Harmonium (Vanessa Carlton album)

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Harmonium
Hollywood, CA; Mourningwood Studio, South Park, SF
GenrePop rock
Length43:15
LabelA&M
ProducerStephan Jenkins
Vanessa Carlton chronology
Be Not Nobody
(2002) 		Harmonium
(2004) 		Heroes & Thieves
(2007)
Singles from Harmonium
  1. "White Houses"
    Released: August 30, 2004

Harmonium is the second album by American pop singer-pianist Vanessa Carlton, released by A&M Records in the US on November 9, 2004. Carlton co-wrote some of the album with Stephan Jenkins, her then-boyfriend and the lead singer of Third Eye Blind, who produced the album. Harmonium debuted outside the top 20 on the US Billboard 200, and sales fell considerably short of those of Carlton's debut album, Be Not Nobody (2002). Its only single in the US, "White Houses", was not a top 40 hit; two other singles, "Private Radio" and "Who's to Say", were released only in Asia. The album wasn't as commercially successful as its predecessor, which Carlton attributed to poor promotion, and led to her departure from A&M Records in mid-2005. She toured through the US during 2004 and '05 in support of the album.

Background

Writing

Carlton and Jenkins met and began a relationship in mid-2002, when she and rock band Third Eye Blind, of which Jenkins is lead singer, were on tour together. After seeing Carlton perform live, Jenkins entered her dressing room and expressed interest in producing her music, and according to Carlton they "decided very quickly, that we had the same vision for the album".[1] By January 2003, Carlton had written ten songs that she intended to include on the album. "You record more, you write more. I never put a stop to my writing process," she said. Recording of the album was originally scheduled to begin with producer Daniel Lanois after the conclusion of Carlton's 2003 European concert tour, which ended in February, and she wanted Jason Falkner and Nigel Godrich to co-produce the album;[2] she said she believed collaborators would enable her to introduce into her music "tastes and sensibilities" to which she wouldn't normally be open.[3] She originally envisioned the album as a "solo girl" version of The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, explaining that it would involve choruses, flutes and trumpets, "and it's just real", she said.[2] She also mentioned her desire "to establish my place with an album that's undeniably me".[4]

Interscope Records chairman Jimmy Iovine suggested that Carlton co-write with Jenkins after Carlton played the album's first five songs for him.[5] Carlton said she felt trepidation about collaborating with Jenkins and that there were "moments when things got intense" between them, but because they had similar intentions for the album and Jenkins "deferred" to and was "sensitive" to her style of piano-playing and the direction in which she wanted to take the album, she "trusted him completely" and called it "a cool collaboration". Carlton credited Jenkins with helping her to withstand and protect herself from pressures the record label executives, who wanted to influence the recording process, placed on her.[6]

Recording

Carlton began recording the album in June 2003 at Morningwood Studios (owned by Jenkins) in

Tom Lord Alge. According to Carlton, her label "wasn't very happy" about the decisions she made during the making of the album.[12]

Jenkins also played instruments and performed

Arion Salazar also appear, as does former Red Hot Chili Peppers member Jesse Tobias. Carlton said she wanted to record a duet with Fleetwood Mac lead singer Stevie Nicks but never got the chance; they did, however, collaborate on a song on Carlton's third album, Heroes & Thieves (2007). She said "there was nothing calculated about the collaborations [on the album], nothing corporate".[11] A documentary, Pleased to Meet You, highlighted the process of recording the album and is included on an enhanced CD. Carlton said she thought it would "shed a lot of light the direction that I am going in and where I come from", mentioning that its working title was Pleased to Meet You: Vanessa Carlton, the New American Goth.[14]

