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Crystal Castles II

November 01, 2023

Crystal Castles II is the second studio album by Canadian electronic music duo Crystal Castles, released on May 24, 2010 by Fiction Records and Last Gang Records.[4][5] The album was initially scheduled for release on June 7, 2010; however, the release dates were moved forward after the album leaked online, thus a digital version of the album was released on April 23, 2010.

Crystal Castles II
Studio album by
Crystal Castles
ReleasedApril 23, 2010 (2010-04-23)
Genre
Length52:54
Label
Producer
Crystal Castles chronology
Crystal Castles
(2008) 		Crystal Castles II
(2010) 		III
(2012)
Singles from Crystal Castles II
  1. "Celestica"
    Released: April 17, 2010
  2. "Baptism"
    Released: July 26, 2010
  3. "Not in Love"
    Released: October 26, 2010

On April 25, 2011, the album was reissued digitally under the title (II), which replaced the original version of "Not in Love" with the version featuring Robert Smith (of the Cure).[6]

Background edit

Crystal Castles II was recorded by Ethan Kath in a variety of locations including an abandoned church in Iceland, a self-built cabin in northern Ontario, a garage behind an abandoned drug store in Detroit, as well as Paul Epworth's London studio.[7] Of the experience, Kath said, "I recorded most of the record in the coldest winter in decades in a church without heat in Iceland. It was so cold that when I listen back I can hear myself shivering. I chose it because it felt right".[8] In December 2009, Kath gave vocalist Alice Glass a CD-R containing 70 instrumental tracks, for which she then recorded vocals on 35 tracks.

In order to promote the album, the band released the first single "Celestica" in April followed by an EP titled Doe Deer that was released only a few days later. In May the band physically released the album. The album reached number 48 on the UK Albums Chart and number 188 on the US Billboard 200.[9][10] Later on in December, the duo's cover of the Platinum Blonde song "Not in Love", featuring guest vocals from Robert Smith of the Cure, was released as the album's third single. The single became Crystal Castles' highest-charting single to date.

Critical reception edit

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.2/10[11]
Metacritic77/100[12]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [13]
Billboard     [14]
The Guardian     [15]
Los Angeles Times    [16]
NME7/10[17]
Pitchfork8.5/10[18]
Q     [19]
Spin8/10[20]
The Times     [21]
Uncut     [22]

Crystal Castles II received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted mean rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 77, based on 24 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews".[12] Daniel Brockman of The Boston Phoenix praised the band for creating "a dense-yet-airy thicket of pure pop transcendence." MusicOMH also gave an extremely positive review, describing the album as "bold, dramatic, more than a little screwed-up and stunningly exciting statement." Pitchfork rated the album 8.5 out of 10, and awarded it their "Best New Music" accolade.

Commercial performance edit

As of July 2012, Crystal Castles and Crystal Castles II had sold a combined 174,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.[23]

Accolades edit

The album was a longlisted nominee for the 2010 Polaris Music Prize.[24]

Publication List Rank
Drowned in Sound Albums of the Year 2010[25] 18
MusicOMH Top 50 Albums of 2010[26] 33
NME 75 Best Albums of 2010[27] 31
Pitchfork The Top 50 Albums of 2010[28] 34
The 100 Best Albums of the Decade So Far (2010–2014)[2] 65
PopMatters The 70 Best Albums of 2010[29] 51
Rough Trade Albums of the Year (2010)[30] 35
Slant Magazine The 25 Best Albums of 2010[31] 6
Spin The 40 Best Albums of 2010[32] 21
Stereogum Top 50 Albums of 2010[33] 12

Track listing edit

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Fainting Spells"
Kath2:44
2."Celestica"
  • Kath
  • Glass
3:48
3."Doe Deer"
  • Kath
  • Glass
Kath1:38
4."Baptism"
  • Kath
  • Glass
  • Luke Leeder
4:13
5."Year of Silence"
Kath4:54
6."Empathy"
  • Kath
  • Glass
  • Kath
  • Alex Bonenfant
4:11
7."Suffocation"
  • Kath
  • Glass
  • Kath
  • Lee
4:02
8."Violent Dreams"
Kath4:35
9."Vietnam"
  • Kath
  • Nordenstam
  • Kath
  • Lee
5:08
10."Birds"
  • Kath
  • Glass
Kath2:31
11."Pap Smear"
  • Kath
  • Glass
Kath3:43
12."Not in Love"Mark Holmes
  • Kath
  • Lee
3:33
13."Intimate"
  • Kath
  • Glass
Kath4:45
14."I Am Made of Chalk"Kath
3:09
Big Day Out edition bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
15."Not in Love" (featuring Robert Smith from The Cure)3:48
16."Celestica" (Bear in Heaven Remix)3:29
17."Celestica" (Thurston Moore Remix)3:51
18."Baptism" (No Age Remix)4:18
19."Baptism" (Punks Jump Up Remix)5:03
20."Suffocation" (Memory Tapes Remix)5:09
21."Mother Knows Best"2:01
22."Insectica"1:49
23."Seed"1:44

