The Empire Strikes First is the thirteenth studio album by Bad Religion, released on June 8, 2004. The album is heavily influenced by the then-current Iraq War (most notably in the songs "Atheist Peace", "Let Them Eat War" and the title track) and also has some nods to George Orwell's novel Nineteen Eighty-Four (the song title "Boot Stamping on a Human Face Forever" as well as the line "you deserve Two Minute Hate" in the title track are direct references to the book), the latter most likely inspired by the PATRIOT Act.
The album also marks the rare instance that non-members of Bad Religion received a writing credit, as Chris Wollard of Hot Water Music co-wrote two songs.
The song "Social Suicide" Appears in Both Tony Hawk Project 8 and MX vs ATV Untamed.
Release
"Los Angeles Is Burning" was released to radio on April 27, 2004.[1] The Empire Strikes First was released on June 8, 2004. In October, the band went on a tour of the US with Rise Against.[2]
Reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 70/100[3] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [4] |
| IGN | 9/10 [5] |
| Pitchfork | 8.2/10 [9] |
| RTÉ | [7] |
| Robert Christgau |  [6] |
| Rolling Stone | [8] |
It peaked at number 40 on the Billboard 200 album chart,[10] the highest position the band had attained at the time. The album scored a minor radio hit with, "Los Angeles Is Burning", which also reached No. 40 on the Billboard modern rock tracks chart.
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Overture" | Gurewitz | 1:09 |
| 2. | "Sinister Rouge" | Graffin | 1:53 |
| 3. | "Social Suicide" | Graffin | 1:35 |
| 4. | "Atheist Peace" | Graffin | 1:57 |
| 5. | "All There Is" | Gurewitz | 2:57 |
| 6. | "Los Angeles Is Burning" | Gurewitz | 3:23 |
| 7. | "Let Them Eat War" | Gurewitz, Francis, Wackerman, Baker, Bentley | 2:57 |
| 8. | "God's Love" | Graffin | 2:32 |
| 9. | "To Another Abyss" | Graffin | 4:07 |
| 10. | "The Quickening" | Gurewitz, Wackerman, Chris Wollard | 2:19 |
| 11. | "The Empire Strikes First" | Gurewitz, Baker | 3:23 |
| 12. | "Beyond Electric Dreams" | Gurewitz, Wackerman, Wollard | 4:02 |
| 13. | "Boot Stamping on a Human Face Forever" | Gurewitz | 3:49 |
| 14. | "Live Again (The Fall of Man)" | Graffin | 3:35 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15. | "The Surface of Me" | Graffin | 3:01 |
Personnel
Bad Religion
- Greg Graffin – lead vocals, producer
- Greg Hetson – guitar
- Brian Baker – guitar, backup vocals
- Brett Gurewitz – guitar, backup vocals, producer
- Jay Bentley – bass guitar, backup vocals
- Brooks Wackerman – drums, percussion
Additional personnel
Musicians
- David Bragger – violin on "Atheist Peace"
- Mike Campbell – guitar on "Los Angeles is Burning"
- Sage Francis – guest vocals on "Let Them Eat War"
- John Ginty – Hammond B-3 on "Los Angeles is Burning"
- Leopold Ross – Sonic Alienator on "Beyond Electric Dreams"
- Claude Sarne – goth choir soprano on "Sinister Rouge"
Other
- Atticus Ross – programming
- Joe Barresi – engineer, mixing
- Tom Baker – mastering
- Pete Martinez – assistant engineer
- June Murakawa – assistant engineer
- Nick Pritchard – design
- Sean Murphy – photography
- Matt Rubin – photography
- Hans Buscher - Guitar Tech
Release history
| Country | Release date |
|---|---|
| United Kingdom | June 7, 2004 |
| Worldwide | |
| United States | June 8, 2004 |
Charts
| Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[11] | 99 |
| French Albums (SNEP)[12] | 177 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[13] | 28 |
| Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[14] | 42 |
| Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[15] | 82 |
| US Independent Albums (Billboard)[16] | 2 |
| US Top Album Sales (Billboard)[17] | 40 |
Singles - Billboard (North America)
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | "Los Angeles Is Burning" | Modern rock tracks | 40 |
References
- ^ "FMQB Airplay Archive: Modern Rock". Friday Morning Quarterback Album Report, Incorporated. Archived from the original on March 22, 2013. Retrieved October 30, 2016.
- ^ UG Team (August 27, 2004). "In Brief: Marilyn Manson, Used, Slipknot, Bad Religion, Fu Manchu". Ultimate Guitar. Retrieved November 12, 2017.
- ^ "The Empire Strikes First by Bad Religion". Retrieved October 3, 2016.
- ^ AllMusic
- ^ JR (July 19, 2004). "The Empire Strikes First". IGN. Archived from the original on May 28, 2012. Retrieved July 19, 2017.
- ^ "Robert Christgau: CG: bad religion". Retrieved October 3, 2016.
- ^ "Bad Religion - The Empire Strikes First". RTÉ News. June 30, 2004.
- ^ Miller, Kirk (July 8, 2004). "The Empire Strikes First Review". Archived from the original on March 11, 2007. Retrieved October 3, 2016.
- ^ Tompkins, J. H. (August 2, 2004). "Pitchfork Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
- ^ "The Empire Strikes First's entry at Billboard.com". Billboard.com. Retrieved November 6, 2007.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Bad Religion – The Empire Strikes First" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
- ^ "Lescharts.com – Bad Religion – The Empire Strikes First". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
- ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Bad Religion – The Empire Strikes First" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
- ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Bad Religion – The Empire Strikes First". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
- ^ "Swisscharts.com – Bad Religion – The Empire Strikes First". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
- ^ "Bad Religion Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
- ^ "Bad Religion Chart History (Top Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
External links
- The Empire Strikes First at YouTube (streamed copy where licensed)