Fake It Flowers | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | 16 October 2020 | |||
Studio |
| |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 41:02 | |||
Label | Dirty Hit | |||
Producer |
| |||
Beabadoobee chronology | ||||
| ||||
Singles from Fake It Flowers | ||||
|
Fake It Flowers is the debut studio album by Filipino-English singer and songwriter Beabadoobee. It was released under English independent label Dirty Hit on 16 October 2020. Continuing the departure from her previous lo-fi bedroom pop sound initiated on Space Cadet , Fake It Flowers is a more guitar-driven album which recalls "'90s slacker rock" and alternative rock. Beabadoobee announced the release of the album in mid-July 2020 and supported it with the singles "Care", "Sorry", "Worth It", "How Was Your Day?" and "Together". She embarked on a headlining tour of the United Kingdom and Ireland to support the album in 2021.
In early 2020, Beabadoobee achieved international commercial success for the first time in her career after her 2017 single "Coffee" was sampled in Canadian rapper Powfu's 2019 single "Death Bed". [1] The song peaked in the top 20 charts of over 27 countries, [2] and earned Beabadoobee her first platinum certification in the United States, [3] United Kingdom, [4] Australia, [5] and New Zealand. [6]
Amid the international hype over "Death Bed", Beabadoobee announced Fake It Flowers on 15 July 2020 and released the lead single and album opener "Care". [7] [8] [9] For the Apple Music At Home Sessions, she performed an acoustic version of "Care" as well as a cover version of Daniel Johnston's "Walking the Cow". [10] Beabadoobee announced the release of the album's next single "Sorry" in early August, [11] [12] and released it alongside its music video few days later on 5 August 2020. [13] [14] With this release, Beabadoobee revealed the album's track listing, cover art and official release date. [15] [16] [17] [18] Before releasing the third single, "Worth It", [19] Beabadoobee announced a headlining tour of the United Kingdom and Ireland to support the album in late 2021. [20] [21] On 28 September, she released the single "How Was Your Day?" alongside its music video. [22] [23] Beabadoobee released "Together" as the fifth and final single on 13 October 2020. [24]
Beabadoobee told i-D , "Fake It Flowers is pretty much my whole life in one album." [25] On the album's namesake she said "I recorded my demos on my phone and for some reason they all saved as 'Fake It Flowers', and I was like, 'Oh! That's a cool name!' So I figured I may as well just call the album that! [...] I got kind of obsessed with flowers actually, especially when filming the video for 'Care' and doing the whole creative side with my boyfriend." [25] The record was recorded with Pete Robertson of the Vaccines and Irish studio engineer Joseph Rodgers, [26] both of whom recorded Beabadoobee's last project Space Cadet (2019).
Lyrically, the album contains "intense feeling and emotion", [27] as well in addition to what Will Hodgkinson of The Times described as "catchy songs about the concerns of youth". [28] It explores Beabadoobee's experiences with self-harm, [29] childhood trauma, [30] her romantic relationship with her boyfriend, [31] and using "hair dye as [a method of] empowerment". [32] Beabadoobee occasionally called on labelmate Matty Healy of English rock band the 1975 for lyrical assistance. [33]
Fake It Flowers is primarily performed in the genre of alternative rock (or "alt-rock"), [34] [35] as well as indie rock (or "slacker rock"), [36] and therefore extensively features the electric guitar. [37] [38] [23] Many critics drew comparisons to the "'90s slacker rock" (or "'90s indie rock") which heavily influenced Beabadoobee. [39] [26] [40] [32] [36] The record was also described musically as "bubblegrunge" (a mixture of bubblegum music and grunge). [31] Chris DeVille of Stereogum wrote that Fake It Flowers' "dreamy blend of grunge, shoegaze, Britpop, emo, and other guitar-powered Clinton-era subgenres is consistently entertaining and occasionally transcendent." [26] Lucy Shanker of Consequence of Sound felt that Beabadoobee "channel[ed] the '90s with powerful pop punk songs". [41] Ryley Remedios of Exclaim! noted that the album "aims to blur the genre barrier between '90s garage rock and lo-fi pop". [42] Lizzie Manno of Paste wrote that "most of the songs on Fake It Flowers center on a hi-fi, textured rock sound with anthemic choruses." [43]
Sophie Williams of NME gave the album's lead single "Care" four out of five stars and described it as an "arena-baiting alt-rock stomper from Gen Z guitar hero". [35] Alicia Bugallo of Atwood Magazine noted that in the song, Beabadoobee "adopts a grungier sound, featuring straight drums, guitar riffs and gripping vocals" rather than "the lo-fi bedroom pop" she is known for. Bugallo also wrote that the song sees Beabadoobee "get raw" with her lyricism, "getting honest about what she has been through, and confronting those who have caused her pain, or have failed to listen to her when she needed a shoulder to cry on. It shows [her] vulnerability but, on the other hand, it also illustrates her courage and independence." [44]
The album's second single "Sorry" was described by Jade Boren of Hollywood Life as a "perfect example" of Beabadoobee's "adeptness at combining angst and angelic vocals to create alternative rock bangers", noting that she enters an "even darker territory" than on the lead single "Care" because "instead of romance, this new track focuses on a dying friendship". [45] The album's third single "Worth It" was described by James Rettig of Stereogum as "a chugging and compressed track about not wanting to fall back into bad relationship patterns." [46] Peter Helman of Stereogum described "Together" as "a sticky, melodic rocker that explodes into its satisfyingly crunchy chorus." [47]
