Hungry Ghosts (album)

Last updated

Hungry Ghosts
OK Go - Hungry Ghosts cover art.jpg
Studio album by
OK Go
ReleasedOctober 14, 2014 (2014-10-14)
RecordedSeptember 17, 2012 – May 31, 2013 [1]
Studio Tarbox Road (Cassadaga, New York)
Genre
Length41:57
Label
Producer
OK Go chronology
Upside Out
(2014)		Hungry Ghosts
(2014)
Singles from Hungry Ghosts
  1. "The Writing's on the Wall"
    Released: June 17, 2014
  2. "I Won't Let You Down"
    Released: December 8, 2014
  3. "Upside Down & Inside Out"
    Released: February 11, 2016
  4. "The One Moment"
    Released: November 23, 2016
  5. "Obsession"
    Released: November 23, 2017

Hungry Ghosts is the fourth studio album by American rock band OK Go. It was released on October 14, 2014, under the band's own Paracadute record label and was produced by Dave Fridmann and Tony Hoffer. The band's first studio album since 2010's Of the Blue Colour of the Sky, it is a concept album whose lyrics are mostly about the pros and cons of a relationship. The album has a more electronic and modern approach than their previous studio albums. The album was recorded over three years at Dave Fridmann's Tarbox Road Studios in Cassadaga, New York. The album received generally favorable reviews from music critics and charted at number 74 in the Billboard 200.

Contents

The band has released five official singles from the album with accompanying music videos: "The Writing's on the Wall", "I Won't Let You Down", "Upside Down & Inside Out", "The One Moment", and "Obsession". The music video for "The Writing's on the Wall" was nominated in two categories at the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards, winning Best Visual Effects, but losing to "Turn Down for What" by DJ Snake and Lil Jon for Best Direction. The music video for "I Won't Let You Down" was nominated for, and later won, Best Choreography at the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards.

Production

With the exception of the single "I Won't Let You Down," which was produced by Tony Hoffer in Los Angeles, most of the album was produced by Dave Fridmann at his New York studio Tarbox Road. Production began with the listening sessions, where band members sent in about 40 demos. They also discussed how they would produce differently from their previous records and how they would change their sound. [2] The group had spent two years writing material with no set sound in mind. [2] According to Fridmann, they decided to use a combination of Pro Tools and Reason, so "everything was elastic. Everything was synced up to a Reason track, so we could edit in both worlds, and we set up the studio with five different stations. We had the main A and B studios with my stuff, and three alternate rooms so all five of us had our own workspace." [3] He described the development of the songs in an interview with Mix Online:

"We’d just go from room to room. You’d work on whatever song you wanted for a while, and then you’d get tired or run out of ideas, and then you’d go listen to somebody else's room for a while and make comments on what they were doing. Somebody else would be listening to your stuff and they’d give comments back. We just kept walking around the building in a circle, commenting on each other's work and improving each other's work." [3]

The vocals were mainly recorded using Neumann U 7 and Sennheiser MD 421 mics, with a Neve 8801 occasionally being used if necessary. Several guitar amps were used, including a Selmer and 1950s Fender Princeton amp. The guitars were tracked with a Bock 251 mic. On the drums, an Electro-Voice 868 mic was used for the kick, a Neumann 105 for the snare, and DPA 4006s for the overheads. An E-V RE27 was used to track bass guitar. Fridmann said that "a lot of the interesting sounds on this album originated inside of Reason. We did a lot of programming, and that made it easy to transfer files; no matter what you did in a Thor synthesizer, you could take it to somebody else's Reason station and it sounds the same. Then we could speed it up, slow it down, do whatever we want." [3] Frontman Damian Kulash also used an OP-1 synthesizer manufactured by Teenage Engineering in recording the album. [4]

Composition

Hungry Ghosts features elements of electronic rock, power pop [5] and disco. [5] OK Go frontman Damian Kulash called Hungry Ghosts "pretty stylistically diverse," like their previous three studio albums, yet more electronic, "but not in an EDM kind of way." He said some parts of the album are "very modern", with some tracks "made almost entirely of glitchy electronic sounds", while others are influenced by 1980s acts including Prince, INXS and New Order. [6] Lyrically, the album is mainly about the pros and cons of relationships. [7]

