All Souls Hill | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | April 6, 2022 | |||
Studio |
| |||
Genre | folk rock | |||
Length | 40:50 | |||
Language | English | |||
Label | Cooking Vinyl | |||
Producer |
| |||
The Waterboys chronology | ||||
|
"In the old days, when I'd be in recording studios, I'd be trying to be at play, but there'd be time pressures, or I'd be working with an engineer, and I'd have to filter everything through their musical consciousness. But when I'm working on my own in my own studio, I'm at play. It's great... [I collaborated with co-producer Simon Dine] strictly by correspondence. He would send me a zip file of twenty one-minute-long instrumentals, and I'd play them, and maybe two of them would suggest melodies or an idea to me, and I'd turn them into a song. Technology allows us to work like that."
Contents
—Mike Scott on recording All Souls Hill [1]
All Souls Hill is a 2022 studio album by British folk rock group The Waterboys, released by Cooking Vinyl. It has received positive reviews from critics.
At AnyDecentMusic? , editors scored this album a 6.5 out of 10, aggregating five reviews. [2] According to the review aggregator Metacritic , All Souls Hill received "generally favorable reviews" based on a weighted average score of 75 out of 100 from seven critic scores. [3]
Editors at AllMusic rated this album 3.5 out of 5 stars, with critic Mark Deming writing that "this is fun, thoughtful, expressive music from a man whose inspiration has yet to run dry". [4] In American Songwriter , Hal Horowitz scored All Souls Hill 3 out of 5 stars, praising the lyrics and vocals: "[Mike Scott] has plenty to say and isn't shy about spewing out a constant stream of verses to make his points: all in his distinctive Scottish brogue and with a propulsive attitude leaving subtlety for others". [5] Writing for The Arts Desk , Joe Muggs rated this work 3 out of 5 stars, characterizing it a "mixed success" criticizing the production choices, but praising Mike Scott's songwriting. [6] Classic Rock 's Chris Roberts scored this album 4 out of 5 stars, stating that it "feels like a reset, a detour probing new directions, as befits an album written and produced mostly in collaboration with Simon Dine, who recharged Paul Weller's career". [7] In Glide Magazine , Jim Hynes called this "a bit of both sonic worlds" that mixes the band's classic sound with their hip hop and electronic music trio of studio albums released before this. [8] In Hot Press , Lucy O'Toole wrote that this music finds the group "leaping between genres and ideas as if journeying through a fever dream". [9]
All songs written by Simon Dine and Mike Scott, except where noted.
Bonus edition tracks
All Souls Hill reached tenth place on the Scottish Singles and Albums Charts [10] and was number 94 in its sole week on the UK Albums Chart. [11]
Karl Edmond De Vere Wallinger was a Welsh musician, songwriter and record producer. He was best known for leading the band World Party and for his mid-1980s membership of the Waterboys.
The Waterboys are a rock band formed in 1983 by Scottish musician and songwriter Mike Scott. The band's membership, past and present, has been composed mainly of musicians from Scotland, Ireland, Wales and England. Mike Scott has remained the only constant member throughout the band's career. They have explored a number of different styles, but their music is mainly a mix of folk music with rock and roll. They dissolved in 1993 when Scott departed to pursue a solo career. The group reformed in 2000, and continue to release albums and to tour worldwide. Scott emphasises a continuity between the Waterboys and his solo work, saying that "To me there's no difference between Mike Scott and the Waterboys; they both mean the same thing. They mean myself and whoever are my current travelling musical companions."
The Waterboys is the debut studio album by the Waterboys, released by Ensign Records in July 1983. The album was recorded in several studio sessions between December 1981 and November 1982. Allmusic describes the sound of the album as "part Van Morrison, part U2".
Dream Harder is the sixth studio album by the Waterboys, released by Geffen Records on 24 May 1993. Led by Scottish singer-songwriter-instrumentalist Mike Scott, the album features none of the earlier UK-based band members and instead finds Scott backed by American session musicians. It was the last Waterboys album before Scott spent seven years pursuing a formal solo career, with Bring 'Em All In (1995) and Still Burning (1997). The album reached position 171 on the Billboard Top 200 charts, surpassing the previous Waterboys album Room to Roam, in spite of a less-than-enthusiastic response from critics to the album's sound.
A Pagan Place is the second studio album by the Waterboys, released by Ensign Records on 28 May 1984. It was the first Waterboys record with Karl Wallinger as part of the band and also includes Roddy Lorimer's first trumpet solo for the band on the track "A Pagan Place".
