Numb is the second and final studio album by the American band Hammerbox.[2][3] It was released in 1993 on A&M Records.[4] The first single was "Hole".[5]
The band supported the album by touring with King Missile and Sloan, among others.[6][7] The stress of being on a major label led in part to the band's breakup, as did A&M's inability to promote the album.[8][9]
Production
The album was produced by Michael Beinhorn.[10] Although signed to a major label, the band tried to make the album sound more raw than its independent debut.[11]
Spin wrote that the album's "high-impact, tuneful noise expands on the earlier album's promise, refining the songcraft without sacrificing any of its nervy edge."[13]The Record considered it "for Seattle completists only," writing that Hammerbox "don't manage to imbue the already-tired genre with much personality of their own."[1]
The Los Angeles Times noted that "Carrie Akre's trained, Pat Benatar-like vocals seemed predictable in the context of the rough-and-tumble, high-speed music."[14] The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette likened the sound of Numb to "the Indigo Girls trapped in Kurt Cobain's body."[15] Similarly, The Oregonian compared Hammerbox to "Melissa Etheridge fronting Nirvana," writing that "the band has precious few songs with sufficient structural clarity, melodies or even distinctive riffs."[16]
^Nelson, Rick (26 Feb 1993). "The rush to record Northwest bands isn't over". The Morning News Tribune. p. F8.
^Yoo, Paula (March 4, 1993). "HAMMERBOX . . . MEET CONNECTICUT". The Seattle Times. p. E3.
^Heim, Chris (9 Apr 1993). "King Missile and Hammerbox". Friday. Chicago Tribune. p. N.
^Mayhew, Malcolm (June 4, 1993). "Sloan, Hammerbox wander in alternative wasteland". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. p. 1D.
^Ehrbar, Joe (2 Aug 1996). "GOODNESS! BAND RETURNS DESPITE POOR TURNOUT FIRST TIME AROUND". Weekend. The Spokesman-Review. p. 2.
^Stout, Gene (June 14, 1996). "AFTER HAMMERBOX BREAKUP, CARRIE AKRE TRIES TO HAVE SOME FUN WITH 'GOODNESS'". What's Happening. Seattle Post-Intelligencer. p. 6.
^The Encyclopedia of Record Producers. Billboard Books. 1999. p. 48.
^Maestri, Cathy (May 21, 1993). "Cultivating a raw quality". The Press-Enterprise. p. AA17.
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