The Last Goodbye (album) explained

The Last Goodbye
Type:studio
Cover:Odesza - The Last Goodbye.png
Artist:Odesza
Released:July 22, 2022
Length:50:32
Prev Title:Bronson
Prev Year:2020
Next Title:Flaws in Our Design
Next Year:2023

The Last Goodbye is the fourth studio album by the American electronic music duo Odesza, released on July 22, 2022 through Ninja Tune and Foreign Family Collective.[1] It is the duo's first studio album in five years, after A Moment Apart.

The duo teased new music at the beginning of 2022 through social media. The first single, "The Last Goodbye", was released as the lead single in February 2022. The second single, "Better Now", was released in March. Following the album's announcement later that month, "Love Letter" was released as the third single. "Behind The Sun" was released as the fourth single in April. "Wide Awake" was released as the fifth single in June. "Light Of Day" was released as the final single in July. The album features contributions from Julianna Barwick, Charlie Houston, Izzy Bizu, Maro, Bettye LaVette, Låpsley, and Ólafur Arnalds.

The album received positive reviews from critics, with praise towards its production values and emotional tone. The album was nominated for Best Dance/Electronic Album for the 65th Grammy Awards.[2]

Background

Along with the album's announcement in March 2022, the duo released a statement behind the creation of the album: "Over the past few years we’ve been able to reflect on who we are, what it means to do what we do, and in the end, who we are doing this for. We became focused and inspired by the impact our families and friends have imprinted on us and how we want to continue to echo that out as we move through this life. We found comfort in the fact that those who we love stay with us, that they become intrinsically part of us, in a way."[3] [4]

Promotion

Multimedia

The duo teased new music in January 2022 through social media.[5] In February 2022, the duo launched a campaign titled "Welcome to The Last Goodbye." It consisted of unreleased audio snippets and video footage of Mills and Knight's childhood years that were generated through fans typing a given password into the duo's microsite.[6] [7]

Singles and music videos

On February 8, 2022, "The Last Goodbye", featuring Bettye LaVette, was released as the lead single from the album.[8] The music video for the single was released the following week.[9] The second single, "Better Now", featuring Maro, was released on March 2.[10] Its music video was later released on April 19.[11] With the announcement of The Last Goodbye on March 23, "Love Letter", featuring The Knocks, was released as the third single from the album.[12] A music video, starring Simone Ashley, was premiered after the album's release, on August 4.[13] The fourth single, "Behind the Sun", was released on April 26, alongside a music video.[14] "Wide Awake", featuring Charlie Houston, was released on June 8 as the fifth single.[15] "Light Of Day", featuring Ólafur Arnalds, was released on July 13 as the sixth and final single.[16]

Reception

The Last Goodbye received generally positive reviews from critics, with praise towards the album's production values and emotional tone. It has an assigned normalized rating of 73 out of 100 based on 4 critical reviews, indicating 'generally favorable reviews' from review aggregator Metacritic.

Paul Simpson of AllMusic gave the album a positive review, stating it as a "definite improvement over A Moment Apart" and describing the tracks as "bigger and more anthemic." Allie Gregory, reviewing for Exclaim!, also gave a positive review, commenting on the album's "varied components coming together to form a cohesive unit." Kieran Macdonald-Brown of Clash Music also praised the album's emotional and poignant tone, whilst describing the album as a "cinematic body of work that triumphs in its ability to meld a plethora of electronic styles together."

Daniel Bromfield of Pitchfork was more critical of the album, commenting that "the constant malaise keeps the[se] songs from generating the ridiculous, heart-swelling feeling of transcendence that the best big-room dance music can achieve."

