Curse Your Branches

Last updated
Curse Your Branches
David Bazan - Curse Your Branches.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedSeptember 1, 2009
Recorded2008–2009, Bazan's home studio, Seattle, Washington, United States
Genre Indie rock, Folk rock
Length36:42
LanguageEnglish
Label Barsuk (bark83)
Producer David Bazan
David Bazan chronology
Fewer Moving Parts
(2006)
Curse Your Branches
(2009)
Live at Electrical Audio
(2010)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
The A.V. Club (B+) [1]
Allmusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [2]
Paste Magazine (8.9/10) [3]
Pop Matters Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [4]
Tiny Mix Tapes Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [5]
Robert Christgau (A-) [6]

Curse Your Branches is the first full-length album by David Bazan, the front-man of the indie rock band Pedro the Lion. It was released on September 1, 2009, on Barsuk Records. It is rated 82/100 by critics on Metacritic, earning it the distinction of "universal acclaim". [7]

Contents

The album was recorded from early 2008 to mid-2009 by David Bazan in his basement studio near Seattle, Washington. Additional recording, mixing, and mastering was done by long-time collaborator and former Pedro the Lion member T. W. Walsh at his studio in Massachusetts. [8]

The album debuted at #1 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart and #116 on the Billboard 200 the week of its release. [9]

The same day as this album was released, Bazan also put out a single covering Bob Dylan's "The Man in Me" backed with Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah".

Track listing

All songs written by David Bazan, except where otherwise noted

  1. "Hard to Be" – 6:23
  2. "Bless This Mess" – 3:57
  3. "Please Baby, Please" – 3:49
  4. "Curse Your Branches" – 3:34
  5. "Harmless Sparks" – 2:30
  6. "When We Fell" – 3:40
  7. "Lost My Shape" – 3:44
  8. "Bearing Witness" – 3:13
  9. "Heavy Breath" – 3:19
  10. "In Stitches" – 4:33
iTunes Store bonus tracks
  1. "The Man in Me" (Bob Dylan) – 2:55

Personnel

Additional musicians
Other personnel

Related Research Articles

<i>Love and Theft</i> (Bob Dylan album) 2001 studio album by Bob Dylan

"Love And Theft" is the 31st studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on September 11, 2001, by Columbia Records. It featured backing by his touring band of the time, with keyboardist Augie Meyers added for the sessions. It peaked at #5 on the Billboard 200, and has been certified Gold by the RIAA. A limited edition release included two bonus tracks on a separate disc recorded in the early 1960s, and two years later, on September 16, 2003, this album was remixed into 5.1 surround sound and became one of fifteen Dylan titles reissued and remastered for SACD playback.

Pedro the Lion Washingtonian indie rock band

Pedro the Lion is an indie rock band from Seattle, Washington. David Bazan formed the band in 1995 and represented its main creative force, backed by a varying rotation of collaborating musicians. In 2006 Pedro the Lion was dissolved as Bazan went solo; Bazan reformed the band and resumed performing under the Pedro the Lion moniker in late 2017. Releasing five full-length albums and five EPs over 11 years, the band is known for its first person narrative lyrics with political and religious themes.

<i>The Wind</i> (Warren Zevon album) 2003 studio album by Warren Zevon

The Wind is the twelfth and final studio album by American singer-songwriter Warren Zevon. The album was released on August 26, 2003, by Artemis Records. Zevon began recording the album shortly after he was diagnosed with inoperable pleural mesothelioma, and it was released just two weeks before his death on September 7, 2003. The album was awarded the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album. "Disorder in the House", performed by Zevon and Bruce Springsteen, won Best Rock Vocal Performance. Songs from the album were nominated for an additional three Grammys.

<i>Beautiful Loser</i> 1975 studio album by Bob Seger

Beautiful Loser is the eighth studio album by American rock artist Bob Seger, released in 1975. This album marked Seger's return to Capitol Records after a four-year split. His previous record with Capitol was Brand New Morning in 1971.

<i>The Fire Inside</i> Album by Bob Seger

The Fire Inside is the fourteenth studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Seger. The album was released in mid 1991 on the record label, Capitol. It was Seger's first album of entirely new music since Like a Rock in 1986. It features contributions from Joe Walsh, Bruce Hornsby, Roy Bittan, Steve Lukather, Don Was, Waddy Wachtel, Rick Vito, Mike Campbell, Patty Smyth, Lisa Germano, and Kenny Aronoff.

<i>Wildflower</i> (Sheryl Crow album) 2005 studio album by Sheryl Crow

Wildflower is the fifth studio album by American singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow, first released September 27, 2005. Although the album debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200, it received mixed reviews and was not as commercially successful as previous albums, having also peaked at #25 on the UK Album Chart.

David Bazan American musician

David Bazan is an American indie rock singer-songwriter from Phoenix, Arizona who now resides in Seattle Washington. Bazan is the lead singer and creative force behind the band Pedro the Lion and was the lead singer of Headphones. In early 2006, he began performing and recording under his own name. In late 2017 he returned to playing under the Pedro the Lion name.

<i>Achilles Heel</i> (album) 2004 studio album by Pedro the Lion

Achilles Heel is the fourth album by indie rock band Pedro the Lion. It was released on May 25, 2004, on Jade Tree Records. The cover artwork was by Jesse LeDoux. It reached #26 on the Top Heatseekers and #24 on the Top Independent Albums charts.

Timothy William "TW" Walsh is an American songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, mixing engineer and mastering engineer.

