Freak Show (album)

Freak Show (with special characters/capitals: FREAK SHOW) is the second studio album by Australian post-grunge band, Silverchair, released in 1997. While this album certainly bears elements of post-grunge, it aims slightly more at hard rock. Songs such as "No Association" and "Learn to Hate" are descriptive of alternative metal and set a theme of anger. Freak Show is certified Gold in the United States.

A CD version also includes interactive CD-ROM elements for the music set up as a freak show.

"No Association" was featured in the movie Blackrock and was also performed two years prior to the release of Freak Show.

Frontman Daniel Johns describes the album's title as comparing Silverchair to a traveling carnival. He also said that some of the lyrics were lightened due to their strong intimacy with himself.

Some of the songs also had different titles prior to the album's release. These include: "Cat and Mouse" ("The Closing"), "The Poxy Song" ("The Door"), and "Punk Song #1" ("Lie to Me"). A "Punk Song #2" was recorded and not renamed. It was released on the "Freak" single.

The Freak Show release was originally scheduled for fall of 1996 but was pushed back to avoid it debuting alongside Pearl Jam's No Code. They also wanted to finish all the promotion and press matters.

Track listing

1. "Slave" (music by Johns, Gillies, lyrics by Johns) - 3:57
2. "Freak" (Johns) - 3:49
3. "Abuse Me" (Johns) - 4:03
4. "Lie to Me" (Johns) - 1:22
5. "No Association" (music by Johns, Gillies, lyrics by Johns) - 3:56
6. "Cemetery" (Johns) - 4:04
7. "The Door" (Johns) - 3:38
8. "Pop Song for Us Rejects" (Johns) - 3:15
9. "Learn to Hate" (music by Gillies, lyrics by Johns) - 4:19
10. "Petrol & Chlorine" (Johns) - 4:00
11. "Roses" (music by Johns, Gillies, lyrics by Johns) - 3:34
12. "Nobody Came" (music by Johns, Gillies, lyrics by Johns) - 6:12
13. "The Closing" (music by Gillies, lyrics by Johns) - 3:27
14. The album is available also in black vinyl and LTD Ed. Yellow vinyl (3000 copies in UK only), and in a Ltd. cassette.

Personnel

• Daniel Johns – guitar, vocals
• Ben Gillies – drums
• Chris Joannou – bass

Aditional personnel

• Jane Scarpantoni (track 6), Margaret Lindsay (track 10) – cello
• Amanda Brown and Ian Cooper (track 8), Lorenza Ponce, Elizabeth Knowles, Todd Reynolds and David Mansfield (track 6), Ravi Kutilak (track 10) – violin
• Matthew Pierce (track 6), Rudi Crivici (track 10) – viola
• Pandit Ran Chander Suman – tampura, tabla (track 10)
• Ruk Mali – sitar (track 10)
• String arrangements by Jane Scarpantoni (track 6), Nick Launay and Daniel Denholm (track 10)
• Produced & recorded by Nick Launay.
• Mixed by Andy Wallace except "Petrol & Chlorine" and "The Closing" mixed by Nick Launay.
• Recorded at Festival Studios, Sydney.
• Mixed at Soundtrack, NYC.
• Assistant Engineers: Mark Thomas & Matt Lovell (Sydney), Steve Sisco (NYC).
• Mastered by Bob Ludwig at Gateway Mastering.
• Art direction: John Watson, John O'Donnell, Kevin Wilkins & Silverchair.
• Inside photos by Sophie Howarth, Adrienne Overall & others.
• Cover art by Lydia Kullik.
• Front cover image is an illustration of Grady Stiles, Jr. courtesy of Circus World Museum, Baraboo, Wisconsin.
• Released on CD, cassette, and 12" vinyl (black & limited edition yellow).

Chart positions