This Is the Sea is the third studio album by the Waterboys, released on 16 September 1985 by Ensign Records. The last of their "Big Music" albums, it is considered by critics to be the finest album of the Waterboys' early rock-oriented sound, described as "epic" and "a defining moment". It peaked at number 37 in the UK Albums Chart. Steve Wickham makes his Waterboys recording debut playing violin on "The Pan Within" and subsequently joined the band. This Is the Sea is the last Waterboys album with contributions from Karl Wallinger, who left the group to form his own band, World Party.
Fisherman's Blues is the fourth studio album by the Waterboys, released by Ensign Records in October 1988. The album marked a change in the band's sound, with them abandoning their earlier grandiose rock sound for a mixture of traditional Irish music, traditional Scottish music, country music, and rock and roll. Critics were divided on its release with some disappointed at the change of direction and others ranking it among the Waterboys' best work. The album was the Waterboys' best selling album, reaching a number 13 placing on the U.K. charts on release, and 76 on the Billboard 200.
A Rock in the Weary Land is the seventh studio album by the Waterboys, released in 2000 by BMG International. It was their first album after a seven-year break, but mostly continues the hard rock vein of the previous album Dream Harder (1993). The album cover photography is by Steve Gullick.
Still Burning is the second solo studio album by Mike Scott, released by Chrysalis in 1997. It followed Scott's 1995 solo debut, Bring 'em All In, and was the last of Scott's solo albums before re-forming The Waterboys in 2000. Photography was provided by Andrew Catlin and Mary Scanlon. Although well-received critically, sales of the album were poor and Scott was subsequently dropped from Chrysalis Records. This led directly to Scott's decision to revive the Waterboys' name in order to achieve wider marketplace exposure. Scott describes the making of and commercial failure of the album in detail in his 2012 autobiography, Adventures of a Waterboy.
"The Big Music" is a song by British band the Waterboys, released on 2 April 1984 as the lead single from their second studio album A Pagan Place. The song was written and produced by Mike Scott.
Book of Lightning is the ninth studio album by the Waterboys, released on 2 April 2007 through W14/Universal Records. The album contains ten tracks, produced by Mike Scott and Philip Tennant, with musical contributions from Steve Wickham (fiddle), Richard Naiff (keyboards), Brady Blade (drums), Mark Smith (bass), Leo Abrahams, Jeremy Stacey (drums) plus long-time Waterboys alumni Roddy Lorimer (trumpet), Chris Bruce and Thighpaulsandra (keyboards). Book of Lightning was recorded in London with the exceptions of one song recorded in Vancouver with members of Canadian art-pop band Great Aunt Ida, and another in Scott's home studio.
"The Whole of the Moon" is a song by Scottish band the Waterboys, released as a single from their album This Is the Sea in October 1985. It is a classic of the band's repertoire and has been consistently played at live shows ever since its release. Written and produced by Mike Scott, the subject of the song has inspired some speculation.
An Appointment with Mr. Yeats is the tenth studio album by the Waterboys, released on 19 September 2011 through W14/Proper Records. The album contains 14 tracks, all of which are based upon the poetry of W. B. Yeats, a long term influence on lead-songwriter Mike Scott.
Where the Action Is is the thirteenth studio album by the Waterboys, released by Cooking Vinyl on 24 May 2019. It reached No. 21 on the UK Albums Chart and No. 3 on the UK Independent Albums Chart.
"A Life of Sundays" is a song by the Scottish-Irish folk rock band The Waterboys, which was released in 1990 as a track on their fifth studio album Room to Roam. It was written by Mike Scott and produced by Barry Beckett and Scott. In the United States, the song reached No. 15 on Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart and remained on the chart for nine weeks.
"World Party" is a song by the Scottish-Irish folk rock band The Waterboys, released in 1988 as a track on their fourth studio album Fisherman's Blues. It was written by Mike Scott, Trevor Hutchinson and Karl Wallinger, and produced by Scott. In the United States, the song reached No. 19 on Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart and remained on the chart for six weeks. It also peaked at No. 48 on Billboard's Album Rock Tracks chart.
"Rare, Precious and Gone" is a song by Scottish singer-songwriter Mike Scott, released as the second single from his second solo album Still Burning. It was written by Mike Scott, and produced by Scott and Niko Bolas. "Rare, Precious and Gone" reached No. 74 on the UK Singles Chart in February 1998.
"December" is a song by British band the Waterboys, released on 14 October 1983 as the second and final single from their debut studio album The Waterboys. The song was written and produced by Mike Scott, with additional production by Rupert Hine. A music video was filmed to promote the single.
Good Luck, Seeker is the fourteenth studio album by the Waterboys, which was released by Cooking Vinyl on 21 August 2020.