Winter Women and Holy Ghost Language School

Last updated
Winter Women/Holy Ghost Language School
WW-HLS cover.jpg
Studio album by Matthew Friedberger
Released August 8, 2006
Recorded 2005/2006
Genre Indie rock
Length108:53
Label 859 Recordings, Thrill Jockey (2009 reissue)
Producer Matthew Friedberger, Bill Skibbe
Alternative cover

Winterwomenreissue.jpg

2009 Reissue on Thrill Jockey
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [1]
Pitchfork Media (5.0/10) [2]
The A.V. Club (B/C-) [3]
Rolling Stone Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [4]

Winter Women and Holy Ghost Language School are two albums by Matthew Friedberger of The Fiery Furnaces recorded, unlike The Fiery Furnaces records, without his sister Eleanor Friedberger. Though two separate albums, they were released together as a double album by 859 Recordings in August 2006. It was rereleased in October 2009 on Thrill Jockey Records.

Matthew Friedberger is an American singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist best known for his work with the indie rock duo The Fiery Furnaces along his sister Eleanor Friedberger.

The Fiery Furnaces American band

The Fiery Furnaces are an American indie rock band, formed in 2000 in Brooklyn, New York. The band's primary members are Matthew and Eleanor Friedberger. The siblings are originally from Oak Park, Illinois, a near-western suburb of Chicago. They are known for their conceptual, highly ambitious releases, which have frequently divided critical opinion.

Eleanor Friedberger American musician

Eleanor Friedberger is an American singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. She is best known as one half of the indie rock duo The Fiery Furnaces, alongside her older brother Matthew Friedberger. In the band she contributes the majority of the vocals both on record and during their live performances.

Contents

Track listing

Winter Women – 62:44

  1. "Under the Hood at the Paradise Garage" – 4:06
  2. "The Pennsylvania Rock Oil Co. Resignation Letter" – 3:43
  3. "Up the River" – 4:29
  4. "Ruth vs. Richard" – 2:51
  5. "Her Chinese Typewriter" – 4:21
  6. "Big Bill Crib and His Ladies of the Desert" – 3:21
  7. "Don't You Remember?" – 3:45
  8. "Becha Don’t" – 2:54
  9. "P.S. 213 Mini"-School – 3:54
  10. "Theme from Never Going Home Again" – 2:44
  11. "Motorman" – 5:58
  12. "Quick as Cupid" – 3:47
  13. "I Love You Cedric" – 4:39
  14. "Servant in Distress" – 3:28
  15. "Hialeah" – 2:56
  16. "Wisconsin River Blues" – 5:40

Bonus Tracks from 2009 rerelease-

  1. "Rio Tinto" - 3:50
  2. "260 Northern Blvd." - 3:02

Holy Ghost Language School – 46:09

  1. Seventh Loop Highway – 3:57
  2. Holy Ghost Language School – 4:13
  3. The Cross and the Switchblade – 3:54
  4. I Started Using Alcohol at the Age of Eleven – 3:57
  5. Do You Like Blondes? – 2:50
  6. Azusa St. – 4:24
  7. Topeka and San Antonio – 3:40
  8. A Mystical Preparative to Lewdness – 2:47
  9. Ship Scrap Beach Business – 2:18
  10. First Day of School – 2:50
  11. Things Were Going So Well – 4:07
  12. All in Vain or the Opposite – 5:05
  13. Moral and Epilogue – 2:00

Bonus Tracks from 2009 rerelease-

  1. "Rain" - 12:43
  2. "Porcupine Posed a Prickly Problem" - 11:53

Additional information

Despite the solo albums The Fiery Furnaces will continue releasing new material as a group. When asked by Pitchfork Media about the reason for them being recorded/released separately Matthew, who writes most of the music and lyrics for The Fiery Furnaces responded with:

"Eleanor's on vacation, We have a logjam of records, so [this is] the only way to have something come out relatively quickly. And I don't have to bother Eleanor to get her to sing all this crap, so...that's the advantage. It's an act of mercy."

Winter Women is also stated in the liner notes as being dedicated to Eleanor.

Liner notes

Liner notes are the writings found on the sleeves of LP record albums and in booklets which come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for vinyl records and cassettes.

While Winter Women is a more conventional collection of songs, the second record Holy Ghost Language School is a narrative-based concept album, although it has significantly fewer lyrics.

Concept album album with a theme

A concept album is an album in which its tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Sometimes the term is applied to albums considered to be of "uniform excellence" rather than an LP with an explicit musical or lyrical motif. There is no consensus among music critics as to the specific criteria for what a "concept album" is.

Matthew Friedberger played the majority of the instruments on the records and did most of the production work but John McEntire from Tortoise and Josh Johannpeter from Mahjongg helped out by providing some of the non-synthesized drums.

John McEntire American musician

John McEntire is an American recording engineer, producer, drummer and multi-instrumentalist based in Chicago. He is a member of both Tortoise and the Sea and Cake.

Tortoise (band) American post-rock band

Tortoise is an American experimental rock band formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1990. The band incorporates krautrock, dub, minimal music, electronica and jazz into their music, a combination sometimes termed "post-rock". Since the release of their 1994 eponymous album, Tortoise has been consistently credited for the rise of the post-rock movement in the 1990s.

Mahjongg was a band based in Columbia, Missouri and Chicago, Illinois. Formed by multi-instrumentalist Hunter Husar and guitarist Jeff Carrillo in 2001, their sound combined guitar, synthesizer and computer manipulations with dense rhythmic textures derived from Afrobeat, funk, and post-punk.

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References

  1. ↑ Phares, Heather. Winter Women and Holy Ghost Language School at AllMusic
  2. ↑ Pitchfork Media review
  3. ↑ The Onion A.V. Club review
  4. ↑ Rolling Stone review
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