| Mountaintops | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | September 13, 2011 | |||
| Genre | Indie pop | |||
| Length | 37:23 | |||
| Label | Barsuk | |||
| Producer | Kori Gardner, Jason Hammel | |||
| Mates of State chronology | ||||
| ||||
Mountaintops is an album by Mates of State released through Barsuk on September 13, 2011. [1]
According to aggregator website Metacritic, Mountaintops received generally favorable reviews from critics. [2] Spin gave the album a 7/10, writing, "Mountaintops has plenty of upbeat romps, but the most compelling moments are the epic, minor-key laments 'At Least I Have You' and 'Unless I'm Led,' which argue that even the truest of loves can still feel lonely and miserable." [3]
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | (74/100) [2] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Spin |   [3] |
| Pitchfork Media | (7.1/10) [4] |
| Robert Christgau | (A−) [5] |
| PopMatters | (5/10) [6] |
Paste placed it at number 49 on their "Top 50 Albums of 2011" list. [7]
Robert Christgau gave it an A− and wrote that "the wholeness of the music leaves us feeling they're more than OK." [5] The song "Palomino" was featured in a 15-second Ice Breakers commercial where a man and a woman share a cab in a rainy night.
Raw Power is the third studio album by American rock band the Stooges, released on February 7, 1973 by Columbia Records. The album departed from the "groove-ridden, feel-based songs" of the band's first two records in favor of a more anthemic hard rock approach inspired by new guitarist James Williamson, who co-wrote the album's eight songs with singer Iggy Pop. Pop produced the recording sessions himself and David Bowie assisted with post-production work, though the team were allotted only one day to mix the album and the resulting fidelity was poor. Later reissues have attempted to either correct or enhance the original mix, most notably Pop's 1997 remix which became notorious for its extreme volume and compression.
Room on Fire is the second studio album by American rock band the Strokes, released on October 21, 2003, through RCA Records. Its title is derived from a lyric in the song "Reptilia".
Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots is the tenth studio album by American rock band the Flaming Lips, released on July 16, 2002, by Warner Bros. Records. The album saw the band pursue a more electronic direction than previous efforts, incorporating acoustic guitars and rhythms influenced by hip hop and top 40 music. The album was well-received critically and commercially, helping the band break into popularity, and was adapted into a musical in 2012. In 2022, the band announced a 20th anniversary box set version of the album and that they would perform the album in full twice in early 2023.
Robert Thomas Christgau is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and later became an early proponent of musical movements such as hip hop, riot grrrl, and the import of African popular music in the West. Christgau spent 37 years as the chief music critic and senior editor for The Village Voice, during which time he created and oversaw the annual Pazz & Jop critics poll. He has also covered popular music for Esquire, Creem, Newsday, Playboy, Rolling Stone, Billboard, NPR, Blender, and MSN Music, and was a visiting arts teacher at New York University. CNN senior writer Jamie Allen has called Christgau "the E. F. Hutton of the music world – when he talks, people listen."
Rock n Roll is the fourth studio album by Ryan Adams, released on November 4, 2003. The album features the hit single "So Alive", and includes guest appearances by Adams's then-girlfriend, actress Parker Posey, former Hole and Smashing Pumpkins bass player Melissa Auf der Maur, and Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong. Adams describes the album as "the most rock thing I have ever done," and notes that in spite of the album's mixed reception, recording it was "fun as fuck."
The Photo Album is the third studio album by indie rock band Death Cab for Cutie, released October 9, 2001 on Barsuk Records.
You Forgot It in People is the second studio album by Canadian indie rock band Broken Social Scene, released on October 15, 2002. It was the band's commercial breakthrough. You Forgot It in People features intricate, experimental production techniques and a large number of instruments coinciding with the band's vastly expanded size. Local excitement for the album was so big that initial pressings sold out quickly, causing the need for a 2003 reissue.
Funeral is the debut studio album by Canadian indie rock band Arcade Fire, released on September 14, 2004 by Merge Records. Preliminary recordings for Funeral were made during the course of a week in August 2003 at the Hotel2Tango in Montreal, Quebec, and the recording was completed later that year all in an analogue recording format.
Just Like the Fambly Cat is the fourth studio album by American indie rock band Grandaddy. It was released on May 9, 2006 by record label V2.
Game Theory is the seventh studio album by American hip hop band the Roots, released August 29, 2006, on Def Jam Recordings. The group's first release for the label after leaving Geffen Records, the album was recorded by the Roots mostly using the Apple-developed software application GarageBand. A darker, grittier album with minimal emphasis on hooks in comparison to their previous work, Game Theory features a stripped-down sound similar to the work of Public Enemy, with lyrics that concern sociological themes and the late hip hop producer J Dilla.
Cross is the debut studio album by French electronic music duo Justice. It was first released digitally on 11 June 2007, and later on 18 June through Ed Banger Records and Because Music in most countries and Vice Records in the United States.
Before I Self Destruct is the fourth studio album by American rapper 50 Cent, released November 9, 2009, on Shady Records, Aftermath Entertainment, G-Unit Records, Interscope Records and Universal Music Group. The album is his final solo release with Shady, Aftermath and Interscope excluding his 2017 Greatest Hits album Best Of. An accompanying feature film of the same name coincided with its release, and is available within the albums packaging.
Pro Tools is the fifth studio album by American rapper and Wu-Tang Clan member GZA. The album was released August 19, 2008 on Babygrande Records. It serves as his first release since his collaboration album with DJ Muggs, Grandmasters (2005), and follows six years after his last solo effort, Legend of the Liquid Sword (2002). Production for the album took place during 2008 and was handled by several record producers, including RZA, Bronze Nazareth, Preservation, Mathematics, Black Milk, Arabian Knight and True Master.
Cardinology is the tenth studio album by Ryan Adams, and fourth album with his backing band The Cardinals, released on October 28, 2008. The album completed Adams' contract with Lost Highway Records, and marks his final recording session with The Cardinals. Following the album's release and subsequent tour, Adams disbanded the band and entered a self-imposed hiatus until the release of Ashes & Fire, in 2011.
Scars is the fifth studio album by English electronic music duo Basement Jaxx. It was released in September 2009 by record labels XL, Ultra and Interscope. Three singles were released from the album: "Raindrops", "Feelings Gone" and "My Turn".
I Am Not a Human Being is the eighth studio album by the American rapper Lil Wayne. It had a digital release on September 27, 2010, and on compact disc on October 12, 2010, by Young Money Entertainment, Cash Money Records and Universal Motown. It was recorded before Wayne's eight-month prison term for criminal possession of a weapon. Production for the album was by Wayne and several record producers, including Boi-1da, Cool & Dre, Streetrunner, Noah "40" Shebib and DJ Infamous.
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.
The Dreamer/The Believer is the ninth studio album by American rapper Common. It was released in the UK on December 19, 2011 and in the US on December 20 through Warner Bros. Records alongside Common's newly launched Think Common Music Inc. Common's longtime friend and frequent collaborator No I.D. handled the album's production entirely himself.
How Do You Do is the second studio album by American singer Mayer Hawthorne. It was released on October 11, 2011, by Universal Republic Records. The limited edition box set of the album gave Hawthorne his first Grammy Award nomination for Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package in 2014.
XXX is the second studio album by American rapper Danny Brown. It was released on August 15, 2011, by Fool's Gold Records. The album's production was handled by Frank Dukes, Brandun DeShay, Skywlkr, Nick Speed, Quelle, Paul White, Squadda Bambino and DJ House Shoes. The album's only guest appearances come from Brown's Bruiser Brigade cohorts Chips and Dopehead.
