Light Me Up

Last updated
Light Me Up
The Pretty Reckless - Light Me Up.png
Studio album by
The Pretty Reckless
ReleasedAugust 27, 2010 (2010-08-27)
RecordedAugust 2009 – April 2010
Studio
Genre
Length34:06
Label Interscope
Producer Kato Khandwala
The Pretty Reckless chronology
The Pretty Reckless
(2010)		Light Me Up
(2010)		 Hit Me Like a Man EP
(2012)
Alternative cover
The Pretty Reckless - Light Me Up (Japan).png
Japanese cover

The recording process started in 2008, after Taylor Momsen met producer Kato Khandwala and his partner, songwriter Ben Phillips. By mid-2009, they felt they had found an authentic sound. Two months before the album's release, the band released an eponymous EP containing four songs expected to appear in the then-future record. However, the song "Zombie" was not present in the initial track listing, later appearing on the North and South American release.

The album received much more success in the United Kingdom, where it was released months before the American release. The warmer British reception spanned the singles "Miss Nothing" and "Just Tonight", which were not released anywhere else.

Singles

"Make Me Wanna Die" was released on April 14, 2010, as the album's lead single. A promotional video was released which features live performances and backstage footage of the band. This video is widely recognized as a viral version and was released on May 13, 2010. The official music video, directed by Meiert Avis and produced by Jeremy Alter, was postponed due to legal issues involving censorship, but premiered on September 15, 2010, on iTunes and Vevo.

"Miss Nothing" was released on August 18, 2010, only in the UK and Australia. The music video for "Miss Nothing," directed by Meiert Avis and produced by Jeremy Alter, premiered on July 20, 2010.

"Just Tonight" was released on December 27, 2010, only in the UK after being pushed back from November 9. The music video, directed by Meiert Avis and produced by Jeremy Alter, premiered on November 2.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 74/100 [4]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [5]
Artistdirect Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [2]
Digital Spy Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [6]
Entertainment Weekly B− [7]
IGN 7.5/10 [8]
Kerrang! 3/5 [9]
Virgin Media Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [10]
Sputnikmusic3.2/5 [3]

Light Me Up received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 74, based on five reviews. [4] Alexey Eremenko of AllMusic wrote that Taylor Momsen "com[es] across as the strongest and bitchiest female vocalist to front an alt-rock band since Garbage's Shirley Manson" and added, "If the band had explored their bluesy leanings more, Light Me Up could have been a small-scale revolution, but even as it stands now, it's still a wicked good record." [5] Rick Florino of Artistdirect stated that "Momsen's ability to mix a soulful swagger with a heavy metal grit makes for one of the best debuts of 2011", concluding that "The Pretty Reckless strike the most perfect balance between sexy swagger and brilliant songwriting." [2]

At The New York Times , Jon Caramanica described the album as "terrific fun: salacious, convincingly muscular, unnervingly rowdy." [11] Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly opined that the album is "clearly built from the doll parts of [the] grunge goddesses [of the 1990s]—a sometimes too-slick conceit that Momsen's thousand-Marlboro growl still manages to sell surprisingly well." [7] Virgin Media's Ian Gittins noted that the album is "sparky and vivacious enough to hint that Ms Momsen, should she so wish, may even be able to give up the day job." [10] IGN's Chad Grischow expressed, "Despite some lyrical clumsiness and overbearing production, there is a lot to like about The Pretty Reckless on their debut; enough to leave you hoping they work out the kinks on their sophomore set." [8] John Longbottom of Kerrang! commented, "While lyrically there's nothing explicitly offensive, there are enough risque lines here to raise a few eyebrows, and enough good songs to prick a few ears." [9]

Commercial performance

Light Me Up debuted at number 65 on the Billboard 200, selling 9,000 copies in its first week. [12] As of October 2016, it had sold 132,000 copies in the United States. [13] The album debuted at number six on the UK Albums Chart with 11,916 copies sold in its first week. [14] On January 12, 2018, the album was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), denoting shipments in excess of 100,000 copies. [15]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Taylor Momsen, Ben Phillips, and Kato Khandwala