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AnyDecentMusic? | 7.6/10 [48] |
Metacritic | 81/100 [49] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [50] |
Clash | 8/10 [51] |
Consequence of Sound | B+ [41] |
DIY | [32] |
Evening Standard | [39] |
Exclaim! | 8/10 [42] |
The Independent | [31] |
The Line of Best Fit | 9/10 [52] |
musicOMH | [53] |
NME | [36] |
Pitchfork | 6.4/10 [54] |
Fake It Flowers received critical acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an average score of 81 based on 18 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". [49] Album of the Year collected 21 reviews and calculated an average of 78 out of 100. [55] Aggregator AnyDecentMusic? gave it 7.6 out of 10, based on their assessment of the critical consensus. [48] A more critical review from Pitchfork rated the album a 6.4 out of 10: "Fake It Flowers is an album of vibes: It uses the slanted melodies and flannel-loving aesthetics of alternative rock in service of pop hooks that are almost impressively simplistic and repetitive." [54]
Thomas Smith of NME rated the record five out of five stars and wrote that the "journey from bedroom pop hero to bonafide rock star is completed in bruising fashion on the Londoner's stunning debut album of anthemic slacker rock." [36] Robin Murray of Clash described Fake it Flowers as "a real pearl of a record" and "an instant classic debut album" which "runs on unmitigated confidence" and is "revealing, enthralling [and] enchanting". [51] Ben Devlin of musicOMH also described the record as "a very well-accomplished debut, featuring a consistent, enjoyable style, a fully-formed persona and catchy tunes which speak to the head and heart." [53] Mikael Woods of Los Angeles Times wrote that the album is "full of fuzzy-catchy '90s-style guitar jams". [37] Marianne Eloise of Louder Sound noted that "with its acoustic guitars and fuzzy production, [Fake It Flowers] has retained the DIY feel of Beabadoobee's earlier tracks," while noting that throughout the record she "experiment[s] with heavier sounds". [56] Because of "its ability to fuse pensive elation, sugary guitar charge, and sweet pop melodies", Jon Dolan of Rolling Stone compared the record to American Thighs (1994) by Veruca Salt and Totally Crushed Out (1995) by That Dog. [57] Ryley Remedios of Exclaim! wrote that the album "aims to blur the genre barrier between '90s garage rock and lo-fi pop, finding her on the cusp of breaking into mainstream radio while remaining a budding rock star in her own right." Remedios noted that the record was "fuelled by her love for Britpop" and that it "carries a deep nostalgia for that era of grunge, chipped vinyl and vintage threads," while writing that its "songs sound like they were recorded while rocking out with her friends in the garage with a no-fucks-given attitude toward music — and it works." [42] Emily Bootle of New Statesman praised Beabadoobee and described her as "an old-fashioned formidable talent" who "proves her talent with complex songwriting that goes deeper than a new millennium aesthetic". Bootle also described the album as "a near-flawless record of Y2K nostalgia" which "perfectly captures both past and future." [58] Charlotte Croft of The Line of Best Fit also described Beabadoobee as "a beacon of nostalgia for '90s kids" and that "the true essence of who [she] is is here to stay, taking us back to simpler times, adorned with mohair knits and baggy jeans." [52] Susan Darlington of Loud and Quiet highlighted her influences of bands such as Pavement and Pixies throughout the record and drew slight resemblance to Giant Drag and Belly in their King era. [59] Heather Phares of AllMusic also drew slight comparisons to the Sundays and the Cranberries on different tracks throughout the record, and concluded that Beabadoobee's "gift for distilling complex emotions into relatable songs is just as vital to [her] music as her rapidly evolving sound, and both shine on Fake It Flowers." [50]
James Ayles of Gigwise described the album as "a very polished effort that only begins to hint at the potential of the young woman wielding the guitar", emphasising that "having come from writing in her bedroom to debut record in swift order, it feels like there is plenty more to come from Beabadoobee." [40] In a slightly more negative review, Zoë Andrea-Lykourgou of Vinyl Chapters opposed this statement, writing that Fake It Flowers "demonstrates a development for Beabadoobee since her 'Coffee' days, but it's clear she still has a long way to go." [60]
Beabadoobee is at her best when serving up exquisite pop songs in rock trappings, matching sweetly sung melodies with a surging, shimmering wall of guitars. The first two songs on the album, "Care" and "Worth It", are both a breathless rush, so dynamic and immaculately produced that they seem to document a real-time transformation from bedroom pop to arena rock. Perhaps an even more impressive achievement is "Sorry", a crashing, symphonically infused power ballad about teenage indiscretions that, in keeping with the weight of adolescent emotions, impacts like a sky full of meteors careening toward the same destination. Beabadoobee's star, on the other hand, is on the rise. It will be interesting to see how high she can soar and whether others will follow in her wake.
