Here and Somewhere Else | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 1998 | |||
Genre | Pop | |||
Label | What Are Records? | |||
Producer | The Samples | |||
The Samples chronology | ||||
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Here and Somewhere Else is an album by the American band the Samples, released in 1998. [1] [2] It marked a return to What Are Records?, following 1996's MCA Records-released Outpost . [3] The band supported the album with a North American tour that included shows with Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers. [4] [5] Several of the album's songs were marketed to adult album alternative radio stations. [6]
Produced by the band, the album was released as an enhanced CD, with footage of the recording sessions. [7] [8] The band added three new members prior to the sessions: drummer Kenny James, keyboardist Alex Matson, and guitarist Rob Somers. [9] The Samples strove for a poppier sound, with shorter songs and lyrics pushed to the front, and spent two years working on the album. [9] [10] The majority of the songs were written by frontman Sean Kelly, who thought they were the most radio-friendly of the band's career; he also thought that the band's style would change as they became more accomplished musicians. [11] [12] The ska-influenced "We All Move On" employs a horn section. [13]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Portland Press Herald deemed the album "vintage Samples: bright melodies sitting atop buoyant pop arrangements, inflected here and there with reggae." [15] The Wisconsin State Journal considered it "reminiscent of their 1992 pop-flavored No Room ." [16] The Denver Post called Here and Somewhere Else "an exquisite pop-oriented album packed with radio-ready songs, featuring the most consistent tunesmanship of any Samples disc to date," writing that "behind the tunes are smart, elaborate arrangements and fine production craftsmanship." [13]
The Richmond Times-Dispatch opined that the three best songs were "We All Move On", "Losing End of Distance", and "Little People". [17] The Herald-Times labeled Here and Somewhere Else "a relentlessly upbeat pop album, full of positive lyrics and grooving music." [18] The Tennessean noted that "soft, adult-contemporary vibes mixed with a bit ... of Gen-X angst 'n' jangle." [19]
AllMusic wrote: "One of America's most talented (and mostly unknown) bands of the '90s, the Samples made a giant leap on this release." [14]
No. | Title | Length |
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1. | "We All Move On" | |
2. | "Anymore" | |
3. | "Hypocrite (Another World)" | |
4. | "Here and Somewhere Else" | |
5. | "Losing End of Distance" | |
6. | "Pioneer Square 2012" | |
7. | "Sea of Broken Hearts" | |
8. | "The Birds of Paradise" | |
9. | "Little People" | |
10. | "Going Through Changes" | |
11. | "Any Other Day" | |
12. | "St. Mary's Bell" |