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CHVRCHES- Every Open Eye |OT| Clearest Blue

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R

ryseing

Member
every-open-eye.jpg
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Who is Chvrches?

Chvrches (pronounced as "churches" and stylised as CHVRCHΞS) are a Scottish electronic band, formed in 2011. The group consists of Lauren Mayberry (lead vocals, additional synthesisers, samplers), Iain Cook (synthesisers, guitar, bass, vocals), and Martin Doherty (synthesisers, samplers, vocals).

The group's debut album, The Bones of What You Believe, was deservedly named to many top 2013 lists. Since then, they've released a couple of soundtrack singles and a bunch of otherwise generally awesome stuff.

What the group has to say about the album (Pitchfork)

Martin Doherty: After making one record that people really like, some bands reject the things that everyone liked about them and make some really deep, thoughtful, dark record—but I wanted to avoid making a “mature” album. That said, it’s not like we’re making saccharine shite. There’s important lyrical content, and we’re still pushing the same emotional boundaries, but also trying to make it as accessible as possible.
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Lauren Mayberry: I thought I had legitimately written a happy love song for this album, and I asked [engineer] Dave [Simpson] about it—and he wasn’t sure. Because the album was written over such a long period of time, it’s about the goods and the bads, the beginnings and ends. Personally, I’m in a good place right now, but there’s definitely anti-love songs on there as well. “Leave a Trace” is the middle finger mic-drop. It’s about that point where you’re like, “There’s no point having this conversation anyways: There will be no resolve, I won’t feel better about it, you won’t feel better about it, no outcome from this will actually change my reality.” It makes me feel better to write about that—I’ve done something constructive with it. You don’t put that on other people, you put that into what you do. That’s always the way I’ve written lyrics. My ex-partners are not friends with me, but I’m OK with that.
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REVIEWS

AV Club- A

Like “You Caught The Light” on Bones, Every Open Eye closes on a moody, reflective note with “Afterglow,” a prototypical album-closer anchored by dreamy, twinkling synths and Mayberry in torch-singer mode. The album ends with her repeating simply, “I’ve given up all I can.”

All of Chvrches might as well be saying that, because Every Open Eye reflects the effort that went into it. The record feels like the kind a band releases just before it takes off. If Every Open Eyes turns out to be Chvrches’ breakthrough album, no one should be surprised.
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The Guardian- 4/5

Three strident synth-pop bangers open the second Chvrches album and lay bare the Scottish trio’s intent: here they are doubling down on the formula that got them where they are today. It’s an assured follow-up to their US-conquering debut, The Bones of What You Believe, picking out its predecessor’s stadium-pop moments and turning up the intensity without ever overselling its charm. There’s an appealing combination of steely survival and breathless optimism throughout – Make Them Gold and Clearest Blue look towards a better future, with the latter updating Depeche Mode’s Just Can’t Get Enough for the BBC Radio 1 A-list. The tracklisting for the second half might suggest that they’ve taken a turn for the goth – Playing Dead, Bury It, Down Side of Me – but many of those songs provide a welcome pause for thought, featuring more subtleties than the obvious hits. It ends with Afterglow: the hangover after the party, and it’s Chvrches at their prettiest.
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Metacritic score is currently 74.
 
M

Mariolee

Member
I've actually been listening to The Bones of What You Believe on repeat this past week and had no idea they were dropping a new album. HYPE.
 
B

BTM

Member
Listened to it last night. First impression is that they haven't dropped off at all from their wonderful debut.
 
B

borghe

Loves the Greater Toronto Area
can't wait. grabbing this immediately on friday.

Love Leave a Trace
second single was very decent.
third one hasn't quite grown on me (clear blue?)

anyway... will hold off on the NPR link, but will grab this on Apple Music immediately.
 
R

ryseing

Member
borghe said:
can't wait. grabbing this immediately on friday.

Love Leave a Trace
second single was very decent.
third one hasn't quite grown on me (clear blue?)

anyway... will hold off on the NPR link, but will grab this on Apple Music immediately.
Click to expand...

Third single was Clearest Blue, yeah. My favorite of the three which is why I put it as the OT subtitle.
 
partime

partime

Member
I just heard them for the first time on Spotify not too long ago,
Absolutely love Never Ending Circles & Leave a Trace! She's so early 90's, it's awesome!
 
Q

Quick

Banned
Looking forward to this one.

The Bones of What You Believe was good, but I got a little tired of it. I can only really listen to a few tracks from it now.

That being said, if Leave A Trace is any indication of the style of the album, then it should be just as good or even better.
 
