Vehicles & Animals

This is a good article. Click here for more information.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from El Salvador (Athlete song))

Vehicles & Animals
A spiral of various household objects, such as lamps, golf clubs and chairs, floating towards the skyline
Studio album by
Released7 April 2003
Recorded2002
GenreIndie rock, post-Britpop
Length45:38
LabelParlophone
ProducerVictor Van Vugt, Athlete
Athlete chronology
Athlete
(2002)
Vehicles & Animals
(2003)
Tourist
(2005)
Singles from Vehicles & Animals
  1. "You Got the Style"
    Released: 10 June 2002
  2. "Beautiful"
    Released: 4 November 2002
  3. "El Salvador"
    Released: 24 March 2003
  4. "Westside"
    Released: 23 May 2003

Vehicles & Animals is the debut studio album by British rock band Athlete. It was released on 7 April 2003 through Parlophone. After changing their music style from Britpop, Athlete released a self-titled extended play (EP) in early 2002; its lead track "Westside" brought attention from Parlophone and the band joined the label. "You Got the Style" was released as a single in mid 2002, after which Athlete recording their debut album with producer Victor Van Vugt. Vehicles & Animals is an indie rock and post-Britpop album that emulates the style of Blur, Eels and Stereophonics.

Vehicles & Animals received generally positive reviews from music critics, though some of them saw it as uninspiring. The album charted at number 19 in the United Kingdom, and was certified platinum by the British Phonographic Industry in 2005. "Beautiful" was released as the second single from Vehicles & Animals, followed by the third single "El Salvador" and a UK tour in early 2003. The fourth single "Westside" and a re-release of "You Got the Style" appeared in June and September 2003, respectively. Two more UK tours followed, one closing 2003 and the other opening 2004. Of the album's singles, "El Salvador" had the highest chart peak, reaching number 31 in the UK and number 40 in Scotland.

Background and recording[edit]

When Athlete formed in 2000, their line up consisted of vocalist and guitarist Joel Pott, bassist Carey Willetts, keyboardist Tim Wanstall and drummer Steve Roberts.[1] When Wanstall left the band to study at university, the other members continued playing gigs in Camden, London.[2] Their style was akin to the Britpop sound of the 1990s but when Wanstall returned to the line up, they changed style to one similar to the works of Beck, Gomez and Turin Brakes.[2][3][4] Athlete released a self-titled extended play (EP) on 4 March 2002 through Regal Recordings; its lead track "Westside" received airplay on BBC Radio 1[1][5] and attracted the attention of Parlophone, who signed the band soon after.[1] Pott said the band had written only four songs at the time of the signing, whereas other bands would have an album's worth ready.[3]

On 17 June 2002, "You Got the Style" was released as a single, which was followed by a tour of the United Kingdom and a supporting slot for Suede.[2][6][7] In late 2002, Atlete recorded their debut album, co-producing it with Victor Van Vugt.[1][8] Sessions were held in the basement of a church; during recording, they took a break from recording to tour with Mansun and the Polyphonic Spree. Parlorhone told the band to record at their own pace because they did not want the band to quickly release a product solely to keep momentum going.[3] Pete Collis served as engineer on "Westside" and "Dungeness". Athlete and Bird & Bush – consisting of Marshall Bird and Steve Bush – did the initial production on "Dungeness". Matt Frost and Adam "A Skillz" Mills did additional programming on "Out of Nowhere", and Vugt and the band mixed the final recordings.[8]

Composition and lyrics[edit]

The sound of Vehicles & Animals has been described as indie rock and post-Britpop in the style of Blur, Eels and Stereophonics.[9][10][11] In a review for The Guardian, journalist Alexis Petridis wrote for the majority of the release, "Athlete sound like finalists in a contest to discover Britain's Most Unfashionable Band, mixing Parklife chirpiness with the acid songwriting style of Joe Jackson ... and occasionally throwing in big beat-like rhythms".[12] Pott's vocals resemble those by the Police frontman Sting.[13] Discussing the album's title, Pott said; "Vehicles and animals on their own are two interesting things, and when you put them together it sounds quite weird. We like to have good pop tunes but couple that with weird sounds and mess it up". One of the album's recurring topics is the members finding happiness in their home town Deptford.[3] Wanstall said it was "very much a bunch of stories about our little community, in our little corner of London, and just full of the joys" of being a recently-signed act.[14]

