Start Static". PopMatters. Archived from the original on December 13, 2015. Retrieved April 3, 2020.
  8. Wippsson, Johan (2001). "Sugarcult - Start Static". Melodic. Archived from the original on April 29, 2017. Retrieved April 27, 2017.
  9. Semioli, Tom. "Start Static - Sugarcult | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Archived from the original on April 6, 2020. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
  10. Sciarretto, Amy (September 3, 2001). "Sugarcult: Start Static". CMJ New Music Report. Archived from the original on August 5, 2003. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  11. Shari Black Velvet 2004
  12. Feldmar, Marcel (October 29, 2001). "Sugarcult Start Static". Ink 19. Archived from the original on April 6, 2020. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
  13. CT STaff (December 11, 2005). "Sugarcult discusses music and politics". Campus Times. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  14. "News". Sugarcult. Archived from the original on July 21, 2001. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  15. "News". Sugarcult. Archived from the original on October 14, 2001. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  16. "News". Sugarcult. Archived from the original on August 8, 2002. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  17. "Bouncing Off the Walls" (sleeve). Sugarcult. Ultimatum. 2002. 21325-1.CS1 maint: others (link)
  18. "Sugarcult Sweet On Tour, 'Van Wilder'". Billboard. January 25, 2002. Archived from the original on April 7, 2020. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  19. "Pretty Girl (The Way)" (sleeve). Sugarcult. Epitaph Records. 2003. 1118-2.CS1 maint: others (link)
  20. Heisel, Scott. "Sugarcult releases "Pretty Girl" video". Punknews.org. Retrieved May 14, 2020.
  21. "Sugarcult News". Sugarcult. Archived from the original on December 9, 2003. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  22. Hocking, Mat. "Sugarcult - Epitaph punks talk to DiS". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on September 9, 2004. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  23. "Sugarcult". Sugarcult. Archived from the original on February 7, 2003. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  24. Hocking, Mat (January 7, 2003). "Sugarcult UK Shows - Sweet!". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on September 9, 2004. Retrieved April 3, 2020.
  25. "Stuck in America" (sleeve). Sugarcult. Epitaph Records. 2003. 1094-2.CS1 maint: others (link)
  26. "Stream Sugarcult's "Start Static" here!". Epitaph Records. March 17, 2003. Archived from the original on April 7, 2020. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  27. "Sugarcult to play "Start Static" anniversary show". Alternative Press. November 7, 2011. Archived from the original on April 6, 2020. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  28. "News". Sugarcult. Archived from the original on August 9, 2002. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  29. "News". Sugarcult. Archived from the original on October 15, 2002. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  30. White, Peter (April 22, 2004). "Albums - Sugarcult - Start Static". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on April 13, 2003. Retrieved April 3, 2020.
  31. Aquilante, Dan (August 21, 2001). "Sweetness and Fight". New York Post. Archived from the original on September 18, 2001. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  32. Schleutermann, Marcus (April 23, 2003). "Sugarcult - Start Static". Rock Hard (in German). Archived from the original on April 6, 2020. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
  33. Jayne, David (November 22, 2001). "Sugarcult - In the Mix - Music". Sacramento News & Review. Archived from the original on April 6, 2020. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
  34. McGrath, Ken (April 2003). "Distorted reviews - ??/04/03". Sorted. Archived from the original on April 6, 2020. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
  35. "Sugarcult to Release New Album in March". Alternative Addiction. December 13, 2003. Archived from the original on April 27, 2017. Retrieved April 27, 2017.

Sources

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