Former Lives is the debut solo album by Death Cab for Cutie lead singer Ben Gibbard. It was released in October 2012 under Barsuk Records.
| Former Lives | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Studio album by | |
| Released | October 16, 2012 |
| Genre | Pop, rock |
| Length | 36:42 |
| Label | Barsuk |
| Producer | Aaron Espinoza; Ben Gibbard |
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 70/100[1] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AbsolutePunk | 89%[2] |
| Allmusic |    [3] |
| American Songwriter | [4] |
| Earbuddy | (6.5/10)[5] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B [6] |
| LA Times | [7] |
| PopMatters | 6/10[8] |
| Rolling Stone | [9] |
| Sputnikmusic | 3.5/5[10] |
| Under the Radar | 7/10[11] |
Many of the album's tracks feature Gibbard playing all instruments by himself. Aaron Espinoza is credited as producer for all tracks except 1, 5, 10, 11, and 12. Other guest musicians include Jon Wurster, Mark Spencer, Aimee Mann, and Zooey Deschanel.
Track list
editAll songs written by Ben Gibbard, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Shepherd's Bush Lullaby" | 0:50 | |
| 2. | "Dream Song" | 3:33 | |
| 3. | "Teardrop Windows" | 2:47 | |
| 4. | "Bigger Than Love" | 4:47 | |
| 5. | "Lily" | 2:00 | |
| 6. | "Something's Rattling (Cowpoke)" | 3:51 | |
| 7. | "Duncan, Where Have You Gone?" | 3:46 | |
| 8. | "Oh, Woe" | 2:50 | |
| 9. | "A Hard One to Know" | 2:40 | |
| 10. | "Lady Adelaide" | Gibbard, Stan Jones | 3:33 |
| 11. | "Broken Yolk in Western Sky" | 3:32 | |
| 12. | "I'm Building a Fire" | 2:33 |
Charts
edit| Chart (2012) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200[12] | 34 |
| US Independent Albums (Billboard)[13] | 7 |
| US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard)[14] | 8 |
| US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[15] | 11 |
References
edit- ^ "Album Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 2012-10-21.
- ^ Robson, Gregory (2012-10-17). "Benjamin Gibbard - Former Lives". AbsolutePunk. Retrieved 2012-10-21.
- ^ Thomas, Fred. "Former Lives - Ben Gibbard". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-21.
- ^ Beviglia, Jim (2012-10-13). "Ben Gibbard: Former Lives". American Songwriter. Retrieved 2012-10-21.
- ^ Krenn, Nick (2012-10-18). "Benjamin Gibbard - Former Lives Review". Earbuddy. Archived from the original on 2012-10-22. Retrieved 2012-10-18.
- ^ Rahman, Ray (2012-10-19). "Former Lives review". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on November 27, 2012. Retrieved 2012-10-21.
- ^ Brown, August (2012-10-16). "Ben Gibbard's 'Former Lives' a haunting solo debut". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2012-10-21.
- ^ Bloom, David (2012-10-17). "Album Review". PopMatters. Retrieved 2012-10-21.
- ^ Catucci, Nick (2012-10-16). "Album review". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2012-10-21.
- ^ Tan, Irving (Dec 7, 2012). "Album Review - Benjamin Gibbard: Former Lives". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
- ^ Cleeve, Sam (2012-10-12). "Ben Gibbard: Former Lives". Under the Radar. Retrieved 2012-10-21.
- ^ "Benjamin Gibbard Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 22, 2019.
- ^ "Benjamin Gibbard Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 22, 2019.
- ^ "Benjamin Gibbard Chart History (Top Alternative Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 22, 2019.
- ^ "Benjamin Gibbard Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 22, 2019.