- Splinter (The Offspring album)
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Splinter 
Studio album by The Offspring Released December 9, 2003 Recorded January–August 2003 at Henson Recording Studios, Los Angeles, California, Southern Tracks Recording, Atlanta, Georgia Genre Punk rock, alternative rock Length 32:00 Label Columbia Producer Brendan O'Brien
The OffspringThe Offspring chronology Conspiracy of One
(2000)Splinter
(2003)Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace
(2008)Singles from Splinter - "Hit That"
Released: 2003 - "(Can't Get My) Head Around You"
Released: 2004 - "Spare Me the Details"
Released: 2004 (Australia only)
Professional ratings Review scores Source Rating Allmusic 
[1]Artistdirect [2]Blender [3]Kerrang! [citation needed]Splinter is the seventh studio album by American punk rock band The Offspring, released on December 9, 2003. It was the first album the band released without drummer Ron Welty and also the first to have a Parental Advisory label on some album covers, even though many of their previous albums contain profanity.
Although not as successful as The Offspring's albums between Smash and Conspiracy of One, Splinter received gold certification two months after its release.[4] The album received average reviews, but still sold reasonably well. It debuted at 30 on the U.S. Billboard 200 with around 87,000 copies sold in its first week.[5] "Hit That" and "(Can't Get My) Head Around You" were the only two singles to accompany this album. "Spare Me the Details" was also released as a single, but charted only in New Zealand.
Contents
Production and marketing
After spending nearly two years supporting the Conspiracy of One album, The Offspring began writing songs for Splinter in late 2002. Recording sessions for the album lasted from January to August 2003, making it the first time The Offspring had recorded an album for that long (although their next album, 2008's Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace, took more than a year to record).
Uncomfortable with the idea of bringing in an immediate replacement for Welty, the band opted to have session musician Josh Freese play drums for the recording of the album, with plans to find a fulltime drummer upon the record's completion.
The crowd vocals in the opening track "Neocon" were recorded at Reading Festival in 2002 during the Offspring's set on Mainstage. Estimates based on the capacity of Reading Festival would suggest at least 50,001 people are in the crowd.
Album title
On April Fools' Day 2003, the album's title was jokingly announced as Chinese Democrazy, a parody of the repeatedly delayed Chinese Democracy album by Guns N' Roses. To quote Holland, "You snooze, you lose. Axl ripped off my braids, so I ripped off his album title."[6]
The album's title comes from a lyric that appears in "Long Way Home".
This is the second and last new studio album to have the skull logo on their cover to date, excluding the Greatest Hits album.
Track listing
All songs written and composed by The Offspring.
CD No. Title Length 1. "Neocon" 1:06 2. "The Noose" 3:18 3. "Long Way Home" 2:23 4. "Hit That" 2:49 5. "Race Against Myself" 3:32 6. "(Can't Get My) Head Around You" 2:15 7. "The Worst Hangover Ever" 2:58 8. "Never Gonna Find Me" 2:39 9. "Lightning Rod" 3:20 10. "Spare Me the Details" 3:24 11. "Da Hui" 1:32 12. "When You're in Prison" 2:33 Enhanced version
The Enhanced CD portion of the CD contains the following:
- Da Hui Video
- Da Hui Video (with Audio Commentary)
- Demo Studio Tour
- 4 wallpapers
- 2 MP3 tracks:
-
- "The Kids Aren't Alright" (Island Style)
- "When You're in Prison" (Instrumental)
Excluded tracks
There was another song recorded for the album called "Pass Me By". The band felt that it was too heavy for the album, which is why it wasn't included on the disc.[7] It was for a time rumored to appear on The Offspring's next album Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace, but as of its release, the track has yet to surface.
Track notes
The opening track "Neocon" (which is a heavy chant introduction song) was used as background music for the main menu for the Offspring's Complete Music Video Collection DVD.
Critical reception
Reviewers from sites such as Launch.com claimed Splinter was a welcome return to The Offspring's punk roots, citing songs such as "The Noose" and "Da Hui". The more mainstream songs, "Hit That" and "Spare Me the Details", were also praised.[8]
Allmusic's Johnny Loftus also praised punk songs such as "Long Way Home" and "Lightning Rod", and claimed second single "Head Around You" was the album's standout. Like many fans though, he criticized songs such as "The Worst Hangover Ever" and "When You're in Prison", calling them 'throwaways'.[9] Pop Matters also praised "Head Around You", "Race Against Myself", and other heavier songs on the album. However, it also called "Worst Hangover Ever" 'idiotic' and again criticized "When You're In Prison" and "Neocon".
