Static & Silence

Static & Silence
Studio album by The Sundays
Released	22 September 1997
Genre	Indie pop dream pop
Length	38:46 (UK edition) 42:14 (US edition)
Label	Parlophone Geffen
Producer	David Gavurin Harriet Wheeler
The Sundays chronology
Blind (1992) Static & Silence (1997)
Singles from Static & Silence
"Summertime" Released: 8 September 1997 "Cry" Released: 10 November 1997

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Entertainment Weekly	A− [2]
The Guardian	[3]
Los Angeles Times	[4]
NME	3/10 [5]
Pitchfork	8.8/10 [6]
Rolling Stone	[7]
Select	4/5 [8]
The Times	8/10 [9]
USA Today	[10]

Static & Silence is the third and final studio album by English alternative rock band The Sundays. It was released in the UK by Parlophone on 22 September 1997 and in the US by Geffen on 23 September 1997. The title is a quote from the album's final track, "Monochrome," and the album's cover photo refers to the subject of "Monochrome," the TV screening of the Apollo 11 Moon landing.

Guitarist and leader David Gavurin has said that by the time of the recording of Static & Silence, the band had mellowed somewhat with age. He and his wife, Harriet Wheeler, were influenced more by Van Morrison, who gave some songs on the album their folk-rock bent ("Folk Song" even quotes from Morrison's "And It Stoned Me"). The couple had also been listening to Frank Sinatra songs and 1960s French film music.

Kevin Jamieson, who performed some percussion work on the album, joined The Sundays as a backup guitarist during their UK and US album support tour. He is perhaps best known for his prior work as the lead singer for Jim Jiminee.

Singles

Lead single "Summertime" charted at No. 15 in the UK Singles Chart, making it their highest-charting single in their home country, at No. 10 and 13 on the US Modern Rock and Adult Top 40 charts, respectively, ^{[11] [12] [13]} and at No. 41 in Australia. ^[14] The Second single, "Cry," peaked at No. 44 on the UK Singles Chart. ^[11]

Track listing

All songs written by David Gavurin and Harriet Wheeler.

UK version

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Summertime"	3:34
2.	"Homeward"	3:49
3.	"Folk Song"	3:04
4.	"She"	3:07
5.	"When I'm Thinking About You"	4:17
6.	"I Can't Wait"	2:23
7.	"Another Flavour"	3:18
8.	"Leave This City"	4:24
9.	"Your Eyes"	2:30
10.	"Cry"	4:05
11.	"Monochrome"	4:15

US version

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Summertime"	3:34
2.	"Homeward"	3:49
3.	"Folk Song"	3:04
4.	"She"	3:07
5.	"When I'm Thinking About You"	4:17
6.	"I Can't Wait"	2:23
7.	"Cry"	4:05
8.	"Another Flavour"	3:18
9.	"Leave This City"	4:24
10.	"Your Eyes"	2:30
11.	"So Much"	4:05
12.	"Monochrome"	4:15

Japan version bonus tracks

No.	Title	Length
12.	"Through The Dark" (B-side of "Cry")	4:25
13.	"Gone" (B-side of "Summertime")	3:53
14.	"Nothing Sweet" (B-side of "Summertime)	3:02

Personnel

• Harriet Wheeler – vocals, string arrangements and orchestration, brass and flute orchestration
• David Gavurin – guitar, Hammond organ, piano, percussion, string arrangements and orchestration, brass and flute arrangements and orchestration
• Paul Brindley – bass
• Patrick Hannan – drums
• Dave Anderson – Hammond organ, piano
• Kev Jamieson – Hammond organ, piano
• Martin Ditcham – percussion
• Dave Pulfreman – percussion
• Audrey Riley – string arrangements and orchestration
• Martin Green – brass and flute arrangements and orchestration

Charts

Chart performance for Static & Silence

Chart (1997)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA) [15]	45
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ) [16]	33
UK Albums (OCC) [11]	10
US Billboard 200 [17]	33

References

1. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Static & Silence – The Sundays". AllMusic . Retrieved 21 January 2016.
2. Johnson, Beth (7 November 1997). "Album Review: 'Static and Silence'". Entertainment Weekly . Archived from the original on 27 September 2022. Retrieved 17 May 2018.
3. Sweeney, Kathy (19 September 1997). "The Sundays: Static and Silence (Parlophone)". The Guardian .
4. Hochman, Steve (5 October 1997). "The Sundays, 'Static & Silence,' DGC". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved 30 June 2024.
5. Beaumont, Mark (20 September 1997). "The Sundays – Static And Silence". NME . Archived from the original on 17 August 2000. Retrieved 30 June 2024.
6. Schreiber, Ryan. "The Sundays: Static and Silence". Pitchfork . Archived from the original on 28 January 2001. Retrieved 17 May 2018.
7. Hamilton, Jill (30 October 1997). "The Sundays: Static & Silence". Rolling Stone . Archived from the original on 22 July 2009. Retrieved 21 January 2016.
8. Phelan, Dan (October 1997). "The Sundays: Static and Silence". Select . No. 88.
9. Pattenden, Mike (20 September 1997). "The Sundays: Static & Silence". The Times .
10. Gundersen, Edna (14 October 1997). "The Sundays, Static and Silence". USA Today .
11. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 20 October 2022.
12. "The Sundays - Alternative Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
13. "The Sundays - Adult Pop Songs Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
14. Summertime @ Australian-Charts.com Retrieved May 2009
15. "Australiancharts.com – The Sundays – Static & Silence". Hung Medien. Retrieved 20 October 2022.
16. "Charts.nz – The Sundays – Static & Silence". Hung Medien. Retrieved 20 October 2022.
17. "The Sundays > Chart History > Billboard 200". Billboard . Archived from the original on 30 August 2018. Retrieved 20 October 2022.

External links

• Static & Silence at Discogs (list of releases)