Length 33:57 Release date 24 September 2007 | ||
 | ||
Released 24 September 2007 (2007-09-24) Recorded November 2006–March 2007 White Chalk(2007) Let England Shake(2011) White Chalk(2007) A Woman A Man Walked By(2009) Genres Alternative rock, Folk music, Folk rock, Chamber music Similar PJ Harvey albums, Folk music albums | ||
Dear darkness pj harvey
White Chalk is the seventh studio album by English singer-songwriter and musician PJ Harvey, released on 24 September 2007 on Island Records.
Contents
- Dear darkness pj harvey
- Pj harvey white chalk
- Style
- Reception
- Formats
- Track listing
- Personnel
- Songs
- References
Work on the album started in 2006, with producer Flood and John Parish, who also worked on her To Bring You My Love and Is This Desire? albums. Other collaborators on White Chalk are Eric Drew Feldman and Jim White from Dirty Three.
The first single to be released from White Chalk was "When Under Ether" on 17 September 2007 on digital download and 7" vinyl. A second single, "The Piano," was released on 26 November 2007. A third, "The Devil," was released on 7", download, and CD formats in March 2008.
Pj harvey white chalk
Style
The previous album Uh Huh Her had a raw sound but for this record White Chalk, Rolling Stone 's magazine noted that Harvey "delved further into a Goth-like vibe in the much quieter, haunting, piano-based music". For this album she gave up the traditional three-piece sound guitar/bass/drums and recorded a set of songs for piano, despite her lack of expertise on the instrument. In an interview in The Wire she explained "the great thing about learning a new instrument from scratch is that it [...] liberates your imagination."
Vocally, she sang in a much higher register than usual, at a pitch outside her normal range and "howled about being possessed by demon lovers and ghosts". Lyrically, Harvey continued with the dark, moody themes typical of much of her music.
Reception
White Chalk received generally positive reviews and has a score of 80 out of 100 on Metacritic. The Observer gave the album 5 stars out of 5, while Robert Christgau picked out one song from the album, "When Under Ether", as a "choice cut" ().
Formats
The US release is available on CD and 33⅓ rpm LP. The UK release is available on CD and 45 rpm vinyl record. White Chalk is also available on iTunes complete with a bonus track, "Wait".
Track listing
All tracks written by PJ Harvey.
Personnel
All personnel credits adapted from the album's liner notes.
Songs
1The Devil2:58
2Dear Darkness3:10
3Grow Grow Grow3:23