Smash
The Offspring
1994
Album Summary
Smash is the third studio album by American rock band the Offspring, released on April 5, 1994, by Epitaph Records. After touring in support of their previous album Ignition (1992), the band recorded their next album over two months at Track Record in North Hollywood, California. Smash was the band's final studio album to be produced by Thom Wilson, who had worked with them since their 1989 eponymous debut. This also marks the first album where Dexter Holland is credited with playing the guitar as opposed to vocals only. Smash was the Offspring's introduction into worldwide popularity, and produced a number of hit singles, including "Come Out and Play", "Self Esteem", and "Gotta Get Away". Along with Green Day's Dookie, Smash was responsible for bringing punk rock into the mainstream, and helped pave the way for the emerging pop punk scene of the 1990s. As a fan favorite, the album received generally positive reviews from critics and garnered attention from major labels, including Columbia Records, with whom the band would sign in 1996. Peaking at number four on the US Billboard 200, Smash has sold over eleven million copies worldwide, making it the best-selling album released by an independent record label; it was also the first Epitaph release to obtain gold and platinum status. In the United States, Smash has sold over six million copies and has been certified six times platinum by the RIAA.
WikipediaOffspring is like Taco Bell for Punk. If someone said "I want Mexican food" it isn't my recommendation, but it deserves it own category for just how tasty it can be, ya dig?
It’s been nearly 30 years since I listened to this album. I remember sitting on the bus down to Washington DC for my 8th Grade class trip and playing this on my Walkman. As an angsty 14 year old, this album was the shit. In my 40’s it just reminds me of being an angsty teenager. Musically, it’s aggressive pop-punk of its time, and more enjoyable than the music The Offspring would later have hits with, they still had a bit of indie cred on this one, if you will. Damn you, generator, for reminding me of the unstoppable passage of time. I still can’t believe 1994 was almost 30 years ago. Oooh…and it’s got a secret song. How 90’s is that?
Great album. It really shows off the sound that is the offspring. Not a radical departure from their previous works but enough to freshen up their music. This also contains a lot of singles that were, for most people , their intro to the offspring. Well worth a listen and for anyone looking to get into some good punk rock.
super nostalgic crazy taxi tony hawk's pro skater vibes. I can smell the round table pizza, and these songs are catchy gritty fun. a simpler time
I forget how good this is. Messy mid-90's skate punk, the stuff that got me properly into exploring music
Smash is definitely the right title for the album, because every song is like a smash to the face of pure punk ferocity. The Offspring walk the fine line of being tonally aware, hardcore, pissed off, and a little funny all at the same time and it’s flawlessly executed. This was the jumping off point for every 90s kid who didn’t know where to start with punk rock.
The Offspring are a bit of a mystery to me. They're clearly capable of elevating and in some ways redefining punk, but often content to settle down and succumb to the laziest tropes of the genre. Fortunately, most of their best work is captured in one album. If you were to make a true best of compilation, you might grab one or two from elsewhere, but the collection would start and end with Smash. It's filled with allusions and wordplay that reward repeated listens, and you'll want to listen again, because it fucking rocks. I don't know if it's a shame that they couldn't replicate that success or a blessing that they did it once. Best track: Come Out and Play
This came out when I was 13-14 years old. I was pretty much the target audience for this and it never really grabbed me back then. Still doesn't. I have a certain nostalgic thing for "Self Esteem" but that's about it. That one in particular has a more Nirvana like feel which is probably why I'm more attracted to it. Oh man the "secret track" at the end - forgot about those and how they'd translate to modern streaming. So of it's time.
"Ahh, it's time to relax." This album is amazing. I first listened to it when I was around 10, and it really got me into a lot of the rock and punk that I love now. If I could rate this album higher than 5, I would.
4.5 stars. Fantastic album. Could do with fewer "ooohhoohhh's and yeaaaheeaaahhs" but this is just a great punk rock album. Lots of energy, catchy choruses. Takes a little edge off of some of the rawer punk, but not overly pop-y. Standouts are "Bad Habit", "Gotta Get Away", and "Self Esteem".
Come out to play and self esteem are particular highlights for me as they are more the vibe of offspring I prefer. The rest of the album is filled with the more thrashier side of punk which I'm less bothered about.
