IV (BadBadNotGood album)

Last updated
IV
Bbngiv.png
Studio album by
BadBadNotGood
ReleasedJuly 8, 2016
RecordedFall 2015–Spring 2016
Studio
Genre
Length50:33
Label Innovative Leisure
Producer BadBadNotGood
BadBadNotGood chronology
Sour Soul
(2015)		IV
(2016)		Spotify Live EP
(2017)
Singles from IV
  1. "Speaking Gently"
    Released: April 13, 2016
  2. "Time Moves Slow"
    Released: May 17, 2016
  3. "Confessions Pt II"
    Released: June 1, 2016
  4. "Lavender"
    Released: June 15, 2016
  5. "In Your Eyes"
    Released: June 30, 2016

IV is the fourth studio album from Canadian jazz instrumental hip hop band BadBadNotGood. It was released on July 8, 2016. It features collaborations with Future Islands frontman Sam Herring, saxophonist Colin Stetson, Haitian-Canadian musician Kaytranada, American hip hop artist Mick Jenkins, and Canadian singer-songwriter Charlotte Day Wilson.

Contents

It is also the band's first album to feature longtime touring partner and collaborator Leland Whitty as a formal member of the band. [3]

Background and recording

Colin Stetson 05N1467.jpg
Colin Stetson is featured on "Confessions Pt II"
Future Islands, Kosmonaut Festival 2015 13 (cropped).JPG
Sam Herring is featured on "Time Moves Slow"

In an interview with Howl & Echoes, the band described IV's conception and recording process: [4]

Since we recorded and released III , we’ve been writing tons and tons of stuff inspired by all different sources. We were touring heavy after the release so we got exposed to a huge range of really talented artists at different festivals, and had many friends putting us on to great music from the past also. We wrote a whole batch of songs that were instrumentals early on in 2015, and recorded a few of them. After sitting on those for a while we decided to start from scratch, so starting in fall 2015 we began writing and recording the songs that became IV. We had a bunch of sessions booked with the very talented artists that appear on the album, and had some amazing creative times with them. There was no defined direction when we started, and we reached a point when we had so many different styles of song that we didn’t know what the album would even sound like all together! For a while we were still going to make it an all-instrumental album, and then we tossed together a salad of some of the amazing featured tracks, along with some instrumentals and it ended up working out!

With the album's cover art, Katie Hawthorne of The Skinny said: "Every single instrument used is listed with pride on the record's cover, and the [band] stand chests bare, towels around waists, bro-ing out." [2]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.5/10 [5]
Metacritic 77/100 [6]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [7]
Consequence of Sound B [8]
DIY Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [9]
Exclaim! 9/10 [10]
The Irish Times Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [1]
The Observer Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [11]
Pitchfork 7.1/10 [12]
Q Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [13]
Spin 7/10 [14]
Uncut 7/10 [15]

IV received favorable reviews from contemporary music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 77, based on 16 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews". [6]

Mackenzie Herd of Exclaim! praised the album, stating, "Each song possesses rhythmic and melodically intricate properties that sound somehow both rehearsed and spontaneous. So, while IV is extraordinary for delivering fresh music that elaborates on their past work, it feels particularly exceptional because of its forward momentum." [10] Paul Simpson of AllMusic gave the album a favorable review, stating, "It's easy to see why BBNG are the type of jazz group that appeals to people who normally don't care for jazz. They're music lovers, first and foremost, and they're directly in tune with what's happening in the music world. They blend numerous influences and don't conform to any traditions. More than anything, their music is exuberant and immensely enjoyable." [7] Carl Purvis of No Ripcord praised the vocals of Herring and Wilson, concluding that: "BBNG have always been fluent and sonically articulate, but enlisting the talents of suitable vocalists to thicken their smokescreen strengthens their suit." [16]

Jamie Milton of DIY was more critical of the album, stating, "There’s not a great deal tying these songs together, aside from BBNG’s pursuit of the new. Collaborations aren’t here to generate headlines or set pulses racing - each serves its own noble purpose. Taken on their own, each track solidifies the group’s wild imagination, but IV is tough to stomach as the free-flowing, full-bodied juggernaut that it is." [9]

Accolades

PublicationAccoladeYearRank
Rough Trade Albums of the Year2016
74 [17]
BBC 6 Music Albums of the Year2016
1

