Nowhere (album)

Ride released three EPs, Ride, Play, and Fall, prior to the release of Nowhere. Nowhere was recorded live-in-the-studio with producer Marc Waterman. Waterman had a mental breakdown, which resulted in Alan Moulder mixing the recordings.

The band members were between 18 and 20 during the recording of Nowhere. Mark Gardener described it as a "nighttime sort of record", and recalled the band working on the album in the studio during late-night hours and long sessions. He said feelings of isolation resulted from this work pattern.{{Cite web |date=2022-11-17 |title=The Bandcamp Guide to Ride |url=https://daily.bandcamp.com/lists/ride-album-list |access-date=2022-11-18 |website=Bandcamp Daily}}{{Cite web |title=The Genius Of... Nowhere by Ride |url=https://guitar.com/reviews/the-genius-of-nowhere-by-ride/ |access-date=2024-01-12 |website=Guitar.com {{!}} All Things Guitar |language=en-GB}} Gardener said “It all added to that dark, alienated feeling that I think permeated through Nowhere.”

Both Bell and Gardener used the Roland GP-16 multi effects unit to create various tones on the record, including tremolo on Polar Bear and modulation on Vapour Trail. According to Guitar.com the unit help to create the record's 'jangly cloud'.

The album cover features an uncrested wave photographed by skateboard/snowboard photographer Warren Bolster.{{cite AV media notes |title=Nowhere |others=Ride |publisher=Creation Records |year=1990 |id=CRELP074 |type=liner notes}} The original LP cover artwork had the band name in embossed text centered in the upper half and an embossed album title in the lower right corner. The original cassette and CD releases featured no band name or album title on the cover, but sometimes came with an identifying sticker on the outside of the CD or cassette case. For the 2001 CD re-release, the band name and title were printed visibly on the cover in the locations of the LP's embossed text.[http://www.discogs.com/Ride-Nowhere/release/496347 Ride – Nowhere (CD, Album) at Discogs] The 2011 Rhino Handmade edition features a lenticular design of the wave.

Nowhere was released by Creation Records on 15 October 1990. The album was issued in the United States in December 1990 by Sire Records.

A 2001 reissue by Ignition Records further added the four songs from the band's Today Forever EP as bonus tracks.

In February 2011, Rhino Handmade released a special 20th anniversary edition of Nowhere, featuring the remastered original album with seven bonus tracks, plus a bonus disc featuring a previously unreleased live performance at The Roxy in Los Angeles recorded on 10 April 1991. The set also includes a 40-page booklet with exclusive photos and a new essay by music critic Jim DeRogatis, as well as a lenticular-covered digipak book.{{cite web |url=http://www.rhino.com/shop/product/ride-nowhere-20th-anniversary-edition |title=Nowhere: 20th Anniversary Edition |publisher=Rhino Entertainment |access-date=20 December 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101211095319/http://www.rhino.com/shop/product/ride-nowhere-20th-anniversary-edition |archive-date=11 December 2010 |url-status=dead}}{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/40656-rides-nowhere-gets-double-disc-reissue/ |title=Ride's Nowhere Gets Double-Disc Reissue |website=Pitchfork |date=11 November 2010 |access-date=4 December 2010 |last=Breihan |first=Tom}}

In November 2015, the band released a special 25th anniversary edition of Nowhere across two separate formats: a CD/DVD set, and a coloured-vinyl double LP. The CD features the same audio material as the 2001 and 2011 reissues remastered, with a DVD featuring a previously unreleased live performance at Town and Country Club in London on 7 March 1991. The discs come in a hardback cardboard case with canvas-style cover and a 36-page booklet. The 2LP version features an expanded track listing with 7 bonus tracks from the Fall and Today Forever EPs, and was pressed on white and blue marbled colour vinyl. The reissue was released independently.{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/61241-ride-announce-nowhere-25th-anniversary-reissue/ |title=Ride Announce Nowhere 25th Anniversary Reissue |website=Pitchfork |date=17 September 2015 |access-date=8 April 2016 |last=Gordon |first=Jeremy}} In conjunction with the re-release, the band performed the album in its entirety at a series of live shows in October 2015.{{cite web |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/various-artists-1185-1219860 |title=Ride to perform debut album 'Nowhere' in full at 25th anniversary shows |website=NME |date=2 October 2015 |access-date=10 November 2015 |last=Britton |first=Luke Morgan}}

Nowhere was re-released in November 2022 by Wichita recordings. All the original audio reworked and refined, the reissue made available on vinyl and CD. It charted at number 62 on the UK Albums Chart.

