Line #31 Music/HorrendousDisc


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/hdfront.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:And the record plays...]]
3
4	->''Attention Earthlings: Allow hi-fi needle to orbit grooved musical saucer at maximum decibel level.''
5
6	''Horrendous Disc'' is Music/DanielAmos’ third studio album, recorded in late 1977 and early 1978. It wound up being a surprising lightning rod for controversy and [[ScrewedByTheNetwork record label shenanigans]].
7
8	On their first two albums, DA had played Music/{{Eagles}}-esque [[CountryMusic country]]/soft-rock, earning themselves a significant fanbase among the [[ChristianRock Jesus Music]] scene. Those prior albums also had some stylistic experiments that hinted at what was to come, if any fans had been paying attention. Because, for album number three, DA decided to [[NewSoundAlbum abandon country altogether and record a bunch of rock songs]]. They drew influence primarily from Music/TheBeatles and Music/TheBeachBoys, and also made forays into HardRock, {{funk}}, and [[ProgressiveRock pop-prog]] in the vein of Music/ElectricLightOrchestra. Though musically tame by modern standards, it was a risky style for DA to play in the late ’70s, when much of their (white conservative Christian) audience still didn't quite trust any music that rocked too much.
9
10	Mismanagement by their label--LarryNorman’s Solid Rock Records--certainly didn’t help things. In spite of being completely finished in 1978, ''Horrendous Disc'' wasn’t released for three years. The album still got promotion via Christian radio and print ads (one ad stirred up controversy for looking like a horror movie poster), and DA still focused on their new material at live shows (much to the irritation of old fans who wanted to hear them play country)--but for fans who couldn’t actually buy the album, the hype was just confusing and annoying. DA got so frustrated with the delay that they eventually gave up on the album, switched to a new record label, and started working on a followup album.
11
12	So when ''Horrendous Disc'' finally hit the shelves in 1981, it was largely overshadowed by DA’s next album, ''Music/{{Alarma}}''--which was released mere weeks later and featured an even more radical departure from the old style. Nevertheless, to those in the alternative Christian rock scene, ''Horrendous Disc'' has been VindicatedByHistory. It’s highly regarded by those DA fans who didn’t jump ship when the band stopped playing country, and [[http://www.allmusic.com/album/horrendous-disc-mw0000856504 AllMusic gave it a five-star rating]].
13
14	!!Personnel:
15
16	[[AC:Daniel Amos is:]]
17	* Terry Scott Taylor: Guitars, Lead and Background Vocals
18	* Jerry Chamberlain: Guitars, Background Vocals, Lead Vocals on “Man in the Moon” and “Horrendous Disc”
19	* Marty Dieckmeyer: Bass Guitar, Background Vocals
20	* Mark Cook: Keyboards, Background Vocals, Lead Vocals on “Never Leave You”
21	* Ed [=McTaggart=]: Drums, Percussion, Background Vocals
22	* Alex [=MacDougal=]: Percussion
23
24	[[AC:Additional Musicians:]]
25	* Sharon [=McLaughlin=]: Vocals on “Horrendous Disc”
26	* Janet [=McTaggart=]: Vocals on “Sky King” and “Horrendous Disc”
27	* Kim Hutchcroft: Saxophone on “On the Line”
28	* “Alex and Jerry ‘Gonzales’ y Los Romanticos”: mariachi guitars and vocals on “Tidal Wave”
29
30	!!Tracklist:
31
32	'''US Version:'''\
33	[[AC:Side 1:]]
34	# I Love You #19 (3:33)
35	# Hound of Heaven (4:06)
36	# (Near Sighted Girl with Approaching) Tidal Wave (3:05)
37	# Sky King (Out Across the Sky) (4:05)
38
39	[[AC:Side 2:]]
40	# On the Line (5:20)
41	# I Believe in You (3:45)
42	# Man in the Moon (4:00)
43	# Never Leave You (3:08)
44	# Horrendous Disc (5:20)
45
46	[[folder:Other versions]]
47	'''Canadian version:''' Same as the US version, but omits “Never Leave You.”
48
49	'''UK version:'''\
50	[[AC:Side 1:]]
51	# I Love You #19
52	# Hound of Heaven
53	# I Believe in You
54	# Sky King (Out Across the Sky)
55
56	[[AC:Side 2:]]
57	# On the Line
58	# Never Leave You
59	# After All These Years
60	# Horrendous Disc
61
62	'''2000 CD reissue:''' Uses the US tracklist, with the following bonus tracks:
63	[numlist:10]
64	# Hound of Heaven (covered by Larry Norman)
65	# Hound of Heaven (covered again by Larry Norman)
66	[/numlist]
67
68	'''2007 CD-R reissue:''' Uses the US tracklist, with the following bonus tracks:
69	[numlist:10]
70	# Fairy Tale
71	# After All These Years
72	# That Girl Likes To Talk (Yak, Yak, Yak)
73	# Twilight Love
74	# Noelle
75	# Hello Aloha
76	[/numlist]
77
78	[[/folder]]
79
80	----
81	!! Provides examples of:
82
83	* AccidentalPublicConfession: The title track, where a musician's abusive relationship with his wife keeps somehow getting projected for the entire world to see.
