Album: New Miserable Experience
Artist: Gin Blossoms
Year: 1992
1. Lost Horizons
2. Hey Jealousy
3. Mrs. Rita
4. Until I Fall Away
5. Hold Me Down
6. Cajun Song
7. Hands are Tied
8. Found Out About You
9. Allison Road
10. 29
11. Pieces of the Night
12. Cheatin’
Did you know Gin Blossoms started their career in 1989 and are still touring? Did you also know that in 24 years they’ve only released five albums? That’s amazing to me, and I have to imagine that it was this album, their second (along with, perhaps, some rabid Empire Records fans), that has allowed them to coast on their laurels for all this time. Sporting six singles over three years, New Miserable Experience was certainly anything but for the band.
The music has pretty standard pop melodies, but the lyrics have more originality than most. My favorite song is Allison Road, but I dig pretty much everything on the album to some degree. Lost Horizons and Until I Fall Away are among my favorites. I didn’t care for Hey Jealousy when I thought the song title was “Hey Jessie.” I liked it immediately when I learned the real lyrics. Funny, that.
I haven’t listened to any of there other albums, though I like the singles just fine on Congratulations, I’m Sorry.
Death By Troggles 
I’m still rather fond of “Until I Fall Away,” and this disc in general.
These guys lost a major member from suicide or an overdose, too, right? I think that derailed their songwriting as much as anything.
Yeah, Doug Hopkins, who wrote Hey Jealousy and Found Out About You, was fired before this album was released. He committed suicide shortly thereafter.
Yeah, I have to say, while I like several songs by this group, they’re all from this album!
Ha, I didn’t care for “Hey Jealously” at first either, but I thought it was “Hey Chelsea”.
I loved this album when I was about 14. I still love it. Congratulations, I’m Sorry had a few good songs but the presence of Doug Hopkins was gone by then.