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Color Theory (album)

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Color Theory
Studio album by
ReleasedFebruary 28, 2020 (2020-02-28)
StudioAlex the Great Recording (Nashville, Tennessee)
Genre
Length44:08
LabelLoma Vista
ProducerGabe Wax
Soccer Mommy chronology
Clean
(2018)
Color Theory
(2020)
Soccer Mommy & Friends Singles Series
(2020)
Singles from Color Theory
  1. "Lucy"
    Released: September 19, 2019
  2. "Yellow Is the Color of Her Eyes"
    Released: November 19, 2019
  3. "Circle the Drain"
    Released: January 14, 2020
  4. "Bloodstream"
    Released: February 25, 2020
  5. "Crawling in My Skin"
    Released: October 30, 2020

Color Theory (stylized in all lowercase) is the second studio album by American indie rock singer-songwriter Soccer Mommy, released on February 28, 2020, by Loma Vista Recordings.[1][2]

Background and recording

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Sophie Allison used floppy disk samples, drum machines, and sound effects on the album.[3]

Composition

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The album is divided into three parts, each named after a color. Allison has said the albums distinct sections "represent the problems that I’ve developed as I’ve grown up, and how they’ve changed me".[4]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.9/10[5]
Metacritic81/100[6]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[7]
Exclaim!9/10[8]
The Guardian[9]
The Independent[10]
Mojo[11]
NME[12]
Pitchfork7.8/10[13]
Q[14]
Rolling Stone[15]
The Times[16]

Color Theory was met with critical acclaim from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 81, which indicates "universal acclaim", based on 22 reviews.[6]

Jayson Greene of Pitchfork wrote, "the second album from singer-songwriter Sophie Allison is piercing and unpredictable. In contrast to its bigger and brighter sound, the mood is grimmer, the emotional truths darker."[17] Michael Hann of The Guardian wrote "Sophie Allison’s second album deals with ill-health and despair, but you would hardly know it from the fantastic arrangements and tunes."[18] Hannah Mylrea of NME said the album is "as beautiful as it is brave".[19]

Accolades

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Accolades for Color Theory
Publication Accolade Rank Ref.
Exclaim! Exclaim!'s 50 Best Albums of 2020
41
Gigwise The Gigwise 51 Best Albums of 2020
16
The Guardian The 50 Best Albums of 2020
48
Paste Paste's 25 Best Albums of 2020 – Mid-Year
8
The 50 Best Albums of 2020
7
Pitchfork The 50 Best Albums of 2020
26
Rolling Stone The 50 Best Albums of 2020
37
Spin Spin's 30 Best Albums of 2020 – Mid-Year
Stereogum Stereogum's 50 Best Albums of 2020 – Mid-Year
6
The 50 Best Albums of 2020
10
Under the Radar Under the Radar's Top 100 Albums of 2020
10

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Sophie Allison

Color Theory track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Bloodstream"5:37
2."Circle the Drain"4:40
3."Royal Screw Up"4:07
4."Night Swimming"4:16
5."Crawling in My Skin"4:17
6."Yellow Is the Color of Her Eyes"7:15
7."Up the Walls"2:44
8."Lucy"4:56
9."Stain"3:00
10."Gray Light"3:16
Total length:44:08

Personnel

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Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.[31]

Musicians

  • Sophie Allison – vocals, songwriting (all tracks); acoustic guitar (1–4, 7, 8), electric guitar (1–6, 8–10), EPS 16 (3, 4), Prophet (5, 6, 10), Mellotron, Wurlitzer (6); keyboard (8), Juno (9)
  • Rodrigo Avendaño – piano, SH-101, Prophet (1); SP-404 (2), electric guitar (5, 8), organ (7), keyboard (8)
  • Julian Powell – electric guitar (1–8, 10), Wurlitzer (1), twelve-string guitar (2), piano (3, 4), acoustic guitar (5)
  • Gabe Wax – SH-101 (1, 2), Prophet (1, 5, 6), EPS 16 (1, 5), Juno (2, 3), SP-404, percussion (2); electric guitar (3, 6), conga, ambience (3); background vocals (3, 6, 10), bass (4, 7), OP-1 (5), Wurlitzer (7, 10), shaker (7), keyboard (8), organ, drum programming (10)
  • Graene Goetz – bass (1–3, 5, 6, 8, 10), MicroKORG (2)
  • Ryan Elwell – drums (1–3, 5–8)
  • Brett Resnick – pedal steel guitar (6, 10)
  • Mary Lattimore – harp (6)
  • Jackson Foraker – twelve-string guitar (7)

