In the Next Life | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | December 9, 2016 | |||
Recorded | Los Angeles | |||
Genre | Indie folk | |||
Label | Flower Moon Records | |||
Producer | Nik Freitas, Maria Taylor | |||
Maria Taylor chronology | ||||
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Singles from In the Next Life | ||||
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In the Next Life is the sixth studio album by American singer-songwriter Maria Taylor, also a member of Azure Ray. It was released on December 9, 2016, on her label Flower Moon Records. [1] The first single "If Only", features guest vocals by Omaha singer-songwriter Conor Oberst of Bright Eyes. [2]
Stereogum premiered the album's first single "If Only" on October 19, 2016 [3] and Billboard debuted the exclusive premiere of the video shot in Joshua Tree and directed by Liz Bretz. [4] "If Only" was featured during the closing scenes of NBC's fall drama, This Is Us . [5] NPR premiered the full album stream on "First Listen" saying "she's made perhaps her warmest and most affecting album... and filled it with gorgeous, touching songs about family, legacy, fear and the pursuit of contentment." [6] On December 5, "Free Song" was featured as KCRW's "Today's Top Tune." [7] Buzzbands.LA said "In the Next Life's 10 poignant vignettes wrap with the closer "Pretty Scars" (which features Joshua Radin), a musical timeline of Taylor mileposts that's breathtaking in its intimacy.". [1] In their review of the album, Innocent Words said "Taylor has one of the most remarkable singing voices of the last 20 years... One that is more comforting than bombastic, more soulful than aggressive. She is real." [8]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Paste | 7.8 [9] |
AllMusic | [10] |
Immortal Reviews | 85 [11] |
ABC News | [12] |
All tracks are written by Maria Taylor, except where noted
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Home" | ||
2. | "Free Song" | Nik Freitas | |
3. | "If Only" (featuring Conor Oberst) | ||
4. | "There's Only Now" |
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5. | "While the Rest of Me Is Waking Up" | ||
6. | "A Good Life" | ||
7. | "It Will Find Me" | ||
8. | "Just Once" | ||
9. | "Flower Moon" | ||
10. | "Pretty Scars" |
Production
Bright Eyes is an American indie rock band founded by singer-songwriter and guitarist Conor Oberst. It consists of Oberst, multi-instrumentalist and producer Mike Mogis, arranger, composer and trumpet and piano player Nate Walcott, and a rotating line-up of collaborators drawn primarily from Omaha's indie music scene. Between 1998 and 2011, the band's albums were released through Saddle Creek Records, a Nebraska-based label founded by Justin Oberst and Mogis. In January 2020, the band announced their return, having signed with Dead Oceans.
Conor Mullen Oberst is an American singer-songwriter best known for his work in Bright Eyes. He has also played in several other bands, including Desaparecidos, the Faint, Commander Venus, Park Ave., Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band, Monsters of Folk, and Better Oblivion Community Center. Oberst was named the Best Songwriter of 2008 by Rolling Stone magazine.
"Lua" is a single by Bright Eyes released in October 2004. Appearing on the album, I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning, the song deals with two people as they struggle through depression, addiction, and an interminable night. Conor Oberst appears alone on the track, on vocals and acoustic guitar.
Jesse Harris is an American singer-songwriter, producer, and guitarist. He has worked with Norah Jones, Melody Gardot, Madeleine Peyroux, and Lizz Wright.
We Were Here (2006) is the first full-length album by American singer-songwriter Joshua Radin. It reached #34 on the Top Heatseekers Chart. The singer-songwriter released a cover of the song "Only You" as a bonus song.
Maria Diane Taylor is an American singer-songwriter from Birmingham, Alabama. She is also a member of the duo Azure Ray with Orenda Fink. Taylor plays several instruments, including the guitar, drums, and piano and has collaborated or performed with such artists as Bright Eyes, Phoebe Bridgers, Moby, Michael Stipe of R.E.M., Joshua Radin, and more.
Orenda Fink is an American singer, musician, and writer. Perhaps best known as half of the duo Azure Ray, Fink is also a member of Art in Manila, O+S, Closeness, and High Up, and has played with or appeared as a guest on records by Bright Eyes, Conor Oberst, Moby, The Faint, Pete Yorn, and others. She is married to Todd Fink of The Faint.
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Taylor Hollingsworth is a guitarist, singer-songwriter and artist from Birmingham, Alabama. Hollingsworth is also member of Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band and Dead Fingers, and has toured with Conor Oberst, Maria Taylor, The Dexateens, Monsieur Jeffrey Evans and his Southern Ace's and Verbena.
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Outer South is the fifth solo studio album by American musician Conor Oberst and the second to be credited to Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band. It is Oberst's first solo album to include songs written and sung by his bandmates. Nik Freitas, Taylor Hollingsworth and Jason Boesel each contributed two songs apiece, and bassist Macey Taylor sings a song written for him by Oberst. The album was released through Merge Records on May 5, 2009.
I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning is the sixth studio album by American band Bright Eyes, released on January 25, 2005 by Saddle Creek Records.
Upside Down Mountain is the sixth solo studio album by American musician Conor Oberst, released on May 19, 2014, through Nonesuch Records.
Something About Knowing is the fifth album by Maria Taylor, released on October 29, 2013 on Saddle Creek Records. The album finds Taylor returning to working with producer Mike Mogis of Bright Eyes, recording a majority of the record in Omaha and three songs in her hometown of Birmingham. Other collaborations on this record include her brother, multi-instrumentalist Macey Taylor of Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band and Jenny Lewis, mixing by Andy Lemaster, and co-writing and recording two songs with Brad Armstrong of 13 Ghosts.
Louis Schefano is an American singer-songwriter, producer/engineer and multi-instrumentalist originally from Birmingham, Alabama, United States. He has recorded under various monikers including Regia, Louis, and Suspicious Light. Schefano was also a founding member of Remy Zero and Little Red Rocket, and has performed, produced or recorded with Azure Ray, Maria Taylor, Verbena, Cheshires, Bright Eyes, The Ladybug Transistor, and Jaymay.
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