Sorry I Haven't Called

Last updated

Sorry I Haven't Called
Vagabon - Sorry I Haven't Called.png
Studio album by
ReleasedSeptember 15, 2023 (2023-09-15)
Recorded2021–2022
Length34:07
Label Nonesuch
Producer
Vagabon chronology
Vagabon
(2019)
Sorry I Haven't Called
(2023)
Singles from Vagabon
  1. "Carpenter"
    Released: January 13, 2023
  2. "Can I Talk My Shit?"
    Released: June 15, 2023
  3. "Do Your Worst"
    Released: July 20, 2023
  4. "Lexicon"
    Released: September 12, 2023

Sorry I Haven't Called is the third studio album by Cameroon-born musician Laetitia Tamko, under the stage name Vagabon. It was released on September 15, 2023, through Nonesuch.

Contents

Background

Tamko moved to a remote village in Northern Germany in late 2021, where she wrote and recorded most of the album. The project is dedicated to collaborator Eric Littmann, who died in June 2021. [1] However, she clarified that the music had nothing to do with her grief but being "full of life and energy". [2] According to her, she did not intend to be "introspective" but just wanted to have fun with the album. [3] The album was co-produced by Tamko herself and Rostam Batmanglij of Vampire Weekend, who helped her finish the record in late 2022. [4] Inspired by dance music, the record represents the way she communicates with her friends and lovers. [5] She believes that "honesty and conversational songwriting can become poetry" without the use of "metaphors and without flowery imagery". [6]

She announced the album on June 15, 2023, and released the lead single "Can I Talk My Shit?", an "understated and blissfully chill track", the same day. [3] Along with the record, Tamko announced a set of headlining shows in the United States and Europe with supporting act Weyes Blood starting in October 2023. [2]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.5/10 [7]
Metacritic 79/100 [8]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [9]
Clash 8/10 [10]
DIY Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [11]
Loud and Quiet 8/10 [12]
MusicOMH Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [13]
Paste 8.3/10 [14]
Pitchfork 7.4/10 [15]
The Skinny Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [16]
Slant Magazine Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [17]

Sorry I Haven't Called received a score of 79 out of 100 on review aggregator Metacritic based on eight critics' reviews, indicating a "generally favorable" reception. [8] Jo Higgs at The Skinny could confirm the intentions behind the record and stated that the album is indeed "not premised on sorrow but instead delineates a pathway to joy", calling it another one of Tamko's "majestic reinventions". [16] Likewise, DIY 's Jack Terry reiterated Tamko's sentiments when recording the album, calling it a "pursuit of happiness" without the use of "mysterious metaphors or lofty linguistics". [11] Charles Lyons-Burt of Slant Magazine thought Tamko delivered a "serviceable enough pop effort" but most of her "edges have been sadly sanded away", as she "leans in a more tonally upbeat direction than her previous releases". [17] Reviewing the album for Pitchfork , Mary Retta described it as a "bright, dewy electro-pop album [that] depicts growing up with candor and levity" as well as observing that it "illustrates a shift in Tamko's storytelling: She sidesteps diffuse, open-ended imagery for blunt, informal observations". [15]

Track listing

Sorry I Haven't Called track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Can I Talk My Shit?"
3:25
2."Carpenter"
  • Tamko
  • McLaine
  • Tamko
  • Batmanglij
  • McLaine [a]
3:19
3."You Know How"
  • Tamko
  • Batmanglij
  • Tamko
  • Batmanglij
2:44
4."Lexicon"
  • Tamko
  • Batmanglij
  • Manierka-Quaile [a]
2:57
5."Passing Me By"
  • Tamko
  • McLaine
  • Tamko
  • Batmanglij
  • McLaine [a]
3:13
6."Autobahn"
  • Tamko
  • Manierka-Quaile
  • Tamko
  • Batmanglij
  • Manierka-Quaile [a]
3:28
7."Nothing to Lose"Tamko
  • Tamko
  • Batmanglij
2:22
8."It's a Crisis"
  • Tamko
  • Batmanglij
  • Tamko
  • Batmanglij
2:32
9."Do Your Worst"
  • Tamko
  • Jakob Hersch
  • Sadek Massarweh
3:27
10."Interlude"Tamko
  • Tamko
  • Batmanglij
  • Manierka-Qualie [a]
0:44
11."Made Out with Your Best Friend"
  • Tamko
  • Batmanglij
  • Manierka-Quaile
  • Tamko
  • Batmanglij
  • Manierka-Quaile [a]
2:45
12."Anti-Fuck"
  • Tamko
  • BatmanglijHersch
  • Tamko
  • Batmanglij
  • Hersch [a]
  • Massarweh [a]
3:11
Total length:34:07

