Life Is Sweet! Nice to Meet You

Last updated

Life is Sweet! Nice to Meet You
Life is Sweet Nice to Meet You.png
Studio album by
Released15 February 2010 (2010-02-15)
Recorded2008–2009
Mission Sound, Brooklyn, New York
Genre Indie rock, folk
Length49:50
Label Domino
Producer Ben Allen, Devonté Hynes
Lightspeed Champion chronology
House-Sitting Songs
(2009)
Life is Sweet! Nice to Meet You
(2010)
Singles from Life is Sweet! Nice to Meet You
  1. "Marlene"
    Released: 25 January 2010
  2. "Madame Van Damme"
    Released: 10 May 2010
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 72/100 [1]
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [2]
Drowned in Sound Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [3]
Rock Sound Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [4]
Pitchfork Media (6.7/10) [5]
Clash (8/10) [6]
Soundblab (7/10) [7]

Life is Sweet! Nice to Meet You is the second album by British artist Lightspeed Champion, released on 15 February 2010 in the UK, and 16 February 2010 in the US, [8] although it was originally to be released on 1 February 2010, [9] [10] before being pushed back.

Contents

Recording

The album began recording in late 2008 in Brooklyn with main Lightspeed Champion musician Dev Hynes and producer Ben Allen (known for his recent work with Gnarls Barkley, Animal Collective, and The Constellations), though it soon had to take a hiatus due a throat surgery Dev was required to undertake. It was then tracked within nine days at the beginning of March. Dev periodically posted five "studio reports" on his YouTube channel between 25 December 2008 and 18 March 2009.

"Smooth Day (at the Library)" originally appeared as a track on his EP, Album In A Day 2 , then called simply "smooth day".

Track listing

All tracks are written by Devonté Hynes, except where noted

Standard edition CD (WIGCD235), LP (WIGLP235), digital download (WIG235D)
No.TitleLength
1."Dead Head Blues"4:07
2."Marlene"3:50
3."There's Nothing Underwater"4:44
4."Intermission"1:23
5."Faculty of Fears"5:14
6."The Big Guns of Highsmith"4:26
7."Romart"3:30
8."I Don't Want to Wake Up Alone"2:29
9."Madame Van Damme"3:13
10."Smooth Day (at the Library)"3:46
11."Intermission 2"0:38
12."Sweetheart"4:38
13."Etude Op.3 'Goodnight Michalek'"1:49
14."Middle of the Dark"4:15
15."A Bridge and a Goodbye"1:47
Total length:49:50
Japanese edition bonus track [11]
No.TitleLength
16."Tete Morte"4:21
Total length:53:11
UK limited edition bonus CD (WIGCD235X)
No.TitleLength
1."Devil in Disguise" (Bill Giant/Bernie Baum/Florence Kaye)3:05
2."Marlene" (live)4:07
3."Madame van Damme" (live)3:11
4."Faculty of Fears" (live)4:39
5."Sweetheart" (live)4:41

Release history

DateCountryLabel
15 February 2010 United Kingdom Domino Records (WIG235)
16 February 2010 United States/Canada Domino Records (DNO254)
24 February 2010 Japan Hostess Entertainment

Personnel

Related Research Articles

Test Icicles were a short-lived rock band that formed in England, primarily influenced by post-hardcore, dance-punk and indie rock but containing musical elements from a variety of genres. The band was formed in 2004 by Rory Attwell and Sam Mehran, who were later joined by Dev Hynes. Hynes and Mehran were both 18 years old at the time of the band's inception. The group has since become notable due to the later success of its members.

<i>For Screening Purposes Only</i> 2005 studio album by Test Icicles

For Screening Purposes Only is the debut studio album by UK dance-punk trio Test Icicles, released in 2005. It was critically praised for being unique and compelling in an increasingly homogenous indie music scene. Following the group's split in February 2006, the album remains Test Icicles' only LP.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Connan Mockasin</span> New Zealand musician, composer, and record producer

Connan Tant Hosford, better known by the stage name Connan Mockasin and sometimes credited as Connan Hosford, is a New Zealand musician, composer and record producer. Critically acclaimed and described as "a psych-funk oddball...a contrarian", Mockasin has been credited with the 21st century crossover of psychedelic and indie music, and praised for his unique and isolated approach to songwriting.

Semifinalists were an English indie rock band.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dev Hynes</span> British musician (born 1985)

Devonté Hynes, also known as Blood Orange and formerly Lightspeed Champion, is an English singer, songwriter, record producer and director based in New York City. From 2004 to 2006, Hynes was a member of the band Test Icicles, playing guitar, synth, and occasionally performing vocals. They released one full-length album in 2005. Hynes went on to release two solo studio albums as Lightspeed Champion and subsequently five more as Blood Orange, between 2008 and 2019.

<i>Falling Off the Lavender Bridge</i> 2008 studio album by Lightspeed Champion

Falling off the Lavender Bridge is the debut album by British artist Lightspeed Champion, which was released on 21 January 2008. The album features the singles "Galaxy of the Lost", "Midnight Surprise" and "Tell Me What It's Worth".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tell Me What It's Worth</span> 2008 single by Dev Hynes

"Tell Me What It's Worth" is the third single from Lightspeed Champion's debut album Falling Off the Lavender Bridge, released on CD and 7" vinyl by Domino Records on 14 January 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marlene (song)</span> 2010 single by Lightspeed Champion

"Marlene" is the first single from British artist Lightspeed Champion's second album Life is Sweet! Nice to Meet You, released on 25 January 2010.

