Noir (Blue Sky Black Death album)

Noir (stylized NOIR) is a studio album by American hip hop production duo Blue Sky Black Death. It was released by Fake Four Inc. in 2011.[1]

Noir
Studio album by Blue Sky Black Death
Released	April 26, 2011 (2011-04-26)[1]
Genre	Instrumental hip hop
Length	62:48
Label	Fake Four Inc.
Producer	Blue Sky Black Death
Blue Sky Black Death chronology
Third Party (2010) Noir (2011) Glaciers (2013)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Alarm	favorable[2]
Beats Per Minute	81/100[3]
Pitchfork	7.5/10[4]
URB	[5]

Critical Reception

Brett Uddenberg of URB gave the album 4 stars out of 5, calling it "a brilliant culmination of reverb-coated keys and lush string arrangements".[5] Tom Harrison of Alarm described it as "an album of hazy instrumental beats that skirt the boundary between hip hop and electronica."[2] Will Ryan of Beats Per Minute said, "they set out on another scratchy, emotionally momentous odyssey of gigantic synth melodies with a deluge of shape-shifting samples ranging from mournful vocal washes to chirping orchestral arrangements backed by stomping mid-tempo drum programming."[3]

Later Re-releases

After its 2011 release on CD, screwed versions of several of the tracks were released on the group's Bandcamp, as "NOIR + VIOLET".[6] Later, the group also released a deluxe digital reissue of the album, titled "NOIR DLXE", which includes the screwed versions, four alternate tracks from the original NOIR release, and three more tracks, for a total of 29 tracks at a length of more than 2 hours.

In 2013, a limited-run two-disc vinyl pressing was done, featuring the original track listing, two alternates, as well as a previously-unreleased track, "Thirteen", which does not appear on the deluxe digital release.[7] It also features a new album cover. It was followed by a later re-pressing in 2014.[8]

Track Listings

Original CD Release

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Our Hearts of Ruin"	5:32
2.	"Sleeping Children Are Still Flying"	6:00
3.	"And Stars, Ringed"	5:10
4.	"To the Ends of the Earth"	3:54
5.	"Farewell to the Former World"	5:34
6.	"Falling Short"	1:46
7.	"Gold In Gold Out"	5:20
8.	"Where Do We Go"	4:37
9.	"In the Quiet Absence of God"	2:05
10.	"Where the Sun Beats"	4:45
11.	"Starry"	4:39
12.	"Fire for Light"	3:53
13.	"Swords from Driftwood"	2:46
14.	"Sky with Hand"	6:40
Total length:		62:48

NOIR + VIOLET Digital Release

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Our Hearts of Ruin (Screwed Up)"	6:59
2.	"Sleeping Children Are Still Flying (Screwed Up)"	7:35
3.	"And Stars, Ringed (Screwed Up)"	6:32
4.	"Farewell To The Former World (Screwed Up)"	7:01
5.	"Gold In, Gold Out (Screwed Up)"	6:44
6.	"Where The Sun Beats (Screwed Up)"	6:00
7.	"Swords From Driftwood (Screwed Up)"	3:30
8.	"Sky With Hand (Screwed Up)"	8:25
Total length:		52:46

NOIR DLXE Digital Release

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Our Hearts of Ruin"	5:32
2.	"Sleeping Children Are Still Flying"	6:00
3.	"And Stars, Ringed"	5:10
4.	"To the Ends of the Earth"	3:54
5.	"Farewell to the Former World"	5:34
6.	"Falling Short"	1:46
7.	"Gold In Gold Out"	5:20
8.	"Where Do We Go"	4:37
9.	"In the Quiet Absence of God"	2:05
10.	"Where the Sun Beats"	4:45
11.	"Starry"	4:39
12.	"Fire for Light"	3:53
13.	"Swords from Driftwood"	2:46
14.	"Sky with Hand"	6:40
15.	"Sleeping Children Are Still Flying (Alternate)"	3:50
16.	"Gold In Gold Out (Alternate)"	5:17
17.	"Our Hearts Of Ruin (Alternate)"	4:00
18.	"And Stars, Ringed (Alternate)"	1:16
19.	"Our Hearts of Ruin (Screwed Up)"	6:59
20.	"Sleeping Children Are Still Flying (Screwed Up)"	7:35
21.	"And Stars, Ringed (Screwed Up)"	6:32
22.	"Farewell To The Former World (Screwed Up)"	7:01
23.	"Gold In, Gold Out (Screwed Up)"	6:44
24.	"Where The Sun Beats (Screwed Up)"	6:00
25.	"Swords From Driftwood (Screwed Up)"	3:30
26.	"Sky With Hand (Screwed Up)"	8:25
27.	"Small Moment"	3:59
28.	"To Hold And Hope"	3:58
29.	"Waters Clear As Heave"	2:17
Total length:		140:11

Vinyl Re-Release

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Our Hearts of Ruin"	5:32
2.	"Sleeping Children Are Still Flying"	6:00
3.	"And Stars, Ringed"	5:10
4.	"To the Ends of the Earth"	3:54
5.	"Farewell to the Former World"	5:34
6.	"Falling Short"	1:46
7.	"Gold In Gold Out"	5:20
8.	"Where Do We Go"	4:37
9.	"In the Quiet Absence of God"	2:05
10.	"Where the Sun Beats"	4:45
11.	"Starry"	4:39
12.	"Fire for Light"	3:53
13.	"Swords from Driftwood"	2:46
14.	"Sky with Hand"	6:40
15.	"Thirteen"	13:00
16.	"To Hold And Hope"	3:58
17.	"Sleeping Children Are Still Flying (Alternate)"	3:50
18.	"Gold In Gold Out (Alternate)"	5:17
Total length:		88:53

Personnel

Credits adapted from liner notes.

• Blue Sky Black Death – instrumentation, arrangement, recording, mixing
• Raised by Wolves – additional musical contributions (1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, 12, 13 14)
• Rob Harris – vocals (3, 4, 8)
• Shaprece Renee – vocals (7, 12)
• Alexander Chen – viola (9, 11, 12), vocals (12)
• Tim Green – artwork, layout

References

1. "NOIR: Blue Sky Black Death". Bandcamp. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
2. Harrison, Tom (May 16, 2011). "Beats & Rhymes: Blue Sky Black Death's Noir". Alarm. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
3. Ryan, Will (June 8, 2011). "Blue Sky Black Death – Noir". Beats Per Minute. Archived from the original on May 27, 2012. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
4. Hogan, Marc (May 24, 2011). "Blue Sky Black Death: Noir". Pitchfork. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
5. Uddenberg, Brett (May 9, 2011). "Blue Sky Black Death – NOIR". URB. Archived from the original on October 21, 2013. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
6. "NOIR + VIOLET, by Blue Sky Black Death". Blue Sky Black Death. Retrieved 2020-08-05.
7. "Blue Sky Black Death - Noir". Discogs. Retrieved 2020-08-05.
8. "Blue Sky Black Death - Noir". Discogs. Retrieved 2020-08-05.

External links

• Noir at Discogs (list of releases)
• Noir on Fake Four's Bandcamp