Vehicles & Animals opens with "El Salvador", which, according to journalist Gareth Dobson, comes across as a British iteration of Pavement "heading for a quick cuppa in a little cafe with their mates the Super Furry Squeezes".[15] The song's opening resembles the work of the Beta Band, merging folk elements and sound effects.[13] Pott said "El Salvador" is about the band's first year of being on a label and their uplifting "experiences – from going to a dingy studio before we got signed to suddenly touring around Europe and meeting people who work for us trying to sell our records".[3] Like the previous song, "Westside" begins as a quiet piece with a loud chorus, eventually fading out.[13] It was written after witnessing acts who were copying the style of others, evoking "Everything's Not Lost" (2000) by Coldplay.[3][16] Pott and Roberts used to live in Camden, where they saw people "who were just desperate to be famous".[3]

"One Million" is anchored by reversed drum loops, ending with an electro bass breakdown in the style of Grandaddy.[13][17][18] "Shake Those Windows" incorporates country-tinged guitar parts, recalling Synchronicity (1983) by the Police, and deals with music the band members used to listen to.[13][17][19] "Beautiful" mixes the styles of the Flaming Lips and Super Furry Animals, with Pott emulating Hamilton Leithauser of the Walkmen.[18][20] "New Project" deals with religious tolerance; it starts as a piano ballad and ends with radio noise.[13][21][20] The Pulp-like song "You Got the Style" is in waltz time and talks about the 2001 Oldham riots.[17][22] The chorus section incorporates a section of "Hot in Herre" (2002) by Nelly.[23] "Vehicles & Animals" was influenced by Pott's nephew, who would frequently play with toy animals, cars and trains, and is followed by "Dungeness", which talks about an outing to the town of the same name.[3][24] "Out of Nowhere" echoes the work of Beck and includes elements of funk and bossa nova, and is followed by the ballad "You Know".[13][19]

Release[edit]

Following "You Got the Style", "Beautiful" was released as the album's second single on 4 November 2002; it includes the B-side "On and On" and the music video for "Beautiful".[25][26] The video sees the band walking down a street during night time.[27] On 18 February 2003, Vehicles & Animals was announced for release in two months' time. In the interim, Athlete embarked on a headlining UK tour, which was supported by Longview and Saint Rose, and the band debuted new material.[28][29] On 24 March 2003, "El Salavador" was released as the album's third single, and was promoted at an in-store performance at the Virgin Megastore in Brighton.[30] Two versions of the song were released on CD; the first includes live versions of "Dungeness" and "You Got the Style", and the music video for "El Salvador"; while the second CD includes "Moving Out" and "Loose Change".[31][32] The "El Salvador" video revolves around a man in a hospital as he waits and eventually receives facial surgery.[33]

Vehicles & Animals was released on 7 April 2003 through Parlophone.[28] Mikael Wood of Dallas Observer said the artwork "depicts a stairway of trash spiraling toward heaven", alluding to the band's "colorful sound, which cobbles together elements from American and English alt-rock of the past decade".[34] The band promoted the album with an in-store set and a signing session at the Virgin Megastore in London.[30] "Westside" was released as the album's fourth single on 23 May 2003.[35] Two versions were released on CD; the first with the B-side "Count Me In", a remix of "Westside" performed by Elbow, and the music video for "Westside", while the second disc features live versions of "Westside", "Vehicles & Animals" and "One Million".[36][37] The "Westside" video opens with the band performing in a darkly-lit room, which eventually illuminates to show a vacant warehouse; they continue to perform as they move outside and end up at a beach.[38]

Following this, they appeared at the T in the Park, Move, One Big Sunday and V Festivals.[39][40] "You Got the Style" was re-released on 22 September 2003.[41] The CD single features a live version of "Beautiful" while the DVD version includes videos of "You Got the Style" and "Westside", and audio tracks "You Got the Style", "Hot Sun Pavement" and a live version of "Westside".[42][43] The "You Got the Style" video takes place in an empty theatre; Pott is seen reading a book, the illustration in which come to life.[44] In October 2003, the band went on a headlining UK tour, which was followed in January 2004 by a short tour with Snow Patrol.[45][46][47] On 18 May 2004, Vehicles & Animals was released in the United States by Astralwerks, with "A Few Differences" and the music video for "You Got the Style" as bonus tracks.[48]

"El Salvador", "Westside", "Beautiful" and "You Got the Style" were included on Athlete's first compilation album Singles 01–10 in 2010.[49] In May 2013, the band embarked on a six-date tour to mark the tenth anniversary of Vehicles & Animals; a live album of recordings from the tour was released the same year.[50]

Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic63/100[51]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[19]
Cross Rhythms[24]
The Guardian[12]
NME4/10[17]
No Ripcord6/10[13]
Playlouder[52]
Pitchfork6.4/10[53]
Stylus Magazine5.1/10[10]
Uncut[54]
Yahoo! Launch[55]

Vehicles & Animals was met with generally favourable reviews from music critics. At review-aggregating website Metacritic, the album received an average score of 63 based on 17 reviews.[51]

Critics were largely positive to the songwriting. AllMusic reviewer Ned Raggett said Vehicles & Animals is "perfectly, almost aggressively pleasant" and that it "generally makes for a great listen on a lazy, warm afternoon".[19] Petridis called it a "great record" that is "guilelessly cheery and knowingly witty in equal measure".[12] Cross Rhythms founder Tony Cummings praised the "attention-grabbing production" from Vugt as it "bursts of synth, dazzling programming and enough pro-tools wizardry to bring out every wistful note of Joel's poignant vocals".[24] The staff at Time Out complimented the sound's "unapologetic pop sensibility and [...] knack for creative experimentation", calling the album a "gloriously understated and wonderfully consistent" debut release.[56] According to Cam Lindsay of Stylus Magazine, the album stands on the "brink of being quite good" but "it just couldn't make it", coming across as a "bad sugar rush".[10] The staff at Belfast News Letter thought it "show[ed] promise", though if they made another album, they would have to "come up with more of the spine-tingling melodies, catchy hooks and occasional glimpses of rock" that was displayed here.[57]

Many reviewers were negative towards the mix of sounds found on the album. BBC Music's Dan Tallis stated that there is an array of "electronic trickery, squelchy noises and kooky beats on display" that hold each track "together seamlessly".[58] The Irish News writer Jason Douglas complimented the experimental nature of the album, and though similar to Gomez, Athlete were "held back by their reliance on odd noises and fuzzy guitars as substitutes for actually doing something new".[59] No Ripcord's Ben Bollig said by attempting to "mix quirky, quiet electronica with beer-swilling pop, without the two informing each other, Athlete too often fall into a formulaic and predictable model".[13] The staff at Uncut said the band's "very amiability begins to grate, as does the fact that, for all their diverse influences, Vehicles And Animals is a wearyingly one-dimensional 45 minutes".[54] Yahoo! Launch writer Ben Gilbert echoed this statement, saying the band are unable to "grasp edge, drama, even depth and soul, with any real nerve, as they plunder a myriad of seemingly incompatible influences".[55] Maya Singer for Cleveland Scene said the "music dances merrily along that narrow line between catchy and cute, clever and precious, accomplished and unbelievably annoying",[60] which the staff at Daily Mirror similarly agreed with.[61]

Some were also negative towards the lyrics. PopMatters said Vehicles & Animals "manages both annoyance and perfection", frequently "sacrific[ing] substantial meaning".[20] According to NME writer Mike Carhart-Harris, the lyrics are "shockingly mundane. Ruminations on childhood innocence are fine ... but find Athlete running on the spot".[17] Pitchfork contributor Johnny Loftus contrasted this by saying the emotions "conveyed are certainly real, but the organi-tronic flower power flow on display here is hardly unique to Athlete".[53]

Commercial performance[edit]

Vehicles & Animals peaked at number 19 on the UK Albums chart[62] and by February 2005, it had sold 240,000 copies in the UK.[63] "You Got the Style" reached number 37 in the UK singles chart and at number 41 in Scotland.[62][64] The re-released version charted at number 42 in the UK.[62] "Beautiful" peaked at number 41 in the UK and at number 49 in Scotland.[62][65] "El Salvador" reached number 31 in the UK and number 40 in Scotland.[62][66] "Westside" charted at number 42 in the UK and at number 53 in Scotland.[62][67]

In 2003, Vehicles & Animals was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize, an annual award honouring the year's best albums from the UK that was ultimately won by Boy in Da Corner by Dizzee Rascal.[68] Q named Vehicles & Animals the 32nd-best album released that year, calling it "the year's best wobbly indie-rock album".[9] In April 2005, the album was certified platinum by the British Phonographic Industry.[69]

Track listing[edit]

All songs written by Athlete. All recordings produced by Victor Van Vugt and the band.[8]

No.TitleLength
1."El Salvador"3:25
2."Westside"4:00
3."One Million"4:17
4."Shake Those Windows"5:04
5."Beautiful"3:47
6."New Project"3:37
7."You Got the Style"3:28
8."Vehicles & Animals"3:52
9."Out of Nowhere"3:11
10."Dungeness"4:17
11."You Know"4:11
12."Le Casio"2:29
Total length:45:38

