Blue Weekend Explained

Blue Weekend
Type:	studio
Artist:	Wolf Alice
Cover:	Wolf-Alice-Blue-Weekend.jpg
Released:	4 June 2021
Studio:	ICP (Brussels) Iguana (London)
Genre:	Rock indie pop^[1] ^[2] alternative rock^[3] shoegaze
Length:	40:08
Label:	Dirty Hit
Producer:	Markus Dravs
Prev Title:	Visions of a Life
Prev Year:	2017

Blue Weekend is the third studio album by English rock band Wolf Alice, released on 4 June 2021 through Dirty Hit. Blue Weekend was preceded by four singles—"The Last Man on Earth", "Smile", "No Hard Feelings" and "How Can I Make It OK?". The album received acclaim from music critics, with many naming it the band's best work, and was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize in 2021.

Release

On 24 February 2021, Wolf Alice announced the album's title and initial release date of 11 June, alongside the release of lead single "The Last Man on Earth".^[4] On 3 May 2021, the band announced that they would be bringing the album's release earlier by one week, to 4 June.^[5]

Promotion

Singles

Blue Weekend was preceded by four singles. "The Last Man on Earth" was released on 24 February 2021 as the album's lead single.^[6] It was premiered by Annie Mac on her eponymous BBC Radio 1 Radio program, where Ellie Rowsell and Theo Ellis from the band co-hosted with her. The music video was released on YouTube an hour after Mac's radio show started.^[6]

"Smile" was released on 20 April 2021 as the album's second single. It was premiered the same way as its predecessor.^[7]

"No Hard Feelings" was released on 11 May 2021, an hour earlier than the previous two on Zane Lowe's Apple Music show, with the music video again released on YouTube an hour afterwards.^[8] "How Can I Make It OK?" was released on 3 June 2021 as the fourth and last single of the album along with a music video on YouTube.^[9]

Critical reception

Blue Weekend received acclaim from music critics, many of whom described it as their best album.^[10] On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating of 100, the album received an average score of 91, based on 19 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". It was ranked as the third highest-rated album of 2021 on the website at the time of release.^[11]

Blue Weekend was nominated for the Mercury Prize in 2021, and multiple NME Awards in 2022.^{[12] [13]}

Accolades

Publication! scope="col" class="unsortable"

List	Rank
Albumism	The 100 Best Albums of 2021
The AU Review	The 40 Best Albums of 2021
DIY	DIY’S Best Albums Of 2021
Far Out Magazine	The 50 Best Albums of 2021
Gaffa	Her er årets 20 bedste internationale album
The Guardian	The 50 Best Albums of 2021
NME	The 50 best albums of 2021
Nothing but Hope and Passion	NBHAP’s 50 Best Albums Of 2021
OOR	Dit Zijn De 20 Beste Albums Van 2021
The Skinny	The Skinny's Top Ten Albums of 2021

Commercial performance

Blue Weekend debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart with 36,182 copies sold in its first week, becoming Wolf Alice's first number-one album.^[14] It was the biggest-selling album of 2021 in UK independent record shops.^[15]

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Blue Weekend.^[16]

Wolf Alice

• Ellie Rowsell – vocals, guitar, piano, bass, programming, Mellotron, synth, Wurlitzer, string arrangement
• Joff Oddie – guitar, piano, backing vocals, glock, programming, synth, claps, electric upright bass, bass, tenor resonator, 12-string, classical guitar, acoustic guitar
• Theo Ellis – bass, programming
• Joel Amey – drums, percussion, synth, backing vocals, guitar, Stylophone, programming, claps

Additional musicians

• Owen Pallett – string arrangement, violin, viola
• Iain Berryman – glasses, programming, keys, trumpet
• Joel Workman – electric upright bass
• Michael Peter Olsen – cello
• Markus Dravs – programming, synth

Technical

• Markus Dravs – production
• Iain Berryman – engineering, additional production
• Joel Workman – engineering assistance ; additional engineering
• Charlie Andrew – vocal production ; additional vocal production ; additional vocal recording
• Mark "Spike" Stent – mixing
• Matt Wolach – mixing assistance
• Ted Jensen – mastering

Artwork

• Jordan Hemingway – creative direction, photography
• Jamie Reid – art direction
• Aiden Miller – design

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2021)! scope="col"

Peak position
French Physical Albums (SNEP)^[17]	180

Year-end charts

Chart (2021)! scope="col"

Position
UK Albums (OCC)^[18]	71

Release history

Release history and formats for Blue Weekend! Region! Date! Format! Label! Catalogue!

