Entertainment, Death

Last updated
Entertainment, Death
Entertainment Death.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedApril 9, 2021
RecordedApril – July 2020
Genre
Length36:41
Label Saddle Creek
Producer
  • Zack Schwartz
  • Corey Wichlin
Spirit of the Beehive chronology
Hypnic Jerks
(2018)
Entertainment, Death
(2021)
Singles from Entertainment, Death
  1. "There's Nothing You Can't Do"
    Released: February 3, 2021 [1]
  2. "The Server is Immersed"
    Released: February 24, 2021 [2]

Entertainment, Death (stylized in all capitals) is the fourth studio album by American experimental rock band, Spirit of the Beehive. The album was released on April 9, 2021 through Saddle Creek Records. Two singles were released ahead of the album: "There's Nothing You Can't Do", and "The Server is Immersed", which were met with critical acclaim. The album itself was met with universal critical acclaim, and appeared in numerous end of the year lists.

Contents

Background and recording

Writing for the album began during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in April 2020, and lasted until July 2020. Recording occurred concurrently during this process, and mastering occurred during the fall of 2020 in anticipation of a Spring 2021 release.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.5/10 [3]
Metacritic 84/100 [4]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [5]
Beats Per Minute 84/100 [6]
Exclaim! 8/10 [7]
Flood7/10 [8]
No Ripcord8/10 [9]
Our Culture Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [10]
Paste 8.2/10 [11]
Pitchfork 8.3/10 [12]
Riot9/10 [13]

Entertainment, Death received critical acclaim by contemporary music critics. On review aggregator, Metacritic, Entertainment, Death has an average critic review of 82 out of 100, indicating "universal acclaim based on 6 Critic Reviews". [4] Harrison Baer, writing for Beats Per Minute wrote that "the band’s shape-shifting compositions create a forward momentum well suited to a journey through different levels of Hell on Earth." Baer gave the album an 84 out of 100. [6] Sophie Kemp, writing for Pitchfork , gave the album a "Best New Music" designation, and an 8.3 out of 10 rating. Kemp summarized the album as "reclusive, cryptic, late-night paranoia music. Their oblique songs can evoke an entire landscape of feeling in very few words". [12]

Paul Simpson, writing for Allmusic, gave Entertainment, Death three-and-a-half stars out of five, describing the album as difficult for casual listeners, but rewarding for patient listeners. Simpson said that on Entertainment, Death, The Spirit of the Beehive "make willfully unorthodox music and seem to dare listeners to keep up with them and make sense of their art, but those who make the effort are rewarded by the band's unbridled creativity and warped yet radiant sense of optimism and excitement". [5]

Upon the end of the calendar year, the album was listed in at least nine major music publication's "Best of 2021" album lists. Two publications, Beats Per Minute and Paste , placed Entertainment, Death in the top 10 of their respective lists. [14] [15]

Accolades

Entertainment, Death on year-end lists
PublicationListRankRef.
Beats Per Minute Top 50 Albums of 2021
7
[14]
Exclaim! Exclaim!'s 50 Best Albums of 2021
21
[16]
Fader The Best Albums of 2021
31
[17]
Gaffa Top 20 Albums of 2021
17
[18]
Our Culture The 50 Best Albums of 2021
12
[19]
Paste The 50 Best Albums of 2021
9
[15]
Pitchfork The 50 Best Albums of 2021
28
[20]
PitchforkThe 31 Best Rock Albums of 2021
[21]
Spin The 30 Best Albums of 2021
22
[22]
Stereogum The 50 Best Albums of 2021
27
[23]

Track listing

All music is composed by Zack Schwartz, Rivka Ravede, and Corey Wichlin. All track titles are stylized in upper case

No.TitleLength
1."Entertainment"2:44
2."There's Nothing You Can't Do"2:59
3."Wrong Circle"2:51
4."Bad Son"2:51
5."Give Up Your Life"2:54
6."Rapid & Complete Recovery"4:01
7."The Server is Immersed"2:49
8."It Might Take Some Time"2:38
9."Wake Up (In Rotation)"2:56
10."I Suck the Devil's Cock"6:40
11."Death"3:18
Total length:36:41

Related Research Articles

<i>Pitchfork</i> (website) American online music magazine

Pitchfork is an American online music magazine founded in 1996 by Ryan Schreiber in Minneapolis. It originally covered alternative and independent music, and expanded to cover genres including pop, hip hop, jazz and metal. Pitchfork is one of the most influential music publications to have emerged in the internet age.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Let It Happen</span> 2015 single by Tame Impala

"Let It Happen" is a song by Tame Impala, the project of Australian rock artist Kevin Parker. It was released as the lead single from his third studio album under the moniker, Currents (2015), on 10 March 2015. The song centers on accepting personal transition, and was worked on in various locations around the world. The song runs at nearly eight minutes long, and its second half contains a section of the song repeating akin to a scratched Compact Disc, and stripped-down lyrics consisting of gibberish. It also has vocoded-like vocals in the second half, which were actually manipulated with a keyboard sampler. Like with the rest of Currents, Parker was the song's sole writer and producer.

