| The Slow Wonder | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | June 8, 2004 | |||
| Recorded | 2003 | |||
| Genre | Indie rock | |||
| Length | 33:24 | |||
| Label | Matador, Last Gang | |||
| Producer |
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| A. C. Newman chronology | ||||
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The Slow Wonder is the debut solo album by A. C. Newman, who is better known as the frontman of The New Pornographers and Zumpano. It was released in 2004 on Matador Records and Last Gang Records.
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 80/100 [1] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
| Alternative Press | 3/5 [3] |
| Drowned in Sound | 9/10 [4] |
| Now | 4/5 [5] |
| Paste |  [6] |
| Pitchfork | 8.8/10 [7] |
| Q | [8] |
| Rolling Stone | [9] |
| Spin | A− [10] |
| Uncut | [11] |
The Slow Wonder was met with generally positive reviews, with a Metacritic rating of 80 out of 100 based on 21 reviews. [1] Brandon Stosuy of Pitchfork said the album "fits together for a taut 34 minutes without lags or rough spots" and could be "viewed as collection of singles." [7] Tim Sendra of AllMusic wrote that standout tracks such as new wave sound of Secretarial combined with the sunny power pop of "Miracle Drug" or "On the Table" makes "[The Slow Wonder] essential". [2] In another positive review, Rolling Stone said "Newman pens melodies that seem to have sprung from the collective unconscious and then encases them in bright, lush power-pop arrangements." [9]
There were a handful of less than positive views on the album. Alternative Press said the album "sounded like demos" Newman was preparing for a future release. [3] Although Anthony Miccio of The Village Voice wrote "uptempo grins like "On the Table" make denying the pleasantness of it all impossible," he proceeded in criticizing it for just being "pop," and being "just something to zone out to." [12]
The song "On the Table" was featured on the television program The O.C. , and appeared on its official soundtrack.
Spoon is an American rock band from Austin, Texas, consisting of members Britt Daniel, Jim Eno (drums), Alex Fischel, Gerardo Larios and Ben Trokan. The band was formed in Austin in October 1993 by Daniel and Eno. Critics have described the band's musical style as rock, pop, art rock, and experimental rock.
The New Pornographers are a Canadian indie rock band, formed in 1997 in Vancouver. Presented as a musical collective and supergroup of singer-songwriters and musicians from multiple projects, the band has released nine studio albums to date. The band have received critical acclaim for their use of multiple vocalists and songwriters, as well as for the elements of power pop incorporated into their music. Pitchfork has described the band's sound as "peppy, gleeful, headstrong guitar pop", while Stereogum has retrospectively praised the band's debut album Mass Romantic as "one of the greatest and most immediate power pop albums ever rendered".
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The Fresh & Onlys are an American rock band. They were formed in San Francisco, California, United States, in 2008 by Tim Cohen of Black Fiction, bassist Shayde Sartin and guitarist Wymond Miles. A year later they recruited drummer Kyle Gibson. They are a key band in what has been described as San Francisco's "new garage rock" movement, but their sound is equally aligned with pastoral psychedelia, brooding new wave, western twang, and jangly literate 1980s guitar pop.
Cherish the Light Years is the second studio album from the American band Cold Cave, released on April 5, 2011 on Matador Records.
Allan Carl Newman is a Canadian musician and singer–songwriter. He was a member of the indie rock bands Superconductor and Zumpano in the 1990s. Following the breakup of those bands, he reemerged as the leader of the New Pornographers in 2000, a band who have enjoyed both commercial and critical success.
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