Mama, I'm Swollen

Last updated

Mama, I'm Swollen
Cursive mama.jpg
Studio album by
Cursive
ReleasedMarch 1, 2009
RecordedDecember 2008
Genre Emo, indie rock
Length40:47
Label Saddle Creek
Producer A. J. Mogis
Cursive chronology
Happy Hollow
(2006)		Mama, I'm Swollen
(2009)		 I Am Gemini
(2012)

Mama, I'm Swollen is the sixth studio album by the American indie rock band Cursive, on Saddle Creek Records. [1] It was released on March 1, 2009 digitally, March 10 on CD, and was released on LP on May 19, 2009. The entire album was played through as a preview at Subterranean in Chicago on June 27, 2008. On February 24, 2009 the band released "From the Hips" on their website.

Contents

Writing and recording

Hired drummer Matt "Cornbread" Compton, formerly of Engine Down, temporarily replaced Clint Schnase for this album. Compton had significant creative input on the album, which, according to frontman Tim Kasher, led to an increased emphasis on groove. [2]

In December 2008, the band announced that they had finished recording and mixing their next album. [3]

Mama, I'm Swollen saw Kasher grappling with aging and dealing with his experiences as he entered his thirties. [4] The songs dwell on various subjects, from egotism ("Mama, I'm Satan") to sexuality ("From the Hips"), but follow a loose narrative which, according to Kasher, concerns "a person trying to break away from his surroundings, only to realize that he is unable to, and comes to no real answer." [5]

Release

In January 2009, the band went on a tour of the US. [3] On February 2, 2009, Mama, I'm Swollen was announced for release the following month; alongside this, its artwork and track listing were posted online. [6] "I Couldn't Love You" was posted online on February 23, 2009, followed by "From the Hips" two days later. [7] [8] On March 1, 2009, the album was released digitally in 320 kbps MP3s with a PDF booklet and cover art at the cost of $1.00 USD, with a one dollar increase in price until its release day. [9] Each CD digipak and 180 gram red vinyl/CD gatefold package order will come with a bonus download card with other songs, demos, and videos. It was supported with a handful of releases shows across the country, with support from Ladyfinger and Little Brazil. [10] [11] The trek also included an appearance at the South by Southwest music conference and a performance of "From the Hips" on Late Show with David Letterman . [12] [13] A music video was released for "From the Hips" on March 30, 2009. [14]

For the 2009 Record Store Day event, the band released a split with Ladyfinger, which featured Cursive's "From the Hips" and "Universal Shrug", while Ladyfinger contributed "Little Things" and "Old News". [15] In April and May 2009, the band went on a US tour with Man Man. [11] They went on a tour of the UK to close out May 2009, before embarking on a US tour until July 2009. [16] Further shows were added, extending the trek into August 2009. [17] During this, a music video was released for "I Couldn't Love You". Kasher said it was a "gross exaggeration of the 'trophy wife' concept -- grooms hunting down brides, hanging wedding pictures over the mantel next to a deer head". [18] They went on a short tour of Japan in October 2009; they closed the year with a US tour in November and December 2009. [19] Between February and April 2010, the band went on a US tour with Alkaline Trio, with support from the Dear & Departed. [20] [21]

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 65/100 [22]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [23]
Drowned in Sound (9/10) [24]
Blender Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [25]
Entertainment Weekly (C+) [26]
Pitchfork Media (5.2/10) [27]
PopMatters (5/10) [28]
Rock Sound Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [29]
Rolling Stone Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [30]
Slant Magazine Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [31]
Tiny Mix Tapes Star full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [32]

Initial critical response to Mama, I'm Swollen ranged from mixed to positive reviews. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has received an average score of 65, based on 14 reviews. [22]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."In the Now"2:34
2."From the Hips"3:55
3."I Couldn't Love You"3:21
4."Donkeys"3:58
5."Caveman"3:23
6."We're Going to Hell"4:53
7."Mama, I'm Satan"4:28
8."Let Me Up"4:47
9."Mama, I'm Swollen"3:20
10."What Have I Done?"6:11

Bonus Material Download Card

CD and LP versions of the album came with a Bonus Material Download Card to enable the customer to download five bonus tracks and 14 tour videos not included on the album by going to http://saddle-creek.com/mamaimswollen and entering the code found on the card. The code only works once.

