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I added the noise genre, as two critics have sited noise music, or a related genre as one of the album's components.
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[[Pitchfork Media|Pitchfork]] placed the album at number five in their list of "The Top 50 Albums of 2012".<ref>[http://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/9017-the-top-50-albums-of-2012/5/ Staff Lists: The Top 50 Albums of 2012 | Features | Pitchfork<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
[[Pitchfork Media|Pitchfork]] placed the album at number five in their list of "The Top 50 Albums of 2012".<ref>[http://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/9017-the-top-50-albums-of-2012/5/ Staff Lists: The Top 50 Albums of 2012 | Features | Pitchfork<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

[[Sputnikmusic]] named the album number one in their list of the "Staff's Top 50 Albums of 2012"<ref>[http://www.sputnikmusic.com/blog/2013/01/04/staff%E2%80%99s-top-50-albums-of-2012-10-1/ Staff's Top 50 Albums of 2012]</ref>


==Track listing==
==Track listing==

Revision as of 03:06, 5 March 2013

Untitled

The Seer is the twelfth studio album by American experimental band Swans, released on August 28, 2012. Producer and frontman Michael Gira funded the recording of the album with the sales of We Rose from Your Bed with the Sun in Our Head. The album features vocals from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs vocalist Karen O, Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker of Low, members of Akron/Family, Ben Frost, Grasshopper from Mercury Rev and former Swans member Jarboe.[3]

Background

Frontman Michael Gira described the album as taking "30 years to make. It's the culmination of every previous Swans album as well as any other music I've ever made, been involved in or imagined. But it's unfinished, like the songs themselves. It's one frame in a reel. The frames blur, blend and will eventually fade."[3] Describing the songwriting process, Gira said, "The songs began on an acoustic guitar, then were fleshed out with (invaluable) help from my friends, then were further tortured and seduced in the studio, and now they await further cannibalism and force-feeding as we prepare to perform some of them live, at which point they'll mutate further, endlessly, or perhaps be discarded for a while."

At nearly two hours, The Seer is over twice as long as its predecessor, My Father Will Guide Me up a Rope to the Sky. The album also features many drone elements, present in the title track and the first half of "A Piece of the Sky". The songs "Lunacy", "Mother of the World", "The Seer Returns", "The Daughter Brings the Water", and "A Piece of the Sky" were released as demos with the special edition of We Rose from Your Bed with the Sun in Our Head.

The artwork from the album is by Simon Henwood, and features Gira's teeth. Gira also stated that The Seer will not be the last Swans album.[4]

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic87/100 [5]
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic [6]
The Guardian [7]
Sputnikmusic [8]
Drowned in Sound [9]
Pitchfork9.0/10 [10]
Slant Magazine [13]
The Independent [11]
Spin [12]
Tiny Mix Tapes [14]
A.V. ClubA[15]

The Seer was met with universal acclaim.[16] At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has received an average score of 87, based on 32 reviews. The album peaked at #114 on the Billboard 200 and at #22 on the Independent Albums chart.[17]

The album was listed 4th on Stereogum's list of top 50 albums of 2012.[18]

Pitchfork placed the album at number five in their list of "The Top 50 Albums of 2012".[19]

Sputnikmusic named the album number one in their list of the "Staff's Top 50 Albums of 2012"[20]

Track listing

All songs written by Michael Gira, except for tracks 3, 5, 9 and 11 written by Michael Gira/Christoph Hahn/Thor Harris/Christopher Pravdica/Phil Puleo/Norman Westberg.