I don't hate this, it does remind me of uni students with long greasy hair and plans to drink lots of beer once they finish studying with this blasting out and rollups filling their ashtrays. It is a big cheesy lyrically but it has great rhythms and it is really melodic vocally. I honestly am very happy to keep listening to the end.
this is pretty much the best album of all time and i've heard it a kazillion times, it never gets old yewww
I've heard this album 100s of times. One of my best friends wore out 3 copies on CD when we were younger. Still great. Favorite tracks: "Bad Habit", "Killboy Powerhead", "Self Esteem"
The first CD I ever owned. It brings me back to that specific moment in time, even after all these years. It's affirming to me that I have good enough taste for this record to be on this list.
geilgeilegeilgeilgeilgeil. Mit diesem Sound verbinde ich 0,66 Despo, Rofaschlange 21:00 und weinende Emos. Und explizit diese alten gebürsteten Metalltische vor der Tanze vor der Bar zur Dj-Kanzel (die mit der Tribünenmäsigen anstieg), wo ich zum ersten mal mal verschiedene Dinge erfahren durfte: 1. BHs sind viel stabiler als ich dachte. 2. Kaschieren viel mehr dazu als ich dachte. 3. Brüste sind wirklich sehr weich. 4. Isy kann wirklich nicht gut küssen (ich kanns ja wohl nicht gewesen sein) 5. Leuten ist wirklich scheissegal was mal in dem Laden macht. 6. Saufen macht mich zum Aufreisser. 5* Liebs ganz ganz arg
Ist halt geil. Würde auch jede andere natürliche Zahl >=5 geben als Rating, aber is halt aufgrund der programming boundaries nicht möglich.
Daniel: “I’m down for that. That was good.” Diane: I fucking love The Offspring. Americana was the first cd I ever bought for myself. Really like the energy of this album. I think some of the instrumental stuff is really well thought through.
I’ve always loved this album. One of my favourites and reminded me of how great The Offspring are. I still like them and enjoy the odd song but discount them because they aren’t the same band I grew up with.
front to back great. authentic 90s grunge mixed with fast punk rock riffs. classic.
Tämä levy on vuosien saatossa tullut kuunneltua läpi monet kerrat. Tämä oli kova juttu silloin aikanaan ala-asteella ja kulkenut mukana myös opiskeluaikoina ja ihan viime aikoinakin, edelleen timanttista tavaraa. Eihän tämä mitään korkeakulttuuria ole, mutta energiaa ja asennetta on sitäkin enemmän. Self Esteem on tässä se tärkein biisi.
An all time great. Probably the best punk album to come out of 1994. Right at the blossoming of my musical tastes as a child. This is nostalgic for me. Probably listened to this album 100 times. Just as good as the first time.
-”Nitro (Youth Energy)” is nice and fast and catchy with great drums -”Bad Habit” totally rips -The chorus in “Genocide” is very catchy. “Dog eat dog/Every day/On our fellow man we prey/Dog eat dog/To get by/Hope you like my genocide” -I’ve definitely heard “Come Out and Play,” specifically that “You gotta keep ‘em separated” line -Literally just a silent gap from 4:04 until 9:04 on “Smash.” The song is 10:40 and 5 entire minutes are just silent. -This has some seriously catchy and great stuff, I think it has a decent likelihood of getting a good number of listens from me. I’m going to give it 5 stars because I think it has some serious potential to get me much more into punk.
Story time. This album came out my junior year of high school. My first boyfriend (Jeremy) and I listened to it incessantly. Listening to it now brought back all these fun memories of screaming the lyrics at the top of our lungs as we drove around or hung out with friends. After high school Jeremy got addicted to heroine. It was a long slow decline. He OD a few years ago and he’s dead now. RIP Jeremy. I can’t see or hear anybody but you when I listen to this album. And when I do, it’s nothing but joy.
Lekkere punkrock! Yeah!! Ik houd wel van die lekker snelle muziek, waarbij de overkoepelende melodie niet eens zo heel snel gaat. Ik kan niet zeggen dat dit het beste punk-album is wat ik ooit gehoord heb, maar het klinkt wel cool. Favorieten zijn "Bad Habit", "Genocide", "She" of eigenlijk alles behalve "Self Esteem" :-) *****
Flashbacks to cruising around in Ralph's Volvo and blasting this with the windows down. It may have been a cassette tape!! Album's still great.
I'm not sure what more you can expect from pop-punk-rock. The hooks are catchy, the harmonies are solid, the energy is great and it absolute carries a dose of snarkiness and humor. Really enjoyed
A dirtbag masterpiece The Offspring being one of the only groups to come out clean after that Woodstock 99 documentary
Discazo de punk-rock con temas melódicos, guitarreros y muy bien producido.
Turns out I’ve heard a few of these songs but never really heard of Offspring or this album. I missed a lot of the 90s due to drinking a lot and living in a trailer. This album was hot. Quality punk sound fast clean dirty rock really solid album I loved it.
