| Brighten the Corners | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | February 11, 1997 | |||
| Recorded | July 15–30, 1996 | |||
| Studio | Drive-In (Winston-Salem, North Carolina) [1] | |||
| Genre | Indie rock | |||
| Length | 46:10 | |||
| Label | Matador | |||
| Producer |
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| Pavement chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Brighten the Corners | ||||
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Brighten the Corners is the fourth studio album by American indie rock band Pavement, released on February 11, 1997, by Matador Records. The album received very positive reviews from critics.
Brighten the Corners was recorded at Mitch Easter's Drive-In Studio in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. According to singer and guitarist Stephen Malkmus, it was either Matador Records or Mary Timony from Helium who suggested that the band should record the album there. [2]
Although Brighten the Corners was mostly produced by Pavement and Bryce Goggin, Easter worked with the band for roughly a week when Goggin left the studio. [3]
The recording sessions involved a lot of editing, and the band would often record several versions of the same song before deciding on a final take. The vocals were then recorded in New York separately. [3]
The album title was in reference to "Brighten The Corner Where You Are", a gospel hymn written by Homer Rodeheaver in the early 1900s. [4]
Brighten the Corners was released on February 11, 1997, by Matador Records. [5] In 2008, Matador released Brighten the Corners: Nicene Creedence Edition , a compilation containing Brighten the Corners in its entirety, as well as B-sides and other rarities from the same era.
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [6] |
| Chicago Tribune |  [7] |
| Christgau's Consumer Guide | A [8] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B [9] |
| Los Angeles Times | [10] |
| NME | 6/10 [11] |
| Pitchfork | 8.6/10 [12] |
| Rolling Stone | [13] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [14] |
| Spin | 8/10 [15] |
Brighten the Corners received very positive reviews from critics and was ranked No. 10 in The Village Voice 's 1997 Pazz & Jop critics' poll. [16] In the poll's accompanying essay, Robert Christgau referred to the album as one of his "favorite albums of the year, easy", alongside those by Yo La Tengo, Sleater-Kinney, and Arto Lindsay. [17]
All tracks are written by Stephen Malkmus, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Stereo" | 3:07 | |
| 2. | "Shady Lane / J vs. S" | 3:50 | |
| 3. | "Transport Is Arranged" | 3:52 | |
| 4. | "Date w/ IKEA" | Scott Kannberg | 2:39 |
| 5. | "Old to Begin" | 3:22 | |
| 6. | "Type Slowly" | 5:20 | |
| 7. | "Embassy Row" | 3:51 | |
| 8. | "Blue Hawaiian" | 3:33 | |
| 9. | "We Are Underused" | 4:12 | |
| 10. | "Passat Dream" | Kannberg | 3:51 |
| 11. | "Starlings of the Slipstream" | 3:08 | |
| 12. | "Fin" (Listed as "Infinite Spark" on non-US pressings) | 5:24 | |
| Total length: | 46:10 | ||
| Chart (1997) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA) [18] | 64 |
| New Zealand Albums (RMNZ) [19] | 50 |
| Norwegian Albums (VG-lista) [20] | 38 |
| Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [21] | 56 |
| UK Albums (OCC) [22] | 27 |
| US Billboard 200 [23] | 70 |
| Title | Year | Peak position |
|---|---|---|
| UK [24] | ||
| "Stereo" | 1997 | 48 |
| "Shady Lane" | 40 |
Pavement is an American indie rock band that formed in Stockton, California, in 1989. For most of their career, the group consisted of Stephen Malkmus, Scott Kannberg, Mark Ibold (bass), Steve West (drums) and Bob Nastanovich. Initially conceived as a recording project, the band at first avoided press or live performances, while attracting considerable underground attention with their early releases. Gradually evolving into a more polished band, Pavement recorded five full-length albums and ten EPs over the course of their decade-long career, though they disbanded with some acrimony in 1999 and 2000 as the members moved on to other projects. In 2010, they undertook a well-received reunion tour, with another international tour currently ongoing in 2022 and 2023.
Stephen Joseph Malkmus is an American musician best known as the primary songwriter, lead singer and guitarist of the indie rock band Pavement. He currently performs with Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks, Pavement and as a solo artist.
Slanted and Enchanted is the debut studio album by American indie rock band Pavement, released on April 20, 1992, by Matador Records. It is the only Pavement album to feature drummer Gary Young.
Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain is the second studio album by American indie rock band Pavement, released on February 14, 1994, by Matador Records. The album saw the band move on towards a more accessible rock sound than that of their more lo-fi debut Slanted and Enchanted and achieve moderate success with the single "Cut Your Hair". The album also saw original drummer Gary Young replaced by Steve West. It was a UK Top 20 hit upon release, although it was not so successful in the US charts.