<i>Treats</i> (album) 2010 studio album by Sleigh Bells

Treats is the debut studio album by American noise pop duo Sleigh Bells, consisting of vocalist Alexis Krauss and producer/guitarist Derek Miller. It was released on May 24, 2010, by Mom+Pop and N.E.E.T. Recordings. The release was preceded by the April single "Tell 'Em" and featured the group's most popular track, the Funkadelic-sampling "Rill Rill".

<i>An Empty Bliss Beyond This World</i> 2011 studio album by the Caretaker

An Empty Bliss Beyond This World is the ninth studio album by the Caretaker, an ambient music project of English musician Leyland Kirby, released on 1 June 2011 through History Always Favours the Winners.

<i>R.A.P. Music</i> 2012 studio album by Killer Mike

R.A.P. Music is the fifth studio album by American rapper Killer Mike. It was released through Williams Street Records on May 15, 2012. The "R.A.P." in the album's title is a backronym for "Rebellious African People". Production was handled by rapper and producer Jaime "El-P" Meline; the album was the first collaboration between Killer Mike and El-P, who would later form the critically acclaimed duo Run the Jewels. The album's title is a reference to Ye’s record label G.O.O.D Music.

<i>Love You to Death</i> (album) 2016 studio album by Tegan and Sara

Love You to Death is the eighth studio album by Canadian indie pop duo Tegan and Sara, released on June 3, 2016, on Neil Young's label Vapor Records through Warner Bros. Records. Produced by Greg Kurstin, it is the follow-up to the duo's 2013 release Heartthrob, also produced in part by Kurstin. "Boyfriend" was released as the album's lead single on April 8, 2016. The same day, "U-Turn" was also released as a promotional single.

<i>Soft Sounds from Another Planet</i> 2017 studio album by Japanese Breakfast

Soft Sounds from Another Planet is the second studio album by American indie pop band Japanese Breakfast. The album was released by Dead Oceans on July 14, 2017.

<i>Room Inside the World</i> 2018 studio album by Ought

Room Inside the World is the third and final studio album by Canadian art punk band, Ought. The album was released on February 16, 2018, through Merge Records.

<i>It Is What It Is</i> (Thundercat album) 2020 studio album by Thundercat

It Is What It Is is the fourth studio album by American musician Thundercat, released through Brainfeeder on April 3, 2020. It was preceded by five singles: "King of the Hill," which was released as a single from the label's compilation album Brainfeeder X in 2018, and "Black Qualls," "Dragonball Durag," "Fair Chance," and "Innerstellar Love," the latter four being released in 2020. The track "Unrequited Love" had previously been used in an episode of the anime Carole & Tuesday in 2019. The album was executive produced by Thundercat and Flying Lotus, and features guest appearances from Louis Cole, Steve Lacy, Steve Arrington, Childish Gambino, Ty Dolla Sign, Lil B, Kamasi Washington, BadBadNotGood, and Zack Fox.

<i>Heavy Light</i> (U.S. Girls album) 2020 studio album by U.S. Girls

Heavy Light is the seventh studio album by Toronto-based musician and producer Meghan Remy, under her solo project U.S. Girls. It was released March 6, 2020 under 4AD.

<i>Heaven to a Tortured Mind</i> 2020 studio album by Yves Tumor

Heaven to a Tortured Mind is the fourth studio album by American experimental electronic artist Yves Tumor, released April 3, 2020.

<i>Live Forever</i> (Bartees Strange album) 2020 studio album by Bartees Strange

Live Forever is the debut studio album by English-born American musician Bartees Strange. It was released on October 2, 2020, by Memory Music.

<i>Flower of Devotion</i> 2020 studio album by Dehd

Flower of Devotion is the third studio album by American indie rock band Dehd. The album was released on July 21, 2020, through Fire Talk.

<i>Ultrapop</i> 2021 studio album by The Armed

Ultrapop is the fourth studio album from the anonymous post-hardcore collective The Armed, released on April 16, 2021, by Sargent House.

<i>Sinner Get Ready</i> 2021 studio album by Lingua Ignota

Sinner Get Ready is the fourth studio album by American musician Kristin Hayter, and her last under her alias Lingua Ignota. Created in collaboration with producer and engineer Seth Manchester, it is the follow-up to Hayter's 2019 album Caligula. It was released on Sargent House on August 6, 2021, and was met with widespread acclaim from music critics.

<i>Hey What</i> 2021 studio album by Low

Hey What is the thirteenth and final studio album by Minnesota-based duo Low, released on September 10, 2021, through Sub Pop. It is their third recording in a row produced by BJ Burton, building on the distorted sound of the band's previous album Double Negative (2018). Burton and Hey What were nominated in the Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical category at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards. It is their only album as a duo of Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker, all earlier Low albums being recorded as a trio.