Notes

  • ^a signifies an additional producer.
  • ^b signifies an additional vocal producer.

Sample credits[34]

Personnel edit

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Crystal Castles II.[34]

Crystal Castles

Additional personnel

  • Lexxx – vocal recording (track 1); mixing (tracks 1, 4–11)
  • Paul Epworth – additional production, vocal recording (track 2); guitar solo recording (track 10); additional vocal production (track 14)
  • Matthew Wagner – vocal recording (track 3)
  • Jacknife Lee – production (tracks 4, 7, 9, 12)
  • Alex Bonenfant – vocal recording (tracks 4, 7, 10, 11); production (track 6); mixing (tracks 7, 13); guitar recording (track 10); drum recording (track 13)
  • Christopher Chartrand – drum solo (track 13); live drums
  • X Tecumseh Clark – cover model
  • Todd Tamanend Clark – photograph
  • Marc Pannozzo – band photo
  • Nilesh Patel – mastering

Charts edit

References edit

  1. ^ Zaleski, Annie (November 6, 2012). "Crystal Castles: (III)". The A.V. Club. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  2. ^ a b "The 100 Best Albums of the Decade So Far (2010–2014)". Pitchfork. August 19, 2014. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  3. ^ Young, Alex (May 3, 2010). "Crystal Castles – Crystal Castles (II)". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved December 26, 2010.
  4. ^ Dombal, Ryan (2010-04-13). "Crystal Castles Announce Second LP | News". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2011-08-30.
  5. ^ "New album "II" tracklist". Crystalcastles.com. Archived from the original on 2012-05-25. Retrieved 2011-08-30.
  6. ^ "( II ) by Crystal Castles". iTunes Store. January 2011. Retrieved 15 July 2011.
  7. ^ "2nd album update". Crystalcastles.com. Archived from the original on 2012-06-30. Retrieved 2011-08-30.
  8. ^ "I recorded most of the record in the coldest winter in decades in a church without heat in Iceland. It was so cold that when I listen back I can hear myself shivering. I chose it because it felt right".
  9. ^ a b "Crystal Castles" (select "Albums" tab). Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  10. ^ a b "Crystal Castles – Chart history: Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  11. ^ "Crystal Castles by Crystal Castles reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved May 4, 2019.
  12. ^ a b "Reviews for Crystal Castles [2010] by Crystal Castles". Metacritic. Retrieved January 10, 2013.
  13. ^ Phares, Heather. "Crystal Castles (II) – Crystal Castles". AllMusic. Retrieved January 10, 2013.
  14. ^ Lipshutz, Jason (June 16, 2010). "Crystal Castles, "Crystal Castles"". Billboard. Retrieved May 4, 2019.
  15. ^ Hann, Michael (May 20, 2010). "Crystal Castles: Crystal Castles". The Guardian. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  16. ^ Brown, August (June 1, 2010). "Album review: Crystal Castles' 'Self-Titled (II)'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 4, 2019.
  17. ^ Mackay, Emily (May 3, 2010). . NME. Archived from the original on May 7, 2010. Retrieved January 10, 2013.
  18. ^ Cohen, Ian (April 29, 2010). "Crystal Castles: Crystal Castles". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 29, 2010.
  19. ^ "Crystal Castles: Crystal Castles". Q (288): 129. July 2010.
  20. ^ Reeves, Mosi (June 8, 2010). "Crystal Castles, 'Crystal Castles' (Fiction)". Spin. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  21. ^ "Crystal Castles: Crystal Castles". The Times. May 22, 2010. Retrieved May 4, 2019.
  22. ^ "Crystal Castles: Crystal Castles". Uncut (158): 104. July 2010.
  23. ^ Lipshutz, Jason (July 25, 2012). "Crystal Castles Return With New Track, 'Plague': Listen". Billboard. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
  24. ^ "Blue Rodeo, BSS on Polaris long list" 2010-09-01 at the Wayback Machine. The Globe and Mail, June 17, 2010.
  25. ^ Adams, Sean (December 2, 2010). . Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on November 29, 2011. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  26. ^ "musicOMH's Top 50 Albums Of 2010: The Complete List". musicOMH. 2 August 2010. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  27. ^ "75 best albums of 2010". NME. November 22, 2010. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  28. ^ "The Top 50 Albums of 2010". Pitchfork. December 16, 2010. Retrieved December 18, 2010.
  29. ^ "The 70 Best Albums of 2010". PopMatters. December 23, 2010. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  30. ^ . Rough Trade. 2010. Archived from the original on November 18, 2010. Retrieved December 18, 2010.
  31. ^ "The 25 Best Albums of 2010". Slant Magazine. December 14, 2010. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  32. ^ "The 40 Best Albums of 2010". Spin. December 6, 2010. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  33. ^ "Stereogum's Top 50 Albums Of 2010". Stereogum. December 8, 2010. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  34. ^ a b Crystal Castles II (liner notes). Crystal Castles. Fiction Records. 2010. 2740407.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  35. ^ "Crystal Castles – (II)". australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  36. ^ . Chart-Track. Irish Recorded Music Association. Archived from the original on 29 March 2012. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  37. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. May 30 – June 5, 2010. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  38. ^ "Official Dance Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. May 30 – June 5, 2010. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  39. ^ "Crystal Castles – Chart history: Dance/Electronic Albums". Billboard. Retrieved February 15, 2016.

