PC Music Volume 1 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Compilation album by various artists | ||||
Released | 2 May 2015 | |||
Recorded | 2013–2015 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 29:46 | |||
Label | PC Music | |||
PC Music chronology | ||||
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PC Music Volume 1 is the first compilation album by British record label PC Music, released on 2 May 2015 as a paid download. [4] The album consists of remastered versions of the label's earlier work. [5]
The compilation was met with polarising, yet mostly positive reviews from critics upon its release. Some reviewers praised its innovative sound while others found the overall concept of the label to be wearing thin and the music to be shallow.
Because the label releases most of its work for free, "Every Night" by Hannah Diamond had been the only song available for purchase. [6] PC Music Volume 1 includes one new track—"USA" by GFOTY, which had previously appeared on her Secret Mix. [7]
The label's musical acts function more as avatars than as themselves. The songs carry themes of escaping physical life, with an artificial quality that intensifies feelings of longing. [8] PC Music often uses the motif of eternity, [9] and several of the songs use together/forever rhymes. [10] The album's digital take on dance-pop music favours retrofuturistic Eurodance and high-pitched, cutesy female vocals. [11] Its often minimalist production produces frenetic, distorted mixes. [8]
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 73/100 [12] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
Consequence of Sound | B [10] |
Crack Magazine | 10/20 [13] |
NME | 8/10 [14] |
Now | NNNN [15] |
Pitchfork | 7.3/10 [8] |
Resident Advisor | 3.8/5 [16] |
Rolling Stone | [1] |
Spin | 8/10 [17] |
Sputnikmusic | 3.5/5 [2] |
PC Music Volume 1 garnered polarising [18] yet mostly positive reviews from critics. [12] As of June 2015, the album holds an aggregate 73 out of 100 based on eight reviews. [12] Consequence of Sound wrote that the album "leaves space for agnosticism about whether it's all a joke or a deathly serious artistic maneuver." [10] Spin magazine regretted the omission of some of the label's more satirical work, but it continued that "at almost 30 minutes exactly, PC Music Volume 1 quits while it's ahead." [17] Pitchfork described the album as a "rapturous, nightmarish cartoon corpus" that showcases "a meaningful spectrum of approaches within the PC Music ethos". [8]
In more mixed reviews, Rolling Stone 's Jon Dolan said that with the exception of A. G. Cook's "Beautiful", "the songs are only as good as the concept, which wears thin fast." [1] A review published in The Wire described the song as "glossy, giddy, sparkly and shallow", much like music that would fitting wealthy private school teenaged student's sleepover. [19] Xavier Boucherat described how he scored the album on a 20-point scale in his review for the magazine Crack: "2 points for Danny 'dick in the pants' Harle for having arguably the funniest moniker out, 2 for those 'Red Bull own PC Music' rumours that you yourselves probably started, and 6 for GFOTY who weirdly reminds me of my mum." [13]
PC Music Volume 1 was ranked the 36th best album of 2015 by Time Out London, the 7th best experimental album by PopMatters , and made Spin and Flavorwire 's lists of the best albums of the first half of 2015. [3] [20] [21] [22]
No. | Title | Artist | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Every Night" | Hannah Diamond | 3:33 |
2. | "Beautiful" | A. G. Cook | 3:49 |
3. | "USA" | GFOTY | 2:23 |
4. | "In My Dreams" | Danny L Harle | 3:28 |
5. | "Attachment" | Hannah Diamond | 4:19 |
6. | "Wannabe" | Lipgloss Twins | 2:23 |
7. | "Bronze" | Thy Slaughter | 2:15 |
8. | "Keri Baby" (featuring Hannah Diamond) | A. G. Cook | 2:10 |
9. | "Don't Wanna/Let's Do It" | GFOTY | 1:52 |
10. | "Laplander" | easyFun | 3:34 |
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PC Music is a record label and art collective based in London and run by producer A. G. Cook. It was founded in 2013, uploading its first releases to SoundCloud that year. Artists on its roster have included Hannah Diamond, GFOTY, Danny L Harle, Easyfun, Namasenda, and Planet 1999. The label's releases have been showcased on the compilations PC Music Volume 1 (2015), Volume 2 (2016), and Volume 3 (2022). Following a decade-long run, since 2024 the label is now only dedicated to archival projects and special reissues.
Alexander Guy Cook is an English music producer and the head of the now-closed UK record label PC Music. Cook released his first solo singles in 2014. He has also collaborated with PC Music artists such as Hannah Diamond, GFOTY, Finn Keane, Danny L Harle and Felicita. He formed the one-off project QT with musician Sophie and performance artist Hayden Dunham, producing the 2014 single "Hey QT".
Hannah Amond, known professionally as Hannah Diamond, is an English singer, songwriter, photographer, and visual artist. She has recorded on A.G. Cook's PC Music label since 2013, beginning with her debut single "Pink and Blue". Her music and visual art employs an aesthetic of hyperreality and heavily produced cuteness in tension with sincerity.
Polly-Louisa Salmon, better known by her stage name GFOTY, an abbreviation of Girlfriend of the Year, is a British pop singer. From 2013 to 2018, she released music through the PC Music label. She now independently releases her music. Much of her work has been in the form of mini-mixes.
Daniel Jack Eisner Harle is a British music producer and composer who records under the name Danny L Harle. He was formerly signed to the London-based PC Music label and is a member of Dux Content with A. G. Cook. He has produced, composed, and remixed music for a number of artists; most prominently, he executive produced Caroline Polachek's 2019 album Pang and 2023 album Desire, I Want to Turn Into You. He released his debut album Harlecore (2021) through the label Mad Decent, featuring collaborations with Polachek, Hudson Mohawke, and Lil Data.
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"Every Night" is a song recorded by the English singer Hannah Diamond, released as a non-album single on 24 November 2014 through PC Music. Diamond joined PC Music in 2013 and released two solo singles before "Every Night". It was written by A. G. Cook and Diamond and produced by Cook. Critics described it as dance-pop and synth-pop, with Diamond's child-like vocals accompanied by pulsating beats. "Every Night" was PC Music's first commercially available single and later appeared on their first compilation album, PC Music Volume 1 (2015).
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"Beautiful" is a song recorded by the English musician A. G. Cook. It was released on 4 June 2014 through PC Music. It later appeared on PC Music's compilation album PC Music Volume 1 (2015). In December 2014, Rustie released a remix of the song. In 2023, A. G. Cook released an edit of the song.