{{Music ratings

| rev1 = AllMusic

| rev1score = {{Rating|4.5|5}}{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/nowhere-mw0000311372 |title=Nowhere – Ride |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=4 December 2010 |last=Kellman |first=Andy}}

| rev2 = The A.V. Club

| rev2score = A{{cite web |url=https://www.avclub.com/ride-nowhere-two-disc-20th-anniversary-reissue-1798167172 |title=Ride: Nowhere (two-disc 20th-anniversary reissue) |website=The A.V. Club |date=8 February 2011 |access-date=2 January 2015 |last=Ryan |first=Kyle}}

| rev3 = Chicago Tribune

| rev3score = {{Rating|3|4}}{{cite news |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1991-01-10-9101030489-story.html |title=Ride: Nowhere (Sire) |newspaper=Chicago Tribune |date=10 January 1991 |access-date=10 November 2015 |last=Kot |first=Greg |author-link=Greg Kot}}

| rev4 = Entertainment Weekly

| rev4score = B{{cite magazine |url=https://ew.com/article/1991/01/25/nowhere-2/ |title=Nowhere |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=25 January 1991 |access-date=10 November 2015 |last=Browne |first=David |author-link=David Browne (journalist)}}

| rev5 = Mojo

| rev5score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{cite magazine |title=Ride: Nowhere 25 |magazine=Mojo |issue=266 |date=January 2016 |last=Harris |first=Sophie |page=104}}

| rev6 = NME

| rev6score = 7/10{{cite magazine |url=http://www.nme.com/reviews/reviews/19980101001038reviews.html |title=Joyriding High |magazine=NME |date=13 October 1990 |access-date=10 November 2015 |last=Williams |first=Simon |page=38 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000817182905/http://www.nme.com/reviews/reviews/19980101001038reviews.html |archive-date=17 August 2000 |url-status=dead}}

| rev7 = Pitchfork

| rev7score = 9.5/10{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/15069-nowhere-20th-anniversary-edition/ |title=Ride: Nowhere [20th Anniversary Edition] |website=Pitchfork |date=4 February 2011 |access-date=5 February 2011 |last=Bevan |first=David}}

| rev8 = Record Mirror

| rev8score = 4/5{{cite magazine |title=Ride: Nowhere |magazine=Record Mirror |date=20 October 1990 |last=Sharratt |first=Chris |page=18}}

| rev9 = Select

| rev9score = 5/5{{cite magazine |title=Riders on the Snowstorm |magazine=Select |issue=5 |date=November 1990 |last=Perry |first=Andrew |page=110}}

| rev10 = Uncut

| rev10score = 8/10{{cite web |url=https://www.uncut.co.uk/reviews/ride-reissues-2410/ |title=Ride reissues |website=Uncut |date=2 August 2012 |access-date=10 November 2015 |last=Richards |first=Sam}}

}}

Noting the "huge burden of expectation" placed on Ride's first full-length album after three acclaimed EPs, Select critic Andrew Perry deemed Nowhere a "phenomenal" debut and praised the band's "heaven-sent melodic gift" and avoidance of "formularisation". Record Mirror{{'}}s Chris Sharratt called Ride "undoubtedly the present day kings of the indie guitar empire" and found that the album justified the "media hype" around the band. In a more ambivalent review for NME, Simon Williams wrote that only "two-thirds of Nowhere sublimely reaffirms our faith", and that the album "fails – unluckily – to gel as a Great Album should. It doesn't challenge or thrill unexpectedly."

Retrospectively, Nowhere has been acclaimed as one of the greatest albums of the shoegaze genre. David Bevan of Pitchfork described Nowhere as one of shoegaze's "indisputable masterpieces", and Andy Kellman of AllMusic said that the album exemplified the genre at its "most exciting and mastered", while also being "Ride's zenith".

Nowhere was ranked at number 74 on Pitchfork{{'}}s 2003 list of the top 100 albums of the 1990s,{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/5923-top-100-albums-of-the-1990s/?page=3 |title=Top 100 Albums of the 1990s |website=Pitchfork |date=17 November 2003 |access-date=6 August 2015 |page=3}} and at number 277 on Spin{{'}}s 2015 list of "The 300 Best Albums of the Past 30 Years".{{cite web |url=https://www.spin.com/2015/05/the-300-best-albums-of-the-past-30-years-1985-2014/ |title=The 300 Best Albums of the Past 30 Years (1985–2014) |website=Spin |date=11 May 2015 |access-date=6 August 2015 |page=1}} It is also included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.{{cite book |chapter=Ride: Nowhere |last=Harris |first=Sophie |title=1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die |title-link=1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die |editor-last=Dimery |editor-first=Robert |publisher=Universe Publishing |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-7893-1371-3 |page=654}} The track "Vapour Trail" was named the 145th best song of the 1990s by Pitchfork in 2010,{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/7850-the-top-200-tracks-of-the-1990s-150-101/ |title=The Top 200 Tracks of the 1990s: 150–101 |website=Pitchfork |date=31 August 2010 |access-date=6 August 2015 |page=1}} and the 81st best song of the 1990s by NME in 2012.{{cite web |url=https://www.nme.com/list/100-best-songs-of-the-1990s-1157 |title=100 Best Songs Of The 1990s |website=NME |date=8 May 2012 |access-date=24 June 2023 |last1=Elan |first1=Priya |last2=Horton |first2=Matthew |last3=Hewitt |first3=Ben}}

All songs were equally credited to Ride (Andy Bell, Loz Colbert, Mark Gardener, Steve Queralt).