Note

Personnel

Musicians

Technical

Charts

Chart performance for Sorry I Haven't Called
Chart (2023)Peak
position
Hungarian Physical Albums (MAHASZ) [18] 11

References

  1. Chiu, David (September 12, 2023). "Vagabon Takes a New Outlook On 'Sorry I Haven't Called'". Newsweek . Retrieved September 13, 2023.
  2. 1 2 Ruiz, Matthew Ismael (June 15, 2023). "Vagabon Announces Tour Dates and Album, Shares Video for New Song: Watch". Pitchfork . Retrieved September 13, 2023.
  3. 1 2 Geiger, Amy (June 15, 2023). "Vagabon taps Rostam for new LP 'Sorry I Haven't Called,' shares "Can I Talk My Shit?"". BrooklynVegan . Retrieved September 13, 2023.
  4. Jamieson, Sarah (June 15, 2023). "Vagabon announces new album 'Sorry I Haven't Called'". DIY . Retrieved September 13, 2023.
  5. Murray, Robin (June 15, 2023). "Vagabon Announces New Album 'Sorry I Haven't Called'". Clash . Retrieved September 13, 2023.
  6. Gonzalez, Alex (June 15, 2023). "Vagabon Asks 'Can I Talk My Sh*t,' And Has Earned The Right To Do So As She Kicks Off Her 'Sorry I Haven't Called' Album Era". Uproxx . Retrieved September 13, 2023.
  7. "Vagabon – Sorry I Haven't Called", anydecentmusic.com, AnyDecentMusic?, retrieved June 28, 2024
  8. 1 2 "Sorry I Haven't Called by Vagabon Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic . Retrieved September 15, 2023.
  9. Paul Simpson. Sorry I Haven't Called (review) at AllMusic. Retrieved 2024-06-28.
  10. Lauren Dehollogne (September 18, 2023), "Vagabon – Sorry I Haven't Called", clashmusic.com, Clash , retrieved June 28, 2024
  11. 1 2 Terry, Jack. "Vagabon – Sorry I Haven't Called review". DIY . Retrieved September 13, 2023.
  12. Joe Goggins (September 18, 2023), "Vagabon – Sorry I Haven't Called", loudandquiet.com, Loud and Quiet , retrieved June 28, 2024
  13. Ben Devlin (September 15, 2023), "Vagabon – Sorry I Haven't Called", musicomh.com, MusicOMH , retrieved June 28, 2024
  14. Simon Coates (September 14, 2023), "Vagabon Dances Into Catharsis on Sorry I Haven't Called", pastemagazine.com, Paste , retrieved June 28, 2024
  15. 1 2 Retta, Mary (September 22, 2023). "Vagabon: Sorry I Haven't Called Album Review". Pitchfork . Retrieved September 22, 2023.
  16. 1 2 Higgs, Jo (September 11, 2023). "Vagabon – Sorry I Haven't Called". The Skinny . Retrieved September 13, 2023.
  17. 1 2 Lyons-Burt, Charles (September 11, 2023). "Vagabon Sorry I Haven't Called Review: A Good-Mannered Pop Album". Slant Magazine . Retrieved September 13, 2023.
  18. "Album Top 40 slágerlista (fizikai hanghordozók) – 2023. 38. hét". MAHASZ . Retrieved September 27, 2023.