| Pygmalion | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 6 February 1995 | |||
| Studio | Courtyard (Sutton Courtenay) | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 48:11 | |||
| Label | Creation | |||
| Producer |
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| Slowdive chronology | ||||
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| Slowdive studio album chronology | ||||
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Pygmalion is the third studio album by English rock band Slowdive, released on 6 February 1995 by Creation Records. It was the group's final album before their disbandment in 1995 and later reformation in 2014, and their only album with Ian McCutcheon, who had replaced Simon Scott on drums.
Pygmalion is a significant departure from the shoegaze style that Slowdive had established in their previous two studio albums, Just for a Day (1991) and Souvlaki (1993). The album features a more experimental sound tilted towards ambient electronic music, [3] with sparse, atmospheric arrangements. Pitchfork 's Nitsuh Abebe described the album's songs as "ambient pop dreams" that are stylistically closer to post-rock, in the then-contemporary first wave of the genre, than the band's trademark style. [2] Regardless, BBC Music writer Wyndham Wallace still viewed Pygmalion as a shoegaze album, although not in the conventional sense of the style, noting that at points the album forgoes conventional percussion, or percussion in general, entirely. [3]
With the exception of the lyrics for the songs "Miranda" and "Visions of LA", which were written by Rachel Goswell, Pygmalion was composed by Neil Halstead. [4] Several songs on the album reflect Halstead's experimentation with digital technology and techniques such as looping and reverb. This was born out of his then-increasing fascination with electronica and dance music, [5] which he had been introduced to in 1992 by ex-Seefeel member Mark Van Hoen, who had played Aphex Twin's Selected Ambient Works 85-92 for Halstead. [6]
Pygmalion was released on 6 February 1995 by Creation Records. [7] The cover illustration for the album, designed by Steven Woodhouse, [4] features imagery from Rainer Wehinger's graphic notation for György Ligeti's 1958 work Artikulation . [8] Though Slowdive had begun preparing for an expected tour of the United Kingdom in support of Pygmalion, [5] a week after the album's release Creation dropped Slowdive from its roster, and by the end of the year the band had split. [9] [10]
The Sanctuary Records subsidiary label Castle Music issued a remastered edition of Pygmalion in 2005. [2] [11] Cherry Red Records issued another remastered edition of the album on 16 August 2010, with a bonus disc consisting of demo versions of Pygmalion-era tracks. [12]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [13] |
| The Guardian | [14] |
| Mojo | [15] |
| NME | 5/10 [16] |
| Pitchfork | 8.7/10 [2] |
| Q | [17] |
| Record Collector | [18] |
| Select | 2/5 [19] |
| Sputnikmusic | 5/5 [20] |
| Uncut | 8/10 [21] |
Pygmalion was largely overlooked by contemporary music critics, with competing musical trends and the radically different style of the album being main factors according to journalist Kieron Tyler; with the Britpop genre at the height of its popularity, Slowdive were seen as "past-their-sell-by-date shoegazers" by a music press who were more interested in covering the Britpop scene. [10] For instance, in Melody Maker , Jonathan Selzer dismissed Pygmalion as "an insipid attempt at prettiness". [22] John Harris wrote in NME that the album represented a seeming act of "career suicide" by the band, for whom he composed a mock epitaph: "Slowdive ... They could have had the world, but they decided to go all skeletal and wibbly and make sneakingly fascinating records that will sell absolutely fart all." [16] However, Q 's Andrew Collins was positive and enthusiastic, saying that the album "basks splendidly in its own sod-you resonant shapelessness." [17] Caroline Sullivan of The Guardian was intrigued by the album's sound and quipped that it "should spark many a philosophy debate—after all, if music is this minimal, can it be said to exist at all?" [14]
In a retrospective review for Pitchfork in 2005, Nitsuh Abebe called Pygmalion "a detour of the best sort", [2] and in a separate appraisal for AllMusic, Abebe stated that "for anyone who appreciates the indirect and intangible, it's a stylistic masterpiece." [13] In his review for BBC Music, Wyndham Wallace wrote that Pygmalion "remains Halstead and Goswell's masterpiece", [3] while Head Heritage writer Rust Phimister said that with the album, "Slowdive distilled the expansive aural atmospheres of Souvlaki to perfection." [23] Trouser Press , however, found that Pygmalion "completely lacks all the tension, songwriting, sounds and power of the band's work, leaving only the spatial dimensions", deeming it "essentially a solo ambient recording" by Halstead "that should have been released under his own name". [24]
The Pygmalion song "Blue Skied an' Clear" was featured in the 1995 film The Doom Generation ; Gregg Araki, the film's director, is an avowed fan of Slowdive. [10]
In 1999, critic Ned Raggett ranked Pygmalion at number 122 on his list of the best albums of the 1990s for Freaky Trigger . [25] In 2016, Pitchfork listed it as the 12th best shoegaze album of all time. [26] Pitchfork described Pygmalion as a "post-rock masterpiece" in a 2018 article that included quotes from several musicians professing appreciation for the record, including members of Low, The Twilight Sad, Deafheaven, Múm, A Place to Bury Strangers, Survive, and Girlpool. [27]
All tracks are written by Neil Halstead, except where noted
