Benjamin Booker (album)

Last updated
Benjamin Booker
Benjamin booker cover.jpg
Studio album by
Released9 August 2014 (2014-08-09)
RecordedThe Bomb Shelter, Nashville, December 2013
Genre
Length44:20
Label
Producer Andrija Tokic
Benjamin Booker chronology
Benjamin Booker
(2014)
Witness
(2017)
Singles from Benjamin Booker
  1. "Violent Shiver"
    Released: 8 April 2014

Benjamin Booker is the debut studio album by American musician Benjamin Booker. It was released on 9 August 2014 by ATO Records and Rough Trade Records. [1]

Contents

Recording and production

The album was recorded in December 2013 in engineer/producer Andrija Tokic's all-analog Bomb Shelter in East Nashville, Andrija Tokic who has produced recordings for Hurray for the Riff Raff and Alabama Shakes. The Bomb shelter was recommend to Booker as a place to record his album by Alynda Lee Segarra of Hurray for the Riff Raff and by Sam Doores of The Deslondes. [2] Booker chose The Bomb Shelter as the place to record his album, as he wanted to record the album in analog like he stated in an interview: "

I wanted to do the record analog, not digital. So we went to The Bomb Shelter, a studio that is totally analog and where other bands from our label, Alabama Shakes and Hurray For The Riff Raff, recorded their album. I knew the guy there was good… and analog was important to me. If you want to put out an album on vinyl, you might as well do it right." [3]

Booker arrived for the recording of the album with his only band mate, Max Norton, from Tampa, FL. The recording of the album was done using a RCA overhead on Norton’s kit, a Neumann U 87 on kick, and a Shure 57 on snare. Booker’s vocal chain usually included a Neumann U 67 with an Altec tube preamp and a UA 175 compressor, recording was often done with other instruments such as Sennheiser 441, in rotation to the main instruments used. the main guitars used for recording were 60s hollow-body Super Lynx Deluxe Vox, and an ’80s Ibanez Matsumoku Roadster. After recording started Tokic started bring in bass players and keyboardists to "flesh out recordings". [4] The album was mixed on Tokic's MCI JH600 console.

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 81/100 [5]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [6]
American Songwriter Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [7]
Clash 7/10 [8]
DIY 8/10 [9]
The Guardian Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [10]
musicOMH Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [11]
NME 8/10 [12]
The Observer Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [13]
Rolling Stone Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [14]
Uncut 7/10 [15]

Upon its release Benjamin Booker's self-titled album Benjamin Booker received critical acclaim. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 81, based on 15 reviews, which indicates "universal acclaim". [5]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Benjamin Booker.

No.TitleLength
1."Violent Shiver"2:46
2."Always Waiting"2:19
3."Chippewa"3:14
4."Slow Coming"4:31
5."Wicked Waters"3:27
6."Have You Seen My Son?"5:07
7."Spoon Out My Eyeballs"3:03
8."Happy Homes"4:34
9."I Thought I Heard You Screaming"3:04
10."Old Hearts"2:50
11."Kids Never Grow Older"5:35
12."By the Evening"3:50

Personnel

Credits adapted from AllMusic. [16]

Charts

Chart (2014)Peak
position
Belgian Albums Chart (Flanders) [17] 187
Belgian Albums Chart (Wallonia) [18] 59
Dutch Albums Chart [19] 80
US Billboard 200 [20] 46
US Alternative Albums [21] 10
US Rock Albums [22] 15
Tastemaker Albums [23] 10
Independent Albums [24] 7
Top Album Sales [25] 46

References

  1. "STORE - Benjamin Booker" . Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  2. "The Bomb Shelter's Andrija Tokic on Home Recording and Upcoming Projects". Paste . Retrieved 9 October 2015.
  3. "wordfrom Benjamin Booker". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 9 October 2015.
  4. "Benjamin Booker: Explosive Debut for a Newcomer With an Old Soul" . Retrieved 9 October 2015.
  5. 1 2 "Reviews for Benjamin Booker". Metacritic . Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  6. "Benjamin Booker - Benjamin Booker". AllMusic . Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  7. "Benjamin Booker: Benjamin Booker". American Songwriter . Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  8. "Benjamin Booker - Benjamin Booker An electrifying introduction to the future of the blues..." Clash . Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  9. "BENJAMIN BOOKER - BENJAMIN BOOKER". DIY . Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  10. "Benjamin Booker: Benjamin Booker review – fiery blues-rock". The Guardian . Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  11. "Benjamin Booker – Benjamin Booker". musicOMH . Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  12. "NME Reviews - Benjamin Booker - 'Benjamin Booker'". NME . Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  13. "Benjamin Booker review – self-titled pugnacious punk blues". The Guardian . Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  14. "Benjamin Booker Benjamin Booker Album Review". Rolling Stone . Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  15. There's artifice in Booker's make-up but the troubled, strutting loner, serving sizzling sides of electrified psyched-swamp blues, is a role he inhabits with conviction and aplomb. [Sep 2014, p.69]
  16. "Benjamin Booker - Benjamin Booker album credits". AllMusic . Retrieved 9 October 2015.
  17. "BENJAMIN BOOKER - BENJAMIN BOOKER" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  18. "BENJAMIN BOOKER - BENJAMIN BOOKER" (in French). Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved July 13, 2012.
  19. "BENJAMIN BOOKER - BENJAMIN BOOKER" (in Dutch). dutchcharts.nl. Hung Medien. Retrieved June 23, 2012.
  20. "Benjamin Booker Chart History". Billboard . Prometheus Global Media. June 27, 2012. Archived from the original on April 4, 2016. Retrieved June 27, 2012.
  21. "Benjamin Booker Chart History". Billboard . Retrieved 8 October 2015.[ permanent dead link ]
  22. "Benjamin Booker Chart History". Billboard . Retrieved 8 October 2015.[ permanent dead link ]
  23. "Benjamin Booker Chart History". Billboard . Retrieved 8 October 2015.[ permanent dead link ]
  24. "Benjamin Booker Chart History". Billboard . Archived from the original on 3 April 2016. Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  25. "Benjamin Booker Chart History". Billboard . Retrieved 8 October 2015.[ permanent dead link ]