Release

The album's October 14 release date was announced May 6, 2014. A sampler four-track EP titled Upside Out was released for free on June 17, 2014. The album was available for pre-order on the direct-to-fan platform, PledgeMusic. [8]

Singles

"The Writing's on the Wall" was chosen as the album's lead single. The song received positive reviews. Its official accompanying music video premiered at the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art on June 16, 2014, and made its world premiere the next day via Rolling Stone 's website and OK Go's YouTube channel. [9] [10] The video drew over 7 million views on YouTube, [11] which caused the song to debut at the top position of Billboard 's US Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart [12] and in the top ten at number ten of the American Hot Rock Songs chart, marking OK Go's first entry on the chart. [13]

"I Won't Let You Down" was chosen as the second single from the album. The song's accompanying music video was released on October 27, 2014 through YouTube [14] and was later released as an official single on December 8, 2014. The song debuted in the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 71, making it the band's first Hot 100-charting single since "Here It Goes Again", when it charted at No. 38 in 2005. The song fell out of the chart a week after it debuted. [15] The song also charted in the Billboard Hot Rock Songs chart at No. 7. [16]

The last single from the album was "Obsession". The music video for this single was released on YouTube on November 23, 2017. To produce the video, the band collaborated with the paper company Double A, and used 567 printers to create the video's backdrop. [17]

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 74/100 [18]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [19]
Alternative Press Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [20]
Gaffa Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [21]
Paste 7.8/10 [22]
PopMatters Disc Plain yellow dark.svgDisc Plain yellow dark.svgDisc Plain yellow dark.svgDisc Plain yellow dark.svgDisc Plain yellow dark.svgDisc Plain yellow dark.svgPlain Disc 40%25 grey or 20%25 black.svgPlain Disc 40%25 grey or 20%25 black.svgPlain Disc 40%25 grey or 20%25 black.svgPlain Disc 40%25 grey or 20%25 black.svg [23]
Rolling Stone Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [24]
Under the Radar Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [25]

Hungry Ghosts earned positive reviews from critics. As of October 2014, the record holds an aggregated 74 of out 100 on Metacritic based on 6 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". [18]

AllMusic's Gregory Heaney gave it four stars out of five, writing that with this album, "OK Go continue to impress." [19] A writer for the Alternative Press awarded it a similar rating, describing the material as "far more immediate" than their previous studio effort. [20] Scoring it a 7.8 out of ten, Hilary Saunders of Paste opined it "may not be the musical evolution that fans sought after four years, but OK Go's bold pursuits of creativity in all media remain exciting still." [22] Chris Conaton, reviewing for PopMatters, felt the band took "two steps forward" with the album, but also went "one step back", concluding that "having three or four outright clunkers on your album seems like too many." He gave it a six out of ten. [23]

Track listing

Produced by Dave Fridmann besides track 8, produced by Tony Hoffer. All songs written by OK Go.

No.TitleLength
1."Upside Down & Inside Out"3:08
2."The Writing's on the Wall"3:33
3."Another Set of Issues"3:58
4."Turn Up the Radio"2:56
5."Obsession"3:08
6."I'm Not Through"3:36
7."Bright as Your Eyes"2:55
8."I Won't Let You Down"3:43
9."The One Moment"3:43
10."If I Had a Mountain"3:19
11."The Great Fire"4:17
12."Lullaby"3:42
Total length:41:57

Personnel

OK Go

Production

Charts

Chart (2014)Peak
position
Japanese Albums (Oricon) [26] 245
US Billboard 200 [27] 74
US Independent Albums (Billboard) [28] 13
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard) [29] 19

Uses in Media

"Turn up the Radio" was used in Season 4, Episode 11 ("eXit"), of Mr. Robot .

