Mirage Rock
| Mirage Rock | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||||||||
| Studio album by Band of Horses | ||||||||||
| Released | September 18, 2012 | |||||||||
| Recorded | Sunset Sound Studios, California | |||||||||
| Genre | Alternative rock | |||||||||
| Length | 45:17 | |||||||||
| Label | Columbia | |||||||||
| Producer | Glyn Johns | |||||||||
| Band of Horses chronology | ||||||||||
| ||||||||||
Mirage Rock is the fourth studio album by Band of Horses and was released on September 18, 2012 on Columbia Records.[1] Produced by Glyn Johns, the album was preceded by the single, "Knock Knock".[2]
Pre-release
In April 2012, lead singer, Ben Bridwell, revealed that Band of Horses' fourth studio album was scheduled for release in late-2012, with production by Glyn Johns.[3] In June 2012, via Facebook and YouTube, the band shared a video preview of a new song, "Dumpster World," and confirmed a September 2012 release for the album.[4]
On July 10, 2012, the fourth album's title was confirmed as Mirage Rock, and the tracklisting and artwork were also unveiled. Bridwell has stated that there is no such place as Mirage Rock and explained that the name "is a total piss take."[5] Prior to the official launch of Mirage Rock on September 18, "Knock Knock" and "Slow Cruel Hands of Time" were released as previews of the album. On September 10, 2012, the entire album was streamed on both the Band of Horses Soundcloud page and the official website.[6]
Just prior to the album's release, the track "Mirage Rock" was made available on the internet. Although this is billed as the "title track" it does not appear on the regular version of the album, but is one of five tracks on the deluxe edition of Mirage Rock. These five tracks were recorded at the Sonic Ranch studios in Texas.[7]
Recording
Bridwell explained that Johns recorded Mirage Rock with both "analogue and live" technology, with the album having "a looser vibe than our previous records." He described the album as "haphazard...loose and raw at times...letting our hair down," with "more humour" and a "celebratory vibe."[8] In a UK interview he added that, "Everything was different. We’ve played live to tape on albums before but not to the degree of it being so dire that every member had to really hone their part for the sake of the take."[9]Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Knock Knock" | Bridwell and Bill Reynolds | 3:58 | |
| 2. | "How to Live" | Bridwell and Reynolds | 3:27 | |
| 3. | "Slow Cruel Hands of Time" | Bridwell | 3:50 | |
| 4. | "A Little Biblical" | Bridwell and Reynolds | 2:54 | |
| 5. | "Shut-in Tourist" | Bridwell and Tyler Ramsey | 4:09 | |
| 6. | "Dumpster World" | Bridwell | 3:43 | |
| 7. | "Electric Music" | Bridwell and Reynolds | 3:32 | |
| 8. | "Everything's Gonna Be Undone" | Ramsey | 3:19 | |
| 9. | "Feud" | Bridwell | 2:56 | |
| 10. | "Long Vows" | Bridwell | 3:43 | |
| 11. | "Heartbreak on the 101" | Bridwell, Reynolds and Ramsey | 4:01 |
| Bonus tracks | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length | |||||||
| 12. | "Ego Nightmare" (iTunes bonus track) | Bridwell | 3:26 | |||||||
Sonic Ranch Sessions
The deluxe version of the album includes an EP, titled Sonic Ranch Sessions. It was recorded in El Paso, Texas at Sonic Ranch Studio and produced by the band.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Mirage Rock" | Bridwell | ||
| 2. | "Irmo Bats" | Bridwell | ||
| 3. | "Relly's Dream" | Bridwell and Ryan Monroe | ||
| 4. | "Catalina" | Bridwell and Ramsey | ||
| 5. | "Bock" | Bridwell |
Album credits
Band of Horses
Additional musicians
Recording personnel
|
Artwork
Sonic Ranch Sessions
|
Reception
