Fashion Week (album)
| Untitled | |
|---|---|
Fashion Week is an instrumental soundtrack by experimental hip hop group Death Grips. It was self-released, available for free, on January 4, 2015 via Third Worlds, without any prior announcement.[2] It is the band's first release since their supposed disbandment in 2014, and also the first release to not feature vocals from frontman MC Ride.
Background
Fashion Week was described by the group as a “soundtrack.”[1] A leaked .zip file was shared via Reddit in late-2014, containing 6 tracks from the album and 2 unreleased tracks, but was initially dismissed by fans as fake.[3] The song titles, follow as: "Runway J", "Runway E" and so on; acrostically spelling out the phrase "JENNY DEATH WHEN", in reference to the upcoming second disc of The Powers That B.[4]
The album art features an image of artist Sua Yoo, who designed the band's cover art for The Money Store.
Critical reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Exclaim! | 7/10[5] |
| Spin | 7/10[6] |
| Pitchfork | (6.6/10)[7] |
Calum Slingerland of Exclaim! stated: "The noticeable absence of MC Ride's commanding roar will no doubt be a point of accessibility for those just discovering the group's music, though it would be a welcome way to liven up some of the more drawn out, repetitive instrumental moments."[5] Spin critic Dan Weiss wrote: "Fashion Week is very different from any other Death Grips album just for being so linear, and while Stefan Burnett's guttural, performance art-ish MCing is missed, their astoundingly dark and imaginative sonic palette remains intact." Weiss also stated: "Fashion Week tempts one to think of Nine Inch Nails' similarly vocal-less online souvenir Ghosts I-IV" [6] Nate Patrin of Pitchfork criticized the album's lack of vocals, stating: "The album needs the percussive abrasion of his [MC Ride's] voice, and digging into some of the more typical slabs of Death Grips' instrumental tendencies doesn't unearth much more than a pretty solid workout soundtrack. "[7] The Quietus critic Calum Bradbury-Sparvell described the album as "the most vibrant and least menacing collection of tracks Death Grips have released."[8]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Runway J" | 4:09 |
| 2. | "Runway E" | 3:14 |
| 3. | "Runway N" | 2:42 |
| 4. | "Runway N" | 3:01 |
| 5. | "Runway Y" | 4:01 |
| 6. | "Runway D" | 4:43 |
| 7. | "Runway E" | 3:25 |
| 8. | "Runway A" | 3:37 |
| 9. | "Runway T" | 2:36 |
| 10. | "Runway H" | 4:29 |
| 11. | "Runway W" | 3:29 |
| 12. | "Runway H" | 3:35 |
| 13. | "Runway E" | 2:21 |
| 14. | "Runway N" | 2:01 |
| Total length: | 47:48 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "01 voco beat 13 DARK" | 4:45 |
| 2. | "02 darko drum 12" | 3:59 |
| 3. | "03 day loop 06" | 2:57 |
| 4. | "03 golden 07" | 4:02 |
| 5. | "05 red moon 06 DARK" | 3:01 |
| 6. | "06 chateau new DARK" | 2:36 |
| 7. | "07 lepso arp 08 03.03.14" | 4:09 |
| 8. | "08 new bass loop 08 OUTBOARD 2.23.14" | 3:39 |
| Total length: | 29:11 | |
Personnel
- Death Grips
- Zach Hill – drums
- Andy Morin – keyboards, programming
- Nick Reinhart - guitar (Track 12)
References
- ^ a b "Death Grips release surprise instrumental album Fashion Week". The Guardian. January 5, 2015. Retrieved January 5, 2015.
- ^ Young, Alex (January 5, 2015). "Death Grips release instrumental album Fashion Week — listen". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved January 5, 2015.
- ^ Stubbs, Dan (January 5, 2015). "Death Grips release surprise instrumental 'soundtrack' album – listen". NME. Retrieved January 5, 2015.
- ^ Phillips, Amy (January 4, 2015). "Death Grips Release Surprise Instrumental Album Fashion Week". Pitchfork. Retrieved January 5, 2015.
- ^ a b Slingerland, Calum (January 9, 2015). "Death Grips - Fashion Week". Exclaim!. Retrieved January 11, 2015.
- ^ a b Weiss, Dan (January 6, 2015). "Death Grips Rise From the Dead With the Explosive 'Fashion Week'". Spin. Retrieved January 6, 2015.
- ^ a b Patrin, Nate (January 13, 2015). "Death Grips - Fashion Week". Pitchfork. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
- ^ Bradbury-Sparvell, Calum (January 15, 2015). "Death Grips - Fashion Week". The Quietus. Retrieved January 18, 2015.