<i>Shade</i> (Grouper album) 2021 studio album by Grouper

Shade is the twelfth studio album by American musician Liz Harris under the stage name Grouper. It was released in the United States on October 22, 2021 on Kranky.

<i>Half God</i> 2021 studio album by Wiki

Half God is the third studio album by American rapper Wiki. It is entirely produced by American rapper and record producer Navy Blue. The album was released on October 1, 2021, via Wiki's Wikset Enterprise label. Writing of the album began in November of 2020 with "All I Need."

<i>Pray for Haiti</i> 2021 album by Mach-Hommy

Pray for Haiti is the twenty-second studio album by Haitian-American rapper Mach-Hommy. It was released on May 21, 2021, through Griselda Records and Daupe!. Production was handled by Camoflauge Monk, Conductor Williams, Denny LaFlare, Cee Gee, DJ Green Lantern, Messiah Muzik, Nicholas Craven and Sadhu Gold, with Westside Gunn and Mach-Hommy serving as executive producers. It features guest appearances from Westside Gunn, Keisha Plum, Melanie Charles as well as Tha God Fahim and received universal acclaim from critics.

<i>Diaspora Problems</i> 2022 studio album by Soul Glo

Diaspora Problems is the fourth studio album by American hardcore punk band Soul Glo. The album was released on March 25, 2022, through Epitaph Records, their first release with the label.

References

  1. Hogan, Marc (February 8, 2021). ""There's Nothing You Can't Do" by Spirit of the Beehive Review". Pitchfork. Conde Nast. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  2. Minsker, Evan (February 24, 2021). "Spirit of the Beehive Share New Song "The Server Is Immersed"". Pitchfork. Conde Nast. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  3. "ENTERTAINMENT, DEATH by Spirit of the Beehive reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  4. 1 2 "ENTERTAINMENT, DEATH by Spirit of the Beehive Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic . CBS Interactive . Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  5. 1 2 Simpson, Paul. Review of ENTERTAINMENT, DEATH at AllMusic. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
  6. 1 2 Baer, Harrison (April 12, 2021). "Album Review: Spirit of the Beehive – Entertainment, Death". Beats Per Minute. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  7. Gee, Chris (April 6, 2021). "Spirit of the Beehive's 'ENTERTAINMENT, DEATH' Captures the Beautiful Chaos of the Human Mind". Exclaim! . Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  8. Brooks, Michael (April 20, 2021). "Spirit of the Beehive, "ENTERTAINMENT, DEATH"". Flood Magazine. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  9. Rodriguez, Juan Edgardo (April 12, 2021). "Spirit of the Beehive: Entertainment Death - Music Review". noripcord.com. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  10. Pappis, Konstantinos (April 15, 2021). "Album Review: Spirit of the Beehive, 'ENTERTAINMENT, DEATH'". Our Culture Mag . Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  11. Reyes-Kulkarni, Saby (April 12, 2021). "Spirit of the Beehive Get Even More Abstract on ENTERTAINMENT, DEATH". Paste . Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  12. 1 2 Kemp, Sophie (April 9, 2021). "Spirit of the Beehive: ENTERTAINMENT, DEATH Album Review". Pitchfork. Conde Nast. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
  13. Woodley, Daisy (April 8, 2021). "Album Review: SPIRIT OF THE BEEHIVE // ENTERTAINMENT, DEATH". riotmag.co. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  14. 1 2 Hakimian, Rob; McMullan, Chase; Sentz, Tim; Pickard, Joshua; Wohlmacher, John; Finlayson, Ray; Amen, Josh; Kenny, Mimi; Kohner, Kyle; Johnston, Andy; Early, J.T.; Thomas, Carlo; Reis, Ethan; Fisette, Jeremy J.; Smirnov, Aleksandr; Penna, Grady; Baer, Harrison Suits (December 16, 2021). "BPM's Top 50 Albums of 2021". Beats Per Minute . Retrieved December 18, 2021.
  15. 1 2 "The 50 Best Albums of 2021". Paste . November 29, 2021. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  16. "Exclaim!'s 50 Best Albums of 2021". Exclaim! . December 1, 2021. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  17. "The 50 best albums of 2021". The Fader. December 14, 2021. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
  18. "Årets bästa utländska album 2021". gaffa.se (in Swedish). December 12, 2021. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  19. "The 50 Best Albums of 2021". Our Culture Mag . December 9, 2021. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  20. "The 50 Best Albums of 2021". Pitchfork . Condé Nast. December 7, 2021. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  21. "The 31 Best Rock Albums of 2021". Pitchfork . December 8, 2021. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  22. "The 30 Best Albums of 2021: Our favorite records from another bizarre 12 months — from Tinashe to Turnstile to Tyler, the Creator". SPIN . December 13, 2021. Retrieved December 19, 2021.
  23. "The 50 Best Albums Of 2021". Stereogum . December 6, 2021. Retrieved December 19, 2021.