Pitchfork listed "Care" as one of the best songs of 2020, [61] while Consequence of Sound ranked the same song at number 15 on their list of the Top 50 Songs of 2020. [62] The New York Times and NME also included the song within the top 20 of both their year-end lists, [63] [64] while Crack Magazine ranked it at number 10 on their list. [65]
Critic/Publication | List | Rank | Ref |
---|---|---|---|
Consequence of Sound | Top 50 Albums of 2020 | 23 | [66] |
PopMatters | Top 10 Indie Rock Albums of 2020 | 10 | [67] |
Rolling Stone | The 50 Best Albums of 2020 | 39 | [68] |
Under the Radar | Top 100 Albums of 2020 | 46 | [69] |
Uproxx | The Best Albums and Songs of 2020 | 47 | [70] |
In the UK, Fake It Flowers debuted at number 8 on the UK Albums Chart, becoming her first entry on the chart. [71]
The album achieved minor commercial success elsewhere, peaking at number 96 in Australia, [72] number 88 in Ireland, [73] number 106 in Japan, [74] number 88 on the Japanese Download Charts, [75] number 3 in Scotland, [76] number 189 in the United States, [77] and number 28 on the Billboard Top Rock Albums chart. [78]
Tour by Beabadoobee | |
Location | Europe |
---|---|
Associated album | Fake It Flowers |
Start date | 7 September 2021 |
End date | 4 October 2021 |
Legs | 1 |
No. of shows | 14 |
In early September 2020, Beabadoobee announced the first leg of her headlining tour of the United Kingdom and Ireland to support Fake It Flowers in 2021. [20] [21]
Date | City | Country | Venue |
---|---|---|---|
Europe | |||
7 September | Manchester | England | The Ritz |
9 September | Leeds | Leeds Beckett University | |
10 September | Nottingham | Rescue Rooms | |
11 September | Birmingham | O2 Institute | |
13 September | Cambridge | Cambridge Junction | |
14 September | Leicester | O2 Academy Leicester | |
23 September | London | O2 Forum Kentish Town | |
24 September | Bristol | SWX | |
25 September | Oxford | O2 Academy Oxford | |
28 September | Dublin | Ireland | The Academy |
29 September | Belfast | Northern Ireland | Oh Yeah |
2 October | Newcastle | England | Newcastle University Students' Union |
3 October | Edinburgh | Scotland | The Liquid Room |
4 October | Glasgow | SWG3 |
All tracks are written by Beabadoobee
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Care" | 3:14 |
2. | "Worth It" | 3:14 |
3. | "Dye It Red" | 3:09 |
4. | "Back to Mars" | 1:30 |
5. | "Charlie Brown" | 2:32 |
6. | "Emo Song" | 3:38 |
7. | "Sorry" | 3:53 |
8. | "Further Away" | 3:07 |
9. | "Horen Sarrison" | 5:35 |
10. | "How Was Your Day?" | 4:20 |
11. | "Together" | 3:20 |
12. | "Yoshimi, Forest, Magdalene" | 3:24 |
Total length: | 41:02 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
13. | "First Date" |
Adapted from the album's liner notes. [80]
Other musicians
Chart (2020) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (ARIA) [72] | 96 |
Irish Albums (IRMA) [73] | 88 |
Japanese Albums (Oricon) [74] | 106 |
Japan Download Albums ( Billboard Japan ) [75] | 88 |
Scottish Albums (OCC) [76] | 3 |
UK Albums (OCC) [81] | 8 |
US Billboard 200 [77] | 189 |
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard) [82] | 2 |
US Independent Albums (Billboard) [83] | 40 |
US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard) [84] | 13 |
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard) [78] | 28 |
The Bends is the second studio album by the English rock band Radiohead, released on 13 March 1995 by Parlophone. It was produced by John Leckie, with extra production by Radiohead, Nigel Godrich and Jim Warren. The Bends combines guitar songs and ballads, with more restrained arrangements and cryptic lyrics than Radiohead's debut album, Pablo Honey (1993).