Production and artwork

  • Gabe Wax – production, recording
  • Boone Wallace – recording assistant
  • Lars Stalfors – mixing
  • Joe LaPorta – mastering
  • Joe Nino-Hernes – vinyl cutting
  • Brian Ziff – photography
  • Lordess Foudre – package design

Charts

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Sales chart performance for Color Theory
Chart (2020) Peak
position
Scottish Albums (OCC)[32] 52
US Billboard 200[33] 142
US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard)[34] 7
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[35] 22

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Hussey, Allison (January 14, 2020). "Soccer Mommy Announces New Album color theory, Shares New Song: Listen". Pitchfork. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  2. ^ Shaffer, Claire (February 3, 2020). "Soccer Mommy Faces Down the Darkness". Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  3. ^ https://www.npr.org/2020/03/05/808956494/soccer-mommy-on-color-theory-i-want-to-keep-growing-until-i-hit-the-ceiling
  4. ^ Mylrea, Hannah (2020-02-27). "Soccer Mommy – 'Color Theory': a deeply moving account of personal pain set to warm lo-fi pop". NME. Retrieved 2024-10-06.
  5. ^ "color theory by Soccer Mommy reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  6. ^ a b "color theory by Soccer Mommy Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  7. ^ Donelson, Marcy. "color theory – Soccer Mommy". AllMusic. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  8. ^ Bell, Kaelen (February 25, 2020). "Soccer Mommy: color theory". Exclaim!. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  9. ^ Hann, Michael (February 28, 2020). "Soccer Mommy: Color Theory review – grief and depression given glorious voice". The Guardian. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  10. ^ Bray, Elisa; O'Connor, Roisin; Yuill, Bessie (February 27, 2020). "Album reviews: Caribou, Princess Nokia and Soccer Mommy". The Independent. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  11. ^ Aston, Martin (March 2020). "Soccer Mommy: Color Theory". Mojo. No. 316. p. 92.
  12. ^ Mylrea, Hannah (February 27, 2020). "Soccer Mommy – 'Color Theory': a deeply moving account of personal pain set to warm lo-fi pop". NME. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  13. ^ Greene, Jayson (February 28, 2020). "Soccer Mommy: color theory". Pitchfork. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  14. ^ Cooper, Leonie (March 2020). "Soccer Mommy: Color Theory". Q. No. 408. p. 122.
  15. ^ Martoccio, Angie (March 2, 2020). "Soccer Mommy Channels Sweet, Nineties-Steeped Sadness on 'Color Theory'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  16. ^ Hodgkinson, Will (February 28, 2020). "Soccer Mommy: Color Theory review — American indie star's exercise in self‑loathing is ever so loveable". The Times. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  17. ^ Greene, Jayson. "Soccer Mommy: color theory". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2024-10-17.
  18. ^ Hann, Michael (2020-02-28). "Soccer Mommy: Color Theory review – grief and depression given glorious voice". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-10-17.
  19. ^ Mylrea, Hannah (2020-02-27). "Soccer Mommy – 'Color Theory': a deeply moving account of personal pain set to warm lo-fi pop". NME. Retrieved 2024-10-17.
  20. ^ "50 Best Albums of 2020". Exclaim!. 2 December 2020. Archived from the original on 2 December 2020. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  21. ^ "51 Best Albums of 2020". Gigwise. 1 December 2020. Archived from the original on 1 December 2020. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  22. ^ "The best albums of 2020 so far". The Guardian. 4 December 2020. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  23. ^ "The Best Albums of 2020 (So Far)". Paste. June 8, 2020. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
  24. ^ "The 50 Best Albums of 2020". Paste. 30 November 2020. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  25. ^ "The 50 Best Albums of 2020". Pitchfork. 8 December 2020. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  26. ^ "The 50 Best Albums of 2020". Rolling Stone. 4 December 2020. Archived from the original on 8 December 2020. Retrieved 4 December 2020.
  27. ^ Spin Staff (May 21, 2020). "The 30 Best Albums of 2020 (So Far)". Spin. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  28. ^ "Best Albums of 2020 So Far". Stereogum. June 10, 2020. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  29. ^ "The 50 Best Albums Of 2020". Stereogum. December 1, 2020. Retrieved December 3, 2020.
  30. ^ "Under the Radar's Top 100 Albums of 2020". Under the Radar. January 15, 2021. Retrieved January 26, 2021.
  31. ^ Color Theory (booklet). Soccer Mommy. Loma Vista. 2021. LVR00855
  32. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
  33. ^ "Debuts on this week's #Billboard200". Billboard on Twitter. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
  34. ^ "Alternative Albums Chart". Billboard. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
  35. ^ "Top Rock Albums Charts". Billboard. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
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