Burn Out at the Hydrogen Bar

Burn Out at the Hydrogen Bar is the debut studio album of industrial rock band Chemlab, released on March 22, 1993, by Fifth Colvmn and Metal Blade Records.^[2] It represents the band's only studio release via the label Metal Blade and was reissued by Invisible Records on November 30, 1999.^[3][1] Each "suture" is an instrumental piece splitting the main tracks apart. The track "Suicide Jag" was featured in the game Saints Row: The Third. The album was produced by Jeff "Critter" Newell and has been considered by critics to be a defining moment within the coldwave genre.^{[4][5][6][7][8]} In 2018 Chemlab embarked on a tour featuring Dead on TV and GoFight members Daniel Evans, Vince McAley, and Mike Love backing Louche to celebrate the twenty fifth anniversary of the Burn Out at the Hydrogen Bar.^[9][10][11] On June 18, 2021, a remaster of the album was released.

Burn Out at the Hydrogen Bar
Studio album by Chemlab
Released	March 22, 1993 (1993-03-22)[1]
Studio	Chicago Trax Recording Studio (Chicago, IL)
Genre	Industrial rock, industrial metal
Length	43:00
Label	Fifth Colvmn/Metal Blade
Producer	Jeff "Critter" Newell Jared Louche Dylan Thomas Moore
Chemlab chronology
10 Ton Pressure (1990) Burn Out at the Hydrogen Bar (1993) Magnetic Field Remixes (1994)

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[12]

Aiding & Abetting gave Burn Out at the Hydrogen Bar a mixed to positive review, commending the guitar work and calling the music "user-friendly industrial dance stuff."^[13] Rick Anderson of AllMusic awarded the album four out of five stars and said "the band's debut album reveals a group lurching toward tightly controlled sonic pandemonium while still maintaining a firm grip on old-fashioned, blippy, synth riffs and the occasional shred of actual melody."^[12] Sonic Boom described Chemlab as "one of the few true industrial rock bands" and "buried deep under the surface of music are influences so diverse and spread out that one would wonder why this particular fusion of decayed guitars and hybrid electronics would be the music of choice of this east coast duo."^[14][15]

Track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"suture"	0:38
2.	"Codeine, Glue and You"	4:45
3.	"Suicide Jag"	4:50
4.	"suture"	0:10
5.	"Chemical Halo"	4:50
6.	"Neurozone"	5:57
7.	"Elephant Man"	4:10
8.	"suture"	1:12
9.	"Rivet Head"	3:51
10.	"Derailer"	5:05
11.	"suture"	0:18
12.	"Summer of Hate"	6:46
13.	"suture"	0:27

All lyrics are written by Jared Louche; all music is composed by Dylan Thomas More, except "Suicide Jag" co-written with Mark Kermanj and "Rivet Head" co-written with Mark Kermanj and Steve Watson.

1999 Reissue

No.	Title	Length
14.	"Chemical Halo" (Remix)	5:05
15.	"Suicide Jag" (Remix)	5:14

Personnel

Adapted from the Burn Out at the Hydrogen Bar liner notes.^[16]

Chemlab

• Jared Louche – lead vocals, arrangements, production, art direction, additional programming (3, 9)
• Dylan Thomas More – sampler, programming, loops, arrangements, production, art direction, additional programming (3, 9)

Additional performers

• Martin Atkins – remix (14)
• Mark Blasquez – remix (15)
• Mark Kermanj – drums
• Geno Lenardo – sampler (3)
• Ned Wahl – bass guitar
• Steve Watson – guitar

Production and design

• Duane Buford – assistant engineering
• Eric Carter – assistant engineering
• Bill Garcelon – assistant engineering
• Zalman Fishman – executive-producer
• Matthias Heilbronn – editing
• Phil Merkle – cover art, art direction
• Newton More – photography
• Jeff "Critter" Newell – production
• Scott Larson – assistant engineering
• Geno Lenardo – assistant engineering
• Dalton Portella – art direction
• Brett Smith – design

Release history

Region	Date	Label	Format	Catalog
1993	United States	Fifth Colvmn/Metal Blade	CD, CS	3984-14013
		Devotion/Fifth Colvmn/Metal Blade	CD	004
1999		Invisible		INV 160