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Metamodern Sounds in Country Music

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Metamodern Sounds in Country Music
Studio album by
Sturgill Simpson
ReleasedMay 13, 2014 (2014-05-13)
Recorded2013–14
StudioLow Country Sound (Nashville, Tennessee)[1]
Genre
Length34:29
Label
ProducerDave Cobb
Sturgill Simpson chronology
High Top Mountain
(2013) 		Metamodern Sounds in Country Music
(2014) 		A Sailor's Guide to Earth
(2016)
Singles from Metamodern Sounds in Country Music
  1. "Turtles All the Way Down"
    Released: April 8, 2014

Metamodern Sounds in Country Music is the second studio album by American country music singer-songwriter Sturgill Simpson. The album was produced and engineered by Dave Cobb and was released on May 13, 2014, through High Top Mountain, Thirty Tigers and Loose Music (Europe). The title is an homage to the album Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music by Ray Charles,[5] and also references the philosophical and cultural aesthetic of metamodernism.

In his fourth novel, More Deaths than One, published in 2014, the New Zealand writer and singer-songwriter Gary Jeshel Forrester examined metamodernism by way of a search for the Central Illinois roots of David Foster Wallace during a picaresque journey to America.[37] In it, Forrester wrote that "[m]etamodernist theory proposes to fill the postmodernist void with a rough synthesis of the two predecessors from the twentieth century [modernism and post-modernism]. In the new paradigm, metaphysics, epistemology, and ontology all have their places, but the overriding concern is with yet another division of philosophy – ethics. It's okay to search for values and meaning, even as we continue to be skeptical."

Promotion

[edit]

Prior to its official release, the entire album was available to stream on MSN's Listening Booth and NPR Music's First Listen.[6]

To further promote the album, Simpson performed on Late Show with David Letterman,[7] Conan,[8] and The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.[9] Simpson also performed a set for NPR's Tiny Desk Concert series.[10]

"Turtles All the Way Down" was featured on FX's The Bridge.[11]

Simpson's cover of "The Promise" by When in Rome was featured in the Season 2 Episode 9 of the HBO series The Leftovers.

Critical reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic81/100[12]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[13]
American Songwriter[14]
The Daily Telegraph[15]
Exclaim!9/10[16]
The Irish Times[17]
Mojo[18]
Pitchfork7.7/10[19]
Record Collector[20]
Rolling Stone[21]
Uncut8/10[22]

Metamodern Sounds in Country Music received "universal acclaim" according to Metacritic, earning a normalized score of 81 out of 100 based on ten reviews by music critics.[12]

Jonathan Bernstein of American Songwriter noted Simpson's cover of When in Rome's "The Promise," stating that he "turns the song into a countrypolitan torch song that culminates in a cathartic release."[14]

Track listing

[edit]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Turtles All the Way Down"Sturgill Simpson3:08
2."Life of Sin"Simpson2:26
3."Living the Dream"Simpson3:52
4."Voices"Simpson2:47
5."Long White Line"Buford Abner4:01
6."The Promise"
4:17
7."A Little Light"Simpson1:40
8."Just Let Go"Simpson2:32
9."It Ain't All Flowers"Simpson6:44
10."Panbowl" (hidden track)Simpson3:02
Total length:34:29

Personnel

[edit]

Musicians

[edit]
  • "Dood" Fraley – Master of Ceremonies
  • Sturgill Simpson – vocals, acoustic guitar, backing vocals
  • Laur Joamets – electric guitar, slide guitar
  • Kevin Black – bass guitar
  • Miles Miller – drums, percussion, backing vocals
  • Mike Webb – keyboards, mellotron
  • Dave Cobb – classical guitar, percussion

Production

[edit]
  • Dave Cobb – producer, engineer, mixing
  • Justin Herlocker – assistant engineer
  • John Netti – assistant engineer
  • Sturgill Simpson – mixing
  • Pete Lyman – mastering

Chart positions

[edit]

The album debuted on the Billboard 200 at No. 59 and the Top Country Albums at No. 11, with 5,500 copies sold in the US for the week.[23] As of January 2017, the album has sold 228,600 copies in the US.[24]