Track listing

Notes

Personnel

Odesza

Additional musicians

Technical

Visuals

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2022)! scope="col"
Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[21] 22

Year-end charts

Chart (2022)! scope="col"
Position
US Top Dance/Electronic Albums (Billboard)[22] 23

Notes and References

  1. Web site: ODESZA Announces New Album: 'The Last Goodbye', Out July 22 . 2022-03-24 . Shore Fire Media . en.
  2. Bain . Katie . 2022-11-15 . ODESZA, Diplo, RÜFÜS DU SOL & Beyoncé Lead 2023 Dance/Electronic Grammy Nominations . 2022-11-16 . Billboard . en-US.
  3. Web site: Gilmore . Grant . 2022-03-23 . ODESZA Officially Announces 'The Last Goodbye' with Latest Single . 2022-03-24 . EDM Identity . en-US.
  4. Web site: Heffler . Jason . ODESZA Announce Release Date of New Album, "The Last Goodbye" . 2022-03-24 . EDM.com - The Latest Electronic Dance Music News, Reviews & Artists . March 23, 2022 . en.
  5. 1477187850021994496. odesza. 2 ⬡ 2 2 . Odesza.
  6. 1489352722822221827. odesza. password: tlg. Odesza.
  7. Web site: 2022-02-05 . ODESZA Release Cryptic New Teaser With An Audio Snippet Titled "Is There Ever A Last Goodbye?" . 2022-03-24 . T.H.E - Music Essentials . en-GB.
  8. Web site: Longhurst . Courtney . 2022-02-09 . After Two Years, ODESZA Finally Returns with 'The Last Goodbye' . 2022-03-24 . EDMTunes . en-US.
  9. Web site: 2022-02-17 . Watch ODESZA's New Music Video for "The Last Goodbye" . 2022-03-24 . This Song Is Sick . en-US.
  10. Web site: Heffler . Jason . Listen to ODESZA's Stunning New Single, "Better Now" . 2022-03-24 . EDM.com - The Latest Electronic Dance Music News, Reviews & Artists . March 2, 2022 . en.
  11. Web site: 2022-04-19 . ODESZA Drop New Music Video for "Better Now" . 2022-10-13 . This Song Is Sick . en-US.
  12. Web site: 2022-03-23 . ODESZA Release Next Album Single "Love Letter" w/ The Knocks, Announce Release Date . 2022-03-24 . Your EDM . en-US.
  13. Web site: 2022-08-04 . Simone Ashley Goes Full Karate Kid in New Music Video . 2022-10-13 . Teen Vogue . en-US.
  14. Web site: Heffler . Jason . The Road to ODESZA's Fourth Album Continues With Haunting Single, "Behind The Sun": Listen . 2022-04-26 . EDM.com - The Latest Electronic Dance Music News, Reviews & Artists . April 26, 2022 . en.
  15. Web site: Heffler . Jason . ODESZA Drop Haunting Single From Upcoming Fourth Album: Listen to "Wide Awake" . 2022-06-08 . EDM.com - The Latest Electronic Dance Music News, Reviews & Artists . June 8, 2022 . en.
  16. Web site: Heffler . Jason . ODESZA and Ólafur Arnalds Captivate In Final "The Last Goodbye" Album Single: Listen to "Light of Day" . 2022-07-13 . EDM.com . July 13, 2022 . en.
  17. Odesza . Odesza . odesza . 1551687305190150144 . 4 - Behind the Sun: The vocal sample is originally from the Iranian singer Simin Ghanem's song Sib. Her vocal is so powerful we wanted to make an instrumental that matched the energy of her voice by layering in big orchestral pieces and massive drums.. January 19, 2023.
  18. Web site: LaCroix . Ryan . Grammy nominations include Oklahoma musicians Reba McEntire, Zach Bryan & more . November 17, 2022 . . January 19, 2023.
  19. News: Ruiz . Matthew Ismael . Odesza and Bettye LaVette Share New Song "The Last Goodbye": Listen . January 19, 2023 . . . February 8, 2022.
  20. News: Heidt . Dustin . ODESZA offers last album preview with glorious new track 'Light of Day' . January 19, 2023 . . September 19, 2022.
  21. Web site: ARIA Top 50 Albums Chart. Australian Recording Industry Association. August 1, 2022. July 29, 2022.
  22. Top Dance/Electronic Albums – Year-End 2022. Billboard. March 2, 2023.