The Mission (Styx album)

The Mission
Studio album by Styx
Released June 16, 2017 (2017-06-16)
Recorded 2015-2017
Studio Blackbird Studios, The Shop, 6 Studio Amontillado, Nashville, Tennessee
Genre Progressive rock,[1] hard rock
Length 42:08
Label UMe
Producer Will Evankovich
Styx chronology
Big Bang Theory
(2005)		 The Mission
(2017)

The Mission is the sixteenth studio album by the band Styx, released on June 16, 2017.[2] It is the band's first studio album since 2005's Big Bang Theory, their first album of original material since 2003's Cyclorama, and their highest-charting studio album in the United States since 1983's Kilroy Was Here, reaching #45 on the Billboard 200. A concept album, it tells the story of a mission to the planet Mars in the year 2033.[2] The album's story was written by Tommy Shaw and Will Evankovich.

The album was conceived in 2015 when Tommy Shaw composed the guitar riff that became the record's closing track "Mission to Mars". The first lines Shaw wrote were "Now we can say it / This is the day / We'll be on our way / On our mission to Mars". The story was then formed around this idea.

Styx announced the album in conjunction with the release of the lead single "Gone Gone Gone", while "Radio Silence" and "Hundred Million Miles from Home" were later made available prior to the album's release.

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
1."Overture"Tommy ShawGroup1:23
2."Gone Gone Gone"Will Evankovich / Shaw / James YoungGowan2:07
3."Hundred Million Miles from Home"Evankovich / ShawShaw3:39
4."Trouble at the Big Show"Evankovich / Shaw / YoungYoung2:30
5."Locomotive"Evankovich / ShawShaw5:03
6."Radio Silence"Evankovich / Lawrence Gowan / ShawShaw4:17
7."The Greater Good"Evankovich / Gowan / ShawGowan & Shaw4:10
8."Time May Bend"Evankovich / ShawGowan2:30
9."Ten Thousand Ways"Gowan / ShawGroup1:22
10."Red Storm"Evankovich / ShawShaw6:04
11."All Systems Stable"Evankovich / Gowan / Shaw / Todd Sucherman 0:17
12."Khedive"Gowan / ShawGroup2:04
13."The Outpost"Evankovich / Gowan / ShawGowan3:51
14."Mission to Mars"ShawShaw2:43
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic [3]
TeamRock [4]

Personnel

Styx

Additional personnel
Production
  • Will Evankovich – production, engineering
  • Alan Hertz – engineering
  • Sean Badum – engineering
  • JR Taylor – additional engineering
  • Jim Scott – mixing
  • Kevin Dean – assistant mixing engineer
  • Derek Sharp – additional editing
  • Richard Dudd – mastering
  • Todd Gallopo – cover illustration, art direction & design
  • Jason Powell – band photography

Charts

Chart (2017) Peak
position
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[5] 56
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[6] 49
Scottish Albums (OCC)[7] 98
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[8] 34
US Billboard 200[9] 45

References

  1. ↑ "Styx - The Mission First Studio Album in 14 Years, Out Today". BroadWayWorld.com (BWW). June 16, 2017.
  2. 1 2 Graff, Gary (April 21, 2017). "Styx Flies to Mars with New Album The Mission: Exclusive Premiere of "Gone Gone Gone" Track". Billboard. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  3. ↑ Styx - The Mission (2017) album review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine at AllMusic
  4. ↑ Styx - The Mission (2017) album review by Geoff Barton at TeamRock
  5. ↑ "Styx Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved June 27, 2017.
  6. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Styx – The Mission" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved June 23, 2017.
  7. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 24, 2017.
  8. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Styx – The Mission". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 28, 2017.
  9. ↑ "Styx Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved June 27, 2017.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.