Songs (John Maus album)

Last updated
Songs
Songs (John Maus) (Front Cover).png
Studio album by
ReleasedJune 27, 2006 (2006-06-27)
Recorded1999–2004
Genre Dark wave [1]
Length45:36
Label Upset the Rhythm
Producer John Maus
John Maus chronology
I Want to Live!
(2003)
Songs
(2006)
Love Is Real
(2007)

Songs is the first official album by American lo-fi musician John Maus, released on June 27, 2006 by the British label Upset the Rhythm. [2] The album was recorded over the course of five years. [3] It consists of slightly remixed tracks that originally appeared on the self-released albums Snowless Winters EP (1999), Love Letters From Hell (2000), and I Want to Live! (2003).

Contents

Reception

Maus performing in 2007 John Maus (2116047976) (cropped).jpg
Maus performing in 2007

Upon release, the album generally drew negative reviews from critics. [4] CMJ stated, "It took this Ariel Pink cohort five years to write and record his debut album, and only five minutes to become more annoying than Ariel Pink." [4] Tiny Mix Tapes gave the LP a four-star review, in which they wrote that Maus's singing "is always an effortless balance between weird visceral descriptions, deadpan humor and the uncomfortably honest." [3]

Track listing

All tracks are written by John Maus.

No.TitleLength
1."Opening"1:09
2."Time to Die"3:25
3."Don't Be a Body"3:13
4."That Night"1:13
5."Real Bad Job"2:39
6."Forever and Ever and Ever" (featuring Ariel Pink)4:16
7."Maniac"3:35
8."Just Wait Till Next Year"2:26
9."I'm Only Human"2:42
10."Less Talk More Action"1:46
11."Through the Skies for You"3:05
12."Blowing in the Mind" (featuring Ariel Pink)3:14
13."Of North of North Stars"2:10
14."It Takes Time"2:29
15."The Peace That Earth Cannot Give"2:49
16."And Heaven Turned to Her Weeping"5:25
Total length:45:36

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Music from Big Pink</i> 1968 studio album by The Band

Music from Big Pink is the debut studio album by the Band. Released in 1968, it employs a distinctive blend of country, rock, folk, classical, R&B, and soul. The music was composed partly in "Big Pink", a house shared by Rick Danko, Richard Manuel and Garth Hudson in West Saugerties, New York. The album itself was recorded in studios in New York and Los Angeles in 1968, and followed the band's backing of Bob Dylan on his 1966 tour and time spent together in upstate New York recording material that was officially released in 1975 as The Basement Tapes, also with Dylan. The cover artwork is a painting by Dylan.

<i>Pink Moon</i> 1972 studio album by Nick Drake

Pink Moon is the third and final studio album by the English musician Nick Drake, released in the UK by Island Records on 25 February 1972. It was the only one of Drake's studio albums to be released in North America during his lifetime: the only previous release there had been a 1971 compilation simply entitled Nick Drake featuring tracks from both his first two albums, which were not released in North America in their original forms until 1976. Pink Moon differs from Drake's previous albums in that it was recorded without a backing band, featuring just Drake on vocals, acoustic guitar and a brief piano riff overdubbed onto the title track.

<i>Sung Tongs</i> 2004 studio album by Animal Collective

Sung Tongs is the fifth studio album by American experimental pop band Animal Collective, released on May 3, 2004 by FatCat Records. The album generated much praise from critics upon its release and was featured in best-of lists at the end of 2004 and the decade of the 2000s.

<i>Spirit Theyre Gone, Spirit Theyve Vanished</i> 2000 studio album by Avey Tare and Panda Bear

Spirit They're Gone, Spirit They've Vanished is the first collaborative studio album by Avey Tare and Panda Bear, released in August 2000. It was later retroactively classified as the debut album by experimental pop band Animal Collective. The album was first released as a CD on the band's own Animal label with only 2000 copies produced.

<i>Prospect Hummer</i> 2005 EP by Animal Collective

Prospect Hummer is an EP by Animal Collective released in May 2005. It is an accompaniment to Sung Tongs.

Black Dice band

Black Dice is an American experimental rock group currently based in Brooklyn, New York.

<i>Lover Boy</i> (album) 2002 studio album by Ariel Pinks Haunted Graffiti

Lover Boy is the sixth studio album by the American recording artist Ariel Pink, under the artist's "Haunted Graffiti" musical project. It is the sixth release in the eponymous series of works.

<i>Tiny Mix Tapes</i> Website

Tiny Mix Tapes is an online music and film webzine that focuses primarily on new music and related news. In addition to its reviews, it is noted for its subversive, political, and sometimes surreal news, as well as its mixtape generator.

John Maus American musician

John Maus is an American musician, composer, singer, and songwriter known for his baritone singing style and his use of vintage synthesizer sounds and Medieval church modes, a combination that often draws comparisons to 1980s goth-pop. His early lo-fi recordings anticipated and inspired the late 2000s hypnagogic pop movement. On stage, he is characterized for his intense displays of emotion while performing. He is also a former teacher of philosophy at the University of Hawaii, where he later earned his PhD in political science.

