Two Star & the Dream Police
| Two Star & the Dream Police | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | February 9, 2024 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 33:18 | |||
| Label | R&R | |||
| Producer |
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| Mk.gee chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Two Star & the Dream Police | ||||
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Two Star & the Dream Police is the debut studio album by American singer-songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Michael Gordon, known professionally as Mk.gee. Released on February 9, 2024, through R&R, the album was supported by five singles: "Candy", "How Many Miles", "Are You Looking Up", "You Got It", and "Dream Police".
The album received critical acclaim, with reviewers highlighting the lyrical content, production, as well as Gordon's artistic growth and vocal performances. It has been featured on several mid-year lists of the best albums of 2024 and was also named one of the best albums of the first half of the 2020s by Pitchfork.[1]
Background
[edit]Two Star & the Dream Police is Gordon's first release since his debut mixtape A Museum of Contradiction in 2020. In 2021, before working on the album, Gordon collaborated with musician Dijon, serving as co-writer and co-producer on his debut studio album Absolutely. Since then, Dijon has been Gordon's frequent collaborator.[2]
Singles
[edit]The album was preceded by the release of five singles. "Candy" and "How Many Miles" were released together as the double lead single to the then-unannounced album on August 11, 2023.[3] Will Schube of FLOOD Magazine described the former as a "funk-leaning lo-fi pop jam filled with psychedelic guitar squiggles and a magnificent use of vocoder" and the latter as an R&B-inspired song that "showcases [Mk.gee]'s gifts as a songwriter and vocalist."[3] Joshua Minsoo Kim of Rolling Stone analyzed "How Many Miles" as a song about "feeling lost and finding yourself" and deemed it the album's highlight.[4] Brady Brickner-Wood of Pitchfork praised the song and said, "No song better illustrates Mk.gee's gifts than 'How many miles.'"[5]
On October 20, 2023, Gordon released another double single "Are You Looking Up" and "You Got It".[6] Both songs were met with critical praise, with Dazed including the former in its list of "20 best tracks of 2023", placing it at number 12,[7] while the latter being named the 26th best song of the year by The Fader.[8] In June 2024, "Are You Looking Up" was featured in the third season of the American comedy-drama series The Bear, appearing in the ninth episode titled "Apologies".[9]
On January 19, 2024, the album's fifth single "Dream Police" was released, followed by the announcement of the album release date and title.[10]
Composition
[edit]Musically, Two Star & the Dream Police has been described by Hypebeast as a "genre-surfing bedroom pop that's lo-fi yet bright [and] intimate yet expansive" record with elements of indie and alternative.[2]
Critical reception
[edit]| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 83/100[13] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Clash | 8/10[11] |
| The Line of Best Fit | 8/10[12] |
| Pitchfork | 7.8/10[5] |
| Rolling Stone |   [4] |
Upon release, Two Star & the Dream Police was met with acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an average score of 83, based on four reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[13]
Reviewing for Clash, Ana Lamond wrote, "There is an immersive quality across the tracklist that instantly strikes through. Each track is submerged in a nocturnal wash of acoustics, playful in its use of distance, textures and melody. [...] Sonically, Two Star & The [Dream] Police is able to defy the traditional conventions of a ballad, whilst reaching into a magnetic vulnerability through [Mk.gee]'s pen."[11] Max Gayler of The Line of Best Fit praised the album, highlighting the lyrical content, production and Gordon's vocals, and wrote, "Clocking in at just over 33 minutes, these 12 songs carry the weight of an artistry so well studied and expertly executed.[12] Pitchfork's writer Brady Brickner-Wood called it a "magnificent debut album", lauding its production and vocal performances, and said, "the magic of [the album is that] nothing in contemporary music sounds quite like it, yet it seems to have always been with us, hovering just outside the realm of possibility."[5]
Critics' ranking
[edit]| Publication | Time span | Rank | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Billboard | Mid-year | — | |
| Complex | Mid-year | 13
|
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| Pitchfork | Mid-decade | 91
|
|
| Rolling Stone | Mid-year | — | |
| Stereogum | Mid-year | 8
|
|
| Uproxx | Mid-year | — | |
| Vogue | Mid-year | — | |
| Vulture | Mid-year | — |
| Publication | List | Rank | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coup De Main | Mid-year | — | |
| Vulture | Mid-year | — |
| Publication | List | Rank | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dazed | Year-end (2023) | 12
|
|
| Los Angeles Times | Mid-year | — |
