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Wildheart (album)

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For the comics character, see Wild Child (comics).
Untitled

Wildheart is the third studio album by American R&B recording artist Miguel. It was released on June 29, 2015, by RCA Records and ByStorm Entertainment. The album features guest appearances from fellow singer Lenny Kravitz and rapper Kurupt.

Background

During the recent interview with MTV, the RCA executive Mark Pitts announced that Miguel’s highly awaited album is 90% done and the album will be titled Wildheart, and it could be launched during the second quarter of this year. As he said:

We’re 90 percent done. Its working title is "Wildheart" and we’re talking second quarter. He’s more confident, and it’s going to show in the music, his look and in the videos. Miguel is ready to push the button. His first album was about trials and tribulations. The second was OK, we’re here; I wasn’t bugging. And now it’s here we go. He wants people to understand who he is. He’s tired of people asking who are you, what’s that, "do you like girls?" He tells me, "I want everyone to know I am wild, funny, edgy and love women. I need this album to connect"[1]

In 2014, Miguel released the mixtape, titled Wild; in promotion of the album. The tape features the songs "NWA", "Hollywood Dreams", and "Coffee". The lead single from the album is a re-worked version of the EP’s track "Coffee", renamed as "Coffee (Fucking)"; a collaboration with American rapper Wale. It was released on May 4, 2015.[2][3]

Music and lyrics

According to journalist Robert Christgau, Wildheart shares more with rock music's recurring theme of struggles with normalcy and human contradiction than it does with contemporary R&B's "sin-versus-salvation struggles".[4] Jon Pareles from The New York Times said the alluring but amoral environment of California is a recurring setting throughout the album's songs, which explore Miguel's "clashing impulses further" than Kaleidoscope Dream (2012), "toward love and death, raunch and exaltation, doubt and confidence, salvation and damnation, cynicism and hope".[5] "gonna die young" is about the dangers of leading a risky lifestyle, while "...goingtohell" explores themes of human mortality and romance. Sex-themed songs range from the wholesome narrative of "coffee" to the pornographic "the valley",[4] which makes reference to the San Fernando Valley's adult entertainment industry.[5] According to Pareles, the rock ballad "what's normal anyway" is Wildheart's crux as it finds Miguel contemplating his biracial heritage and feeling of rootlessness, while Christgau said the song's "straightforwardly confused" lyrics properly outline Miguel's character: "He is normal—because he ain't."[4]

Release and reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[6]
The A.V. ClubB[7]
The Daily Telegraph[8]
The Guardian[9]
NME8/10[10]
NoiseyA–[4]
Pitchfork Media8.9/10[11]
Rolling Stone[12]
Slant Magazine[13]
Spin8/10[14]

Wildheart was released by RCA Records and ByStorm Entertainment on June 29, 2015.[15] It debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 and sold 40,500 copies in its first week.[16]

When Wildheart was released, it received widespread 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 84, based on 27 reviews.[17] Will Hermes from Rolling Stone called it "even bolder" than Kaleidoscope Dream,[12] while Q magazine found Miguel's take on R&B and rock "quixotic".[18] Pitchfork Media's Anupa Mistry felt he had improved his songwriting with a sex-positive perspective that is distinct from the lustfulness of most other R&B music: "Languorous and detailed, [the album] transcends the genre's established narratives with a focus on pleasure and partnership instead of one-sided pursuit".[11] Kyle Anderson from Entertainment Weekly called Miguel's lyrics about romance and thrill in Los Angeles both exciting and balanced,[19] while The Daily Telegraph's Helen Brown described Wildheart as "a record with moments of pure, solar heart".[8] In Slant Magazine, Jesse Cataldo compared it to D'Angelo's socially conscious 2014 album Black Messiah, finding Wildheart to be "just as relevant, acknowledging the complicated realities of modern sexuality while pushing to expand its horizons."[13]

In a less enthusiastic review, NME magazine's Ben Cardew lamented some of the guitar elements, writing that they occasionally sound heavy handed in the manner of arena rock.[10] Kyle Fowle from The A.V. Club deemed "Face the Sun" a failed attempt at rock and "What's Normal Anyway" too blunt of a "self-love message" amidst the more subtle songs on what is an otherwise bold and well crafted R&B album.[7] Spin critic Andrew Unterberger found Wildheart somewhat inferior to Kaleidoscope Dream, even though he said it broadens that record's musical variety, "pushing Miguel into further depths without submerging him in the squalor".[14] Time named Wildheart as the best album of 2015.[20]

Accolades

Publication Accolade Year Rank
Pitchfork Media The 50 Best Albums of 2015 2015
8[21]
The Guardian The Best Albums of 2015 2015
11[22]
Rolling Stone Best R&B Albums of 2015 2015
3[23]
Time Top 10 Best Albums 2015
1[24]

