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Blue Neighbourhood

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Blue Neighbourhood
Studio album by
Troye Sivan
Released4 December 2015 (2015-12-04)
Recorded2014–15
Genre
Length36:49
Label
Producer
Troye Sivan chronology
Wild
(2015) 		Blue Neighbourhood
(2015) 		Bloom
(2018)
Singles from Blue Neighbourhood
  1. "Youth"
    Released: 13 November 2015
  2. "Talk Me Down"
    Released: 26 May 2016
  3. "Wild"
    Released: 23 June 2016
  4. "Heaven"
    Released: 17 October 2016

Blue Neighbourhood is the debut studio album by Australian singer Troye Sivan. It was released internationally on 4 December 2015 via EMI Music Australia and Capitol Records.[1] The album was preceded by Sivan's fourth extended play Wild, which served as a 6-song opening installment to Blue Neighbourhood.[2][3]

The album has generated the singles "Wild", "Youth", "Talk Me Down" and "Heaven". "Wild" was ultimately remixed and re-released as a single with Alessia Cara.

Release and promotion

[edit]

On 13 October 2015, Sivan revealed that Wild served as an opening introduction to the album.[4] Pre-orders for the album opened on 15 October 2015, with the album reaching No. 1 within hours on the iTunes Store in ten countries, including the United States.[5] "Talk Me Down" was included as a promotional single to those who pre-ordered the album and was the only previously unreleased song made available before release. Those who had already purchased Wild received a discount to purchase Blue Neighbourhood.[6][7] Sivan also launched merchandise bundles on his site, selling jumpers with the album logo, candles scented to match the mood of his songs, CDs, vinyl, posters, digital downloads, bags, and notebooks.[8] On 22 May, Sivan performed at the 2016 Billboard Music Awards.[9] On 28 August, Sivan performed at the pre-show of the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards.[10] Sivan embarked on two concert tours to promote the album: the first is the Blue Neighbourhood Tour and later the Suburbia Tour.

Composition

[edit]

Blue Neighbourhood has been described to be an electropop[11][12] and synth-pop[13] record with EDM, electronic music, electro, and R&B elements.[14][15][16] Lyrical themes within the record include Sivan's experiences with love, youth, yearning, heartbreak, and affirmation.[15] Critics have also compared the record to other musicians like Lorde, Taylor Swift, Sam Smith, Macklemore, and Adele.[15][17][14]

Singles

[edit]

"Wild", originally released as the lead single from Sivan's extended play of the same name, was issued a remixed version featuring Canadian singer-songwriter Alessia Cara and was later released as the fourth single from the album on 23 June 2016. Following its release, Sivan re-released Blue Neighbourhood on iTunes, replacing "Wild (XXYYXX remix)" with the remixed version featuring Cara on the deluxe edition and adding it to the standard version as the last track. In addition, a Korean Special Edition of the album was released, featuring the TRXYE extended play tracks, the Blue Neighbourhood music video trilogy and the music video for "Youth".

"Youth" was released as the second single from the album. The song premiered exclusively on 12 November on Shazam Top 20 at 7PM AEST and was officially released worldwide after midnight in each country on 13 November.[18] In early 2016, it reached the top 25 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it Sivan's most commercially successful single to date in North America.

"Talk Me Down" was later confirmed to be the third single from the album, being released on 26 May 2016.

On 17 October 2016, "Heaven" featuring fellow Australian singer Betty Who was released as the fifth single from the album. Sivan uploaded the audio for the song to his Vevo channel on YouTube and performed a solo version of the song on The Ellen DeGeneres Show the next day.[19] The official music video for the song was set to be released on 20 January 2017 in order to coincide with the inauguration of Donald Trump,[20] however, the video was released on Sivan's Vevo channel on 19 January, one day earlier than planned.[21]

Music videos

[edit]

Prior to the album's announcement, the same day the Wild EP came out, a music video trilogy labelled under the umbrella term Blue Neighbourhood was confirmed. The trilogy follows the storyline of Sivan and his fictional childhood friend and love interest (played by Australian model Matthew Eriksson), and the struggles their same-sex relationship faces. The first two installments are for the songs "Wild" and "Fools" and both were released in September 2015. The last installment of the Blue Neighbourhood video trilogy is for "Talk Me Down" and was released on 20 October 2015. The video has an open ending, since it leaves the viewer with a shot of Sivan's love interest at the edge of a cliff and then cuts to a view of the sea. After the release of this installment, Sivan provided suicide prevention hotlines (for countries where they are available).[22][23]

In December 2015, Sivan shared some giveaways with his fans for a whole week until Christmas through a website called 8 Days of Givaways. On 23 December 2015, the giveaway was a few black-and-white pictures from behind the scenes for the "Youth" music video.[24] That music video was never released, and a new one was shot instead in early February 2016 and released on 24 February 2016.

