Sparkle Hard
2018 studio album by Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks
Sparkle Hard is the seventh studio album by American indie rock band Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks , released on May 18, 2018, by Matador Records and Domino Records .[ 1] It reached #174 on the Billboard 200 charts,[ 2] and peaked at #64 on the Official UK Charts .[ 3]
Critical reception
Sparkle Hard was critically acclaimed upon its release. At Metacritic , which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, it received an average score of 84, based on 26 reviews.[ 5] Jem Aswad of Variety said that "With nary a weak track, Sparkle Hard finds Malkmus hitting a new peak nearly 30 years into his career."[ 16]
Several publications named the album one of the best of 2018, including: Rolling Stone ,[ 17] Spin ,[ 18] Q ,[ 19] Uncut ,[ 20] Mojo ,[ 21] Under the Radar ,[ 22] and Consequence of Sound .[ 23]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Stephen Malkmus
Title 1. "Cast Off" 2:54 2. "Future Suite" 2:43 3. "Solid Silk" 4:37 4. "Bike Lane" 3:34 5. "Middle America " 3:31 6. "Rattler" 3:08 7. "Shiggy" 3:16 8. "Kite" 6:40 9. "Brethren" 2:51 10. "Refute" 3:24 11. "Difficulties / Let Them Eat Vowels" 7:03 Total length: 43:41
Personnel
Credits adapted from liner notes.
[ 24]
Stephen Malkmus – vocals, songwriting, guitar, mellotron, piano, Memorymoog, bass
Joanna Bolme – bass, backing vocals
Mike Clark – keyboards, JUNO synthesizer
Jake Morris – drums, backing vocals, percussion
Chris Funk – production, acoustic slide guitar (10)
Kim Gordon – vocals (10)
Kyleen King – strings (3, 9)
Luke Price – fiddle (10)
JJ Golden – lacquer cut
Adam Lee – recording, mixing
Orion Landau – design
James Rexroad – photography
References
^ Cook-Wilson, Winston (March 26, 2018). "Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks Announce New Album Sparkle Hard, Release "Shiggy" " . Spin . Retrieved December 8, 2018 .
^ "Stephen Malkmus" . Billboard . Retrieved 2020-12-08 .
^ "sparkle hard | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company" . www.officialcharts.com . Retrieved 2020-12-08 .
^ "Sparkle Hard by Stephen Malkmus And The Jicks reviews" . AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved December 8, 2018 .
^ a b "Sparkle Hard by Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks Reviews and Tracks" . Metacritic . Retrieved December 8, 2018 .
^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas . "Sparkle Hard – Stephen Malkmus / Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks" . AllMusic . Retrieved December 8, 2018 .
^ Williams, Matt (May 18, 2018). "Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks, Sparkle Hard" . The A.V. Club . Retrieved May 15, 2019 .
^ Hunter-Tilney, Ludovic (May 25, 2018). "Stephen Malkmus and The Jicks: Sparkle Hard — 'disheveled rock songs' " . Financial Times . Retrieved May 15, 2019 .
^ Simpson, Dave (May 18, 2018). "Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks: Sparkle Hard review – fuzzy logic and killer tunes" . The Guardian . Retrieved December 8, 2018 .
^ Cameron, Keith (June 2018). "Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks: Sparkle Hard". Mojo . No. 295. p. 94.
^ Mardles, Paul (May 20, 2018). "Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks: Sparkle Hard review – a reanimated rock eccentric" . The Observer . Retrieved May 15, 2019 .
^ Rytlewski, Evan (May 18, 2018). "Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks: Sparkle Hard" . Pitchfork . Retrieved December 8, 2018 .
^ Oldham, James (July 2018). "Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks: Sparkle Hard". Q . No. 386. p. 115.
^ Dolan, Jon (May 17, 2018). "Review: Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks' 'Sparkle Hard' Is Full of Golden Guitars and Warm Vibes" . Rolling Stone . Retrieved May 15, 2019 .
^ Anderson, Jason (May 25, 2018). "Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks – Sparkle Hard" . Uncut . Archived from the original on May 25, 2018. Retrieved December 8, 2018 .
^ Aswad, Jem (May 18, 2018). "Album Review: Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks' 'Sparkle Hard' " . Variety . Retrieved December 8, 2018 .
^ Dolan, Jon; Klinkenberg, Brendan; Johnston, Maura ; Vozick-Levinson, Simon; Hoard, Christian; Weingarten, Christopher R.; Holmes, Charles; Leight, Elias; Exposito, Suzy; Sheffield, Rob; Bernstein, Jonathan; Spanos, Brittany; Hermes, Will; Grow, Kory; Shteamer, Hank (2018-12-13). "50 Best Albums of 2018" . Rolling Stone . Retrieved 2020-12-08 .
^ "51 Best Albums of 2018: Staff Picks" . Spin . 2018-12-12. Retrieved 2020-12-08 .
^ "Albums Of The Year 2018" .
^ "Introducing the new Uncut... and our Review Of The Year!" . UNCUT . 2018-11-13. Retrieved 2020-12-08 .
^ "Kate Bush Heads Up MOJO's Best Of 2018 Issue" . Mojo . Retrieved 2020-12-08 .
^ "Under the Radar's Top 100 Albums of 2018 | Under the Radar - Music Magazine" . undertheradarmag.com . Retrieved 2020-12-08 .
^ "Top 50 Albums of 2018" . Consequence of Sound . 2018-12-03. Retrieved 2020-12-08 .
^ Sparkle Hard (Liner notes). Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks. Matador Records. 2018. OLE-1328-1.{{cite AV media notes }}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link )
Studio albums Singles Associated acts