<i>We Ran</i> 1998 studio album by Linda Ronstadt

We Ran is a 1998 rock album by American singer, songwriter, and producer Linda Ronstadt. The disc featured back-up from Tom Petty's band, The Heartbreakers. It lasted two weeks on the Billboard albums chart, peaking at #160. Despite positive reviews, this release was a commercial failure for Ronstadt with U.S. sales of 57,897 copies according to Nielsen SoundScan.

<i>Sittin on Top of the World</i> (LeAnn Rimes album) 1998 studio album by LeAnn Rimes

Sittin' on Top of the World is the third studio album by American country singer LeAnn Rimes, released in the United States on May 5, 1998, by Curb Records. The album has been certified Platinum. It contains cover versions of "Insensitive" by Jann Arden, "Sittin' on Top of the World" by Amanda Marshall, "Purple Rain" by Prince, and "Rock Me " by Deborah Allen. The album also includes two singles which were released to country radio: "Commitment" and "Nothin' New Under the Moon".

<i>In Living Cover</i> 2009 studio album by Jay Brannan

In Living Cover is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter Jay Brannan, released in the United States on June 23, 2009. The album features seven cover songs and two originals. The album reached number ten on the Billboard Top Heatseekers chart for the week of July 25, 2009. Allmusic critic Andrew Leahey gave the album a mixed rating, stating the album's "highlights spread too thinly to do much good" and PopMatters critic Jer Fairall called the album a "satisfying collection" with "a couple of bum notes".

<i>Christmas in the Heart</i> 2009 studio album by Bob Dylan

Christmas in the Heart is the 34th studio album and first Christmas album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on October 13, 2009 by Columbia Records. The album comprises a collection of hymns, carols and popular Christmas songs. All Dylan's royalties from the sale of this album benefited the charities Feeding America in the USA, Crisis in the UK, and the World Food Programme.

<i>Y Not</i> 2010 studio album by Ringo Starr

Y Not is the 16th studio album by Ringo Starr, released on 12 January 2010 on the UMe and Hip-O Records labels.

<i>Wallpaper for the Soul</i> 2002 studio album by Tahiti 80

Wallpaper for the Soul is the second studio album by French indie pop band Tahiti 80, released on Minty Fresh in 2002. It peaked at number 86 on the CMJ Radio 200 chart. As of 2003, it has sold 130,000 copies worldwide.

<i>The Original Mono Recordings</i> 2010 compilation album by Bob Dylan

The Original Mono Recordings is a box set compilation album of recordings by Bob Dylan, released in October 2010 on Legacy Recordings, catalogue 88697761042. It consists of Dylan's first eight studio albums in mono on nine compact discs, the album Blonde on Blonde being issued on two discs in its original vinyl format. It does not include the singles collection Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits released during the same time span. The set includes a 56-page booklet with photographs, discographical information, and an essay by Greil Marcus. It peaked at No.  152 on the Billboard 200.

<i>Underwater Sunshine (or What We Did on Our Summer Vacation)</i> 2012 album by Counting Crows

Underwater Sunshine is the sixth studio album by American rock band Counting Crows, released on April 10, 2012, on Cooking Vinyl. The album is composed of cover songs, with vocalist Adam Duritz stating, "Sometimes it's great to play someone else's music and try to make it your own. Sometimes it's great just because it's fun."

<i>Occupy This Album</i> 2012 compilation album by Various artists

Occupy This Album: 99 Songs for the 99 Percent is a four-disc compilation box set released in May 2012 through the record label Music for Occupy. The album concept, and initial production was initiated by Executive Producer Jason Samel. Jason Samel later recruited Producers Maegan Hayward, Alex Emanuel and Shirley Menard to assist with the project. The set consists of 99 songs inspired by or related to the Occupy movement. Proceeds from the album went "directly towards the needs of sustaining this growing movement."

<i>Analog Man</i> (album) 2012 studio album by Joe Walsh

Analog Man is the eleventh and latest solo studio album by the American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Joe Walsh, formerly of the James Gang and lead guitarist for the Eagles. The album was released in mid 2012, on the label Fantasy in the United States and the United Kingdom, It is also his first new solo studio album to be released since 1992's Songs for a Dying Planet, 20 years prior. The album features 10 new songs, and was co-produced by Jeff Lynne. The album also features contributions from the former Beatles drummer, Ringo Starr, the former Barnstorm members, Kenny Passarelli and Joe Vitale, former James Gang members, Jim Fox and Dale Peters, and also a duet with Little Richard.

<i>Give More Love</i> 2017 studio album by Ringo Starr

Give More Love is the 19th studio album by English musician Ringo Starr. It was recorded primarily in Starr's home studio in Los Angeles and was released on 15 September 2017 by UMe. The album features Starr's frequent collaborators such as Joe Walsh, Dave Stewart, Gary Nicholson and Bob Malone, members of his All-Starr Band, and guest appearances by Starr's former Beatles bandmate Paul McCartney.

References

  1. The A.V. Club review
  2. Leahey, Andrew. "Review: Curse Your Branches". Allmusic . Retrieved 29 December 2009.
  3. Paste Magazine review
  4. Pop Matters review
  5. Tiny Mix Tapes review
  6. Christgau, Robert (1 March 2010). "Consumer Guide: March 2010". MSN Music. Retrieved 31 August 2016.
  7. "Curse Your Branches Metacritic Page" . Retrieved 11 September 2009.
  8. "Davidbazan.com — Curse Your Branches Mixing & Mastering Notes" . Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  9. "Curse Your Branches' Billboard.com chart profile" . Retrieved 11 September 2009.