Track listing

Wildheart — Standard version[25]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)[26]Length
1."a beautiful exit"Miguel Pimentel
3:04
2."DEAL"
4:17
3."the valley"Pimentel
  • Fisticuffs
  • Miguel
3:05
4."coffee"
Miguel4:46
5."NWA" (featuring Kurupt)
3:34
6."waves"Pimentel
  • Happy Perez
  • Ronald "Flippa" Colson
  • Miguel
3:22
7."what's normal anyway"Pimentel
  • Oakwud
  • Ronald "Flippa" Colson
  • Ace
3:13
8."Hollywood Dreams"Pimentel
  • Fisticuffs
  • Miguel
3:16
9."...goingtohell"
4:04
10."FLESH"Pimentel
4:29
11."leaves"
  • Oakwud
  • Pop Wansel
  • Ronald "Flippa" Colson
  • Ace
3:22
12."face the sun" (featuring Lenny Kravitz)PimentelSalaam Remi4:32
Total length:46:25
Wildheart — Deluxe version (bonus tracks)[28]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
13."gfg"
  • Pimentel
  • Cartwright
Miguel3:39
14."destinado a morir"PimentelMiguel3:01
15."Simple Things"
  • Pimentel
  • N.Cobey
Miguel3:16
16."damned"PimentelMiguel3:26
Total length:59:47
Notes
  • "destinado a morir" appears as an interlude on track 9 in the standard edition

Personnel

Credits are adapted from AllMusic.[29]

Charts

Chart (2015) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[30] 8
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[31] 10
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[32] 88
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[33] 16
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[34] 93
UK Albums (OCC)[35] 31
US Billboard 200[36] 2
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[37] 2

See also

References

  1. ^ "Miguel's New Album Tentatively Called Wild Heart | News". Pitchfork. 2015-02-10. Retrieved 2015-07-05.
  2. ^ "iTunes – Music – Coffee (F***ing) [feat. Wale] – Single by Miguel". Itunes.apple.com. 2015-05-04. Retrieved 2015-07-05.
  3. ^ https://web.archive.org/20150616044404/https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/coffee-single/id989956191. Archived from the original on June 16, 2015. Retrieved February 5, 2016. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help); Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ a b c d Christgau, Robert (August 14, 2015). "Welcome to Expert Witness, a New Weekly Column by the Dean of American Rock Critics". Noisey. Retrieved August 14, 2015.
  5. ^ a b Pareles, Jon (June 29, 2015). "Review: Miguel's 'Wildheart' Features R&B and Clashing Impulses". The New York Times. Retrieved August 14, 2015.
  6. ^ Kellman, Andy. "Wildheart – Miguel". AllMusic. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
  7. ^ a b Fowle, Kyle (June 30, 2015). "Miguel seduces and soothes on Wildheart". The A.V. Club. Chicago. Retrieved August 4, 2015.
  8. ^ a b Brown, Helen (2015). "Miguel, Wildheart, review: 'a journey in texture and tempo'". The Daily Telegraph. No. June 27. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
  9. ^ "Miguel: Wildheart review – a genuine one-off finds his signature style". The Guardian. 2015-06-25. Retrieved 2015-07-08.
  10. ^ a b Cardew, Ben (2015). "Miguel – 'Wildheart'". NME (June 19). London. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
  11. ^ a b "Miguel: Wildheart, Album Reviews, Pitchfork". Pitchfork. 2015-07-01. Retrieved 2015-07-01.
  12. ^ a b Hermes, Will (2015). "Wildheart". Rolling Stone (June 30). New York. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
  13. ^ a b "Miguel: Wildheart | Album Review". Slant Magazine. Retrieved 2015-07-05.
  14. ^ a b Unterberger, Andrew (2015). "Review: Miguel, 'WILDHEART'". Spin (June 30). New York. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
  15. ^ Gordon, Jeremy (June 16, 2015). "Miguel Shares Wildheart Tracks "...goingtohell", "FLESH", "face the sun"". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
  16. ^ http://hiphopdx.com/news/id.34565/title.hip-hop-album-sales-meek-mill-kendrick-lamar-vince-staples
  17. ^ "Metacritic reviews for 'Wildheart'". Metacritic.com.
  18. ^ Q (September). London: 113. 2015.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: untitled periodical (link)
  19. ^ Anderson, Kyle (2015). "'Wildheart' by Miguel". Entertainment Weekly (June 30). Retrieved August 2, 2015.
  20. ^ "Top 10 Best Albums". Time. December 1, 2015. Retrieved December 7, 2015.
  21. ^ "The 50 Best Albums of 2015". Pitchfork Media. December 16, 2015. Retrieved December 16, 2015.
  22. ^ "The Best Albums of 2015". The Guardian. Guardian News and Media. December 2, 2015. Retrieved December 14, 2015.
  23. ^ "Best R&B Albums of 2015". Pitchfork Media. December 16, 2015. Retrieved December 16, 2015.
  24. ^ "Top 10 Best Albums". Time Magazine. December 1, 2015. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
  25. ^ "iTunes – Music – Wildheart by Miguel". Itunes.apple.com. 2015-06-26. Retrieved 2015-07-05.
  26. ^ "Miguel* – Wildheart (CD, Album) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2015-07-05.
  27. ^ "Billy Corgan Got A Writing Credit On New Miguel Song That Sorta Sounds Like "1979"". Stereogum. 2015-07-15. Retrieved 2015-07-15.
  28. ^ "iTunes – Music – Wildheart (Deluxe) by Miguel". Itunes.apple.com. 2015-06-26. Retrieved 2015-07-05.
  29. ^ "Wildheart - Miguel : Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved August 23, 2015.
  30. ^ "ARIA Australian Top 50 Albums Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. July 13, 2015. Retrieved July 11, 2015.
  31. ^ "Miguel Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
  32. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Miguel – Wildheart" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved July 12, 2015.
  33. ^ "Charts.nz – Miguel – Wildheart". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 10, 2015.
  34. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Miguel – Wildheart". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 10, 2015.
  35. ^ "Miguel | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
  36. ^ "Miguel Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
  37. ^ "Miguel Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved July 6, 2015.
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