Two Vines is the third studio album by Australian electronic music duo Empire of the Sun. It was released on 28 October 2016 by Virgin EMI Records. The album features guest appearances from Fleetwood Mac's Lindsey Buckingham, Wendy Melvoin, Henry Hey, and Tim Lefebvre.

Two Vines
Studio album by
Released28 October 2016 (2016-10-28)
Recorded2015–2016
Studio
Length41:01
LabelVirgin EMI
Producer
Empire of the Sun chronology
Ice on the Dune
(2013)
Two Vines
(2016)
Ask That God
(2024)
Singles from Two Vines
  1. "High and Low"
    Released: 24 August 2016
  2. "To Her Door"
    Released: 30 September 2016
  3. "Way to Go"
    Released: 21 October 2016

Background

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The duo started writing their third studio album after contributing music to the 2014 film Dumb and Dumber To.[1] The album was recorded in Hawaii and Los Angeles, and it was co-produced by Empire of the Sun and Peter Mayes alongside regular collaborator Jonathan Sloan.[2] In November 2015, lead singer Luke Steele noted that the album was "75 percent there".[1]

On 22 August 2016, it was announced that the album was titled Two Vines and would be released on 28 October. It features contributions from Fleetwood Mac singer-guitarist Lindsey Buckingham, Wendy Melvoin (from Prince's The Revolution band), and David Bowie collaborators Henry Hey and Tim Lefebvre.[2] Nick Littlemore explained the inspiration behind the title as "this image of a modern city overtaken by jungle".[3]

The album's lead single, "High and Low", was released on 24 August 2016.[2] This was shortly followed by the album's first promotional single, "Two Vines", which was released the following day.[4] "To Her Door" was released on 30 September 2016 as the album's second single.[5]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?6.4/10[6]
Metacritic66/100[7]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [8]

Two Vines received generally positive reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 66, based on 14 reviews.[7]

Track listing

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Two Vines track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Before"4:04
2."High and Low"
  • Steele
  • Littlemore
  • Mayes
  • Jonathan Sloan
  • Empire of the Sun
  • Mayes
3:44
3."Two Vines"
  • Steele
  • Littlemore
  • Sloan
  • Empire of the Sun
  • Donnie Sloan
3:49
4."Friends"
  • Steele
  • Littlemore
  • Mayes
  • Sloan
  • Empire of the Sun
  • Sloan
  • Mayes
3:20
5."There's No Need"
  • Steele
  • Littlemore
  • Mayes
  • Sloan
  • Empire of the Sun
  • Mayes
  • Sloan
3:28
6."Way to Go"
  • Empire of the Sun
  • Mayes
3:12
7."Ride"
  • Empire of the Sun
  • Mayes
4:07
8."Digital Life"
  • Empire of the Sun
  • Mayes
4:02
9."First Crush"
  • Steele
  • Littlemore
  • Mayes
  • Hey
  • Sloan
  • Empire of the Sun
  • Mayes
  • Sloan
4:10
10."ZZZ"
  • Steele
  • Littlemore
  • Sloan
  • Empire of the Sun
  • Mayes
3:10
11."To Her Door"
  • Empire of the Sun
  • Mayes
3:55
Total length:41:01
Deluxe edition bonus tracks[9]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
12."Keystone"
  • Steele
  • Littlemore
  • Mayes
  • Sloan
  • Joe Hundertmark
  • Empire of the Sun
  • Mayes
  • Sloan
2:31
13."Lend Me Some Light"
  • Steele
  • Littlemore
  • Mayes
  • Hey
  • Empire of the Sun
  • Mayes
3:29
14."Welcome to My Life"
  • Steele
  • Littlemore
  • Mayes
  • Empire of the Sun
  • Mayes
4:02
Total length:51:03
North American deluxe edition bonus track[10]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
15."Walking on a Dream"
  • Steele
  • Littlemore
  • Sloan
3:12
Total length:54:15

Personnel

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Charts

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References

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  1. ^ a b Kaplan, Ilana (9 November 2015). "24 Hours in LA with Empire of the Sun: Vodka, Robots, and Lots of Lasers". Vice. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  2. ^ a b c Reed, Ryan (22 August 2016). "Empire of the Sun Recruit Lindsey Buckingham for New LP". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 23 August 2016.
  3. ^ Pearce, Sheldon (22 August 2016). "Empire of the Sun Announce New Album Two Vines". Pitchfork. Retrieved 1 October 2016.
  4. ^ Monroe, Jazz (25 August 2016). "Listen to Empire of the Sun's New Song "Two Vines"". Pitchfork. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  5. ^ "To Her Door – Single by Empire of the Sun". iTunes Store (US). Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  6. ^ "Two Vines by Empire Of The Sun reviews | Any Decent Music". www.anydecentmusic.com. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
  7. ^ a b "Reviews for Two Vines by Empire of the Sun". Metacritic. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
  8. ^ Sendra, Tim. "Two Vines - Empire of the Sun". AllMusic. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
  9. ^ "Two Vines (Deluxe) by Empire of the Sun". iTunes Store (AU). 28 October 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
  10. ^ "Two Vines (Deluxe) by Empire of the Sun". iTunes Store (US). Retrieved 1 October 2016.
  11. ^ "Australiancharts.com – Empire of the Sun – Two Vines". Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  12. ^ "Ultratop.be – Empire of the Sun – Two Vines" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  13. ^ "Ultratop.be – Empire of the Sun – Two Vines" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  14. ^ "Lescharts.com – Empire of the Sun – Two Vines". Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 November 2016.
  15. ^ "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week 44, 2016". Chart-Track. IRMA. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  16. ^ "NZ Heatseekers Albums Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 7 November 2016. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
  17. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  18. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Empire of the Sun – Two Vines". Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 November 2016.
  19. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  20. ^ "Empire of the Sun Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 9 November 2016.
  21. ^ "Empire of the Sun Chart History (Top Dance/Electronic Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 8 November 2016.
  22. ^ "Empire of the Sun Chart History (Top Alternative Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 17 November 2016.
  23. ^ "Empire of the Sun Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 17 November 2016.
  24. ^ "Dance/Electronic Albums – Year-End 2016". Billboard. Retrieved 10 December 2016.