Ariel Pink is a Los Angeles-based indie artist and musician. Pink boasts a cult following and endorsements from more widely known artists such as fellow founding Paw Tracks group Animal Collective.

Ariel Pink American musician

Ariel Marcus Rosenberg, also known as Ariel Pink, is an American musician, singer, and songwriter whose work draws heavily from 1970s–1980s pop radio. His lo-fi aesthetic and home-recorded albums proved influential to many indie musicians starting in the late 2000s. He is frequently cited as "godfather" of the hypnagogic pop and chillwave movements, and he is credited with galvanizing a larger trend involving the evocation of the media, sounds, and outmoded technologies of prior decades.

<i>Putrifiers II</i> 2012 studio album by Thee Oh Sees

Putrifiers II is the thirteenth studio album by the American garage rock band Thee Oh Sees, released on September 11, 2012 on In The Red Records.

<i>We Must Become the Pitiless Censors of Ourselves</i> 2011 studio album by John Maus

We Must Become the Pitiless Censors of Ourselves is the third album by American lo-fi musician John Maus, released on June 27, 2011. Its title is derived from French philosopher Alain Badiou's "Fifteen Theses on Contemporary Art". Maus said that he wrote the album in a "search for the perfect pop song". Upon release, the album was met with generally favorable reviews, a contrast from the reception of Maus' earlier work. Three singles were issued from the album: "Quantum Leap", "Believer" and "Hey Moon".

<i>The Bootleg Series Vol. 11: The Basement Tapes Complete</i> 2014 compilation album by Bob Dylan and the Band

The Bootleg Series Vol. 11: The Basement Tapes Complete is a compilation album of unreleased home recordings made in 1967 by Bob Dylan and the group of musicians that would become the Band, released on November 3, 2014 on Legacy Records. It is the ninth installment of the Bob Dylan Bootleg Series, available in the six-disc complete set and a two-disc set common to the rest of the series entitled The Basement Tapes Raw.

<i>Pom Pom</i> (album) 2014 studio album by Ariel Pink

Pom Pom is the tenth studio album by American recording artist Ariel Pink, released on November 17, 2014 through 4AD. It was his first release credited solely to himself, and his last on 4AD. Several of its songs were co-written with the ailing Kim Fowley, who died the following January. Critics generally gave the album positive reviews. Only one single was issued from the album: "Put Your Number in My Phone".

Hypnagogic pop Microgenre of pop music

Hypnagogic pop is pop or psychedelic music that evokes cultural memory and nostalgia for the popular entertainment of the past. It emerged in the mid to late 2000s as American lo-fi and noise musicians began adopting retro aesthetics remembered from their childhood, such as radio rock, new wave pop, lite rock, video game music, synth-pop, and R&B. Recordings circulated on cassette or Internet blogs and were typically marked by the use of outmoded analog equipment and DIY experimentation.

<i>Dedicated to Bobby Jameson</i> 2017 studio album by Ariel Pink

Dedicated to Bobby Jameson is the eleventh studio album by American recording artist Ariel Pink, released on September 15, 2017, through Mexican Summer. It is the follow-up to 2014's pom pom and features a narrative Pink described in a press release as "a battery of tests and milestones, the first of which sees him [the protagonist] reborn into life out of death." It peaked at number 193 on the Billboard 200 and received generally positive reviews from music critics.

<i>Screen Memories</i> (album) 2017 studio album by John Maus

Screen Memories is the fourth studio album by American musician John Maus, released on October 27, 2017. The album was his first set of newly-recorded music since We Must Become the Pitiless Censors of Ourselves (2011). Recorded in two years at his Austin, Minnesota home, most of its subject matter concerns apocalyptic themes inspired by the newsfeed of world events he garnered while making the LP. Some of its song structures and melodies were created with the aid of an artificial neural network.

<i>Addendum</i> (album) 2018 studio album by John Maus

Addendum is the fifth studio album by American musician John Maus, released on April 20, 2018. It is a twelve-track collection that serves as an "addendum" to his previous album Screen Memories (2017). As Maus explained, "It was really more that I made an album, but then I realized I had two albums worth of stuff." Accordingly, the songs on Addendum were made in a more "carefree" manner than Screen Memories and are most resemblant of his usual style.

<i>100% Electronica</i> 2015 studio album by George Clanton

100% Electronica is the debut album by American electronic musician George Clanton, released on September 25, 2015 by his independent record label 100% Electronica.

References

  1. Pemberton, Nathan (October 25, 2017). "John Maus Is Making Outsider Pop for the End of the World". Vulture .
  2. "Songs - John Maus - Songs, Reviews, Credits - AllMusic". AllMusic.
  3. 1 2 "John Maus Songs". Tiny Mix Tapes . 2006.
  4. 1 2 Reges, Margaret. "John Maus". AllMusic .