The Murmurs is an album by the American musical duo the Murmurs, released in 1994.[3][4] The duo supported the album with a North American tour that included shows with Joe Jackson.[5] "You Suck" was a minor hit.[6]
| The Murmurs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1994 | |||
| Genre | Folk-pop[1] | |||
| Length | 41:55 | |||
| Label | MCA[2] | |||
| Producer | Roger Greenawalt, Billy Basinski | |||
| The Murmurs chronology | ||||
| ||||
Production edit
The album was produced primarily by Roger Greenawalt and Billy Basinski.[7] The songs were built around the duo's acoustic guitar playing; many songs added instruments such as flute and oboe.[8][9] "You Suck" is an autobiographical song about an early advisor who swindled the duo.[10] Two songs, "Basically" and "Beautiful Peace", are about the duo's mothers.[11]
Critical reception edit
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [12] |
| The Indianapolis Star |  [13] |
| Knoxville News Sentinel | [8] |
| MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide | [7] |
The Advocate deemed the album "an unfunny caricature of Woodstock-era folk music at its most amateurish," writing that "once again, as with k.d. lang, Melissa Etheridge and the Indigo Girls, we get a whitewashing of sexual desire."[14] The Sun-Sentinel wrote that "the Murmurs sing of sad days wasting time, first loves and nights filled with dreams... Instrumentation is spare and light, allowing the fragile murmurs to rise into real voices."[15] The Chicago Tribune concluded that "these two obnoxious, petulant, fluorescent-haired young women have turned whining into an art form."[16]
The Record determined that "any folky feel is belied by the record's slick production and bland rhythm section."[17] The Indianapolis Star praised the "fresh voices carrying twentysomething poetry with all its youthful certainty tempered by questions."[13] The Washington Post labeled the album "blandly sweet," writing that "a spoonful of sugar is fine, but too much honey can yield a concoction as cloying as The Murmurs."[18]
AllMusic called The Murmurs "an album full of lovely, literate, acoustic-based alt pop."[12]
Track listing edit
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Bad Mood" | 4:01 |
| 2. | "Basically" | 4:06 |
| 3. | "Wastin Time" | 3:17 |
| 4. | "Mission" | 2:52 |
| 5. | "Carry Me Home" | 3:44 |
| 6. | "Untouchable" | 2:36 |
| 7. | "You Suck" | 3:16 |
| 8. | "Neverending" | 4:25 |
| 9. | "Ticket to Zen" | 2:51 |
| 10. | "Bumble Bees" | 3:38 |
| 11. | "All I Need to Know" | 3:11 |
| 12. | "Beautiful Peace" | 3:58 |
References edit
- ^ "Murmurs". Omaha World-Herald. October 26, 1994. p. 45SF.
- ^ Semon, Craig S. (8 Jan 1995). "The Murmurs explore life and love with grace". Datebook. Telegram & Gazette. p. 10.
- ^ "Murmurs Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic.
- ^ Blush, Steven (October 4, 2016). New York Rock: From the Rise of the Velvet Underground to the Fall of CBGB. Macmillan.
- ^ Kening, Dan (7 Dec 1994). "Joe Jackson as Different as Night, Day". News. Chicago Tribune. p. 28.
- ^ Maples, Tina (16 Dec 1994). "Bargain-price concert a Giants success". The Milwaukee Journal. p. B3.
- ^ a b MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 795.
- ^ a b Campbell, Chuck (24 Feb 1995). "'The Murmurs', The Murmurs". Detours. Knoxville News Sentinel. p. 6.
- ^ Rodman, Sarah (February 3, 1995). "Music Discs". Boston Herald. p. SS1.
- ^ Morse, Steve (3 Feb 1995). "Positively quirky: New York's Murmurs". Living. The Boston Globe. p. 60.
- ^ Allan, Marc D. (16 Mar 1995). "Murmurs have fans shouting for more". The Indianapolis Star. p. C3.
- ^ a b "Murmurs Murmurs". AllMusic.
- ^ a b Penner, Diana (21 Nov 1994). "The Murmurs 'The Murmurs'". The Indianapolis Star. p. F5.
- ^ Galvin, Peter (Oct 4, 1994). "No cigars". The Advocate. No. 665. p. 72.
- ^ Schulman, Sandra (9 Oct 1994). "Murmurs Speak Well". Sun-Sentinel. p. 3F.
- ^ Dickinson, Chris (17 Feb 1995). "The Murmurs Raise Whining to an Art Form". Friday. Chicago Tribune. p. P.
- ^ Weiler, Derek (17 Nov 1994). "The Murmurs The Murmurs". The Record. p. D10.
- ^ Jenkins, Mark (3 Feb 1995). "Murmurs: Sickeningly Sweet". The Washington Post. p. N17.