Sign In to rate and review
Critic Reviews
100
I suggest purchasing any Shellac album on vinyl because a) the sounds created are amazing and b) both Albini and Weston are adamant about people hearing it in the correct vinyl format.
12y
79
Terraform takes a while to develop, and somehow comes out a concept album. Ah, who cares, just know that there is no band that can move Earth like Shellac.
13y
70
Grounded in the same mid-'80s Midwest merger of American hardcore and U.K. postpunk that informed Big Black, Shellac's music revels in the sonorous qualities of rock's basic elements.
11y
70
On their second full-length album, Shellac continue to make exceedingly precise music in which silence counts as much as noise, and the rhythms (courtesy of bassist Bob Weston and drummer Todd Trainer) are wound as tight as industrial-strength springs.
2y
60
Though Steve Albini and Bob Weston were busy with their respective production careers, the wait between Shellac's 1994 debut album and 1998's Terraform doesn't seem to have done the group any good.
13y
50
Gravitas traditionally follows Albini like a cortege, mindful of achievements past and looking forward to future innovation. Trouble is, it feels like the responsibility's finally beginning to weigh him down.
11y
Shellac's Terraform is a disappointing mess. Despite the cohesiveness and technicality the band presents on this album, the final product is kind of sloppy, not well thought out, and not nearly as exciting as much of their other works.
It was probably a deliberate choice, but this album is rather grey in that the songwriting is just barely there, hitting the most basic of tropes imaginable, with some rather lifeless and uninspired mathiness to spice it up just a bit. The first track, which ... read more
On their second record, it takes a solid twelve minutes for Shellac to find some momentum with more punchy tracks and greater variation. I’m all for repetition to a strong build, but the opener here is hard to deny as a weak point in Shellac’s sound. Yes, it’s repetitive post-rock, and I’m far from unaware of how the medium works, but there really isn’t anything dynamic or nuclear about what is accomplished on the opening track and unfortunately that song takes up ... read more
Once you get past the first track (that I just ignore by this point) you have probably the 3rd best Shellac album. Unfortunately Albini decided to waste 12 minutes of everyones life with the bass line looped.
Terraform is a great follow-up to At Action Park. It teaches us more about Shellac's style with the long monotonous songs (which they perfect in Excellent Italian Greyhound with End of Radio) while also giving us more of what we expected from it's predecessor: Raw, simple, angular, metallic rock music with Albini's signature deadpan. My biggest gripe would be that the middle songs are a tad forgettable, which honestly also happens with AAP, and that the lyricism is a slight step ... read more
Become a Subscriber
Subscriber badge, no ads + more benefits.
Subscriber badge, no ads + more benefits.
Advertisement
Track List
| 1 | Didn't We Deserve a Look At You The Way You Really Are 12:19 | 80 |
| 2 | This Is a Picture 2:30 | 84 |
| 3 | Disgrace 2:41 | 77 |
| 4 | Mouthpiece 4:44 | 78 |
| 5 | Canada 2:21 | 81 |
| 6 | Rush Job 2:17 | 76 |
| 7 | House Full of Garbage 7:36 | 74 |
| 8 | Copper 1:48 | 84 |
Total Length: 36 minutes
