100 Acres of Sycamore

Last updated
100 Acres of Sycamore
100 Acres of Sycamore (Fionn Regan album - cover art).jpg
Studio album by
Fionn Regan
Released8 August 2011
Genre Folk
Label Heavenly Records
Producer Fionn Regan & Sean Read
Fionn Regan chronology
The Shadow of an Empire
(2010)		100 Acres of Sycamore
(2011)		 The Bunkhouse Vol. 1: Anchor Black Tattoo
(2012)
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic (71/100) [1]
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [2]
BBC positive [3]
Clash (6/10) [4]
Consequence of Sound Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [5]
Drowned in Sound (6/10) [6]
The Telegraph Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [7]
The Guardian Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [8]
NME (5/10) [9]

100 Acres of Sycamore is the third studio album by Irish singer-songwriter Fionn Regan, released on 8 August 2011 on Heavenly Records. Unlike Regan's previous album, The Shadow of an Empire , which featured mostly rock and roll songs, the album foregrounds an acoustic aesthetic, similar to that of his debut, The End of History (2006).

Fionn Regan Irish folk musician and singer-songwriter

Fionn Regan is an Irish folk musician and singer-songwriter. Born and raised in Bray, Regan came to prominence with the release of his debut studio album, The End of History in 2006. He had been releasing extended plays for six years on independent record labels prior to the album's release. Regan's second studio album, The Shadow of an Empire was released in 2010 to positive reviews and his third studio album, 100 Acres of Sycamore, was released in 2011. His fourth studio album, The Bunkhouse Vol. 1: Anchor Black Tattoo, was released in 2012.

<i>The Shadow of an Empire</i> 2010 studio album by Fionn Regan

The Shadow of an Empire is the second studio album by Irish singer-songwriter Fionn Regan, released on 8 February 2010 on Heavenly Records and Universal Music Ireland. The album's aesthetic differs from Regan's previous album, The End of History, featuring more electric guitar-based rock songs. Regarding this change in musical direction, Regan stated, "This album's lyrically quite fast, with lots of word changes and phrase changes, and it asked for a different kind of coat." In October 2009 the first single, "Protection Racket" was released as a free download.

Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as "rock and roll" in the United States in the early 1950s, and developed into a range of different styles in the 1960s and later, particularly in the United States and the United Kingdom. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, a style which drew heavily from the genres of blues, rhythm and blues, and from country music. Rock music also drew strongly from a number of other genres such as electric blues and folk, and incorporated influences from jazz, classical and other musical styles. Musically, rock has centered on the electric guitar, usually as part of a rock group with electric bass, drums, and one or more singers. Usually, rock is song-based music usually with a 4/4 time signature using a verse–chorus form, but the genre has become extremely diverse. Like pop music, lyrics often stress romantic love but also address a wide variety of other themes that are frequently social or political.

Contents

Recorded in seven days, 100 Acres of Sycamore features a prominent string section throughout, and features backing vocal contributions from The Staves on the track, "North Star Lover".

String section section of a larger symphony orchestra composed of string musicians

The string section is composed of bowed instruments belonging to the violin family. It normally consists of first and second violins, violas, cellos, and double basses. It is the most numerous group in the typical Classical orchestra. In discussions of the instrumentation of a musical work, the phrase "the strings" or "and strings" is used to indicate a string section as just defined. An orchestra consisting solely of a string section is called a string orchestra. Smaller string sections are sometimes used in jazz, pop and rock music and in the pit orchestras of musical theatre.

The Staves

The Staves are an English indie folk trio of sisters Jessica, Camilla and Emily Staveley-Taylor from Watford, Hertfordshire, England.

Background and recording

Upon meeting actress Anna Friel in Benicassim, in 2010, Regan subsequently began writing 100 Acres of Sycamore whilst staying at her home in Deià, Majorca. Regarding the album's composition, Regan noted, "It was very fast, sometimes when you’re a writer it's like that, lightning strikes, the stars align for whatever reason. [...] The songs were very fast, they flew like liquid gold." [10]

Anna Friel English actress

Anna Louise Friel is an English actress. Born in Rochdale, Greater Manchester, she has been acting professionally since age 13. Friel achieved fame with her portrayal of Beth Jordache on the British soap opera Brookside (1993–95), and came to international prominence when she played Charlotte "Chuck" Charles on ABC's Pushing Daisies (2007–09). She is the recipient of several accolades, including an International Emmy Award, a Drama Desk Award, a National Television Award, an RTS Award, and an honorary degree, as well as BAFTA Award, Golden Globe Award, Satellite Award, Saturn Award, Genie Award and Czech Lion Award nominations.

Deià Municipality in Balearic Islands, Spain

Deià is a municipality and small coastal village in the Serra de Tramuntana, which forms the northern ridge of the Spanish island of Mallorca. It is located about 16 kilometres (10 mi) north of Valldemossa, and it is known for its literary and musical residents. Its idyllic landscape, orange and olive groves on steep cliffs overlooking the Mediterranean, served as a draw for German, English, and American expatriates after the First World War.

The album was recorded to tape using analogue methods, with Regan noting, "I just love the sound of it, I love the process. I love the idea that there's a master tape. It's a very potent thing." [11] Regan and producer Sean Read recorded using the same console that The White Stripes used to record their fourth studio album, Elephant . [12]

The White Stripes American rock duo

The White Stripes were an American rock duo formed in 1997 in Detroit, Michigan. The group consisted of Jack White and Meg White. After releasing several singles and three albums within the Detroit music scene, The White Stripes rose to prominence in 2002, as part of the garage rock revival scene. Their successful and critically acclaimed albums White Blood Cells and Elephant drew attention from a large variety of media outlets in the United States and the United Kingdom, with the single "Seven Nation Army" which used a guitar and a whammy pedal to create the iconic opening riff becoming their signature song. The band recorded two more albums, Get Behind Me Satan in 2005 and Icky Thump in 2007, and dissolved in 2011 after a lengthy hiatus from performing and recording.