Composition

Carlton said the album includes darker themes than those present on Be Not Nobody.[15] She said she was past the "diary stage" of songwriting, in which "you're kind of mostly narcissistic and dealing with yourself", and that as one grows up they "start to absorb [the] environment in a different way"; she called the album a reflection of a "different" and "more womanly" perspective of the world, as opposed to the "innocent and girlish" quality of Be Not Nobody.[16] However, she has said that although "things get a bit heavier as you get older", she still has a "lightness of youth" and is "able to be as girlie in ways that I should be."[17] She referred to the album as "bittersweet" rather than "just bitter" and stressed the importance of the lyrics on Harmonium compared to those on Be Not Nobody, which she said was focused more on the music: "I want the lyric to resonate as much as the chord underneath it," she said.[18] She said that instead of an album with "one-two punch songs", she wanted to make an album that engaged people to the point that they want to listen to it repeatedly, and that they would learn something new each time. "[T]hose are the kind of albums I love and that I'll listen to for years and I'll want to listen to every single song on it," she said.[19]

An October 2003 article in

recital-y" about the album, which she called "goth ... The Wicca in me has come out ... I've been able to kind of just merge the Wicca and the Eighties chick."[14] This provoked a skeptical response from MetaFilter users, one of whom wrote "this girl needs to buy a clue."[20] Carlton later wrote on her official internet messageboard that the article misrepresented what she was trying to say, and that her fans should ignore what is written in the press about the album until they own it.[8]

"White Houses" describes a young woman coming of age and finding romance, and eventually losing her

c'est la vie meant "f[uck] it", and that it helped her overcome emotional pain during the breakup.[26][27][28] She wrote "San Francisco" in the city.[27] "Half a Week Before the Winter" is a Goth-influenced "dark song" that Carlton intended as a metaphor for Charles Darwin's theory and the concept of "survival of the fittest": "Those beautiful animals [unicorns] again could be a symbol for so many things, they die and they shouldn't and I think it's also part my take on the music industry and how so many beautiful things that you do get eaten by the Vampires".[11] Carlton stated in one of her concerts that "She Floats" is about a ghost in her closet, the screaming in the song is her and her producer, Stephan Jenkins screaming. "The Wreckage", the album's closing hidden track, is about Carlton's boredom while driving and her desire to start car accidents.[22]

She said "Morning Sting", a song that was dropped from the album, is about "emotions being so raw in the morning".

Birkenstocks and jeans".[30] According to Carlton, because she had more knowledge of the process of recording an album and elements such as arrangements, she had more creative control over Harmonium than Be Not Nobody.[13] She called the album "so much more sonically personal to me" and "my taste exactly. It's exactly how I would arrange everything, as opposed to someone coming in and just dressing up the songs that I wrote."[10]

Release

Singles

White Houses served as the album's lead, and only US single. Released on August 30, 2004 the single failed to meet the success her previous singles had. In the US, the single charted on the Billboard Hot 100 at #86, becoming her lowest peaking single to date. It is also her last single to chart on the Billboard Hot 100. "White Houses" became the subject of a prank that Ashton Kutcher pulled on Carlton for the MTV television show Punk'd. During Carlton's rehearsal for a scheduled performance on The Tonight Show in November 2004, Kutcher's Punk'd crewmembers (disguised as staff from The Tonight Show) said Carlton needed to change both the bridge of the song and the line "I'm too thin" (in light of the publicity surrounding Mary-Kate Olsen's bout of anorexia nervosa). Upon realization that it was a trick, Carlton told Kutcher, "All I have to say is 'thank the fucking Lord.'" (She performed the original version of the song on The Tonight Show on November 18, 2004, and the Punk'd episode was aired in May 2005.)

The second single from the album was Private Radio. The single, only released in areas in Asia, performed poorly due to lack of promotion. Who's To Say was the third and final single, also released exclusively in Asia. The singles have been recognized mainly as promotional singles, and not official singles released from the album.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Allmusic
 link
Blender link
Entertainment Weekly(B−) link
PopMatters(5/10) link
Rolling Stone Archived July 6, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
Slant link
Stylus(C) link
USA Today link

