The Loneliest Time

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The Loneliest Time
A photo of Jepsen sat at a table with pears and other plants on it.
Studio album by
Carly Rae Jepsen
ReleasedOctober 21, 2022 (2022-10-21)
Recorded2020–2022
Studio
  • Bonnie Hill Studios (Los Angeles)
  • The Royal Room
  • The Penthouse
  • Captain Cuts Studios (Los Angeles)
  • Blue Meets Green
  • Taurus Recording
  • Rodeo Recording
  • Hope Studios
  • Matsor Projects Studios
  • Valentine Recording Studios
  • Valley Girl AV Club
  • Coronado Corner
  • The Fox Den
GenreSynth-pop[1]
Length42:23
Label
Producer
Carly Rae Jepsen chronology
Dedicated Side B
(2020) 		The Loneliest Time
(2022) 		The Loveliest Time
(2023)
Singles from The Loneliest Time
  1. "Western Wind"
    Released: May 6, 2022
  2. "Beach House"
    Released: August 5, 2022
  3. "Talking to Yourself"
    Released: September 16, 2022
  4. "The Loneliest Time"
    Released: October 7, 2022

The Loneliest Time is the sixth studio album by Canadian singer Carly Rae Jepsen. It was released on October 21, 2022, through 604 Records in Canada, and School Boy and Interscope Records. The album was preceded by the release of its lead single, "Western Wind", which was followed by "Beach House", "Talking to Yourself", and the title track. The album received positive reviews and was placed in several lists of best of the year. In support of the album, Jepsen embarked on The So Nice Tour, which began in September 2022.

Background[edit]

In May 2020, Jepsen revealed that she had recorded an "entire quarantine album" during the lockdown. Jepsen spoke to The Guardian that she was writing songs over Zoom alongside longtime collaborator Tavish Crowe.[2]

While discussing the album in an interview with Crack, Jepsen stated she wanted to be less conscious of the decades she's been moving. Instead, she was inspired by various styles, including 80s pop, 70s folk, funk, and disco. Jepsen also explained she wanted to become more self-reflective and analytical of her own behaviours:

I had the playground of all the eras to jump from, and this was more just writing from the heart, in whatever direction the songs wanted to go, ... It excited me to have those moments of flirtation on the [new] album, but also broaden the spectrum of what the subject of a pop song was allowed to be...[3]

In an interview with The Ringer, Jepsen teased the possibility of releasing a "side B" companion project to The Loneliest Time, as was done with her previous two albums, Emotion (2015) and Dedicated (2019), stating that "there's 65 [B-sides] that I've listened to that I could make something of..."[4]. This materialized as a companion piece titled The Loveliest Time, which was released on July 28, 2023.

Promotion[edit]

"Western Wind" was released as the lead single on May 6, 2022. The album was made available to pre-order on August 2.[5] Second single "Beach House" was released August 5, third single "Talking to Yourself" was released September 16,[6] and the fourth single, the title track featuring Rufus Wainwright, was released October 7.[7]

On September 21, Jepsen embarked on her fourth concert tour across North America, The So Nice Tour. While on tour, she announced more dates in the United Kingdom (Europe) and Australia. The tour finished on March 14, 2023.

Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.3/10[8]
Metacritic79/100[9]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[10]
The Daily Telegraph[11]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[12]
Clash6/10[13]
NME[14]
Pitchfork6.5/10[15]
Rolling Stone[16]
Slant Magazine[17]

The Loneliest Time received generally positive reviews from music critics; at Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received a score of 79 out of 100 based on 17 reviews.[9]

Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone wrote "The Loneliest Time is her most "emotionally adventurous" music yet—"high-gloss post-bubblegum synth-pop that packs a serious punch even at its fizziest."[16] Hannah Mylrea of NME awarded the album four out of five stars, writing that The Loneliest Time "sees Jepsen's now signature sonics infused with more expansive influences, although never deferring too far from the tried and trusted sounds of past."[14] Reviewing the album for AllMusic, Heather Phares concluded that Jepsen's "charm holds together The Loneliest Time's whirlwind of daydreams, confessions, and decades of pop allusions", calling it "another strong album" from her.[10] Olivia Horn of Pitchfork complimented certain aspects of the production, but criticized some of its "corny" lyrics and the lack of focus.[18] Gem Stokes of Clash said the album is "a far cry from the saccharine star that launched Jepsen's career but proves her musical pliability."[13]

The album was nominated for Pop Album of the Year at the Juno Awards of 2023.[19]

Rankings[edit]

Year-end rankings for The Loneliest Time
Publication List Rank Ref.
The A.V. Club The 30 Best Albums of 2022
6
[20]
Clash Clash's Albums of the Year 2022
52
[21]
Consequence of Sound Top 50 Albums of 2022
26
[22]
The Forty Five Albums of the year 2022
34
[23]
GQ Magazine The best albums of 2022 —
[24]
No Ripcord The 50 Best Albums of 2022
33
[25]
Nylon Nylon's Favorite Albums of 2022 —
[26]
PopMatters The 80 Best Albums of 2022
39
[27]
The Ringer The 33 Best Albums of 2022
27
[28]
Under the Radar Under the Radar's Top 100 Albums of 2022
61
[29]

Commercial performance[edit]

In Jepsen's homeland, Canada, The Loneliest Time debuted at number 18 on the Canadian Albums Chart. In the United States, the album debuted at number 19 on the Billboard 200 and number 6 on the Billboard Top Albums Sales Chart, with 12,000 copies sold.[30] The Loneliest Time also went on to debut at number 16 on the UK Albums Chart, becoming her highest-peaking album in the UK in ten years.[31]

Track listing[edit]

The Loneliest Time – Standard edition[32]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Surrender My Heart"
  • Royal
  • Hershenow
  • Jordan Palmer[a]
2:48
2."Joshua Tree"
  • Jepsen
  • Tavish Crowe
  • Luke Nicolli
  • Nicolli
  • Palmer[a]
2:29
3."Talking to Yourself"
Captain Cuts2:53
4."Far Away"
  • Jepsen
  • Crowe
  • Nathan Jenkins
  • Bullion
  • Jenkins[v]
  • Jonathan Gilmore[v]
2:59
5."Sideways"
  • Hill
  • Palmer
2:16
6."Beach House"
  • Hope
  • SameSame[a]
2:30
7."Bends"
  • Jepsen
  • Crowe
  • Jenkins
  • Bullion
  • Gilmore[v]
3:15
8."Western Wind"
Batmanglij3:45
9."So Nice"
  • Jepsen
  • Cyphert
  • Kyle Shearer
Shearer3:39
10."Bad Thing Twice"
  • Jepsen
  • Stolar
  • Hill
  • Palmer
  • Hill
  • Palmer
3:13
11."Shooting Star"
  • Jepsen
  • Jared Solomon
  • Danny Silberstein
Solomonophonic3:19
12."Go Find Yourself or Whatever"
  • Jepsen
  • Batmanglij
Batmanglij4:44
13."The Loneliest Time" (featuring Rufus Wainwright)
  • Jepsen
  • Cyphert
  • Shearer
Shearer4:34
Total length:42:23
The Loneliest Time – Target and HMV editions (bonus track)
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
14."Keep Away"
  • Jepsen
  • Cyphert
  • Shearer
Shearer4:02
Total length:46:25
The Loneliest Time – Japanese and digital editions (bonus tracks)
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
14."Anxious"
  • Jepsen
  • Crowe
  • Oliver Lundström
Lundström2:57
15."No Thinking Over the Weekend"
  • Jepsen
  • Bao
  • Patrik Berger
Berger4:42
Total length:49:23
The Loneliest Time – Digital edition (bonus track)
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
16."Keep Away"
  • Jepsen
  • Cyphert
  • Shearer
Shearer4:02
Total length:54:04

Notes[edit]