<i>Elephant</i> (album) 2003 studio album by The White Stripes

Elephant is the fourth studio album by the American rock duo the White Stripes. It was released on April 1, 2003, through V2, XL, and Third Man. The album garnered critical acclaim and commercial success, earning a nomination for Album of the Year and a win for Best Alternative Music Album at the 46th Grammy Awards in 2004, peaking at number six in the US Billboard charts and topping the UK album charts.

Writing and composition

Deia, Majorca, where the majority of the album's material was written. EmbarcadorcalaDeia.JPG
Deià, Majorca, where the majority of the album's material was written.

Much of the album's material was written in Deià, Majorca, [7] with Regan stating, "I think if you could bottle a bit of the atmosphere and put it into the record, it's there. In saying that, I think it's spliced with walking in the woods in Ireland. [11] Regarding his time in Deia, Regan noted, "That probably had most impact on the writing of the record. It’s sort of a place that’s laced with magic, it has the quality of a book, everything there feels like a dreamlike overtone to it. So a lot of the writing on the record and the way it sounds is my impression or whatever way that wove its way into the writing and it came back out in the record." [10]

Ireland Island in north-west Europe, 20th largest in world, politically divided into the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland (a part of the UK)

Ireland is an island in the North Atlantic. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the second-largest island of the British Isles, the third-largest in Europe, and the twentieth-largest on Earth.

Regarding the stylistc differences between 100 Acres of Sycamore and his previous album, The Shadow of an Empire , Regan noted, "The last album was kind of like a chrysalis and this is the butterfly. I think sometimes that everyone has to remember that you don't get 'this' without 'that'. This album wouldn't have happened without the last record. The second one wouldn't have happened without the first one. I think sometimes after the first record there might have been a feeling that, because I was on to a good thing, to just repeat it but I wasn't interested in that. It's very important for me to do what feels right at the time." [11] Regan also noted, "My previous record, The Shadow Of An Empire was me looking out of a window at the world. With this one, it’s a clear look in." [12]

Regan describes the track, "Sow Mare Bitch Vixen" as "a celebration of the femme fatale." [13]

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Fionn Regan.

  1. "100 Acres of Sycamore" - 5:35
  2. "Sow Mare Bitch Vixen" - 3:46
  3. "The Horses are Asleep" - 4:39
  4. "The Lake District" - 5:37
  5. "Dogwood Blossom" - 3:25
  6. "For a Nightingale" - 3:44
  7. "List of Distractions" - 3:32
  8. "1st Day of May" - 2:27
  9. "North Star Lover" - 5:20
  10. "Woodberry Cemetery" - 1:44
  11. "Vodka Sorrow" - 6:04
  12. "Golden Light" - 1:35

Personnel

Musicians

Production

Artwork

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References

  1. ↑ "100 Acres of Sycamore - Fionn Regan". Metacritic.com. Retrieved 5 February 2011.
  2. ↑ O'Brien, Jon. "100 Acres of Sycamore - Fionn Regan | Allmusic". allmusic.com. Retrieved 5 February 2012.
  3. ↑ Diver, Mike. "Review of Fionn Regan - 100 Acres of Sycamore | BBC - Music". bbc.co.uk/music. Retrieved 5 February 2012.
  4. ↑ Salmon, Will. "Album Review: Fionn Regan - 100 Acres of Sycamore| Clash Music". clashmusic.com. Retrieved 5 February 2012.
  5. ↑ Mojica, Frank. "Album Review: Fionn Regan - 100 Acres of Sycamore| Consequence of Sound". consequenceofsound.net. Retrieved 5 February 2012.
  6. ↑ Hamilton, Billy. "Fionn Regan - 100 Acres of Sycamore| Drowned in Sound". drownedinsound.com. Retrieved 5 February 2012.
  7. 1 2 Perry, Andrew (11 August 2011). "Fionn Regan: 100 Acres of Sycamore | The Telegraph". thetelegraph.co.uk. London. Retrieved 5 February 2012.
  8. ↑ Costa, Maddy (11 August 2011). "Fionn Regan: 100 Acres of Sycamore| The Guardian". theguardian.co.uk. London. Retrieved 5 February 2012.
  9. ↑ Mackay, Emily. "Album Review: Fionn Regan - 100 Acres of Sycamore| NME". nme.co.uk. Retrieved 5 February 2012.
  10. 1 2 Nessy (2011-08-12). "Interview with Fionn Regan". nessymon.com. Archived from the original on 2011-09-13. Retrieved 2013-02-15.
  11. 1 2 3 "Music | Interview with Fionn Regan | Reviewed by EI Team". entertainment.ie. Archived from the original on 2011-11-25. Retrieved 2013-02-15.
  12. 1 2 "Interview: Fionn Regan | Musictalk4u". musictalk4u.com. Archived from the original on 2012-02-25. Retrieved 5 February 2012.
  13. ↑ Bliss, Dylan. "Interview: Fionn Regan | The Dailyer Nebraskan". thedailyernebraskan.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2012-02-25. Retrieved 5 February 2012.
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