Cusp (album)

Last updated

Cusp
Alela Diane - Cusp.png
Studio album by
Alela Diane
ReleasedFebruary 9, 2018 (2018-02-09)
Studio Flora Recording & Playback [1]
Length38:08
Label AllPoints
Producer Peter M. Murray
Alela Diane chronology
Cold Moon
(2015)		Cusp
(2018)		Looking Glass
(2022)
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 87/100 [2]
Review scores
SourceRating
The 405 8/10 [3]
The Guardian Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [4]
MusicOMH Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [5]
PopMatters 8/10 [6]
Sputnikmusic 3.8/5 [7]

Cusp is the sixth studio album by American singer-songwriter Alela Diane. It was released on February 9, 2018, by AllPoints Recordings. [8]

Contents

Production

The album was recorded at Flora Recording & Playback, alongside producer Peter M. Murray. [1]

Release

The first music video to "Émigré" was released on December 1, 2017. [9]

The second single "Ether and Wood" was released on January 12, 2018. [10] Diane explained the single "is a reflection on the different lives that are lived within a lifetime. The doors along the way that often open and close without notice. I live in a very old house, and love thinking about all the people who lived and died within these walls." [11]

Critical reception

Cusp was met with "universal acclaim" reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, this release received an average score of 87 based on 7 reviews. [2]

Nicholas Glover of The 405 explained how the album revolves around mother and daughterhood that is "brought to life in the music by a straightened, glittering piano backing and gently pulling strings." [3] Writing for The Guardian, Dave Simpson said: "Her thoughtful, dreamy vocals drift across a grand piano, providing both pretty and wistful songs with emotional wallop. The album title comes from [Diane]'s near-death during childbirth, and her subsequent realisation that we are forever "on the cusp" between death and life, heartbreak and euphoria, all of which are in fulsome supply here." [4]

Chart performance

The release appeared on international charts, debuting at number 109 on the Belgian Ultratop Flanders chart, [12] number 88 on the Belgian Ultratop Wallonia chart, [13] number 106 in France, [14] number 173 in Netherlands, [15] and number 84 in Switzerland. [16]

Track listing

Cusp track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Albatross"3:53
2."The Threshold"2:58
3."Moves Us Blind"2:57
4."Émigré"3:11
5."Never Easy"3:43
6."Song for Sandy"3:45
7."Buoyant"3:15
8."Ether & Wood"4:23
9."Yellow Gold"3:20
10."So Tired"3:43
11."Wild Ceaseless Song"3:00

Charts

Chart performance for Cusp
Chart (2018)Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [12] 109
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) [13] 88
French Albums (SNEP) [14] 106
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [15] 173
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [16] 84

References

  1. 1 2 Cummings, Bill (December 2, 2017). "Alela Diane returns with new album". God Is in the TV . Retrieved December 3, 2020.
  2. 1 2 "Metacritic Review". Metacritic . Retrieved December 3, 2020.
  3. 1 2 Glover, Nicholas (February 28, 2018). "Alela Diane considers the warmth and alien insecurity of motherhood on Cusp". The 405 . Archived from the original on February 28, 2018. Retrieved December 4, 2020.
  4. 1 2 Simpson, Dave (February 9, 2018). "Cusp review – the agonies and ecstasies of motherhood". The Guardian . Retrieved December 4, 2020.
  5. ↑ Johnson, Steven (February 9, 2018). "MusicOMH Review". MusicOMH . Retrieved December 4, 2020.
  6. ↑ Pontecorvo, Adriane (February 5, 2018). "On 'Cusp' Alela Diane Has Discovered Inspiration in Her Own Happiness". PopMatters . Retrieved December 4, 2020.
  7. ↑ "Sputnikmusic Review". Sputnikmusic. February 25, 2018. Retrieved December 4, 2020.
  8. ↑ "Alela Diane Celebrates Motherhood on New Album". Folk Radio UK . December 5, 2017. Retrieved December 3, 2020.
  9. ↑ "Alela Diane - Émigré" . Retrieved December 4, 2020– via YouTube.
  10. ↑ "New Video and Single". Folk Radio UK . January 12, 2018. Retrieved December 4, 2020.
  11. ↑ "Alela Diane Releases New Single 'Ether & Wood' & Shares Poignant Video". Circuit Sweet. January 14, 2018. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
  12. 1 2 "Ultratop.be – Alela Diane – Cusp" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved December 3, 2020.
  13. 1 2 "Ultratop.be – Alela Diane – Cusp" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved December 3, 2020.
  14. 1 2 "Lescharts.com – Alela Diane – Cusp". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 3, 2020.
  15. 1 2 "Dutchcharts.nl – Alela Diane – Cusp" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved December 3, 2020.
  16. 1 2 "Swisscharts.com – Alela Diane – Cusp". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 3, 2020.
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