Indifference (album) explained

Indifference
Type:album
Artist:the Proletariat
Cover:TheProletariat IndifferenceLP cover.jpeg
Released:1985
Studio:Radiobeat
Language:English
Label:Homestead
Chronology:The Proletariat
Prev Title:Marketplace
Prev Year:1985
Next Title:Voodoo Economics and Other American Tragedies
Next Year:1998

Indifference is the second studio album by American punk rock band the Proletariat.

The record was named after its opening song, which was inspired by the photography of David Henry of the homeless in Boston, Massachusetts.[1] [2] One of Henry's photos serves as the album's front cover.[3]

In late 1984, before Indifference was completed, lead vocalist Richard Brown and drummer Tom McKnight left the band.[1] They were replaced by Laurel Ann Bowman,[4] [5] and Steve Welch,[1] [2] both of whom performed on the new album's songs "Homeland" and "The Guns Are Winning".[5] [6]

Roger Miller of Mission of Burma makes a guest appearance playing the piano in the track "An Uneasy Peace",[7] [8] which is an updated version from that contributed to the hardcore punk compilation P.E.A.C.E.,[8] [9] released a year earlier on R Radical Records.[10]

Indifference was preceded by its lead single "Marketplace".[11] [12]

Production and release

Produced by Lou Giordano and Frank Michaels, Indifference was recorded in different sessions at Radiobeat Studios in Boston, mixed at White Dog Studio in Newton, Massachusetts, and mastered by George "Porky" Peckham at Porky's Mastering in London, England. It was released in 1985 on Homestead Records,[13] on LP[14] [15] and Compact Cassette.[3] Etched onto its run-out grooves, the vinyl release features, in a mocking way, a paraphrase of the main conclusion of the 1984 Ronald Reagan's Task Force on Food Assistance report, which reads as follows: "There is no evidence of wide spread hunger in America.." (side A), "....Government report on federal assistance." (side B).

Critical reception

Oliver Sheppard, contributor at the online magazine Souciant, was of the view that Indifference:

For his part, Ryan Foley, from The Music Museum of New England, commented:

The punk zine Suburban Voice wrote:

"Marketplace" 7"

Marketplace
Cover:TheProletariat MarketplaceSP cover.jpeg
Type:single
Artist:the Proletariat
Album:Indifference
B-Side:"Death of a Hedon" (3:29)
Released:1985
Studio:Radiobeat
Label:Homestead
Chronology:The Proletariat
Prev Title:Soma Holiday
Prev Year:1983
Next Title:Indifference
Next Year:1985

"Marketplace" is a song by the Proletariat, originally released in 1985 on Homestead Records[11] [16] as the lead single for the band's second studio album, Indifference,[14] [12] on which it is featured as the closing track. The B-side to the single, "Death of a Hedon", was not included on the album. Both songs would be re-released in 1998 as part of the band's anthology Voodoo Economics and Other American Tragedies.[17] [5] [18] [19]

The record's front cover features a photograph of a homeless man lying at the top of a stairway while he is avoided and ignored by the people passing by. The image was taken by photographer David Henry[12] at one of the entrances to the Boylston light rail station of the Boston, Massachusetts, rapid transit system.

Reissues

Out of print after its original release,[3] Indifference would later resurface, in its entirety, on the band's 2-CD anthology Voodoo Economics and Other American Tragedies,[17] compiled in 1998 by Taang! Records.[5] [18] [19]

Track listing

Music and arrangements by Peter Bevilacqua and Frank Michaels, lyrics by Richard Brown, except where noted.

Personnel

The Proletariat

Guest performers

Productionsame credits for the "Marketplace" 7"

Further reading

Reviews

External links

Official

Reviews

Notes and References

  1. https://web.archive.org/web/20170123042546/http://theproletariat.com/biograph.htm "The Proletariat: Biography"
  2. Foley, Ryan. "The Proletariat". The Music Museum of New England. Retrieved March 4, 2016.
  3. https://web.archive.org/web/20160407155350/http://theproletariat.com/indifference.htm "The Proletariat: Indifference"
  4. http://www.whittier-porter.com/Photos/Obits/Laurel_Bowman.htm "Laurel Ann Bowman"
  5. Suburban Voice (ca. 2000). "The Proletariat: Voodoo Economics and Other American Tragedies (Taang! Dbl CD)" (review). Suburban Voice (43).
  6. [Chuck Eddy|Eddy, Chuck]
  7. CMJ New Music Report (August 29, 1986). Indifference, review. CMJ New Music Report (99).
  8. . Kill from the Heart. Archived from on May 5, 2016.
  9. https://web.archive.org/web/20160407175909/http://theproletariat.com/peace.htm "Various Artists: Peace"
  10. http://www.mdc-punk.com/R_Radical_Records.html "R Radical Records"
  11. Homestead #HMS 037
  12. https://web.archive.org/web/20170123042549/http://theproletariat.com/marketplace.htm "The Proletariat: Marketplace"
  13. [Steven Blush|Blush, Steven]
  14. Homestead #HMS 052
  15. . Kill from the Heart. Archived from on May 31, 2016.
  16. . Kill from the Heart. Archived from on May 31, 2016.
  17. Taang! #TAANG! 127
  18. Anderson, Rick. "Voodoo Economics and Other American Tragedies: AllMusic Review by Rick Anderson". AllMusic. Retrieved April 23, 2016.
  19. https://web.archive.org/web/20170123042543/http://theproletariat.com/voodoo.htm "The Proletariat: Voodoo Economics and Other American Tragedies"