Harmonium received mixed to positive reviews from critics. Slant Magazine stated, "From the rollicking piano arpeggios to the classically-influenced melodies, it's impossible not to invoke Tori Amos when discussing Carlton's songwriting, particularly in the last stretch of the album. And where Amos loses herself in abstract loopiness, Carlton often gets caught up in pretty but ambiguous metaphors (see the dreamlike imagery of unicorns and vampires in "Half A Week Before The Winter" and the "dandelions blowing in the wind" of the orchestral "She Floats"). But it just so happens that these are some of the most musically interesting songs on the album, the latter climaxing with a spectacular choir of voices and screams that wouldn't sound out of place on Björk's Medúlla. And while there may not be as many immediate hooks as there were on her debut, she does deliver a bit of pop perfection on the stylish "Afterglow" and the slick "Private Radio," which unleashes one soaring hook after another. It's intelligent ear candy for those who don't mind a sugar rush."

Allmusic also gave the album a good review, stating "Carlton's songs often read like diary entries, dealing with familiar adolescent themes as love and longing, and they sound even smaller when delivered in her thin but appealing girlish voice, but they gain stature when married to their cinematic arrangements, driven by her insistent, circular piano and dressed by light layers of strings, guitars, and vocal overdubs. Where her debut, Be Not Nobody, could sound endearingly awkward, Harmonium is confident and somber, a conscious attempt to be serious and mature that nevertheless still sounds adolescent, largely due to her earnest lyrics and overly ambitious music. Carlton seems to equate seriousness with a lack of hooks, either in the music or the production, so there's nothing as immediate or memorable as "A Thousand Miles," which means there's nothing to lead a listener into the world she sketches on the album—only those already won over by the entirety of her debut will have the patience to dig deeply into this insular album. That's not to say that this is a difficult album, or even a challenging one—it's merely a transitional one, with some good ideas and some good songs that don't quite gel as a full record, even if Jenkins gives the album a cohesive sound. Ultimately, Carlton is so intent on being serious, so intent on crafting her songs and sound, that she winds up with an album that's admirable but for its intent, but not its achievement."[32]

However, many critics had mixed feelings about the album. Stylus Magazine reviewed the album, saying "The first half of the record is primarily a happy ordeal. “Annie”, a song about a fan dying of an unnamed disease, even reaches ecstatic moments via its energetic backing track of Carlton's Glassian circular piano loops and verses that reveals that, yes, indeed Stephen Jenkins (Third Eye Blind, boyfriend) is the co-producer of this record. By which it's meant to say that they plod in a very enjoyable way. The clincher of this side of the record, however, is “San Francisco” which sees Carlton revealing that she's attained her “utopia” and that it's a “we’re” instead of “I’m” that's back in the city. Even the saddest moment, musically, on the first side reveals Carlton as finally “free” to do as she pleases, with the “wind at her back”. It's on this second side, where things get interesting, that the major problem with the album begins to cut into the enjoyment of the disc however. Carlton's lyrics, as noted above, tend to veer towards the diary entry style that has come to define many of her contemporaries. Unfortunately, this doesn't help in cases where less is more—as on the aforementioned “Papa” and “The Wreckage”. It's only when Carlton wordlessly moans in “The Wreckage” that the horror of which she speaks comes out. Needless to say, the last verse is an extraneous recapitulation, which could have been better served as a fade-out."[33]

Chart performance

Harmonium debuted at #33 on the US

Slant magazine, also attributing the album's low sales to the failure of "White Houses", alleged a lack of promotion by A&M Records: "Whether ["White Houses"] wasn't promoted adequately or audiences just didn't connect with the more mature, narrative style of the song, the label decided to let the album languish on store shelves with little support".[21] The album was released on October 21 in Japan, and peaked at #52 on the Oricon album chart, where Be Not Nobody had reached the top 20; it stayed on the chart for six weeks.[38] In Taiwan, the album debuted at #10 on the international albums chart the same week that "Private Radio", which was released as a single there, reached the top ten on the singles chart.[39][40]

Promotion

Ron Fair noted that the approach taken to marketing Carlton was different from those for other pop singers such as

Sessions@AOL was aired over the Internet.[43] Later that month, Carlton travelled to Japan to promote the album there.[44]