Album in a Day 2 is an EP by British artist Lightspeed Champion written and recorded in a day, as a follow-up to his 2007 EP, I Wrote and Recorded This in Less Than Five Hours.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Everything Is Embarrassing</span> 2013 single by Sky Ferreira

"Everything Is Embarrassing" is a song by American singer Sky Ferreira from her second extended play (EP), Ghost (2012). It was first premiered online on August 30, 2012, and was later released as a single on April 16, 2013, by Capitol Records in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The song was written by Ferreira, Ariel Rechtshaid, and Dev Hynes, while the latter two produced the track. An accompanying music video for "Everything Is Embarrassing" was directed by Grant Singer with no budget; it was premiered through Pitchfork on October 1, 2012, and sees Ferreira singing in various locations throughout Los Angeles.

<i>Cupid Deluxe</i> 2013 studio album by Blood Orange

Cupid Deluxe is the second album by Dev Hynes as Blood Orange, and is the follow-up to 2011's Coastal Grooves. The album was released on 18 November 2013 in the UK, and was available worldwide a week earlier on iTunes on 12 November 2013.

<i>Coastal Grooves</i> 2011 studio album by Blood Orange

Coastal Grooves is the debut LP record by Blood Orange. It was released August 30, 2011 under Domino Recording Company. The album featured no guest appearances and was produced by Ariel Rechtshaid in Los Angeles. Domino Record Company describes the album as highlighting the glamour and drama of New York City in the 1980s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Girlpool</span> Indie band from Los Angeles, California

Girlpool was an indie rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed by friends Avery Tucker and Harmony Tividad. Their debut self-titled EP Girlpool was released on Bandcamp in 2014 and re-released on Wichita Recordings later that year. They released their debut album Before the World Was Big in 2015, followed by Powerplant (2017) and What Chaos Is Imaginary (2019). Their fourth and final studio album, Forgiveness (2022), was released on April 29. In August 2022, the duo announced that they will be taking an indefinite break from the band.

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

The discography of British singer, composer, songwriter, producer and author Dev Hynes consists of work with groups like Test Icicles and solo work produced under the aliases Lightspeed Champion and Blood Orange. This list is also comprehensive of productions credited to his given name, Devonté Hynes.

<i>The 1st</i> (album) 2017 studio album by Willow

The 1st is the second studio album by American singer Willow. It was released on October 31, 2017, through MSFTSMusic, Roc Nation and Interscope Records. It was written and produced entirely by Willow.

<i>Negro Swan</i> 2018 studio album by Blood Orange

Negro Swan is the fourth studio album by Blood Orange, an alias of British musician Dev Hynes. It was released on 24 August 2018 by Domino. The album was preceded by the singles "Charcoal Baby" and "Jewelry".

<i>Angels Pulse</i> 2019 mixtape by Blood Orange

Angel's Pulse is a mixtape by Dev Hynes as Blood Orange. It was released via Domino Recording Company on 12 July 2019. It is his first release since his fourth studio album Negro Swan (2018). Originally released digitally, it was later released on compact disc, vinyl, and cassette tape on 4 October 2019.

<i>To the Moon and Back</i> (album) 2022 studio album by Ryuichi Sakamoto and various artists

A Tribute to Ryuichi Sakamoto – To the Moon and Back is a tribute album to Japanese multi-genre composer Ryuichi Sakamoto, released November 30, 2022, by Milan Records, two days ahead of its original release date. The album features reworked versions of Sakamoto's songs, referred to as "remodels", by artists including Devonté Hynes, the Cinematic Orchestra, Hildur Guðnadóttir, Alva Noto, and David Sylvian.

<i>Mercy</i> (John Cale album) 2023 studio album by John Cale

Mercy is the seventeenth studio album by Welsh musician and composer John Cale. It was released on 20 January 2023 by Double Six Records, making it Cale's first album of new songs in over a decade. It features collaborations with Tony Allen, Laurel Halo, Weyes Blood, Tei Shi, Animal Collective's Avey Tare and Panda Bear, Dev Hynes, Sylvan Esso, Actress, and Fat White Family. It was inspired by current events such as Donald Trump's presidency, Brexit, COVID-19, climate change, civil rights, and right-wing extremism.

Palo Alto (Music from the Motion Picture) is the soundtrack to the 2013 film Palo Alto directed by Gia Coppola. The album released by Domino Recording Company on June 3, 2014 features tracks from Devonté Hynes and Robert Schwartzman, the film's composers, along with Tonstartssbandht, Mac DeMarco, Nat Wolff and Jack Kilmer. A score album for the film was released on the same day.

References

  1. "Life Is Sweet! Nice To Meet You by Lightspeed Champion". Metacritic . Retrieved 3 October 2016.
  2. Collar, Matt. "Review: Life Is Sweet! Nice to Meet You". AllMusic . Retrieved 18 February 2010.
  3. "Drowned in Sound review". Archived from the original on 18 February 2010. Retrieved 16 February 2010.
  4. "Rock Sound review".
  5. "Pitchfork Media review". Pitchfork .
  6. "Clash review". 15 February 2010.
  7. "Soundblab review".
  8. ""Life Is Sweet! Nice To Meet You" Album Premiere on Myspace" . Retrieved 8 February 2010.
  9. "New Album "Life Is Sweet! Nice To Meet You" Released 1 February 2010" . Retrieved 8 February 2010.
  10. "New Release: Lightspeed Champion: Life Is Sweet! Nice to Meet You". Pitchfork. Retrieved 8 February 2010.
  11. "Lightspeed Champion / Life Is Sweet! Nice to Meet You". Tower Records.com. Retrieved 4 February 2021.