Related Research Articles

<i>Ghost in the Machine</i> (album) 1981 studio album by the Police

Ghost in the Machine is the fourth studio album by English rock band the Police. The album was released on 2 October 1981 by A&M Records. The songs were recorded between January and September 1981 during sessions that took place at AIR Studios in Montserrat and Le Studio in Quebec, assisted by record producer Hugh Padgham.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OK Go</span> American rock band

OK Go is an American rock band originally from Chicago, Illinois, now based in Los Angeles, California. The band is composed of Damian Kulash, Tim Nordwind, Dan Konopka, and Andy Ross, who joined them in 2005, replacing original guitarist Andy Duncan. The band is known for its quirky and elaborate music videos which are often filmed in one take.

<i>OK Go</i> (album) 2002 studio album by OK Go

OK Go is the debut studio album by American rock band OK Go. It was released in September 2002. The cover was created by designer Stefan Sagmeister.

<i>Oh No</i> (OK Go album) 2005 studio album by OK Go

Oh No is the second studio album by American rock band OK Go. It was released 30 August 2005. The album was recorded in late 2004 with producer Tore Johansson in Malmö, Sweden and mixed by Dave Sardy in Los Angeles. It is the final album to feature guitarist Andy Duncan, who left shortly after recording finished.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Damian Kulash</span> Musical artist

Damian Joseph Kulash Jr. is an American musician, singer, songwriter and music video director, best known for being the lead singer and guitarist of the American rock band OK Go.

<i>Deserters Songs</i> 1998 studio album by Mercury Rev

Deserter's Songs is the fourth studio album by American rock band Mercury Rev, released in late September 1998. British music magazine NME named Deserter's Songs album of the year for 1998. Limited edition copies of the album came in a brown cardboard envelope-like package, with a stamp on the cover postmarked with the release date, as well as two art postcards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Here It Goes Again</span> 2006 single by OK Go

"Here It Goes Again" is a song by American rock band OK Go, the fifth single released from their second studio album, Oh No (2005). It was the band's only single to chart on the US Billboard Hot 100 until "I Won't Let You Down" in November 2014 and peaked at number 36 on the UK Singles Chart, giving the band their second UK top-40 hit. The music video, featuring the band dancing on treadmills, became a staple on YouTube, at one time being one of their most-watched videos, with over 61 million views.

<i>Of the Blue Colour of the Sky</i> 2010 studio album by OK Go

Of the Blue Colour of the Sky is the third studio album by American rock band OK Go. It was released on January 12, 2010, on Capitol Records in the US and EMI in the UK, and re-released on the band's independent label Paracadute Records on April 1. The album was produced by Dave Fridmann and was recorded in a span of seven months at Fridmann's Tarbox Road Studios in Cassadaga, New York. The compilation's name, lyrics, and concept are based on The Influence of the Blue Ray of the Sunlight and of the Blue Colour of the Sky, a pseudoscientific book published in 1876. Its style was noted as a significant departure from the power pop of their earlier albums. After the band's split with EMI and Capitol, Paracadute took over the promotional campaign and all distribution responsibilities. The compilation received generally positive reviews from music critics upon release and debuted at number 40 on Billboard 200 chart, making it their highest-charting album in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WTF? (song)</span> 2009 single by OK Go

"WTF?" is an alternative rock song by OK Go from their third studio album Of the Blue Colour of the Sky (2010). It was written by Damian Kulash, produced by Dave Fridmann and released as the album's first single. The song is in 5
4 time, and the band has revealed that the song was inspired by Prince.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">This Too Shall Pass (OK Go song)</span> 2010 single by OK Go

"This Too Shall Pass" is a song by American rock band OK Go. It was released as the second single from their third studio album, Of the Blue Colour of the Sky, in January 2010. The band took the unorthodox route of creating two official music videos for the song, both of which premiered on YouTube. The first features a live performance of the song in collaboration with the University of Notre Dame Marching Band. The second features a giant Rube Goldberg machine, constructed to operate in time with the song. The popularity of the second music video of the song has been compared to that of the band's video for "Here It Goes Again", helping to boost live performances and single song sales for the group but not significantly improving sales of the Colour album. Difficulties with EMI, their corporate label, in marketing and distribution of the videos led the band to form their own independent label shortly after the videos' releases.

<i>MGMT</i> (album) 2013 studio album by MGMT

MGMT is the third studio album by American rock band MGMT. It was released on September 17, 2013 by Columbia Records, however the band started streaming the album on September 9, 2013.

