Color Theory (album)

"Crawling in My Skin" redirects here. For the Linkin Park song, see Crawling (song).

Color Theory
Studio album by Soccer Mommy
Released	February 28, 2020 (2020-02-28)
Studio	Alex the Great Recording (Nashville, Tennessee)
Genre	Indie rock dream pop jangle pop indie pop
Length	44:08
Label	Loma Vista
Producer	Gabe Wax
Soccer Mommy chronology
Clean (2018) Color Theory (2020) Soccer Mommy & Friends Singles Series (2020)
Singles from Color Theory
"Lucy" Released: September 19, 2019 "Yellow Is the Color of Her Eyes" Released: November 19, 2019 "Circle the Drain" Released: January 14, 2020 "Bloodstream" Released: February 25, 2020 "Crawling in My Skin" Released: October 30, 2020

Color Theory (stylized in all lowercase) is the second studio album by American indie rock singer-songwriter Soccer Mommy, released on February 28, 2020, by Loma Vista Recordings. ^{[1] [2]}

At the 64th Annual Grammy Awards, the album received a nomination for the Grammy Award for Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package, losing out to the 50th Anniversary Edition of George Harrison's All Things Must Pass . ^[3]

Composition and lyrics

Described by AllMusic as "grunge-lite," and by NME as "an account of personal pain set to warm lo-fi pop," Sophie Allison herself has described the sound on Color Theory as "the music of my childhood distressed." ^{[4] [5]} The album is described as simultaneously "bigger and brighter" and "grimmer". According to Pitchfork, "The songs on Color Theory sometimes feels like a series of 8-point-font text messages projected onto highway billboards." ^[6] The album is divided into three parts, each named after a color. Allison has said the albums distinct sections "represent the problems that I’ve developed as I’ve grown up, and how they’ve changed me". The album's lyrics explore themes such as homesickness, disease, fear of loss and despair. ^{[7] [8] [9]} Allison's vocal performance on the album is characterized by her "plain uninflected voice". Her vocals have been described as "melodic, but not in the least showy." ^[9] The rhythmic style on Color Theory is largely built around "chugging" power chords on the guitar played with downstrokes. Additionally, Allison used floppy disk samples, drum machines, and sound effects on the album, and employed unorthodox instruments such as the Mellotron and Wurlitzer. ^{[6] [10]}

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
AnyDecentMusic?	7.9/10 [11]
Metacritic	81/100 [12]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[13]
Exclaim!	9/10 [14]
The Guardian	[15]
The Independent	[16]
Mojo	[17]
NME	[18]
Pitchfork	7.8/10 [19]
Q	[20]
Rolling Stone	[21]
The Times	[22]

Color Theory was met with critical acclaim from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 81, which indicates "universal acclaim", based on 22 reviews. ^[12]

Jayson Greene of Pitchfork wrote, "the second album from singer-songwriter Sophie Allison is piercing and unpredictable. In contrast to its bigger and brighter sound, the mood is grimmer, the emotional truths darker." ^[23] Michael Hann of The Guardian wrote "Sophie Allison’s second album deals with ill-health and despair, but you would hardly know it from the fantastic arrangements and tunes." ^[24] Hannah Mylrea of NME said the album is "as beautiful as it is brave". ^[25]

AllMusic wrote, "Though the songs here aren't quite as immediately infectious as Clean , its combination of deceptively warm surfaces, alluring melodies, and subtly distorted textures reward repeat listens with that sense of discovery." ^[4] NME gave the album four stars out of five, calling it "deeply moving." ^[5]

Accolades

Accolades for Color Theory

Publication	Accolade	Rank	Ref.
Exclaim!	Exclaim!'s 50 Best Albums of 2020	41	[26]
Gigwise	The Gigwise 51 Best Albums of 2020	16	[27]
The Guardian	The 50 Best Albums of 2020	48	[28]
Paste	Paste's 25 Best Albums of 2020 – Mid-Year	8	[29]
	The 50 Best Albums of 2020	7	[30]
Pitchfork	The 50 Best Albums of 2020	26	[31]
Rolling Stone	The 50 Best Albums of 2020	37	[32]
Spin	Spin's 30 Best Albums of 2020 – Mid-Year	—	[33]
Stereogum	Stereogum's 50 Best Albums of 2020 – Mid-Year	6	[34]
	The 50 Best Albums of 2020	10	[35]
Under the Radar	Under the Radar's Top 100 Albums of 2020	10	[36]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Sophie Allison.