  • ^[a] indicates an additional producer
  • ^[v] indicates a vocal producer

Personnel[edit]

Musicians

  • Carly Rae Jepsen – vocals
  • Tavish Crowe – musical direction
  • Imad Royal – background vocals, bass, drums, guitar (1)
  • Max Hershenow – background vocals, drums (1)
  • Luke Niccoli – bass, drums, guitar, keyboards, programming (2)
  • Captain Cuts – programming (3)
  • Trevor Rabin – guitar (3)
  • Simon Wilcox – programming (3)
  • Nathan Jenkins – bass, synthesizer, vocals (4, 7); vocal programming (7)
  • Liam Hutton – drums (4)
  • Jordan Palmer – drums, guitar, synthesizer (5, 10); bass (10)
  • John Hill – drums (5), guitar (5, 10), bass (10)
  • Nate Cyphert – background vocals (6, 9, 13, 16)
  • Alex Hope – guitar, programming, synthesizer (6)
  • Rob Cohen – programming (6)
  • Tony Marino – vocals (6)
  • Bobby Wooten – vocals (6)
  • Ben Romans – vocals (6)
  • Joey Hendricks – vocals (6)
  • Jared Manierka – vocals (6)
  • Rostam Batmanglij – acoustic guitar, bass, electric guitar, piano, synthesizer (8, 12); clapping, conga, drums, organ, programming, shaker, tambourine (8); drum programming, Hammond B3, mandolin, percussion, sitar (12)
  • Andrew Tachine – conga, drums, tambourine (8)
  • Joey Messina-Doerning – conga (8)
  • Kyle Shearer – bass, programming (9, 13, 16); guitar (9, 16); background vocals, drums, synthesizer (13)
  • Georgia Greene – background vocals (12)
  • Quinn D'Andrea – background vocals (12)
  • Lauren Jones – background vocals (12)
  • Andrew Bulbrook – violin (12)
  • Cara Fox – cello (13)
  • Cody Fry – string arrangement (13, 16)
  • Avery Bright – violin (13)
  • Elizabeth Lamb – violin (13)
  • Emily Kohavi – violin (13)
  • Cassie Morrow – violin (13)
  • Rufus Wainwright – vocals (13)
  • Oliver Lundström – bass, guitar, programming, synthesizer (14)
  • Cristoffer Cantillo – drums (15)
  • Evan Smith – flute (15)
  • Patrik Berger – programming (15)

Technical

  • Emily Lazar – mastering
  • Chris Allgood – mastering
  • Tom Norris – mixing, engineering (1, 2, 5, 10)
  • Rob Kinelski – mixing, engineering (3)
  • Anthony Dolhai – mixing (4, 7, 14), engineering (4, 7)
  • Mitch McCarthy – mixing, engineering (6)
  • Shawn Everett – mixing, engineering (8)
  • James Krausse – mixing, engineering (9, 13, 16)
  • Nathan Phillips – mixing, engineering (11)
  • Geoff Swan – mixing, engineering (12)
  • Davey Badiuk – mixing (14)
  • Jamie Snell – mixing (15)
  • Imad Royal – engineering (1)
  • Max Hershenow – engineering (1)
  • Luke Niccoli – engineering (2)
  • Jordan Palmer – engineering (2)
  • Captain Cuts – engineering (3)
  • Eli Heisler – engineering (3)
  • Nathan Jenkins – engineering (4)
  • Rostam Batmanglij – engineering (8, 12)
  • Joey Messina-Doerning – engineering (8, 12)
  • Kyle Shearer – engineering (9, 13, 16)
  • Rob Cohen – engineering (10)
  • Jared Fox – engineering (13)
  • Ivan Wayman – additional engineering (8)
  • Matt Cahill – additional engineering (12)
  • Niko Battistini – additional engineering (12)
  • Travis Pavur – engineering assistance (8)

Visuals

  • Jolie Clemens – creative direction, art direction, design
  • Meredith Jenks – photography
  • Alexis Franklin – painting of Carly's eye
  • Hayley Atkin – styling
  • Jenna Remy – fashion assistant
  • Jon Liekcfelt – hair
  • Gregory Arlt – makeup

