The Optimist (New Young Pony Club album)

The Optimist
Studio album by New Young Pony Club
Released	5 March 2010
Recorded	The Glue Factory
Genre	Dance-punk synthpop new wave post-punk revival indie rock
Length	45:27
Label	The Numbers
Producer	Tahita Bulmer Andy Spence
New Young Pony Club chronology
Fantastic Playroom (2007) The Optimist (2010) NYPC (2013)
Singles from The Optimist
"Lost a Girl" Released: 20 December 2009 (promo)[1] "Chaos" Released: 28 February 2010[2] "We Want To" Released: 30 May 2010[3]

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	61/100[4]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[5]
BBC Music	favourable[6]
Clash	7/10[7]
The Daily Telegraph	[8]
Drowned in Sound	6/10[9]
The Guardian	[10]
The Independent	favourable[11]
musicOMH	[12]
NME	8/10[13]
Pitchfork Media	5.5/10[14]

The Optimist is the second studio album by English electronic music band New Young Pony Club, released on 5 March 2010 on the band's label The Numbers, distributed by the [PIAS] Entertainment Group. The album showcases a darker, more emotive sound for the band.^[15] The songs "Oh Cherie" and "Lost a Girl" were used, respectively, in the third and fourth episodes of the fourth season of Gossip Girl.^[16][17]

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Tahita Bulmer and Andy Spence, except where noted. 

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Lost a Girl"	4:21
2.	"Chaos"	3:39
3.	"The Optimist"	5:36
4.	"Stone"	4:10
5.	"We Want To"	4:42
6.	"Dolls"	3:16
7.	"Before the Light"	5:28
8.	"Oh Cherie"	5:04
9.	"Rapture"	4:23
10.	"Architect of Love"	4:48

iTunes Store bonus tracks[18][19]
No.	Title	Length
11.	"Chaos" (Manic Street Preachers South Wales Swamp Mix)	3:34
12.	"Chaos" (video) (UK and Europe only)	3:17
13.	"Lost a Girl" (video) (UK only)	4:22

Japanese edition bonus tracks[20]
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
11.	"Dress"	PJ Harvey	3:30
12.	"Chaos" (Rory Phillips Mix)		5:11
13.	"Chaos" (Johan and Dekker Remix)		7:12
14.	"Chaos" (Melé Remix)		5:56

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of The Optimist.^[21]

New Young Pony Club

• Tahita Bulmer – performer, production
• Lou Hayter – extra vocals (tracks 2, 3, 5, 7), extra piano (track 7)
• Sarah Jones – drums (tracks 1, 2, 4, 5), extra vocals (tracks 2, 3, 5), additional drums (tracks 3, 6–8)
• Andy Spence – performer, production

Additional personnel

• Pete Fraser – saxophone (track 3)
• Liz Harry – art direction, design
• Mark McNulty – photography
• Al O'Connel – drum engineering (track 2)
• Morgan Quaintance – heys (track 1), extra Vox (track 4)
• Craig Silvey – mixing
• Tom Stanley – drum engineering (tracks 1, 4, 5)

Charts

Chart (2010)	Peak position
UK Albums Chart[22]	161

Release history

Region	Date	Label
Ireland	5 March 2010[23]	The Numbers
United Kingdom	8 March 2010[24]
Australia	19 March 2010[25]	Liberator Music
France	5 April 2010[26]	[PIAS] Recordings
Germany	16 April 2010[27]	[PIAS] Integral
Japan	21 April 2010[20]	Hostess Entertainment
United States	4 May 2010[5]	[PIAS] America

References

1. "Lost a Girl – Single by New Young Pony Club". iTunes Store UK. Apple. Retrieved 20 July 2011.
2. "Chaos – EP by New Young Pony Club". iTunes Store UK. Apple. Retrieved 20 July 2011.
3. "We Want To – EP by New Young Pony Club". iTunes Store UK. Apple. Retrieved 20 July 2011.
4. "The Optimist – New Young Pony Club". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 20 July 2011.
5. Sendra, Tim. "The Optimist – New Young Pony Club – Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 6 May 2010.
6. Shaw, Natalie (4 March 2010). "Review of New Young Pony Club – The Optimist". BBC Music. Retrieved 9 March 2010.
7. Zadeh, Joe (2 March 2010). "New Young Pony Club – The Optimist". Clash. Retrieved 9 March 2010.
8. Green, Thomas H (5 March 2010). "New Young Pony Club: The Optimist, CD review". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 9 March 2010.
9. Goodson, Kelvin (4 March 2010). "New Young Pony Club – The Optimist". Drowned in Sound. Retrieved 9 March 2010.
10. Dean, Will (4 March 2010). "New Young Pony Club: The Optimist". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 March 2010.
11. Price, Simon (7 March 2010). "Album: New Young Pony Club, The Optimist (The Numbers)". The Independent. Retrieved 9 March 2010.
12. Urdang, Ben. "New Young Pony Club – The Optimist". musicOMH. Retrieved 9 March 2010.
13. Doran, John (12 March 2010). "Album Review: New Young Pony Club – 'The Optimist' (Pias)". NME. IPC Media. Retrieved 20 July 2011.
14. Cohen, Ian (25 March 2010). "New Young Pony Club: The Optimist". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
15. "New Young Pony Club talk "deliciously menacing" new LP". Fact. The Vinyl Factory. 7 January 2010. Retrieved 11 March 2010.
16. "Gossip Girl Music | Season 4 – Episode 3". The CW. Archived from the original on 3 October 2010. Retrieved 22 August 2011.
17. "Gossip Girl Music | Season 4 – Episode 4". The CW. Archived from the original on 16 October 2010. Retrieved 22 August 2011.
18. "The Optimist by New Young Pony Club". iTunes Store UK. Apple. Retrieved 20 July 2011.
19. "The Optimist by New Young Pony Club". iTunes Store Germany. Apple. Retrieved 4 February 2014.
20. ジ・オプティミスト [The Optimist] (in Japanese). Amazon.co.jp. Retrieved 20 July 2011.
21. The Optimist (CD liner notes). New Young Pony Club. The Numbers. 2010. NYPCCD030.
22. "Chart Log UK: Nadanuf – Michael Nyman". The Zobbel Website. Retrieved 20 July 2011.
23. "New Young Pony Club – Optimist". Tower Records Ireland. Archived from the original on 15 March 2012. Retrieved 20 July 2011.
24. "New Young Pony Club: Optimist". HMV. Archived from the original on 10 July 2012. Retrieved 20 July 2011.
25. "Optimist, The – New Young Pony Club". JB Hi-Fi. Archived from the original on 31 December 2012. Retrieved 20 July 2011.
26. "The Optimist – New Young Pony Club" (in French). Fnac. Retrieved 20 July 2011.
27. "The Optimist" (in German). Amazon.de. Retrieved 20 July 2011.