Personnel[edit]

Personnel per booklet, unless noted otherwise.[8] The band members are intentionally not mentioned in the liner notes.[70]

Charts and certifications[edit]

References[edit]

Citations

  1. ^ a b c d e Leahey, Andrew. "Athlete Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 1 January 2022. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  2. ^ a b c Mason, Mark (July 2002). "An Interview With Athlete". No Ripcord. Archived from the original on 4 January 2003. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h "Athlete ready to run". Manchester Evening News. 10 August 2004. Archived from the original on 1 January 2022. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  4. ^ "Athlete jumps into the chart at No. 21". Evening Chronicle. 25 August 2003. Archived from the original on 1 January 2022. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  5. ^ Forrester, Iain (9 March 2002). "Ep Review: Athlete - Athlete EP / Releases". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  6. ^ "You Got the Style - Athlete". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 1 January 2022. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  7. ^ Moffat, Iain (22 June 2002). "Survival of the fittest". Playlouder. Archived from the original on 24 November 2006. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  8. ^ a b c d Athlete (2003). Vehicles & Animals (booklet). Parlophone. 582 2912.
  9. ^ a b Rees ed. 2004, p. 76
  10. ^ a b c Lindsay, Cam. "Athlete Vehicles & Animals". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on 26 July 2003. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
  11. ^ Murphy, John. "Athlete - Tourist (Parlophone)". musicOMH. Archived from the original on 25 March 2006. Retrieved 5 January 2022.
  12. ^ a b c Petridis, Alexis (4 April 2003). "Athlete: Vehicles and Animals". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 28 June 2003. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h i Bollig, Ben (8 April 2003). "Album Review - Athlete - "Vehicles & Animals"". No Ripcord. Archived from the original on 15 February 2005. Retrieved 28 October 2020.
  14. ^ Atkinson, Mike (29 September 2007). "Interview: Tim Wanstall of Athlete". Nottingham Post. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 23 May 2022 – via Mike Atkinson.
  15. ^ Dobson, Gareth (21 March 2003). "Single Review: Athlete - El Salvador / Releases". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  16. ^ Moffat, Iain (4 March 2003). "Bunch Of 45s". Playlouder. Archived from the original on 29 March 2007. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  17. ^ a b c d e Carhart-Harris, Mike. "Athlete (1) : Vehicles And Animals". NME. Archived from the original on 2 May 2003. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
  18. ^ a b Begrand, Adrien (19 April 2005). "Athlete: Tourist". PopMatters. Archived from the original on 19 April 2005. Retrieved 13 October 2011.
  19. ^ a b c d Raggett, Ned. "Vehicles & Animals - Athlete". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
  20. ^ a b c Williams, Richard T. "Athlete: Vehicles & Animals". PopMatters. Archived from the original on 16 February 2009. Retrieved 19 September 2016.
  21. ^ Dolan 2004, p. 44
  22. ^ Empire, Kitty. "Athlete (1) : You Got The Style". NME. Archived from the original on 12 August 2002. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  23. ^ McCaffery, Damien (13–19 August 2004). "Athlete Vehicles & Animals". The Boston Phoenix. Archived from the original on 20 August 2004. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  24. ^ a b c Cummings, Tony (1 July 2003). "Athlete - Vehicles & Animals". Cross Rhythms. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  25. ^ Athlete (2002). "Beautiful" (sleeve). Parlophone. CDATH002/7243 5 51576 0 7.
  26. ^ "Athlete - Beautiful". irish-charts.com. Archived from the original on 9 January 2022. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  27. ^ AthleteVevo (1 August 2018). Athlete - Beautiful. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022 – via YouTube.
  28. ^ a b "Band on the Run!". NME. 18 February 2003. Archived from the original on 1 January 2022. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  29. ^ Hodge, Carol (28 March 2003). "Athlete @ Manchester Academy 3". BBC Manchester Music. Archived from the original on 3 October 2003. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  30. ^ a b "Mega(Store) News for Athlete Fans!". NME. 22 March 2003. Archived from the original on 1 January 2022. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  31. ^ Athlete (2003). "El Salvador" (sleeve). Parlophone. CDATHS003/724355212702.
  32. ^ Athlete (2003). "El Salvador" (sleeve). Parlophone. CDATH003.
  33. ^ AthleteVevo (1 August 2018). Athlete - El Salvador. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022 – via YouTube.
  34. ^ Wood, Mikael (23 June 2005). "Athlete". Dallas Observer. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  35. ^ Seudder, Tim (18 June 2003). "Single Review: Athlete - Westside / Releases". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  36. ^ Athlete (2003). "Westside" (sleeve). Parlophone. CDATHS005.