Incorruptible Heart is the second full-length album by the Los Angeles-based band Lavender Diamond, released in September 2012 as a vinyl LP, compact disc and digital download. It received generally favorable critical reviews.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Writing's on the Wall (OK Go song)</span> 2014 single by OK Go

"The Writing's on the Wall" is a song by American rock band OK Go. It was released on June 17, 2014, as part of the band's EP Upside Out, and is also the first single from the band's fourth studio album Hungry Ghosts. On the same day, the band released a music video in which the members use props to create optical illusions, reflecting the song's description of a relationship that fails because the couple has different points of view. Like previous OK Go videos, it is structured as a one-shot music video. The many YouTube views of the video caused the song to debut in the top ten of the US Billboard Hot Rock Songs chart, as well as number one on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Won't Let You Down (OK Go song)</span> 2014 single by OK Go

"I Won't Let You Down" is a song by American rock band OK Go that was released as a single in December 8, 2014, and is part of their album Hungry Ghosts. The accompanying video, released on October 27, 2014, is a one-shot take recorded in double time showing the band members and several hundred dancers on personal transportation devices performing intricate choreographed routines while filmed by a camera on a multirotor aerial drone.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The One Moment</span> 2016 single by OK Go

"The One Moment" is a song by American rock band OK Go. It was released as the fourth single from their fourth studio album, Hungry Ghosts (2014). The band released a video associated with the song, its production sponsored by Morton Salt to highlight their "Walk Her Walk" campaign. The one-shot video primarily consists of 4.2 seconds of real-time footage recording over 300 distinct events set in motion by the band members and timed devices, slowed down to be played over the length of the song.

<i>Little Dark Age</i> 2018 studio album by MGMT

Little Dark Age is the fourth studio album by the American rock band MGMT, released on February 9, 2018, through Columbia Records. It is the band's first album of new material in nearly five years, after the release of their eponymous third studio album in September 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Little Dark Age (song)</span> 2017 song by MGMT

"Little Dark Age" is a song by American rock band MGMT. It was released as the lead single from their fourth studio album, Little Dark Age, on October 17, 2017, through Columbia Records. In an interview with Newsweek, Andrew VanWyngarden, the lead vocalist, guitar player and songwriter for the band stated that 1980s Soviet synth-pop was influential to the song.

<i>Marauder</i> (Interpol album) 2018 studio album by Interpol

Marauder is the sixth studio album by American rock band Interpol. It was released on August 24, 2018, by Matador Records. The album was produced by Dave Fridmann and recorded at his studio, Tarbox Road, in Cassadaga, New York from December 6, 2017 through April 18, 2018.

<i>As the Love Continues</i> 2021 studio album by Mogwai

As the Love Continues is the tenth studio album by Scottish post-rock band Mogwai, released on 19 February 2021 on Rock Action Records in the UK and Europe, and on Temporary Residence Limited in the US. Its UK release date marked the 25th anniversary of Mogwai's first single, "Tuner/Lower". It was preceded by the single "Dry Fantasy", and the streaming of a live concert of the album played in full.

<i>Lucifer on the Sofa</i> 2022 studio album by Spoon

Lucifer on the Sofa is the tenth studio album by American rock band Spoon, released on February 11, 2022, through Matador Records. Spoon began work on the album in late 2018 after the conclusion of their tour supporting Hot Thoughts (2017), their ninth studio album. Recording sessions began in late 2019 and took place in studios between Austin, Texas, and Los Angeles, California. They primarily recorded the album with Mark Rankin, with Justin Raisen and Dave Fridmann, the latter of whom co-produced the band's previous two albums, each producing one song. Recording sessions continued until March 2020 but had to be postponed after the COVID-19 pandemic began severely impacting the United States. After completing the album in 2021, the band released the album's lead single, "The Hardest Cut", in October of that year.

