Another Language (album)

Another Language
Studio album by This Will Destroy You
Released September 12, 2014 (2014-09-12)
Recorded 2013-14
Genre Post-rock, doom metal, shoegaze
Length 47:01
Label Suicide Squeeze, Hobbledehoy
Producer John Congleton
This Will Destroy You chronology
Live in Reykjavik, Iceland
(2013)		 Another Language
(2014)
Singles from Another Language
  1. "Dustism"
    Released: June 23, 2014
  2. "Invitation"
    Released: August 11, 2014

Another Language is the third studio album by American post-rock band This Will Destroy You. It was released on September 12, 2014, by Suicide Squeeze Records and Hobbledehoy Record Co. Another Language was preceded by the digital release of two singles, "Dustism" and "Invitation".

Background and production

According to a press release published by Suicide Squeeze Records, the album was recorded after a "prolonged vacuous dark period that threatened to break both the band and the members themselves".[1] In February 2013, one of the band's guitarists, Jeremy Galindo, said that the band had started writing the next studio album.[2] Nine months later, the band said they were halfway done with the recording process.[3] In February 2014, the band's bassist Donovan Jones reported that they were still working on the album.[4]

Composition

According to the band, Another Language's sound is "more upbeat and rhythmic" than their previous work.[3] They also described the sound of the album with the genre "doomgaze", a portmanteau of the words doom metal and shoegaze.[5] Fred Thomas of AllMusic described the sound of the album as "far heavier" than the "tense, brooding post-rock" on the band's previous work. He characterized the sound of Another Language as "cinematic" post-rock influenced by doom metal and shoegaze, and called the production "more intricate" and "otherworldly". Thomas also praised the band's "always airtight sense of dynamics".[6] Matt Bobkin of Exclaim! labeled the album's sound as post-rock, but acknowledged that the band seemed to be moving away from that sound.[7]

The album's first track, "New Topia", "grows from laid-back rhythms and gentle bell sounds into a slow, pounding wail". Thomas found that the production of the track was influenced by drone metal, and the other sounds "blur into a hungry wash of delay and toothy noise". "Dustism" was characterized by "dubbed-out drums and high-pitched feedback synths", while "Invitation" features "rolling, distorted rhythms and faraway guitar sounds".[6] "Serpent Mound" features an ambient opening followed by "face-melting melodic guitar lines with a solid wave of fuzzy, distorted sound and crashing drums", described by Bobkin as "doomgaze".[7] The album's closing track, "God's Teeth", features ambient sounds that were compared to the works of Brian Eno and William Basinski.[6]

Release and promotion

The release and album artwork of the album were announced on June 23, 2014, with the release of the first single, "Dustism".[8] The album's second single, "Invitation", was released on August 11.[9] Another Language was made available for streaming through Pitchfork Media on September 8. A video to accompany the album was directed by Sean Miller and Christopher Royal King.[10][11]

Prior to the album release, This Will Destroy You announced a worldwide concert and festival tour, with support from Future Death and Silent Land Time Machine in North America, and Thought Forms and Lymbyc Systym in Europe.[8][12]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic72/100[13]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[6]
Alternative Press[14]
Consequence of SoundB-[15]
Exclaim!7/10[7]
Kerrang![16]
Pitchfork Media7.2/10[17]
PopMatters6/10[18]

Another Language received positive reviews upon its release. According to Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album held a score of 72/100 based on nine reviews—indicating "generally favorable reviews"—following its release.[13] Fred Thomas of AllMusic, who gave the album four out of five stars, complimented the band's "more intricate, otherworldly production methods" and ability to write intense songs that are not "overly long". He praised the closing track of the album, "God's Teeth", calling it "gorgeous and haunting".[6] Matt Bobkin of Exclaim!, who gave the album seven out of ten points, criticized the album for its long ambient segments in the middle of the record, but praised the following tracks, "Invitation" and "Memory Loss".[7]

Track listing

Standard edition[19]
No. Title Length
1. "New Topia"   5:28
2. "Dustism"   6:19
3. "Serpent Mound"   5:07
4. "War Prayer"   7:34
5. "The Puritan"   3:01
6. "Mother Opiate"   4:45
7. "Invitation"   4:07
8. "Memory Loss"   6:00
9. "God's Teeth"   4:40
Total length:
 47:01
Japanese edition (bonus tracks)[20]
No. Title Length
10. "Their Celebrations"   6:03
11. "Golden Wheel"   4:45

Credits

Credits adapted from Holodeck Records and Pitchfork Media.[21][17]

Charts

Chart (2014) Peak
position
US Top Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[22] 7

Release history

Country Date Format(s) Label Ref.
Austria September 12, 2014 Digital download Suicide Squeeze [23]
Finland [24]
Germany [25]
Ireland [26]
Netherlands [27]
Switzerland [28]
France September 15, 2014
  • Digital download
  • CD
  • 2LP
 [29][30][31]
Belgium Digital download [32]
Italy [33]
Luxembourg [34]
Portugal [35]
Spain [36]
Sweden [37]
United Kingdom
  • Digital download
  • CD
 [38][39]
Australia September 16, 2014
  • Digital download
  • CD
  • 2LP
 Hobbledehoy [40]
Canada Digital download Suicide Squeeze [41]
New Zealand
  • Digital download
  • CD
  • 2LP
 Hobbledehoy [40]
Norway Digital download Suicide Squeeze [42]
Singapore [43]
United States
Suicide Squeeze / Holodeck [19][44][21]
Japan October 22, 2014 N/A & Records [20]

