Aromanticism (album)

Aromanticism is the debut studio album by American singer-songwriter Moses Sumney. It was released on September 22, 2017 by Jagjaguwar.[1] It is a concept album about "lovelessness as a sonic dreamscape" that "seeks to interrogate the idea that romance is normative and necessary."[2] The record was written and produced by Sumney, with assistance from numerous musicians. It features new versions of two previously-released songs, "Plastic" and "Lonely World".

Aromanticism
Studio album by Moses Sumney
Released	September 22, 2017
Length	34:46
Label	Jagjaguwar
Producer	Moses Sumney Joshua Willing Halpern Cam O'bi Gueorgui Linev Matt Otto Ludwig Göransson
Moses Sumney chronology
Lamentations (2016) Aromanticism (2017) Græ (2020)
Singles from Aromanticism
"Doomed" Released: June 27, 2017 "Quarrel" Released: August 11, 2017 "Indulge Me" Released: September 5, 2017

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
AnyDecentMusic?	7.9/10[3]
Metacritic	85/100[4]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[5]
Chicago Tribune	[6]
Clash	8/10[7]
Consequence of Sound	A−[8]
Exclaim!	8/10[9]
The Guardian	[10]
The Observer	[11]
Pitchfork	8.6/10[12]
Uncut	8/10[13]
Under the Radar	8/10[14]

Aromanticism received widespread acclaim from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 85, based on 15 reviews.[4] Brian Josephs of Spin gave a positive review, stating, "The dreamy project leaves the snide social critiques and radicalisms to the wayside for 36 minutes that feel of its own realm, where the dichotomies and bodily desire feel self-contained. The intimacy is never lost within the set's high concept: For an album centered on lonesomeness, Aromanticism feels warm."[15] Aromanticism was named "Best New Music", with Pitchfork reviewer Jason King calling it "a musical detoxification from the exhausting stream of information that now constitutes a normal day of news."[12] In his review, Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune states, "The songs run together, serene yet troubled, beautiful yet bruised. They are built to linger."[6] Nina Corcoran of Consequence of Sound praised the album, stating, "It requires multiple listens. In turn, that helps the listener grow, revealing spaces where their own narrative and experiences can intertwine with his—not in a romantic sense, but in an educational sense. As a result, Aromanticism already has become and promises to remain one of the most emotionally therapeutic albums of the year."[8]

The Los Angeles Times called it "breathtakingly beautiful", writing, "Sumney places layer upon layer of his voice into tracks until he achieves Beach Boys-esque harmony."[16] Anna Alger of Exclaim! said, "With Aromanticism, Moses Sumney creates a harmonious world in which he speaks from a position that isn't often recognized. Sumney approaches the complexities of relationships, power structures and an inability to experience romantic love with a quiet, powerful confidence."[9] Harriet Gibsone of The Guardian wrote: "When music sounds this complete and absorbing, it's a wonder we waste our lives chasing coexistence with sweaty, needy humans anyway."[10] Kitty Empire of The Observer gave the album a positive review, calling Sumney's falsetto "celestial" but felt the underuse of his lower register was a drawback.[11] Shahzaib Hussain of Clash echoed the same sentiment, calling Sumney's lower register "a cottony, sinewy part of his arsenal reduced to a mere cameo."[7]

Accolades

Publication	Accolade	Rank	Ref.
Bandcamp Daily	The Best Albums of 2017	1	[17]
Consequence of Sound	Top 50 Albums of 2017	12	[18]
Exclaim!	Top 10 Soul and R&B Albums of 2017	6	[19]
The New York Times	Jon Pareles' Best Albums of 2017	3	[20]
NPR	The 50 Best Albums of 2017	14	[21]
Pitchfork	The 50 Best Albums of 2017	6	[22]
	The 200 Best Albums of the 2010s	106	[23]
PopMatters	The 60 Best Albums of 2017	46	[24]
Spin	50 Best Albums of 2017	10	[25]
Stereogum	The 50 Best Albums of 2017	19	[26]

Track listing

Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Man on the Moon (Reprise)"	Moses Sumney	Sumney	0:36
2.	"Don't Bother Calling"	Sumney	Sumney	3:59
3.	"Plastic"	Sumney	Sumney Joshua Willing Halpern	3:08
4.	"Quarrel"	Sumney Cameron Osteen Paris Strother	Sumney Cam O'bi Willing Halpern	6:45
5.	"Stoicism"	Sumney	Sumney	1:02
6.	"Lonely World"	Sumney Stephen Bruner	Sumney Gueorgui Linev Willing Halpern^[a] Trayer Tryon^[a]	4:48
7.	"Make Out in My Car"	Sumney	Sumney Matt Otto Willing Halpern	2:35
8.	"The Cocoon-Eyed Baby"	Sumney	Sumney	1:09
9.	"Doomed"	Sumney Otto	Sumney Otto	4:27
10.	"Indulge Me"	Sumney	Sumney	3:16
11.	"Self-Help Tape"	Sumney Ludwig Göransson	Göransson Sumney	3:01
Total length:				34:46

Notes

• ^{^[a]} signifies an additional producer.