  37. ^ Athlete (2003). "Westside" (sleeve). Parlophone. CDATH005.
  38. ^ AthleteVevo (1 August 2018). Athlete - Westside. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022 – via YouTube.
  39. ^ "Athlete, David Holmes Join V Bill". NME. 29 April 2003. Archived from the original on 1 January 2022. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  40. ^ "Athlete Sprint Round UK". NME. 23 July 2003. Archived from the original on 1 January 2022. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  41. ^ Edwards, Tom (18 September 2003). "Single Review: Athlete - You Got The Style / Releases". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  42. ^ Athlete (2003). "You Got the Style" (sleeve). Parlophone. CDATH006/7243 5 53007 2 0.
  43. ^ Athlete (2003). "You Got the Style" (sleeve). Parlophone. DVDATH006/7243 4 90852 9 9.
  44. ^ AthleteVevo (1 August 2018). Athlete - You Got The Style. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022 – via YouTube.
  45. ^ "Athlete's Double Date". NME. 29 August 2003. Archived from the original on 1 January 2022. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  46. ^ "Athlete Take Fast Track to Big Venues!". NME. 23 September 2003. Archived from the original on 1 January 2022. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  47. ^ Loundras, Alexia (14 January 2005). "Athlete: Young hopefuls going for gold". The Independent. Archived from the original on 30 January 2010. Retrieved 5 January 2022.
  48. ^ Raggett, Ned. "Vehicles & Animals [US Bonus Tracks] - Athlete / Release Info". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 1 January 2022. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  49. ^ Athlete (2010). Singles 01–10 (sleeve). EMI. 50999 906880 2 7.
  50. ^ Athlete (2013). Vehicles & Animals Live (sleeve). Self-released. DB003.
  51. ^ a b "Critic Reviews for Vehicles & Animals". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 16 March 2014. Retrieved 23 September 2013.
  52. ^ Williams, Simon (4 April 2003). "Vehicles And Animals". Playlouder. Archived from the original on 7 June 2003. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
  53. ^ a b Loftus, Johnny (10 June 2004). "Athlete: Vehicles & Animals". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 12 November 2016. Retrieved 13 October 2011.
  54. ^ a b "Athlete – Vehicles And Animals". Uncut. 1 May 2003. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
  55. ^ a b Gilbert, Ben (10 April 2003). "Athlete - 'Vehicles And Animals'". Yahoo! Launch. Archived from the original on 15 January 2004. Retrieved 21 December 2021.
  56. ^ "Athlete 'Vehicles And Animals' Parlophone; Music: Preview". Time Out: 109. 2 April 2003. ISSN 0049-3910.
  57. ^ "CD Review: Bronze Medal for Athlete; Athlete: Vehicles And Animals (Parlophone)". Belfast News Letter: 20. 18 April 2003.
  58. ^ Tallis, Dan (2003). "Athlete Vehicles & Animals Review". BBC Music. Archived from the original on 16 March 2021. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  59. ^ Douglas 2003, p. 27
  60. ^ Singer, Maya (12 May 2004). "Athlete". Cleveland Scene. Archived from the original on 1 January 2022. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  61. ^ "The Review: New Albums". Daily Mirror: 34. 5 April 2003.
  62. ^ a b c d e f "Athlete / full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 19 October 2021. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  63. ^ Sexton 2005, p. 51
  64. ^ "2002 06 23 Official Scottish Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 1 January 2022. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  65. ^ "2002 11 10 Official Scottish Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 8 November 2021. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  66. ^ "2003 03 30 Official Scottish Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 1 January 2022. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  67. ^ "2003 06 29 Official Scottish Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 17 December 2021. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  68. ^ Brunner, Rob (15 August 2003). "Rating the contenders for Britain's top music prize". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  69. ^ a b "British album certifications – Athlete – Vehicles & Animals". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 3 January 2022.
  70. ^ Berkmann, Marcus (14 May 2005). "Standing Still". The Spectator. Archived from the original on 1 January 2022. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  71. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 30 July 2020.
  72. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 30 July 2020.
  73. ^ "End of Year Album Chart Top 100 – 2003". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 6 August 2020. Retrieved 30 July 2020.
  74. ^ "The Official UK Albums Chart 2005" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 May 2010. Retrieved 18 November 2021.

Sources

External links[edit]