R

Remembrance

Member
Listened to the NPR stream, bracing for filler all the while. No filler detected.

TBWYB was firmly a singles album for me, but this one is a buy.
 
M

Meier

Member
Absolutely love them and cannot wait to see them live again at Fun Fun Fun Fest. I was so nervous the first time I saw them that they wouldn't be able to translate their sound effectively live but they absolutely crushed it. 17 minutes in on the stream (probably about the 5th track?) and loving it. Can't wait to play this just about every week for the rest of the year. Ooh, this track just got really Depeche Mode-y.

I guess that track was Clearest Blue which I hadn't heard yet. My wife is a casual Chvrches fan (just basically whenever we hear them in the car), but she loves DM -- I think that song will be a favorite of hers.
 
L

Lima

Member
I don't think that drop in Clearest Blue will ever get old to me. Just want to dance when I hear it.
 
F

Fracas

#fuckonami
I like it a lot but I feel it doesn't hold a candle to their debut. Sort of like Room on Fire vs Is This is It.

Still gonna be my most played album this year haha.
 
K

Kid Kamikaze10

Member
I regret ever saying that Martin should stop doing lead vocals on tracks.

High Enough to Carry You Over is just plain awesome. Feels like a missing track from Random Access Memories.
 
M

MattyG

Banned
Kid Kamikaze10 said:
I regret ever saying that Martin should stop doing lead vocals on tracks.

High Enough to Carry You Over is just plain awesome. Feels like a missing track from Random Access Memories.
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Yeah, that's one of my favorite tracks. My favorite Lauren tracks right now are Keep You On My Side, Bury It, and Playing Dead. I like them all, but these ones stand out the most after only a couple listens.

The one thing I feel is missing is a super poppy/playful sounding song like Lungs. There's a couple that come close, but nothing on that level.
 
R

rootbeerafloat

Member
I'm not going to listen until Friday, but ugh, the other dude has tracks with lead vocals again? How many? Under the Tide just kills the momentum on Bones. He's dreadful... even his backup vocals ruin every live performance. Hype still at high levels, but slightly diminished.
 
F

Flip4k

Member
Getting nostalgic listening to their sound again. Yeah, 2013 was only two years ago but I was in a kinda different place then.

I immediately listened to Just Can't Get Enough after listening to Clearest Blue
 
B

BTM

Member
rootbeerafloat said:
I'm not going to listen until Friday, but ugh, the other dude has tracks with lead vocals again? How many? Under the Tide just kills the momentum on Bones. He's dreadful... even his backup vocals ruin every live performance. Hype still at high levels, but slightly diminished.
Click to expand...

He has one, and it's actually really good.
 
T

TripOpt55

Member
"Keep You On My Side" is my early favorite. Really great album. Can't wait to have it on my phone for working out and driving to.
 
R

rakhir

Member
Huh, and I don't like "Keep You On My Side", it's too techno-y for me. The other songs are great though.

From the non-single songs Make Them Gold is a clear winner, and imo a lock for the fourth single. I really liked Playing Dead and Down Side Of Me, the former for it's rich sound and the latter for going places i've didn't expect it to on my first listening.

I don't think I liked Every Open Eye as much as Bones as an album, but it still has fantastic songs throught.
 
S

Stupid Sexy Flanders

Member
I listened to their first album non stop when I heard it and bought it on itunes but over listened and got a bit sick of it after a while :(

This new album is fantastic though, and the guy who does vocals is so much better in this album than the last.

Do they not stream on Google Play Music? I don't think I'll be able to purchase their new album for a while and I don't have spotify
 
AHA-Lambda

AHA-Lambda

Member
I'm loving "Down Side of Me" :O

EDIT: just finished, and damn, it's a really good album O_O
Has actually exceeded my expectations, not a bad song here!
 
F

FaintDeftone

Junior Member
Their debut album was my favorite album of 2013, so obviously I'm crazy excited for this album. The wait for Friday will be tough.

I listened to the stream on NPR and really like what I've heard. Keep You On My Side is glorious. I sub to Spotify but I'll definitely purchase a physical copy of this.
 
B

Blader

Member
Heh, I have free tickets to see them this Saturday -- never heard any of their stuff before, and was undecided about going, but this thread is putting me over the edge now.
 
N

neogaffer1

Banned
I was finally able to listen to the whole thing, but it was on shitty headphones on my phone (which always sounds different to my laptop; don't know which one is better but I'm more used to my laptop's sound). Really liked it. I've never really cared for bands in any real way and I still don't music like most people but hearing "The Mother We Share" really got me interested in them and they just keep on delivering.
 
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