This Beautiful Mess
This Beautiful Mess is the second studio album by American band Sixpence None the Richer, released in 1995 (see 1995 in music). The recording was produced by Armand John Petri, who also managed the band from 1993 to 1997.[2] This Beautiful Mess surpassed 50,000 copies sold during its first year of release and laid the foundation for Sixpence's self-titled breakout album two years later. This Beautiful Mess won the 1996 Dove Award for "Alternative/Modern Rock Album of the Year."[3] The songs "Within a Room Somewhere" and "I Can't Explain" were both minor hits on the Christian music charts.
| This Beautiful Mess | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | April 18, 1995 | |||
| Genre | Alternative rock, pop rock, Christian rock | |||
| Length | 49:39 | |||
| Label | R.E.X. | |||
| Producer | Armand John Petri | |||
| Sixpence None the Richer chronology | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [1] |
Within a couple years of the album's release, two eventually significant rock bands formed under the moniker "This Beautiful Mess." The first originated in Colorado Springs, Colorado in 1996 and went on to become the platinum-selling act OneRepublic.[4] The second, formed in 1997, is the Dutch rock quintet from the Netherlands which continues making music under the same name.[5]
"This Beautiful Mess" is also used as the title of author Rick McKinley's 2006 treatise on personal and social transformation. The book's foreword was written by author Donald Miller, whose book he turned into a screenplay in 2012 for Blue Like Jazz, that was directed by Steve Taylor, who produced this album.[6]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Matt Slocum, except where noted
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Angeltread" | 3:28 | |
| 2. | "Love, Salvation, the Fear of Death" | Slocum, James Arhelger | 3:51 |
| 3. | "Bleeding" | 5:04 | |
| 4. | "Within a Room Somewhere" | 5:06 | |
| 5. | "Melting Alone" | 4:03 | |
| 6. | "Circle of Error" | 5:04 | |
| 7. | "The Garden" | Slocum, Arhelger, Dale Baker, Leigh Bingham | 4:03 |
| 8. | "Disconnect" | Tess Wiley | 4:20 |
| 9. | "Thought Menagerie" | 3:11 | |
| 10. | "Maybe Tomorrow" | 4:22 | |
| 11. | "Drifting" | 3:42 | |
| 12. | "I Can't Explain" | 3:25 | |
| Total length: | 49:39 | ||
Personnel
- Leigh Nash – vocals
- Matt Slocum – guitars, cello
- Tess Wiley – guitars, vocals
- J.J. Plasencio – bass
- Dale Baker – drums
Production
- Armand John Petri – producer, engineer, mixing
- Bryan Lenox – basic track engineer, mixing
- Scott Lenox – assistant engineer
- Aaron Swihart – assistant engineer
- Tyler Bacon – executive producer
- Gavin Morkel – executive producer
- Duncan Stanbury – mastering
- Jeff Spencer – digital prepress, design assistant at Nosegrind Creative
- Kim Thomas – cover painting
- Chris Taylor – title
- Ben Pearson – photography
References
- AllMusic review
- "Armand John Petri: BMHOF Class of 2012". Buffalo Music Hall of Fame. October 4, 2012. Archived from the original on August 24, 2013.
- "27th Annual Dove Awards Winners". Associated Press Archive. April 25, 1996.
- Freedman, Pete (December 13, 2007). "One Love: Who the Hell is OneRepublic? And What's This About Them Being from the Springs?". Colorado Springs Independent. Retrieved April 8, 2010.
- Stimp, Jake (November 19, 2007). "This Beautiful Mess—Beautiful and Messy". The Blah Blah. Archived from the original on March 5, 2012. Retrieved April 8, 2010.
- MacCorkle, Laura (2009). "Donald Miller: Writing His Own Life Story". Crosswalk.com. Archived from the original on September 26, 2009. Retrieved April 8, 2010.