To support the album, Carlton embarked on a North American concert tour, which began on October 21 in

the WB teen soap operas Charmed and One Tree Hill,[49] and Carlton participated in an exclusive performance with Ryan Cabrera.[50]

During summer 2005, Carlton supported rock singer Stevie Nicks on her Gold Dust U.S. tour. Nicks said she was glad to give Carlton the opportunity to perform in front of a large, caring and loving audience, particularly because the poor state of the music industry meant that artists such as her weren't "nurtured ... I really respect her. I'll be damned if I'll let her go by the wayside. She is one of the great ones. She won't quit."[51] In October Carlton embarked on solo dates in the U.S.,[48] including one at Dartmouth College, where The Dartmouth wrote that Carlton "sought sympathy not only as the girl suffering in her song but also as the artist disappointed with her apparent lack of popularity."[27] Carlton rejoined Nicks on her ten-date tour of Australia and New Zealand in February and March 2006.[52] Carlton said she was suffering from the lack of promotion the label gave to the album because of her non-conformist attitude, but that she felt she made the right decision with regards to gaining press attention and credibility that she wanted to maintain throughout her career so she could attract loyal fans. "That's really important to me," she said.[12]

Controversies and censorship

The Matrix,[54][55] she had what she called a "revelation" about leaving the label to find another record deal.[28]

In May, Carlton wrote to her fans on her official website that because "shortsighted (nonmusical bastards)" at the label did not believe the album would sell well if given promotion, there would be no second single released in the US. "[I] worked my ass off promoting Harmonium in the ways that [I] could control, but you can't sell records to someone in the middle of

Express
in 2007:

Actually, I was given an ultimatum – basically like a slap on the wrist, like, "You shouldn't have made Harmonium; you should have done everything we said." Meanwhile, it wasn't supported by them, so of course I was doomed to begin with on that project. They pulled the plug on my record and then said, "See, it didn't work. You have to now reaudition [and] submit your songs as you write them. You have to do everything that we say." So what's the point of having an aesthetic and being an artist if you're just some kind of puppet for a team of people that don't necessarily know their own aesthetic? There was no other choice for me but to leave.[54]

Weeks before the announcement, PopMatters magazine wrote, "One has to wonder how long it will be before we hear the inevitable "the industry ate me up" stories from Vanessa Carlton. Perhaps when this record fails to outsell her debut and A&M drops her?"[57] The Herald & Review said that Carlton "[became] another one of the new millennium's poster children for what happens when music labels are taken over by accountants and artist development is abandoned."[58]

