Blues Funeral Explained

Blues Funeral
Type:studio
Artist:Mark Lanegan
Cover:Blues Funeral.jpg
Released:February 6, 2012
Recorded:January - May 2011
Studio:11AD Studio, Hollywood, California
Genre:Alternative rock, blues rock
Length:55:27
Language:English
Label:4AD
Producer:Alain Johannes
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Blues Funeral is the seventh studio album by American alternative rock musician Mark Lanegan, released on February 6, 2012 on 4AD.[1] The album was recorded with producer Alain Johannes throughout early 2011 and Johannes, as well as other musicians including Greg Dulli, David Catching and Jack Irons, contributed to the recording process. Blues Funeral was announced for release on November 7, 2011 through Lanegan's official website[2] and less than a month later, the album's lead single, "The Gravedigger's Song," was released as a digital download on iTunes.[3]

Aside from collaborative albums with Isobel Campbell, and other collaboration projects including Soulsavers and The Gutter Twins, Blues Funeral was Mark Lanegan's first new material in eight years, since Bubblegum (2004)[4] Upon its release, Blues Funeral received widespread critical acclaim and charted in six countries within the week of its release, including Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.

Background

Following extensive collaborations with Isobel Campbell, former vocalist and celloist of indie pop band Belle & Sebastian, Lanegan began working on Blues Funeral after the tour in promotion of their third collaborative studio album, Hawk (2010). The tour concluded on October 29, 2010 in Los Angeles, California[5] and Lanegan subsequently began composing songs. In an interview with Mojo, Lanegan described his writing process for the album, saying that: "[all of the songs on the new record] were written right before or during the period when we recorded" and "generally I write on the guitar, but this one I started a few with the keyboard and a drum machine, to do something different. With Al [Johannes], I can show him something on acoustic guitar and give him a description and within a couple of hours it's done."[6]

In his 2017 book I Am the Wolf: Lyrics & Writings, Lanegan admits he had more or less lost interest in writing and singing after a near death experience, and it was only after recording "Burning Jacob's Ladder" with producer Alain Johannes as the initial trailer tune for the video game Rage that the pair continued collaborating, with the singer commenting, "If forced to choose only one of my albums to play live, this would be it."

Composition

The Quietus described the album's sound as: "Blues Funeral incorporates beats marshalled by sequencers with grand cinematic sweeps and a rock & roll sensibility that reveals an artist refusing to paint himself into a corner." Lanegan also noted that "with this new record, because I use a lot of the elements of my influences that I haven't on previous record, I've made a record that's something more like I would personally listen to than some of the records that I've made before,"[7] and listed the album's influences as The Gun Club's Miami, Joy Division's Closer and Roxy Music's Country Life among others. Lanegan reflects on the album and its compositions in I Am the Wolf:

Release

Lanegan's official website posted a press release on November 7, 2011 announcing that Blues Funeral was due to be released worldwide on February 6, 2012. The album was made available for pre-order on iTunes[8] and domestic versions of the album on CD and double LP were made available through the 4AD Store[9] and Amazon.[10] Physical versions of the album were released a day later than the digital release. On January 21, 2012, Amazon previewed thirty-second clips of each songs on the album and on January 31, Mojo made the album available for stream in its entirety.[11]

Tour

A two-leg tour was planned to accompany the release of Blues Funeral throughout spring 2012. Lanegan performed two shows in the United States—at the Bowery Ballroom in New York on February 7[12] and at Echoplex in Los Angeles, California on February 9[13] — prior to the European tour which will last from February 24 to April 2. The tour will include Norway, Finland, the Netherlands, Belgium, United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Denmark, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, Croatia, Italy, Switzerland, Spain, and Portugal. Following the release of the album, Lanegan announced two further legs of the tour with five shows in Australia and New Zealand in April[14] and with twelve shows in the United States, Mexico and Canada in May.[15]