Personnel

Musicians Moses Sumney – vocals, bass guitar (track 2), guitar (tracks 3, 7, 10, 11), synthesizers (tracks 6, 10) Rob Moose – string arrangement and performance (track 2) Miguel Atwood-Ferguson – string arrangement and performance (track 3) Brandee Younger – harp (track 4) Rashaan Carter – upright bass (track 4) Jamire Williams – drums (track 4) Thundercat – bass guitar (tracks 4, 6) Paris Strother – piano and synthesizer arrangements (track 4) Joshua Willing Halpern – guitar (tracks 4–6, 8) Mike Rocha – horns (tracks 5, 6) Ian Chang – drums (track 6) Tosin Abasi – guitar (track 6) Tracy Wannomae – flute (track 7), clarinet (track 7) Nicole Miglis – flute (track 7) Matt Otto – synthesizers (track 9) Ludwig Göransson – guitar (track 11), bass guitar (track 11), synthesizer (track 11)

Engineers Joshua Willing Halpern – engineering (tracks 1–7, 9, 10), mixing (tracks 1, 5, 8) Matt Otto – engineering (tracks 2, 10) Michael Harris – engineering (track 4) Rashaan Carter – engineering (track 4) Moses Sumney – engineering (tracks 5, 8, 10) Gueorgui Linev – engineering (track 6) Billy Mims – engineering (track 6) Trayer Tryon – engineering (track 6) Ben Baptie – mixing (tracks 2–4, 6, 7, 9–11) Ted Jensen – mastering Artwork Eric Gyamfi – photography Sean Walker – additional photography (pages 13, 14) Julian Gross – design

Charts

Chart (2017)	Peak position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[27]	139

References

1. Monroe, Jazz (July 10, 2017). "Moses Sumney Announces New Album Aromanticism". Pitchfork. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
2. Sumney, Moses (September 16, 2017). "On Aromanticism". Tumblr. Retrieved December 19, 2017.
3. "Aromanticism by Moses Sumney reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
4. "Reviews and Tracks for Aromanticism by Moses Sumney". Metacritic. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
5. Prunes, Mariano. "Aromanticism – Moses Sumney". AllMusic. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
6. Kot, Greg (September 22, 2017). "Moses Sumney's debut 'Aromanticism' built to haunt". Chicago Tribune. Chicago. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
7. Hussain, Shahzaib (October 17, 2017). "Moses Sumney – Aromanticism". Clash. London. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
8. Corcoran, Nina (September 25, 2017). "Moses Sumney – Aromanticism". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
9. Alger, Anna (September 20, 2017). "Moses Sumney: Aromanticism". Exclaim!. Toronto. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
10. Gibsone, Harriet (September 21, 2017). "Moses Sumney: Aromanticism review – warmly absorbing meditation on lovelessness". The Guardian. London. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
11. Empire, Kitty (September 24, 2017). "Moses Sumney: Aromanticism review – a single-minded star". The Observer. London. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
12. King, Jason (September 27, 2017). "Moses Sumney: Aromanticism". Pitchfork. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
13. O'Connell, Sharon (October 2017). "Moses Sumney: Aromanticism". Uncut. London (245): 40.
14. Stanley, Laura (September 20, 2017). "Moses Sumney: Aromanticism (Jagjaguwar) Review". Under the Radar. Los Angeles. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
15. Josephs, Brian (September 29, 2017). "Review: Moses Sumney's Warm, Expressive AROMANTICISM Is Easy to Love". Spin. Retrieved December 17, 2017.
16. "All of the L.A. arts events and exhibitions to check out this fall". Los Angeles Times. September 7, 2017. Retrieved December 17, 2017.
17. "The Best Albums of 2017: #20 – #1". Bandcamp Daily. December 15, 2017. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
18. "Top 50 Albums of 2017". Consequence of Sound. November 27, 2017. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
19. Exclaim! Staff (Nov 30, 2017). "Top 10 Soul and R&B Albums of 2017". Exclaim!. Retrieved Jan 9, 2018.
20. Jon Caramanica and Jon Pareles (December 6, 2017). "The Best Albums of 2017". The New York Times. Retrieved December 11, 2017.
21. "The 50 Best Albums of 2017". NPR. December 12, 2017. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
22. "The 50 Best Albums of 2017". Pitchfork. December 12, 2017. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
23. "The 200 Best Albums of the 2010s". Pitchfork. 8 October 2019. Retrieved 9 October 2019.
24. "The 60 Best Albums of 2017". PopMatters. December 11, 2017. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
25. "50 Best Albums of 2017". Spin. December 18, 2017. Retrieved January 29, 2018.
26. Stereogum Staff (December 5, 2017). "The 50 Best Albums of 2017". Stereogum. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
27. "Ultratop.be – Moses Sumney – Aromanticism" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved December 19, 2017.