Continuous Portrait

Last updated

Continuous Portrait
Continuous Portrait.jpg
Studio album by
Inventions
ReleasedMay 29, 2020 (2020-05-29)
Length37:25
Label Temporary Residence
Inventions chronology
Blanket Waves
(2015)		Continuous Portrait
(2020)

Continuous Portrait is the third studio album by Inventions, a collaborative project between Matthew Cooper and Mark T. Smith. It was released on May 29, 2020, under Temporary Residence Limited. [1] It received generally favorable reviews from critics. [2]

Contents

Background

Inventions consists of Matthew Cooper, also known as Eluvium, and Mark T. Smith of Explosions in the Sky. [3] Continuous Portrait is the duo's third studio album, following Inventions (2014) and Maze of Woods (2015). [3] It is the duo's first release of music since the Blanket Waves EP (2015). [3]

Continuous Portrait was released digitally on May 29, 2020, [4] under Temporary Residence Limited. [1] The CD edition and the vinyl edition were released on July 10, 2020, [5] under the same label. [1]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 80/100 [2]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [6]
Beats Per Minute 80% [7]
Paste 8.5/10 [8]
PopMatters Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [9]
PopMattersStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [10]

According to the review aggregator Metacritic , Continuous Portrait received "generally favorable reviews" based on a weighted average score of 80 out of 100 from 5 critic scores. [2]

Paul Simpson of AllMusic stated, "There's a charming looseness to the album; while never abrasive, the samples sometimes clash with each other a bit, and it all has the feeling of a cut-and-paste collage, sounding far less refined than Eluvium or Explosions' dramatic, labored-over epics." [6] He described the album as "a poignant, playful collection of future memories." [6] Todd Dedman of Beats Per Minute commented that "The album flits between folk-tronica, neo-classical and ambient textures across its nine tracks, and feels like an enriching journey by the record's end." [7] Andrew Sacher of BrooklynVegan stated, "Continuous Portrait acts like ambient music, but there's a real energy to it." [11] He added, "It doesn't just fall into the background, it hooks you and keeps you in suspense, waiting to hear what unexpected turn this duo will take next." [11]

On June 30, 2020, PopMatters included Continuous Portrait on its list of "The 50 Best Albums of 2020 So Far". [12]

Track listing

Continuous Portrait track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Hints and Omens"5:37
2."Calico"3:57
3."Continuous Portrait"2:54
4."Outlook for the Future"3:30
5."Close to People"3:15
6."Spirit Refinement Exploder"5:14
7."The Warmer the Welcome"3:57
8."A Time in My Life"4:11
9."Saw You in a Movie"4:06
Total length:37:25

Notes

Personnel

Credits adapted from liner notes. [13]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Bloom, Madison (March 30, 2020). "Inventions Announce New Album, Share New Song: Listen". Pitchfork . Archived from the original on September 19, 2020. Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 "Continuous Portrait by Inventions". Metacritic . Archived from the original on February 27, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 Thomas, Fred. "Inventions". AllMusic . Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  4. ↑ "Continuous Portrait | Inventions". Bandcamp . Archived from the original on November 3, 2020. Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  5. ↑ "Inventions – Continuous Portrait". Temporary Residence Limited . Archived from the original on April 8, 2020. Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  6. 1 2 3 Simpson, Paul. "Continuous Portrait - Inventions". AllMusic . Retrieved July 2, 2020.
  7. 1 2 Dedman, Todd (June 3, 2020). "Album Review: Inventions – Continuous Portrait". Beats Per Minute . Archived from the original on October 27, 2020. Retrieved July 2, 2020.
  8. ↑ Schonfeld, Zach (June 3, 2020). "Inventions' Continuous Portrait Is One of the Best Experimental Albums of 2020 So Far". Paste . Archived from the original on July 19, 2020. Retrieved July 2, 2020.
  9. ↑ Ingalls, Chris (May 29, 2020). "Inventions Conjure Mystery and Hope with the Intensely Creative 'Continuous Portrait'". PopMatters . Archived from the original on October 30, 2020. Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  10. ↑ Vellucci, Justin (June 4, 2020). "Inventions' 'Continuous Portrait' Blurs the Grandiose and the Intimate". PopMatters . Archived from the original on October 30, 2020. Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  11. 1 2 Sacher, Andrew (May 29, 2020). "Notable Releases of the Week (5/29)". BrooklynVegan . Archived from the original on October 16, 2020. Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  12. ↑ "The 50 Best Albums of 2020 So Far". PopMatters . June 30, 2020. Archived from the original on November 20, 2020. Retrieved September 4, 2025.
  13. 1 2 3 4 Inventions (2020). Continuous Portrait (CD booklet). Temporary Residence Limited.
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