Process (Sampha album)

Process
Studio album by Sampha
Released 3 February 2017 (2017-02-03)
Recorded 2014–16
Studio
Genre
Length 40:17
Label Young Turks
Producer
Sampha chronology
Dual
(2013)Dual2013		 Process
(2017)
Singles from Process
  1. "Timmy's Prayer"
    Released: 17 May 2016 (2016-05-17)
  2. "Blood on Me"
    Released: 26 August 2016 (2016-08-26)
  3. "(No One Knows Me) Like the Piano"
    Released: 12 January 2017 (2017-01-12)

Process is the debut studio album by Sampha, released on 3 February 2017 by Young Turks.[1] It was co-produced by Sampha and Scottish music producer Rodaidh McDonald and won the 2017 Mercury Prize.[2]

Recording

As compared to Sampha's characteristic bedroom recording style, Process was recorded in professional recording studios. The album was primarily recorded in studios across Sampha's native city of London, although it was also partially recorded at Ocean Sound Recordings on the Norwegian island Giske.[3]

Release and promotion

"Timmy's Prayer" was released on 17 May 2016 as a single.[4] The album's title was revealed alongside the release of "Blood on Me" on 26 August 2016 as Process' lead single.[5] The video for the song was released on 16 September 2016 and was directed by Alex Lill.[6] Sampha performed the song in his network television debut as a solo artist on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on 1 September 2016.[7] The album's track listing, artwork, and release date were revealed on 3 November 2016 with the announcement of a 2017 tour.[8] "(No One Knows Me) Like the Piano" was released as the album's third single on 12 January 2017.[9] Sampha performed the song on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon the following day on 13 January 2017.[10] A video for "(No One Knows Me) Like the Piano" directed by Jamie-James Medina was released on 31 January 2017 in standard format and in virtual reality.[11]

In a cover story with The Fader in June 2016, Sampha premiered "Plastic 100°C" in a solo piano performance on the rooftop of Young Turks' London office.[12]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?8.1/10[13]
Metacritic86/100[14]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[15]
The A.V. ClubA−[16]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[17]
The Guardian[18]
The Independent[19]
Mojo[20]
NME[21]
The Observer[22]
Pitchfork8.6/10[23]
Rolling Stone[24]

Process received widespread acclaim from music critics. On Metacritic, the album holds an average critic score of 86, based on 28 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[14] Alexis Petridis from The Guardian wrote, "Sisay shows off a genuinely individualistic approach to arrangement. The panic of "Plastic 100°C" floats along on a gentle wave of what sounds like harp or maybe koto. "Kora Sings" features a thrilling patchwork of scampering percussion, electronic noise and field recordings of rain and children speaking. The samples on "Reverse Faults" are melded into an insistent, slightly groggy pulse that's both compelling and unsettling. Nothing feels in thrall to current trends in R&B, either sonically or emotionally: Sisay may have been a constant, quiet presence on other people's records last year, but Process doesn't sound much like any of them. Instead, it's a weighty, powerful album with an identity entirely of its own. And while clearly not constructed with commercial ambition at the forefront of its mind, it's certainly good enough to make an unlikely star of the man behind it."[18]

In NME, Jonny Ensall described the album as a "finely crafted and devastating take on the loss of his mother to cancer, as well as his inner turmoil at how success has dragged him away from his roots."[21] Entertainment Weekly critic Eric Renner Brown said, "Sampha executes a sonically adventurous vision that's entirely his own and builds on his enormous potential."[17] Marcus J. Moore from Pitchfork said that "it's a remarkable, meditative work, as he processes grief and navigates self-discovery."[23] Clayton Purdom from The A.V. Club wrote: "Process is an exercise in finding beauty in even the tragedy of a parent's death, a record of singular probity and hard-earned optimism. It's the best R&B debut since FKA Twigs' LP1."[16] Alexander Smail from The Skinny gave the album a perfect score, stating: "Process is an exercise in catharsis, a deep breath in that lays Sampha's soul bare through gorgeous vignettes of his life. He worries, he regrets, he aches. He's human."[25]

Accolades

Publication Accolade Rank Ref.
Drowned in Sound Favourite Albums of 2017
90
Exclaim! Top 10 Soul and R&B Albums of 2017
2
NME NME's Albums of the Year 2017
23
Pitchfork The 50 Best Albums of 2017
15
Rough Trade Albums of the Year
12
Vinyl Me, Please The 30 Best Albums of 2017
15

Track listing

All tracks written by Sampha Sisay; track 8 additional writing by Kanye West.

