Stephen Malkmus (album)

Stephen Malkmus is the debut album by Stephen Malkmus, released on February 13, 2001 by Matador Records. Malkmus had planned to create the record by himself, or through a smaller, local label, but eventually accepted the offer Matador asked, and he released it. Pre-release promotional CDs of the album exist under the working titles Jicks and Swedish Reggae. Malkmus intended to release the album as The Jicks, but Matador insisted that the album be released under his own name. The album peaked at #124 in the US and #49 in the UK.[1]

Stephen Malkmus
Studio album by Stephen Malkmus
Released	February 13, 2001
Recorded	May–August 2000
Genre	Indie rock
Length	41:37
Label	Matador
Producer	Clarence Skiboots
Stephen Malkmus chronology
Stephen Malkmus (2001) Pig Lib (2003)

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	82/100[2]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[3]
Alternative Press	4/5[4]
Entertainment Weekly	A−[5]
The Guardian	[6]
NME	8/10[7]
Pitchfork	7.7/10[8]
Rolling Stone	[9]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[10]
Uncut	[11]
The Village Voice	A−[12]

Stephen Malkmus received positive reviews from music critics. Rob Sheffield, writing for Rolling Stone, compared the album favorably to the solo debuts by Television's Tom Verlaine and The Velvet Underground's Lou Reed, commenting: "Freed from the constraints of a band that didn't constrain him all that much, [Malkmus] grapples with the problem of what to do with all the empty spaces in the music".[9] Similarly, Pitchfork reviewer Nick Mirov opined that Malkmus "has regained his songwriting stride, and he sounds more confident than he's been in a long time".[8] The album appeared at number 28 in The Village Voice's Pazz & Jop critics' poll for 2001.[13]

Track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Black Book"	4:23
2.	"Phantasies"	2:40
3.	"Jo Jo's Jacket"	4:01
4.	"Church on White"	3:20
5.	"The Hook"	3:03
6.	"Discretion Grove"	3:14
7.	"Troubbble"	1:40
8.	"Pink India"	5:54
9.	"Trojan Curfew"	4:06
10.	"Vague Space"	2:56
11.	"Jenny and the Ess-Dog"	2:45
12.	"Deado"	3:37
Total length:		41:37

Personnel

• Stephen Malkmus – vocals, guitar, keyboards, synthesizer, bass
• John Moen – drums, percussion, background vocals
• Heather Larimer – percussion, background vocals
• Joanna Bolme – piano, synthesizer, bass, claves, background vocals

References

1. "Stephen Malkmus – Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 2014-01-04. Retrieved 2014-01-04.
2. "Reviews for Stephen Malkmus by Stephen Malkmus". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 2014-01-07. Retrieved 2014-01-07.
3. Phares, Heather. "Stephen Malkmus – Stephen Malkmus". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 2012-10-05. Retrieved 2014-01-04.
4. "Stephen Malkmus: Stephen Malkmus". Alternative Press (152): 76. March 2001.
5. Brunner, Rob (2001-02-23). "Stephen Malkmus". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2016-04-15.
6. Cameron, Keith (2001-02-09). "Stephen Malkmus: Stephen Malkmus (Domino)". The Guardian. Retrieved 2017-06-16.
7. "Stephen Malkmus: Stephen Malkmus". NME. 2001-02-10.
8. Mirov, Nick (2001-01-31). "Stephen Malkmus: Stephen Malkmus". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 2013-05-24. Retrieved 2014-01-04.
9. Sheffield, Rob (2001-02-05). "Stephen Malkmus: Stephen Malkmus". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2009-02-28. Retrieved 2009-02-28.
10. Sheffield, Rob (2004). "Stephen Malkmus". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 511. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
11. "Stephen Malkmus: Stephen Malkmus". Uncut (45): 78. February 2001.
12. Christgau, Robert (2001-04-03). "Consumer Guide: Vibrators". The Village Voice. Retrieved 2016-04-15.
13. "The 2001 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. 2002-02-12. Archived from the original on 2013-12-02. Retrieved 2014-01-07.

External links

• Stephen Malkmus at Discogs (list of releases)