{{track listing

| extra_column = Lead vocals

| title1 = Seagull

| length1 = 6:10

| extra1 = Gardener and Bell

| title2 = Kaleidoscope

| length2 = 3:00

| extra2 = Gardener with Bell

| title3 = In a Different Place

| length3 = 5:30

| extra3 = Gardener

| title4 = Polar Bear

| length4 = 4:45

| extra4 = Gardener

| title5 = Dreams Burn Down

| length5 = 6:04

| extra5 = Gardener

| title6 = Decay

| length6 = 3:35

| extra6 = Gardener

| note6 = Mark Gardener

| title7 = Paralysed

| length7 = 5:34

| extra7 = Bell

| title8 = Vapour Trail

| length8 = 4:18

| extra8 = Bell

}}

{{track listing

| headline = CD bonus tracks

| extra_column = Lead vocals

| title9 = Taste

| length9 = 3:17

| extra9 = Gardener

| note9 = Mark Gardener

| title10 = Here and Now

| length10 = 4:26

| extra10 = Bell

| title11 = Nowhere

| length11 = 5:23

| extra11 = Bell

| note11 = Loz Colbert

}}

{{track listing

| headline = Reissue bonus tracks

| extra_column = Lead vocals

| title12 = Unfamiliar

| length12 = 5:03

| lyrics12 = Gardener

| music12 =

| extra12 = Gardener and Bell

| title13 = Sennen

| length13 = 4:23

| lyrics13 =

| music13 =

| extra13 = Gardener and Bell

| title14 = Beneath

| length14 = 4:06

| lyrics14 =

| music14 =

| extra14 = Gardener and Bell

| title15 = Today

| length15 = 6:26

| lyrics15 =

| music15 =

| extra15 = Gardener and Bell

}}

{{track listing

| headline = Bonus disc: Live at the Roxy, 10 April 1991

| title1 = Polar Bear

| note1 = Live

| length1 = 5:01

| title2 = Seagull

| note2 = Live

| length2 = 5:51

| title3 = Unfamiliar

| note3 = Live

| length3 = 4:42

| lyrics3 = Gardener

| music3 =

| title4 = Dreams Burn Down

| note4 = Live

| length4 = 5:28

| title5 = Like a Daydream

| note5 = Live

| length5 = 2:46

| title6 = Vapour Trail

| note6 = Live

| length6 = 3:36

| title7 = In a Different Place

| note7 = Live

| length7 = 5:30

| title8 = Perfect Time

| note8 = Live

| length8 = 3:26

| lyrics8 = Gardener

| music8 =

| title9 = Taste

| note9 = Live

| length9 = 3:27

| lyrics9 = Gardener

| music9 =

| title10 = Nowhere

| note10 = Live

| length10 = 8:26

| lyrics10 = Colbert

| music10 =

| title11 = Chelsea Girl

| note11 = Live

| length11 = 4:34

| lyrics11 = Gardener

| music11 =

| title12 = Drive Blind

| note12 = Live

| length12 = 6:59

}}

;Ride

• Mark Gardener – vocals, guitar
• Andy Bell – vocals, guitar, piano, harmonica
• Steve Queralt – bass
• Loz Colbert – drums

;Technical

• Marc Waterman – recording
• Alan Moulder – mixing at Swanyard Studios, London
• Nick Webb – remastering (Abbey Road Studios)
• Joe Dilworth – band photography
• Warren Bolster – wave photography

{{certification Table Top}}

{{certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|type=album|artist=Ride|title=Nowhere|award=Silver|relyear=1990|certyear=1991|id=4772-2205-2}}

{{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=true}}

{{Reflist|30em}}

Sources

• {{cite web |title=The official Ride website |url=http://www.rideox4.net/ |accessdate=8 December 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111009025200/http://www.rideox4.net/ |archive-date=9 October 2011 |url-status=dead }}
• {{cite web |title=Ticket To Ride – Oxford's finest band unofficial website |url=http://www.ticket2ride.it/index2.htm |accessdate=26 May 2012 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120216200635/http://www.ticket2ride.it/index2.htm |archivedate=16 February 2012}}

• [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXZuHZ7jcVwmcIUpickyjnYJB8IkvZzEv Nowhere] at YouTube (streamed copy where licensed)
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20060511051938/http://www.ticket2ride.it/discog/nowhere.htm Lyrics]

{{Ride}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Ride (band) albums

Category:Creation Records albums

Category:1990 debut albums