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We Sink (album)

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We Sink
Studio album by
Sóley
Released2 September 2011[1][2]
Recorded2010–2011
GenreAvant-pop, Indie folk
Length47:34
LabelMorr Music
Sóley chronology
Theater Island
(2010) 		We Sink
(2011) 		Krómantík
(2014)
Singles from We Sink
  1. "Pretty Face"
    Released: 15 May 2012[3]

We Sink is the first album by Icelandic singer-songwriter Sóley. It was released in 2011 through Morr Music and was her second major release with the label following her 2010 extended play Theater Island.

Background

Sóley became part of the band Seabear in 2006 and released two albums and an extended play with them from 2007 to 2010. While touring with Seabear, she received an E-mail from Thomas Morr, head of Morr Music, asking if she had any songs she wished to release.[4] She sent some demos and four months later her debut solo release, the extended play Theater Island, was released in March 2010 with Morr Music.[4][5] Three songs from this EP – "Blue Leaves", "Kill the Clown" and "Theater Island" – would later be included on We Sink.

The song "Smashed Birds" was first written on a piano, but was changed to guitar during the recording sessions.[6]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[7]
Iceland Review[8]

Ned Raggett of AllMusic rated the album 4 out of 5 stars.[7] He noted that Sóley had worked on "her own particular tradition of avant-pop" and the album showcased a "sense of mournful elegance and quiet joys", with Sóley singing with "half-sweet naif, half-contemplation over an understated variety of arrangements and textures".[7] He also noted that some songs on the album had "stark acoustic guitar and soft singing" which lent a "skeletal Mazzy Star feeling to things".[7] The song "Pretty Face" was described as a "combination of smoky Julee Cruise ballad and fast-paced, Latin-tinged sprightly kick".[7] The songs "Smashed Birds", "Pretty Face" and "About Your Funeral" were highlighted as standout tracks from the album.[7]

Katharina Hauptmann of Iceland Review gave the album three out of five stars.[8] She commented that the album had two different sides, one that had "Sóley's beautiful, delicate piano arrangements accompanied by fragile percussion elements and her velvety voice" while the other had "something darker and more sinister", the latter of the two being what Hauptmann wished We Sink had more of.[8] She felt the songs "I'll Drown", "Kill the Clown", "Fight Them Soft" and "The Sun is Going Down II" were the strongest songs from the album.[8]

NPR Music selected "I'll Drown" as the "Song of the Day" on October 20, 2011.[9] In the review, it was noted that "the magic of [Sóley's] songwriting lies in [a] liminal space, poised between lo-fi quaintness and dark surrealism".[9]

Awards and Nominations

Year Organisation Category Work Result Ref.
2011 Kraumur Kraumur Award We Sink Won [10]
Icelandic Music Awards Pop & Rock – Album of the Year Nominated [11]
Pop & Rock – Songwriter of the Year Sóley Nominated [12]
Best Music Video "Smashed Birds" (Director: Ingibjörg Birgisdóttir) Won [13]

Track list

All tracks are written by Sóley Stefánsdóttir.

No.TitleLength
1."I'll Drown"3:32
2."Smashed Birds"3:43
3."Pretty Face"4:40
4."Bad Dream"2:14
5."Dance"4:03
6."And Leave"3:29
7."Blue Leaves"2:50
8."Kill the Clown"3:43
9."Fight Them Soft"1:30
10."About Your Funeral"6:09
11."The Sun is Going Down I"2:12
12."The Sun is Going Down II"5:32
13."Theater Island"3:56
Total length:47:34

Note: Vinyl repressings from 2013 onwards include three additional songs from the out of print Theater Island EP: "Dutla", "Read Your Book" and "We Will Put Her in Two Graves".[14][15]

Personnel

Credits taken from album liner notes.[16]

  • Sóley Stefánsdóttir – Voices, Piano, Synths, Guitars, Organs, Percussion, Marimba, Noises
  • Simon Nykjær – Bass
  • Jin Óskar Jónsson – Drums
  • Sindri Már Sigfússon – Electric Guitar
  • Sigrún Jónsdóttir – Clarinet
  • Héðinn Finnsson – Noise/Drones
  • Eiríkur Rafn Stefánsson – Voice

Release history

Release Date Format Edition Label ID No. Ref.
2 September 2011 CD Standard Morr Music Morr 107-CD [17]
2×LP Morr 107-DLP
Digital Download – [18]
2013 2×LP Expanded Morr 107-DLP [14][15]
2014 2×LP (Clear Vinyl) Morr 107-DLP [19]
5 June 2015 2×LP (Pink Vinyl) Morr 107-DLP [20]

References

  1. ^ "Sóley: We Sink". Morr Music. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  2. ^ "We Sink". Bandcamp. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  3. ^ "Pretty Face". Morr Music. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  4. ^ a b Helbig, Robert (1 June 2012). "Interview: Sóley". Nothing But Hope and Passion. Archived from the original on 11 January 2014. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  5. ^ "Theater Island". www.morrmusic.com. Retrieved 2024-10-07.
  6. ^ Martin, Erin Lyndal (2012-02-28). "The Rumpus Interview with Sóley Stefánsdóttir". The Rumpus. Retrieved 2024-10-07.
  7. ^ a b c d e f Ned Raggett. "We Sink Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  8. ^ a b c d Katharina Hauptmann (10 October 2011). "Dreamy Landscape: Sóley – We Sink". Iceland Review. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  9. ^ a b Rachel Kowal (October 20, 2011). "Sóley: Lo-Fi Quaintness And Dark Surrealism". NPR Music. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
  10. ^ "Kraumslistinn 2011 – Verðlaunaplötur" (in Icelandic). 16 December 2011. Retrieved 22 October 2024.
  11. ^ "Verðlaunahafar" (in Icelandic). Retrieved 22 October 2024. Select "Tilnefningar" and year "2011"
  12. ^ "Verðlaunahafar" (in Icelandic). Retrieved 22 October 2024. Select "Tilnefningar" and year "2011"
  13. ^ "Verðlaunahafar" (in Icelandic). Retrieved 22 October 2024. Select "Verðlaun" and year "2011"
  14. ^ a b "We Sink – Sóley – ANOST". www.anost.net. Archived from the original on 2020-09-20. Retrieved 2024-10-08.
  15. ^ a b "SOLEY : We Sink - 2LP - MORR MUSIC - Forced Exposure". Archived from the original on 2015-09-28. Retrieved 2024-10-08.
  16. ^ We Sink (liner notes). Sóley. Morr Music. 2011. MM 107.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  17. ^ "We Sink". www.morrmusic.com. Retrieved 2024-10-08.
  18. ^ We Sink by Sóley on Apple Music, 2011-09-02, retrieved 2024-10-08
  19. ^ "We Sink | Sóley". 2015-05-14. Archived from the original on 2015-05-14. Retrieved 2024-10-08.
  20. ^ www.hhv.de. "Soley - We Sink Pink Vinyl Edition". hhv.de (in German). Retrieved 2024-10-08.
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