References

  1. ↑ "This Will Destroy You Details New Album, Shares "Dustism"". Tumblr. Suicide Squeeze Records. June 23, 2014. Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  2. ↑ P, Gilbert (February 2013). "Interview: Jeremy Galindo, This Will Destroy You". Echoesanddust.com. Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  3. 1 2 Helbig, Robert (November 25, 2013). "Interview: This Will Destroy You – The new album is halfway there". Nothing But Hope And Passion. Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  4. ↑ "Interview: Donovan of This Will Destroy You". Coreymcd22.wordpress.com. WordPress. February 21, 2014. Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  5. ↑ Yung, Phillip (August 13, 2014). "Take a peak into This Will Destroy You's upcoming album 'Another Language'". Earmilk.com. Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Another Language at AllMusic. Retrieved September 13, 2014.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Bobkin, Matt (September 12, 2014). "This Will Destroy You - Another Language". Exclaim!. Retrieved September 13, 2014.
  8. 1 2 Bowe, Miles (June 23, 2014). "This Will Destroy You – “Dustism” (Stereogum Premiere)". Stereogum. Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  9. ↑ "Listen to a Song from This Will Destroy You's (Obviously) Epic New Album". Noisey. Vice. August 11, 2014. Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  10. ↑ "Our new album Another Language is...". This Will Destroy You. Facebook. September 8, 2014. Retrieved September 8, 2014.
  11. ↑ "This Will Destroy You: Another Language". Pitchfork Media. September 8, 2014. Retrieved September 8, 2014.
  12. ↑ "THIS WILL DESTROY YOU European tour 2014". LittleBig Agency. May 29, 2014. Retrieved September 8, 2014.
  13. 1 2 "Reviews for Another Language by This Will Destroy You". Metacritic. Retrieved October 9, 2014.
  14. ↑ Alternative Press: 101. October 2014. Another Language is a step back in the right direction, engulfing the listener with effortless subtlety.
  15. ↑ Corcoran, Nina (September 19, 2014). "This Will Destroy You – Another Language". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
  16. ↑ Kerrang!: 53. September 20, 2014. All the standard atmospheric touchstones get brushed aside here in favour of a deeper, more meditative experience.
  17. 1 2 Stosuy, Brandon (September 18, 2014). "This Will Destroy You: Another Language". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved September 20, 2014.
  18. ↑ Paul, John (October 8, 2014). "This Will Destroy You: Another Language". PopMatters. Retrieved October 9, 2014.
  19. 1 2 "Another Language by This Will Destroy You". iTunes Store. Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  20. 1 2 "This Will Destroy You / Another Language". & Records (in Japanese). Retrieved September 20, 2014.
  21. 1 2 "This Will Destroy You - Another Language". Holodeckrecords.com. Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  22. ↑ "This Will Destroy You – Chart history" Billboard Top Heatseekers Albums for This Will Destroy You. Retrieved September 25, 2014.
  23. ↑ "Another Language (2014)". at.7digital.com (in German). Retrieved September 13, 2014.
  24. ↑ "Another Language (2014)". fi.7digital.com (in Finnish). Retrieved September 13, 2014.
  25. ↑ "Another Language: This Will Destroy You". Amazon.de (in German). Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  26. ↑ "Another Language (2014)". ie.7digital.com. Retrieved September 13, 2014.
  27. ↑ "Another Language (2014)". nl.7digital.com (in Dutch). Retrieved September 13, 2014.
  28. ↑ "Another Language (2014)". de-ch.7digital.com (in German). Retrieved September 13, 2014.
  29. ↑ "Another Language: This Will Destroy You". Amazon.fr (in French). Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  30. ↑ "Another Language: This Will Destroy You". Amazon.fr (in French). Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  31. ↑ "Another Language : This Will Destroy You". Amazon.fr (in French). Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  32. ↑ "Another Language (2014)". nl-be.7digital.com (in Dutch). Retrieved September 13, 2014.
  33. ↑ "Another Language". it.7digital.com (in Italian). Retrieved September 13, 2014.
  34. ↑ "Another Language (2014)". lu.7digital.com (in French). Retrieved September 13, 2014.
  35. ↑ "Another Language (2014)". pt.7digital.com (in Portuguese). Retrieved September 13, 2014.
  36. ↑ "Another Language (2014)". es.7digital.com (in Spanish). Retrieved September 13, 2014.
  37. ↑ "Another Language (2014)". se.7digital.com. Retrieved September 13, 2014.
  38. ↑ "Another Language: This Will Destroy You". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  39. ↑ "Another Language". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  40. 1 2 "This Will Destroy You - Another Language (2LP/CD/Digital)". Hobbledehoy Record Co. Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  41. ↑ "Another Language (2014)". ca.7digital.com. Retrieved September 13, 2014.
  42. ↑ "Another Language (2014)". no.7digital.com. Retrieved September 13, 2014.
  43. ↑ "Another Language (2014)". sg.7digital.com. Retrieved September 13, 2014.
  44. ↑ "Suicide Squeeze Records". Suicide Squeeze Records. Retrieved August 18, 2014.
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