What Does Anything Mean? Basically

What Does Anything Mean? Basically is the second studio album by English post-punk band the Chameleons. It was recorded in January 1985 and released 1 October 1985 by record label Statik.

What Does Anything Mean? Basically
Studio album by
The Chameleons
Released1 October 1985
RecordedJanuary 1985
StudioHighland Studios, Inverness, Scotland
GenrePost-punk
Length41:34
LabelStatik
Producer
The Chameleons chronology
Script of the Bridge
(1983)		 What Does Anything Mean? Basically
(1985)		 Strange Times
(1986)
Singles from What Does Anything Mean? Basically
  1. "Singing Rule Britannia (While the Walls Close In)"
    Released: 1 August 1985

One single was released from the album: "Singing Rule Britannia (While the Walls Close In)".

Recording

What Does Anything Mean? Basically was recorded in January 1985 at Highland Studios in Inverness, Scotland.[1]

Release

The album's sole single, "Singing Rule Britannia (While the Walls Close In)", was released on 1 August 1985.[2] This song used uncredited Lennon-McCartney lyrics, with the final passage of the song quoting key lyrics of the Beatles song "She Said, She Said".

What Does Anything Mean? Basically was released 1 October 1985 on record label Statik.[3]

Reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[4]
Trouser Press(favourable)[5]

What Does Anything Mean? Basically has been generally well received by critics.

In his retrospective review, Ned Raggett of AllMusic called it "[a] rarity of sophomore albums, something that at once made the band all the more unique in its sound while avoiding a repetition of earlier work. [...] an astounding record."[4] Trouser Press called it "even better" than Script of the Bridge, "with much stronger production underscoring both the band's direct power and the ghostly atmospherics of its icy church keyboards and delay-ridden guitars".[5]

Chris Jenkins, in the book The Rough Guide to Rock, however, called it "as half-baked as its title".[6]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Mark Burgess; all music is composed by the Chameleons (Burgess, Dave Fielding, Reg Smithies and John Lever).

Side A
No.TitleLength
1."Silence, Sea and Sky"1:59
2."Perfume Garden"4:36
3."Intrigue in Tangiers"5:17
4."Return of the Roughnecks"3:26
5."Singing Rule Britannia (While the Walls Close In)"4:17
Side B
No.TitleLength
1."On the Beach"4:10
2."Looking Inwardly"4:29
3."One Flesh"4:28
4."Home Is Where the Heart Is"4:54
5."P.S. Goodbye"4:02
CD bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
11."In Shreds"4:03
12."Nostalgia"5:23

Personnel
The Chameleons
  • Mark Burgess – vocals, bass guitar, strings, production
  • Dave Fielding – guitar, strings, production
  • Reg Smithies – guitar, acoustic guitar, album cover illustration, production
  • John Lever – drums, production
Technical
  • Colin Richardson – production
  • Ian Caple – engineering
  • Martin Kay – sleeve design

References
  1. What Does Anything Mean? Basically (Media notes). The Chameleons. Statik Records. 1985. Retrieved 16 July 2013.CS1 maint: others (link)
  2. "The Chameleons – Releases". The Chameleons. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
  3. "The Chameleons – Releases". The Chameleons. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
  4. Raggett, Ned. "What Does Anything Mean? Basically – The Chameleons UK | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 21 January 2013.
  5. Robbins, Ira; Rabid, Jack. "trouserpress.com :: Chameleons (UK)". Trouser Press. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
  6. Jenkins, Chris (2003). Buckley, Peter (ed.). The Rough Guide to Rock. Rough Guides. p. 182. ISBN 1843531054. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
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