| Publication | List | Rank | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| NPR | Mid-year | — |
| Publication | List | Rank | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| The New York Times | Mid-year | — |
| Publication | List | Rank | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Fader | Year-end (2023) | 26
|
Promotion and tours
[edit]After the release of the two lead singles, Gordon announced a 5-show tour in 2023 called Inside Each of Us Are Two Stars, which included shows in Brooklyn (October 16 at the Music Hall of Williamsburg), Toronto (October 18 at the Great Hall), Chicago (October 21 at the Lincoln Hall), Los Angeles (November 1 at the Roxy Theatre), and San Francisco (November 3 at Rickshaw Stop).[26] On February 16, Mk.gee held a one-night live show in London. The show was originally set to be held at Oslo Hackney, but was moved to the EartH Hall, a larger venue, due to high demand.[27][28][29]
On February 24, 2024, Gordon made an appearance at the Jil Sander Fall Winter 2024 Runaway Show in Milan, performing "How Many Miles", "Alesis" and "Dream Police", alongside Benji B.[30] On April 11, 2024, Gordon performed "Are You Looking Up" on the late-night talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live!, marking his debut performance on television.[31]
North America tour
[edit]Gordon embarked on a longer, 18-show tour in North America to promote Two Star & the Dream Police. The tour began on April 23, 2024, in San Diego, California and concluded on May 19, 2024, in Boston, Massachusetts.[32][33]
| Date | City | Country | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| April 23, 2024 | San Diego | United States | Music Box |
| April 24, 2024 | Los Angeles | The Fonda Theatre | |
| April 25, 2024 | |||
| April 27, 2024 | San Francisco | Great American Music Hall | |
| April 29, 2024 | Portland | Revolution Hall | |
| April 30, 2024 | Vancouver | Canada | The Biltmore |
| May 1, 2024 | Seattle | United States | Neumos |
| May 3, 2024 | Salt Lake City | Urban Lounge | |
| May 4, 2024 | Denver | Meow Wulf | |
| May 7, 2024 | Austin | Empire Garage | |
| May 9, 2024 | Atlanta | Variety Playhouse | |
| May 10, 2024 | Durham | Motorco | |
| May 11, 2024 | Washington D.C. | The Howard | |
| May 13, 2024 | Toronto | Canada | Phoenix Concert Theatre |
| May 16, 2024 | Brooklyn | United States | Elsewhere |
| May 17, 2024 | New York City | Irving Plaza | |
| May 18, 2024 | Philadelphia | Theatre of Living Arts | |
| May 19, 2024 | Boston | Sinclair |
World tour
[edit]Following the success of his 18-show tour, Gordon has embarked on his first-ever world tour spanning North America, Europe and Australia. The tour began on September 2, 2024, in Vancouver, Canada and will conclude on December 7, 2024, in Melbourne, Australia.[34]
| Date | City | Country | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| September 2, 2024 | Vancouver | Canada | Commodore Ballroom |
| September 3, 2024 | Seattle | United States | Showbox SoDo |
| September 6, 2024 | Oakland | Fox Theater | |
| September 7, 2024 | Los Angeles | Hollywood Palladium | |
| September 9, 2024 | San Diego | The Observatory North Park | |
| September 11, 2024 | Denver | Summit | |
| September 13, 2024 | Houston | White Oak Music Hall | |
| September 11, 2024 | Austin | Emo's Austin | |
| September 13, 2024 | Dallas | House Of Blues | |
| September 18, 2024 | Atlanta | Tabernacle | |
| September 19, 2024 | Louisville | Mercury Ballroom | |
| September 20, 2024 | Nashville | Marathon Music Works | |
| September 21, 2024 | Newport | MegaCorp Pavilion | |
| September 23, 2024 | Silver Spring | The Fillmore Silver Spring | |
| September 24, 2024 | New Haven | Toad's Place | |
| September 26, 2024 | Boston | House Of Blues | |
| September 28, 2024 | Philadelphia | Franklin Music Hall | |
| September 29, 2024 | Brooklyn | Brooklyn Paramount Theater | |
| October 1, 2024 | Toronto | Canada | HISTORY |
| October 2, 2024 | Detroit | United States | St. Andrew's Hall |
| October 3, 2024 | Chicago | Vic Theatre | |
| October 5, 2024 | Minneapolis | Uptown Theater | |
| October 31, 2024 | London | United Kingdom | Electric Brixton |
| November 3, 2024 | Paris | France | Elysée Montmartre |
| November 4, 2024 | Berlin | Germany | Betonhalle |
| November 5, 2024 | Amsterdam | Netherlands | Paradise |
| December 3, 2024 | Brisbane | Australia | The Triffid |
| December 5, 2024 | Sydney | Metro Theatre | |
| December 7, 2024 | Melbourne | Max Watt's |
Track listing
[edit]Credits adapted from Spotify.[35]
All tracks are written by Michael Gordon, except where noted. All tracks are produced by Gordon, except "New Low" and "DNM" are produced by Gordon and Dijon Duenas.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "New Low" | 2:06 | |
| 2. | "How Many Miles" | 2:21 | |
| 3. | "Are You Looking Up" | 2:46 | |
| 4. | "DNM" |
| 1:58 |
| 5. | "You Got It" |
| 2:14 |
| 6. | "Rylee & I" | 2:22 | |
| 7. | "Candy" | 2:54 | |
| 8. | "I Want" | 3:38 | |
| 9. | "Alesis" | 3:18 | |
| 10. | "Breakthespell" | 4:27 | |
| 11. | "Little Bit More" | 2:19 | |
| 12. | "Dream Police" |
| 2:49 |
| Total length: | 33:18 | ||
References
[edit]- ^ a b "The Best Albums of 2024 So Far". Pitchfork. October 1, 2024. Retrieved October 2, 2024.
