Is This Desire?
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| Is This Desire? | ||||
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| Studio album by PJ Harvey | ||||
| Released | 28 September 1998 (UK) 29 September 1998 (US) |
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| Recorded | April 1997 – April 1998 | |||
| Genre | Alternative rock, electronica, experimental rock | |||
| Length | 40:24 | |||
| Label | Island | |||
| Producer | Flood PJ Harvey Head Marius De Vries |
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| PJ Harvey chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Is This Desire? | ||||
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Is This Desire? is a 1998 album by British singer-songwriter PJ Harvey.
Contents |
[edit] Background
Recorded on and off in Dorset and London between April 1997 and April 1998, it was co-produced by Flood, Head and Harvey herself, and featured instrumental contributions from Rob Ellis, John Parish, Mick Harvey, Eric Drew Feldman, Joe Gore and Jeremy Hogg. It marked a move away from Harvey’s earlier guitar-driven rock style into subtler, quieter, atmospheric soundscapes and mood pieces based around keyboards, bass and electronics.
Is This Desire? is the album which PJ Harvey claims to feel the proudest of out of all her music to date. She spoke about the making of it to Filter magazine in 2004: "Again working with Flood, again trying to find new ground, but a particularly difficult time in my life. So, it was a very, very difficult, difficult record to make and still one I find very difficult to listen to, but probably my favorite record that I've made because it had a lot of guts. I mean, I was making extremely difficult music, experimenting with techniques I hadn't used before and not really caring what other people thought about it. I'm quite proud of that one." She also told the The Telegraph, "I do think Is This Desire? is the best record I ever made—maybe ever will make—and I feel that that was probably the highlight of my career. I gave 100 per cent of myself to that record. Maybe that was detrimental to my health at the same time."
It is the first PJ Harvey album to feature its lyrics printed on the inner sleeve.
The song "The Wind" was inspired by Saint Catherine, and in particular St Catherine's Chapel, Abbotsbury.[1][2] The lyrics discuss the chapel's location on top of a hill, and end with an inversion of a traditional prayer which women used at the chapel to pray for a husband.[1][3] The village of Abbotsbury is near PJ Harvey's home.[4]
[edit] Critical Reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [5] |
| Robert Christgau | A− [6] |
| Entertainment Weekly | (A) [7] |
| Los Angeles Times | [8] |
| The New York Times | (positive) [9] |
| NME | (6/10) [10] |
| Q | [11] |
| Rolling Stone | [12] |
| Spin | (8/10) [13] |
The album met with a mixed reception from critics and fans upon release, some of whom were disappointed by Harvey’s experimental and less bombastic new style. Reviews were generally positive, however. Q magazine praised the record as "disturbing and excellent", CMJ called it "another milestone in her already illustrious career", and Entertainment Weekly said it "seethes with hypnotic power";[7] the magazine Dazed & Confused claimed "Is This Desire? will be a classic of the next 10 if not 20 years. It has the impeccable timing of jazz, the arrangement of a classic dance track, the depth of an orchestral symphony and the emotional charge of gospel." It received a Grammy Award nomination as Best Alternative Music Performance of 1998. Although it did not sell as well as her 1995 commercial breakthrough To Bring You My Love, it did spawn her biggest UK hit with the single "A Perfect Day Elise"; a second single, "The Wind", also dented the UK Top 30.
[edit] Track listing
All songs written by PJ Harvey.
