A Distant Call

A Distant Call
Studio album by Sheer Mag
Released	August 23, 2019 (2019-08-23)
Genre	Heavy metal [1] power pop [1] protest music [2] punk rock [2] rock n' roll [1]
Length	33:52
Label	Wilsuns
Sheer Mag chronology
Need to Feel Your Love (2017) A Distant Call (2019) Playing Favorites (2024)
Singles from A Distant Call
"Blood from a Stone" Released: June 19, 2019 [3] [4] "Hardly to Blame" Released: July 22, 2019 [5] "The Killer" Released: August 19, 2019 [6]

A Distant Call is the second studio album by American band Sheer Mag. It was released on August 23, 2019, through the band's own label; Wilsuns Recording Company. ^[7]

The first single from the album, "Blood From A Stone," was released on June 19, 2019. ^[8]

Release and promotion

Singles

Three singles were released on A Distant Call which were released prior to the release of the album. The first single, "Blood From A Stone" was released on June 19, 2019, which coincided with the album's announcement. ^[3] The second single, "Hardly to Blame", was released on July 22, 2019. ^[5] The third, and final single from the album, "The Killer", came out on August 19, 2019. ^[6]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
AnyDecentMusic?	7.3/10 [9]
Metacritic	81/100 [10]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[11]
Consequence of Sound	B [12]
Exclaim!	7/10 [13]
The Guardian
NME	[14]
Paste	8.5/10 [15]
Pitchfork	7.8/10 [1]
Q	[10]
Rolling Stone	[2]

A Distant Call was met with universal acclaim reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, this release received an average score of 81, based on 12 reviews. ^[10]

Track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Steel Sharpens Steel"	4:02
2.	"Blood From a Stone"	2:37
3.	"Unfound Manifest"	3:36
4.	"Silver Line"	3:25
5.	"Hardly to Blame"	3:07
6.	"Cold Sword"	3:29
7.	"Chopping Block"	2:32
8.	"The Right Stuff"	3:14
9.	"The Killer"	4:43
10.	"Keep On Runnin"	3:07

References

1. Evans, Dayna (August 24, 2019). "Sheer Mag: A Distant Call Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
2. Shteamer, Hank (August 21, 2019). "Sheer Mag Unite the Personal and Political on Bold Concept Album 'A Distant Call'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
3. Rettig, James (June 19, 2019). "Sheer Mag – "Blood From A Stone"". Stereogum. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
4. Shteamer, Hank (June 19, 2019). "Song You Need to Know: Sheer Mag, 'Blood From a Stone'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
5. Gottsegen, Will (July 22, 2019). "Sheer Mag – "Hardly To Blame"". Spin. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
6. Grow, Kory (August 19, 2019). "Hear Sheer Mag's Gritty New Song 'The Killer'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
7. Burks, Tosten (August 23, 2019). "Sheer Mag Release New Album 'A Distant Call'". Spin . Retrieved October 27, 2019.
8. Minsker, Evan (June 19, 2019). "Sheer Mag Announce New Album and Tour, Share New Song". Pitchfork . Retrieved October 27, 2019.
9. "A Distant Call by Sheer Mag". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
10. "Metacritic Review". Metacritic . Retrieved October 27, 2019.
11. Monger, James Christopher. "AllMusic Review". AllMusic . Retrieved October 27, 2019.
12. Sachllah, David (August 16, 2019). "Sheer Mag Answer A Distant Call with Expected Fervor". Consequence of Sound . Retrieved October 27, 2019.
13. Garcia, Brad (August 20, 2019). "Exclaim Review". Exclaim! . Retrieved October 27, 2019.
14. Smith, Thomas (August 28, 2019). "NME Review". NME . Retrieved October 27, 2019.
15. Martin, Clare (August 22, 2019). "Sheer Mag: A Distant Call Review". Paste. Retrieved February 8, 2020.