Pablo Honey is the debut studio album by the English rock band Radiohead, released on 22 February 1993 in the UK by Parlophone and on 20 April 1993 in the US by Capitol Records. It was produced by Sean Slade, Paul Q. Kolderie and Radiohead's co-manager Chris Hufford.
The Killers are an American rock band formed in Las Vegas in 2001 by Brandon Flowers and Dave Keuning. After going through a number of short-term bass players and drummers in their early days, both Mark Stoermer and Ronnie Vannucci Jr. joined the band in 2002. The band's name is derived from a logo on the bass drum of a fictitious band portrayed in the music video for the New Order song "Crystal".
Turn On the Bright Lights is the debut studio album by American rock band Interpol. It was released in the United Kingdom on August 19, 2002, and in the United States the following day, through independent record label Matador Records. The album was recorded in November 2001 at Tarquin Studios in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and was co-produced, mixed and engineered by Peter Katis and Gareth Jones. Its title is taken from a repeated line in the song "NYC".
"The End" is an epic song by the American rock band the Doors. Lead singer Jim Morrison initially wrote the lyrics about his break up with an ex-girlfriend, Mary Werbelow, but it evolved through months of performances at the Whisky a Go Go into a much longer song. The Doors recorded a nearly 12-minute version for their self-titled debut album, which was released on January 4, 1967.
Arctic Monkeys are an English rock band formed in Sheffield in 2002. The group consists of lead singer Alex Turner, drummer Matt Helders, guitarist Jamie Cook and bassist Nick O'Malley. Former bassist Andy Nicholson left the band in 2006 shortly after their debut album, Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not, was released.
"Stacked Actors" is a song by American rock band Foo Fighters which was released as a single in January 2000 from their 1999 third album There Is Nothing Left to Lose. It was only released as a limited edition commercial single in Australia exclusively, however radio promotional singles were released in other countries for radio airplay.
Enter Shikari are a British rock band formed in St Albans in 1999 by bassist Chris Batten, lead vocalist and keyboardist Rou Reynolds, and drummer Rob Rolfe. In 2003, guitarist Rory Clewlow joined the band to complete its current line-up, and it adopted its current name. In 2006, they performed to a growing fanbase at Download Festival as well as a sold-out concert at the London Astoria. Their debut studio album, Take to the Skies, was released in 2007 and reached number 4 in the Official UK Album Chart, and has since been certified gold in the UK. Their second, Common Dreads, was released in 2009 and debuted on the UK Albums Chart at number 16; while their third, A Flash Flood of Colour, was released in 2012 and debuted on the chart at number 4. Both have since been certified silver in the UK. The band spent a considerable amount of time supporting the latter release through the A Flash Flood of Colour World Tour, before beginning work on a fourth studio album, The Mindsweep, which was released in 2015. Their fifth studio album The Spark was released in 2017. Their sixth album Nothing Is True & Everything Is Possible was released in April 2020. Their seventh and latest album, A Kiss for the Whole World, was released on 21 April 2023 which gave them their first-ever No. 1 album.
"Girls & Boys" is a song by English rock band Blur, released in March 1994 by Food Records as the lead single from the group's third studio album, Parklife (1994). The frontman of Blur, Damon Albarn wrote the song's lyrics with bandmembers Graham Coxon, Alex James and Dave Rowntree, while Stephen Street produced it.
"Jesus of Suburbia" is a song by American rock band Green Day. It was released as the fifth and final single from the group's seventh studio album, American Idiot, and the second song on the album. With the song running for 9 minutes and 8 seconds, it is Green Day's second longest song and the group's longest song to be released as a single. The studio version of the song was considered to be unfriendly for radio, so it was cut down to 6½ minutes for the radio edit. The long version was still played on many album rock and alternative rock radio stations. The single has sold 205,000 copies as of July 2010. Despite its commercial success, the song is the only hit single from the American Idiot album not to be included on the band's greatest hits album God's Favorite Band.
