Together (The New Pornographers album)
Together is the fifth studio album by Canadian indie rock band the New Pornographers. It was released on May 4, 2010[1] and debuted at number 18 on the Billboard 200.
| Together | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 4, 2010 | |||
| Genre | Indie rock, power pop | |||
| Length | 44:27 | |||
| Label | Last Gang (Canada) Matador (U.S.) | |||
| Producer | The New Pornographers, Phil Palazzolo | |||
| The New Pornographers chronology | ||||
| ||||
The album was recorded in seven studios in British Columbia and New York City[2] and features guest appearances by Zach Condon of Beirut, Annie Clark (also known as St. Vincent), Will Sheff of Okkervil River, and the horn players from Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings.[1]
Together is dedicated to the memory of Lynn Calder, the mother of keyboardist Kathryn Calder, and the half-sister of Carl Newman.[2] "Sweet Talk, Sweet Talk" was featured in an early 2011 ad campaign for the Amazon Kindle, while "Moves" was used in a commercial for the Hyundai 2012 Accent and a commercial for T-Mobile.
The album covers features a detail from "The Cliff" (2006) by Martin & Muñoz.
Videos from the album include "Your Hands (Together)", "Crash Years", "Sweet Talk, Sweet Talk", and "Moves".
Release
Matador Records released the song "Your Hands (Together)" in February 2010 as the first sample of the album.[1]
On March 23, the band announced their extensive North American tour in support of the album.
On April 25, the album was released as a digital stream on NPR's website, accessible until the album's May 4 release.[3]
As of 2013, sales in the United States have exceeded 85,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan. [4]
Reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AnyDecentMusic? | 6.5/10[5] |
| Metacritic | 71/100[6] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   |
| The A.V. Club | A−[8] |
| Chicago Tribune | |
| The Independent | |
| Mojo | |
| NME | 7/10[12] |
| Pitchfork | 7.3/10[13] |
| Q | |
| Rolling Stone |  |
| Spin | 7/10[16] |
Together was met with largely positive reviews. The album was a longlisted nominee for the 2010 Polaris Music Prize, a music award given annually to the best full-length Canadian album based on artistic merit.[17]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Moves" | Carl Newman | 3:53 |
| 2. | "Crash Years" | Newman | 4:07 |
| 3. | "Your Hands (Together)" | Newman | 3:33 |
| 4. | "Silver Jenny Dollar" | Dan Bejar | 2:53 |
| 5. | "Sweet Talk, Sweet Talk" | Newman | 3:40 |
| 6. | "My Shepherd" | Newman | 4:36 |
| 7. | "If You Can't See My Mirrors" | Bejar | 2:56 |
| 8. | "Up in the Dark" | Newman | 3:10 |
| 9. | "Valkyrie in the Roller Disco" | Newman | 3:32 |
| 10. | "A Bite Out of My Bed" | Newman | 3:13 |
| 11. | "Daughters of Sorrow" | Bejar | 3:07 |
| 12. | "We End Up Together" | Newman | 5:47 |
| Total length: | 44:27 | ||
Personnel
- Dan Bejar - Vocals, Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Piano, Organ, Vibraphone, Percussion
- Kathryn Calder - Vocals, Keyboards, Piano
- Neko Case - Vocals
- John Collins - Bass, Acoustic Guitar, Keyboards, Kaossilator, Hagstrom 12 String
- Kurt Dahle - Drums, Percussion, Vox
- Todd Fancey - Guitar, Banjo
- A.C. Newman - Vocals, Guitars, Keyboards, Bass, Banjo
- Blaine Thurier - Keyboards
Additional musicians
- Annie Clark - Guitar Solo on "My Shepherd"
- Zach Condon - Trumpet on "A Bite Out of My Bed"
- The Dap-Kings Horns
- Cochemea Gastelum - Baritone Sax
- Dave Guy - Trumpet
- Ben Kalb - Cello
- Will Sheff - Back Up Vocals on "Moves"
- Neal Sugarman - Tenor Saxophone, Flute
- Tara Szczygielski - Violin
References
- Dombal, Ryan (2010-02-22). "New Track From New Pornographers: "Your Hands (Together)"". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2010-02-26.
- Devlin, Mike (28 April 2010). "The New Pornographers Together again". Archived from the original on 3 June 2010. Retrieved 6 July 2010.
- Thompson, Stephen (2010-04-25). "First Listen: The New Pornographers, 'Together'". NPR Music. Retrieved 2010-04-26.
- https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/4330323/new-pornographers-working-on-sixth-studio-album
- "Together by The New Pornographers reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved December 20, 2019.
- "Reviews for Together by The New Pornographers". Metacritic. Retrieved May 13, 2010.
- Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Together – The New Pornographers". AllMusic. Retrieved May 13, 2010.
- Phipps, Keith (May 4, 2010). "The New Pornographers: Together". The A.V. Club. Retrieved June 22, 2016.
- Kot, Greg (May 3, 2010). "Album review: New Pornographers, 'Together'". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on May 6, 2010. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
- Gill, Andy (April 30, 2010). "Album: The New Pornographers, Together (Matador)". The Independent. Archived from the original on May 4, 2010. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
- "The New Pornographers: Together". Mojo (199): 94. June 2010.
- Webb, Rob (April 30, 2010). "Album Review: The New Pornographers – 'Together' (Matador)". NME. Archived from the original on August 11, 2016. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
- Perpetua, Matthew (May 5, 2010). "The New Pornographers: Together". Pitchfork. Retrieved May 13, 2010.
- "The New Pornographers: Together". Q (287): 128. June 2010.
- Hoard, Christian (May 4, 2007). "Together". Rolling Stone. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
- Wood, Mikael (April 27, 2010). "The New Pornographers, 'Together' (Matador)". Spin. Archived from the original on June 17, 2011. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
- "Blue Rodeo, BSS on Polaris long list". The Globe and Mail, June 17, 2010.