Track listing

Personnel

Charts


References

  1. ^ a b Sculley, Alan. "Vanessa Carlton strips back studio gloss" Archived 2007-09-28 at the Wayback Machine. The Morning Call. October 20, 2004. Retrieved September 21, 2006.
  2. ^ a b D'Angelo, Joe. "Vanessa Carlton Aims For Solo Girl Sgt. Pepper's". MTV News. January 12, 2003. Retrieved September 21, 2006.
  3. ^ Newman, Melinda. "Carlton Prepping Tunes For second album". Billboard. May 23, 2003. Retrieved September 21, 2006.
  4. ^ a b Zaleski, Annie. "Vanessa Carlton Comes Clean" Archived 2007-10-14 at the Wayback Machine. Cleveland Scene. October 20, 2004. Retrieved February 11, 2007.
  5. ^ "Bio" Archived 2006-10-19 at the Wayback Machine. VanessaCarlton.com. Retrieved September 21, 2006.
  6. ^ "Vanessa Carlton".
  7. ^ Lynskey, Dorian. "I Was Getting Dirty!" Archived 2007-09-30 at the Wayback Machine. Blender. October 2003. Retrieved August 17, 2006.
  8. ^ a b c d Carlton, Vanessa. "the truth" Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine. VanessaCarlton.com. October 9, 2003. Retrieved September 16, 2006.
  9. ^ a b Roeschlein, Shane. "Vanessa Carlton: Harmonium, beauty in the word" Archived 2006-11-20 at the Wayback Machine. themusicedge.com. October 8, 2004. Retrieved February 13, 2007.
  10. ^ a b c d D., Spence. "Vanessa Carlton Interview" Archived 2007-10-18 at the Wayback Machine. IGN. December 1, 2004. Retrieved February 13, 2007.
  11. ^ a b c d e Barker, Lynn. "Vanessa Carlton: Finding Harmony". TeenMusic. November 13, 2004. Retrieved September 21, 2006.
  12. ^
    Quinnipiac Chronicle
    . April 6, 2005. Retrieved September 16, 2006.
  13. ^ a b c d e Kenny, Hayley. "From Pandemonium to Harmonium" Archived 2007-09-26 at the Wayback Machine. Synthesis. Retrieved August 2, 2006.
  14. ^ a b c d e Smith, Kerry L. "Carlton Goes Dark on New LP". Rolling Stone. October 7, 2003. Retrieved August 2, 2006.
  15. ^ a b c D'Angelo, Joe and Pak, SuChin. "Vanessa Carlton Recalls Her Days As A Naughty Ballerina". MTV News. October 25, 2004. Retrieved February 11, 2007.
  16. ^ a b Moody, Nekesa Mumbi. "Pop Doesn't Define Vanessa Carlton" Archived 2007-04-15 at the Wayback Machine. Associated Press. November 24, 2004. Retrieved February 13, 2007.
  17. VH1.com
    . December 20, 2004. Retrieved February 13, 2007.
  18. ^ Tranter, Nikki. "New and Improved: A Chat with Vanessa Carlton". PopMatters. January 24, 2005. Retrieved February 13, 2007.
  19. ^ a b Roberge, Nicole. "Vanessa Carlton Gets Harmonious" Archived 2007-09-29 at the Wayback Machine. Tuned In Music. March 2005. Retrieved February 13, 2007.
  20. ^ "Vanessa Carlton Goes Goth". MetaFilter. October 20, 2003. Retrieved February 11, 2007.
  21. ^
    Slant
    . June 14, 2005. Retrieved September 16, 2006.
  22. ^ a b "Explanation of some Harmonium Songs (from Chicago)" Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine. October 23, 2004. Retrieved September 24, 2006.
  23. ^ "See Vanessa Live at VH1" Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine. Nessaholics.com Forums. December 15, 2004. Retrieved September 24, 2006.
  24. ^ Lewis, Ben. "Live Review – Vanessa Carlton". CounterCulture. February 17, 2003. Retrieved September 22, 2006.
  25. ^ a b "11/3/2004: Joe's Pub – New York, NY (review)" Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine. Nessaholics.com Forums. November 3, 2004. Retrieved September 22, 2006.
  26. ^ D'Angelo, Joe. "Guns N' Roses Songs, Chuck D's Call To Arms Highlight Rock The Vote Awards". MTV News. February 23, 2003. Retrieved September 22, 2006.
  27. ^ a b c Randall, Lucy. "Carlton impresses sparse audience"[permanent dead link]. The Dartmouth. October 5, 2005. Retrieved September 30, 2006.
  28. ^ a b Fuoco-Karasinski, Christina. "Live Review: Vanessa Carlton in Scottsdale, AZ" Archived 2007-11-07 at the Wayback Machine. liveDaily. November 5, 2007.
