Turn the Dark Off is a 1997 album by Howie B. It made #58 on the UK Albums Chart[3] and at the end of that year was voted at #47 on NME's 1997 Critics' Poll.[4]
| Turn the Dark Off | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | July 28, 1997[1] | |||
| Genre | Electronic[1] | |||
| Length | 51:05[1] | |||
| Label | Polydor[2] Island Records | |||
| Producer | Howie B[2] | |||
| Howie B chronology | ||||
| ||||
Background
editTurn the Dark Off is a less repetitive work than his first album, Music for Babies.[1] Whereas Music for Babies contained exclusively instrumentals, Turn the Dark Off contains a single vocal track, "Take Your Partner by the Hand". In an interview with Jockey Slut magazine, Howie revealed that the vocals were added upon request; after he had finished the album and had sent the CD out, Robbie Robertson rung Howie up and told him he wanted to add vocals to the song.[5] Other tracks contain assorted grunts and other non-coherent vocal noises.[6]
Prior to release, Howie had worked with U2 for their 1997 album, Pop[1] and with Björk for her third studio album, Post.[7] Howie had previously worked with U2 on their compilation album, Original Soundtracks 1.[8] To produce the album, he used, among other things, a turntable and a Nord Lead.[5]
Singles
edit"Angels Go Bald:Too" was released as the lead single in July 1997 and charted at #36 on the UK Singles Chart.[3] Three months later, "Switch" was released and suffered from a sophomore slump, stalling at #62.[3] In February 1998, Howie released the one vocal song from the album, "Take Your Partner by the Hand", which charted at #74.[3]
Critical reception
editCritical reception was mixed. John Bush of AllMusic said that the album "fits in with the crop of late-'90s big beat maestros; though it doesn't quite outdistance the pack, the album still contains enough of Howie B's studio tweaks to make it worthwhile".[1] Electronicmusic.com concurred, suggesting that it might be "one of the coolest CD's to have in your collection this summer" and that it was "full of wonderful moments".[9] In addition, New Musical Express described it as a high Ennio Morricone-esque "warm, dripping collage of beats and buzzing melodies" that was "a pleasant change of pace from the cut-and-paste formula of other popular rock-techno acts".[4]
However, Jim DeRogatis gave the album a negative review, dismissing it as a "Whitman's Sampler of current electronic sounds", adding that "Howie would have been better off focusing his considerable talents to hone a particular sound, as he did on Music for Babies, rather than dabbling half-heartedly in a lot of them".[10] Matt Diehl was even less kind, finishing a diatribe by calling it a "techno turnoff".[11]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Fizzy in My Mouth/Your Mouth" | 4:22 |
| 2. | "Hopscotch" | 5:14 |
| 3. | "Switch" | 4:59 |
| 4. | "Sore Brown Eyes" | 4:15 |
| 5. | "Take Your Partner by the Hand" | 7:22 |
| 6. | "Limbo" | 4:58 |
| 7. | "Angels Go Bald:Too" | 5:20 |
| 8. | "Who's Got the Bacon?" | 4:25 |
| 9. | "Baby Sweetcorn (Come Here)" | 4:29 |
| 10. | "Butt Meat" | 5:41 |
| Total length: | 51:05[1] | |
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g John Bush (28 July 1997). "Turn the Dark Off - Howie B | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
- ^ a b Turn the Dark Off (booklet). Howie B. Polydor Records. 28 July 1997.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ a b c d "HOWIE B | Artist". Official Charts. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
- ^ a b "Howie B - Turn The Dark Off". Rolling Stone. 16 October 1997. p. 111.
- ^ a b "Howie B.: Turn the Dark Off". The Band. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
- ^ Turn the Dark Off (booklet). Howie B. Polydor Records. 1997.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ Post (booklet). Björk. One Little Indian. 13 June 1995.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ Original Soundtracks 1 (booklet). Passengers. Island Records. 7 November 1995.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ "Music Review". Electronic Music. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
- ^ "Turn the Dark Off: Music". Amazon. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
- ^ "Turn the Dark Off Review | Music Reviews and News". Entertainment Weekly. 3 March 2014. Archived from the original on 3 March 2014. Retrieved 13 August 2023.