SITE PRE-SALE DATE: 3/4/2011
SITE SHIP DATE: 3/18/2011
LIMITED EDITION QUANTITY: 5000
It was the year Nirvana first entered the Billboard charts with its sophomore album, Nevermind, which would soon hit number one. It housed a little song called “Smells Like Teen Spirit” that permeated the airwaves. Chicago band Smashing Pumpkins would release its debut album, Gish. And in the midst of this another Chicago-based band would emerge with an infectiously catchy album culled from a genre not befitting the times. The band was Material Issue and its debut, International Pop Overthrow, may not have taken over the world like its name implies, but two of its songs did make substantial waves on radio and the album entered the Billboard 200. More importantly, Material Issue reenergized power-pop, which wasn’t the flavor of the day, helped hone the alternative rock wave to come, and influenced a music scene in their hometown and beyond. There would be three studio albums to follow, but the tragic and unexpected suicide of front man Jim Ellison at the age of 32 would effectively end the music.
While their run was cut short, their impact ran deep. “Material Issue kept one foot in pop, one foot in punk, and still maintained their credibility in the alternative rock scene,” says Liz Phair. “They were gracious about their success, contentious about preserving their dignity and generally all around cool guys. The Chicago music scene in the ‘90s would not have become what it did without them.” Beyond Chicago, the group inspired an annual power pop festival that named itself after Material Issue’s debut. For 12 years, International Pop Overthrow festival has brought together countless fans of the genre to take in hundreds of bands. Held in cities throughout the U.S. and Canada, the fest has also been presented in Liverpool. It has featured up-and-comers as well as revered acts in the power pop vein, such as Jellyfish/Grays front man Jason Falkner and Shoes. Material Issue’s own Ted Ansani has performed on the International Pop Overthrow festival bill with his Ted Ansani Project.
As for the album itself, the 14-song International Pop Overthrow is rife with everything a power-pop lover seeks: strong melodies and harmonies, sing-along choruses, earworm hooks, tight-driven rhythms, reminiscences of ‘60s/‘70s a.m. pop, and a touch of early-‘60s Britpop flair stemming from guitar lines and Ellison’s slightly affected vocal tones. Of course, other power-pop hallmarks – songs about boys and girls, love and heartbreak – permeate IPO as well.
The album is presented here in its 20th anniversary edition remastered for the first time while also including 8 bonus tracks recorded during the time of the album sessions. Six of these tracks have appeared on a promotional-only release created at the time of the debut of the record, and “Sixteen Tambourines” is an IPO sessions version of their song which appeared on a much earlier CMJ compilation. The final track, “The Girl With The Saddest Eyes,” has never before been available in any form.
* Tracks 15-22 Bonus Tracks