  29. ^ a b Miserandino, Dominick A. "Vanessa Carlton – Singer/Songwriter" Archived 2007-10-14 at the Wayback Machine. TheCelebrityCafe.com. Retrieved September 21, 2006.
  30. ^ a b c Kipnis, Jill. "Carlton Strikes a Balance With Sophomore Set". Billboard. pg. 13 and 73, November 13, 2004.
  31. ^ "Vanessa Carlton: Harmonium | Music Review". Slant Magazine. 2004-10-05. Retrieved 2012-02-20.
  32. ^ Thomas, Stephen (2004-11-09). "Harmonium – Vanessa Carlton". AllMusic. Retrieved 2012-02-20.
  33. ^ "Vanessa Carlton – Harmonium – Review". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on 2011-07-16. Retrieved 2012-02-20.
  34. ^ Mar, Alex. "Eminem's Encore Scores". Rolling Stone. November 17, 2004. Retrieved August 2, 2006.
  35. ^ Billboard. Issues dated from November 27, 2004 to January 22, 2005.
  36. ^ Hasty, Katie. "Billboard Bits: Pearl Jam, Vanessa Carlton, Don Caballero". Billboard. February 24, 2006. Retrieved August 2, 2006.
  37. ^ Farber, Jim. "For Some, Sales Take a Holiday". New York Daily News. December 28, 2004 [SPORTS FINAL Edition]. pg. 36.
  38. ^ "Vanessa Carlton". Oricon. Retrieved September 16, 2006.
  39. ^ "Private Radio". top40-charts.com. Retrieved August 2, 2006.
  40. ^ Albums chart announced by International Community Radio Taipei <"ICRT". Archived from the original on 2006-12-15. Retrieved 2007-03-13.>; "Top 20". Five Music. November 19–25, 2004.
  41. ^ "Vanessa Carlton – White Houses" Archived 2007-09-29 at the Wayback Machine. MusicSquare. Retrieved September 16, 2006.
  42. ^ "Journal" Archived 2007-05-04 at the Wayback Machine. TheCallingBand.com. October 3–11, 2004. Retrieved September 29, 2006.
  43. ^ a b Cohen, Jonathan. "Carlton finds harmony on sophomore CD". Billboard. October 7, 2004. Retrieved September 19, 2006.
  44. ^ Carlton, Vanessa. "back from japan" Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine. Nessaholics.com Forums. October 16, 2004. Retrieved September 29, 2006.
  45. ^ Cuprisin, Tim. "Time Warner's DVR is on your side!" Archived 2008-05-15 at the Wayback Machine. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. February 2005. Retrieved August 2, 2006.
  46. ^ "Vanessa Carlton, Cary Brothers" Archived 2014-12-05 at the Wayback Machine. Metroland. March 2005. Retrieved August 2, 2006.
  47. ^ Royer, Jeff. "The ballerina-turned-pop star is back with an eye-opening album" Archived 2006-10-12 at the Wayback Machine. Fly Magazine. March 2005. Retrieved February 16, 2007.
  48. ^ a b "Tour Information". Nessaholics.com. Retrieved September 16, 2006.
  49. The WB Television Network
    .
  50. ^ MusicMan. "Vanessa Carlton And Ryan Cabrera Exclusive Concert". Popdirt.com. April 25, 2005. Retrieved September 16, 2006.
  51. Grand Rapids Press
    . June 23, 2005. Retrieved August 2, 2006.
  52. Sony BMG Music Entertainment. November 2005. Retrieved August 2, 2006; "The 2006 Stevie Shows" Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine
    . The Fleetwood Mac Legacy. Retrieved August 2, 2006.
  53. ^ Shoebang, Eddie. "Outspoken pianist/singer/songwriter may get censored by MTV, but won't censor herself" Archived 2008-05-15 at the Wayback Machine. The College Times. November 4, 2004. Retrieved February 11, 2007.
  54. ^
    Express
    . November 20, 2007.
  55. ^ "The Projects That Time Forgot" Archived 2007-10-01 at the Wayback Machine. MTV News. January 31, 2005.
  56. ^ "harmonium" Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine. VanessaCarlton.com. May 7, 2005. Retrieved September 16, 2006.
  57. ^ Horan, Mark. "Vanessa Carlton – Harmonium". PopMatters. March 1, 2005. Retrieved September 16, 2006.
  58. ^ Cain, Tim (November 8, 2007). "Vanessa Carlton". herald-review.com.[permanent dead link]
  59. ^ "ヴァネッサ・カールトンのリリース一覧" [A Look at Vanessa Carlton's Releases]. Oricon. Archived from the original on October 31, 2013. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
  60. ^ "Vanessa Carlton Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Harmonium_(Vanessa_Carlton_album)&oldid=1210097183"