Wowee Zowee is the third studio album by American indie rock band Pavement, released on April 11, 1995, by Matador Records. Most of it was recorded at Easley Recording in Memphis, Tennessee, where some members of the band had previously worked on Silver Jews' 1994 album Starlite Walker. The album showcases a more experimental side of the band, marking a return to the clatter and unpredictability of their early recordings after the more accessible sound of their 1994 studio album Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain. Its eclectic nature ranges from mellow yet distorted melodies to noise and punk rock, while the lyrics generally explore humorous and cryptic themes. At nearly one hour long, Wowee Zowee is Pavement's longest studio album, filling three sides of a vinyl record. Side four was left blank.
Terror Twilight is the fifth and final studio album by American indie rock band Pavement, released on June 8, 1999, on Matador Records in the US and Domino Recording Company in the UK.
Slay Tracks: 1933–1969 is the debut EP by American indie rock band Pavement. Pavement—at that time, a duo of just its two founding members Stephen Malkmus and Scott Kannberg (guitar)—recorded Slay Tracks with producer and future member Gary Young (drums) during a four-hour session. Pavement self-released the EP as a 7" vinyl record on the band's own record label Treble Kicker in 1989. The music of Slay Tracks was influenced by indie and punk rock bands such as Swell Maps and The Fall, and many of the lyrics were inspired by life in the band's hometown of Stockton, California.
Watery, Domestic is the fourth EP by American indie rock band Pavement. It is their final release to feature drummer Gary Young as a member.
Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks is an American rock band consisting of Stephen Malkmus, Mike Clark, Joanna Bolme, and Jake Morris. Malkmus was the main singer and songwriter behind the influential 1990s indie rock band Pavement.
Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain: LA's Desert Origins is a compilation album by Pavement released on October 26, 2004. It contains the band's 1994 album, Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain, in its entirety, as well as outtakes and other rarities from that era, some of which had previously been unreleased.
Easter is the third studio album by the Patti Smith Group. It was released in March 1978 by Arista Records. Produced by Jimmy Iovine, the album is regarded as the group's commercial breakthrough, owing to the success of the rock single "Because the Night", which reached number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number five on the UK Singles Chart.
Robert Nastanovich is an American musician and member of the indie rock band Pavement, as well as a former member of Silver Jews, Ectoslavia, Pale Horse Riders, and Misshapen Lodge.
Stephen Malkmus is the debut album by Stephen Malkmus, released on February 13, 2001 by Matador Records. Malkmus had planned to create the record by himself, or through a smaller, local label, but eventually accepted the offer Matador made, and he released it. Pre-release promotional CDs of the album exist under the working titles Jicks and Swedish Reggae. Malkmus intended to release the album as The Jicks, but Matador insisted that the album be released under his own name. The album peaked at number 124 in the US and number 49 in the UK.
Major Leagues is the final EP by American indie rock band Pavement. It was released on October 12, 1999, on Matador Records. To date, it is their final release of original material excluding reissues.
"Shady Lane" is a song by American indie rock band Pavement that appears on the album Brighten the Corners. It was also released as a two-part single and as an EP, which collects the B-sides from both the British singles. The single was accompanied by a video directed by Spike Jonze. "Shady Lane" would become a top 40 hit in the UK for the band.
"Stereo" is a single by the band Pavement, taken from the album Brighten the Corners. It was released by Domino Records in 1997. The catalogue number for the single is RUG-051. It contains two B-sides: "Westie Can Drum" and "Winner of The." It was released at the same time as the 7" version of the single, which contains a different B-side. It is the first track on Matador's 10th Anniversary compilation. NME ranks the song as the 15th best song of 1997.
The discography of Pavement, a Stockton, California-based indie rock group, consists of five studio albums, four double-length reissues, one compilation, ten extended plays, and thirteen singles. This list does not include material performed by members or former members of Pavement that was recorded with Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks, Silver Jews, Preston School of Industry, Free Kitten, The Crust Brothers, or any other associated solo or side projects.
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Quarantine the Past: The Best of Pavement is a compilation album released by Pavement on March 8, 2010, to coincide with the band's reunion. The title of the compilation references a lyric from the 1994 song "Gold Soundz", which is the first song featured on the compilation.
"Summer Babe", also known as "Summer Babe (Winter Version)", is the debut single by the American indie rock band Pavement. It was first released as a 7" single (was listed and described as an EP at the time) by Chicago's Drag City Records on August 23, 1991, titled Summer Babe. It was their only single on the Drag City label before the band moved to New York-based Matador Records. The songs on the Drag City single would later be included on the Drag City compilation Westing (By Musket & Sextant), and on Matador's Slanted & Enchanted: Luxe & Reduxe. The song didn't enter the U.S. Billboard charts.
