The wheel just took a hard left into the ’90s.

Episode 184 is underway and the pick is Soup. Darker vibes, weirder turns, zero “No Rain” safety net. This is Blind Melon stretching out, getting uncomfortable, and daring you to actually listen.

Is it misunderstood brilliance or a tough hang with moments of magic? We’re cracking it open track by track with honest takes, bad jokes, and the usual Rock Roulette lack of restraint.

Spin accepted. Let’s get into it.

Soup is the second studio album by American rock band Blind Melon, released on August 15, 1995, through Capitol Records. It is the band’s last album released during the lifetime of vocalist Shannon Hoon.

Soup received generally mixed reviews from critics and fared poorly commercially, with the album only reaching number 28 on the US Billboard 200 albums chart and going on to sell 217,000 copies in the United States by October 1996. Hoon’s death from a fatal drug overdose two months after the album’s release resulted in the album’s promotion being abruptly cut off, further affecting sales.

The album has retrospectively been considered a “dark horse” in the alternative rock genre.

Blind Melon
Shannon Hoon – vocals, guitar, harmonica, kazoo
Brad Smith – bass guitar, double bass, flute
Christopher Thorn – rhythm guitar, mandolin, banjo
Rogers Stevens – lead guitar, piano, Hammond organ
Glen Graham – drums, percussion

Production
Steve Sisco – mixing assistant
Andy Wallace – producer, engineer

Additional Musicians
Jena Kraus – backing vocals on “Mouthful of Cavities”
Miles Tackett – cello on “Car Seat” and “St. Andrew’s Fall”

Intro Music/Wheel Spin Music by LiteSaturation from Pixabay