Another thing that was attacked was the album's short length, which was even shorter than Conspiracy of One. The review concluded that the album was "wasted potential", portraying it as merely average, in the same vein as many other critical reviews.[10]
Some fans also said Splinter did not have a unique sound, though others felt it was The Offspring's darkest album to date ("The Noose", "Never Gonna Find Me", and "Lightning Rod" supporting this). The ska song, "The Worst Hangover Ever", is often slated as breaking the album's rhythm and theme, being placed right in the middle of the album between "(Can't Get My) Head Around You" and "Never Gonna Find Me", two of the album's heavier, more punk-sounding songs.
Splinter was also heavily praised for its lyrical content, said to take a considerable step up from the band's previous material. "Lightning Rod" is often used as an example of this. However, the album's ending of "Da Hui", which some were unhappy with, and joke song "When You're in Prison", which does not fit with the general album, were criticized as "not being a satisfying end to an already short album."[11]
Charts and certifications
Charts
Chart (2003–2004) Peak
positionAustralian Albums Chart 12 Austrian Albums Chart 10 Japanese Albums Chart 8 New Zealand Albums Chart 27 Swedish Albums Chart 56 Swiss Albums Chart 13 UK Albums Chart 27 U.S. Billboard 200 30 Certifications
Region Certification Sales/shipments Japan (RIAJ)[12] Gold 100,000^ Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[13] Gold 20,000x United States (RIAA)[14] Gold 500,000^ ^shipments figures based on certification alone
xunspecified figures based on certification alonePersonnel
The band
- Dexter Holland - lead vocals, rhythm guitar
- Noodles - lead guitar, backing vocals
- Greg K. - bass, backing vocals
Additional musicians
- Josh Freese - drums
- Ronnie King - keyboards on "Hit That"
- Jim Lindberg - backing vocals
- Jack Grisham - backing vocals
- Chris "X-13" Higgins - backing vocals
- 2002 Reading Festival Crowd - crowd vocals on "Neocon"
- Mark Moreno - DJ scratching on "The Worst Hangover Ever"
- Phil Jordan - trumpet on "The Worst Hangover Ever"
- Jason Powell - saxophone on "The Worst Hangover Ever"
- Erich Marbach - trombone on "The Worst Hangover Ever"
- Brendan O'Brien - piano on "Spare Me the Details"
- Lauren Kinkade - backing vocals on "When You're in Prison"
- Natalie Leggett, Mario De Leon, Eve Butler, Denyse Buffum, Matt Funes - violins on "When You're in Prison"
- Larry Corbett - cello on "When You're in Prison"
- Gayle Levant - harp on "When You're in Prison"
References
General references
- (2003) Album notes for Splinter by The Offspring [CD liner]. Columbia Records.
Notes
- ^ http://www.allmusic.com/album/r671079
- ^ http://ubl.artistdirect.com/store/artist/album/0,,2761621,00.html
- ^ http://www.blender.com/guide/reviews.aspx?id=1485
- ^ RIAA (type in "Offspring")
- ^ [1]
- ^ The Offspring History (Official Website)
- ^ Journal Entry by Dexter Holland, posted 18th August, 2006
- ^ Splinter Review by Craig Rosen of Yahoo! Music, posted December 12, 2003
- ^ Splinter Review[dead link] by Johnny Loftus of Allmusic
- ^ Off the Mark… by Adam Williams of PopMatters, posted January 16, 2004
- ^ Splinter is "too short" to be good posted in the Offspring Forums
- ^ "Japanese album certifications – Offspring – Splinter" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. http://www.riaj.or.jp/data/others/gold/200311.html.
- ^ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Offspring; 'Splinter')". Hung Medien. http://www.swisscharts.com/search_certifications.asp?search=Offspring+Splinter.
- ^ "American album certifications – Offspring – Splinter". Recording Industry Association of America. http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?artist=%22Splinter%22. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
External links
Categories:- Albums certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of Japan
- Albums certified gold by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry of Switzerland
- Albums certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America
- The Offspring albums
- 2003 albums
- Albums with cover art by Storm Thorgerson
- English-language albums
- Enhanced CDs
- Columbia Records albums
- Albums produced by Brendan O'Brien
- "Hit That"
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