|- style="text-align:center;"||May 11, 2012||Washington|||- style="text-align:center;"||May 12, 2012||Philadelphia|The TLA|- style="text-align:center;"||May 13, 2012||Boston||Paradise Rock Club|- style="text-align:center;"||May 15, 2012||Toronto||Canada||Mod Club Theatre|- style="text-align:center;"||May 16, 2012||Detroit| rowspan="7"|United States||Small's|- style="text-align:center;"||May 17, 2012||Chicago||Metro|- style="text-align:center;"||May 20, 2012||Denver||Bluebird Theater|- style="text-align:center;"||May 22, 2012||Los Angeles||Gene Autry Museum|- style="text-align:center;"||May 23, 2012||San Francisco||Great American Music Hall|- style="text-align:center;"||May 25, 2012||George||Gorge Amphitheatre
(Sasquatch! Music Festival)|- style="text-align:center;"||May 26, 2012||Portland||Wonder Ballroom|- style="background:#ddd;"| colspan="5" style="text-align:center;"| Europe|- style="text-align:center;"||November 3, 2012||Dornbirn||Austria||Conrad Sohm|- style="text-align:center;"||November 4, 2012||Stuttgart| rowspan="2"|Germany||Universum|- style="text-align:center;"||November 5, 2012||Erlangen||E-Werk|- style="text-align:center;"||November 6, 2012||Wrocław| rowspan="2"|Poland||Firlej|- style="text-align:center;"||November 7, 2012||Katowice||Jazz Club Hipnoza|- style="text-align:center;"||November 9, 2012||Aarhus||Denmark||VoxHall|- style="text-align:center;"||November 10, 2012||Lund| rowspan="2"|Sweden||Mejeriet|- style="text-align:center;"||November 11, 2012||Stockholm||Göta Källare|- style="text-align:center;"||November 13, 2012||Hanover||Germany||Musikzentrum|- style="text-align:center;"||November 15, 2012||Enschede| rowspan="2"|Netherlands||Poppodium Atak|- style="text-align:center;"||November 16, 2012||The Hague||Nationaal Toneel Gebouw|- style="text-align:center;"||November 17, 2012||Wangels||Germany||Weißenhäuser Strand|- style="text-align:center;"||November 18, 2012||Brussels||Belgium||Cirque Royal|- style="text-align:center;"||November 20, 2012||Bratislava||Slovakia||Klub za Zrkadlom|- style="text-align:center;"||November 21, 2012||Belgrade||Serbia||Omladine|- style="text-align:center;"||November 22, 2012||Budapest||Hungary||A38|- style="text-align:center;"||November 24, 2012||Zagreb||Croatia||PAUK|- style="text-align:center;"||November 25, 2012||Ljubljana||Slovenia||KS|- style="text-align:center;"||November 26, 2012||Graz||Austria||PPC|- style="text-align:center;"||November 27, 2012||Lausanne||Switzerland||Les Docks|- style="text-align:center;"||November 29, 2012||Ciampino| rowspan="2"|Italy||Orion|- style="text-align:center;"||November 30, 2012||Florence||Viper|- style="text-align:center;"||December 1, 2012||Zurich||Switzerland||abart|- style="text-align:center;"||December 2, 2012||Heidelberg||Germany||Karlstorbahnhof|- style="text-align:center;"||December 4, 2012||London||England||HMV Forum|- style="text-align:center;"||December 5, 2012||Paris||France||Le Trabendo|- style="text-align:center;"||December 7, 2012||Madrid| rowspan="2"|Spain||Primavera Club|- style="text-align:center;"||December 8, 2012||Barcelona||Primavera Club|- style="text-align:center;"||December 10, 2012||Tel Aviv||Israel||Barby|- style="text-align:center;"||December 11, 2012||Istanbul||Turkey||Salon IKSV|}

Reception

Blues Funeral was released to positive critical acclaim. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 75, based on 32 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Mojo reviewer Keith Cameron said that "no other singer of his generation plumbs the depths so credibly, or does mournful with such grace", awarded the album a full five stars and referred to it as an "instant MOJO classic." Andy Gill of The Independent called Blues Funeral "the most accomplished of Lanegan's albums," adding that the album is "boasting a rare congruence between lyrical themes and musical evocations". BBC Music's Kevin Harley said that the album "deepens his pitch while exhibiting a range and grace beyond his death's-head profile" and "sells [the songs] with conviction and character."[19] Tom Hughes of The Guardian described it as "bluesy, lugubrious, modernish rock, elevated by Lanegan's remarkable gravel-pit of a voice" but concluded that "running close to a full hour, this can feel like a long funeral". Drowned in Sound reviewer Robert Leedham referred to the album as "deliciously callous but cursedly familiar" and added that it was "a record for ardent fans and not casual admirers".[20] Jason Heller of The A.V. Club referred to the album as "a blatant and lackluster attempt to keep up with the times" and criticised its production "in which no note or texture is left digitally unprocessed". Pitchfork described Blues Funeral as "a mixed bag" and the songs as "many dirges that simply drag", but positively noted the album's influences and Lanegan's vocals ("almost invariably powerful on a sheer physical level"). Stereogum listed the album as Album of the Week upon its release and gave a very positive review applauding Lanegan's vocals, the album's synthpop influences and "his most unburdened album in many, many years".[21]

