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Beggars (album)

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Untitled
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AbsolutePunk(93%)[1]
Alternative Press[2]
BBC(favorable)[3]
Punknews.org[4]
Sputnikmusic[5]

Beggars is the sixth studio recording (and seventh studio album release) by American rock band Thrice. It was released digitally through Vagrant Records in the UK on August 9, 2009[6] and in the US on August 11, 2009. A physical release containing bonus material was released on September 15, 2009.[7]

Writing and recording

Writing for Beggars began in January 2009,[8] with the band aiming to make the record "a little more upbeat and energetic" following their two previous projects, Vheissu and The Alchemy Index, which they felt had a "sleepy feeling" to them.[9] The recording process took place in a studio built by the band themselves in guitarist Teppei Teranishi's garage, with the aims being to save money and allow the band members to spend more time with their families.[9]

Speaking about the record, vocalist and guitarist Dustin Kensrue stated:

I'm really excited about this record. Beggars is more visceral and more raw - both in the songwriting and in the overall sound. It moves with a different energy than any of our past records. It was born out of us playing together in a room, almost as a backlash to the giant headgame that was The Alchemy Index.[10]

On the subject of the record's title, Kensrue also commented:

I think we are at most times deluded in thinking that we are totally responsible for our circumstances, but in the end almost everything is beyond our control to a high degree and we can't even be sure we will wake up tomorrow. Whether you believe that God created you for a purpose, or that the world is governed by blind chance, everything in life is a gift at its core; we are beggars all.[11]

Release

The first single, "All the World Is Mad," was released as a downloadable song in Guitar Hero: World Tour on July 23.[12]

Due to security flaws with a web player that Vagrant Records had been using for the past three years, a promotional version of the album was leaked to the internet on July 20, 2009. The label subsequently issued a statement claiming that "someone clearly and unfortunately went out of their way" to hack into their system, and that "the link got into the wrong hands and someone took the time to figure out how to get around the password and user log in." [13] The band themselves later responded to the leak, stating they were "disappointed" but "moving forward," while also stating that the record's "entire retail marketing plan" was being changed.[14]

As a result of the leak, the original release date of October 13 was changed to an initially digital-only release on August 9, 2009 (UK) and August 11, 2009 (US), with a physical release following on September 15, 2009. The physical release contains a card with a code to download five bonus tracks, including two B-sides, "Answered," and "Red Telephone" from the Beggars sessions, a cover of The Beatles' "Helter Skelter," as well as remixes of "All the World Is Mad" and "Circles."[7]

Due to the change of release date, the original cover art for the album was changed, with the band being unable to "wait on the clearances" for the photo that was to be used for it, and having to "move onto a different photo" that they had "proper clearance on." [15]

A vinyl release has been announced, with a limited run of 2000 copies. An 11"x11" color booklet will be included, signed by the band. A digital download card will also be included. There will be various colors available, all less than 500 copies each.

Reception

Critical reaction to Beggars has been extremely positive. Writing for Alternative Press, Scott Heisel called the album a "textbook example of the term 'creative milestone,'" and concluded that the band "have achieved that rare feat of actually progressing and maturing," rating the album as 4.5 out of 5.[16] In his review for AbsolutePunk, Chris Fallon called Beggars a "beautifully-crafted album that catches more attention with every listen." He also praised Dustin Kensrue's songwriting capabilities, stating that "on songs that tells stories like 'Wood & Wire,' we witness a true musician building significance not only for himself and his bandmates, but for those who understand his talents." He awarded the album a score of 93%.[17] Nick Greer's review for Sputnikmusic claimed that "softer songs" on the album, "namely 'Circles,' 'Wood & Wire,' and 'The Great Exchange,' are haunting and sad in a way Thrice has never captured before", and stated that "instrumentally, the band has never been better". Despite this he went on to call the album "at once familiar and alienating", and claimed that the band had fallen "into a complacent territory that doesn't truly push their music to new heights." He gave the album 3.5 out of 5, concluding by calling Beggars the sound of a band "settling into a sweet spot that neither attempts to leap past the achievements of previous albums nor away from what has made them so great for so long."[18]

Accolades

Publication Accolade Year Rank
Blare Magazine Blare's Top 50 Albums Of 2009[19] 2011 2nd

(*) designates unordered lists.

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Dustin Kensrue, except for "We Move Like Swing Sets" (Eddie Breckenridge) and "Helter Skelter" (Lennon–McCartney); all music is composed by Thrice, except where noted

No.TitleLength
1."All the World Is Mad"3:59
2."The Weight"5:00
3."Circles"4:19
4."Doublespeak"4:51
5."In Exile"3:53
6."At the Last"4:05
7."Wood and Wire"4:10
8."Talking Through Glass/We Move Like Swing Sets"4:30
9."The Great Exchange"3:33
10."Beggars"5:24
CD release bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
11."All the World Is Mad" (Free the Robots remix)3:58
12."Answered" (b-side)3:44
13."Circles" (Textual remix)4:10
14."Helter Skelter" (The Beatles cover)3:18
15."Red Telephone" (b-side)2:35

Personnel

Thrice

Production

  • Produced by Thrice and Teppei Teranishi at New Grass Studios
  • Engineered by Teppei Teranishi
  • Mixed by Dave Schiffman
  • Mastered by Howie Weinberg at Masterdisk

Art

  • Art design by Nathan Warketin
  • Interior booklet photos by Matt Wignall and Nathan Warketin
  • Cover art by Stanley Tretick

References

  1. ^ "Thrice - Beggars - Album Review". AbsolutePunk. Retrieved 2011-01-03.
  2. ^ "Alternative Press". Altpress.com. Retrieved 2011-01-03.
  3. ^ "Music - Review of Thrice - Beggars". BBC. Archived from the original on 11 February 2011. Retrieved 2011-01-03. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ "Thrice - Beggars". Punknews.org. Retrieved 2011-01-03.
  5. ^ "Thrice - Beggars (staff review)". Sputnikmusic. 2009-08-04. Retrieved 2011-01-03.
  6. ^ "Beggars: Thrice: Amazon.co.uk". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 2009-08-11.
  7. ^ a b "New Thrice Release Date". AbsolutePunk.net. 2009-08-04.
  8. ^ "Thrice update". Idiomag.com. 2009-02-03. Retrieved 2009-02-05.
  9. ^ a b "Big grooves emerging from Thrice's tiny garage studio". OC Register. 2008-04-01. Archived from the original on 2009-04-04. Retrieved 2008-04-02. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  10. ^ "Thrice Announce Tracklisting". scenepointblank. 2009-07-16.
  11. ^ "Thrice starts mixing new album, announce title and October release". Punknews.org. 2009-06-15.
  12. ^ "Thrice to debut song in Guitar Hero: World Tour." Punknews.org. July 9, 2009.
  13. ^ "Statement from Vagrant Records." Absolutepunk.net. July 21, 2009.
  14. ^ "A Message from Thrice." Absolutepunk.net. July 22, 2009.
  15. ^ "The Cover Shuffling Explained" Thrice.net August 12, 2009
  16. ^ "FILE UNDER: Progression with passion". Alternative Press. 2009-08-10. Retrieved 2009-08-15.
  17. ^ "Thrice Beggars - Album Review". AbsolutePunk.net. 2009-08-13. Retrieved 2009-08-15.
  18. ^ "Thrice - Beggars Review". Sputnik Music. 2009-08-04. Retrieved 2009-08-15.
  19. ^ "Blare's Top 50 Albums Of 2009". Blare Magazine. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
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