This Is All Yours is the second album by English indie rock band alt-J, released on 22 September 2014 through Infectious. It was promoted with four singles: "Hunger of the Pine", "Left Hand Free", "Every Other Freckle", and "Warm Foothills". It topped the UK Albums Chart, was runner up in Belgium, Australia, and Canada and reached #4 in the United States. It was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album.

This Is All Yours
Studio album by
Released22 September 2014 (2014-09-22)
Recorded2014
StudioIguana Studio
(London, England)
Genre
Length64:35
LabelInfectious
ProducerCharlie Andrew
Alt-J chronology
An Awesome Wave
(2012)
This Is All Yours
(2014)
Relaxer
(2017)
Singles from This Is All Yours
  1. "Hunger of the Pine"
    Released: 19 June 2014
  2. "Left Hand Free"
    Released: 7 July 2014
  3. "Every Other Freckle"
    Released: 13 August 2014
  4. "Warm Foothills"
    Released: 2 March 2015

Background and recording

edit

On 25 May 2012, Alt-J released their debut album An Awesome Wave, which won the Mercury Prize in 2012.[2] Alt-J were also nominated for three Brit Awards (British Breakthrough Act, British Album of the Year and British Group of the Year). Bassist Gwil Sainsbury left the band in January 2014.[3] The band began recording the album in April 2014.[4] It was recorded in the same place as An Awesome Wave, Iguana Studios, which Gus Unger-Hamilton described as "a tiny little place, sort of behind a second hand tyre shop".[5]

Music

edit

The majority of the songs on the album were written while touring their debut album, An Awesome Wave, while newer ones such as "Hunger of the Pine" were written in "a really cool little converted Warehouse in Hackney, very cliché East London".[5] Unger-Hamilton said that the "song cycle" of the album is made up of "Arrival in Nara", "Nara" and "Leaving Nara", Nara being a city in Japan.[6] "Hunger of the Pine" was one of the songs written after their bass player Gwil Sainsbury left in January 2014.[6] The song features a sample of "4x4" by Miley Cyrus, of her singing "I'm a female rebel". The sample originally came from a remix Thom Green, Alt-J's drummer, made for Miley Cyrus. Joe Newman said "I was playing the guitar and Thom was responding to what I was doing on Ableton and before we knew it, we'd come up with this really interesting structure, and I came up with lyrics for it quite quickly." Gus Unger-Hamilton said "it sounded cool with what Joe was playing on the guitar." The band asked Miley Cyrus if they could use the sample; according to Newman, she was "cool with it". He said that Miley Cyrus has "been really supportive of us, and she's a fan, I think, which is really nice."[7][8]

Release

edit

On 9 June 2014, the band announced the release of their second album This Is All Yours, as well as putting pre-orders for the album on their website.[9] The album was released on September 22, 2014, as a download, on CD and double vinyl.[10] On 13 June, alt-J posted a video on their Instagram account featuring a clip of the first single "Hunger of the Pine".[11] The single premiered on Zane Lowe's show on BBC Radio 1 on 18 June. The song was streamed later that day, and released as a single on the iTunes Store the next.[12] "Left Hand Free" was released digitally on 7 July 2014 as the album's second single and impacted modern rock radio on 15 July 2014.[13]

On 13 August 2014, the album's third single, "Every Other Freckle", premiered on Zane Lowe's BBC Radio 1 show once again.

On 9 September 2014, the band released an app that gave access to the album when the user was in select locations.[14]

On 15 September 2014, the band made the album available to listen to on music-streaming platform Spotify.[15]

On 2 March 2015, the band released "Warm Foothills" as the fourth and final single from the album.[16]

Critical reception

edit
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.1/10[17]
Metacritic70/100[18]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [19]
The Daily Telegraph     [20]
Entertainment WeeklyB−[21]
The Guardian     [22]
Mojo     [23]
NME8/10[24]
Pitchfork4.0/10[25]
Q     [26]
Rolling Stone     [27]
Uncut5/10[28]

Upon its release, This Is All Yours received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 70, based on 26 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[18]

Accolades

edit

The album was nominated at the 57th Grammy Awards for Best Alternative Music Album,[29] and for IMPALA's European Independent Album of the Year Award.[30]

Commercial performance

edit

This Is All Yours debuted at number one on the UK's Official Albums Chart on 28 September 2014.[31] In Canada, the album debuted at number two on the Canadian Albums Chart, selling 14,000 copies in its first week.[32] The album fell behind Leonard Cohen's Popular Problems.[32]

Track listing

edit

All tracks are written by Joe Newman, Gus Unger-Hamilton, and Thom Sonny Green, except where noted

No.TitleLength
1."Intro"4:38
2."Arrival in Nara"4:13
3."Nara"4:58
4."Every Other Freckle"3:36
5."Left Hand Free"2:53
6."❦" (Garden of England)1:07
7."Choice Kingdom"4:17
8."Hunger of the Pine"4:59
9."Warm Foothills"3:45
10."The Gospel of John Hurt"5:15
11."Pusher"3:26
12."Bloodflood Pt. II"5:19
13."Leaving Nara" (ends at 2:00; hidden track "Lovely Day" (Bill Withers, Skip Scarborough) starts at 12:00)16:02
Total length:64:35

Personnel

edit

Adapted from LP liner notes.