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."And That, Too."
  • Chester Hansen
  • Matty Tavares
  • Alex Sowinski
  • Leland Whitty
4:35
2."Speaking Gently"
  • Hansen
  • Tavares
  • Sowinski
  • Whitty
4:07
3."Time Moves Slow" (featuring Sam Herring)
  • Hansen
  • Tavares
  • Sowinski
  • Whitty
  • Sam Herring
4:33
4."Confessions Pt II" (featuring Colin Stetson)
  • Hansen
  • Tavares
  • Sowinski
  • Whitty
  • Colin Stetson
6:24
5."Lavender" (featuring Kaytranada)
  • Hansen
  • Tavares
  • Sowinski
  • Whitty
  • Kevin Celestin
3:21
6."Chompy's Paradise"
  • Hansen
  • Tavares
  • Sowinski
  • Whitty
3:56
7."IV"
  • Hansen
  • Tavares
  • Sowinski
  • Whitty
7:03
8."Hyssop of Love" (featuring Mick Jenkins)
  • Hansen
  • Tavares
  • Sowinski
  • Whitty
  • Jayson Jenkins
3:19
9."Structure No. 3"
  • Hansen
  • Tavares
  • Sowinski
  • Whitty
4:13
10."In Your Eyes" (featuring Charlotte Day Wilson)
  • Hansen
  • Tavares
  • Sowinski
  • Whitty
  • Charlotte Day Wilson
4:11
11."Cashmere"
  • Hansen
  • Tavares
  • Sowinski
  • Whitty
4:51
Total length:50:33

Personnel

The album logo that appears on the back of physical copies. Badbadnotgoodivlogo.svg
The album logo that appears on the back of physical copies.

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes. [18]

BadBadNotGood
Additional contributors

Charts

Chart (2016)Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA) [19] 54
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [20] 48
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) [21] 106
New Zealand Heatseekers Albums (RMNZ) [22] 9
UK Albums (OCC) [23] 100
US Billboard 200 [24] 178
US Independent Albums (Billboard) [25] 10
US Top Jazz Albums (Billboard) [26] 1
US Top Contemporary Jazz Albums (Billboard) [27] 1
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard) [28] 3
US Top Tastemaker Albums (Billboard) [29] 9
US Vinyl Albums (Billboard) [30] 20
Canadian Albums (Billboard) [31] 89

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BadBadNotGood</span> Canadian instrumental group

BadBadNotGood is a Canadian instrumental band and production team from Toronto, Canada. The group was founded in 2010 by bassist Chester Hansen, keyboardist Matthew Tavares, and drummer Alexander Sowinski. In 2016, they were joined by frequent collaborator Leland Whitty. Among other projects, the group has released six solo studio albums, with the latest, Mid Spiral, released in July 2024. They have had critical and crossover success, finding audiences in the hip hop, jazz, and alternative music communities.

<i>BBNG2</i> 2012 studio album by BADBADNOTGOOD

BBNG2 is the second studio album from Canadian music group BADBADNOTGOOD. It was made available on April 3, 2012, via the band's website as a free download in various formats. The album is a mixture of original compositions and covers of Earl Sweatshirt, Feist, Tyler, The Creator and Gucci Mane, James Blake, Kanye West, and My Bloody Valentine. It received generally very positive reviews.

<i>BBNG</i> (album) 2011 studio album by BadBadNotGood

BBNG is the debut album from Canadian jazz instrumental hip hop band BadBadNotGood. It was released as a free download in 2011. The album features a mixture of original compositions and covers of songs from the artists Flying Lotus, Gang Starr, J Dilla, Joy Division, Nas and Ol' Dirty Bastard. The cover artwork was designed and made by Connor Olthuis and Sam Zaret.

<i>III</i> (BadBadNotGood album) 2014 studio album by BadBadNotGood

III is the third studio album from Canadian jazz instrumental hip hop band BadBadNotGood. It was released on May 6, 2014. It is the group's first album of completely original material.

<i>Sour Soul</i> (album) 2015 studio album by BadBadNotGood and Ghostface Killah

Sour Soul is a collaborative studio album from Canadian jazz instrumental hip hop band BadBadNotGood and Wu-Tang Clan member Ghostface Killah. It was released worldwide on February 24, 2015.

<i>The Healing Component</i> 2016 studio album by Mick Jenkins

The Healing Component is the debut studio album by American rapper Mick Jenkins. It was released on September 23, 2016, by Cinematic Music Group.