84	* BigRockEnding: "I Love You #19" has a short one.
85	* CharmPerson: Why you shouldn’t trust the “Man in the Moon”:
86	-->I saw Mr. Moon last night, you know he's on the rise\
87	There's something in his eyes I've never seen before\
88	There's some kind of magic here, he's so full of surprises\
89	He'll hypnotize like the lull of a lullaby
90	* CoversAlwaysLie: The Canadian version of the album had one less song than the US version... but some pressings claimed to still have that missing song, because the printers decided to just reuse the US cover, including the tracklist.
91	* CoverVersion: One CD version of the album tacks Music/LarryNorman's cover version of "Hound of Heaven" on the end. Or rather, ''two different cover versions'', both by Larry Norman. DA fans aren't sure why Larry thought this was a good idea.
92	* DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife: The protagonists of “Hound of Heaven”, who pursue “Hollywood flash, cash, mansions, and cars ... And for heaven’s sake, take this aching away.”
93	* {{Determinator}}: God is the “Hound of Heaven”, pursuing individuals relentlessly.
94	-->You can’t run\
95	You can’t hide\
96	From the Hound of Heaven\
97	You’re free to choose\
98	Can you refuse\
99	The seeker of souls?
100	* DomesticAbuse: In “Horrendous Disc”, the husband is verbally abusive to his wife.
101	-->He's killed his wife with words, confident it's private rage
102	* DownerEnding: The album ends with the song “Horrendous Disc”. The lyrics are a paranoid, dream-like story about one’s hidden wrongdoings getting exposed. The music is minor-[[{{Tonality}} key]], ending with a dirge-like coda.
103	* FailedASpotCheck:
104	** In “(Near Sighted Girl with Approaching) Tidal Wave”, the girl in the title sleeps through the warning signs of the coming wave, while everyone around her flees the beach.
105	** “On the Line” points out how the listener is constantly missing messages from God.
106	* FluffyCloudHeaven: “Sky King” invokes this with its description of God moving:
107	-->This is not a dream, you've taken flight, far above the world\
108	You walk on clouds, you ride the light, far above my head
109	* GiantWallOfWateryDoom: In “Tidal Wave”.
110	-->It's a tidal wave \
111	It's a watery grave\
112	She really tried to swim\
113	She couldn't in the end.
114	* GodIsLoveSongs: “I Love You #19” is a meta version, pondering both the difficulty of convincing your romantic interest that your feelings are sincere, and the difficulty of convincing other people that Jesus loves them.
115	* InMysteriousWays: “On the Line” is about how God constantly communicates with mankind, as much through the physical world as through Scriptures.
116	-->And when you draw back the curtain \
117	He'll paint a pretty picture for you\
118	And if a billion stars don't convince you, baby\
119	He sent some letters signed His name with love, too
120	* LoveMakesYouDumb: In “I Love You #19”:
121	-->Now if I said it real pretty in a pretty rhyme\
122	Does your mind get cloudy that's a dirty crime
123	* LyricalDissonance: “(Near Sighted Girl with Approaching) Tidal Wave” is an upbeat, Beach Boys-esque pop tune--with lyrics ending in a watery grave.
124	* NewSoundAlbum: Goodbye, Daniel Amos the country band. Hello, Daniel Amos the pop-rock band. And this would be just the first of many abrupt style changes.
125	* NonAppearingTitle: “Horrendous Disc”.
126	* OminousChanting: The song “Horrendous Disc” ends with about a minute of wordless chanting.
127	* {{Robinsonade}}: The surreal “Man in the Moon” has a verse about being stranded on the moon, as a metaphor for being out-of-place in this world.
128	-->Man in the moon, I was shooting for a star much higher\
129	Man in the moon, there's no life nowhere near\
130	I'm dying to get out of here\
131	Lord don't leave me high and dry, let me fly
132	* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: In “Horrendous Disc”, after the musician’s sins are exposed, he tries to run away from the problem, but that doesn’t help. He just runs into a billboard advertising all his wrongdoings.
133	* StepUpToTheMicrophone: Guitarist Jerry Chamberlain sings lead on "Man in the Moon" and "Horrendous Disc". Keyboardist Mark Cook sings lead on "Never Leave You".
134

Context Music / HorrendousDisc