European and Australian edition [16] [17]
No.TitleLength
1."My Medicine"3:14
2."Since You're Gone"2:41
3."Make Me Wanna Die"3:54
4."Light Me Up"3:27
5."Just Tonight"2:48
6."Miss Nothing"3:13
7."Goin' Down"3:35
8."Nothing Left to Lose"4:11
9."Factory Girl"3:31
10."You"3:32
UK iTunes Store edition bonus tracks [18]
No.TitleLength
11."Far from Never" (demo)3:36
12."Everybody Wants Something from Me" (demo)3:35
13."Make Me Wanna Die" (music video)3:55
14."Miss Nothing" (music video)3:13
Japanese edition bonus tracks [19]
No.TitleLength
11."Zombie"3:08
12."Make Me Wanna Die" (acoustic version)3:33
13."Far from Never"3:36
North and South American edition [20] [21]
No.TitleLength
1."My Medicine"3:14
2."Since You're Gone"2:41
3."Make Me Wanna Die"3:54
4."Light Me Up"3:27
5."Zombie"3:08
6."Just Tonight"2:48
7."Miss Nothing"3:13
8."Goin' Down"3:35
9."Nothing Left to Lose"4:11
10."You"3:32
11."Factory Girl"3:31

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Light Me Up. [22]

The Pretty Reckless

Additional personnel

  • Kato Khandwala – production, engineering, mixing, guitar (all tracks); bass (all except "You"); programming (all except "Goin' Down"); percussion (all except "Since You're Gone" and "Zombie"); string arrangement ("Make Me Wanna Die", "Just Tonight" and "You")
  • Michael "Mitch" Milan – engineering assistance (all except "You")
  • James Frazee – engineering assistance (all except "Make Me Wanna Die", "Miss Nothing", "Goin' Down" and "You"); additional engineering ("Factory Girl")
  • Jon Cohan – drum tech (all except "You")
  • John Bender – backing vocals (all except "My Medicine")
  • Dave Eggar – cello ("Make Me Wanna Die" and "You")
  • John Dinklage – violin ("Make Me Wanna Die" and "You")
  • Dan Korneff – mix engineering ("Make Me Wanna Die")
  • David Sonenberg – executive production
  • William Derella – executive production
  • Robert Fisher – art direction
  • Lauren Dukoff – photography

Charts

Chart (2010–11)Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA) [23] 71
Belgian Heatseekers Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [24] 2
Belgian Heatseekers Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) [25] 1
Canadian Albums ( Billboard ) [26] 57
French Albums (SNEP) [27] 167
Irish Albums (IRMA) [28] 18
Japanese Albums (Oricon) [29] 48
Scottish Albums (OCC) [30] 7
UK Albums (OCC) [31] 6
UK Rock & Metal Albums (OCC) [32] 1
US Billboard 200 [33] 65
US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard) [34] 10
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard) [35] 18

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI) [15] Gold100,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

RegionDateFormatLabelRef.
AustraliaAugust 27, 2010 Universal [16] [36]
FranceAugust 30, 2010Digital download [37]
United Kingdom
  • CD
  • digital download
 Polydor [17] [38]
GermanyAugust 31, 2010Universal [39] [40]
FranceDecember 6, 2010CD [41]
CanadaFebruary 8, 2011Digital download [42]
United States Interscope [43]
CanadaMarch 1, 2011CDUniversal [21]
JapanMarch 2, 2011
  • CD
  • digital download
 [19] [44]
United StatesApril 12, 2011CDInterscope [45]
FranceApril 18, 2011Digital download (reissue)Universal [46]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taylor Momsen</span> American musician and former actress (born 1993)