<i>99.9%</i> 2016 studio album by Kaytranada

99.9% is the debut studio album by Canadian electronic music producer Kaytranada, released May 6, 2016, through XL Recordings worldwide and Ultra Records in Canada. The 15-track album features guest contributions from by Anderson .Paak, Vic Mensa, Little Dragon, Syd, Craig David, AlunaGeorge, and BadBadNotGood amongst others. 99.9% was supported by five singles: "Leave Me Alone" featuring Shay Lia, "Drive Me Crazy" featuring Vic Mensa, the Karriem Riggins and River Tiber-assisted instrumental "Bus Ride", "Glowed Up" featuring Anderson .Paak, and "Lite Spots".

"Lavender" is a song released by Canadian jazz instrumental hip hop band BadBadNotGood (BBNG) as part of their 2016 album IV. The song has been adapted into two music videos. The official video was released by BBNG in November 2016. The American rapper Snoop Dogg added lyrics to the song and released the "Nightfall Remix" version in 2017. The music video to this version caused some controversy because of a scene depicting a mock assassination of U.S. President Donald Trump.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lavender (Nightfall Remix)</span> 2017 Snoop Dogg song

"Lavender (Nightfall Remix)" is a 2017 song by American rapper Snoop Dogg. It is a remixed version of the BadBadNotGood (BBNG) song "Lavender" with lyrics added which addressed the issue of police brutality in the United States. It was released with a music video which caused some controversy because of a scene depicting a mock assassination of U.S. President Donald Trump. The song was included in Snoop's 2017 album Neva Left.

"Lust" is a song by American rapper Kendrick Lamar, from his fourth studio album Damn, released on April 14, 2017. The ninth track on the album, the song was written by Lamar, DJ Dahi, Mark Spears a.k.a. Sounwave, and BadBadNotGood, and was produced by DJ Dahi, Sounwave, and BadBadNotGood. The song features uncredited guest vocals from record producer Kaytranada. Although not released as a single, the song charted in multiple countries in 2017.

Tommy Paxton-Beesley, also known as River Tiber, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. He released his debut studio album Indigo in 2016. As a songwriter, Paxton-Beesley has frequently collaborated with producer Frank Dukes and artists including Kaytranada, Daniel Caesar, and BadBadNotGood. He has co-written the charting songs "No Tellin'" by Drake, "Broken Clocks" by SZA, "AstroThunder" by Travis Scott, and "I Keep Calling" by James Blake.

Louis Kevin Celestin is a producer better known as Kaytranada. This production discography lists the recorded performances, writing and production credits as Louis Kevin Celestin, as Kaytranada, or Kaytradamus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BadBadNotGood discography</span>

The discography of BadBadNotGood, the Canadian instrumental jazz and hip-hop group, includes five solo studio albums as well as collaborative projects like 2015's Sour Soul with Ghostface Killah, and numerous singles. Collaborative since their origin, BBNG is well known for working with artists like Daniel Caesar, MF DOOM, Kali Uchis, and Mick Jenkins. Outside of their own output, BBNG are noted producers and songwriters and often work with fellow Canadian producers Frank Dukes and Kaytranada.

The following is the discography of Kaytranada. Active since 2010, Kaytranada first released a series of mixtapes and original music under the name Kaytradamus. He released his first critically acclaimed studio album, 99.9%, in 2016, which he followed up with the Grammy-winner Bubba in 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chester Hansen</span> Canadian musician and songwriter (born 1992)

Chester Anton Mathias Hansen is a Canadian musician and songwriter, best known as bassist of instrumental group BADBADNOTGOOD. As a Grammy Award-winning songwriter, Hansen often works with his bandmates and producer Frank Dukes and is credited for co-writing hit songs by Drake, Kendrick Lamar, Daniel Caesar, and Kali Uchis, among others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexander Sowinski</span> Canadian musician (born 1991)

Alexander William Sowinski is a Canadian musician, producer, and drummer for instrumental group BADBADNOTGOOD. With the band, he has released five studio albums and is noted for his jazz drumming musicianship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew Tavares</span> Canadian musician, songwriter, and music producer

Matthew Adam Tavares, also known as Matty, is a Canadian musician, songwriter, and music producer. He is best known as a founder of the instrumental group BADBADNOTGOOD, with whom he released five studio albums and produced with for other artists. Tavares released his first solo album in 2018 and has since released a series of solo and collaborative genre-spanning albums. As a songwriter, he has helped pen songs for the likes of Post Malone, Rosalía, Camilla Cabello, Kendrick Lamar, and Kali Uchis, and often works with producer Frank Dukes.