- ^ a b Bernstein, Elaina (February 9, 2024). "Mk.gee Blends All the Vibes on His Debut Album 'Two Star & The Dream Police'". Hypebeast. Retrieved February 11, 2024.
- ^ a b Schube, Will (August 11, 2022). "Mk.gee Returns with Two New Singles, 'Candy' and 'How many miles'". FLOOD Magazine. Retrieved February 10, 2024.
- ^ a b Kim, Joshua Minsoo (February 20, 2024). "Mk.gee Craves Intimacy and Creates Tension on 'Two Star & the Dream Police'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 21, 2024.
- ^ a b c Brickner-Wood, Brady (February 16, 2024). "Mk.gee: Two Star & the Dream Police Album". Pitchfork. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
- ^ Murphy, Dylan (October 20, 2023). "Mk.gee shares double sided release 'Are You Looking Up / You got it'". District Magazine. Retrieved February 10, 2024.
- ^ a b "The 20 best tracks of 2023". Dazed. December 13, 2023. Retrieved February 11, 2024.
- ^ a b "The 100 best songs of 2023". The FADER. December 14, 2023. Retrieved February 11, 2024.
- ^ Gomez, Dessi (June 28, 2024). "Here Are All the Songs in 'The Bear' Season 3". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved June 30, 2024.
- ^ Kelly, Tyler Damara (January 19, 2024). "Mk.gee has announced his debut album, Two Star and the Dream Police, alongside the brand new single 'Dream police'". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved February 10, 2024.
- ^ a b Lamond, Ana (February 9, 2024). "Mk.gee – Two Star & The Dream Police". Clash. Retrieved February 10, 2024.
- ^ a b Gayler, Max (February 16, 2024). "Mk.gee: Two Star & The Dream Police". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
- ^ a b "Mk.gee - Two Star & The Dream Police". Metacritic. Retrieved February 21, 2024.
- ^ "The 50 Best Albums of 2024 (So Far): Staff List". Billboard. June 17, 2024. Retrieved June 28, 2024.
- ^ "The Best Albums Of 2024 (So Far)". Complex. June 5, 2024. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
- ^ "The Best Albums of 2024 So Far". Rolling Stone. June 11, 2024. Archived from the original on June 12, 2024. Retrieved June 12, 2024.
- ^ "The 50 Best Albums Of 2024 So Far". Stereogum. June 4, 2024. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
- ^ "The Best Albums Of 2024 So Far". Uproxx. June 4, 2024. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
- ^ "The Best Albums Of 2024 So Far". Vogue. August 21, 2024. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
- ^ Jenkins, Craig (June 5, 2024). "The Best Albums of 2024 (So Far)". Vulture. Archived from the original on June 6, 2024. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
- ^ "The Best Songs Of 2024 (so far)..." Coup De Main Magazine. June 5, 2024. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
- ^ Curto, Justin; Suskind, Alex (May 2, 2024). "The Best Songs of 2024 (So Far)". Vulture. Archived from the original on June 6, 2024. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
- ^ Wood, Mikael (June 7, 2024). "The 24 best songs of 2024 so far". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 7, 2024.
- ^ "The best songs of 2024 (so far)". NPR. June 18, 2024. Retrieved June 28, 2024.
- ^ Pareles, Jon; Zoladz, Lindsay (June 20, 2024). "The 40 Best Songs of 2024 (So Far)". The New York Times. Retrieved June 28, 2024.
- ^ Mk.gee (August 16, 2023). "TICKETS ON SALE THIS FRIDAY 8/18 at 10am ET. 5 shows all new music". Archived from the original on February 10, 2024. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Instagram.
- ^ Mk.gee [@Mk_gee_] (January 23, 2024). "London : tickets on sale Wednesday" (Tweet). Archived from the original on February 10, 2024. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Twitter.
- ^ Mk.gee [@Mk_gee_] (January 25, 2024). "LONDON sold out fast again so upgraded to Earth Hall. More tickets on sale Thursday at 10am GMT" (Tweet). Archived from the original on February 10, 2024. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Twitter.
- ^ "Mk.gee". EartH (Evolutionary Arts Hackney). Archived from the original on February 10, 2024. Retrieved February 10, 2024.
- ^ Deville, Chris (February 26, 2024). "Mk.gee Performs His New Album At Jil Sander FW24 Runway Show". Stereogum. Retrieved March 1, 2024.
- ^ Vito, Jo (April 11, 2024). "Mk.gee Performs 'Are You Looking Up' on Kimmel". Consequence Of Sound. Retrieved April 14, 2024.
- ^ a b Pointer, Flisadam (February 16, 2024). "Mk.gee Announces 2024 North American Tour To Support His Latest Album". Uproxx. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
- ^ Mk.gee (March 9, 2023). "Upgraded venues here, tour next month". Archived from the original on March 14, 2024. Retrieved March 14, 2024 – via Instagram.
- ^ "Mk.gee Announces Fall 2024 World Tour". Hypebeast. June 10, 2024. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
- ^ Mk.gee (February 9, 2024). "Two Star & The Dream Police". Spotify. Retrieved February 11, 2024.