Charts[edit]

Chart performance for The Loneliest Time
Chart (2022) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[33] 62
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[34] 180
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[35] 180
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[36] 18
German Digital Albums (GfK Entertainment)[37] 39
Irish Albums (IRMA)[38] 61
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[39] 52
Japanese Hot Albums (Billboard Japan)[40] 52
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[41] 37
Scottish Albums (OCC)[42] 7
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[43] 94
UK Albums (OCC)[44] 16
US Billboard 200[45] 19
US Top Tastemaker Albums (Billboard)[46] 7

Release history[edit]

Release dates and formats for The Loneliest Time
Region Date Format(s) Label Ref.
Various October 21, 2022
[47]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Sheffield, Rob (October 20, 2022). "Carly Rae Jepsen dances her way through heartbreak on 'The Loneliest Time'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 21, 2022.
  2. ^ "Carly Rae Jepsen's lockdown listening: 'My fridge caught on fire!'". Stereogum. May 22, 2020. Archived from the original on May 24, 2020. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
  3. ^ "Carly Rae Jepsen: More Than a Feeling". Crack Magazine. August 2, 2022. Archived from the original on August 5, 2022. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
  4. ^ Sayles, Justin (October 24, 2022). "Carly Rae Jepsen Wants You to Know You're Not Alone". The Ringer. Archived from the original on October 24, 2022. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
  5. ^ "Carly Rae Jepsen Announces New Album The Loneliest Time". Stereogum. August 2, 2022. Archived from the original on August 2, 2022. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
  6. ^ Kenneally, Cerys (September 13, 2022). "Carly Rae Jepsen previews new single 'Talking to Yourself'". The Line of Best Fit. Archived from the original on September 13, 2022. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  7. ^ Skinner, Tom (October 5, 2022). "Carly Rae Jepsen to release new single with Rufus Wainwright this week". NME. Archived from the original on October 5, 2022. Retrieved October 5, 2022.
  8. ^ "The Loneliest Time by Carly Rae Jepsen reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Archived from the original on October 29, 2021. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
  9. ^ a b "The Loneliest Time by Carly Rae Jepsen Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Archived from the original on October 23, 2022. Retrieved October 23, 2020.
  10. ^ a b Phares, Heather (October 21, 2022). "Carly Rae Jepsen - 'The Loneliest Time' Album Reviews, Songs & More". AllMusic. Archived from the original on October 26, 2022. Retrieved October 26, 2022.
  11. ^ Heinrichs, Audra (October 21, 2022). "Arctic Monkeys get soulful, Loyle Carner gets angry – the week's best albums". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on October 24, 2022. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
  12. ^ Johnston, Maura (October 21, 2022). "The Loneliest Time review: Carly Rae Jepsen's sixth album is a lovesick study of what makes humans tick". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
  13. ^ a b "Carly Rae Jepsen - The Loneliest Time | Reviews". Clash Magazine Music News, Reviews & Interviews. October 21, 2022. Archived from the original on January 30, 2023. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  14. ^ a b Mylrea, Hannah (October 20, 2022). "Carly Rae Jepsen – 'The Loneliest Time' review: slick sounds from a cult pop hero". NME. Archived from the original on October 21, 2022. Retrieved October 21, 2022.
  15. ^ Horn, Olivia (October 21, 2022). "Carly Rae Jepsen: The Loneliest Time Album Review". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on October 24, 2022. Retrieved October 21, 2022.
  16. ^ a b Sheffield, Rob (October 20, 2022). "Carly Rae Jepsen Dances Her Way Through Heartbreak on 'The Loneliest Time". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
  17. ^ Lyons-Burt, Charles (October 21, 2022). "Carly Rae Jepsen The Loneliest Time Review: A Delicate Balance of Exuberance and Stoicism". Slant Magazine. Archived from the original on October 24, 2022. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
