Neck of the Woods

Neck of the Woods is the third studio album by Los Angeles alternative rock band Silversun Pickups. The album was produced by Jacknife Lee (R.E.M., Bloc Party) and was released on May 8, 2012 through independent label Dangerbird Records. Lead single "Bloody Mary (Nerve Endings)" was released via the band's official YouTube channel on March 25. On May 2, 2012 MTV Buzzworthy posted a full stream of the album online.[1]

For other uses, see Neck of the Woods (disambiguation).

Neck of the Woods
Studio album by Silversun Pickups
Released	May 8, 2012 (2012-05-08)
Genre	Alternative rock indie rock shoegazing dream pop
Length	58:50
Label	Dangerbird
Producer	Jacknife Lee
Silversun Pickups chronology
Swoon (2009) Neck of the Woods (2012) Better Nature (2015)
Singles from Neck of the Woods
"Bloody Mary (Nerve Endings)" Released: March 25, 2012 "The Pit" Released: September 25, 2012 "Dots and Dashes (Enough Already)" Released: January 18, 2013

Reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	69/100[2]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[3]
Alternative Press	[4]
The A.V. Club	B[5]
Drowned in Sound	6/10[6]
Los Angeles Times	[7]
New Zealand Herald	[8]
Paste	8.5/10[9]
Pitchfork	4.8/10[10]
Rolling Stone	[11]
Sputnikmusic	[12]

Reception for Neck of the Woods was generally positive.[13] Review aggregating website Metacritic, which calculates an average score based on critical reviews, reports that the album scored 69 out of a possible 100, indicating "generally favorable reviews."[13] Matt Collar of Allmusic awarded the album four out of five stars and stated, "building upon Swoons layered melodicism and once again showcasing lead singer/songwriter Brian Aubert's knack for evocative, introspective lyrics and fiery, multi-dubbed guitar parts, Neck of the Woods is an even more infectious and nuanced affair."[3] Alternative Press journalist Scott Heisel also awarded the album four out of five stars. He expressed that "On Neck of the Woods, Silversun Pickups aren't reliving the ghosts of alt-rock past. Instead, they're helping define the genre's future." He added that the album felt "complete-and essential".[4]

Other reviews were less positive. Pitchfork Media only award the album a 4.8 out of 10, concluding that "Appropriately enough, many of Aubert's lyrics here bristle with restlessness, fatigue and disappointment-- "I'm still waiting," "I'm already bored," "What am I aiming towards/ A fight that never ends," "Nothing's coming"—all of which serve to make Neck of the Woods a concept album about the feeling you get listening to Neck of the Woods".[10]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Silversun Pickups.

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Skin Graph"	6:00
2.	"Make Believe"	5:12
3.	"Bloody Mary (Nerve Endings)"	5:10
4.	"Busy Bees"	5:36
5.	"Here We Are (Chancer)"	4:48
6.	"Mean Spirits"	4:48
7.	"Simmer"	6:50
8.	"The Pit"	4:39
9.	"Dots and Dashes (Enough Already)"	5:06
10.	"Gun-Shy Sunshine"	5:37
11.	"Out of Breath"	5:00
Total length:		58:50

Chart positions

Chart (2012)	Peak position
Australian Albums Chart (ARIA)[14]	23
Belgian Albums Chart (Flanders)[15]	120
Belgian Heatseekers (Flanders)[15]	20
Canadian Albums Chart (Canoe)[16]	11
Canadian Alternative Albums (Canoe)[17]	2
UK Albums Chart (The Official Charts Company)[18]	86
US Billboard 200[19]	6
US Alternative Albums (Billboard)[19]	1
U.S Independent Albums (Billboard)[19]	1
U.S Rock Albums (Billboard)[19]	2

Personnel

All songs written and composed by Silversun Pickups.

• Brian Aubert - Main Vocals / Guitar
• Nikki Monninger - Bass Guitar / Backing Vocals
• Joe Lester - Keyboards / Sound Manipulation
• Christopher Guanlao - Drums

Additional personnel

• Jacknife Lee - Keyboards, Mixing, Producer, Programming
• Lawrence Azerrad - Graphic Design
• Sam Bell - Engineer, Mixing
• Matt Bishop - Assistant Engineer, Editing
• Jeff Castelaz - A&R
• John Davis - Mastering
• Todd Hido - Photography

References

1. Greenwald, David (2 May 2012). "Album Premiere: Silversun Pickups, 'Neck Of The Woods'". MTV. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
2. "Neck of the Woods by Silversun Pickups Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved August 16, 2019.
3. Collar, Matt (8 May 2012). "Review: Neck of the Woods". Allmusic (Rovi Corporation). Retrieved 9 May 2012.
4. Heisel, Scott (June 2012). "You've Come A Long Way, Baby". Alternative Press. No. 287. Alternative Magazines, Inc. p. 80. ISSN 1065-1667.
5. Wild, Matt. "Silversun Pickups: Neck of the Woods". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 2019-08-16.
6. Takru, Radhika. "Silversun Pickups - Neck of the Woods". Drowned in Sound (Silentway Ltd). Retrieved 16 May 2012.
7. Brown, August. "Silversun Pickups' revivalist Neck of the Woods". Los Angeles Times (Tribune Company). Retrieved 8 May 2012.
8. Schulz, Chris (25 May 2012). "Album Review: Neck of the Woods - Silversun Pickups". New Zealand Herald (APN News & Media). Retrieved 25 May 2012.
9. Ferguson, Jason (8 May 2012). "Silversun Pickups: Neck of the Woods". Paste (Wolfgang's Vault). Retrieved 9 May 2012.
10. Berman, Stuart. "Silversun Pickups: Neck of the Woods". Pitchfork Media (Pitchfork Media Inc). Retrieved 16 May 2012.
11. Dolan, Jon (22 May 2012). "Silversun Pickups - Neck of the Woods album review". Rolling Stone (Wenner Media LLC). Retrieved 25 May 2012.
12. Knott, Adam (10 May 2012). "Silversun Pickups - Neck of the Woods (staff review)". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 10 May 2012.
13. "Critic reviews for Neck of the Woods by Silversun Pickups". Metacritic (CBS Interactive). Retrieved 13 June 2012.
14. "Silversun Pickups - Neck of the Woods (Album)". australian-charts.com. Retrieved 25 May 2012.
15. "Silversun Pickups - Neck of the Woods (Album)" (in Dutch). ultratop.be/nl. Retrieved 31 January 2014.
16. "Nielsen SoundScan Charts: Canadian Top 100 (16 May 2012)". Canoe. Archived from the original on 13 November 2011.
17. "Nielsen SoundScan Charts: Canadian Alternative Albums Top 50 (16 May 2012)". Canoe. Archived from the original on 25 May 2012.
18. "Silversun Pickups - Neck Of The Woods". The Official Charts Company. Retrieved 25 May 2012.
19. "Neck of the Woods - Silversun Pickups". Billboard (Prometheus Global Media). Retrieved 25 May 2012.