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Rutti" | 10:02 | |
| 2. | "Crazy for You" | 6:00 | |
| 3. | "Miranda" |
| 4:48 |
| 4. | "Trellisaze" | 6:18 | |
| 5. | "Cello" | 1:33 | |
| 6. | "J's Heaven" | 6:47 | |
| 7. | "Visions of LA" |
| 1:43 |
| 8. | "Blue Skied an' Clear" | 6:52 | |
| 9. | "All of Us" | 4:08 | |
| Total length: | 48:11 | ||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Miranda" |
| 3:46 |
| 2. | "Watch Me" | 3:45 | |
| 3. | "Yesterday" | 4:20 | |
| 4. | "To Watch" | 5:52 | |
| 5. | "Option One (Instrumental #1)" | 3:50 | |
| 6. | "Cargo" | 4:24 | |
| 7. | "Sinewaves" | 5:12 | |
| 8. | "Ambient Guitar" | 5:47 | |
| 9. | "Crazy for You" (alt. version) | 4:37 | |
| 10. | "Prautrock" | 5:05 | |
| 11. | "Changes" | 4:51 | |
| 12. | "Red Five" | 6:07 | |
| Total length: | 57:36 | ||
Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes. [4]
Slowdive
Production
Design
| Chart (1995) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Albums (OCC) [28] | 108 |
| UK Independent Albums (OCC) [29] | 7 |
Ambient music is a genre of music that emphasizes tone and atmosphere over traditional musical structure or rhythm. It is often "peaceful" sounding and lacks composition, beat, and/or structured melody. It uses textural layers of sound that can reward both passive and active listening and encourage a sense of calm or contemplation. The genre is said to evoke an "atmospheric", "visual", or "unobtrusive" quality. Nature soundscapes may be included, and the sounds of acoustic instruments such as the piano, strings and flute may be emulated through a synthesizer.
Shoegaze is a subgenre of indie and alternative rock characterized by its ethereal mixture of obscured vocals, guitar distortion and effects, feedback, and overwhelming volume. It emerged in Ireland and the United Kingdom in the late 1980s among neo-psychedelic groups who usually stood motionless during live performances in a detached, non-confrontational state. The name comes from the heavy use of effects pedals, as the performers were often looking down at their pedals during concerts.
Souvlaki is the second studio album by the English rock band Slowdive. It was recorded in 1992, and released on 1 June 1993 by Creation Records.
Slowdive are an English rock band that formed in Reading, Berkshire, in 1989. The band consists of Rachel Goswell, Neil Halstead, Christian Savill (guitars), Nick Chaplin (bass), and Simon Scott, all of whom played on the band's early records. Halstead is the band's primary songwriter.
You Made Me Realise is the third EP by alternative rock band My Bloody Valentine, released on 8 August 1988 through Creation Records. It was their first record for Creation.
Rachel Ann Goswell is an English singer-songwriter and musician who rose to prominence as vocalist and guitarist of the shoegaze band Slowdive, which formed in 1989. Goswell, along with Neil Halstead, Ian McCutcheon and former Chapterhouse member Simon Rowe became Mojave 3 when Slowdive transitioned to a more country/folk rock style. She released a solo album in 2004, titled Waves Are Universal on 4AD Records.
Mojave 3 were a British rock band consisting of former Slowdive members Neil Halstead, Rachel Goswell and Ian McCutcheon (drums) alongside keyboardist Alan Forrester and former Chapterhouse guitarist Simon Rowe.
Darklands is the second studio album by Scottish alternative rock band the Jesus and Mary Chain, released on 31 August 1987 by Blanco y Negro Records. The album is the band's first to use drum machines, replacing live drummer Bobby Gillespie, who had left to pursue a career as the frontman of Scottish rock band Primal Scream. Lead vocals are performed by Jim Reid, with the exception of "Darklands", "Nine Million Rainy Days" and "On the Wall", which are sung by William Reid.
Neil Halstead is an English musician, widely known as singer, primary songwriter and producer and guitarist of shoegaze band Slowdive. He has been hailed by AllMusic as "one of Britain's most respected songwriters", and Time Out as "one of Britain's greatest songwriters".
Just for a Day is the debut studio album by English rock band Slowdive. It was released on 2 September 1991 by Creation Records.
Whirlpool is the debut studio album by English shoegaze band Chapterhouse. It was released on 29 April 1991 by Dedicated Records.
Ask Me Tomorrow is the debut album by Mojave 3, released by 4AD on 16 October 1995 in the UK and on 16 January 1996 in the US. The album was released roughly eight months after the release of Pygmalion, the third studio album by Mojave 3 founders Neil Halstead, Rachel Goswell, and Ian McCutcheon's previous band Slowdive.
Walls is a studio album by Apparat. It was released on Shitkatapult in 2007.
The Outside Your Room EP is the fourth EP by English shoegaze band Slowdive. Its title is taken from the lyrics of the song "Alison", which was also a single from their album Souvlaki. It reached No. 69 in the UK Singles Chart.
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Slowdive is the fourth studio album by English rock band Slowdive. It was released on 5 May 2017 by the record label Dead Oceans. It was Slowdive's first studio album in 22 years, following Pygmalion (1995). It was also the band's first album since Souvlaki (1993) to feature the drummer Simon Scott as a member.
Christian Savill is an English musician best known as the guitarist of the English rock band Slowdive.
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{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link){{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)[A] masterpiece. 'Rutti''s chiming, warm guitar and almost In a Silent Way-era Miles Davis-like percussion is just gorgeous...