Sivan confirmed that he filmed a music video for "Wild" with Alessia Cara in late June 2016.[citation needed]

On 19 January 2017, Sivan released a music video for "Heaven", however Betty Who was not seen in the music video, but her vocals were featured on the track.

Critical reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic80/100[25]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[15]
Billboard[17]
The Guardian[14]
Herald Sun[26]
The Observer[27]
Rolling Stone[11]
Rolling Stone Australia[28]
South China Morning Post[16]
The Sydney Morning Herald[29]

The album received critical acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 80, based on 4 reviews, indicating "generally favourable reviews".[25] Everett True from The Guardian gave the album five stars, commenting that "it is difficult to find fault with Blue Neighbourhood" and praising Sivan for "capturing the sound of now so well".[14] Neil Z. Yeung from AllMusic praised Sivan's "sultry and effortless, wounded and breathless" voice as well as noting the album's themes of "heartbreak and affirmation" that make it "a sparkling, triumphant experience".[15] Writing for Billboard, Kenneth Partridge commented that "in lieu of originality, Sivan sells vulnerability" as well as comparing the album's instrumentation to those of Lorde and Taylor Swift.[17] Bernard Zuel from The Sydney Morning Herald described Sivan as having a "coffee-and-cream voice [...] artfully caught between childhood and adulthood."[29]

Writers for Herald Sun praised Sivan's voice, calling it "fearless and honest in a way most pop stars aren't" as well as noting the openness of the album's lyrical content that does "not [shy] away from pronouns like many before him."[26] Jules Lefevre from Rolling Stone Australia commenting that Sivan's vocals "[hover] amid electronic production that manages to be densely intricate and helium light" and that he "delivers these quiet gems of young wisdom with enough humility so as to be endearing rather than precocious."[28]

Accolades

[edit]
Award Category Recipients and nominees Result
MTV Video Music Awards Breakthrough Long Form Video[30] Blue Neighbourhood Trilogy Nominated
ARIA Music Awards of 2016 Album of the Year[31] Blue Neighbourhood Nominated
Best Male Artist[31]
Best Pop Release[31]
Song of the Year[31] "Youth" Won
Best Video [31] "Youth" Acoustic (Sydney Session)
Producer of the Year[31] Alex Hope for Troye Sivan – Blue Neighbourhood Nominated
Engineer of the Year[31]

Commercial performance

[edit]

Blue Neighbourhood debuted at number six in Australia[32] and seven in the United States, selling 65,000 album-equivalent units (55,000 coming from pure album sales), becoming his third release to debut inside the top ten.[33] In the United States that was his best sales week, despite having the lowest peak of all his albums and EPs.[citation needed]

Track listing

[edit]
Standard edition[34]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Wild"
Hope3:47
2."Fools"
  • SLUMS
  • Alex JL Hiew
  • Norman
3:40
3."Ease" (featuring Broods)
C. Nott3:33
4."Talk Me Down"
  • Haynie
  • Inscore
3:57
5."Cool"
  • Sivan
  • Hope
Hope3:21
6."Heaven" (featuring Betty Who)
Antonoff4:21
7."Youth"
  • Sivan
  • Inscore
  • McLaughlin
  • Hughes
  • Hope
  • Inscore
  • SLUMS
  • Hiew
3:05
8."Lost Boy"
  • Waenke
  • Sivan
  • Inscore
  • McLaughlin
  • Hughes
Inscore3:43
9."For Him." (featuring Allday)
Inscore3:29
10."Suburbia"
  • Sivan
  • Inscore
  • McLaughlin
  • Hughes
Inscore3:53
Total length:36:49
Re-release bonus track[35]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
11."Wild" (featuring Alessia Cara)
Hope3:39
Total length:40:28
Deluxe edition[36]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Wild"
  • Sivan
  • Hope
Hope3:47
2."Bite"
  • Sivan
  • Inscore
  • McLaughlin
  • Hughes
  • SLUMS
  • Hiew
  • Inscore
3:06
3."Fools"
  • Sivan
  • Hope
  • Norman
  • SLUMS
  • Hiew
  • Norman
3:40
4."Ease" (featuring Broods)
  • Sivan
  • C. Nott
  • G. Nott
C. Nott3:33
5."The Quiet"
3:46
6."DKLA" (featuring Tkay Maidza)
  • SLUMS
  • Hiew
4:15
7."Talk Me Down"
  • Sivan
  • Inscore
  • McLaughlin
  • Hughes
  • Haynie
  • Haynie
  • Inscore
3:57
8."Cool"
  • Sivan
  • Hope
Hope3:21
9."Heaven" (featuring Betty Who)
  • Sivan
  • Hope
  • Antonoff
  • Boucher
Antonoff4:21
10."Youth"
  • Sivan
  • Inscore
  • McLaughlin
  • Hughes
  • Hope
  • Inscore
  • SLUMS
  • Hiew
3:05
11."Lost Boy"
  • Sivan
  • Inscore
  • McLaughlin
  • Hope
Inscore3:43
12."For Him." (featuring Allday)
  • Sivan
  • Inscore
  • McLaughlin
  • Hughes
  • Gaynor
Inscore3:29
13."Suburbia"
  • Sivan
  • Inscore
  • McLaughlin
  • Hughes
Inscore3:53
14."Too Good"
  • Sivan
  • Hope
  • SLUMS
  • Hiew
  • Hope
3:44
15."Blue" (featuring Alex Hope)
  • Sivan
  • Hope
Hope3:31
16."Wild" (XXYYXX remix)
  • Sivan
  • Hope
3:32
Total length:58:43
Deluxe edition re-release[37]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
16."Wild" (featuring Alessia Cara)
  • Sivan
  • Hope
  • Caracciolo
Hope3:39
Total length:58:50
Target bonus tracks[38]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
17."Swimming Pools"
  • Sivan
  • Inscore
  • McLaughlin
  • Hughes
Inscore3:26
18."Happy Little Pill" (live version)
Stacey Jones4:02
Total length:66:11

