Nursing Home (album)

Nursing Home is the second album by indie rock band Let's Wrestle. It was released on May 16, 2011 on Full Time Hobby, and the following day on Merge Records. It was produced by Steve Albini.^[1]

Lyrics

The album's lyrics are consistently clever and witty, and focus on topics such as playing computer games and hanging out with friends.^[2] The lyrics are also more self-deprecating and apathetic than those of Let's Wrestle's previous songs.^[3]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	(74%)[4]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[5]
Pitchfork Media	(6.7/10)[6]
MusicOMH	[7]
Robert Christgau	(A-)[8]
NME	(7/10)[1]
PopMatters	(6/10)[9]
Drowned in Sound	(8/10)[3]
The A.V. Club	(B-)[10]
Boston Phoenix	[2]

The album received generally favorable reviews from critics.^[4] In a relatively mixed review, Daniel Tebo wrote that "There’s still a lot of fun to be had at this Nursing Home but it’s pretty clear that the party is winding down."^[9] In a more positive review, Robert Christgau wrote that in addition to maturing, the members of Let's Wrestle "do what all maturing s.-p.o.w.t.a. [slacker-punks or whatever they are] wish they could do--write better songs."^[8] Drowned in Sound's Michael Wheeler awarded the album a score of 8/10 and wrote that the song "For My Mother" was "probably the best and further proof of Let’s Wrestle’s idiot-savant genius."^[3]

Comparisons to Let's Wrestle's debut album

A theme central to Nursing Home is that the members of Let's Wrestle are now considerably more mature than they were on their debut album, In the Court of the Wrestling Let's. According to Daniel Tebo, this makes Nursing Home "a few shades darker than expected."^[9] David Sheppard also praised Nursing Home as an improvement over their debut, writing that Nursing Home was "understandably crunchier than its predecessor," and that "this time the melodies are more consistently nagging and Gonzalez’s lyrics broader in scope."^[11] Michael Wheeler also wrote that Nursing Home was "if not exactly refined, than certainly a little tighter and more focused in its abandon" than In the Court of the Wrestling Let's, and also described it as more coherent and unified.^[3]

Track listing

1. In Dreams (Part 2)
2. If I Keep on Loving You
3. In the Suburbs
4. Bad Mamories
5. Dear John
6. For My Mother
7. You're So Lazy
8. There's a Rockstar in My Room
9. I Forgot
10. I Am Useful
11. I Will Not Give In
12. Getting Rest

Personnel

• Steve Albini-- Engineer
• Darkus Bishop-- Drums, Group Member
• Wesley Patrick Gonzalez-- Artwork, Composer, Group Member, Guitar, Vocals
• Adam Kerle-- Mastering
• Mike Lightning-- Bass, Group Member, Keyboards, Vocals
• Merida Richards-- Art Supervisor

References