Released October 15, 2013 Producer Lucius Wildewoman
(2013) Good Grief
(2016) Release date 15 October 2013 Genre Indie pop | Length 43:50 Songs From The Bromley House
(2009) Wildewoman
(2013) Artist Lucius Label Mom + Pop Music | |
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Similar Good Grief, Songs From the Bromley, Menlove Ave, Lost in Alphaville, Sukierae | ||
Wildewoman is the 2013 debut album by Brooklyn indie pop band Lucius. It was released on PIAS Recordings, Mom + Pop Music and Dine Alone Records to mostly positive reviews, drawing numerous comparisons to the girl groups of the 1960s. Reviewers also praised the album's eclectic mix of musical styles, as well as the vocal performances of lead singers Jess Wolfe and Holly Laessig. The album peaked at number 150 on the Billboard 200 chart.
Contents
Packaging and title
The album's cover artwork is a 1964 painting by Belgian pop artist Evelyne Axell, titled Ice Cream. In selecting the image, Wolfe and Laessig drew inspiration from other iconic, provocative album covers including Sticky Fingers and Nevermind. Laessig said "At the time, [Axell] was making a statement that was incredibly bold, and we think our show is bold, we’re strong women. There’s nothing shy about the way that we sound and the way we put ourselves out there. It’s a strong image. And if you’re looking at fifteen record covers on iTunes, what’s going to stick out to you?"
The album title was taken from the song of the same name and was intended to evoke "free-spirited women". It is pronounced analogously to "wildebeest".
Critical
Wildewoman received generally positive reviews from critics, many of whom praised the vocal performances and girl group-inspired sound. In a review for Paste, Hilary Saunders wrote that the album was successful in "reintroducing retro girl-group swag to the 21st century at a time when it’s most needed" and went on to call it "one of the most complete indie pop LPs this year". James Christopher Monger of AllMusic praised the album's fusion of styles and the "commanding performances" of Wolfe and Laessig, while Will Hermes' review for Rolling Stone described the album's sound as "fresh" and "thrilling". Writing for Consequence of Sound, Tony Hardy gave the album a more reserved assessment but noted that the band "spins some intriguing sounds".
Wildewoman also appeared on a number of year-end best album lists, including those compiled by Bob Boilen of NPR's All Songs Considered and the music staff at Amazon.com.
Commercial
The album debuted at No. 150 on the Billboard 200 album chart, with 3,000 copies sold in its first week. The album has sold 46,000 copies in the US as of March 2016.
Track listing
All songs written by Holly Laessig and Jess Wolfe unless otherwise noted.
- "Wildewoman" – 4:11
- "Turn It Around" – 3:28
- "Go Home" – 3:19
- "Hey, Doreen" – 4:41
- "Tempest" – 4:09 (Laessig/Molad/Wolfe)
- "Nothing Ordinary" – 3:01
- "Two of Us on the Run" – 4:35
- "Until We Get There" – 3:28 (Laessig/Molad/Wolfe)
- "Don't Just Sit There" – 3:51
- "Monsters" – 3:29
- "How Loud Your Heart Gets" – 5:38
Songs
1Wildewoman4:10
2Turn It Around3:28
3Go Home3:19