"Bankrobber" is a song by English punk rock band the Clash. The song was not released on any of their studio albums, instead appearing on their compilation Black Market Clash. Upon its 1980 release as a single it peaked at number 12 on the UK Singles Chart, and at number 14 on both the Irish Singles Chart and the New Zealand Singles Chart.
The 1975 are an English pop rock band formed in Wilmslow, Cheshire in 2002. The band consists of Matty Healy, Adam Hann, Ross MacDonald (bass), and George Daniel. The name of the band was inspired by a page of scribblings found in Healy's copy of On the Road by Jack Kerouac that was dated "1 June, The 1975".
NME's Cool List was an annual listing of popular musicians compiled by the weekly British music magazine NME. The list was created each November by the magazine's writers and journalists, and was based on the 50 musicians that they considered to be the "coolest". Each year's list was first announced by NME through both a dedicated issue of their magazine and their official website, NME.com – the Cool List issue often attracted high sales. The first list was published on 29 October 2002, to highlight the people who were "at the forefront of the music scene" – Jack White, the lead singer of American rock band The White Stripes, topped the first poll. Since then, it was published a further eight times: it ran every year from 2003 to 2011, with the exception of 2009. Musicians such as Justin Timberlake, Pete Doherty and Laura Marling topped these subsequent listings. The final artist to top NME's Cool List was the American rapper Azealia Banks in 2011.
"Fake Love" is a song recorded in Korean and Japanese by South Korean band BTS. It was written by "Hitman" Bang, RM, and Pdogg, with the latter as producer. The Korean version was released through Big Hit Entertainment on May 18, 2018, as the lead single from the band's third album Love Yourself: Tear (2018). Columbia Records serviced the song to US contemporary hit radio on June 12, 2018, as a single in the country. A remix, titled "Rocking Vibe", was released on June 4, 2018, and appears on the band's third compilation album, Love Yourself: Answer (2018). The Japanese version of the song was released for digital download and streaming on October 16, 2018, by Universal Music Japan as a single album that included the remix and "Airplane Pt. 2", both also in Japanese. "Fake Love" is an emo hip hop, grunge, rap-rock and electropop song which relies on rock instrumentals. The lyrics talk about the love that was once believed to be destiny, but turned out fake at the end.
Beatrice Kristi Ilejay Laus, known professionally as Beabadoobee, is a Filipino-English singer and songwriter. From 2018 to 2021, she released five extended plays under the independent label Dirty Hit: Lice (2018), Patched Up (2018), Loveworm (2019), Space Cadet (2019) and Our Extended Play (2021). Her debut studio album, Fake It Flowers, was released in October 2020 and received critical acclaim. Her second studio album, Beatopia, was released on July 15, 2022.
Abubakar Baker Shariff-Farr, better known as Bakar, is an English singer. Known for his experimental indie rock style, he made his professional solo debut with the mixtape Badkid in May 2018. In 2019, he released "Hell n Back", the single he is most commonly associated with. He released his debut album Nobody's Home on February 25, 2022. He released his second album, Halo, on September 22, 2023.
Nightmare Vacation is the debut studio album by American rapper Rico Nasty, released on December 4, 2020, through Artist Partner Group (APG), Atlantic Records and her own Sugar Trap label. The album features guest appearances from rappers Trippie Redd, Aminé, Gucci Mane and Don Toliver, among others. Frequent producers on the record also include 100 gecs, Take a Daytrip and Avedon, with additional work from producers such as Tay Keith, Buddah Bless and CashMoneyAP.
Space Cadet is the fourth extended play (EP) by Filipino-born English singer-songwriter Beabadoobee. The EP was released on 14 October 2019 by independent record label Dirty Hit, and was supported by the singles "She Plays Bass" and "I Wish I Was Stephen Malkmus". All five tracks were executively produced by English musicians Pete Robertson and Joseph Rodgers. The EP was also written entirely by Beabadoobee and features additional guitar from Matthew Healy on the title track.
Loveworm is the third extended play by Filipino-English singer-songwriter Beabadoobee. The EP, recorded and produced by Pete Robertson and Joseph Rodgers, was released on 26 April 2019 through independent record label Dirty Hit. It marks a departure from the folk-influenced, lo-fi sound of her previous two EPs, Lice (2018) and Patched Up (2018), incorporating a wider variety of instrumentation and exploring a range of genres. The EP was not preceded by any singles, but was released alongside a one night headliner at Oslo in East London.
Beatopia is the second studio album by Filipino-English singer and songwriter Beabadoobee. It was released on English independent label Dirty Hit on 15 July 2022. It features collaborations with singer PinkPantheress, Matty Healy and George Daniel of the 1975, Cavetown, and Jack Steadman of Bombay Bicycle Club.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)