Extreme II: Pornograffitti explained

Extreme II: Pornograffitti
Type:studio
Artist:Extreme
Cover:Extreme-pornograffitti.jpg
Studio:
Length:64:30
Label:A&M
Prev Title:Extreme
Prev Year:1989
Next Title:III Sides to Every Story
Next Year:1992

Extreme II: Pornograffitti (also known as simply Pornograffitti) is the second studio album by the heavy metal band Extreme, released on August 7, 1990, through A&M Records.[1] The album title is a portmanteau of pornography and graffiti.

Extreme II sold very well, peaking at No. 10 on the Billboard 200, and was certified double platinum in the U.S. by the RIAA. It is the band's best selling album. Two singles from Pornograffiti, "More Than Words" and "Hole Hearted", reached No. 1 and 4 respectively on the Billboard Hot 100. Two other tracks, "Decadence Dance" and "Get the Funk Out", became popular on MTV's Headbangers Ball.[2]

Overview

Pornograffitti is a concept album, its story is about lost innocence and uneasiness.Though the album "[focuses] on the same funk-metal vibe as [their debut]", it became massively popular due to the acoustic single "More Than Words".[3]

According to authors HP Newquist and Pete Prown, the album has "a bewildering array of song styles—heavy metal, ballads, funk, etc.".[4]

The title track, as well as "More than Words" and "It('s a Monster)", have been played live since at least early April 1989, and date back to shortly after the band's self-titled debut was released.[5]

Reception

The album received largely positive reception. AllMusic reviewer Steve Huey gave the album four stars, and commented that "[the] band shows a strong desire to experiment and push the boundaries of the pop-metal format". Rolling Stone placed the album at thirteenth on their list of the "50 Greatest Hair Metal Albums of All Time".[6] Ultimate Classic Rock ranked it at eighth in their "Top 30 Glam Metal Albums".[7] Heavy metal author Martin Popoff, in his book The Big Book of Hair Metal, called the album, "a thinking man's hair metal album, with thoughtful lyrics and tasteful guitar work".[8]

Lead guitarist Nuno Bettencourt garnered admiration from rock guitar enthusiasts, as he was voted "Best New Talent" in a 1991 readers' poll by Guitar World magazine,[9] and that magazine later named him "Most Valuable Player" of 1991.[10]

Legacy

In 2010, after the band's reunion in the previous years, rumors started about possible commemorative shows given the 20th anniversary of the record. In 2012, the band played the entire album for four tour dates in Japan.[11] In January 2014, the band confirmed they would be performing Pornograffiti in its entirety on their 2014 European tour.[12]

In 2015, the band embarked on an extensive US tour commemorating the album's 25th anniversary.

Personnel

Extreme
Additional musicians
Production

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1991)Peak
position
Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts)[14] 11
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[15] 32
US Billboard 200[16] 10

Year-end charts

Chart (1991)Position
European Albums (European Top 100)[17] 69
US Billboard 200[18] 23

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Gold & Platinum. May 31, 2021. RIAA.
  2. Johnston. Maura. Maura Johnston . February 6, 2015. Extreme's 'More Than Words': The Oral History. May 31, 2021. Rolling Stone.
  3. Web site: Revisiting Extreme's Path to Success With 'Pornograffitti'. DeRiso. Nick. August 7, 2015. Ultimate Classic Rock. May 25, 2020.
  4. Book: Prown. Pete. Legends of Rock Guitar: The Essential Reference of Rock's Greatest Guitarists. Newquist. Harvey P.. 1997. Hal Leonard Corporation. 978-0-7935-4042-6. 206. Pete Prown. HP Newquist.
  5. Web site: Extreme Setlist at Newbury Sound Studios, Boston . setlist.fm .
  6. Beaujour. Tom. Bienstock. Richard. Eddy. Chuck. Fischer. Reed. Grow. Kory. Johnston. Maura. Weingarten. Christopher R.. August 31, 2019. 50 Greatest Hair Metal Albums of All Time. March 4, 2021. Rolling Stone.
  7. Web site: Rolli. Bryan. July 1, 2021. Top 30 Glam Metal Albums. November 1, 2021. Ultimate Classic Rock.
  8. Book: Popoff, Martin. The Big Book of Hair Metal: The Illustrated Oral History of Heavy Metal's Debauched Decade. 2014. Voyageur Press. 978-0-7603-4546-7. 192. Martin Popoff.
  9. Guitar World . April 1991 . 12 . 4 . Guitar World 1991 Readers' Poll . 41 . PDF . February 24, 2017 . March 27, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190327204203/https://www.scribd.com/doc/297232312/Guitar-World-4-Apr-1991-pdf . dead .
  10. Guitar World . January 1992. 13. 1 . The Year of Guitar: Nuno Bettencourt, M.V.P..
  11. Web site: March 1, 2012. EXTREME To Perform Entire 'Pornograffitti' Album On Japanese Tour. May 31, 2021. Blabbermouth.net.
  12. Web site: Extreme 'Pornograffiti Live 2014' Tour Dates. 2014-02-02. 2015-09-13. https://web.archive.org/web/20150913182607/http://extreme-band.com/site/extreme-pornograffitti-live-2014-pre-sale-vip-packages-avail-now-tickets-on-sale-friday-131/. dead.
  13. Extreme II: Pornograffitti . . 1990 . 4 . CD . A&M Records.
  14. Book: Pennanen, Timo. Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972. 1st. Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. Helsinki. 2006. 978-951-1-21053-5 . fi.
  15. Book: Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005. Oricon Entertainment. Roppongi, Tokyo. 2006. 4-87131-077-9. ja.
  16. Billboard Top Pop Albums - June 8, 1991 . . Billboard . November 29, 2021 . 72 . June 8, 1991.
  17. European Top 100 Albums – 1991 . Music & Media . 8 . 51/52 . 21 December 1991 . 24 . 29800226 . World Radio History. November 29, 2021.
  18. Year in Music: 1991 - Top Albums. December 21, 1991. World Radio History. Billboard. 66. November 14, 2021.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Extreme II: Pornograffitti".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2025, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.