Color Theory track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Bloodstream"	5:37
2.	"Circle the Drain"	4:40
3.	"Royal Screw Up"	4:07
4.	"Night Swimming"	4:16
5.	"Crawling in My Skin"	4:17
6.	"Yellow Is the Color of Her Eyes"	7:15
7.	"Up the Walls"	2:44
8.	"Lucy"	4:56
9.	"Stain"	3:00
10.	"Gray Light"	3:16
Total length:		44:08

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes. ^[37]

Musicians

• Sophie Allison – vocals, songwriting (all tracks); acoustic guitar (1–4, 7, 8), electric guitar (1–6, 8–10), EPS 16 (3, 4), Prophet (5, 6, 10), Mellotron, Wurlitzer (6); keyboard (8), Juno (9)
• Rodrigo Avendaño – piano, SH-101, Prophet (1); SP-404 (2), electric guitar (5, 8), organ (7), keyboard (8)
• Julian Powell – electric guitar (1–8, 10), Wurlitzer (1), twelve-string guitar (2), piano (3, 4), acoustic guitar (5)
• Gabe Wax – SH-101 (1, 2), Prophet (1, 5, 6), EPS 16 (1, 5), Juno (2, 3), SP-404, percussion (2); electric guitar (3, 6), conga, ambience (3); background vocals (3, 6, 10), bass (4, 7), OP-1 (5), Wurlitzer (7, 10), shaker (7), keyboard (8), organ, drum programming (10)
• Graene Goetz – bass (1–3, 5, 6, 8, 10), MicroKORG (2)
• Ryan Elwell – drums (1–3, 5–8)
• Brett Resnick – pedal steel guitar (6, 10)
• Mary Lattimore – harp (6)
• Jackson Foraker – twelve-string guitar (7)

Production and artwork

• Gabe Wax – production, recording
• Boone Wallace – recording assistant
• Lars Stalfors – mixing
• Joe LaPorta – mastering
• Joe Nino-Hernes – vinyl cutting
• Brian Ziff – photography
• Lordess Foudre – package design

Charts

Sales chart performance for Color Theory

Chart (2020)	Peak position
Scottish Albums (OCC) [38]	52
US Billboard 200 [39]	142
US Top Alternative Albums ( Billboard ) [40]	7
US Top Rock Albums ( Billboard ) [41]	22

