Face Control
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Face Control is Handsome Furs' second full-length album, which was released through Sub Pop Records.[1] The album was recorded and mixed by Wolf Parade's Arlen Thompson at Mount Zoomer, and it was mastered by Harris Newman at Hotel2Tango.[1]
The album's title takes its name from the face control policy seen in upscale Russian nightclubs where people are admitted based on physical attractiveness.[2][3][4]
Background and Release
The album was heavily influenced by the Handsome Furs' travels through Eastern Europe. Dan Boeckner has referred to the album as a "travel diary."[5] In choosing the album's title, Boeckner said:
The thing that really attracted me to using that as an album title was that it was a perfect example of how post-Communist Russia had so embraced this crazed form of hyper-capitalism — the kind that has no regard whatsoever for human-beings — to an extent that would horrify even the most right-wing North American Republican capitalist.[5]
Face Control was originally set to be released on February 3, 2009. However, the album's release dated was delayed until March 10, 2009,[1] due to a legal issue.[6] According to the official Wolf Parade fansite, the Handsome Furs referenced a New Order song on the track "All We Want, Baby, Is Everything".[6] In order to use the reference, the band needed to legally clear it with New Order, which took some time to do and caused the release to be pushed back.[6]
Reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |    link |
| The A.V. Club | (D) link |
| Drowned in Sound | (8/10) |
| Pitchfork Media | (8.0/10) link |
| PopMatters | (7/10) link |
| Rolling Stone | link at the Wayback Machine (archived April 10, 2009) |
| Spin Magazine | (8/10) link |
Face Control has received generally positive reviews. On the review aggregate site Metacritic, the album has a score of 68 out of 100, indicating "generally favorable reviews."[7]
Pitchfork Media's Paul Thompson praised the album, writing "On every conceivable level down to the cover art, Face Control bests its predecessor, adding stuttering nuance to their previously too-spare sound, which they drape over some of the finest songs Boeckner's ever written."[8] Drowned in Sound's Alexander Tudor compared the album to Bruce Springsteen's Born in the U.S.A., writing "Yeah, it’s THAT good..."[9] Margaret Reges of Allmusic called Face Control "...a solid album, and just another example of Boeckner and Perry's tingling creative chemistry."[2]
Matthew Cole of Slant Magazine gave the album a mixed review, writing "Fans of off-kilter pop will enjoy at least a few of the stronger cuts, but too much of Face Control sounds like the unfinished blueprint of a much better album."[10] In a scathing review, The A.V. Club's Chris Martins wrote "Everything about these songs feels lazy, from the sludgy rock and tinsel-thin beats of 'Evangeline' to the couple’s weak approximation of The Knife on '(White City)' to the half-assed 'Dancing In The Dark' paean at the end of 'Legal Tender.'" Martins concluded: "This is easily the most flavorless fruit yet to fall from the Wolf Parade family tree."[11]
Spinner named Face Control the best Canadian album of 2009.[12] The album was nominated for the Juno Award for Alternative Album of the Year in the 2010 Juno Awards, where it lost to Metric's Fantasies.[13] In addition, Face Control was one of the long list nominees for the 2009 Polaris Music Prize.[14]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Handsome Furs
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Legal Tender" | 2:50 |
| 2. | "Evangeline" | 3:40 |
| 3. | "Talking Hotel Arbat Blues" | 2:40 |
| 4. | "(Passport Kontrol)" | 1:24 |
| 5. | "All We Want, Baby, Is Everything" | 3:08 |
| 6. | "I'm Confused" | 3:35 |
| 7. | "(White City)" | 1:27 |
| 8. | "Nyet Spasiba" | 4:18 |
| 9. | "Officer of Hearts" | 5:44 |
| 10. | "(It's Not Me, It's You)" | 1:33 |
| 11. | "Thy Will Be Done" | 3:16 |
| 12. | "Radio Kaliningrad" | 4:52 |
Personnel
The following people contributed to Face Control:[15]
Handsome Furs
Additional personnel
- Jouko Lehtola - Artwork
- Harris Newman - Mastering, Remastering
- Dusty Summers - Art Direction
- Arlen Thompson - Audio Engineer, Engineer, Mixing
Charts
| Chart (2009) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard Independent Albums | 44[16] |
| US Billboard Heatseekers | 16[16] |
Videos
- "Legal Tender" - Radio K in-studio performance.
- "Thy Will Be Done" - Radio K in-studio performance.
- "I'm Confused" - Directed by Scott Coffey.
References
- ^ a b c Sub Pop Records, Handsome Furs: Face Control, subpop.com, November 12, 2008.
- ^ a b Reges, Margaret. Face Control - Review. Allmusic. Retrieved 28 June 2011
- ^ Boersma, Caitlin. Everybody Has a Fucking Xylophone: An Interview with the Handsome Furs. KUPS. 14 May 2008. Retrieved 28 June 2011
- ^ Radio Free Canuckistan, "Dan Boeckner Interview", December 12, 2007.
- ^ a b Carew, Anthony. Interview: Dan Boeckner of Wolf Parade and Handsome Furs. About.com. 7 July 2010. Retrieved 28 June 2011
- ^ a b c Wolf Parade Fansite, "News News News", wolfparade.nonstuff.com, December 31, 2008.
- ^ Critic Reviews for Face Control. Metacritic. Retrieved 28 June 2011
- ^ Thompson, Paul. Album Reviews: Handsome Furs. Pitchfork Media. 12 March 2011. Retrieved 28 June 2011
- ^ Tudor, Alexander. Handsome Furs - Face Control. Drowned in Sound. 9 March 2009. Retrieved 28 June 2011
- ^ Cole, Matthew. Handsome Furs: Face Control. Slant Magazine. 9 March 2009. Retrieved 28 June 2011
- ^ Martins, Chris. Handsome Furs: Face Control. The A.V. Club. 10 March 2009. Retrieved 28 June 2011
- ^ The Best Canadian Albums of 2009. Spinner. Retrieved 30 June 2011
- ^ JUNO Awards - Alternative Album of the Year. Juno Awards. Retrieved 30 June 2011
- ^ 2009 Winner & Nominees. Polaris Music Prize. Retrieved 30 June 2011
- ^ Face Control - Credits. Allmusic. Retrieved 28 June 2011
- ^ a b Face Control - Charts & Awards. Allmusic. Retrieved 28 June 2011.