Alt-J[33]

  • Joe Newman – guitar, bass, lead vocals
  • Thom Green – drums
  • Gus Unger-Hamilton – keyboards, backing vocals

Additional musicians

  • Kirsty Mangan – strings
  • Tim Rundle – penny whistle, recorder

Technical

  • Charlie Andrew – production
  • Brett Cox – engineering, guitar (10)
  • Dick Beetham – mastering
  • RCA – mastering

Chart performance

edit

Certifications

edit
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[64] Gold 35,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[65] Gold 40,000^
Netherlands (NVPI)[66] Gold 25,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[68] Gold 160,932[67]
United States (RIAA)[69] Gold 500,000

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

edit
  1. ^ Ford, John (September 2014). "Alt. J: All This Is Yours (Infectious)". Loud and Quiet. No. 61. Archived from the original on 3 October 2016. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
  2. ^ Topping, Alexandra (2 November 2012). "Mercury prize celebrates 20 years with award for Alt-J's debut album". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 20 November 2018. Retrieved 21 February 2013.
  3. ^ "Δ (alt-J) on Twitter". Twitter. Archived from the original on 26 September 2016. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
  4. ^ "Gus Unger-Hamilton on Twitter". Twitter. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
  5. ^ a b "Alt-J: Gwil leaving helped us define ourselves". XFM. 19 June 2014. Archived from the original on 14 February 2015. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
  6. ^ a b "NME News Alt-J sample Miley Cyrus on new single 'Hunger Of The Pine' – NME.COM". NME.COM. 18 June 2014. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
  7. ^ "NME News Alt-J say Miley Cyrus sample adds 'unexpected element' to comeback single – NME.COM". NME. 19 June 2014. Archived from the original on 16 February 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2020.
  8. ^ Sean Michaels (20 June 2014). "Alt-J praise Miley Cyrus's 'supportive' friendship". the Guardian. Archived from the original on 11 March 2017. Retrieved 16 December 2016.
  9. ^ "Δ (alt-J) on Twitter". Twitter. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
  10. ^ "Alt-J announce second album 'This Is All Yours' and autumn UK tour plans". NME. 9 June 2014. Archived from the original on 15 April 2016. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
  11. ^ "Instagram". Archived from the original on 24 December 2021.
  12. ^ "Listen to Alt-J: Hunger of the Pine – premiere". NME. 19 June 2014. Archived from the original on 11 March 2017. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
  13. ^ "Alternative > Future Releases". All Access Music Group. Archived from the original on 13 July 2014. Retrieved 26 June 2014.
  14. ^ DeGroot, Joey (9 September 2014). "Alt-J's 'This Is All Yours' App Features Stream Of New Album". Music Times. Archived from the original on 10 September 2014. Retrieved 10 September 2014.
  15. ^ Cooper, Leonie (15 September 2014). "Alt-J stream new album 'This Is All Yours' on Spotify ahead of official release". NME. Archived from the original on 18 September 2014. Retrieved 18 September 2014.
  16. ^ "Alt-J – Warm Foothills (2014, CDR)". Discogs. Archived from the original on 3 August 2017. Retrieved 8 August 2017.
  17. ^ "This Is All Yours by Alt-J reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Archived from the original on 19 December 2019. Retrieved 19 December 2019.
  18. ^ a b "Reviews for This Is All Yours by Alt-J". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 20 September 2014. Retrieved 18 September 2014.
  19. ^ Monger, James Christopher. "This Is All Yours – Alt-J". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 18 September 2014. Retrieved 18 September 2014.
  20. ^ McCormick, Neil (24 September 2014). "Alt-J, This Is All Yours, review: 'inventive, seductive'". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 2 June 2016. Retrieved 29 April 2016.
  21. ^ Raymer, Miles; Anderson, Kyle; Rahman, Ray (26 September 2014). "Albums: Oct. 3, 2014". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 11 July 2021. Retrieved 29 April 2016.
  22. ^ Simpson, Dave (18 September 2014). "alt-J : This Is All Yours review – sublime hooks and textures". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 21 September 2014. Retrieved 23 September 2014.
  23. ^ "Alt-J: This Is All Yours". Mojo (251): 89. October 2014.
  24. ^ Beaumont, Mark (15 September 2014). "Alt-J – 'This Is All Yours'". NME. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
  25. ^ Cohen, Ian (23 September 2014). "Alt-J: This Is All Yours". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 23 September 2014. Retrieved 23 September 2014.
  26. ^ "Alt-J: This Is All Yours". Q (339): 100. October 2014.
  27. ^ Dolan, Jon (23 September 2014). "This Is All Yours". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 20 October 2017. Retrieved 23 September 2014.
  28. ^ "Alt-J: This Is All Yours". Uncut (209): 67. October 2014.
  29. ^ "57th Grammy Nominees". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 13 November 2015. Retrieved 27 December 2014.