Various	4 June 2021		Dirty Hit		^[19]
Australia		CD		LIB226CD	^[20]
		LP		DH1058	^[21]
		LP			^[22]
New Zealand		CD	Universal Music New Zealand	LIB226CD	^[23]
		LP		DH1058	^[24]
		LP			^[25]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Wolf Alice: Blue Weekend review – marvellous sequel to their Mercury winner. The Observer. 6 June 2021. 6 June 2021.
2. Web site: Hayden Merrick, Evan Sawdey. THE 15 BEST INDIE POP ALBUMS OF 2021. 24 November 2021. 6 January 2022. Popmatters.
3. Web site: Wolf Alice: Blue Weekend. Pitchfork.
4. Web site: Wolf Alice announce new album 'Blue Weekend' . . 24 February 2021 . 7 May 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210224210913/https://diymag.com/2021/02/24/wolf-alice-album-blue-weekend/ . 24 February 2021 . live.
5. Web site: Wolf Alice bring forward the release of new album 'Blue Weekend' . . 3 May 2021 . 7 May 2021 . Richards, Will . https://web.archive.org/web/20210504053043/https://www.nme.com/en_asia/news/music/wolf-alice-bring-forward-the-release-of-new-album-blue-weekend-2932612/ . 4 May 2021 . live.
6. Web site: Wolf Alice announce new album Blue Weekend, share video for new song: Listen . . 24 February 2021 . 25 February 2021 . Hussey, Allison. https://web.archive.org/web/20210225053909/https://pitchfork.com/news/wolf-alice-announce-new-album-blue-weekend-share-video-for-new-song-listen/ . 25 February 2021 . live.
7. Web site: Wolf Alice share heavy and hypnotic new single 'Smile' . . 20 April 2021 . 23 April 2021. Lavin, Will . https://web.archive.org/web/20210420172219/https://www.nme.com/news/music/wolf-alice-share-heavy-and-hypnotic-new-single-smile-2924362/ . 20 April 2021 . live.
8. Web site: Listen to Wolf Alice's delicate new single 'No Hard Feelings'. NME. 11 May 2021. 11 May 2021. Skinner, Tom.
9. Web site: 2021-06-03. Wolf Alice share enchanting new single 'How Can I Make It OK?'. 2021-06-04. NME.
10. Web site: Wolf Alice: Critics laud band's 'third and best' album . . 4 June 2021 . 4 June 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210604155101/https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-57355045 . 4 June 2021 . live.
11. Web site: Best Music and Albums for 2021 . . 2021-06-15.
12. Web site: 2022-03-02. Mercury prize 2021: first-time nominees dominate shortlist. 2021-09-07. the Guardian. en.
13. Web site: 2022-03-14. Bandlabs NME Awards 2022. 2022-03-14. NME. en.
14. Web site: Masterton. James. Charts analysis: Wolf Alice land first No.1 album with Blue Weekend. Music Week. 11 June 2021. 14 June 2021. subscription.
15. Web site: Record Store Day: The Official biggest albums in record shops each year 2012-2021. Official Charts. Smith. Carl. 23 April 2022. 17 November 2022.
16. Blue Weekend . liner notes . . . 2021 . DH01139.
17. Web site: Top Albums - SNEP . SNEP . 25 March 2024 . 11 June 2022 .
18. Web site: End of Year Album Chart Top 100 – 2021. Official Charts Company. 6 January 2022.
19. Web site: Blue Weekend by Wolf Alice on Apple Music . . 11 June 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210610234638/https://music.apple.com/au/album/blue-weekend/1554144723/ . 10 June 2021 . live.
20. Web site: Blue Weekend . . 4 June 2021 . 11 June 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210413100238/https://www.jbhifi.com.au/products/cd-wolf-alice-blue-weekend-cd/ . 13 April 2021 . live.
21. Web site: Blue Weekend (Vinyl) . . 4 June 2021 . 11 June 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210610233621/https://www.jbhifi.com.au/products/vinyl-wolf-alice-blue-weekend-vinyl-lp/ . 10 June 2021 . live.
22. Blue Weekend received several transparent and colour variant releases in Australia:
    • Green Vinyl: Web site: Blue Weekend (Limited Green Vinyl) . . 4 June 2021 . 11 June 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210413123445/https://www.jbhifi.com.au/products/vinyl-wolf-alice-blue-weekend-limited-green-vinyl-lp/ . 13 April 2021 . live.
    • Transparent Red Vinyl: Web site: Blue Weekend (Limited Transparent Red Vinyl) . . 4 June 2021 . 11 June 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210610233933/https://www.jbhifi.com.au/products/vinyl-wolf-alice-blue-weekend-limited-transparent-red-vinyl-lp/ . 10 June 2021 . live.
    • Transparent Yellow Vinyl: Web site: Blue Weekend (Limited Transparent Yellow Vinyl) . . 4 June 2021 . 11 June 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210610234219/https://www.jbhifi.com.au/products/vinyl-wolf-alice-blue-weekend-limited-transparent-yellow-vinyl-lp/ . 10 June 2021 . live.
23. Web site: Blue Weekend . . 4 June 2021 . 11 June 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210610235213/https://www.jbhifi.co.nz/alternative/blue-weekend/392862/ . 10 June 2021 . live.
24. Web site: Blue Weekend (Vinyl) . . 4 June 2021 . 11 June 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210610235317/https://www.jbhifi.co.nz/alternative/blue-weekend-vinyl/392866/ . 10 June 2021 . live.
25. Blue Weekend received several transparent and colour variant releases in New Zealand:
    • Green Vinyl: Web site: Blue Weekend (Limited Green Vinyl) . . 4 June 2021 . 11 June 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210610235404/https://www.jbhifi.co.nz/alternative/blue-weekend-limited-green-vinyl/397278/ . 10 June 2021 . live.
    • Transparent Red Vinyl: Web site: Blue Weekend (Limited Transparent Red Vinyl) . . 4 June 2021 . 11 June 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210610235432/https://www.jbhifi.co.nz/alternative/blue-weekend-red-vinyl/397281/ . 10 June 2021 . live.
    • Transparent Yellow Vinyl: Web site: Blue Weekend (Limited Transparent Yellow Vinyl) . . 4 June 2021 . 11 June 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210610235449/https://www.jbhifi.co.nz/alternative/blue-weekend-yellow-vinyl/397285/ . 10 June 2021 . live.