Киберпанк: Альбом Билли Айдола 1993 года

1993 studio album by Billy Idol

Cyberpunk is the fifth studio album by English rock musician Billy Idol, released on 29 June 1993 by Chrysalis Records. A concept album, it was inspired by his personal interest in technology and his first attempts to use computers in the creation of his music. Idol based the album on the cyberdelic subculture of the late 1980s and early 1990s. Heavily experimental in its style, the album was an attempt to take control of the creative process in the production of his albums, while simultaneously introducing Idol's fans and other musicians to the opportunities presented by digital media. The album featured a cyberpunk styled narrative, as well as synthesised vocals and industrial influences. Despite its critical and commercial failure, Billy Idol set several precedents in the process of promoting the album. Idol also based his fashion style, music videos, and stage shows on cyberpunk themes and aesthetics. Released to negative reviews, Cyberpunk polarised internet communities of the time, with detractors viewing it as an act of cooptation and opportunistic commercialisation. It was also seen as part of a process that saw the overuse of the term "cyberpunk" until it lost its original meaning. Alternatively, supporters saw Idol's efforts as harmless and well intentioned, and were encouraged by his new interest in cyberculture.

Inspired by The Lawnmower Man, Idol conceived of using "Blendo" imagery throughout the promotion of the album.

To promote the release of Cyberpunk, Idol began the 1993 No Religion Tour. The title of the tour came from a lyric in the album's first track, "Wasteland", which described a man travelling through a dystopia. In keeping with the album's theme, the performance stages were set to a computerised, high tech aesthetic. Idol wished to use Blendo imagery on massive television screens behind the stage to rapidly shift in time with the music. Idol hoped to advance the way stagecraft and lighting were used at rock concerts. "Part of the idea is to create an element of visible language," Idol explained during an interview with the New York Times, "so that you feel as if you're being talked to through images. I think you have to start looking to get to the future of what rock and roll concerts should be like. We're working; we're pushing the technology to the edge." Upon release, the album did not fare well, failing to make the top 20 in either the UK or United States. Instead, the album debuted at No. 48 on the Billboard 200 on 17 July 1993, and quickly plummeted to No. 192 in seven weeks before falling off the chart completely. The album saw slightly better chart placings in Europe, where it peaked at No. 5 in Austria, and No. 15 in Switzerland. The first two singles fared slightly better. "Heroin", a cover of The Velvet Underground's "Heroin", peaked at No. 16 on the Hot Dance Club Play chart. "Shock to the System" peaked at No. 7 on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, No. 23 on the Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart, and No. 5 on Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart. The last two singles, "Adam in Chains" and "Wasteland", both failed to achieve any chart ratings within the United States, but did in other countries.

Cyberpunk was mostly received negatively by critics, with some stating that the album was pretentious and meandering. They said Idol sounded like a man desperate to keep up with current trends. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic considered the album a failed attempt by Idol to recast himself for the 1990s, and judged the content of the album as being mostly "padded with pretentious speeches, sampled dialog, and underdeveloped songs". He also referred to the cover of "Heroin" as "one of the worst covers ever recorded". Manuel Esparza of The Daily Cougar wrote a more mixed review, praising some elements, such as the track "Shangrila", the use of sound space echo effects, and Idol's talent as a singer. However, Esparza felt that Idol attempted the same techniques across too many songs, and referred to the lyrics as "[just barely making] more sense than a monkey pounding away on a typewriter". The "Billy Idol" entry on TrouserPress. com skewered Cyberpunk as a "third rate self parody that trusses him up in sci fi lingo and futurist mumbo jumbo." Johnny Dee of NME believed that the album is still "predominated" by the "same basic ingredients of mock rebel gesturing and fist pumping melodrama" which Idol is known for. He felt it "just sounds more digital, shrink wrapped and synthetic" than before, and added his belief that it would do well commercially for Idol by stating that there are "more than enough chant along hits to keep him on MTV for another couple of years".

Shawn P. Wilbur, a left libertarian academic then associated with the Bowling Green State University, closely critiqued the concept of the supposed "cyberpunk movement". In an attempt to understand why members of the movement were so negative in reaction to attempts by the mainstream to investigate the cyberpunk meme, he directly investigated the criticism of Billy Idol on alt. cyberpunk. His interpretation of the discussions led him to dub the reactions of alt. cyberpunk the "Panic of '93". It was Wilbur's assertion that the lack of a cohesive understanding of what "cyberpunk" meant was the chief reason for a lack of critical thought displayed during discussions concerning its inspection or adoption by "outsiders". He concluded, "[u]senet's alt. cyberpunk is both a warning and a promise. It suggests the power of ideas to draw people together, even when they aren't quite sure what those ideas are." The single, "Shock to the System", and its accompanying music video were also heavily analysed for the overtones of racial, sexual, and physical trauma presented within them by Thomas Foster, associate professor at Indiana University, in his 2005 book, The Souls of Cyberfolk.

The album was reissued on 22 August 2006 by Collectables Records as part of its Priceless Collection series. The reissued album did not include the special edition multimedia of the original, but did include new cover art.