Broken Bells (album)

Broken Bells
Studio album by Broken Bells
Released March 9, 2010 (2010-03-09)
Recorded 2009-2010, Mondo Studio, Los Angeles, CA
Glenwood Place Studios, Burbank, CA (strings)
Genre Indie rock, space rock, alternative rock
Length 37:30
Label Columbia
Producer Danger Mouse
Broken Bells chronology
Broken Bells
(2010)		 Meyrin Fields
(2011)Meyrin Fields2011
Singles from Broken Bells
  1. "The High Road"
    Released: December 21, 2009
  2. "The Ghost Inside"
    Released: June 28, 2010
  3. "October"
    Released: August 16, 2010
  4. "The Ghost Inside/Meyrin Fields"
    Released: October 25, 2010
  5. "Vaporize (US)"
    Released: January 25, 2011[1]
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic71/100[2]
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[3]
A.V. ClubB–[4]
Drowned in Sound(9/10)[5]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[6]
The Guardian[7]
idobi[8]
The Independent[9]
Now[10]
NME(7/10)[11]
Paste(7.0/10)[12]
Pitchfork Media(7.2/10)[13]
PopMatters[14]
Q Magazine[15]
Rolling Stone[16]
Spin[17]
Robert Christgau [18]

Broken Bells is the self-titled debut album from Broken Bells, consisting of James Mercer of indie rock band The Shins with producer and multi-instrumentalist Brian Burton (aka Danger Mouse), and was released on March 9, 2010.

In 2011 Broken Bells was nominated for Best Alternative Music Album at the 53rd Grammy Awards.

Background

After forming in 2009, Broken Bells released their eponymous debut studio album, Broken Bells, in March 2010. Released to positive critical reception, Broken Bells was a success critically and commercially, peaking at #7 on the Billboard Billboard album chart,[19] and appearing in the top 20 in Australia, Canada and Denmark. The album also appeared at #126 on the Billboard Hot 100 End-year chart for 2010. Two singles were released during the album's cycle. "The High Road", released in 2009 and featuring the Broken Bells track of the same name, peaked at #10 on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart, which is the highest peak by the band on the chart so far, and was certified Gold in Canada by Music Canada.[20] "The Ghost Inside", also featuring the eponymous Broken Bells track and "Meyrin Fields", was released in 2010. The band also released an extended play during the album's cycle in 2011, entitled Meyrin Fields.

Release

In addition to the standard edition of the album, a deluxe version was released, designed as a music box. When opened, it played a track titled "The Overture," which wasn't included on the album. The box also contained stickers, posters, lobby cards and a leather book.[21]

Promotion

The first single from the album, The High Road, was offered as a free download from the band's website on December 21, 2009, before being officially released on December 22, 2009.[22]

The music video for "The Ghost Inside" featured actress Christina Hendricks and was inspired by 1970s science fiction and the "Golden Age of Hollywood".[23]

Track listing

All songs written by James Mercer and Brian Burton.

No.TitleLength
1."The High Road"3:52
2."Vaporize"3:30
3."Your Head Is on Fire"3:04
4."The Ghost Inside"3:19
5."Sailing to Nowhere"3:46
6."Trap Doors"3:19
7."Citizen"4:29
8."October"3:40
9."Mongrel Heart"4:24
10."The Mall & Misery"4:07
Bonus Tracks
No.TitleLength
11."An Easy Life"2:44

Chart performance

Chart (2010) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[24] 20
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[25] 46
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[26] 72
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[27] 57
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[28] 16
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[29] 14
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[30] 35
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[31] 41
French Albums (SNEP)[32] 88
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[33] 67
Greek Albums (IFPI)[34] 25
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[35] 36
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[36] 40
UK Albums (OCC)[37] 47
US Billboard 200[38] 7
US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard)[39] 2
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[40] 3

Year-end charts

Chart (2010) Position
US Billboard 200 126[41]

Personnel

Broken Bells
Additional personnel
  • Peter Kent – strings
  • Johana Krejci – strings
  • Daniele Luppi – string conductor
  • Stephen Marcussen – mastering engineer
  • Miriam Mayer – strings
  • Calabria McChesney – strings
  • Todd Monfalcone – engineer, mixing assistant
  • Michele Nardone – strings
  • Frank W. Ockenfels – photography
  • Carolyn Osborn – strings
  • Anton Riehl – score preparation
  • Christopher J. Tedesco – strings
  • Philip Vaiman – strings
  • Jessica van Velzen – strings
  • Jennifer Walton – strings
  • John Wittenberg – strings
  • Alwyn Wright – strings
  • Adriana Zoppo – strings