References

  1. ↑ Fridmann, Dave. "Tarbox News/Notes". davefridmann.com. Retrieved May 15, 2020.
  2. 1 2 Wiederhorn, John (August 5, 2014). "OK Go Prove When It Comes to Music Videos, 'The Writing's On the Wall'". Yahoo! Music . Retrieved August 6, 2014.
  3. 1 2 3 Schultz, Barbara (July 1, 2014). "OK Go's Electronic Art: EP Previews the Elegant Pop Noise of 'Hungry Ghosts'". Mix Online. Archived from the original on August 8, 2014. Retrieved November 30, 2014.
  4. ↑ Kulash, Damian; Carnick, Anna (August 26, 2013). "Dream Machine". L'ArcoBaleno. Archived from the original on March 23, 2015. Retrieved January 30, 2015.
  5. 1 2 "OK Go listen to 'Hungry Ghosts' // The Observer". The Observer. October 16, 2014. Archived from the original on July 25, 2015. Retrieved April 4, 2016.
  6. ↑ Beronilla, Pola (interview). Cabiles, Janroe (story). (July 11, 2014). "OK Go: From Your Screen To Your Stereo". Status Magazine. Archived from the original on August 8, 2016. Retrieved August 6, 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  7. ↑ Olivia Kumamoto, Akira (July 14, 2014). "OK Go's Tim Nordwind talks optical illusions, new album, upcoming tour". The California Aggie . University of California, Davis. Archived from the original on September 16, 2016. Retrieved August 6, 2014.
  8. ↑ "OK GO: New Album Pre-Order". PledgeMusic. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved June 3, 2014.
  9. ↑ Murray, Nick (June 17, 2014). "Watch OK Go's Eye-Boggling 'Writing's on the Wall' Video – Premiere". Rolling Stone . Retrieved June 17, 2014.
  10. ↑ Murray, Nick (June 12, 2014). "OK Go Offer Exclusive Peek Behind Next Elaborately Choreographed Video". Rolling Stone . Retrieved June 17, 2014.
  11. ↑ Bolien, Bob (June 24, 2014). "The Making Of OK Go's 'The Writing's on the Wall' Video". NPR . Retrieved June 24, 2014.
  12. ↑ "Bubbling Under Hot 100". Billboard . January 2, 2013. Retrieved August 6, 2014.
  13. ↑ White, Emily (June 26, 2014). "Linkin Park Gets 'Party' Started at No. 1 On Top Rock Albums". Billboard. Retrieved August 6, 2014.
  14. ↑ OK Go – I Won't Let You Down – Official Video. October 27, 2014. Retrieved April 4, 2016– via YouTube.
  15. ↑ "OK Go". Billboard . Retrieved April 4, 2016.
  16. ↑ "OK Go". Billboard . Retrieved April 4, 2016.
  17. ↑ Moran, Lee (November 25, 2017). "OK Go Makes Serious Paper With Hypnotizing New Music Video". HuffPost. Retrieved November 26, 2017.
  18. 1 2 "Hungry Ghosts – OK Go". Metacritic . Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  19. 1 2 Heaney, Gregory. "OK Go – Hungry Ghosts". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation . Retrieved October 14, 2014.
  20. 1 2 Alternative Press . November 2014, p, 92.
  21. ↑ Petersen, Kristian (February 16, 2015). "OK Go: Hungry Ghosts". Gaffa . Archived from the original on April 5, 2015. Retrieved February 18, 2015.
  22. 1 2 Saunders, Hilary (October 14, 2014). "OK Go: Hungry Ghosts Review". Paste . Wolfgang's Vault . Retrieved October 14, 2014.
  23. 1 2 Conaton, Chris (October 13, 2014). "OK Go: Hungry Ghosts". PopMatters . Retrieved October 14, 2014.
  24. ↑ Dolan, Jon (October 22, 2014). "OK Go's New Album: Hungry Ghosts". Rolling Stone . Retrieved October 22, 2014.
  25. ↑ Dransfield, Scott (January 7, 2015). "OK Go: Hungry Ghosts (Paracadute)". Under the Radar . Retrieved January 18, 2015.
  26. ↑ ハングリー・ゴースト (in Japanese). Oricon . Retrieved October 28, 2014.
  27. ↑ "OK Go Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved October 28, 2014.
  28. ↑ "OK Go Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved October 28, 2014.
  29. ↑ "OK Go Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved October 28, 2014.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.