The following is the production discography of Canadian instrumental group and production team BadBadNotGood. Formed in 2010, the group has been producing music for other artists since 2012 and are known for their jazz-influenced compositions in hip hop, R&B, and electronic music.

"Time Moves Slow" is a song by Canadian instrumental group BADBADNOTGOOD and American singer Samuel T. Herring, from the former's album IV. The track was released on May 17, 2016, as the second single from the album to critical and commercial acclaim.

<i>Talk Memory</i> 2021 studio album by BadBadNotGood

Talk Memory is the fifth studio album by Canadian instrumental group BadBadNotGood. It was released on October 8, 2021, by XL Recordings and Innovative Leisure, and is the band's first album in five years. A mostly improvisational work, it was produced and written by the trio with contributions from featured American instrumentalists Laraaji, Karriem Riggins, Terrace Martin, and Brandee Younger, and string arrangements from Brazilian composer Arthur Verocai.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Carroll, Jim (July 14, 2016). "Album of the Day: Badbadnotgood's IV – sticky, intricate, meticulous". The Irish Times . Retrieved October 20, 2019.
  2. 1 2 3 Hawthorne, Katie. "BadBadNotGood: IV - Album Review - The Skinny". The Skinny . Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  3. ↑ "Innovative Leisure Bandcamp". BadBadNotGood. Archived from the original on June 8, 2016. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  4. ↑ "Interview: BADBADNOTGOOD, "It's Impossible to Stick to One Sound"". 6 July 2016.
  5. ↑ "IV by BadBadNotGood reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved October 20, 2019.
  6. 1 2 "Reviews for IV by BadBadNotGood". Metacritic . Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  7. 1 2 Simpson, Paul. "IV – BadBadNotGood". AllMusic . Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  8. ↑ Van Nguyen, Dan (July 8, 2016). "BadBadNotGood – IV". Consequence of Sound . Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  9. 1 2 Milton, Jamie (July 8, 2016). "BADBADNOTGOOD – IV". DIY . Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  10. 1 2 Herd, Mackenzie (July 6, 2016). "BADBADNOTGOOD: IV". Exclaim! . Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  11. ↑ Mongredien, Phil (July 10, 2016). "Badbadnotgood: IV review – overflowing with ideas". The Observer . Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  12. ↑ Lozano, Kevin (July 19, 2016). "BADBADNOTGOOD: IV". Pitchfork . Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  13. ↑ Howe, Rupert (August 2016). "BadBadNotGood: IV". Q . No. 362. p. 108.
  14. ↑ Joffe, Justin (July 19, 2016). "Review: BADBADNOTGOOD Refute Their Name Completely on 'IV'". Spin . Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  15. ↑ Pattison, Louis (August 2016). "BadBadNotGood: IV". Uncut . No. 231. p. 71.
  16. ↑ Purvis, Carl (July 2016). "Quick Takes". No Ripcord. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  17. ↑ "Albums of the Year". Rough Trade . November 14, 2016. Archived from the original on November 16, 2016. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  18. 1 2 IV (CD). BadBadNotGood. Innovative Leisure. 2016. IL 2034.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  19. ↑ "CHART WATCH #377". auspOp. July 16, 2016. Archived from the original on August 4, 2016. Retrieved July 16, 2016.
  20. ↑ "Ultratop.be – BadBadNotGood – IV" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved July 15, 2016.
  21. ↑ "Ultratop.be – BadBadNotGood – IV" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved August 6, 2016.
  22. ↑ "NZ Heatseekers Albums Chart". Recorded Music NZ. July 18, 2016. Retrieved July 15, 2016.
  23. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 16, 2016.
  24. ↑ "BadBadNotGood Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved July 19, 2016.
  25. ↑ "BadBadNotGood Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved July 19, 2016.
  26. ↑ "BadBadNotGood Chart History (Top Jazz Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved July 19, 2016.
  27. ↑ "BadBadNotGood Chart History (Top Contemporary Jazz Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
  28. ↑ "BadBadNotGood Chart History (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
  29. ↑ "BadBadNotGood Chart History (Top Tastemaker Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
  30. ↑ "BadBadNotGood Chart History (Vinyl Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
  31. ↑ "BadBadNotGood Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved January 29, 2018.
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.