A Thing Called Divine Fits
A Thing Called Divine Fits | |
---|---|
Studio album by Divine Fits | |
Released | August 27, 2012 |
Genre | Indie rock, art rock |
Length | 43:02 |
Label | Merge |
Producer | Nick Launay |
A Thing Called Divine Fits is the debut studio album by American–Canadian indie rock band Divine Fits. The album was recorded in Los Angeles in a backyard studio with producer Nick Launay between the months of March and May 2012.[1] It was released on August 27, 2012 in Europe and August 28, 2012 in North America on Merge Records. The first single, "My Love Is Real", was released on July 31, 2012.
Background
Britt Daniel, lead singer and guitarist of Spoon fame, met Dan Boeckner, of Wolf Parade and Handsome Furs, at a Handsome Furs concert in 2007.[2] They kept in touch, and later, Spoon and Handsome Furs played shows together. Spoon later played Radio City Music Hall, and invited Boeckner onstage with them.[2] Sam Brown, drummer of New Bomb Turks, was recommended by producer Mike McCarthy, who had previously worked with Daniel.[2] Daniel had written the track, “What Gets You Alone” and sent it to Boeckner in February 2011, who recorded vocals over top of it, and decided to go to California the following year, along with Sam Brown to form the band.[2] Alex Fischel met Boeckner opening up for Handsome Furs with the band PAPA. Boeckner later got in touch with Fischel and asked him to join Divine Fits, adding keyboards to the mix. The vocals are roughly shared between Daniel and Boeckner.
Critical reception
Professional ratings | |
---|---|
Aggregate scores | |
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 77/100[3] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [4] |
The A.V. Club | B+[5] |
Chicago Tribune | [6] |
The Guardian | [7] |
MSN Music | A−[8] |
Pitchfork Media | 7.6/10[9] |
Q | [10] |
Rolling Stone | [11] |
Slant Magazine | [12] |
Spin | 7/10[13] |
A Thing Called Divine Fits was generally well received by critics, with aggregate rating site Metacritic assigning it a score of 77 out of 100 based on 30 reviews.[3] Josh Modell of Spin described it as "something fresh from the "supergroup that they hadn't done with their respective groups before" and wrote that the band "is flirting with the coolest music 1982 had to offer," though that they have more potential than what that the album showed.[13] Other critics spoke positively of Daniel and Boeckner, noting that their songwriting fit together naturally. Rolling Stone's Jon Dolan described their partnership as a "genuine synthesis",[11] while Harley Brown of Consequence of Sound wrote that "it might be the most fortuitous musical pairing in recent history."[14] Mary Chang of DIY called "[T]he cohesiveness of the album, considering they’ve only just started this new band earlier this year" as "astonishing."[15]
A Thing Called Divine Fits was listed at number twenty-three on Rolling Stone's list of the top 50 albums of 2012, with the publication praising Divine Fits as "the super-group that is more than the sum of its promising parts."[16]
Track listing
All tracks written by Britt Daniel, Sam Brown and Dan Boeckner, except where noted.
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "My Love Is Real" | 2:49 |
2. | "Flaggin' a Ride" | 3:47 |
3. | "What Gets You Alone" | 3:01 |
4. | "Would That Not Be Nice" | 4:02 |
5. | "The Salton Sea" | 4:21 |
6. | "Baby Get Worse" | 4:16 |
7. | "Civilian Stripes" | 2:27 |
8. | "For Your Heart" | 5:39 |
9. | "Shivers" (Rowland S. Howard, The Boys Next Door) | 4:55 |
10. | "Like Ice Cream" | 3:34 |
11. | "Neopolitans" | 3:59 |
Charts
Chart (2012) | Peak position |
---|---|
US Billboard 200[17] | 54 |
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[18] | 13 |
US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard)[19] | 9 |
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[20] | 15 |
References
- ↑ "Divine Fits". DivineFits.com. Retrieved August 27, 2012.
- 1 2 3 4 Goodman, William (October 2, 2012). "Fuse Q&A Spoon's Britt Daniel on His New Band Divine Fits". Fuse. Retrieved October 2, 2012.
- 1 2 "Reviews for A Thing Called Divine Fits by Divine Fits". Metacritic. Retrieved August 28, 2012.
- ↑ Phares, Heather. "A Thing Called Divine Fits – Divine Fits". AllMusic. Retrieved August 27, 2012.
- ↑ Rytlewski, Evan (August 28, 2012). "Divine Fits: A Thing Called Divine Fits". The A.V. Club. Retrieved August 1, 2015.
- ↑ Kot, Greg (August 27, 2012). "Album review: Divine Fits, 'A Thing Called Divine Fits'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved July 31, 2015.
- ↑ Richardson Andrews, Charlotte (August 23, 2012). "Divine Fits: A Thing Called Divine Fits – review". The Guardian. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
- ↑ Christgau, Robert (September 7, 2012). "Divine Fits/Yeasayer". MSN Music. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
- ↑ Harvey, Eric (August 27, 2012). "Divine Fits: A Thing Called Divine Fits". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
- ↑ "Divine Fits: A Thing Called Divine Fits". Q (315): 97. October 2012.
- 1 2 Dolan, Jon (August 28, 2012). "A Thing Called Divine Fits". Rolling Stone. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
- ↑ Liedel, Kevin (August 23, 2012). "Divine Fits: A Thing Called Divine Fits". Slant Magazine. Retrieved August 27, 2012.
- 1 2 Modell, Josh (August 30, 2012). "Divine Fits, 'A Thing Called Divine Fits' (Merge)". Spin. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
- ↑ Brown, Harley (August 28, 2012). "Divine Fits – A Thing Called Divine Fits". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved August 28, 2012.
- ↑ Chang, Mary (August 31, 2012). "Divine Fits – A Thing Called Divine Fits". DIY. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
- ↑ "50 Best Albums of 2012". Rolling Stone. December 5, 2012. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
- ↑ "Divine Fits – Chart history" Billboard 200 for Divine Fits. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
- ↑ "Divine Fits – Chart history" Billboard Independent Albums for Divine Fits. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
- ↑ "Divine Fits – Chart history" Billboard Top Alternative Albums for Divine Fits. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
- ↑ "Divine Fits – Chart history" Billboard Top Rock Albums for Divine Fits. Retrieved January 14, 2015.