75% Less Fat

75% Less Fat
Studio album by
Chris Mars
Released1993
Recorded1992
StudioPaisley Park
GenrePower pop
Length40:13
LabelSmash/Island
ProducerChris Mars
Chris Mars chronology
Horseshoes and Hand Grenades
(1992)		 75% Less Fat
(1993)		 Tenterhooks
(1995)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusicStarStarStar
Robert Christgau(dud)
Deseret NewsStarStarStar
The Encyclopedia of Popular MusicStarStarStar
Entertainment WeeklyD
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album GuideStarStarStar
Orlando SentinelStarStarStarStar

75% Less Fat is the second solo album by former Replacements drummer Chris Mars. The title refers to the rejection of his former bandmates in the Replacements.

Production

Mars wrote all the songs & played almost all the instruments on the album. J.D. Foster, who guested on Mars' previous album Horseshoes and Hand Grenades, plays bass guitar & clarinet. All the cover art was painted by Mars, with his wife, Sally, serving as art director.

Critical reception

While Knight Ridder's Steve Knopper found strong evidence that Mars "was the backbone of his famous former band, the Replacements," for the most part, 75% Less Fat garnered lukewarm reviews. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic wrote: "Mars' songs might be a little inconsistent, but the album has an endearing, ragged charm that makes it hard to dislike." Trouser Press wrote that the album "may not push the envelope, but it cements an image of Mars as a serious musician with his own vision."

Deseret News critic Jeff Vice noted that there was no sniping at Paul Westerberg this time around, which made the record more likeable, albeit less memorable than Horseshoes and Hand Grenades. Robert Baird of the Phoenix New Times called it "a well-played, well-produced recording that in the end fails to make any lasting impression. The songs suffer from a certain sameness."

Entertainment Weekly's Lorraine Ali gave the album a D grade, calling the music "beer-commercial-like riffs and bouncy, generic rhythms that, at best, sound like cheap imitations of [Mars's] own musical past."

Track listing

All tracks are written by Chris Mars.

No.TitleLength
1."Stuck in Rewind"4:00
2."No Bands"2:54
3."Weasel"2:56
4."Public Opinion"2:22
5."All Figured Out"3:41
6."Whining Horse"3:02
7."Car Camping"3:00
8."Skipping School"3:06
9."Bullshit Detector"2:39
10."Candy Liquor"3:04
11."Demolition"3:32
12."No More Mud"2:51
13."Nightcap"3:06
Total length:40:13

References

  1. 1 2 3 Stephen Thomas Erlewine. "75% Less Fat Review". AllMusic.
  2. 1 2 Vice, Jeff (April 28–29, 1993). "4 Releases Offer Hope for New Replacements". Deseret News.
  3. ↑ Jenkins, Mark (March 21, 1993). "BASH POP: MINNEAPOLIS'S ROUSING ROCK-AND-ROLLERS" – via www.washingtonpost.com.
  4. ↑ "Robert Christgau: CG: Chris Mars". www.robertchristgau.com.
  5. ↑ "4 RELEASES MAY OFFER HOPE FOR NEW REPLACEMENTS". Deseret News. April 28, 1993.
  6. ↑ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 5. MUZE. p. 516.
  7. 1 2 Ali, Lorraine (December 22, 2021). "75% Less Fat". EW.com.
  8. ↑ MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 936.
  9. 1 2 "CHRIS MARS". OrlandoSentinel.com.
  10. ↑ "Chris Mars | Biography & History". AllMusic.
  11. ↑ Thompson, Dave (November 16, 2000). Alternative Rock. Hal Leonard Corporation. ISBN 9780879306076 – via Google Books.
  12. ↑ "Hold My Life: Bob Stinson's Regrets". Spin. June 13, 2013.
  13. ↑ Knopper, Steve (July 9, 1993). "Soul Legends Highlight Choice Albums". The News. p. 12E.
  14. ↑ "Chris Mars". Trouser Press.
  15. ↑ Baird, Robert (April 14, 1993). "Replacing the Mats". Phoenix New Times.