Leaving Wonderland... in a Fit of Rage explained

Leaving Wonderland...
in a Fit of Rage
Type:studio
Artist:Marcy Playground
Cover:Leaving Wonderland... in a Fit of Rage.jpg
Released:2009
Studio:Mushroom (Vancouver)
Genre:Alternative rock
Length:37:16
Label:WOZ[1]
Producer:
Prev Title:MP3
Prev Year:2004
Next Title:Indaba Remixes from Wonderland
Next Year:2010

Leaving Wonderland... in a Fit of Rage is the fourth studio album by American alternative rock band Marcy Playground, released in 2009 by WOZ Records.[2] [3] It was begun as a John Wozniak solo album.[4] The album's first single was "Blackbird".[5]

A remix album, Indaba Remixes from Wonderland, followed in 2010.[6] [7]

Production

The album was produced by Jeff Dawson and John Wozniak; Wozniak had appreciated Dawson's production work at Mushroom Studios.[8] [9] Its lyrics were inspired by a difficult period in the singer's life.[10] [11] Leaving Wonderland... in a Fit of Rage was recorded in part with original band member Dylan Keefe.[12] The band added drummer Shlomi Lavie after the album was completed.[13]

Critical reception

Exclaim! called the album "a tribute to the opiate-inspired, alt-rock tradition [the band] once popularized."[14] The Star Tribune deemed it "a slightly rootsier update of the group's quirky style."[15] The Star-News labeled it "sonically diverse and intensely personal."[16]

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review determined that "the music still has a dark aspect and it's still pop; it's just radio that has stopped paying attention."[17] The Toronto Sun considered the album to be "a fairly enjoyable and varied set of mellow Beatle-pop and roots, peppered with surprisingly crunchy guitar-rockers." The Intelligencer Journal concluded that "all 12 songs on Leaving Wonderland ... are excellent, driven by Wozniak's gift for melody."[18]

AllMusic wrote that "it deserves to be heard by a wider audience as it proves that there's more to Marcy Playground and Wozniak than one grunge-era hit."

Track listing

All songs written by John Wozniak.

Personnel

Marcy Playground (Touring members)

Additional personnel (in studio only)

Production

Recorded at Mushroom Studios, Vancouver, BC
Mixed at Harbourside Studios, N. Vancouver, BC
Mastered at Gateway Mastering, Portland, Maine

Notes and References

  1. News: Life's a playground: This band's day job is to keep touring . Corpus Christi Caller-Times . 27 Aug 2010 . W2.
  2. Web site: Marcy Playground Biography, Songs, & Albums. AllMusic.
  3. News: Duckett . Richard . Marcy Playground: Back on tour to promote CD . Telegram & Gazette . 1 Oct 2009 . Go! . 7.
  4. News: Marcy Playground . The Salt Lake Tribune . 8 Oct 2009.
  5. News: Dubiel . Jean . Marcy Playground sounds more like vacant lot: Boring . Fort Polk Guardian . August 14, 2009 . Entertainment.
  6. News: Thrasher . Don . Marcy Playground: ROCKERS LEAVE WONDERLAND WITH A REMIX ALBUM . Dayton Daily News . 10 Sep 2010 . Go! . 6.
  7. News: Maimann . Kevin . Strangers with candy: Long-distance collaboration with Marcy Playground . Edmonton Sun . 15 Apr 2011 . E11.
  8. News: Long . Michael . Catching Up With Marcy Playground . Sunday News . 9 Aug 2009 . H1.
  9. News: Spalding . Derek . Marcy Playground adapts to the changing music scene . Nanaimo Daily News . 29 Oct 2009 . D8.
  10. News: Thomas . Rob . 'SEX AND CANDY' MAKERS HEADLINE ANNEX SHOW . The Capital Times . 6 January 2011 . 12.
  11. News: Courter . Barry . Marcy Playground's Wozniak gets personal on new CD . Chattanooga Times Free Press . 31 July 2009 . H6.
  12. News: Marcy Playground due at Frankie's . The Blade . 11 Feb 2010 . D9.
  13. News: Ward . Coley . Marcy Playground to perform at the Rock on Saturday . Arizona Daily Star . August 27, 2009 . CALIENTE . 6.
  14. Web site: Marcy Playground Leaving Wonderland... In a Fit of Rage | Exclaim!. exclaim.ca.
  15. News: Riemenschneider . Chris . Marcy Playground . Star Tribune . 20 Aug 2009 . VITA.MN . 12.
  16. News: Staton . John . Marcy Playground given new life in reunion . Star-News . 26 Jan 2010.
  17. News: Music: Altar 'Playground' . Pittsburgh Tribune-Review . 9 Mar 2011.
  18. News: Ferguson . Jon . Turning Unhappiness Into Artistic Fulfillment . Intelligencer Journal . 14 Aug 2009 . A5.