Bonus Tracks

  1. "All I Know"
  2. "Mama's Baggage"
  3. "I Couldn't Love You (demo, alternate lyrics)"
  4. "What Have I Done (demo, extra verse, alternate lyrics)"
  5. "In the Now (demo, alternate lyrics)"

References

  1. ↑ Cursive's Latest Album. Noise Press. Retrieved 2009-02-26
  2. ↑ Graff, Gary. "Cursive Marks Changes On New Album". Billboard . Archived from the original on April 1, 2023. Retrieved October 29, 2025. We worked with Cornbread Compton; he had a lot of input, and as a result I think the songs have more groove to them, we didn't chop them up quite as much.
  3. 1 2 Paul, Aubin (December 4, 2008). "Cursive wrapping up album, plan dates". Punknews.org. Retrieved June 20, 2022.
  4. ↑ McMahan, Tim (July 23, 2009). "Cursive: Midlife Crisis". Lazy-i zine. Archived from the original on August 1, 2024. Retrieved October 29, 2025.
  5. ↑ "A Conversation With Tim Kasher (Cursive)". Magnet . March 9, 2009. Archived from the original on June 19, 2025. Retrieved October 29, 2025.
  6. ↑ Paul, Aubin (February 2, 2009). "Cursive set release date for 'Mama, I'm Swollen'". Punknews.org. Retrieved October 3, 2022.
  7. ↑ Paul, Aubin (February 23, 2009). "Cursive: 'I Couldn't Love You'". Punknews.org. Retrieved October 3, 2022.
  8. ↑ Paul, Aubin (February 25, 2009). "Cursive: 'From the Hips'". Punknews.org. Retrieved October 3, 2022.
  9. ↑ Paul, Aubin (March 1, 2009). "Cursive selling new album for $1". Punknews.org. Retrieved October 3, 2022.
  10. ↑ Paul, Aubin (January 13, 2009). "Cursive (March)". Punknews.org. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
  11. 1 2 Paul, Aubin (March 12, 2009). "Cursive / Ladyfinger / Man Man". Punknews.org. Retrieved October 3, 2022.
  12. ↑ Paul, Aubin (January 15, 2009). "SXSW with The Queers, Rival Schools, TAAS, This Bike is a Pipe Bomb, Teenage Bottlerocket". Punknews.org. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
  13. ↑ Paul, Aubin (March 15, 2009). "Cursive: 'From The Hips' live on Letterman". Punknews.org. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  14. ↑ Paul, Aubin (March 30, 2009). "Cursive: 'From The Hips'". Punknews.org. Retrieved October 4, 2022.
  15. ↑ Paul, Aubin (April 17, 2009). "Cursive to release split with Ladyfinger for Record Store Day". Punknews.org. Retrieved October 6, 2022.
  16. ↑ Paul, Aubin (May 1, 2009). "Cursive". Punknews.org. Retrieved October 8, 2022.
  17. ↑ Paul, Aubin (June 19, 2009). "Cursive". Punknews.org. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  18. ↑ Paul, Aubin (June 12, 2009). "Cursive: 'I Couldn't Love You'". Punknews.org. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  19. ↑ Paul, Aubin (October 15, 2009). "Cursive". Punknews.org. Retrieved October 12, 2022.
  20. ↑ Paul, Aubin (December 22, 2009). "Alkaline Trio / Cursive". Punknews.org. Retrieved October 15, 2022.
  21. ↑ Yancey, Bryne (January 7, 2010). "The Dear and Departed tapped to support Alkaline Trio / Cursive tour". Punknews.org. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  22. 1 2 "Cursive:Mama, I'm Swollen (2009): Reviews". Metacritic . CNET Networks, Inc. Retrieved March 19, 2009.
  23. ↑ Mama, I'm Swollen at AllMusic
  24. ↑ "Drowned in Sound review". Archived from the original on March 11, 2009. Retrieved March 14, 2009.
  25. ↑ "Blender review". Archived from the original on March 16, 2009. Retrieved March 13, 2009.
  26. ↑ Entertainment Weekly review
  27. ↑ Pitchfork review
  28. ↑ PopMatters review
  29. ↑ Kellehar, Rachel (June 2009). "Cursive – Mama, I'm Swollen." Rock Sound (123): 82. ISSN   1465-0185.
  30. ↑ Rolling Stone review
  31. ↑ Slant review
  32. ↑ Tiny Mix Tapes review
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