Commontime (album)

Commontime
Studio album by Field Music
Released 5 February 2016
Recorded 2015 at FMHQ
Genre Indie pop, funk
Length 57:55
Label Memphis Industries Records
Producer Field Music
Field Music chronology
Music For Drifters
(2015)		 Commontime
(2016)		 Open Here
(2018)
Singles from Commontime
  1. "The Noisy Days Are Over"
    Released: December 2015
  2. "Disappointed"
    Released: January 2016

Commontime is the sixth full-length studio album by English prog-pop band Field Music, recorded in their Sunderland studio and released on Memphis Industries Records on 5 February 2016 on CD and orange/green-coloured vinyl. The album marks the return of former keyboardist Andrew Moore, in a smaller role, and a shift towards the R&B and funk-like style earlier exhibited on David Brewis's second solo record as "School Of Language" (Old Fears) and "Let's Write a Book" and "A New Town", previous singles by the band.

The album's lyrics were heavily inspired by the new family lives of both brothers since Plumb, with at least two songs being explicitly addressed to the brothers' children ("The Morning Is Waiting" and "Stay Awake"), and it was Peter's son's love of Hall & Oates and American number-one singles that shaped the less fractured, more accessible structure and style of the album. Elsewhere, "Trouble at the Lights" is described as being about Peter Brewis's "dislike of Range Rovers and the political class of people who seem to drive them".[1]

Lead single, "The Noisy Days Are Over", received a brief endorsement by musician Prince on Twitter.[2]

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic79/100[3]
Review scores
SourceRating
The Guardian[4]
The Mancunion[5]
Mojo[6]
NARC Magazine[7]
Pitchfork7.8/10[8]
The Times[9]
NME[10]

The album was well received by most critics, at various times being compared favourably to comparisons to XTC, Genesis, 10cc, ELO, The Neptunes, Todd Rundgren, Talking Heads, Lambchop and Hot Chip[6][9] whilst also being praised for its qualities original to the band, and the progression and maturation of the Brewis brothers' songwriting style. However, at 58 minutes, some critics felt the album ran too long and verged on repetition, with music blog The Skinny criticising a "lack of diversity"[11] between tracks.

Accolades

Publication Accolade Year Rank Ref.
Mojo The 50 Best Albums of 2016 2016
35

Track listing

All songs written and composed by David and Peter Brewis.

  1. "The Noisy Days Are Over" – 6:27
  2. "Disappointed" – 3:04
  3. "But Not for You" – 3:48
  4. "I'm Glad" – 3:44
  5. "Don't You Want to Know What's Wrong?" – 3:17
  6. "How Should I Know If You've Changed?" – 2:56
  7. "Trouble at the Lights" – 5:33
  8. "They Want You to Remember" – 3:42
  9. "It's a Good Thing" – 4:25
  10. "The Morning Is Waiting" – 3:56
  11. "Indeed It Is" – 3:15
  12. "That's Close Enough for Now" – 3:56
  13. "Same Name" – 5:45
  14. "Stay Awake" – 4:07

Personnel

  • Peter Brewis
  • David Brewis
  • Andrew Moore – keyboards on "The Noisy Days Are Over", "They Want You to Remember" and "That's Close Enough for Now"
  • Pete Fraser – saxophone on "The Noisy Days Are Over"
  • Simon Dennis – trumpets on "The Noisy Days Are Over" and "The Morning Is Waiting for You"
  • Liz Corney – backing vocals on "How Should I Know If You've Changed", "It's a Good Thing" and "The Morning Is Waiting for You"
  • Jennie Brewis – backing vocals on "How Should I Know If You've Changed", "It's a Good Thing" and "The Morning Is Waiting for You"

The 'Crude Tarmac' String Quartet

  • Ed Cross – violin
  • Josephine Montgomery – violin
  • Chrissie Slater – viola
  • Ele Leckie – cello

Charts

Chart (2016) Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[13] 120
UK Albums (OCC)[14] 36

References

  1. ↑ "Features | A Quietus Interview | Father Figures: An Interview With Field Music". The Quietus. Retrieved 2016-02-05.
  2. ↑ David Brewis. "Purple prose: Field Music on their love of Prince | Music". The Guardian. Retrieved 2016-02-05.
  3. ↑ "Reviews for Commontime by Field Music". Metacritic. 2016-01-29. Retrieved 2016-02-05.
  4. ↑ Alexis Petridis (1970-01-01). "Field Music: Commontime review – infectious warmth from the critics' favourite indie duo | Music". The Guardian. Retrieved 2016-02-05.
  5. ↑ Nicholas, Jacob. "Field Music – Commontime > Review". mancunionn.com. Retrieved 2016-02-05.
  6. 1 2 Tyler, Kieron. "Field Music's Commontime Is MOJO's Album Of The Week". Mojo4music.com. Retrieved 2016-02-05.
  7. ↑ Corcoran, Mark (2014-06-20). "ALBUM REVIEW: Field Music – Commontime | NARC. | Reliably Informed | Music and Creative Arts News for Newcastle and the North East". Narcmagazine.com. Retrieved 2016-02-05.
  8. ↑ Rachel, T. Cole (2 February 2016). "Field Music – Commontime > Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
  9. 1 2 "Album reviews". Thetimes.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-02-05. (subscription required)
  10. ↑ Bartleet, Larry. "Field Music – 'Commontime' review". NME.com. Retrieved 2017-01-18.
  11. ↑ "Field Music: Commontime - Album review". The Skinny. Retrieved 2016-02-05.
  12. ↑ "The 50 Best Albums of 2016". Mojo. November 22, 2016. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  13. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Field Music – Commontime" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  14. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 February 2016.
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