Embrace (English band Embrace album)
Embrace | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 25 April 2014 | |||
Recorded | August 2011 – January 2014 at Magnetic North Studios (Halifax, England) | |||
Genre | Alternative rock | |||
Length | 46:22 | |||
Label | Cooking Vinyl | |||
Producer | Richard McNamara | |||
Embrace chronology | ||||
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Singles from Embrace | ||||
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Embrace is the eponymously titled sixth studio album by English alternative rock band Embrace. The album, produced by vocalist Richard McNamara, was released on 25 April 2014 in Friday-release countries and on 28 April 2014 in the United Kingdom by independent record label Cooking Vinyl. The album was the band's first in eight years, after the release of their fifth studio album This New Day in 2006.
Embrace, created with a goal to outdo their debut studio album, the critically acclaimed
The album was lightly promoted by the band and label Cooking Vinyl in the lead-up to its release, with the launch of the album being accompanied by a limited theatrical run of the band's live film Magnetic North. The album's release cycle is reminiscent of the release cycle of The Good Will Out, with full-length
Background
Over eight years prior to the release of Embrace, the band released their fifth studio album,
It was expected that Embrace would return to the studio after touring for This New Day was over, however, no activity from the band was reported for a full four years until lead singer Danny McNamara confirmed through NME in April 2011 that the band were about to start working on their sixth studio album, and that the band had amassed 150 song ideas, eight of which McNamara described as "killer".[1] McNamara has stated on numerous occasions that the ideology behind the band's sixth studio album, and the primary reason for the length of the creative process leading into the sixth studio album was to do better than their highly acclaimed debut album, 1998's The Good Will Out, and that the band was unwilling to return with material that wasn't, in their opinion, better than The Good Will Out, claiming that creating something better, or at the very least on-par, with their debut album would re-ignite new interest in the band and attract new listeners, given the success that their debut had made.[2] He stated in 2014:
"We had been away so long because we were unwilling to return with an album unless it was better than our debut. That was the rule we set, and I think we've done that. If I was going to explain Embrace to a person that had never heard us, I'd play them "All You Good Good People", from our first album, "Ashes" from Out of Nothing and this new album from start to finish. Some people who've heard the single have said it's not what they'd expect from us and that it doesn't sound like Embrace, but I think we've always moved things forward and tried new things. We've been away for quite a while, and for us this feels like natural evolution."
— Danny McNamara[2]
Composition
Drummer
Recording
The album was recorded at Magnetic North Studios, built by guitarist and producer Richard McNamara.[4] McNamara had built Magnetic North Studios at Halifax in West Yorkshire in 2007 in an effort to boost his production career, with acoustics and architecture designed by McNamara himself.[5] The studio had been previously used by McNamara and British rock band Operahouse for recording and production on the band's second studio album Escape from the Sun, released in 2009. Magnetic North was also used by indie pop band Thomas Tantrum for recording and production on the band's debut studio album Thomas Tantrum, released in 2008.[6]
After three years of writing new material for their sixth studio album, the band began production on the album in August 2011. Richard McNamara wrote on the band's Facebook page on 12 August 2011 announcing their return to the studio, seven years after the release of This New Day, stating "We've gone from barely seeing or speaking to each other, dodging rumours about a band split, to living out of each others pockets and I just know somewhere in my bones that they've got my back both musically and spiritually...". He also jokingly noted that the band's "quality control" had been "set to stun".[7]
Packaging
The
The "Super Deluxe Edition" of Embrace is encased in a black box, with the number five in stroke counting form embossed onto the top of the box. The box includes both the
Promotion
Embrace was officially unveiled by the band and
The release of Embrace was accompanied by a limited theatrical release of the band's live film Magnetic North, which is included in the album's Deluxe and "Super Deluxe" editions. The film was screened at the
Critical reception
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 58/100[11] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
Clash | 8/10[12] |
Drowned in Sound | 7/10[13] |
The Guardian | [14] |
The Line of Best Fit | [15] |
Mojo | [16] |
musicOMH | [17] |
Renowned for Sound | [18] |
Uncut | 5/10[19] |
AllMusic | [20] |
Upon its release, Embrace was met with mixed reviews from
Gareth James of
Matt Tomiak of music website The Line of Best Fit gave the album a positive review, writing that "Embrace’s old calling cards, mammoth, bellow-along choruses and a lyrical blend of vulnerability and bluster" remain "intact" on Embrace. He further noted that "Despite the curveballs and their extended break from the biz, the band’s phasers remain set to festival-primed, punch-the-air anthemic bravado, a formula as solid today as it was in their early feted period".[15] Jamie Parmenter of music magazine Renowned for Sound also gave a positive review of the album, commenting on the album's 70s and 80s influences: "Embrace seem to have moved into a new era with this record, but in a backwards direction. This isn't a bad thing as they seem to have settled on the 80s with an indie vibe". He also commended the band's decision to take extend the production of the album over seven years, stating that the length of the creative process "has done a world of wonders for the band. It's allowed them to reflect on where they were, where they were going and rekindled their love of music. They’ve released a record which feels like they enjoyed creating, and the time and effort comes through in their mix of nostalgia and the current".[18]
