Space Is Still the Place

Space Is Still the Place is the second full-length album by The Bright Light Social Hour. It was released on March 10, 2015 via Frenchkiss Records (worldwide) and MapleMusic Recordings (Canada).[1][2]

Space Is Still the Place
Studio album by
ReleasedMarch 10, 2015
RecordedJune 2013 – January 2014
GenrePsychedelic rock, indie rock, synth-pop, house, blues rock
Length45:28
LabelFrenchkiss Records, MapleMusic Recordings
ProducerThe Bright Light Social Hour
The Bright Light Social Hour chronology
The Bright Light Social Hour
(2010)
Space Is Still the Place
(2015)
Jude Vol. I
(2019)

Concept edit

The band has stated the album was largely inspired by staying with fans while touring in the Southern United States, as well as by concepts of Afrofuturism and progressivism.

In an interview with The Huffington Post, O'Brien stated, "We became really interested in mixing southern aspects of music – soul, rock, blues, those sort of things – with a progressive outlook, where we got really into dance music, house music, techno, psychedelic rock. We became really interested in mixing all those sounds; something future-looking and also vibe-y and comfortable, but different all together."[3]

The album title is inspired by Sun Ra's 1974 film Space Is the Place.[3]

Recording and release edit

The album was recorded between June 2013, and January 2014, at the band's home in Austin, Texas. It was mixed by the band and Chris Coady in New York, NY in May 2014.

On January 20, 2015 the band announced via The Huffington Post[3] Space Is Still The Place would be released March 10, 2015 on Frenchkiss Records.

On February 17, 2015, Jay Z's Life+Times premiered the music video for their first single, "Infinite Cities", directed by bassist/singer Jack O'Brien.[4]

Songs from Space Is Still the Place have been featured in HBO's Vice Principals, MTV's Teen Wolf, Fox's Brooklyn Nine-Nine, The CW's Riverdale, NBC's Midnight, Texas, Audience's Kingdom, USA's Shooter, Hulu's Shut Eye, Terrence Malick's 2017 film Song to Song, Ubisoft's Far Cry 5 and a Nintendo Switch commercial.[5][6][7][8]

Reception edit

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic     [9]
Glide Magazine          [10]
The Austin Chronicle     [11]
Pop-Break8.5/10[12]
Vinyl Mag5/5[13]

Space Is Still the Place was released to critical acclaim, described by AllMusic's Mark Deming as "an ambitious and wildly entertaining journey into the minds of the men who created it" and "a smart, fearless work from a band whose inner journey is paying impressive musical dividends."[14]

Track listing edit

All tracks are written by Curtis Roush, Jack O'Brien and Joseph Mirasole

No.TitleLength
1."Sweet Madelene"5:43
2."Slipstream"2:56
3."Dreamlove"5:05
4."Ghost Dance"2:35
5."Sea of the Edge"3:50
6."Aperture"4:40
7."Ouroboros"4:29
8."Infinite Cities"4:42
9."The Moon"3:15
10."Escape Velocity"8:13
Total length:45:28

Personnel edit

The personnel of Space Is Still the Place according to the liner notes of the album's LP release:

Technical personnel:

References edit

  1. ^ "The Bright Light Social Hour". Maplemusicrecordings.com. Archived from the original on 2015-02-18. Retrieved 2015-05-07.
  2. ^ "Frenchkiss Records". Frenchkissrecords.com. 2015-03-10. Archived from the original on 2015-03-13. Retrieved 2015-05-07.
  3. ^ a b c "The Bright Light Social Hour's 'Space Is Still The Place' Lays Out The Foundation For The 'Future South'". Huffington Post. Archived from the original on 2023-08-24. Retrieved 2015-01-23.
  4. ^ "Life+Times Video Premiere: The Bright Light Social Hour "Infinite Cities" | Life+Times". Lifeandtimes.com. 2015-02-17. Archived from the original on 2015-05-04. Retrieved 2015-05-07.
  5. ^ "Brooklyn Nine-Nine Music – S3e20: "Paranoid"; TuneFind". tunefind.com. 2016-03-29. Retrieved 2016-10-05.
  6. ^ "The Bright Light Social Hour – Ghost Dance | Teen Wolf 5x06 Music ; YouTube". Youtube.com. 2015-07-22. Archived from the original on 2016-02-11. Retrieved 2016-10-05.
  7. ^ "Vice Principals Music – S2e01: "Tiger Town"; TuneFind". tunefind.com. 2017-09-17. Archived from the original on 2021-02-12. Retrieved 2017-09-20.
  8. ^ "Die Antwoord, Lykke Li & All The Music In Terrence Malick's 'Song To Song'; The Playlist". theplaylist.com. 2017-03-08. Archived from the original on 2017-03-21. Retrieved 2017-03-20.
  9. ^ Mark Deming (2015-03-10). "Space Is Still the Place – The Bright Light Social Hour | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 2016-02-17. Retrieved 2016-02-07.
  10. ^ Ferguson, Maeri. "The Bright Light Social Hour – Space Is Still the Place". Glidemagazine.com. Archived from the original on September 9, 2015. Retrieved September 2, 2015.
  11. ^ Jim Caligiuri (2015-04-03). "Review: Bright Light Social Hour – Music". The Austin Chronicle. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2016-02-07.
  12. ^ Osifchin, Chris. "The Bright Light Social Hour: Space Is Still the Place". Pop-break.com. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2016-02-07.
  13. ^ Greenfield, Morgan (5 March 2015). "The Bright Light Social Hour: Space Is Still the Place". Vinylmag.org. Archived from the original on 18 September 2015. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
  14. ^ "AllMusic Review: The Bright Light Social Hour's 'Space Is Still the Place' by Mark Deming". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 2015-05-23. Retrieved 2015-06-15.