Mirage Rock has received generally favourable reviews. It currently has an aggregate score of 68% from 28 professional reviews on the Metacritic website.[10] "Knock Knock" was a minor hit in Belgium, reaching number 73 in the singles chart.[11] The follow up single "Slow Cruel Hands of Time" peaked at number 68.[12]
The album was ranked #50 on American Songwriter Magazine's and #19 on Rolling Stone's lists of the top 50 albums of 2012.[13] Rolling Stone said, "They conjure the embroidered-blue-jean countryrock of The Eagles (whose first LPs were helmed by Johns) and spike it with punk noise and a 21st-century bloodshot optimism." [14]
Chart performance and professional reviews
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
References
- ↑ Kane, Tyler "Band of Horses announce new album Mirage Rock" Paste - July 10, 2012
- ↑ Stephen Thompson (24 August 2012). "First Watch: Band Of Horses, 'Knock Knock'". npr music. NPR. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
- ↑ Blanton, Kristen "Watch Band of Horses Perform New Track Long Vows" Paste - April 18, 2012
- ↑ Nelson, Michael Preview Band Of Horses "Dumpster World" Stereogum - June 22, 2012
- ↑ Marchese, David "Band of Horses Get Back in the Saddle For New Mirage Rock" Spin - August 2, 2012
- ↑ Battan, Carrie "Stream Band of Horses' New Album Mirage Rock" Pitchfork - September 10, 2012
- ↑ "BAND OF HORSES AND THIS AIN'T NO MIRAGE" recordstoreday.com - September 14, 2012
- ↑ Straw, David "Band of Horses - Interview September 2012" Contactmusic.com - September 2012
- ↑ Cosyns, Simon "Band of Horses: How the hell we made it this far is unfathomable" The Sun - September 14, 2012
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 "Mirage Rock - Band of Horses" Metacritic
- ↑ "Band of Horses - Knock Knock" Ultratop
- ↑ "Band of Horses - Slow Cruel Hands of Time" Ultratop
- ↑ "American Songwriter’s Top 50 Albums Of 2012" American Songwriter - December 4, 2012
- ↑ "19 - Band of Horses, Mirage Rock" Rolling Stone - December 5, 2012
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 15.5 15.6 15.7 15.8 15.9 15.10 15.11 Mirage Rock Ultratop entry - Ultratop
- ↑ "TOP 75 ARTIST ALBUM, WEEK ENDING 20 September 2012" GFK Chart Track
- ↑ "Band Of Horses"(Link redirected to OCC website) Chart Stats
- ↑ "Band of Horses - Mirage Rock" Allmusic
- ↑ Gerber, Justin "Album Review: Band of Horses – Mirage Rock" Consequence of Sound - September 18, 2012
- ↑ Burrows, Mark "Band of Horses - Mirage Rock" Drowned in Sound - September 12, 2012
- ↑ Downey, John (2012-10-22). "Band of Horses - Mirage Rock Review". Earbuddy. Retrieved 2012-10-22.
- ↑ Hann, Michael "Band of Horses: Mirage Rock – review" The Guardian - September 13, 2012
- ↑ Terich, Jeff "Band of Horses: Mirage Rock" American Songwriter - September 14, 2012
- ↑ Reed, Ryan "Band of Horses - Mirage Rock" Paste - September 18, 2012
- ↑ "Mirage Rock - Band of Horses" Metacritic (Q Magazine - October 2012 edition, P93)
- ↑ Wright, Lisa "Band Of Horses - Mirage Rock" NME - September 14, 2012
- ↑ Inman, Davis "Band of Horses - Mirage Rock" The A.V. Club - September 18, 2012
- ↑ Hyden, Steven "Band of Horses - Mirage Rock" Pitchfork - September 19, 2012
- ↑ Keefe, Jonathan "Band of Horses - Mirage Rock" Slant Magazine - September 17, 2012
- ↑ Cavalieri, Nate "Band of Horses - Mirage Rock" Spin - September 21, 2012
- ↑ Frodus, Fred "Band of Horses - Mirage Rock" Filter - September 19, 2012
- ↑ Wilkinson, James "Band of Horses - Mirage Rock" Allmusic - September 17, 2012
- ↑ Dolan, Jon "Mirage Rock - Album Review" Rolling Stone - September 25, 2012
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Band of Horses. |
| |||||||||||||||||