Forfolks

Last updated

Forfolks
Forfolks.jpg
Studio album by
Jeff Parker
ReleasedDecember 10, 2021 (2021-12-10)
Recorded
  • June 28, 2021
  • June 29, 2021 [1]
StudioSholo (Altadena, California) [1]
Length40:19
Label
Producer Scott McNiece
Jeff Parker chronology
Suite for Max Brown
(2020)		Forfolks
(2021)		 Mondays at the Enfield Tennis Academy
(2022)

Forfolks is a solo studio album by American guitarist Jeff Parker. [2] It was released on December 10, 2021, through International Anthem Recording Company and Nonesuch Records. [3] It received universal acclaim from critics. [4]

Contents

Background

Forfolks consists of solo guitar works by Jeff Parker. [5] It features six original songs, as well as his versions of the standard "My Ideal" and Thelonious Monk's "Ugly Beauty". [6] The album was recorded at Parker's home studio in Altadena, California, over two days in June 2021. [5] A music video for "Suffolk" was directed by Cauleen Smith. [7]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 87/100 [4]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [8]
Mojo Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [9]
The Observer Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [10]
Pitchfork 8.2/10 [11]
PopMatters 7/10 [12]
Uncut Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [13]
Under the Radar 8.5/10 [14]

According to the review aggregator Metacritic , Forfolks received "universal acclaim" based on a weighted average score of 87 out of 100 from 7 critic scores. [4]

Mariel Fechik of Under the Radar described the album as "a transfixing solo guitar record that finds Parker turning inward, creating a collection of songs that border on musical meditation." [14] Erin Osmon of Uncut commented that "He situates his intuitive, improvised guitar work among a menagerie of textural loops, working alone and thus fully exposed, his playing a gift of intimacy and warmth in a climate very much in need of such things." [13] Grayson Haver Currin of Pitchfork stated, "The games he plays with rhythm and repetition feel like a frontier, a suggestion of new spaces to explore for solo guitarists indebted to minimalism, drone, and electronics." [11] He added, "Hearing a long-consummate instrumentalist well into his 50s grapple so clearly with the future of his own idiom is plenty inspiring; the quiet confidence with which Parker proclaims there is something else to say with just six strings and a few effects feels like a revelation, for himself and the form." [11]

Accolades

Year-end lists for Forfolks
PublicationListRankRef.
Mojo The 50 Best Albums of 2022
33
Pitchfork The 50 Best Albums of 2022
48
The Quietus Quietus Albums of the Year 2021
69

Track listing

All tracks are written by Jeff Parker, except where noted.

Forfolks track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Off Om" 1:21
2."Four Folks" 5:34
3."My Ideal"
3:10
4."Suffolk" 7:38
5."Flour of Fur" 4:08
6."Ugly Beauty" Thelonious Monk 3:24
7."Excess Success" 10:53
8."La Jetée" 4:11
Total length:40:19

Personnel

Credits adapted from liner notes. [1]

Charts

Chart performance for Forfolks
Chart (2021)Peak
position
UK Album Downloads (OCC) [18] 72

References

  1. 1 2 3 Jeff Parker (2021). Forfolks (CD booklet). International Anthem Recording Company, Nonesuch Records.
  2. ↑ Simpson, Paul. "Jeff Parker". AllMusic . Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  3. ↑ DeVille, Chris (November 30, 2021). "Jeff Parker – "Four Folks"". Stereogum . Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  4. 1 2 3 "Forfolks by Jeff Parker". Metacritic . Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  5. 1 2 Ruiz, Matthew Ismael (November 16, 2021). "Jeff Parker Announces New Album Forfolks, Shares Video for New Song: Listen". Pitchfork . Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  6. ↑ Breihan, Tom (November 16, 2021). "Jeff Parker – "Suffolk"". Stereogum . Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  7. ↑ Sacher, Andrew (November 16, 2021). "Jeff Parker announces new solo album 'Forfolks,' touring with Steve Gunn". BrooklynVegan . Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  8. ↑ Jurek, Thom. "Forfolks - Jeff Parker". AllMusic . Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  9. ↑ Male, Andrew (March 2022). "Mojo Filter". Mojo : 88.
  10. ↑ Empire, Kitty (December 12, 2021). "Jeff Parker: Forfolks review – a meditative gem". The Observer . Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  11. 1 2 3 Currin, Grayson Haver (December 13, 2021). "Jeff Parker: Forfolks". Pitchfork . Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  12. ↑ Nøddeskov, Jesper (January 14, 2022). "Jeff Parker's Music Is a Shared Consciousness on 'Forfolks'". PopMatters . Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  13. 1 2 Osmon, Erin (February 4, 2022). "Jeff Parker – Forfolks". Uncut . Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  14. 1 2 Fechik, Mariel (February 7, 2022). "Jeff Parker: Forfolks (Nonesuch)". Under the Radar . Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  15. ↑ "The 50 Best Albums Of 2022". Mojo . December 22, 2022. Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  16. ↑ "The 50 Best Albums of 2022". Pitchfork . December 6, 2022. Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  17. ↑ "Quietus Albums Of The Year 2021 (In Association With Norman Records) (page 2)". The Quietus . December 6, 2021. Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  18. ↑ "Official Album Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 11, 2025.

Further reading

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