Track listing

Japanese[22] bonus track

Personnel

Musicians[23]
Guest musicians
Technical personnel

Chart positions

Chart (2012)Peak
position
Austrian Top 40[24] 42
Belgian Albums Chart (Vl)[25] 4
Belgian Albums Chart (WA)50
Canadian Albums Chart[26] 172
Danish Albums Chart[27] 37
Dutch Top 40[28] 20
Finnish Albums Chart[29] 24
French Albums Chart[30] 51
German Albums Chart[31] 41
Irish Albums Chart[32] 12
Irish Independent Albums Chart2
Italian Albums Chart[33] 38
Norwegian Albums Chart[34] 12
Spanish Albums Chart[35] 53
Swedish Albums Chart[36] 23
Swiss Albums Chart[37] 27
New Zealand Albums Chart[38] 40
UK Albums Chart[39] 21
US Billboard 200[40] 99
US Billboard Alternative Albums16
US Billboard Independent Albums15
US Billboard Rock Albums26
US Billboard Tastemaker Albums[41] 5

Year-end charts

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 4AD – Blues Funeral by Mark Lanegan Band. 4AD. December 2011. January 10, 2012.
  2. Web site: Mark Lanegan Band . marklanegan.com . November 7, 2011 . January 10, 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120108042348/http://www.marklanegan.com/news/mark-lanegan-band-returns-with-new-album-blues-funeral . January 8, 2012 .
  3. Web site: iTunes – Music – The Gravedigger's Song – Single by Mark Lanegan Band. iTunes Store. December 5, 2011. January 10, 2012.
  4. Web site: Listen to Mark Lanegan Band's New Single 'The Gravedigger's Song' SPIN.COM. Spin. Daniel Kreps. December 5, 2011. January 10, 2012.
  5. Web site: Isobel Campbell and Mark Lanegan Band Book Tour Together News Pitchfork. Pitchfork Media. Tom Breihan. August 2, 2010. January 10, 2012.
  6. Brett Buchanan . 2012 . Interview with Mark Lanegan . Mojo. February 2012. November 4, 2013.
  7. Web site: The Quietus Features Baker's Dozen "You Can't Escape Your Influence" – Mark Lanegan's Favourite Albums. . Julian Marszalek . January 26, 2012 . November 3, 2013.
  8. Web site: Blues Funeral by Mark Lanegan Band – Preorder Blues Funeral on iTunes. iTunes Store. December 2011. January 10, 2012.
  9. Web site: 4AD Store . 4AD . December 2011 . January 10, 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120108203918/http://shopusa.4ad.com/blues-funeral-1 . January 8, 2012 .
  10. Web site: Amazon.com: Blues Funeral: Mark Lanegan: Music. Amazon.com. December 2011. January 10, 2012.
  11. Web site: LISTEN NOW: Mark Lanegan Band's Blues Funeral – News – Mojo . Mojo . Ross Bennett . January 31, 2012 . January 31, 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120202203605/http://www.mojo4music.com/blog/2012/01/listen_now_mark_lanegan_bands.html . February 2, 2012 .
  12. Web site: Mark Lanegan Band Tickets at Bowery Ballroom, New York – NY Daily News. New York Daily News. January 10, 2012. https://archive.today/20120711171045/http://events.nydailynews.com/new-york-ny/events/show/233194805-mark-lanegan-band. July 11, 2012. dead.
  13. Web site: the echo and echoplex » Thursday 02.09.12: Mark Lanegan Band @ Echoplex . . December 22, 2011 . January 10, 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120109015337/http://www.attheecho.com/2011/12/22/02-09-12-mark-lanegan-band-echoplex/ . January 9, 2012 .
  14. Web site: Mark Lanegan Band . marklanegan.com . March 8, 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120310125533/http://www.marklanegan.com/news/australian-tickets-on-sale-europe-shows-selling-out . March 10, 2012 .
  15. Web site: Mark Lanegan Band . marklanegan.com . March 8, 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120310125606/http://www.marklanegan.com/news/us-tour-dates-announced . March 10, 2012 .
