A Wasteland Companion

A Wasteland Companion
Studio album by M. Ward
Released	April 6, 2012
Length	36:47
Label	Merge Records, Bella Union, Spunk Records
Producer	M. Ward
M. Ward chronology
Hold Time (2009) A Wasteland Companion (2012) More Rain (2016)

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	75/100[1]
Review scores
Source	Rating
Pitchfork Media	6.3/10[2]
NME	7/10[3]
Under The Gun Review	8/10 [4]

A Wasteland Companion is the seventh studio album from M. Ward, released in Australia and New Zealand on April 6, 2012; in the United Kingdom on April 9, 2012; and in the United States on April 10, 2012. A Wasteland Companion is the follow-up to his 2009 album Hold Time.

A Wasteland Companion was recorded in eight studios in the United States and the United Kingdom.^[5][6][7] M. Ward promoted the new album on his 2012 European and American tour, March 20 to May 24.^[8][9]

The album garnered a rating of 75 out of 100 from critics as compiled by Metacritic.^[10]

Track listing

1. "Clean Slate" - 2:51
2. "Primitive Girl" - 3:10 (Includes a 55-second secret song at 2:15)
3. "Me and My Shadow" - 2:36
4. "Sweetheart" - 3:31
5. "I Get Ideas" - 2:39
6. "The First Time I Ran Away" - 3:17
7. "A Wasteland Companion" - 2:54
8. "Watch the Show" - 3:40
9. "There's a Key" - 2:57
10. "Crawl After You" - 3:41
11. "Wild Goose" - 2:35
12. "Pure Joy" - 2:57^[11]

• Total Length: 36:47

Personnel

• M. Ward - guitar, piano, vocals
• Zooey Deschanel - vocals
• Susan Sanchez - backing vocals
• Rachel Cox - backing vocals
• Toby Leaman - bass
• Tyler Tornfelt - bass
• Mike Coykendall - percussion, bass, acoustic guitar
• John Parish - percussion, marimba
• Jordan Hudson - percussion
• Steve Shelley - percussion
• Scott McPherson - percussion
• John Graboff - pedal steel
• Howe Gelb - piano
• Nathan "Jr." Andersen - piano
• Mike Mogis - organ, orchestra bells
• Tom Hagerman - strings
• Amanda Lawrence - violin

References

1. http://www.metacritic.com/music/a-wasteland-companion/m-ward
2. Maddux, Rachael (2012-04-10). "M. Ward: A Wasteland Companion". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2013-05-21.
3. Catling, Simon (2012-04-05). "M Ward - 'A Wasteland Companion'". NME. Retrieved 2013-05-21.
4. "REVIEW: M. Ward: 'A Wasteland Companion'". Under the Gun Review. March 29, 2012.
5. "Merge Records Store". Mergerecords.com. 2012-04-10. Retrieved 2012-08-01.
6. Andrew Tijs (2012-03-27). "M. Ward Prepares His Sixth Album A Wasteland Companion | New Music | Music News". Noise11. Retrieved 2012-08-01.
7. Courtright, Nick (2012-03-06). "Merry Christmas, Wasteland Companion: An Interview with M. Ward of She & Him, Monsters of Folk, and Himself". Austinist. Retrieved 2012-08-01.
8. Steve Appleford (2012-03-11). "M. Ward Brings Songs from 'A Wasteland Companion' to KCRW | Music News". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2012-08-01.
9. https://web.archive.org/20120306190934/http://www.mwardmusic.com:80/shows.html. Archived from the original on March 6, 2012. Retrieved March 28, 2012. Missing or empty |title= (help)
10. "A Wasteland Companion - M. Ward". Metacritic. Retrieved 2012-12-31.
11. Thompson, Stephen (2012-03-25). "First Listen: M. Ward, 'A Wasteland Companion'". NPR. Retrieved 2012-08-01.