Everything Was Beautiful Explained

Everything Was Beautiful
Type:Studio
Artist:Spiritualized
Cover:File:Everything Was Beautiful cover.jpg
Alt:A paper box unfolded on top of a green background with grass and flowers out of focus
Genre:
Length:44:01
Label:Fat Possum
Prev Title:And Nothing Hurt
Prev Year:2018

Everything Was Beautiful is the ninth studio album by Spiritualized, released under Fat Possum Records on April 22, 2022.[4] The album contains influences from psychedelic music, gospel music, and classic rock.[5]

Recording and release

The content of Everything Was Beautiful was taken from the same demo sessions as and serves as a companion piece to the band's previous album, And Nothing Hurt. Put together, both album titles form the quote "Everything Was Beautiful and Nothing Hurt", taken from the 1969 novel Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut.[6] The album's lead vocalist, Jason Pierce, played 16 different instruments during the album.[7] [8] [9] [10]

The album's first single and music video, "Always Together with You", was released on 2 November 2021;[11] the album's second single and music video, "Crazy", was released on 10 January 2022;[12] the album's third and final single and music video, "The Mainline Song", was released on 7 March 2022.[13]

Reception

On the review aggregate site Metacritic, Everything Was Beautiful earned a rating of 83 out of 100, based on 23 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". Aggregator AnyDecentMusic? gave it 8.2 out of 10, based on their assessment of the critical consensus and ranked it the 18th best album of 2022.[14] The album received 4/5 stars from the Observer[15] and 4/5 from the NME.[16] Ben Cardew of Pitchfork gave the album a 7.8/10 and described the album "like meeting an old friend and finding new shared memories." Caleb Campbell writing for Under the Radar gave the album a 9/10 while claiming that there is "immensely evident craftsmanship that runs through the album". AllMusic reviewer Fred Thomas described the album as a "delirious and exciting, a perfect distilment of the best parts of the band's various phases that feels reinvigorated and new" and gave the album a 4.5/5. Writing for The Line of Best Fit, John Amen gave the album 9/10 and concluded, "Everything Was Beautiful shows Spiritualized accessing yet another artistic plateau, forging an exemplary hybridization of unshakeable songs and sublimely assembled music."[17] In Relix, Justin Jacobs notes that Spaceman relies on "many of his old tricks, but the music still comes out sounding fresh and colorful" and writes that "his heady sound feels more vital than ever".[18]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Campbell . Caleb . Everything Was Beautiful . 2022-05-18 . www.undertheradarmag.com . en.
  2. Web site: Empire . Kitty . Spiritualized: Everything Was Beautiful review – a sweet din of magnificent melodies . 2022-05-19 . www.theguardian.com . 24 April 2022 . en.
  3. Web site: Campbell . Caleb . Everything Was Beautiful . 2022-05-18 . www.undertheradarmag.com . en.
  4. Web site: Spiritualized: Everything Was Beautiful . 2022-05-18 . Pitchfork . en-US.
  5. Web site: Campbell . Caleb . Everything Was Beautiful . 2022-05-18 . www.undertheradarmag.com . en.
  6. Web site: Spiritualized Announce New Album Everything Was Beautiful, Share New Song "Always Together With You": Listen . Pitchfork . 19 December 2022 . Hussey . Allison. 2 November 2021 .
  7. Web site: ALBUM REVIEW: Spiritualized - Everything Was Beautiful . XS Noize . 19 May 2022 . Crossey . Sean. 14 April 2022 .
  8. Web site: Spiritualized - Everything Was Beautiful review: A meticulous, extraordinarily ambitious triumph . . 19 May 2022 . Smyth . David. 21 April 2022 .
  9. Web site: Spiritualized – 'Everything Was Beautiful' review: Jason Pierce returns with a sonic feast . . 19 May 2022 . Jones . Damian. 20 April 2022 .
  10. Web site: Album: Spiritualized - Everything Was Beautiful . . 19 May 2022 . Oddy . Guy. 18 April 2022 .
  11. Web site: Spiritualized - Always Together With You (Official Music Video) . . 20 May 2022.
  12. Web site: Spiritualized - Crazy (Official Music Video) . . 20 May 2022.
  13. Web site: Spiritualized - The Mainline Song (Official Music Video) . . 20 May 2022.
  14. Web site: The ADM Album of the Year 2022 . en-US . . 2023-01-10.
  15. Web site: 2022-04-24 . Spiritualized: Everything Was Beautiful review – a sweet din of magnificent melodies . 2022-11-18 . the Guardian . en.
  16. Web site: Jones . Damian . 2022-04-20 . Spiritualized – 'Everything Was Beautiful' review: Jason Pierce returns with a sonic feast . 2022-11-18 . NME . en-GB.
  17. Web site: Spiritualized reach glorious new heights with Everything Was Beautiful . 2022-06-17 . The Line of Best Fit . en.
  18. Web site: Jacobs . Justin . . 2022-11-24 . 2022-03-02 . en-US . Spiritualized: Everything Was Beautiful .