  16. Web site: Mark Lanegan Band . marklanegan.com . December 2011 . January 10, 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120108083445/http://www.marklanegan.com/tourdates . January 8, 2012 .
  17. Web site: Mark Lanegan Band Announces New Album, Tour :: Music :: News :: Paste. Paste Magazine. Hilary Saunders. January 4, 2012. January 10, 2012.
  18. Web site: Mark Lanegan's Concert Listing – Discover music, videos, concerts, stats, & pictures at Last.fm. Last.fm. January 10, 2012.
  19. Web site: Review of Mark Lanegan Band – Blues Funeral. BBC Music. February 1, 2012. February 4, 2012. Harley. Kevin.
  20. Web site: Album Review: Mark Lanegan – Blues Funeral. Drowned in Sound. February 1, 2012. February 4, 2012. Leedham. Robert. February 4, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120204090020/http://drownedinsound.com/releases/16740/reviews/4144417. dead.
  21. Web site: Album Of The Week: Mark Lanegan Band, Blues Funeral. Stereogum. February 7, 2012. February 7, 2012. Briehan. Tom.
  22. Web site: Blues Funeral MARK LANEGAN BAND [CD]]. CDJapan. February 6, 2012.
  23. Blues Funeral. Blues Funeral. Mark Lanegan. 2012. 2–4. LP. 4AD. 652637320213.
  24. Web site: Mark Lanegan Band – Blues Funeral – austriancharts.at. austriancharts.at. February 16, 2012.
  25. Web site: ultratop.be – Mark Lanegan Band – Blues Funeral. Ultratop. February 14, 2012.
  26. Web site: CANOE – JAM! Music SoundScan Charts . . February 17, 2012 . usurped . https://archive.today/20041226005640/http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/Charts/ALBUMS.html . December 26, 2004 . mdy .
  27. Web site: danishcharts.dk – Mark Lanegan Band – Blues Funeral. danishcharts.dk. February 20, 2012.
  28. Web site: dutchcharts.nl – Mark Lanegan Band – Blues Funeral. dutchcharts.nl. February 14, 2012.
  29. Web site: Musiikkituottajat – Tilastot – Suomen virallinen lista – Artistit. Musiikkituottajat  - IFPI Finland. February 17, 2012.
  30. Web site: lescharts.com – Mark Lanegan Band – Blues Funeral. lescharts.com. February 20, 2012.
  31. Web site: charts.de. Media Control Charts. March 8, 2012.
  32. Web site: >> IRMA << Irish Charts - Singles, Albums & Compilations >> . . February 9, 2012 . February 16, 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120511020134/http://irma.ie/aucharts.asp . May 11, 2012 . mdy .
  33. Web site: FIMI – Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana – Classifiche . . February 18, 2012 . dead . https://archive.today/20120831114705/http://www.fimi.it/classifiche_album.php . August 31, 2012 .
  34. Web site: norwegiancharts.com – Mark Lanegan Band – Blues Funeral. norwegiancharts.com. February 20, 2012.
  35. Web site: spanishcharts.com – Mark Lanegan Band – Blues Funeral. spanishcharts.com. February 20, 2012.
  36. Web site: swedishcharts.com – Mark Lanegan Band – Blues Funeral. swedishcharts.com. February 14, 2012.
  37. Web site: Mark Lanegan Band – Blues Funeral – hitparade.ch. hitparade.ch. February 16, 2012.
  38. Web site: charts.nz – Mark Lanegan Band – Blues Funeral. charts.nz. February 14, 2012.
  39. Web site: The Official Charts Company – Mark Lanegan Band – Blues Funeral. Official Charts Company. February 14, 2012.
  40. [{{BillboardURLbyName|artist=mark lanegan|chart=all}} Mark Lanegan Album & Song Chart History {{pipe}} Billboard.com]. Billboard. February 17, 2012.
  41. Tastemaker Albums Billboard.com. Billboard. April 1, 2012.
  42. Web site: ULTRATOP BELGIAN CHARTS . . November 3, 2013.

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