Alan Ashton-Smith of music website musicOMH, alternatively, gave a mixed review of the album, stating that "The album hits more often than it misses. Longstanding fans will either love or loathe the more prominently electronic direction, but it’s clear that Embrace have succeeded in keeping up with the times while continuing to sound like the same band".[17] Uncut Magazine also gave the album a mixed review, commenting: "Gone, for the most part, are the aching ballads in favour of identikit stadium rock epics somewhere between Simple Minds and Coldplay, overlain with '90s dance beats".[19] Tim Jonze of Manchester-based national newspaper The Guardian, however, gave the album a negative review. Describing the album as "vaguely uplifting, anthemic guitar pop", he states that "Almost all of the songs here could soundtrack an Ashes highlights package or that moment when a reality TV star winner gets to see their "best bits" reel".[14] Mojo also additionally wrote negatively of the album, commenting: "Embrace is [a] schizophrenic stab at modernity, [from] bolting synths and clattering drum patterns to forgettable harmonies, with limp results".[19]
Danny McNamara had told
Track listing
All tracks are written by Danny McNamara,
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
11. | "Dna" | 5:11 |
Total length: | 51:33 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
11. | "Equal" | 4:04 |
12. | "Follow You Home" (Acoustic) | 3:36 |
13. | "Refugees" (Acoustic) | 4:25 |
Total length: | 58:35 |
Personnel
Adapted from Embrace liner notes.[23]
|
|
Release history
Region | Date | Format | Label | Catalog no. |
---|---|---|---|---|
Germany[24] | 25 April 2014 | Digital download | Cooking Vinyl | none |
United Kingdom | 28 April 2014 | CD
|
COOKCD603 | |
Digital download[25] | none | |||
2x Vinyl[26]
|
COOKLP603 | |||
United States[27] | 29 April 2014 | Digital download | none | |
Australia[28] | 2 May 2014 |
Deluxe edition | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Region | Date | Format | Label | Catalog no. |
United Kingdom[29] | 28 April 2014 | CD+DVD | Cooking Vinyl | COOKCD603X |
Acoustic
"Acoustic" is a 2014
Track listing
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | " Follow You Home" (Acoustic) | ||
2. | "Refugees" (Acoustic) | Danny McNamara, Richard McNamara |
Personnel
- Embrace
- Mickey Dale – backing vocals
- Steve Firth – bass
- Mike Heaton– percussion, backing vocals
- Danny McNamara – lead vocals
- Richard McNamara – guitar, backing vocals
Release history
Country | Date | Format | Label | Catalog no. |
---|---|---|---|---|
United Kingdom[30] | 28 April 2014 | 7"
|
Cooking Vinyl | unknown |
References
- ^ "Embrace to return with sixth album". NME. Retrieved 14 January 2014.
- ^ a b "Embrace's Danny McNamara: 'We didn't want to come back until we'd bettered our debut'". NME. Retrieved 14 January 2014.
- ^ Powlson, Nigel. "Why absentee stars are ready to Embrace the music world again". Burton Mail. Local World. Retrieved 16 April 2014.
- ^ Payne, Samuel. "Embrace discuss new work at Hyde Park Picture House". Entertainment Focus. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
- ^ "Rick McNamara" (PDF). Big Life Management. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 April 2014. Retrieved 16 April 2014.
- ^ Paine, Andre. "Embrace's McNamara Joins Big Life Roster". Billboard Biz. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 16 April 2014.
- ^ McNamara, Richard. "Message From Richard". Embrace. Facebook. Retrieved 16 April 2014.
- ^ Wilson, Lorraine. "Illegal single a sign that Embrace have returned". The Herald. Newsquest. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
- Trinity Mirror. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
- ^ "Embrace Announce 'Magnetic North' Cinema Screenings". Digital Warble. Archived from the original on 16 April 2014. Retrieved 16 April 2014.
- ^ CBS Interactive. Retrieved 14 May 2014.
- ^ a b James, Gareth. "Embrace - Embrace". Clash. Retrieved 16 April 2014.
- ^ a b Burrows, Marc. "Embrace". Drowned in Sound. Silentway. Archived from the original on 27 April 2014. Retrieved 27 April 2014.
- ^ a b Jonze, Tim. "Embrace: Embrace review – vaguely uplifting, anthemic guitar pop". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 April 2014.
- ^ a b Tomiak, Matt. "Album Review: Embrace - Embrace". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 27 April 2014.
- ^ MOJO. London, United Kingdom: Bauer Media Group. May 2014. p. 88.
- ^ a b Ashton-Smith, Alan. "Embrace – Embrace". musicOMH. Retrieved 27 April 2014.
- ^ a b Parmenter, Jamie. "Album Review: Embrace – Embrace". Renowned for Sound. Retrieved 27 April 2014.
- ^ IPC Media. May 2014. p. 73.
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Embrace – Embrace". AllMusic. Retrieved 13 May 2014.
- ^ James, Gareth. "Embrace: The Complete Guide". Clash. Retrieved 16 April 2014.
- ^ Michaels, Sean. "Embrace confirm their first new album in eight years". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 April 2014.
- ^ Embrace (liner notes). Embrace. Cooking Vinyl. 2014.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ "Embrace". iTunes DE. Apple Inc. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
- ^ "Embrace". iTunes GB. Apple Inc. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
- ^ "January 13, 2014". Embrace. Facebook. Retrieved 13 January 2014.
- ^ "Embrace". iTunes US. Apple Inc. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
- ^ "Embrace". iTunes AU. Apple Inc. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
- ^ "EMBRACE Signed Deluxe Edition 2 Disc set with Exclusive Photo". embrace.tmstor.es. Retrieved 13 January 2014.
- ^ "EMBRACE BOX SET Exclusive Super Deluxe Album Set". embrace.tmstor.es. Archived from the original on 15 January 2014. Retrieved 14 January 2014.