Charts

[edit]

Certifications and sales

[edit]
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[66] Platinum 70,000‡
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[67] Gold 10,000‡
Singapore (RIAS)[68] Gold 5,000*
South Korea — 6,600[69]
Sweden (GLF)[70] Gold 15,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[71] Gold 100,000‡
United States (RIAA)[72] Platinum 1,000,000‡

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Sivan, Troye. "Troye Sivan tweet on 15 October 2015". Twitter. Troye Sivan. Retrieved 15 October 2015.
  2. ^ Brandle, Lars. "Troye Sivan Announces Debut Album 'Blue Neighbourhood,' Adds Tour Dates". Billboard. Billboard. Retrieved 15 October 2015.
  3. ^ "YouTube Star Troye Sivan Announces New Album 'Wild'". Billboard. 28 July 2015. Retrieved 28 July 2015.
  4. ^ "Here's Everything We Know about Troye Sivan's 'Blue Neighbourhood' so Far". SuperFame.com. 14 October 2015. Retrieved 6 December 2015.
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  15. ^ a b c d e Yeung, Neil Z. "Troye Sivan - Blue Neighbourhood". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
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  17. ^ a b c Partridge, Kenneth (4 December 2015). "Troye Sivan Shows Growth and Growing Pains on Debut 'Blue Neighbourhood': Album Review". Billboard. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
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  30. ^ "MTV VMAs: Beyonce wins the VMAs, Rihanna and Drake melt our hearts, Britney Spears fizzles". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 5 December 2016. Retrieved 5 December 2016.
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  50. ^ a b "Los más vendidos 2016" (in Spanish). Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Archived from the original on 18 January 2017. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
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  52. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Troye Sivan – Blue Neighbourhood". Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 December 2015.
  53. ^ "Oficjalna lista sprzedaży :: OLiS - Official Retail Sales Chart". OLiS. Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 24 December 2015.
  54. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  55. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Troye Sivan – Blue Neighbourhood". Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 December 2015.
  56. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Troye Sivan – Blue Neighbourhood". Hung Medien. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
  57. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 December 2015.
  58. ^ "Troye Sivan Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 15 December 2015.
  59. ^ "ARIA Charts - End of Year Charts - Top 100 Albums 2015". Australian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on 12 January 2016. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
  60. ^ "ARIA Top 100 Albums 2016". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 6 January 2017.
  61. ^ "Album Top-100 2016" (in Danish). Hitlisten.NU. Retrieved 31 December 2016.
  62. ^ "Top Selling Albums of 2016". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 25 December 2016.
  63. ^ "2016년 Album Chart" (in Korean). Gaon Music Chart. Retrieved 13 January 2017.
  64. ^ "Årslista Album – År 2016" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 1 September 2018.
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  66. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2020 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
  67. ^ "Danish album certifications – Troye Sivan – Blue Neighbourhood". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved 21 March 2017. Scroll through the page-list below until year 2017 to obtain certification.
  68. ^ "Singapore album certifications – Troye Sivan – Blue Neighbourhood". Recording Industry Association Singapore. Retrieved 15 January 2021.
  69. ^ 2016-2017 sales:
  70. ^ "Sverigetopplistan – Troye Sivan" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 5 September 2022.
  71. ^ "British album certifications – Troye Sivan – Blue Neighbourhood". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
  72. ^ "American album certifications – Troye Sivan – Blue Neighborhood". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
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