𝐅𝐑𝐎𝐌 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐂𝐑𝐘𝐏𝐓𝐒 - 𝐂𝐄𝐋𝐄𝐁𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐏𝐀𝐒𝐓 𝐀𝐋𝐁𝐔𝐌 𝐑𝐄𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐄𝐒 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐘 𝐨𝐟 𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐃 𝐑𝐎𝐂𝐊 & 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐕𝐘 𝐌𝐄𝐓𝐀𝐋…
28 years ago today, “the Circus Left Town”!
On this day (July 11) in 1995, Kyuss released their fourth and final full length studio album, “...And the Circus Leaves Town” via Elektra Records.
Background:
Following the release of their self titled album (commonly referred to as “Welcome to Sky Valley”), personal problems emerged with the band and drummer Brant Bjork left the band following completion of the recording sessions. Bjork cited his extreme distaste for touring, particularly band relationship problems that develop during long periods on the road. He was replaced by drummer Alfredo Hernández (Yawning Man), who had previously played with Reeder in the band Across the River during the mid-80s.
The band then went into the studio to record what would become “...And the Circus Leaves Town”. The album was recorded at Sound City Studios in Van Nuys, California between March 1–20, 1995. It was co-produced by Kyuss with producer Chris Goss (best known for producing records for Kyuss and Queens of the Stone Age, and as singer for Masters of Reality).
The band's only album recorded for a major label, “...And the Circus Leaves Town” featured a tighter and more straightforward sound, both in songwriting and production, in contrast to the instrumentally based “Welcome to Sky Valley”. "One Inch Man" was released as the album's only single in June 1995, and a music video was also made for the song.
“...And the Circus Leaves Town” was not as commercially or critically successful as the previous "Blues for the Red Sun" and "Welcome to Sky Valley" (receiving mixed reviews), and Kyuss broke up during the late summer of 1995. Critic Dean Brown partially attributed the albums lack of success to poor promotion and the band's breakup, but also notes that the album "deserves to be cherished as much as the two molten hot records that came right before it."
In interviews with those who contributed to “...And The Circus Leaves Town” (Josh Homme, John Garcia, Scott Reeder and drummer Alfredo Hernández), it’s clear the recording process was riddled with tension, which made things difficult on all accounts. Garcia was even quoted as saying that it was "a horrible fucking record to make" and that "Josh and I were clashing all the time and had creative differences."
Whereas, friction can often cause a creative spark, with Kyuss, they went into Sound City Studios with the mindset of getting the recording over and done with – which paints a clear picture of the general mood within the band at the time.
Reeder confirmed the strained atmosphere that Garcia mentioned, stating:
"There was also a bit of bickering going on, and I was pretty stressed. Too many weird vibes. It wasn't the way things are supposed to be." And also that "everyone was a little too stoned", which he said, "made for a lot of wasted time".
Albeit, this might not have been the same band that wrote "Blues…" or "…Sky Valley", it makes “...And the Circus Leaves Town” a great listen nonetheless!
Noteworthy:
The song "Catamaran" is a cover of a song originally recorded by drummer Alfredo Hernández' previous band Yawning Man.
Hidden track "Day One" was originally released in Germany as part of the "Demon Cleaner" extended CD single under the title "Day One (To Dave and Krist)".
The song "Hurricane" is featured in the 2006 video game Need for Speed: Carbon. An early recording of the song, as well as "El Rodeo", was released on the "Demon Cleaner" single in 1994.
Critical Reception:
The album did receive a positive review in Tharunka, an Australian student publication, in August 1995. The review described the lead single, "One Inch Man", as "unrepresentative" of the album's sound.
Two of the tracks, "Jumbo Blimp Jumbo" and "Catamaran", were compared favorably to Black Sabbath and Sonic Youth respectively, and the reviewer noted, "What is admirable here too is songwriter/guitarist Josh's seeming ability to formulate brilliantly executed songs, despite the regular adoption of atypical song-writing structures."
More Information:
After the band's breakup in 1995, there had been frequent and persistent speculation among fans regarding the possibility of a Kyuss reunion. When asked in late 2004 about whether the band would ever re-unite, Homme replied that this was unlikely to happen in the near future. However, on December 20, 2005, Garcia made a guest appearance onstage with Queens of the Stone Age during their encore at the Wiltern LG in Los Angeles. They performed three Kyuss songs together: "Thumb", "Hurricane" and "Supa Scoopa and Mighty Scoop". The band has reportedly received numerous offers to reform, all of which have been turned down:
"The offers come in all the time. They're getting more and more expensive, and more and more elaborate. The money is crazy, but I've never been tempted – I don't really care about the money, I never have. That's not what Kyuss was about, so to punctuate the end of our sentence with that would be blasphemy. Kyuss fans are so fuckin' rad, they're fuckin' badass – but to me, reunions are just not necessary. It's not what it was, it's what it is, and Kyuss was a really magical thing – and if you weren't there, well, you weren't. That's just the luck of the draw. I don't feel the urge to do it for somebody who didn't have the opportunity to see us, or just didn't take the opportunity to see us. I'll let other bands alter their great legacies. Kyuss has such a great history that it would be a total error. I like that nobody saw Kyuss, and that it was largely misunderstood. That sounds like a legend forming to me. I'm too proud of it to rub my dick on it." — Josh Homme to Joel McIver, May 2007
Scott Reeder also commented on a possible Kyuss reunion in early 2008, saying "I think everyone but Josh would do it in a heartbeat". Reeder also noted that he would "do it for free beer again".
Links to Artists, Albums, and Music Videos:
▶ Listen to “...And the Circus Leaves Town” via Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/and-the-circus-leaves-town/207914986
▶ Follow the Kyuss fan page on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063695410929&mibextid=LQQJ4d
Note: The reviews shared here are for historical reference. The views and opinions expressed within are not always supported (in full or in part) by Into the Wells. — E.N. Wells
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