Wild Loneliness

Last updated
Wild Loneliness
Superchunk - Wild Loneliness.jpg
Studio album by
Superchunk
ReleasedFebruary 25, 2022 (2022-02-25)
Length38:30
Label Merge
Superchunk chronology
What a Time to Be Alive
(2018)		Wild Loneliness
(2022)
Wild Loneliness ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic? 7.6/10 [1]
Metacritic 81/100 [2]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [3]
The A.V. Club B+ [4]
Exclaim! 8/10 [5]
Kerrang! 4/5 [6]
PopMatters 7/10 [7]

Wild Loneliness is the twelfth studio album by the American indie rock band Superchunk. It was released on February 25, 2022, [8] by Merge Records. Ahead of the album release, the band put out three singles: "Endless Summer," [9] [10] "This Night," [11] and "On the Floor." [12]

Contents

The album was recorded under COVID lockdown in the band's home state of North Carolina. It was mixed by Wally Gagel, who also mixed the band's fifth album, Here's Where the Strings Come In (1995). [10] Guest artists featuring on the record include Sharon Van Etten, Norman Blake and Raymond McGinley of Teenage Fanclub, Mike Mills of R.E.M., Andy Stack of Wye Oak, and Tracyanne Campbell of Camera Obscura. [13]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Superchunk.

No.TitleLength
1."City of the Dead"4:25
2."Endless Summer"4:14
3."On the Floor"3:38
4."Highly Suspect"4:38
5."Set It Aside"2:20
6."This Night"4:36
7."Wild Loneliness"3:03
8."Refracting"2:51
9."Connection"4:39
10."If You're Not Dark"4:08
Total length:38:30
Japanese edition bonus tracks [14]
No.TitleLength
11."Wild Loneliness" (Acoustic Demo)2:25
12."This Night" (Acoustic Demo)4:17
Total length:45:18

Personnel

Reception

Wild Loneliness received positive reviews from critics. [15]

Writing in Pitchfork, Steve Kandell summarized the album as a “moodier” and “more subdued” work by the band that “get[s] to the heart of some fun topics like fear and ambivalence in the face of environmental and societal ruin”, overall giving it a 7.9 out of 10 rating. [16]

Alex McLevy of The A.V. Club gave the album a B+ and wrote: “So many bands settle into a rut as they mature, but what has always kept Superchunk so invigorating through the years is how the music and lyrics have continued to evolve in ways befitting an indie-rock group whose sound has served as the template for a million imitators”, and describing it as “one of the long-running group’s most tender albums” [17]

PopMatters critic Kevin Kearney called the album a “a course correction after 2018’s uneven What a Time to Be Alive”, giving it a 7/10. [18]

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References

  1. ↑ "Wild Loneliness by Superchunk reviews". AnyDecentMusic. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
  2. ↑ "Wild Loneliness by Superchunk Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
  3. ↑ Thomas, Fred. "Wild Loneliness - Superchunk". AllMusic. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
  4. ↑ McLevy, Alex (February 22, 2022). "Superchunk's Wild Loneliness reaffirms the band's place in the pantheon of indie-rock greats". The A.V. Club. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
  5. ↑ Khanna, Vish (February 23, 2022). "Superchunk Wage War Against Wild Loneliness with Infectious Sweetness". Exclaim!. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
  6. ↑ Sutherland, Mark (February 22, 2022). "Album review: Superchunk - Wild Loneliness". Kerrang!. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
  7. ↑ Kearney, Kevin (February 25, 2022). "Superchunk Try to Imagine a Brighter Future on Wild Loneliness". PopMatters. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
  8. ↑ "Wild Loneliness - Merge Records" . Retrieved 2022-01-20.
  9. ↑ Hussey, Allison (2021-12-07). "Superchunk Announce New Album Wild Loneliness, Share New Song "Endless Summer": Listen". Pitchfork . Retrieved 2022-01-22.
  10. 1 2 Russell, Scott (2021-12-07). "Superchunk Announce New Album Wild Loneliness, Share "Endless Summer"". Paste . Retrieved 2022-01-22.
  11. ↑ Natanawan, Grace (2022-01-19). "Superchunk Share Latest Single 'This Night' From Wild Loneliness". Spin . Retrieved 2022-01-22.
  12. ↑ Soutar, Elise (2022-02-07). "Superchunk Share New Single, "On the Floor"". Paste . Retrieved 2022-03-23.
  13. ↑ Pearis, Bill (2021-12-07). "Superchunk announce guest-filled new album & 2022 tour (listen to "Endless Summer")". BrooklynVegan . Retrieved 2022-01-22.
  14. ↑ "Superchunk | Big Nothing / Wild Loneliness". ビッグ・ナッシング / ワイルド・ロンリネス (in Japanese). Retrieved January 30, 2023.
  15. ↑ "Wild Loneliness by Superchunk". Metacritic .
  16. ↑ "Superchunk: Wild Loneliness". Pitchfork .
  17. ↑ "Superchunk Wild Loneliness review: Indie-rock royalty stays fit". The A.V. Club . 22 February 2022.
  18. ↑ "Superchunk: Wild Loneliness (Album Review)". 25 February 2022.
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