Homeland (Laurie Anderson album)

Homeland is the eighth studio album by Laurie Anderson, released in 2010. A loose concept album about life in the United States. It was her first album of new material since 2001's Life on a String.

Homeland
Studio album by Laurie Anderson
Released	June 22, 2010
Recorded	2007–2010 at Masterdisk, New York City
Genre	Avant-garde Experimental music Pop music
Length	66:00
Label	Nonesuch/Elektra Records 79991
Producer	Laurie Anderson, Lou Reed and Roma Baran
Laurie Anderson chronology
Live in New York (2002) Homeland (2010) Landfall (2018)
Singles from Homeland
"Only an Expert" Released: 18 May 2010[1]

The record was produced by Anderson, Lou Reed and Roma Baran. Anderson began touring the project in late 2007. The album was originally slated for release in 2008. Because the project kept changing in form, the release was pushed back several times. The final release in 2010 was a two-disc set consisting of a CD of music and a DVD.

The song "Only an Expert" was released as a 12" vinyl single on May 18, 2010. A song titled "Pictures and Things" was the single's B-side.[2]

Track listing

1. "Transitory Life" (6:52)
2. "My Right Eye" (5:01)
3. "Thinking of You" (4:12)
4. "Strange Perfumes" (4:46)
5. "Only an Expert" (7:26)
6. "Falling" (3:19)
7. "Another Day in America" (11:24)
8. "Bodies in Motion" (7:10)
9. "Dark Time in the Revolution" (5:19)
10. "The Lake" (5:39)
11. "The Beginning of Memory" (2:45)
12. "Flow" (2:15)

DVD

1. "Homeland: The Story of the Lark" (41:00)
2. "Laurie's Violin" (7:00)

Personnel

• Laurie Anderson – vocals, keyboards, percussion, violin (on tracks 3, 7, 12), radio (9)
• Peter Scherer – keyboards
• Rob Burger – keyboards (2-5, 8, 9), orchestron (2-3, 8), accordion (3, 4, 9, 10), marxophone (4)
• Eyvind Kang – viola
• Tuvan group Chirgilchin – vocals (1, 11), igil (1)
• Lou Reed – additional percussion (2), guitar (5)
• Antony Hegarty – vocals (4), background vocals (7)
• Shahzad Ismaily – percussion (4)
• Kieran Hebden – keyboards (5)
• Omar Hakim – drums (5)
• Skúli Sverrisson – bass (7, 9), guitar (8)
• Ben Witman – percussion and drums (7)
• John Zorn – alto saxophone (8, 11)
• Lolabelle – piano (8)
• Joey Baron – drums (9)

Technical

• Mario J. McNulty – percussion (11)
• Produced by Laurie Anderson with Lou Reed and Roma Baran
• Engineered by Laurie Anderson, Pat Dillett, Mario J. McNulty, and Marc Urselli
• Mixed by Mario J. McNulty
• Mastered by Scott Hull at Masterdisk, New York, NY

DVD

• Directed by Braden King
• Produced by Katie Stern Truckstop Media

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	link
Drowned in Sound	link
Los Angeles Times	link
musicOMH	link
Pitchfork Media	(8.3/10) link
PopMatters	link
Rolling Stone	link
Slant Magazine	link
Robert Christgau	link

Nina Power, previewing the album in The Wire magazine, claimed that Homeland "reminds us why Anderson, now in her sixties, is the (modulated) voice of America's conscience."[3]

Margaret Wappler of The Los Angeles Times wrote of the album, "'Homeland' isn't so much an album as it is a poetic capturing of the still moments of a restless mind".[4]

Charts

Album

Year	Chart	Position
2010	German Albums Chart	62
2010	Greek Album Charts	41

References

1. Only an Expert by Laurie Anderson
2. Only an Expert by Laurie Anderson
3. The Wire Magazine, UK, June 2010
4. Los Angeles Times review