  18. ^ "Carly Rae Jepsen: The Loneliest Time". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on October 24, 2022. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  19. ^ "Here are all the 2023 Juno nominees". CBC Music. January 31, 2023. Archived from the original on February 10, 2023. Retrieved February 13, 2023.
  20. ^ "The 30 Best Albums of 2022". The A.V. Club. December 12, 2022. Archived from the original on December 12, 2022. Retrieved December 12, 2022.
  21. ^ "Clash's Albums of the Year 2022". Clash. December 15, 2022. Archived from the original on December 23, 2022. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  22. ^ "Top 50 Albums of 2022". Consequence. December 6, 2022. Archived from the original on December 14, 2022. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
  23. ^ "Albums of the year 2022". Vulture. December 1, 2022. Archived from the original on December 1, 2022. Retrieved December 5, 2022.
  24. ^ "The best albums of 2022". GQ Magazine. December 2, 2022. Archived from the original on December 9, 2022. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
  25. ^ "The 50 Best Albums of 2022". No Ripcord. December 21, 2022. Archived from the original on December 21, 2022. Retrieved December 21, 2022.
  26. ^ "Nylon's Favorite Albums of 2022". Nylon. December 6, 2022. Archived from the original on December 6, 2022. Retrieved December 6, 2022.
  27. ^ "The 80 Best Albums of 2022 Ranked". PopMatters. December 6, 2022. Archived from the original on December 7, 2022. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
  28. ^ "The 33 Best Albums of 2022". The Ringer. December 6, 2022. Archived from the original on December 7, 2022. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
  29. ^ "Under the Radar's Top 100 Albums of 2022". Under the Radar. December 23, 2022. Archived from the original on December 23, 2022. Retrieved December 23, 2022.
  30. ^ Caulfield, Keith (November 4, 2022). "LE SSERAFIM and (G)I-DLE Score First Top 10s on Billboard's Album Sales Chart". Billboard. Retrieved July 29, 2023.
  31. ^ "Taylor Takeover! Taylor Swift scores biggest opening week of her career to land the Official Chart double with Midnights and Anti Hero". Official Charts Company. October 28, 2022. Archived from the original on October 28, 2022. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
  32. ^ Spinelli, Adrian (September 15, 2022). "Carly Rae Jepsen Unveils the Tracklist to Her Sixth Album, The Loneliest Time". Uproxx. Archived from the original on September 15, 2022. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
  33. ^ "The ARIA Report: Week Commencing 31 October 2022". The ARIA Report. No. 1704. Australian Recording Industry Association. October 31, 2022. p. 6.
  34. ^ "Ultratop.be – Carly Rae Jepsen – The Loneliest Time" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  35. ^ "Ultratop.be – Carly Rae Jepsen – The Loneliest Time" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  36. ^ "Carly Rae Jepsen Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  37. ^ "Download Charts Album – Aktualisiert am: 31.10.2022" (in German). mtv.de. Archived from the original on November 1, 2022. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  38. ^ "Irish Albums Chart: 28 October 2022". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved October 29, 2022.
  39. ^ "ザ・ロンリエスト・タイム" (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on October 27, 2022. Retrieved June 24, 2023.
  40. ^ "Billboard Japan Hot Albums – Week of October 26, 2022". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Archived from the original on October 26, 2022. Retrieved October 26, 2022.
  41. ^ "NZ Top 40 Albums Chart". Recorded Music NZ. October 31, 2022. Archived from the original on October 28, 2022. Retrieved October 29, 2022.
  42. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 29, 2022.
  43. ^ "Top 100 Albums Weekly". El portal de Música. PROMUSICAE. Retrieved November 6, 2022.
  44. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
  45. ^ "Carly Rae Jepsen Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  46. ^ "Carly Rae Jepsen Chart History (Top Tastemaker Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  47. ^ "Carly Rae Jepsen Tug Of War". 604 Shop. 604 Records. Archived from the original on September 16, 2022. Retrieved September 16, 2022.
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