- "Angelene" – 3:34
- "The Sky Lit Up" – 1:52
- "The Wind" – 4:01
- "My Beautiful Leah" – 1:59
- "A Perfect Day Elise" – 3:06
- "Catherine" – 4:05
- "Electric Light" – 3:04
- "The Garden" – 4:12
- "Joy" – 3:40
- "The River" – 4:52
- "No Girl So Sweet" – 2:45
- "Is This Desire?" – 3:25
[edit] Singles and promo videos
- "A Perfect Day Elise" / "Sweeter Than Anything"
- "The Wind" / "Rebecca" / "Nina In Ecstasy"
- "Angelene" (Promo; video unreleased)
[edit] Personnel
- Produced by Flood, Head & Polly Jean Harvey
- Additional production and mixing: Marius De Vries ("The Sky Lit Up" and "The Wind")
- Arrangers: Polly Jean Harvey, Rob Ellis ("The Garden"), Mick Harvey ("Angelene")
- Musicians: Polly Jean Harvey, Mick Harvey, John Parish, Rob Ellis, Eric Drew Feldman, Jeremy Hogg, Joe Gore
- Additional musicians: Terry Edwards (trumpet on "The River") and Richard Hunt (violin on "No Girl So Sweet")
[edit] Charts
[edit] Album
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | UK Albums Chart | 17 |
| 1998 | U.S. Billboard 200 | 54 |
| 1998 | Canadian Albums Chart | 59 |
| 1998 | SNEP | 9 |
| 1998 | ARIA | 20 |
| 1998 | Ultratop | 10 |
As of 2005, Is This Desire? has sold 164,000 copies in the US.[14]
[edit] Singles
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 (September) | "A Perfect Day Elise" | UK Singles Chart | 25 |
| 1998 | "A Perfect Day Elise" | Modern Rock Tracks | 33 |
| 1998 | "A Perfect Day Elise" | French Singles Chart | 70 |
| 1998 | "A Perfect Day Elise" | ARIA | 83 |
| 1999 (January) | "The Wind" | UK Singles Chart | 29 |
[edit] References
- ^ a b "The Legend of St Catherine". http://www.st-catherine.org.uk/harvey1.htm. Retrieved 2009-03-19.
- ^ "god_stcat". Archived from the original on 2009-08-09. http://web.archive.org/web/20090809043511/http://geocities.com/jamesrattue/god_stcat.html. Retrieved 2009-03-19.
- ^ "St Catherine's Chapel, Abbotsbury". britainexpress.com. http://www.britainexpress.com/counties/dorset/Abbotsbury-Chapel.htm. Retrieved 2009-03-19.
- ^ Harris, John (27 September 2007). "Songs of innocence and experience". The Guardian: Film & Music p. 10. http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2007/sep/28/popandrock.pjharvey. Retrieved 19 March 2009. Posted on 28 September 2007.
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Is This Desire? at Allmusic. Retrieved 28 June 2004.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (December 15, 1998). "Consumer Guide: PJ Harvey: Is This Desire?". The Village Voice. http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv1198-98.php. Retrieved 15 November 2011. Also posted in a slightly modified version at "PJ Harvey: Is This Desire? > Consumer Guide Album". Robert Christgau. http://www.robertchristgau.com/get_album.php?id=2785. Retrieved 28 June 2004.
- ^ a b Weingarten, Marc (October 2, 1998). "This Week: Music: PJ Harvey Is This Desire?". Entertainment Weekly (452): p. 74. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,285075,00.html. Retrieved 21 February 2009.
- ^ Boehm, Mike (September 27, 1998). "Four-Star Performers". Los Angeles Times. http://articles.latimes.com/1998/sep/27/entertainment/ca-26893. Retrieved 29 August 2010.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (September 27, 1998). "Back With a Bang After Three Quiet Years". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/1998/09/27/arts/pop-jazz-back-with-a-bang-after-three-quiet-years.html. Retrieved 15 November 2011. Also posted at "Back With a Bang After Three Quiet Years". Robert Christgau. http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/music/harvey-nyt.php. Retrieved 15 November 2011.
- ^ Oldham, James (August 22, 1998). "PJ Harvey : Is This Desire? > NME Reviews". NME. http://www.nme.com/reviews/pj-harvey/152. Retrieved 28 June 2004.
- ^ review
- ^ Sheffield, Rob (October 15, 1998). "PJ Harvey Is This Desire? > Album Review". Rolling Stone (797). Archived from the original on 12 November 2007. http://web.archive.org/web/20071112002219/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/pjharvey/albums/album/320437/review/5945180/is_this_desire. Retrieved 28 June 2004. Posted on September 17, 1998.
- ^ Vowell, Sarah (November 1998). "Reviews: PJ Harvey Is This Desire?". Spin 14 (11): 138. http://books.google.com/books?id=lgxVa5s7idEC&lpg=PT8&dq=pj%20harvey&pg=PT8#v=onepage&q&f=false. Retrieved 21 October 2011.
- ^ Caulfield, Keith (December 27, 2005). "Ask Billboard: The Legend of Polly Jean". billboard.com. http://www.billboard.com/news/ask-billboard-1001738247.story#/news/ask-billboard-1001738247.story. Retrieved 6 June 2007.
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