More Rain is the eighth studio album by American singer-songwriter M. Ward. The album was released on March 4, 2016, on Merge Records and Bella Union. More Rain is Ward's first solo album since 2012's A Wasteland Companion, having released Volume Three and Classics with Zooey Deschanel as She & Him in the interim as well as recording and producing other artists.
| More Rain | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | March 4, 2016 | |||
| Genre | Americana, indie folk | |||
| Length | 37:14 | |||
| Label | Merge | |||
| M. Ward chronology | ||||
| ||||
Background
editWard began working on More Rain in 2012, initially experimenting with layering his own vocals to create a doo-wop record. After collaborating with other artists on the record like Peter Buck, k.d. lang, and Neko Case, the sound of the album went in a different direction, described as "true gotta-stay-indoors, rainy-season record that looks upwards through the weather while reflecting on his past."[1]
Critical reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Exclaim! | 7/10[2] |
| Pitchfork | 5.9/10[3] |
More Rain received a weighted average score of 72 out of 100, based on eleven critical reviews, by review aggregator Metacritic, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[4] A review in the April 2016 issue of Uncut said, "The lack of ironic twists is both slightly unsettling and hugely refreshing,"[5] and David Harvey of Record Collector called the album "a dreamy deluge".[6] Andrew Gordon of The Skinny said the album is "decisively easygoing", after saying, "If you're scanning these pages for a record your granny might be into, this is the one."[7] Dean Van Nguyen of Consequence of Sound gave the album a D , or a 33 out of 100 according to Metacritic, stating that, "All the expected points have been hit on More Rain, but the record comes off as slack and slapdash."[8]
Track listing
editAll songs written by M. Ward except "You're So Good to Me" written by Brian Wilson
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "More Rain" | 1:01 |
| 2. | "Pirate Dial" | 2:46 |
| 3. | "Time Won't Wait" | 2:49 |
| 4. | "Confession" | 3:14 |
| 5. | "I'm Listening (Child's Theme)" | 3:11 |
| 6. | "Girl from Conejo Valley" | 3:35 |
| 7. | "Slow Driving Man" | 4:24 |
| 8. | "You're So Good to Me" | 3:04 |
| 9. | "Temptation" | 2:50 |
| 10. | "Phenomenon" | 3:10 |
| 11. | "Little Baby" | 3:32 |
| 12. | "I'm Going Higher" | 3:38 |
| Total length: | 37:14 | |
Personnel
edit- M. Ward – vocals, guitar, mandolin, keyboards
- Mike Coykendall – bass, guitar, percussion
- Joey Spampinato – bass
- Mark Powers – drums, percussion
- Scott McPherson – drums, percussion
- Mike Mogis – mandolin, pedal steel, Moog synthesizer
- Nathaniel Walcott – flugelhorn
- Paul Brainard – pedal steel, trumpet
- Peter Buck – guitar, mandolin
- Scott McCaughey – bass, guitar, organ
- Susan Sanchez – backing vocals
- The Secret Sisters – backing vocals
- k.d. lang – backing vocals
- Neko Case – backing vocals[9]
Charts
edit| Chart (2016) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[10] | 59 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[11] | 174 |
| US Billboard 200[12] | 128 |
| US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard)[13] | 13 |
| US Folk Albums (Billboard)[14] | 4 |
| US Independent Albums (Billboard)[15] | 7 |
| US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[16] | 16 |
| US Top Tastemaker Albums (Billboard)[17] | 7 |
| US Vinyl Albums (Billboard)[18] | 14 |
References
edit- ^ "M. Ward announces new album, More Rain, shares "Girl From Conejo Valley" — listen". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 2016-02-24.
- ^ Mullin, Kyle (March 2, 2016). "M. Ward - More Rain". Exclaim!. Retrieved March 18, 2016.
- ^ Hussey, Allison (March 11, 2016). "M. Ward: More Rain". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 11, 2016.
- ^ "More Rain by M. Ward". Metacritic. Retrieved 2016-03-01.
- ^ "Album Review". Uncut: 83. April 2016.
- ^ "More Rain - Record Collector Magazine". recordcollectormag.com. Retrieved 2016-03-01.
- ^ "M. Ward: More Rain - New album review - The Skinny". www.theskinny.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-03-01.
- ^ "Album Review: M. Ward – More Rain". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 2016-03-02.
- ^ "More Rain - M. Ward". AllMusic. Retrieved 11 February 2017.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – M. Ward – More Rain" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – M. Ward – More Rain" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
- ^ "M. Ward Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved March 15, 2016.
- ^ "M. Ward Chart History (Top Alternative Albums)". Billboard.
- ^ "M. Ward Chart History (Top Americana/Folk Albums)". Billboard.
- ^ "M. Ward Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard.
- ^ "M. Ward Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard.
- ^ "M. Ward Chart History (Top Tastemaker Albums)". Billboard.
- ^ "M. Ward Chart History (Vinyl Albums)". Billboard.
External links
edit- M. Ward's official homepage
- More Rain on Merge Records