Hi-Fi Serious

Hi-Fi Serious
Studio album by
A
Released4 March 2002
RecordedAugust–December 2001
GenreAlternative rock, post-grunge, hard rock, pop rock
Length45:36
LabelLondon
ProducerKen Andrews, Al Clay
A chronology
Exit Stage Right
(2000) 		Hi-Fi Serious
(2002) 		Teen Dance Ordinance
(2005)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Alternative Press6/10[2]
Blender[3]
Drowned in Sound9/10[4]
laut.de[5]
NME7/10[6]
Nude as the News(Positive)[7]
Ox-FanzineFavourable[8]
Q[9]

Hi-Fi Serious is the third studio album by British alternative rock band A, released in 2002.

The name "Hi-Fi Serious" was derived from the name of the hi-fi electronics store Alan Partridge buys a Bang & Olufsen stereo from in the last episode of I'm Alan Partridge series 1. The tour in support of this album's release was called the 'Inner City Sumo' tour - another reference to I'm Alan Partridge (Season 1 Episode 1).

Charts, sales and legacy

The album is certified Silver in the U.K., having sold over 60,000 copies.[10]

First single, "Nothing", made it to No. 9 in the UK singles chart before the album's release, propelling the band higher up the ladder - the album peaked at No. 18 in the UK album charts - and although they were still not seen as a mainstream artist, the album still won them "Best British Band" at the Kerrang! Awards.

In 2005, readers of Kerrang! magazine voted Hi-Fi Serious the 57th best British rock album ever.[11]

Track listing

  1. "Nothing" – 3:43
  2. "Something's Going On" – 2:58
  3. "6 o'Clock on a Tube Stop" – 3:14
  4. "Going Down" – 4:09
  5. "Took It Away" – 3:29
  6. "Starbucks" – 3:18
  7. "The Springs" – 4:28
  8. "Shut Yer Face" – 3:43
  9. "Pacific Ocean Blue" – 3:27
  10. "The Distance" – 3:37
  11. "W.D.Y.C.A.I." (Why Don't You Cry About It) – 3:27
  12. "Hi-Fi Serious" – 5:57
  13. "Champions of Endings" (U.S. bonus track) - 4:25

DVD features

Hi-Fi Serious was later re-released with an additional DVD of live footage and other video clips of the band. This included music videos for "Nothing", "The Distance" & "Old Folks" (From Monkey Kong), a 12-minute documentary, UK TV commercials for Hi-Fi Serious, and 20 minutes of "Live at Reading 2002" footage.

References

  1. ^ Allmusic review
  2. ^ Harvilla, Rob (August 2002). "Music Reviews". Alternative Press. Vol. 17, no. 169. p. 68.
  3. ^ Mitchell, Ben. "A Hi-Fi Serious". Blender. Archived from the original on 13 August 2004. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  4. ^ "Drowned in Sound review". Archived from the original on 11 December 2019. Retrieved 11 December 2019.
  5. ^ Cordas, Alexander. "Hi-Fi Serious" (in German). laut.de. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
  6. ^ NME review
  7. ^ Nude as the News review Archived 2004-08-16 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ Hiller, Joachim (March–May 2002). "Reviews: A / Hi-Fi Serious CD". Ox-Fanzine (in German). Retrieved 27 May 2019.
  9. ^ Silver, Dan (March 2002). "A: Hi-Fi Serious". Q Review. Q. No. 188. p. 117. ISSN 0955-4955.
  10. ^ [1] [dead link‍]
  11. ^ Kerrang! The 100 Best British Rock Albums Ever! (at the bottom of the page)