Young Blood (Marcus King album)

Last updated
Young Blood
Young Blood (Marcus King album).jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedAugust 26, 2022 (2022-08-26)
Studio Easy Eye (Nashville, Tennessee)
Genre Blues rock
Length42:41
Label
Producer Dan Auerbach
Marcus King chronology
El Dorado
(2020)
Young Blood
(2022)
Mood Swings
(2024)

Young Blood is the second solo studio album by American musician Marcus King. It was released on August 26, 2022 through Easy Eye Sound and American Recordings. Recording sessions took place at Easy Eye Sound Studios in Nashville. Production was handled by Dan Auerbach.

Contents

The songs "Hard Working Man" and "Blood on the Tracks" made it to the Billboard Adult Alternative Airplay chart, peaking at numbers 25 and 30, respectively.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 77/100 [1]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [2]
American Songwriter Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [3]
Mojo Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [4]
PopMatters 7/10 [5]
Uncut 6/10 [6]

Young Blood was met with universal acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 77 based on six reviews. [1]

AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine praised the album, writing: "King may be letting his feelings spill onto the page here -- his originals were written in the wake of a bad 2021 breakup -- but his signature stamp isn't emotionality so much as it's enthusiasm. He gets a thrill out of cranking up his amp and trying to sing as loud as his guitar, and that's the energy that truly fuels Young Blood". [2] Mark Blake of Mojo noted "King fulfils his promise. … His honey-rich voice and whipsmart guitar playing are the standouts here". [4] Hal Horowitz of American Songwriter stated: "Marcus King isn't pushing any boundaries on the leathery Young Blood, he doesn't need to. His talents as songwriter, singer, and guitarist are skillfully displayed in these dozen roots rockers that any musician in this genre would be proud to have crafted with the energy, enthusiasm, and sheer professionalism he displays". [3] Steve Horowitz of PopMatters declared: "fans of classic electric guitar-driven rock will nod knowingly when King adds a lick straight out of Iron Butterfly, the Steve Miller Band, or Jimi Hendrix. He's able to play both the song and the instrumental commentary at the same time". [5]

In his mixed review for Uncut , Bud Scoppa described the album as "far darker than 2020's soulful El Dorado . 'Blood On The Tracks', which chugs along behind a swampy, cowbell-accented groove, provides relief from the monolithic heaviness, which becomes enervating on the generic 'Hard Working Man'". [6]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."It's Too Late"2:56
2."Lie Lie Lie"
  • King
  • Auerbach
3:35
3."Rescue Me"
  • King
  • Auerbach
  • Andrew Gabbard
4:46
4."Pain"
  • King
  • Auerbach
4:22
5."Good and Gone"
  • King
  • Auerbach
  • Gabbard
3:20
6."Blood on the Tracks"
3:58
7."Hard Working Man"
  • King
  • Auerbach
  • Petraglia
3:37
8."Aim High"
5:13
9."Dark Cloud"
  • King
  • Auerbach
  • Cartwright
3:45
10."Whisper"
  • King
  • Auerbach
  • Petraglia
3:38
11."Blues Worse Than I Ever Had"
  • King
  • Auerbach
  • Cartwright
3:31
Total length:42:41

Personnel

Charts

Chart (2022)Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [7] 100
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) [8] 177
French Albums (SNEP) [9] 166
Scottish Albums (OCC) [10] 96
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [11] 26
UK Album Downloads (OCC) [12] 69
UK Americana Albums (OCC) [13] 5
US Top Album Sales (Billboard) [14] 11
US Folk Albums (Billboard) [15] 8
US Top Current Album Sales (Billboard) [16] 11
US Top Blues Albums (Billboard) [17] 1

References

  1. 1 2 "Critic Reviews for Young Blood - Metacritic". Metacritic . Retrieved June 16, 2025.
  2. 1 2 Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Young Blood - Marcus King | Album | AllMusic". AllMusic . Retrieved June 16, 2025.
  3. 1 2 Horowitz, Hal (August 24, 2022). "Review: Up and Coming Blues Rocker Marcus King Sounds Like A Seasoned Journeyman on 'Young Blood'". American Songwriter . Retrieved June 16, 2025.
  4. 1 2 Blake, Mark (September 2022). "Filter Albums". MOJO . No. 346. Heinrich Bauer Publishing. p. 86. ISSN   1351-0193.
  5. 1 2 Horowitz, Steve (August 25, 2022). "Marcus King Infuses 'Young Blood' Into Old Style Blues Rock » PopMatters". PopMatters . Retrieved June 16, 2025.
  6. 1 2 Scoppa, Bud (September 2022). "New Albums". UNCUT . No. 304. NME Networks. p. 26.
  7. "Ultratop.be – Marcus King – Young Blood" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved June 16, 2025.
  8. "Ultratop.be – Marcus King – Young Blood" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved June 16, 2025.
  9. "Lescharts.com – Marcus King – Young Blood". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 16, 2025.
  10. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 16, 2025.
  11. "Swisscharts.com – Marcus King – Young Blood". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 16, 2025.
  12. "Official Album Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 16, 2025.
  13. "Official Americana Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 16, 2025.
  14. "Marcus King Chart History (Top Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved June 16, 2025.
  15. "Marcus King Chart History (Top Americana/Folk Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved June 16, 2025.
  16. "Marcus King Chart History (Top Current Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved June 16, 2025.
  17. "Marcus King Chart History (Top Blues Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved June 16, 2025.