Mortal Primetime

Last updated

Mortal Primetime
Sunflower Bean - Mortal Primetime.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedApril 25, 2025 (2025-04-25)
Genre
Length35:12
Label Lucky Number
Producer
Sunflower Bean chronology
Headful of Sugar
(2022)
Mortal Primetime
(2025)
Singles from Mortal Primetime
  1. "Champagne Taste"
    Released: January 28, 2025
  2. "Nothing Romantic"
    Released: March 12, 2025

Mortal Primetime is the fourth studio album by American rock band Sunflower Bean. [3] It was released on April 25, 2025, by Lucky Number Records in vinyl, CD and digital formats. [2]

Contents

Background

Succeeding the band's 2022 work, Headful of Sugar, Mortal Primetime consists of ten songs between three and four minutes each, with a total runtime of thirty-five minutes and twelve seconds. [2] The first single and opening track, "Champagne Taste", was released on January 28, 2025, with a music video directed by Isaac Roberts. [3] [4] The second single, "Nothing Romantic", was released on March 12, 2025. [5] The album incorporates elements of alternative rock, folk, and dream pop. [6]

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 88/100 [7]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [2]
Dork Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg
The Line of Best Fit 7/10
New Noise Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg
Paste 9.0/10
Under the Radar 8.5/10

AllMusic rated the album four and a half stars out of five and stated, "If you fell in love with Sunflower Bean's early indie-pop and marveled at their turn towards alt-rock cool, Mortal Primetime is the best of both worlds; an assured album of rock and roll magic, dusted with emotive pop pathos." [2] Under the Radar assigned it a rating of 8.5 out of ten and remarked, "As a consequence Mortal Primetime doesn't shout; it unfolds. Each melody carries its own quiet weight, revealing a band attuned to the power of restraint and the elegance of a well-placed hook." [8] Paste gave the album a rating of 9.0, describing it as "a record which casts aside the traditional rock-band impetus to choose an era, genre, and style of rock and roll's past to emulate—and instead embraces all of them." [9] The Line of Best Fit scored the album seven out of ten and noted, "Mortal Primetime sees the rebirth of the New York trio; emerging from the shadows of winter to tilt their heads towards the brighter, more fruitful pastures of spring." [10] New Noise , rating Mortal Primetime five stars, described it as a nod "towards the past with eyes towards the future", combining "the undoubtable twang of Gwen Stefani and synth pop sound of Tame Impala to create a sound wholly original." [11] Dork rated the album four out of five and commented about its production, stating it "strikes a delicate balance between vintage warmth and modern clarity." [12] DIY assigned it a rating of four and a half, "Across its ten tracks, the band abandon any fixed notion of genre, weaving together elements of alt-rock, folk, and dreamy, blissful pop with remarkable ease." [6]

Track listing

Mortal Primetime track listing
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."Champagne Taste"
3:12
2."Nothing Romantic"
  • Cumming
  • Faber
  • Kivlen
  • Kelly
3:34
3."Waiting for the Rain"
  • Kivlen
  • Oliver Hill
  • Cumming
  • Faber
  • Kivlen
  • Oliver Hill
3:27
4."Look What You've Done to Me"Cumming
  • Cumming
  • Faber
  • Kivlen
3:00
5."I Knew Love"Cumming
  • Cumming
  • Faber
  • Kivlen
3:52
6."Take Out Your Insides"
  • Cumming
  • Kivlen
  • Cumming
  • Faber
  • Kivlen
3:46
7."There's a Part I Can't Get Back"Cumming
  • Cumming
  • Faber
  • Kivlen
4:02
8."Please Rewind"Kivlen
  • Cumming
  • Faber
  • Kivlen
3:02
9."Shooting Star"Cumming
  • Cumming
  • Faber
  • Kivlen
3:41
10."Sunshine"Kivlen
  • Cumming
  • Faber
  • Kivlen
3:36
Total length:35:12

Personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal. [13]

Sunflower Bean

Additional contributors

Charts

Chart performance for Mortal Primetime
Chart (2025)Peak
position
Scottish Albums (OCC) [14] 69
UK Album Downloads (OCC) [15] 62

References

  1. Simon Vozick-Levinson (December 15, 2025). "The 55 Best Indie-Rock Albums of 2025". Rolling Stone .
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Collar, Matt. "Mortal Primetime – Sunflower Bean". AllMusic . Retrieved April 26, 2025.
  3. 1 2 Vozick-Levinson, Simon (January 28, 2025). "Sunflower Bean Usher in Mortal Primetime Season This Spring". Rolling Stone . Retrieved April 26, 2025.
  4. Murray, Robin (January 30, 2025). "Sunflower Bean Announce New Album Mortal Primetime". Clash . Retrieved April 26, 2025.
  5. Carter, Daisy (March 12, 2025). "Sunflower Bean drop roaring new single 'Nothing Romantic'". DIY . Retrieved April 26, 2025.
  6. 1 2 Vázquez, Sophie (April 23, 2025). "Sunflower Bean – Mortal Primetime". DIY . Retrieved April 26, 2025.
  7. "Mortal Primetime – Sunflower Bean". Metacritic . Retrieved April 26, 2025.
  8. Von Pip, Andy (April 24, 2025). "Sunflower Bean – Mortal Primetime (Lucky Number)". Under the Radar . Retrieved April 26, 2025.
  9. McLevy, Alex (April 25, 2025). "Sunflower Bean Resist Trends and Take Command on Mortal Primetime". Paste . Retrieved April 26, 2025.
  10. Williams, Lana (April 25, 2025). "Sunflower Bean: Mortal Primetime review – fruitful rebirth". The Line of Best Fit . Retrieved April 26, 2025.
  11. Hasson, Vida (April 25, 2025). "Album Review: Sunflower Bean – Mortal Primetime". New Noise . Retrieved April 26, 2025.
  12. Ellison, Jordan (April 23, 2025). "Sunflower Bean – Mortal Primetime". Dork . Retrieved April 26, 2025.
  13. "Mortal Primetime / Sunflower Bean / Credits". Tidal. April 25, 2025. Retrieved May 2, 2025.
  14. "Official Scottish Albums Chart on 2/5/2025 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 3, 2025.
  15. "Official Album Downloads Chart on 2/5/2025 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 3, 2025.