Taylor Michel Momsen is an American singer, songwriter, musician, model, and former actress. Prior to her retirement from acting, she portrayed the character of Cindy Lou Who in the film How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) and Jenny Humphrey on The CW's teen drama series Gossip Girl (2007–2012). Momsen has been the frontwoman of the American rock band the Pretty Reckless since their inception in 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Pretty Reckless</span> American rock band

The Pretty Reckless is an American rock band from New York City, formed in 2009. The band consists of Taylor Momsen, Ben Phillips, Mark Damon (bass), and Jamie Perkins (drums). In August 2010, the band released their debut studio album, Light Me Up. The album spawned three moderately successful singles, most notably "Make Me Wanna Die". The band released the Hit Me Like a Man EP in early 2012. In March 2014, the band released their second studio album, Going to Hell, which included the singles "Heaven Knows" and "Messed Up World", both of which topped the US and UK rock charts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Make Me Wanna Die</span> 2010 single by the Pretty Reckless

"Make Me Wanna Die" is a song by American rock band The Pretty Reckless from their eponymous debut extended play (2010) and their debut studio album, Light Me Up (2010). The song was written by Taylor Momsen, Ben Phillips, and Kato Khandwala, and produced by the latter. It was released on April 14, 2010, as the lead single from both the EP and the album.

<i>The Pretty Reckless</i> (EP) 2010 EP by The Pretty Reckless

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Miss Nothing</span> 2010 single by The Pretty Reckless

"Miss Nothing" is a song by American rock band The Pretty Reckless from their debut studio album, Light Me Up (2010). It was released on August 18, 2010, as the album's second single.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Just Tonight</span> 2010 single by The Pretty Reckless

"Just Tonight" is a song by American rock band The Pretty Reckless from their debut studio album, Light Me Up (2010). Band members Taylor Momsen and Ben Phillips co-wrote the song with its producer, Kato Khandwala. It was released on December 23, 2010, as the third and final single from the album.

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American rock band The Pretty Reckless has released four studio albums, one compilation, two extended plays, 14 singles, four promotional singles, and 16 music videos. Originally named The Reckless, the band was formed in early 2009, with Taylor Momsen on vocals, Ben Phillips on lead guitar, Mark Damon on bass and Jamie Perkins on drums.

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<i>Hit Me Like a Man EP</i> 2012 EP by The Pretty Reckless

Hit Me Like a Man EP is the second extended play (EP) by American rock band The Pretty Reckless. It was released on March 2, 2012, by Interscope Records. The EP contains three new songs, as well as live renditions of "Make Me Wanna Die" and "Since You're Gone"—originally included on the band's debut studio album, Light Me Up (2010)—which were recorded at London's Hammersmith Apollo on November 4 and 5, 2011.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Follow Me Down (The Pretty Reckless song)</span> 2014 single by The Pretty Reckless

"Follow Me Down" is a song by American rock band The Pretty Reckless from their second studio album, Going to Hell (2014). The song was written by the band's lead singer Taylor Momsen, while production was done by Kato Khandwala. It was serviced to active rock radio in the United States on November 18, 2014, serving as the album's fifth and final single. The track's intro features former pornographic actress Jenna Haze, a close friend of Momsen's, simulating an orgasm, which was removed from the radio edit.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Death by Rock and Roll (song)</span> 2020 song by The Pretty Reckless

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<i>Death by Rock and Roll</i> 2021 album by the Pretty Reckless

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  11. ↑ Caramanica, Jon (April 22, 2011). "Rowdy Muscularity and Sweet Harmonies". The New York Times . Retrieved February 20, 2013.
  12. ↑ Caulfield, Keith (March 26, 2014). "'Frozen' Earns Its Biggest Sales Week Yet, Tops Billboard 200 a Seventh Time". Billboard . Retrieved November 23, 2015.
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  22. ↑ Light Me Up (liner notes). The Pretty Reckless. Interscope Records. 2011. B0015304-02.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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