References

  1. ↑ Praxis Media. "Radio1 Rodos Greece ::: USA Forthcoming Singles ::: Charts, DJ Promos, Dance, Lyrics, Free Mp3 Samples Downloads". Radio1.gr. Archived from the original on 2011-06-15. Retrieved 2012-02-08.
  2. ↑ "Broken Bells Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More at Metacritic". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 3 May 2012.
  3. ↑ Phares, Heather (2010-03-09). "((( Broken Bells > Overview )))". allmusic. Retrieved 2010-09-22.
  4. ↑ Mincher, Chris. "Broken Bells: Broken Bells | Music". The A.V. Club. The Onion. Retrieved 3 May 2012.
  5. ↑ Gourlay, Dom (2010-03-03). "Broken Bells - Broken Bells / Releases / Releases // Drowned In Sound". Drownedinsound.com. Retrieved 2010-09-22.
  6. ↑ Leah Greenblatt (2010-03-03). "Broken Bells | Music". EW.com. Retrieved 2010-09-22.
  7. ↑ Dave Simpson (2010-03-05). "Broken Bells: Broken Bells | CD review | Music". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 2010-09-22.
  8. ↑ Thornton, Shingai (2010-03-10). "Album review: James Mercer, Danger Mouse are Broken Bells". idobi. Retrieved 2010-09-22.
  9. ↑ Gill, Andy (2010-03-05). "Album: Broken Bells, Broken Bells (Columbia) - Reviews, Music". London: The Independent. Retrieved 2010-09-22.
  10. ↑ Boles, Benjamin. "Broken Bells | NOW Magazine". Now. NOW Communications. Retrieved 3 May 2012.
  11. ↑ "Latest Broken Bells Reviews from NME.com – Music Videos, CDs, Live Gig Reviews & More". Nme.com. Retrieved 2010-09-22.
  12. ↑ Michaelangelo, Matos. "Broken Bells: Broken Bells :: Music :: Reviews:: Paste". Paste. Wolfgang's Vault. Retrieved 3 May 2012.
  13. ↑ "Album Reviews: Broken Bells: Broken Bells". Pitchfork. 2010-03-11. Retrieved 2010-09-22.
  14. ↑ Lombardi, Anthony. "Broken Bells: Broken Bells < PopMatters". PopMatters. Retrieved 3 May 2012.
  15. ↑ "Reviews of Broken Bells by Broken Bells, collected by Any Decent Music". Anydecentmusic.com. 2010-03-03. Retrieved 2010-09-22.
  16. ↑ Will Hermes (2010-04-28). "Broken Bells by Broken Bells | Rolling Stone Music | Music Reviews". Rollingstone.com. Retrieved 2010-09-22.
  17. ↑ "Broken Bells, 'Broken Bells' (Columbia)". SPIN.com. Retrieved 2010-09-22.
  18. ↑ Consumer Guide
  19. ↑ "Broken Bells Hot 100 History". Billboard. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
  20. ↑ "Certifications for Broken Bells". MusicCanada. Archived from the original on 26 December 2013. Retrieved 25 December 2013.
  21. ↑ Harding, Cortney (February 9, 2010). "Danger Mouse, James Mercer ring in Broken Bells". Reuters. Retrieved February 3, 2014.
  22. ↑ NME (2009-12-21). "Danger Mouse/Shins new band Broken Bells give away new song". Retrieved 2009-12-29.
  23. ↑ "The Making of "The Ghost Inside," Broken Bells, 2010.
  24. ↑ "Australiancharts.com – Broken Bells – Broken Bells". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  25. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Broken Bells – Broken Bells" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  26. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Broken Bells – Broken Bells" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  27. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Broken Bells – Broken Bells" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  28. ↑ "Broken Bells – Chart history" Billboard Canadian Albums Chart for Broken Bells. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  29. ↑ "Danishcharts.com – Broken Bells – Broken Bells". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  30. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Broken Bells – Broken Bells" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  31. ↑ "Broken Bells: Broken Bells" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  32. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Broken Bells – Broken Bells". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  33. ↑ "Officialcharts.de – Broken Bells – Broken Bells". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  34. ↑ "Greekcharts.com – Broken Bells – Broken Bells". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  35. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Broken Bells – Broken Bells". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  36. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Broken Bells – Broken Bells". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  37. ↑ "Broken Bells | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  38. ↑ "Broken Bells – Chart history" Billboard 200 for Broken Bells. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  39. ↑ "Broken Bells – Chart history" Billboard Top Alternative Albums for Broken Bells. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  40. ↑ "Broken Bells – Chart history" Billboard Top Rock Albums for Broken Bells. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  41. ↑ "Best of 2010 - Billboard Top 200". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2010-12-31.
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