A Blur to Me Now

A Blur to Me Now
Studio album by
13 Engines
Released1991
GenreRock, pop
LabelEMI Music Canada
ProducerDavid Briggs, John Hanlon
13 Engines chronology
Byram Lake Blues
(1989) 		A Blur to Me Now
(1991) 		Ignition
(1993)

A Blur to Me Now is the third album by the Canadian band 13 Engines, released in 1991.[1][2] They supported it with North American tours, including one opening for Pere Ubu.[3][4] "Big Surprise" was the first single.[5] The album reached No. 1 on the Canadian College Albums chart.[6]

Production

Recorded in a week at Neil Young's California ranch, the album was produced by David Briggs (who also helped 13 Engines pick the songs) and John Hanlon.[7][8][9] The band had admired the pair's work on Young's Ragged Glory, and also wanted to record live but have an outside voice give feedback.[8][10] The band's manager, Peter Jesperson, was also present for some of the recording sessions, before quitting over the musical direction.[11] The title of the album refers to the period where the band was living in Detroit and hoping to find success.[12] "Throttle Open Wide" is about playing live for only a handful of audience members.[13]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[14]
Calgary HeraldD[15]
Times & Transcript[16]
Winnipeg Sun[17]

The Calgary Herald called the band "four Neil Young wanna-bes, playing guitar-rock that's supposed to sound cut-throat and on the edge, but comes off arrogant and cliched."[15] Likewise, the Chicago Tribune labeled the album "a sharp set of big pop hooks and big, grungy guitar a la Ragged Glory Neil Young."[18] The Hamilton Spectator considered it "no-frills rock 'n' roll that propels itself along magnetically".[19] The Times Colonist praised the "buzzsaw pop sound" and "fine songwriting".[20]

In 2002, the Regina Leader-Post listed A Blur to Me Now as a "classic example" of "CanRock".[21]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."Big Surprise" 
2."Suffocate" 
3."King of Saturday Night" 
4."Another Toss of the Coin" 
5."You're Nothing If You're Not Strong" 
6."Abandoned" 
7."Hurry" 
8."Clean" 
9."Gathered Safely In" 
10."Rolling Home Again" 
11."Elephant Song" 
12."Throttle Open Wide" 
13."Night of the Shooting Star" 

References

  1. ^ "13 Engines A Blur to Me Now". Sound & Vision. Vol. 7, no. 4. July–August 1991. pp. 55–56.
  2. ^ Harrison, Tom (July 2, 1991). "Independent labels: Hope for new talent". Entertainment. The Province. p. 50.
  3. ^ Bream, Jon (August 9, 1991). "Nightlife". Star Tribune. p. 12E.
  4. ^ Craig, Terry (July 25, 1991). "Pop Scene". The StarPhoenix. p. D1.
  5. ^ Burliuk, Greg (June 29, 1991). "Crafty Car Rock". Magazine. The Whig-Standard. p. 1.
  6. ^ "Current Canadian College Albums". The Gazette. The National Chart Magazine. September 14, 1991. p. E1.
  7. ^ Davidson, Neil (June 22, 1995). "13 Engines hope to conquer new hearts; Ontario band plans cross-Canada tour". Ottawa Citizen. p. C10.
  8. ^ a b Levesque, Roger (August 2, 1991). "5 years of character building". Edmonton Journal. p. D8.
  9. ^ "13 Engines gain comparisons with Young over latest album". The Kitchener-Waterloo Record. August 1, 1991. p. C8.
  10. ^ Jones, Owen (May 20, 1993). "13 Engines crank out volume". The Windsor Star. p. C15.
  11. ^ Walsh, Jim (2007). The Replacements: All Over but the Shouting: An Oral History. Voyageur Press. p. 192.
  12. ^ Hamilton, Jill (August 16, 1991). "Canadian band tactful about its Detroit visit". The Ann Arbor News. p. D4.
  13. ^ Thompson, Anne (June 5, 1991). "When the bad times came, 13 Engines wrote good songs". Detroit Free Press. p. 7D.
  14. ^ "A Blur to Me Now Review by Tom Demalon". AllMusic. Retrieved March 3, 2026.
  15. ^ a b Alberts, Sheldon (June 2, 1991). "Recent Releases". Calgary Herald. p. D4.
  16. ^ Keith, Arthur (July 13, 1991). "What's New". Leisure Living. Times & Transcript. p. 7.
  17. ^ Kendle, John (June 21, 1991). "Pop". Winnipeg Sun. p. 37.
  18. ^ Heim, Chris (June 7, 1991). "Upcoming shows of note in the week ahead". Friday. Chicago Tribune. p. Q.
  19. ^ Krewen, Nick (May 25, 1991). "Albums". The Hamilton Spectator. p. C4.
  20. ^ Blake, Joseph (June 1, 1991). "Sound Advice". Times Colonist. p. C4.
  21. ^ Matheson, Emmet (July 17, 2002). "Piggins back on stage". Regina Leader-Post. p. A16.
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