Any Man in America

Any Man in America
Studio album by Blue October
Released August 16, 2011
Recorded 2010-2011
Genre Alternative rock
Post-grunge
Experimental
Length 62:05
Label RED Distribution, Megaforce Records, Up/Down Records, Brando Records
Producer Tim Palmer
Blue October chronology
Ugly Side: An Acoustic Evening With Blue October
(2011)		 Any Man in America
(2011)
Singles from Any Man in America
  1. "The Chills"
    Released: May 31, 2011 (2011-05-31)
  2. "The Feel Again (Stay)"
    Released: June 14, 2011 (2011-06-14)

Any Man in America is the sixth studio album and ninth album overall by alternative rock band Blue October. The album was recorded at Matchbox Studios in Austin, Texas between Summer of 2010 and March 2011, and was released August 16, 2011 by Justin Furstenfeld's Up/Down Records and distributed through RED Distribution. The album was produced by Tim Palmer, who has previously worked with artists such as David Bowie, Robert Plant, The Cure, U2 and Pearl Jam. The artwork on the album cover is a drawing of Justin Furstenfeld drawn by Tim Palmer's daughter Bluebell, who was three years old at the time.

The songs on the album are largely about Justin Furstenfeld's divorce and custody battle over his daughter.[1]

The first single from the album, The Chills became available for digital download May 31, and impacted radio June 27, 2011.

On June 9, 2011 the band posted a video of the song The Feel Again (Stay), directed by Merritt Fields, on YouTube. Due to the overwhelming positive response to the video by fans, the band released the song on iTunes five days later.[2] The Tune subsequently gave the song its "Song of the Week" designation.[3]

On Monday, July 25, 2011, the official music video for the first single, The Chills, was released via the band's Youtube Vevo channel.

Upon release, the album topped the amazon.com album downloads chart. The album sold 27,275 copies in its first week, making it the highest-selling debut, the highest-selling alternative rock album, the second highest-selling independent album, and the eighth best selling album overall.[4] Additionally, the album was popular on iTunes where it was the best selling alternative album, and the fifth best selling album overall.[5] This makes it the highest charting album of Blue October's career, although their two previous studio albums actually sold more units in their first week of release.

Contents

Track listing

All lyrics written by Justin Furstenfeld. 

No. Title Music Length
1. "Everything (AM Limbo)"     0:52
2. "The Feel Again (Stay)"   Justin Furstenfeld, Jeremy Furstenfeld, Matt Noveskey, Ryan Delahoussaye 6:00
3. "The Money Tree"   Justin Furstenfeld 4:59
4. "For the Love"   Justin Furstenfeld 4:43
5. "Drama Everything"   Justin Furstenfeld, Andy Sharp 4:30
6. "The Chills"   Justin Furstenfeld, Tim Palmer 3:34
7. "The Flight (Lincoln to Minneapolis)"   Justin Furstenfeld 6:45
8. "Any Man in America"   Justin Furstenfeld 6:25
9. "You Waited Too Long"   Justin Furstenfeld, Tim Palmer 4:28
10. "The Honesty"     4:22
11. "The Getting Over It Part"   Justin Furstenfeld, Tim Palmer 4:38
12. "The Worry List"   Justin Furstenfeld, Dwight Baker 4:32
13. "The Follow Through"   Justin Furstenfeld 6:10
Total length:
 1:01:58

Reviews

The album was released to mixed reviews, Allmusic rating the album with 2 out of 5 stars and stating "Justin Furstenfeld has no qualms about putting his domestic problems on display, and while heartache and ruin are well-worn rock & roll topics, self-indulgence works best when tempered with hooks, something Furstenfeld seems to have left at the crime scene." Diminuendo had to say about the album, "As long as they continue doing what they're good at - writing deeply personal, heart-wrenching lyrics - it doesn't matter where they venture musically. Any Man in America is a model to follow for great artists: an ever-changing sound with a signature lyrics and vocals,"[6] giving the album a volume setting of 9 out of 11.

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic [7]
Pop Dose [8]
CultureTease [9]
Sputnikmusic [10]
MassLive.com [11]

Personnel

References

  1. ^ Scott Iwasaki (2011-06-13). "Interview: Justin Furstenfeld of Blue October". http://www.guitarworld.com/interview-justin-furstenfeld-blue-october. 
  2. ^ ""The Feel Again (Stay)" Is Now Digitally Available!". 2011-06-14. http://blueoctober.posterous.com/the-feel-again-stay-is-now-digitally-availabl. 
  3. ^ "Song of the Week: Blue October - "The Feel Again (Stay)"". http://www.thetunemusic.com/2011/06/song-of-week-blue-october-feel-again.html. 
  4. ^ "Building albums Sales Chart". 2011-08-22. http://www.hitsdailydouble.com/sales/salescht.cgi. 
  5. ^ Shauna O'Donnell (2011-08-24). "Blue October Lands Highest Chart Debut of Their Career". http://www.muenmagazine.net/2011/08/blue-october-lands-highest-chart-debut-of-their-career/. 
  6. ^ "Blue October - Any Man in America (2011)". Diminuendo: A Musical Discourse. http://amusicaldiscourse.blogspot.com/2011/08/blue-october-any-man-in-america-2011.html. Retrieved August 18, 2011. 
  7. ^ James Christopher Monger (2011-07-26). "Blue October "Any Man In America" Album Review". http://www.allmusic.com/album/any-man-in-america-r2238178. 
  8. ^ Dave Steed (2011-08-12). "This Week In Badass: Blue October Gets Personal". http://popdose.com/this-week-in-badass-blue-october-gets-personal/. 
  9. ^ Ryan Merkel (2011-08-14). "Blue October- Any Man in America". http://www.culturetease.com/2011/08/blue-october-any-man-in-america/. 
  10. ^ SowingSeason (2011-08-22). "Blue October Any Man in America". http://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/45209/Blue-October-Any-Man-in-America/. 
  11. ^ "Error: no |title= specified when using {{Cite web}}". 2011-10-03. http://blog.masslive.com/playback/2011/10/cd_reviews_blue_october_john_m.html. 
Blue October
Justin Furstenfeld • Ryan Delahoussaye • Jeremy Furstenfeld • Matt Noveskey
Liz Mullally • Dwayne Casey • Piper Skih • Brant Coulter • Julian Mandrake • C.B. Hudson
Studio albums
Live albums
Singles
"Breakfast After 10" • "James" • "Calling You (03)" • "Razorblade" • "Inner Glow" • "Hate Me" • "Into the Ocean" • "She's My Ride Home" • "X Amount of Words" • "Calling You (07)" • "Dirt Room" • "Say It" • "Jump Rope" • "Should Be Loved" • "The Chills" • "The Feel Again (Stay)"
Labels
RoDan Entertainment • Scoop Brando Records • Universal Records • Motown Records
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