Sleep Well Beast Explained

Sleep Well Beast
Type:studio
Artist:The National
Cover:Sleep Well Beast.jpg
Border:yes
Released:September 8, 2017
Length:57:32
Label:4AD
Prev Title:Trouble Will Find Me
Prev Year:2013
Next Title:I Am Easy to Find
Next Year:2019

Sleep Well Beast is the seventh studio album by the American indie rock band The National, released on September 8, 2017, by 4AD.[1] The album won the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album in 2018.

Promotion

On May 9, and May 10, 2017, the National's Twitter page tweeted out two short audio teasers, one from the title track and the other from the lead single, "The System Only Dreams in Total Darkness".

Singles

The first single from the album, "The System Only Dreams in Total Darkness", was released on May 11, 2017, alongside the album's announcement.[2] The second single, "Guilty Party", was released on June 28, 2017.[3] A third single, "Carin at the Liquor Store", was released on August 8, 2017, followed by the fourth, "Day I Die". on August 29. The fifth single, "I'll Still Destroy You", was released on October 23, 2017.

Packaging and marketing

The artwork for Sleep Well Beast consists of a black and white photograph, shot by Graham MacIndoe, of the side of a barn in Hudson Valley, New York dating back to the 18th century, bought by the guitarist Aaron Dessner and rebuilt as the album's recording studio. MacIndoe also took numerous photographs of the band during recording sessions for the album inserts.[4] [5] Andrea Trabucco-Campos and Elaynna Blaser-Gould, with partner Luke Hayman, of the British design firm Pentagram, were the art directors for the album's packaging.[6]

Unusually, Pentagram also created the branding and identity for Sleep Well Beast and the band, including a corporate standards manual. Additionally, they created the marketing campaign to highlight and play on the album's themes of politics, society and propaganda as "a bit of a joke". The album and branding use the Grotesque-based font Maison with a predominantly blue and white-based color palette. From the cover, the barn was condensed into a pentagon used as the branding's logo, subdivided into two squares and triangles implemented within the design and branding, even in the artwork itself, as an allusion to corporate branding.[7]

The marketing campaign was executed in several ways. The band's label, 4AD, partnered with the design company Diabolical to create a mural for the album in Shoreditch, London, containing a lyric from "Day I Die".[8] Four music videos – "The System Only Dreams in Total Darkness", "Guilty Party", "Carin at the Liquor Store" and "Day I Die" – were directed by Casey Reas prior to the album's release, included in video billboard advertisements released in Times Square, London and Copenhagen. Band merchandise included the branding for the album, specifically the pentagon logo.[9]

Elyanna Blaser-Gould, Luke Hayman and Andrew Trabucco-Campos were nominated for Best Recording Package at the 60th Annual Grammy Awards.[10] [11]

Reception

Sleep Well Beast received widespread acclaim from music critics. On Metacritic, which assigns an average score out of 100 to reviews and ratings from mainstream music critics, the album received an average score of 85 based on 35 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".

In The Observer, Kitty Empire described Sleep Well Beast as an exponent of "the tension created by the hyper-musical brother duos, pacing the cage of what 'rock band' means with increased vigour. It often adds up to a subtle, grown-up take that still leaves space for drama."[12]

Accolades

PublicationAccoladeRank
NMENMEs Albums of the Year 2017
RIOT MagRIOT's Albums of the Year 2017
Rough TradeAlbums of the Year
Stereogum50 Best Albums of 2017
Vinyl Me, PleaseThe 30 Best Albums of 2017
SputnikmusicTop 50 Albums of 2017
Grammy AwardsWinner: Best Alternative Music AlbumNominated: Best Recording Package
Diffuser.fmTop 25 Albums of 2017[13]
Yahoo!Top 10 Albums of 2017[14]
The Sunday Times100 Best Albums of 2017[15]
Under the RadarTop 100 Albums of 2017[16]
Uncut75 Best Albums of 2017[17]
NewsweekBest Albums of 2017[18]
Q50 Best Albums of 2017[19]
Rolling Stone50 Best Albums of 2017[20]
MojoTop 50 Albums of 2017[21]
Uproxx50 Best Albums of 2017[22]
USA Today10 Favorite Albums of 2017[23]
American SongwriterTop 25 Albums of 2017[24]

Track listing

All lyrics and melodies written by Matt Berninger and Carin Besser; all music composed by Aaron Dessner and Bryce Dessner; except where noted.