Compact Disc One
No.TitleLength
1."Lunacy" (featuring Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker)6:09
2."Mother of the World"9:57
3."The Wolf"1:35
4."The Seer"32:14
5."The Seer Returns" (featuring Jarboe)6:17
6."93 Ave. B Blues"5:21
7."The Daughter Brings the Water"2:40
Compact Disc Two
No.TitleLength
8."Song for a Warrior" (featuring Karen O)3:58
9."Avatar"8:51
10."A Piece of the Sky" (featuring Jarboe and Akron/Family)19:10
11."The Apostate"23:01
LP one, side one
No.TitleLength
1."Lunacy" (featuring Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker)6:07
2."The Apostate Pt. 1"13:18
LP one, side two
No.TitleLength
1."The Apostate Pt. 2"9:36
2."A Piece of the Sky Pt. 1" (featuring Jarboe and Akron/Family)9:36
LP two, side one
No.TitleLength
1."A Piece of the Sky Pt. 2" (featuring Jarboe and Akron/Family)9:30
2."93 Ave. B Blues"5:22
3."The Daughter Brings the Water"2:33
4."Song for a Warrior" (featuring Karen O)3:58
LP two, side two
No.TitleLength
1."Mother of the World"9:59
2."Avatar"8:49
LP three, side one
No.TitleLength
1."The Wolf"1:35
2."The Seer Pt 1"18:56
LP three, side two
No.TitleLength
1."The Seer Pt 2"13:17
2."The Seer Returns" (featuring Jarboe)6:15

Personnel

Swans
Additional musicians
  • Karen O – vocals on "Song for a Warrior"
  • Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker of Low – background vocals on "Lunacy"
  • Jarboe – background vocals on "The Seer Returns" and "A Piece of the Sky"
  • Seth Olinsky, Miles Seaton, and Dana Janssen of Akron/Family – background vocals on "A Piece of the Sky"
  • Caleb Mulkerin and Colleen Kinsella of Big Blood – accordion, vocals, dulcimer, guitar, piano
  • Sean Mackowiak (Grasshopper) – mandolin, clarinet
  • Ben Frost – Fire Sounds (Acoustic and Synthetic) on "A Piece of the Sky"
  • Iain Graham – bagpipes on "The Seer"
  • Bruce Lamont – horns on "The Seer"
  • Bob Rutman – steel cello on "The Seer"
  • Cassis Birgit Staudt – accordion
  • Eszter Balint – violin
  • Jane Scarpantoni – cello
  • Kevin McMahon – recording, processing, and mixing -additional drums on "The Seer Returns", and "Avatar" – additional guitars on "Song for a Warrior", and "Avatar"
  • Bryce Goggin – piano on "Song for a Warrior"
  • Stefan Rocke – bassoon on "The Seer"

[21]

References

  1. ^ http://www.metacritic.com/music/the-seer/swans
  2. ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAKIxgzgNJ8
  3. ^ a b "Swans Reveal New Album Details". Pitchfork Media. 29 May 2012. Retrieved 31 July 2012.
  4. ^ Writer: DarkwĂźlf. "Michael Gira". Beard Rock. Retrieved 2012-09-18.
  5. ^ "The Seer – Swans". Metacritic. Retrieved 2012-09-16.
  6. ^ "The Seer – Swans". Allmusic. 2012-08-28. Retrieved 2012-08-28.
  7. ^ "Swans: The Seer – Review". The Guardian. 2012-08-23. Retrieved 2012-08-26.
  8. ^ "Swans – The Seer (staff review)". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 2012-03-10.
  9. ^ "Swans – The Seer". Drowned in Sound. Retrieved 2012-03-10.
  10. ^ "Swans: The Seer – Review". Pitchfork. 2012-08-27. Retrieved 2012-08-27.
  11. ^ "Swans: The Seer – Review". The Independent. 2012-08-26. Retrieved 2012-08-26.
  12. ^ "Swans: The Seer – Review". Spin. 2012-08-27. Retrieved 2012-08-27.
  13. ^ "Swans: The Seer". Slant Magazine. 2012-08-26. Retrieved 2012-08-31.
  14. ^ "Swans – The Seer". Tiny Mix Tapes. Retrieved 2012-08-31.
  15. ^ Heller, Jason (2012-09-18). "Swans: The Seer | Music | MusicalWork Review | The A.V. Club". A.V. Club. Retrieved 2012-09-18.
  16. ^ The Seer Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More - Metacritic
  17. ^ "Swans Music News & Info". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2012-09-18.
  18. ^ Stereogum’s Top 50 Albums Of 2012 - Stereogum
  19. ^ Staff Lists: The Top 50 Albums of 2012 | Features | Pitchfork
  20. ^ Staff's Top 50 Albums of 2012
  21. ^ "Brainwashed – Swans "The Seer"". Brainwashed. 29 May 2012. Retrieved 31 July 2012.
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