Slowly Going the Way of the Buffalo

Slowly Going the Way of the Buffalo
Studio album by MxPx
Released June 16, 1998 (1998-06-16)
Recorded February 1998 at Robert Lang Studios, Seattle, Washington
Genre Pop punk, punk rock, hardcore punk, skate punk
Length 40:29
Label A&M, Tooth & Nail
Producer Steve Kravac
MxPx chronology
Life in General
(1996)
Slowly Going the Way of the Buffalo
(1998)
Let It Happen
(1998)
Singles from Slowly Going the Way of the Buffalo
  1. "I'm OK, You're OK"
    Released: May 6, 1998

Slowly Going the Way of the Buffalo is the fourth studio album released by the American skate punk/punk rock band MxPx in 1998. The album title was taken from a letter that a fan had written to the band, complaining that the band was changing, and, "Slowly Going the Way of the Buffalo".[1]

Background

Due to the success of MxPx's "Chick Magnet", from their previous album Life in General, the band signed a multi-album contract with A&M.[2] A&M had previously signed a deal with Tooth & Nail to co-market Life in General.[2] This market deal was "cobbled together in order to sign the band", according to A&M chairman Al Cafaro.[2]

Composition and recording

Moving away from the "clean straightforward pop" sound of Life in General, the band "dirtied things up a little", according to vocalist/bassist Mike Herrera, for Slowly Going the Way of the Buffalo.[2] The band refrained from making the album "sound like it was produced in a lab."[2] Greg Hetson of Bad Religion has guest vocals on "The Downfall of Western Civilization".[2]

Release

To generate hype, A&M picked 1,000 of the band's fans and sent them a CD of songs from the album, from April to June 1998.[2] Despite the band's sizable fan base, the label was not approaching the album with high expectations.[2] The vice president of A&M estimated the album would easily achieve 100,00 in sales.[2] On May 6, "I'm OK, You're OK" was sent to modern rock radio stations.[2] The band supported Bad Religion on their tour of Europe in May.[2] Slowly Going the Way of the Buffalo was released on June 16 through A&M.[2] From June 30, for five weeks, the band played on the 1998 edition of Warped Tour.[2] In August, the band supported Blink-182.[2]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[3]
HM Magazine(favorable)[4]
The Phantom Tollbooth[5]

The album charted at number 99 on the Billboard 200[6] and at number 2 on the Top Contemporary Christian chart.[7] It certified gold in January 2000 by the Recording Industry Association of America.[8]

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Mike Herrera, and arranged by MxPx. 

No. Title Length
1. "Under Lock and Key"   2:32
2. "Tomorrow's Another Day"   2:47
3. "The Final Slowdance"   1:59
4. "I'm OK, You're OK"   2:39
5. "Cold and All Alone"   2:07
6. "Party, My House, Be There"   2:16
7. "The Downfall of Western Civilization"   2:42
8. "Invitation to Understanding"   2:33
9. "Fist vs Tact"   1:11
10. "What's Mine Is Yours"   3:44
11. "Self Serving with a Purpose"   2:48
12. "For Always"   3:12
13. "Set the Record Straight"   2:57
14. "Get with It!"   1:44
15. "Inches from Life"   1:51
16. "The Theme Fiasco"   3:10
Total length:
40:29

Credits

MxPx
Additional musicians
  • Ronnie King — keyboard
  • Greg Hetson — lead guitar on "The Downfall of the Western Civilization"
  • Dale Yob — vocals on "I'm Ok, You're OK"
  • Jeff Bettger — screams on "Fist vs. Tact" and "The Theme Fiasco"

Production
Artwork
  • Marina Chavez — photography
  • Mitch Tobias — photography
  • John Nissen — illustrations
  • Luke W. Midkiff — illustrations/ video direction

Chart positions

Album
Chart (1998) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard 200[6] 99
U.S. Billboard Top Contemporary Christian[7] 2

Certifications

Country Certification Sales
United States Gold[8] 500,000+

Music videos

References

Citations
  1. B-Movie
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Reece 1998, p. 18
  3. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Slowly Going the Way of the Buffalo - MxPx - Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
  4. McGovern 1998
  5. "MxPx review by The Phantom Tollbooth e'zine". tollbooth.org. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
  6. 1 2 "MxPx - Chart history (Billboard 200)". billboard.com. Retrieved July 29, 2015.
  7. 1 2 "Top Contemporary Christian" 1998, p. 37
  8. 1 2 "RIAA Database Search Results". Recording Industry Association of America.
Sources
  • McGovern, Brian Vincent (September–October 1998). "Album Reviews: MxPx Slowly Going the Way of the Buffalo". HM Magazine (73). ISSN 1066-6923. 
  • Reece, Doug (May 23, 1998). "A&M Rounds Up Existing Fan Base For MxPx's 'Buffalo' Set". Billboard (Nielsen Business Media, Inc.) 110 (21). ISSN 0006-2510. 
  • "Top Contemporary Christian". Billboard (Nielsen Business Media, Inc.) 110 (27). July 4, 1998. ISSN 0006-2510. 
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