  30. ^ "23 albums up for European Independent Album of the Year Award". IMPALA. 29 January 2015. Archived from the original on 26 February 2015. Retrieved 26 February 2015.
  31. ^ Kreisler, Lauren. "Alt-J score first Number 1 album with This Is All Yours". www.officialcharts.com. Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 2 October 2014. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
  32. ^ a b "A Journal of Musical ThingsWeekly Music Sales Report and Analysis: 02 October 2014 – A Journal of Musical Things". A Journal of Musical Things. 3 October 2014. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
  33. ^ "Alt-J – This Is All Yours". Discogs. 23 September 2014. Archived from the original on 30 November 2016. Retrieved 1 June 2017.
  34. ^ "Australiancharts.com – Alt-J – This Is All Yours". Hung Medien.
  35. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Alt-J – This Is All Yours" (in German). Hung Medien.
  36. ^ "Ultratop.be – Alt-J – This Is All Yours" (in Dutch). Hung Medien.
  37. ^ "Ultratop.be – Alt-J – This Is All Yours" (in French). Hung Medien.
  38. ^ "Alt-J Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard.
  39. ^ "Danishcharts.dk – Alt-J – This Is All Yours". Hung Medien.
  40. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Alt-J – This Is All Yours" (in Dutch). Hung Medien.
  41. ^ "Lescharts.com – Alt-J – This Is All Yours". Hung Medien.
  42. ^ "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH.
  43. ^ "Album Top 40 slágerlista – 2014. 39. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ.
  44. ^ "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week 39, 2014". Chart-Track. IRMA.
  45. ^ "Artisti – Classifica settimanale WK 39 (dal 22-09-2014 al 28-09-2014)" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
  46. ^ "Charts.nz – Alt-J – This Is All Yours". Hung Medien.
  47. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Alt-J – This Is All Yours". Hung Medien.
  48. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Alt-J – This Is All Yours". Hung Medien.
  49. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Alt-J – This Is All Yours". Hung Medien.
  50. ^ "Alt-J | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart.
  51. ^ "Alt-J Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
  52. ^ "Alt-J Chart History (Top Alternative Albums)". Billboard.
  53. ^ "Alt-J Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard.
  54. ^ "End of Year Charts – ARIA Top 100 Albums 2014". ARIA Charts. Australian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on 11 January 2015. Retrieved 7 January 2015.
  55. ^ "Jaaroverzichten 2014 - ultratop.be". Ultratop. Archived from the original on 10 October 2016. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
  56. ^ "Rapports Annuels 2014". Ultratop. Archived from the original on 18 June 2020. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  57. ^ "Top de l'année Top Albums 2014" (in French). SNEP. Archived from the original on 2 July 2020. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  58. ^ "End of Year Album Chart Top 100 – 2014". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 21 August 2020. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  59. ^ "2014 Year End Charts – Top Billboard 200". Billboard. 2 January 2013. Archived from the original on 12 December 2014. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
  60. ^ "Alternative Albums: 2014 Year-End Charts". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2 January 2013. Archived from the original on 11 January 2015. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
  61. ^ "2014 Year End Charts – Top Billboard Rock Albums". Billboard. 2 January 2013. Archived from the original on 27 December 2014. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
  62. ^ "Jaaroverzichten 2015 - ultratop.be". Ultratop. Archived from the original on 10 March 2016. Retrieved 24 December 2015.
  63. ^ "Top Rock Albums – Year-End 2015". Billboard. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  64. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2015 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 11 February 2015.
  65. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Alt-J – This Is All Yours". Music Canada. Retrieved 11 February 2015.
  66. ^ "Dutch album certifications – Alt-J – This is All Yours" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Retrieved 7 August 2018. Enter This is All Yours in the "Artiest of titel" box. Select 2015 in the drop-down menu saying "Alle jaargangen".
  67. ^ "Official Charts Analysis: Ed Sheeran's ÷ back at No.1". Music Week. 9 June 2017. Archived from the original on 13 June 2017. Retrieved 11 April 2018.
  68. ^ "British album certifications – Alt-J – This Is All Yours". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 11 February 2015. Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type This Is All Yours in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  69. ^ "American album certifications – Alt-J – This Is All Yours". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 11 December 2017.