Broken (Soulsavers album)

Broken is the third full-length studio album from electronica production duo Soulsavers, released by V2 Records in the UK on August 17, 2009, and released by Columbia Records in the US in September as a digital download.^[1] As with their 2007 album It's Not How Far You Fall, It's the Way You Land, a collaboration with Mark Lanegan and a host of guest vocalists, Broken once again features Lanegan as the primary vocalist, as well as contributions from Bonnie "Prince" Billy (Will Oldham), Jason Pierce (of Spiritualized and Spacemen 3), Mike Patton (of Faith No More), Richard Hawley, and Gibby Haynes (of Butthole Surfers).^[2] The non-album single "Sunrise," a song written by Lanegan and sung by Will Oldham, preceded the album release on August 3, 2009. The AA-side is a cover of Palace Brothers' "You Will Miss Me When I Burn," written by Oldham and sung by Lanegan, that also features on the album.

In a press release for the album, Rich Machin described Broken as the result of Soulsavers' live incarnation. "Touring has definitely brought the guitars to the front of Broken and it's got a more soulful twist too. And though it clearly has some very dark overtones, I don't think it's quite as dark as the last.^[3] The album was recorded over 2008 and 2009 in Los Angeles and North England, and also features the vocals of newcomer Red Ghost, the performing moniker of Rosa Agostino. According to Rich, "This young Australian girl from Sydney kept on sending me demos... and she was better than most everything else we'd heard. We traded ideas, and it really gelled."^[3]

Critical reception

Initial critical response to Broken was positive. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has received an average score of 78, based on 11 reviews.^[11]

Track listing

Singles

• "Sunrise"/"You Will Miss Me When I Burn" (7" vinyl, August 3, 2009)
  1. "Sunrise" (Lanegan) – 3:42
  2. "You Will Miss Me When I Burn" (Oldham) – 3:48
• "Death Bells" (digital download, September 14, 2009)
  1. "Death Bells" – 4:49
  2. "Death Bells" (Mogwai Remix) – 4:59
• "Unbalanced Pieces" (promo CD and music video only, November 2, 2009)
  1. "Unbalanced Pieces" (Radio Edit) – 3:58
• "Some Misunderstanding" (promo CD only, March 22, 2010)
  1. "Some Misunderstanding" (Radio Edit) – 4:07

Credits

Musicians

• All music by Rich Machin and Ian Glover.
• Strings arranged by Daniele Luppi.
• Mark Lanegan – vocals on tracks 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 11.
• Rosa Agostino – vocals on tracks 4, 10, 11, and 13.
• Jason Pierce – vocals on track 9.
• Mike Patton – vocals on track 3.
• Richard Hawley – vocals on track 7.
• Gibby Haynes – vocals on track 2.
• Wendi Rose, Carmen Stuart, T'jae Cole, and Eleanor Palmer – vocals on tracks 5, 6, and 7.
• Dustin O'Halloran – additional piano on tracks 4 and 8.
• Martyn LeNoble – additional bass on tracks 5, 6, 7, 9, and 13.
• Kev Bales – additional drums on tracks 2, 5, 7, 11, and 12.
• Ian Compton – additional organs on tracks 5, 7, and 10.
• Ray Dickaty – additional saxophone on tracks 2, 3, and 11.
• Anton Riehl – additional cedar flute on track 12.
• Sonus Quartet – additional strings on tracks 1, 5, 7, 8, 9, 12, and 13.
• Rich Warren – additional guitar on tracks 2, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, and 13; additional bass on track 2; and additional harmonica on track 7.

Production

• Produced by Soulsavers.
• Mixed by Danton Supple and Soulsavers, except "Death Bells" mixed by Soulsavers.
• Mastered by Mike Marsh at The Exchange.
• Engineered by Eric Weaver, Josh Blanchard, Anton Riehl, Peter Fletcher, Phil Hartley, and Mike Morgan.
• Recorded 2008-2009 at:
  • Glenwood Studios and The Hobby Shop, Los Angeles
  • Mike Patton's place, San Francisco
  • Gibby Haynes' place, New York
  • Dustin O'Halloran's place, Berlin
  • Strongrooms; Assault and Battery; Casa G; First Love Studios; Highfield St., United Kingdom
  • Studios 301, Sydney
• Design by Ryan Besch at Hero Design Studio.
• Live audio engineer for '09 tour by John Lee Hardee

References

1. ^ News in Brief: Soulsavers, Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs, the Howling Bells, Teenbeat Takeover
2. ^ Mark Lanegan and Bonnie 'Prince' Billy for new Soulsavers album
3. ^ ^{a b} Soulsavers' Broken - Press Release
4. ^ BBC review
5. ^ Clash review
6. ^ The Guardian review
7. ^ NME review
8. ^ Pitchfork Media review
9. ^ PopMatters review
10. ^ The Times Online review
11. ^ Broken reviews at Metacritic.com