Purple (Baroness album)

Last updated
Purple
Baroness Purple.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedDecember 18, 2015
RecordedMarch–May 2015 [1]
StudioTarbox Road (Cassadaga)
Genre
Length42:33
Label Abraxan Hymns
Producer
Baroness chronology
Yellow & Green
(2012)
Purple
(2015)
Gold & Grey
(2019)
Singles from Purple
  1. "Chlorine & Wine"
    Released: August 28, 2015 [4]
  2. "Shock Me"
    Released: November 15, 2015 [5]

Purple is the fourth studio album by American heavy metal band Baroness. It was released December 18, 2015 through the band's newly founded label Abraxan Hymns. It is the first album to be released by the band following their involvement in the 2012 bus accident that left nine people injured; it is also the first album to feature new band members Nick Jost and Sebastian Thomson, playing bass/keyboards and drums respectively [2] and the last album to feature Pete Adams before his departure from the band in 2017.

Contents

The first single from the album, "Chlorine & Wine", was released on August 28, 2015. [4] The second single from the album, "Shock Me", was released on November 15, 2015 and reached number 28 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart in the US. [6] [5] The album was included at number 23 on Rock Sound's top 50 releases of 2015 list and at number 7 on Rolling Stone's Best Metal Albums of 2015 list. [7]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 85/100 [8]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [9]
The A.V. Club B [10]
Drowned in Sound 8/10 [11]
Exclaim! 9/10 [12]
The Guardian Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [13]
Metal Hammer Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [14]
Pitchfork 8.5/10 [15]
PopMatters Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [16]
Rolling Stone Australia Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [17]
Spin 8/10 [18]

Purple was met with critical acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic (a review aggregator site which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 from music critics), based on 19 critics, the album received a score of 85/100, which indicates "universal acclaim".

In Dom Lawson's review of the album for The Guardian , he described the album as a "far more focused and fiery beast; both a return to the stormy riffing and skewed melodies of old and a subtle but unmistakable lunge for mainstream glory. It's a balance they pull off brilliantly." [13] Pitchfork's Brandon Stosuy was likewise praising of the album, writing that "These are some of the biggest, strongest songs that Baroness has written; it's rock music that folds in their more metal leanings, along with something more delicate and spare. The hooks and melodies are their best." [15]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."Morningstar"4:16
2."Shock Me"4:17
3."Try to Disappear"4:52
4."Kerosene"5:10
5."Fugue"2:34
6."Chlorine & Wine"6:49
7."The Iron Bell"4:24
8."Desperation Burns"4:14
9."If I Have to Wake Up (Would You Stop the Rain?)"5:41
10."Crossroads of Infinity"0:16
Total length:42:33

Personnel

Charts

Chart (2015)Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA) [19] 64
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [20] 91
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [21] 75
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [22] 64
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista) [23] 36
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [24] 88
US Billboard 200 [25] 70

Accolades

PublicationCountryAccoladeYearRank
L.A. Weekly US10 Best Heavy Metal Albums of 2015 [26] 20153
Loudwire US20 Best Rock Albums of 2015 [27] 20159
MetalholicUS50 Best Hard Rock and Metal Albums of 2015 [28] 20155
New Noise USTop 50 Metal & Rock Albums of 2015 [29] 20154
Pitchfork USThe Best Metal Albums of 2015 [30] 20156
Rolling Stone US20 Best Metal Albums of 2015 [31] 20157

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