A Crow Left of the Murder...

A Crow Left of the Murder...
Studio album by Incubus
Released February 3, 2004 (2004-02-03)
Recorded October—November 2003 at Southern Tracks Recording, Atlanta, Georgia
Genre Alternative rock, funk rock
Length 58:35
Label Epic/Immortal
Producer Brendan O'Brien
Incubus chronology
Morning View
(2001)		 A Crow Left of the Murder...
(2004)		 Light Grenades
(2006)
Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic [1]
Robert Christgau [2]
Drowned in Sound 8/10[3]
Mojo [4]
Rolling Stone [5]
Slant [6]
Yahoo! Music [7]

A Crow Left of the Murder... is the fifth studio album by alternative rock band Incubus, released on February 3, 2004. The album marks the first appearance of bassist Ben Kenney, following the departure of founding member Alex Katunich.

The singles from this album are "Megalomaniac" and "Talk Shows on Mute". "Agoraphobia" and "Sick Sad Little World" were also released as radio-only singles.

The album debuted at number two on the U.S. Billboard 200, selling about 332,000 copies in its first week on the chart.[8] It has since gone on to sell 1.9 million copies and has been certified platinum by the RIAA. This is one of the few Incubus albums to carry the Parental Advisory label.

Early pressings of the album list track 12 "Smile Lines" as "Suite Lines" on the back cover.

The Japanese pressing of the album came with a bonus track, "Monuments & Melodies" which is also available on the "Alive at Red Rocks" bonus CD.

Contents

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Incubus. 

No. Title Length
1. "Megalomaniac"   4:54
2. "A Crow Left of the Murder"   3:30
3. "Agoraphobia"   3:52
4. "Talk Shows on Mute"   3:49
5. "Beware! Criminal"   3:48
6. "Sick Sad Little World"   6:23
7. "Pistola"   4:23
8. "Southern Girl"   3:41
9. "Priceless"   4:07
10. "Zee Deveel"   3:52
11. "Made for TV Movie"   3:38
12. "Smile Lines"   3:59
13. "Here in My Room"   4:20
14. "Leech"   4:19
Bonus Track
No. Title Length
15. "Monuments and Melodies"   5:05

Live 2004 EP

When bought at some retailers (including Best-Buy) a bonus live EP was bundled with the CD.

No. Title Length
1. "Pardon Me" (live in Osaka, Japan) 4:58
2. "Pantomime" (live at Merdeka Stadium, Lumpur, Malaysia) 5:17
3. "Talk Shows on Mute" (live at Entertainment Center, Sydney, Australia) 3:50
4. "A Certain Shade of Green" (live at Entertainment Center, Sydney, Australia) 3:32

Bonus DVD

  1. "Lollapalooza" – 9:13
  2. "Bridge Benefit" – 8:41
  3. While We Were Out – 7:35
    • This is a documentary about the making of the album in Atlanta, Georgia, as well as some interview footage, and some footage of other things the band have gotten up to whilst they were out. It also introduces Ben Kenney, who recently joined as the bassist for the band.
  4. Brandon's Injury – 1:06
    • A short mock-umentary about how Brandon injured his ankle.
  5. Short Film – 6:31
    • Though not listed on the packaging, there is also a short film by Brendan Hearne, starring Mike Einziger.

Personnel

Etymology

The word for a group of crows, or its collective noun, is a "murder". Therefore, the title of the album can be interpreted as rebellion. The back cover of the album's liner notes show a murder of crows with one of their members flying to the left. This reference to rebellion against group obedience keeps with the main themes of the album. The choice of the direction left most likely comes from the liberal political message of the album. An example of this is shown by the music video for the single "Megalomaniac" which features caricatures of televangelists and politicians in the face of protest juxtaposed with images of Adolf Hitler, George W. Bush, Benito Mussolini and Joseph Stalin. "A Crow Left of the Murder", then, can be viewed as separation from the group mentality by a left-leaning individual, and that the group from which he is separating is associated with "murder."

Another explanation for the title could be an attempt by the band to distance themselves from what was going on in the music world at the time of its release. With the popularity of nu-metal during the "Morning View" era, which Incubus disagreed with as their genre, lyrics such as "even straight roads meander" hint to Incubus' ability to expand and evolve their musical direction with each new album.

Charting

Album

Year Chart First Week Sales Position
2004 Billboard Top 200 332,000 2
UK Official Charts 298,000 6

Singles

Year Single Chart Position
2004 "Megalomaniac" Modern Rock Tracks 1
Mainstream Rock Tracks 2
The Billboard Hot 100 55
"Talk Shows On Mute" Modern Rock Tracks 3
Mainstream Rock Tracks 18

References

  1. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "A Crow Left of the Murder... Review". Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/album/r677092/review. Retrieved 6 May 2011. 
  2. ^ "Incubus Reviews". Robert Christgau. http://www.robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?name=Incubus. Retrieved 6 May 2011. 
  3. ^ Kiener, Dan (February 6th, 2004). "A Crow Left of the Murder... Review". Drowned in Sound. http://drownedinsound.com/releases/3570/reviews/8936. Retrieved 6 May 2011. 
  4. ^ "A Crow Left of the Murder... Review". Mojo. http://www.musicoutfitter.com/a-crow-left-of-the-murder/p413182.html. 
  5. ^ Cherry, Robert (February 11, 2004). "A Crow Left of the Murder... Review". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/a-crow-left-of-the-murder-20040211. Retrieved 6 May 2011. 
  6. ^ Shetler, Scott (March 24, 2005). "A Crow Left of the Murder... Review". Slant. http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/music_review.asp?ID=430. Retrieved 6 May 2011. 
  7. ^ Heath, Chris (February 17, 2004). "A Crow Left of the Murder... Review". Slant. http://uk.launch.yahoo.com/040217/33/1wasi.html. Retrieved 6 May 2011. 
  8. ^ Todd Martens. ""Chesney's 'Sun' Rises To Top The Billboard 200"". Billboard.com. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=2088325. Retrieved 6 May 2011. 
Incubus
Studio albums
Fungus Amongus · S.C.I.E.N.C.E. · Make Yourself · Morning View · A Crow Left of the Murder... · Light Grenades · If Not Now, When?
EPs
Live albums
Compilations
Singles
"Take Me to Your Leader" · "A Certain Shade of Green" · "New Skin" · "Pardon Me" · "Stellar" · "Drive" · "Out from Under" · "I Miss You" · "Wish You Were Here" · "Nice to Know You" · "Warning" · "Are You In?" · "Circles" · "Megalomaniac" · "Talk Shows on Mute" · "Agoraphobia" · "Make a Move" · "Anna Molly" · "Dig" · "Oil and Water" · "Love Hurts" · "Black Heart Inertia" · "Midnight Swim" · "Let's Go Crazy" · "Adolescents"  · "Promises, Promises"
DVDs
Related
Category:Incubus (band) · Template:Incubus