Recess (album)

Last updated

Recess
RecessSkrillex.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedMarch 14, 2014 (2014-03-14)
Recorded2013–2014
Genre
Length46:34
Label
Producer
Skrillex chronology
Leaving
(2013)
Recess
(2014)
Skrillex and Diplo Present Jack Ü
(2015)
Singles from Recess
  1. "Try It Out"
    Released: October 14, 2013
  2. "Recess"
    Released: July 7, 2014
  3. "Ragga Bomb"
    Released: November 24, 2014
  4. "Dirty Vibe"
    Released: December 15, 2014

Recess is the debut studio album by American record producer Skrillex, released on March 14, 2014, by Owsla, Big Beat Records, and Atlantic Records. [5] [6] It was recorded between 2013 and 2014 whilst Skrillex was touring around the world. [7]

Contents

Recess received mixed reviews from music critics. It charted in multiple countries worldwide and became his highest-charting release in the United States and the United Kingdom. [8] Rolling Stone later ranked it at number 22 on their 50 Best Albums of 2014 list. [9]

Marketing

Promotion

On March 7, 2014, Skrillex took part in an "ask me anything" online Reddit post. [10] To coincide with this question-and-answer session, his website was changed to redirect to a page featuring a talking alien face, based on the Apple emoji. "The face played short samples from album tracks when you clicked it." He released a mobile app, Alien Ride, on the same day which features an arcade-style objective where the spaceship has to destroy asteroids. The app displayed a countdown. [11] [12]

When the countdown reached zero, the first song from the album was available to stream through the app. This continued in regular 30 minute intervals until the entire album was streamable for a limited time via the app. [12] [13]

Singles

"Try It Out (Neon Mix)" with Alvin Risk was released as the album's lead single on October 14, 2013, alongside two more mixes of the song. It charted in France at number 185. The title track, "Recess", was added to BBC Radio 1's C-List on March 19, 2014, and entered several countries' iTunes charts including the United States and United Kingdom. [14] The song entered the UK Singles Chart at number 57 upon album release, and was released as a single alongside remixes on July 7, 2014. "Ease My Mind", "All Is Fair in Love and Brostep" and "Dirty Vibe" also entered the iTunes charts in various countries.

The music video for "Ragga Bomb" was released on April 1, 2014 [15] and the song entered the Flanders Ultratip 100 at number 75. A remix EP entitled Ease My Mind v Ragga Bomb Remixes was released on November 24, 2014, with both songs doubling up as the single. "Dirty Vibe" was released as the album's fourth single in the form of another remix EP on December 15, 2014.

Other songs

"Doompy Poomp" was released on June 8, 2013, in collaboration with graphic designer Mishka for free download through his website. [16] "Stranger" features on the Divergent soundtrack, released shortly before the album. [17] [18] The first song, "All Is Fair in Love and Brostep" debuted as a demo on his BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix. [19] The song "Terror Squad" by electronic music producer Zomboy was inspired by the demo version known officially as "untitled DJ tool" or unofficially as "This Much Power". As a result, Skrillex used a sample from "Terror Squad" that says "It's fucking Zomboy", covering up the "Zomboy" with a distorted and pitched down laugh. [20]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 59/100 [21]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [22]
Consequence of Sound C+ [23]
Fact Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [24]
Los Angeles Times Star full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [25]
Now Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [26]
Pitchfork 5.7/10 [27]
PopMatters Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [1]
Resident Advisor Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [3]
Rolling Stone Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [28]
Spin 7/10 [29]

At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has received an average score of 59 based on 15 reviews indicating "mixed or average reviews". [21]

Commercial performance

The album debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200 chart, with first week sales of 48,000 copies in the United States. [30] As of January 2015, it has sold 150,000 copies. [31]

Track listing

Recess track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."All Is Fair in Love and Brostep" (featuring Ragga Twins) Skrillex 4:08
2."Recess" (with Kill the Noise featuring Fatman Scoop and Michael Angelakos)
3:57
3."Stranger" (with KillaGraham featuring Sam Dew)
  • Skrillex
  • KillaGraham
4:49
4."Try It Out" (Neon Mix; with Alvin Risk)
3:49
5."Coast Is Clear" (featuring Chance the Rapper and The Social Experiment)
4:03
6."Dirty Vibe" (with Diplo featuring G-Dragon and CL)
3:26
7."Ragga Bomb" (featuring Ragga Twins)
  • Moore
  • T. Destouche
  • D. Destouche
Skrillex4:18
8."Doompy Poomp"MooreSkrillex3:25
9."Fuck That"MooreSkrillex3:50
10."Ease My Mind" (featuring Niki & The Dove)Skrillex5:02
11."Fire Away" (featuring Kid Harpoon)
Skrillex5:42
Total length:46:34

Notes

Sample credits

Charts

Release history

Release history and formats for Recess
RegionDateFormatLabelRef.
AustraliaMarch 14, 2014 [58]
EuropeMarch 17, 2014
North AmericaMarch 18, 2014 [12] [13]
Various (Record Store Day exclusive)April 20, 2014 Cassette [59]

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