Weekly charts

[edit]
Chart (2014–15) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[25] 59
US Digital Albums (Billboard)[26] 22
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[27] 6
US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[28] 8

Year-end charts

[edit]
Chart (2014) Position
US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[29] 69
Chart (2015) Position
US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[30] 36

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[31] Gold 500,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Bacon, Tony (February 2019). "Dave Cobb: Producer & Engineer". Sound On Sound. Retrieved August 6, 2024.
  2. ^ "Sturgill Simpson - Metamodern Sounds in Country Music (High Top Mountain)". Stereogum. December 2, 2014. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
  3. ^ Winistorfer, Andrew (February 9, 2015). "Why Do People Keep Calling Sturgill Simpson the Savior of Country Music?". Noisey. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
  4. ^ Matt, Carney (May 22, 2014). "Progressive country politics". The Oklahoman. Retrieved 2023-07-22. When was the last time you heard the words "progressive country album"? Because that's what we've got on our hands here
  5. ^ "Sturgill Simpson: Metamodern Sounds in Country Music". Pitchfork. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
  6. ^ Ganz, Jacob (2014-05-04). "First Listen: Sturgill Simpson, 'Metamodern Sounds In Country Music'". NPR. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
  7. ^ "The Late Show Sturgill Simpson – "Life of Sin"". CBS. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
  8. ^ "Sturgill Simpson 'Living The Dream' 09/10/14". TeamCoco.com. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
  9. ^ "Sturgill Simpson: Turtles All the Way Down – Video". NBC.com. Archived from the original on 2014-10-31. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
  10. ^ "Tiny Desk Concerts – Sturgill Simpson". NPR. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
  11. ^ Logan, Buddy (2014-08-26). "Sturgill Simpson Music to be Featured on FX's 'The Bridge'". Radio Texas Live. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
  12. ^ a b "Reviews for Metamodern Sounds in Country Music by Sturgill Simpson". Metacritic. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
  13. ^ Jurek, Thom. "Metamodern Sounds in Country Music – Sturgill Simpson". AllMusic. Retrieved 2019-11-16.
  14. ^ a b Bernstein, Jonathan (2014-05-19). "Sturgill Simpson: Metamodern Sounds in Country Music". American Songwriter. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
  15. ^ Chilton, Martin (2014-12-22). "Sturgill Simpson, Metamodern Sounds in Country Music, album review". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2019-05-08.
  16. ^ Henderson, Stuart (2014-05-13). "Sturgill Simpson: Metamodern Sounds in Country Music". Exclaim!. Retrieved 2019-05-08.
  17. ^ Breen, Joe (2014-05-16). "Sturgill Simpson: Metamodern Sounds in Country Music". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2019-05-08.
  18. ^ "Sturgill Simpson: Metamodern Sounds in Country Music". Mojo (251): 91. October 2014.
  19. ^ Deusner, Stephen M. (2014-05-16). "Sturgill Simpson: Metamodern Sounds in Country Music". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
  20. ^ Staunton, Terry (July 2014). "Sturgill Simpson – Metamodern Sounds In Country Music". Record Collector (429). Retrieved 2019-05-08.
  21. ^ Murray, Nick (2014-05-30). "Metamodern Sounds in Country Music". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 2018-06-17. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
  22. ^ Hughes, Rob (2014-06-12). "Sturgill Simpson – Metamodern Sounds In Country Music". Uncut. Archived from the original on 2019-05-08. Retrieved 2019-05-08.
  23. ^ Matt Bjorke (May 21, 2014). "Country Music's Top 10 Albums: The Week Of May 21, 2014". Roughstock.
  24. ^ Bjorke, Matt (January 22, 2017). "Top 10 Country Albums Chart: January 23, 2017". Roughstock.
  25. ^ "Sturgill Simpson Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
  26. ^ "Sturgill Simpson Chart History (Digital Albums)".[dead link] Billboard. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
  27. ^ "Sturgill Simpson Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
  28. ^ "Sturgill Simpson Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
  29. ^ "Top Country Albums: 2014 Year-End Charts". Billboard. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
  30. ^ "Top Country Albums – Year-End 2015". Billboard. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
  31. ^ "American album certifications – Sturgill Simpson – Metamodern Sounds in Country Music". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved October 10, 2021.
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