Great album. The melodies don't sound tired; the guitar parts are interesting, and the lyrics fit the vibe of the music.
A long-standing favorite of mine, particularly my favorite pop-punk album. Just a great blast of energy, attitude, and catchiness.
17 year old me is screaming right now. Nitro still kicks ass, Bad Habit is still morbid fun. I find a lot of the albums brightest songs are the non-singles. Something To Believe In, Killboy Powerhead, So Alone are all fun songs. The singles on the album I feel are pretty dusty and tired but there is still a lot of nostalgia driven love for this album.
Timanttia tai ainakin puhdasta kultaa. Tätä tuli jo penskana luukutettua 24/7 ja eipä ole mihinkään kulunut. Toimii edelleenkin.
love it! bestselling independently released album of all time for a reason :)
Very nostalgic sound, love it a lot. this, Ixnay On The Hombre and Rise And Fall, Rage And Grace are great albums. the others have some good tracks but also a lot more complete misses (like Pretty Fly (For A White Guy))
my mum use to listen to the offspring. i think she still does every now and then. I will always have this memory of when i was maybe 13 and was listening to You're gonna go far kid, and my mum said she liked the song. I looked at her with utter shock going 'you know The Offspring?' and she gave me this incredulous look and said 'Hazel I've been listening to them before you were even born'. I was born in 1998, I like to believe she was talking about this album.
Absolute classic. Top to bottom inspired, politically biting, aggressive, scream-along, and funny too.
Quin fenomen místic o planetari va passar en les vides dels components de Green Day i Offspring al 1994 no el sabrem mai, però per la raó que sigui totes dues bandes van donar aquell any llum dos dels discos més importants de la década, van donar fi als anys del grunge i van encetar una nova etapa en la vida social i musical dels '90. Tot el que van fer abans i després està molt lluny del que van aconseguir aquell any. Això és més clar en el cas d'Offspring, els discos dels quals precedents i posteriors a 'Smash' queden tan per sota d'aquest que un es pregunta si realment pertanyen a la mateixa banda. 'Smash', però, és una obra perfecta del punk hardcore, ram de singles contundents i vibrants que van donar vida i èxit a tota una generació de bandes que vivien de la repetició del patró, de vegades amb certa gràcia, la majoria copiant amb insistència una mateixa idea. Aquest, però, és EL disc del génere i una obra per ser disfrutada sempre
Great album, solid throughout with practically no filler. Every song is a banger
Goes incredibly hard. The best 90s punk album - Dookie can eat a dick. Too bad it's the only good Offspring album. I have to give this a 5/5 or else "The Skeleton" shall deem me unworthy of my skin.
I used to absolutely love the offspring when I was a teenager. First gig I ever went to....Bought an offspring hoodie which was about 10 sizes too big and wore it religiously! When I saw this come up I was a bit worried it wouldn't hold up to how I remembered it. It does though and it's massively nostalgic. Still think nearly every song is great. My favourites are probably smash, nitro, killboy powerhead, come out and play and gotta get away. Dexter dropped out of his PhD when they got big and only recently went back and finished it, which is fair play. I actually think Ignition and ixnay are slightly better albums than this, but it's close....I hope there are more on the list, but having this album was surprising enough. 6 out 5!
I can't give this album anything less than 5*! It's the soundtrack to my early teens, I love every song and know the album inside out! Offspring are pioneers of nu-punk. All I need now is my skateboard and a quarter bottle of vodka! Simpler times!!
Nostalgia bias but such a great punk album. Good energy, nice variety, incredibly catchy, and great unique vocals. Yeah there’s probably too many woahs but I love this album.
90s mix van punkrock en grunge. Het mooie verhaal erachter vind ik wel dat dit op een klein independent label is uitgebracht, omdat die muziek helemaal niet zo populair was. Maar we weten allemaal wat er daarna in de jaren 90 is gebeurd. Harde gitaarmuziek stond ineens gewoon in de top40, was gewoon een soort van mainstream. En daarom krijgen we het nu ook in deze 1001 albums voorgeschoteld. De Offspring wordt vaak lacherig over gedaan (zanger kan niet zingen, 4 akkoorden, etc), maar dit is toch een puik album vol energie. Lekker, een echte 90s classic.
Classic, proto-Nirvana style rock. A lot of known hits in this album, which get better on a second listen.
Better than I thought it was going to be, I knew a few songs but as a whole a great record.
Killer album. Singles are amazing, rest is great driving punk inspired rock.
At first I found jarring but by track 5 it had grown on me, once I got past the shouty shouty frontman