No.TitleLength
1."Plastic 100°C"5:16
2."Blood on Me"4:06
3."Kora Sings"4:17
4."(No One Knows Me) Like the Piano"3:38
5."Take Me Inside"2:18
6."Reverse Faults"4:13
7."Under"4:41
8."Timmy's Prayer"4:23
9."Incomplete Kisses"3:53
10."What Shouldn't I Be?"3:32
Total length:40:17

Sample credits

Personnel

Credits adapted from Process album liner notes.[33]

Charts

Chart (2017) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[34] 28
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[35] 28
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[36] 168
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[37] 35
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[38] 38
French Albums (SNEP)[39] 106
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[40] 46
Irish Albums (IRMA)[41] 98
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[42] 155
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[43] 40
Portuguese Albums (AFP)[44] 44
Scottish Albums (OCC)[45] 34
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[46] 34
UK Albums (OCC)[47] 7
US Billboard 200[48] 51
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[49] 21

References

  1. ↑ Minsker, Evan; Lozano, Kevin (3 November 2016). "Sampha Details New Album Process, Announces Tour". Pitchfork. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  2. ↑ Brown, Mark (14 September 2017). "Mercury prize 2017 is won by Sampha's Process". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  3. ↑ Krishnamurthy, Sowmya (3 February 2017). "Kanye Co-Writer Sampha Prepares for the Spotlight After Family Tragedy". Billboard. Retrieved 5 February 2017.
  4. ↑ Minsker, Evan (16 May 2016). "Sampha Shares New Track "Timmy's Prayer": Listen". Pitchfork. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  5. ↑ McCormick, Luke (31 August 2016). "Hear Sampha's New Song "Blood On Me" From His Debut Album Process". The Fader. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  6. ↑ Kreps, Daniel (16 September 2016). "Watch Drake Collaborator Sampha's Intense 'Blood On Me' Video". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  7. ↑ Gaca, Anna (2 September 2016). "Sampha Debuts 'Blood on Me' on 'Colbert'". Spin. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  8. ↑ Geslani, Michelle (3 November 2016). "Sampha details new album Process, announces 2017 tour dates". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  9. ↑ McNett, Jared (12 January 2017). "Listen to Sampha's "(No One Knows Me) Like the Piano"". Paste. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  10. ↑ McNett, Jared (16 January 2017). "Watch Sampha play '(No One Knows Me) Like The Piano' on Fallon". DIY. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  11. ↑ Slingerland, Calum (31 January 2017). "Sampha "(No One Knows Me) Like the Piano" (video)". Exclaim!. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  12. ↑ Saxelby, Ruth (28 June 2016). "Sampha's Search for Magic". The Fader. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  13. ↑ "Process by Sampha reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved 18 March 2017.
  14. 1 2 "Reviews for Process by Sampha". Metacritic. Retrieved 11 February 2017.
  15. ↑ Kellman, Andy. "Process – Sampha". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  16. 1 2 Purdom, Clayton (3 February 2017). "Sampha's Process is an R&B debut for the ages". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  17. 1 2 Renner Brown, Eric (3 February 2017). "Sampha's Process: EW Review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  18. 1 2 Petridis, Alexis (2 February 2017). "Sampha: Process review – an unlikely star is born". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  19. ↑ Gill, Andy (8 February 2017). "Album reviews: Tinariwen – 'Elwan', Sampha – 'Process', Rag'n'Bone Man – 'Human', and more". The Independent. London. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
  20. ↑ Worthy, Stephen (3 February 2017). "Sampha: Process". Mojo. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  21. 1 2 Ensall, Jonny (1 February 2017). "Sampha – 'Process' Review". NME. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  22. ↑ Empire, Kitty (5 February 2017). "Sampha: Process review – the next Mercury prize-winner?". The Observer. London. Retrieved 5 February 2017.
  23. 1 2 Moore, Marcus J. (3 February 2017). "Sampha: Process". Pitchfork. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  24. ↑ Hermes, Will (3 February 2017). "Review: Sampha Finds Beauty Within the Process". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  25. ↑ Smail, Alexander (30 January 2017). "Sampha – Process album review". The Skinny. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  26. ↑ "Drowned in Sound's Favourite Albums of 2017". Drowned in Sound. 22 November 2017. Retrieved 23 November 2017.
  27. ↑ "Top 10 Soul and R&B Albums of 2017". Exclaim!. November 30, 2017. Retrieved January 9, 2018.
  28. ↑ "NME's Albums of the Year 2017". NME. 23 November 2017. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  29. ↑ "The 50 Best Albums of 2017". Pitchfork. 12 December 2017. Retrieved 13 December 2017.
  30. ↑ "Albums of the Year". Rough Trade. 14 November 2017. Retrieved 14 November 2017.
  31. ↑ "The 30 Best Albums of 2017". Vinyl Me, Please. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  32. ↑ Vallon, Vanessa (March 9, 2017). "5 things you didn't know about Sampha". AXS.com. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
  33. ↑ Process (CD liner notes). Sampha. Young Turks. 2017. YTCD 158.
  34. ↑ "Australiancharts.com – Sampha – Process". Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 February 2017.
  35. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Sampha – Process" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 February 2017.
  36. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Sampha – Process" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 February 2017.
  37. ↑ "On The Charts...This Week". FYIMusicNews. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
  38. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Sampha – Process" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 February 2017.
  39. ↑ "Le Top de la semaine : Top Albums Fusionnes - SNEP (Week 6, 2017)". Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
  40. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Sampha – Process" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
  41. ↑ "Irish Albums Chart: 17 February 2017". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
  42. ↑ "Sampha on Oricon" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 25 March 2017.
  43. ↑ "Charts.org.nz – Sampha – Process". Hung Medien. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
  44. ↑ "Portuguesecharts.com – Sampha – Process". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
  45. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 11 February 2017.
  46. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Sampha – Process". Hung Medien. Retrieved 15 February 2017.
  47. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 11 February 2017.
  48. ↑ "Sampha Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
  49. ↑ "Sampha Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 15 February 2017.
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