Angst in My Pants

Angst in My Pants is the eleventh studio album by the American rock band Sparks. The album was released by Atlantic Records in both the US and UK, and this was the 6th overall label that the band was signed to in the US, and, for the first time since the mid-1970s, the band would be signed the same label in both the US and UK for 3 consecutive albums.

Angst In My Pants
Studio album by
Sparks
Released29 March 1982
StudioMusicland Studios
(Munich, West Germany)
Genre
Length35:31
LabelAtlantic
ProducerMack
Sparks chronology
Whomp That Sucker
(1981)		 Angst In My Pants
(1982)		 In Outer Space
(1983)
Singles from Angst in My Pants
  1. "I Predict" b/w "Moustache"
    Released: April 1982
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[2]

History

Angst in My Pants marked the second occasion that Ron Mael and Russell Mael worked with the backing band of guitarist Bob Haag, bassist Leslie Bohem, and drummer David Kendrick. Additionally James Goodwin augmented the line up playing synthesizers, though these were mixed farther back, letting the rest of the band come to the fore. The resulting power pop[2] album was recorded at Musicland Studios, Munich, produced by Mack in association with Giorgio Moroder Enterprises. The recording of the album was the second and last time that Sparks worked with Mack.

Release

Angst in My Pants was not a success in the UK but was as successful as their former album, Whomp That Sucker, in the US. It reached #173 on the Billboard 200.[3]

The single "I Predict" became Sparks' first entry on the Billboard Hot 100 reaching #60 in May 1982.[3] This was the first time since the release of "Wonder Girl" in 1971 that Sparks had enjoyed moderate success on the US single charts. An extended remix of "I Predict" was released as a club promo while the 7" single was backed with the album track "Moustache". The video for "I Predict" was directed by Douglas Brian Martin, cinematography by Frederick Elmes.[4]

"Angst In My Pants" and "Eaten by the Monster of Love" were both used in the movie Valley Girl, a romantic comedy released in 1983. "Eaten by the Monster of Love" was also featured in the 2009 horror movie Cabin Fever 2. It was also featured the sixth season episode of Gilmore Girls-The Real Paul Anka.

The band performed "Mickey Mouse" and "I Predict" as musical guests on the May 15, 1982 episode of Saturday Night Live, hosted by Danny DeVito. "Mickey Mouse" was prefaced by a monologue from Ron Mael, in a deadpan style, describing the characteristics of the common mouse leading up to the introduction of the song title.

Track listing

All tracks are written by Ron Mael and Russell Mael.

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Angst in My Pants"3:25
2."I Predict"2:50
3."Sextown U.S.A."2:56
4."Sherlock Holmes"3:34
5."Nicotina"3:26
6."Mickey Mouse"3:16
Side two
No.TitleLength
7."Moustache"3:28
8."Instant Weight Loss"3:27
9."Tarzan and Jane"3:18
10."The Decline and Fall of Me"2:53
11."Eaten by the Monster of Love"2:58
Imperial Records (Japan) bonus tracks (2009)
No.TitleLength
12."Angst in My Pants" (Radio Promo Ad)1:03
13."Kidnap" (Unreleased Demo)3:11
14."A Trying Day" (Unreleased Demo)3:21
15."Dancing Is Dangerous (I Ought to Know)" (Unreleased Demo)3:27
Repertoire Records bonus tracks (2013)
No.TitleLength
12."Modesty Plays" (Short Version)3:07
13."I Predict" (Club Mix)6:19
14."Modesty Plays" (Extended Version)5:16

Personnel
  • Russell Mael - vocals
  • Ron Mael - keyboards, synthesizers, cover concept
  • Leslie Bohem - bass guitar, additional background vocals
  • Bob Haag - guitar, additional background vocals
  • David Kendrick - drums
  • James Goodwin - synthesizers
  • Mack - production, engineering, synthesizer programming

References
  1. "Sparks - Record Collector Magazine". recordcollectormag.com. Retrieved 28 April 2019.
  2. Allmusic review
  3. "Allmusic - Billboard Albums - Sparks". Billboard. Retrieved 2008-12-04.
  4. "allmusic - I Predict - Sparks". © 2009 Macrovision Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Retrieved 2009-09-21.
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