providing a backing combining "harshly hypnotic organs" and "dense, unnerving electronics". The vocals on the album provided by Alan Vega have been described as similar to Gene Vincent. In 2012, Vega stated that "originally I was a rock'n'roll kid; I was born into the rock'n'roll era of 45s in the late fifties" and that "Elvis Presley to me is like God, and Roy Orbison and Jerry Lee Lewis, they're my triumvirate." "Johnny" was described by the online music database AllMusic as a showcase for the band's "affinity for '50s melodies and images, as well as their pop leanings." Martin Rev described the songs "Frankie Teardrop", "Johnny" and "Cheree" as being about street people. "Frankie Teardrop" was influenced by a story Alan Vega read in a newspaper about a factory worker who lost his job and resorted to murdering his wife and child before committing suicide. The lyrics of the song were improvised by Vega, who attempted to get into the mindset of both the factory worker and his family. "Cheree" was about a girlfriend of Martin Rev. Release Suicide was first released in December 1977. Howard Thompson of Bronze Records in the United Kingdom received a copy of the album from the United States. After listening to it he went to New York to see the group perform live and negotiate a deal to license their music for Bronze. The album failed to chart in both the United States and the United Kingdom. A single for the song "Cheree" was released in May 1978 on both 7-inch and 12-inch vinyl formats. The single featured a remixed version of "Cheree" with the B-side "I Remember". John Lydon reviewed the single for the NME, referring to it as "Je t'aime with tape hiss". The album was re-issued by Red Star Records in 1980. The album has been re-released on other labels including Mute Records in 1998 and Blast First Records on compact disc and digital download formats with varying bonus tracks. Reception Music journalist Tony Fletcher stated that the album "struggled for immediate attention" due to it being an independent release. The album received positive contemporary reviews from the NME, Time Out and Melody Maker in the United Kingdom. Writing in Sounds, Jon Savage was more circumspect, saying "Granted that the monotony is intentional, much of the cut is chilling – the screams and drift of the instrument into landscapes of blankness