Personnel

The National

Music

Additional musicians

Paris orchestral sessions ensemble

Production

Artwork

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2017)Peak
position
Italian Albums (FIMI)[25] 13
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[26] 2
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[27] 8
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[28] 2

Year-end charts

Chart (2017)Position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[29] 32
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[30] 173
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[31] 52

Notes and References

  1. News: Wicks. Amanda. The National Detail New Album Sleep Well Beast. May 11, 2017. PitchforkMedia. May 11, 2017.
  2. News: The National unveil new single 'The System Only Dreams in Total Darkness' & announce 2017 UK tour . NME . May 11, 2017 . July 5, 2017.
  3. Web site: Hear The National's New Song, 'Guilty Party' : All Songs Considered . NPR . June 29, 2017 . July 5, 2017.
  4. News: The Hudson valley oasis where The National recorded their new album. September 9, 2017. CBS News. February 10, 2018.
  5. News: The National's Sleep Well Beast vinyl edition is a thing of brooding beauty. September 15, 2017. The Vinyl Factory. February 10, 2018.
  6. Web site: The National — Story. Pentagram. February 10, 2018.
  7. News: Pentagram gives The National's new album a corporate-looking visual identity as "a bit of a joke". Yalcinkaya. Gunseli. September 8, 2017. Dezeen. February 10, 2018.
  8. Web site: The National. Diabolical. February 10, 2018.
  9. News: A National production: Casey Reas offers inside view of videos for top alt-rock band. Brenner. Sean. September 28, 2017. UCLA Newsroom. February 10, 2018. University of California, Los Angeles.
  10. News: See The Full List Of 60th GRAMMY Nominees. November 27, 2017. GRAMMY. December 22, 2017.
  11. Grammys 2018: See the Complete List of Nominees. Billboard. December 22, 2017.
  12. News: The National: Sleep Well Beast review – a study in midlife angst . . September 10, 2017 . September 10, 2017 . Empire . Kitty . Kitty Empire . 0261-3077.
  13. Web site: Diffuser's Top 25 Albums of 2017. Diffuser.fm. December 15, 2017 . 2018-01-10.
  14. News: The best albums of 2017: Yahoo Entertainment staff picks. 2018-01-10. en-US.
  15. News: 100 best albums of the year. Wise. Dan Cairns, David Cairns, Hugh Canning, Clive Davis, Paul Driver, Jonathan Dean, Mark Edwards, Lisa Verrico and Louis. The Times. 2017-12-03. 2018-01-10. 0140-0460.
  16. Web site: Under the Radar's Top 100 Albums of 2017 Under the Radar - Music Magazine. www.undertheradarmag.com. en. 2018-01-10.
  17. News: Uncut's 75 Best Albums of 2017. Album of The Year. 2018-01-10. en-US.
  18. News: The 17 best albums of 2017. 2017-12-15. Newsweek. 2018-01-10. en.
  19. News: Q Magazine's 50 Best Albums of 2017. Album of The Year. 2018-01-10. en-US.
  20. 50 Best Albums of 2017. Rolling Stone. 2018-01-10. November 27, 2017.
  21. News: MOJO's Top 50 Albums of 2017. Album of The Year. 2018-01-10. en-US.
  22. News: The 50 Best Albums Of 2017, Ranked. 2017-12-04. UPROXX. 2018-01-10. en-US.
  23. News: USA TODAY's 10 favorite albums. USA TODAY. 2018-01-10. en.
  24. News: American Songwriter's Top 25 Albums of 2017: Presented by D'Addario « American Songwriter. 2017-12-04. American Songwriter. 2018-01-10. en-US.
  25. Web site: Album – Classifica settimanale WK 37 (dal 2017-09-08 al 2017-09-14). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. it. September 16, 2017.
  26. Web site: NZ Top 40 Albums Chart. Recorded Music NZ. September 18, 2017. September 15, 2017.
  27. Web site: Top 100 Álbumes — Semana 37: del 08.09.2017 al 14.09.2017. Productores de Música de España. es. September 21, 2017.
  28. Web site: Sverigetopplistan – Sveriges Officiella Topplista. Sverigetopplistan. September 15, 2017. Click on "Veckans albumlista".
  29. Web site: Jaaroverzichten Albums 2017. Ultratop. December 21, 2017.
  30. Web site: Rapports Annuels Albums 2017. Ultratop. December 21, 2017.
  31. Top Rock Albums – Year-End 2017. Billboard. July 31, 2020.
  32. Web site: Jaaroverzichten 2018. Ultratop. December 21, 2018.