See also

• List of 2020 albums

References

1. Hussey, Allison (January 14, 2020). "Soccer Mommy Announces New Album color theory, Shares New Song: Listen". Pitchfork . Retrieved February 5, 2020.
2. Shaffer, Claire (February 3, 2020). "Soccer Mommy Faces Down the Darkness". Rolling Stone . Retrieved February 5, 2020.
3. https://www.grammy.com/news/2022-grammys-complete-winners-nominees-nominations-list
4. color theory - Soccer Mommy | Album | AllMusic , retrieved January 18, 2025
5. Mylrea, Hannah (February 27, 2020). "Soccer Mommy – 'Color Theory': a deeply moving account of personal pain set to warm lo-fi pop". NME. Retrieved January 18, 2025.
6. Greene, Jayson. "Soccer Mommy: color theory". Pitchfork. Retrieved January 18, 2025.
7. Mylrea, Hannah (February 27, 2020). "Soccer Mommy – 'Color Theory': a deeply moving account of personal pain set to warm lo-fi pop". NME. Retrieved October 6, 2024.
8. The FADER (March 4, 2020). Soccer Mommy Is Turning Her Blues into Indie Rock Gold: The FADER Interview . Retrieved January 16, 2025– via YouTube.
9. Hann, Michael (February 28, 2020). "Soccer Mommy: Color Theory review – grief and depression given glorious voice". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved January 18, 2025.
10. Cornish, Audie (March 5, 2020). "Soccer Mommy on 'Color Theory': 'I Want to Keep Growing Until I Hit the Ceiling'". NPR.
11. "color theory by Soccer Mommy reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
12. "color theory by Soccer Mommy Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic . Retrieved February 29, 2020.
13. Donelson, Marcy. "color theory – Soccer Mommy". AllMusic . Retrieved February 29, 2020.
14. Bell, Kaelen (February 25, 2020). "Soccer Mommy: color theory". Exclaim! . Retrieved February 29, 2020.
15. Hann, Michael (February 28, 2020). "Soccer Mommy: Color Theory review – grief and depression given glorious voice". The Guardian . Retrieved February 29, 2020.
16. Bray, Elisa; O'Connor, Roisin; Yuill, Bessie (February 27, 2020). "Album reviews: Caribou, Princess Nokia and Soccer Mommy". The Independent . Retrieved February 29, 2020.
17. Aston, Martin (March 2020). "Soccer Mommy: Color Theory". Mojo . No. 316. p. 92.
18. Mylrea, Hannah (February 27, 2020). "Soccer Mommy – 'Color Theory': a deeply moving account of personal pain set to warm lo-fi pop". NME . Retrieved February 29, 2020.
19. Greene, Jayson (February 28, 2020). "Soccer Mommy: color theory". Pitchfork . Retrieved February 29, 2020.
20. Cooper, Leonie (March 2020). "Soccer Mommy: Color Theory". Q . No. 408. p. 122.
21. Martoccio, Angie (March 2, 2020). "Soccer Mommy Channels Sweet, Nineties-Steeped Sadness on 'Color Theory'". Rolling Stone . Retrieved March 6, 2020.
22. Hodgkinson, Will (February 28, 2020). "Soccer Mommy: Color Theory review — American indie star's exercise in self‑loathing is ever so loveable" . The Times . Retrieved February 29, 2020.
23. Greene, Jayson. "Soccer Mommy: color theory". Pitchfork. Retrieved October 17, 2024.
24. Hann, Michael (February 28, 2020). "Soccer Mommy: Color Theory review – grief and depression given glorious voice". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved October 17, 2024.
25. Mylrea, Hannah (February 27, 2020). "Soccer Mommy – 'Color Theory': a deeply moving account of personal pain set to warm lo-fi pop". NME. Retrieved October 17, 2024.
26. "50 Best Albums of 2020". Exclaim!. December 2, 2020. Archived from the original on December 2, 2020. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
27. "51 Best Albums of 2020". Gigwise . December 1, 2020. Archived from the original on December 1, 2020. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
28. "The best albums of 2020 so far". The Guardian . December 4, 2020. Retrieved December 5, 2020.
29. "The Best Albums of 2020 (So Far)". Paste . June 8, 2020. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
30. "The 50 Best Albums of 2020". Paste . November 30, 2020. Retrieved December 5, 2020.
31. "The 50 Best Albums of 2020". Pitchfork . December 8, 2020. Retrieved December 8, 2020.
32. "The 50 Best Albums of 2020". Rolling Stone. December 4, 2020. Archived from the original on December 8, 2020. Retrieved December 4, 2020.
33. Spin Staff (May 21, 2020). "The 30 Best Albums of 2020 (So Far)". Spin . Retrieved June 15, 2020.
34. "Best Albums of 2020 So Far". Stereogum . June 10, 2020. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
35. "The 50 Best Albums Of 2020". Stereogum . December 1, 2020. Retrieved December 3, 2020.
36. "Under the Radar's Top 100 Albums of 2020". Under the Radar . January 15, 2021. Retrieved January 26, 2021.
37. Color Theory (booklet). Soccer Mommy. Loma Vista. 2021. LVR00855
38. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
39. "Debuts on this week's #Billboard200". Billboard on Twitter. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
40. "Alternative Albums Chart". Billboard . Retrieved June 11, 2020.
41. "Top Rock Albums Charts". Billboard . Retrieved June 11, 2020.

External links

• Color Theory at Discogs (list of releases)