Chokebore - Motionless
Motionless is Chokebore's debut studio album, released in late August 1993 by Amphetamine Reptile Records in LP, CD, and cassette formats. It was recorded and mixed by Tim "Mac" McLaughlin at AmRep Recording Division (the label's in-house studio) in Minneapolis, MN (USA).
Motionless features the band's original drummer Johnee Kop, credited as "Rice Cube" or "Jungle Boy," depending on the release.
The album cover was designed by AmRep boss Tom Hazelmyer (aka Haze XXL), with the rest of the artwork using photos by Dan Corrigan.
Motionless was preceded by Chokebore's debut 7-inch Nobody / Throats to Hit. The album itself did not produce any singles, but it did spawn a music video for the song Coat, which was featured on AmRep's Dope Guns and Destroying Your Video Deck #3 VHS compilation.
Early versions of several Motionless songs can be found on Dana Lynn's "guns" 7-inch and in their contributions to the Explicit Sk8rok Volume 10 compilation and to the soundtrack of The Acme Skateboard Video.
Fun fact: the track Hit Me is Chokebore's reinterpretation of Rod Stewart's classic 1978 hit Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?, though there is little left of the original but the verse lyrics!
Motionless was reissued twice on CD, first in 1998 by Boomba Rec to accompany the European release of Black Black, then in September 2002 by Pale Blue, this time with brand new artwork designed by Chokebore guitarist Jonathan Kroll. After staying out of print for several years, it was reissued on white vinyl in October 2013 by Vicious Circle to celebrate the band's 20th anniversary, once again with new artwork.
Releases
Aug 1993: LP/CD/CS – Amphetamine Reptile [AmRep 020] – USA
Aug 1993: LP/CD – Amphetamine Reptile [ARR 43/289] – Europe
1998: CD – Boomba Rec [BOOMBA 005-2] – Europe
Sep 2002: CD – Pale Blue [pale blue 003] – Europe
Oct 2013: LP – Vicious Circle [REVERB128] – Europe
Tracklist
- Shine
- Never
- Van McCoy
- Spear
- Motionless
- 2nd Song
- Nguyan
- Coat
- So Sour
- Sãdãvia
- 60,000 Lbs
- Hit Me
- Line Crush
- Cleaner
Artwork
1993 edition
2003 reissue
Credits
all music written by Chokebore
photos by Dan Corrigan
cover by Hazelmyer
engineered by Mac at AmRep Recording Division2003 reissue:
sleeve design by Jonathan K.
horse stamps from Troy
Personnel
- James - bass
- Jon - guitar
- Troy - vocals/guitar
- Jungle Boy - drums
Review
Chokebore materialized out of nowhere (or so it seemed) when Amphetamine Reptile released the band's first single this spring. Like every other artist that signs on with the label, the L.A. group's music style was quickly pigeonholed by reviewers and consumers who noticed the AmRep logo on the 7″ picture disc. The sound of Chokebore, however, is far from that of its labelmates, not the unrelenting guitar-punk "noise" that the label's known for. The majority of songs on Motionless include tense, bass-driven hooks, unpredictable guitar paces, and a broad range of yowls from vocalist Troy Miller. Just when it seems as though Coat could be a Pixies song, the band shatters that aura with a cluster of uncharacteristic strums, and Hit Me begins as if it were a Rod Stewart cover, but then springs upon us a screaming refrain of the song's title. Cleaner starts subtly, with light guitars and low vocals, packing a noisy punch at the end. The soulful agony that typifies the record is demonstrated best on So Sour, a sloth-tempo song of vehemence. No bore: Never, Motionless, Sãdãvia, and 60,000 Lbs.
Lyrics
Buy Motionless online
- Buy 12″ vinyl + mp3 on the Vicious Circle online store
- Buy digital version on Bandcamp or iTunes