November 01, 2023
crystal, castles, second, studio, album, canadian, electronic, music, crystal, castles, released, 2010, fiction, records, last, gang, records, album, initially, scheduled, release, june, 2010, however, release, dates, were, moved, forward, after, album, leaked. Crystal Castles II is the second studio album by Canadian electronic music duo Crystal Castles released on May 24 2010 by Fiction Records and Last Gang Records 4 5 The album was initially scheduled for release on June 7 2010 however the release dates were moved forward after the album leaked online thus a digital version of the album was released on April 23 2010 Crystal Castles IIStudio album by Crystal CastlesReleasedApril 23 2010 2010 04 23 GenreSynth pop 1 noise pop 2 experimental 3 Length52 54LabelFictionLiesLast GangProducerAlex BonenfantPaul EpworthEthan KathJacknife LeeCrystal Castles chronologyCrystal Castles 2008 Crystal Castles II 2010 III 2012 Singles from Crystal Castles II Celestica Released April 17 2010 Baptism Released July 26 2010 Not in Love Released October 26 2010On April 25 2011 the album was reissued digitally under the title II which replaced the original version of Not in Love with the version featuring Robert Smith of the Cure 6 Contents 1 Background 2 Critical reception 3 Commercial performance 3 1 Accolades 4 Track listing 5 Personnel 6 Charts 7 ReferencesBackground editCrystal Castles II was recorded by Ethan Kath in a variety of locations including an abandoned church in Iceland a self built cabin in northern Ontario a garage behind an abandoned drug store in Detroit as well as Paul Epworth s London studio 7 Of the experience Kath said I recorded most of the record in the coldest winter in decades in a church without heat in Iceland It was so cold that when I listen back I can hear myself shivering I chose it because it felt right 8 In December 2009 Kath gave vocalist Alice Glass a CD R containing 70 instrumental tracks for which she then recorded vocals on 35 tracks In order to promote the album the band released the first single Celestica in April followed by an EP titled Doe Deer that was released only a few days later In May the band physically released the album The album reached number 48 on the UK Albums Chart and number 188 on the US Billboard 200 9 10 Later on in December the duo s cover of the Platinum Blonde song Not in Love featuring guest vocals from Robert Smith of the Cure was released as the album s third single The single became Crystal Castles highest charting single to date Critical reception editProfessional ratingsAggregate scoresSourceRatingAnyDecentMusic 7 2 10 11 Metacritic77 100 12 Review scoresSourceRatingAllMusic nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 13 Billboard nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 14 The Guardian nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 15 Los Angeles Times nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 16 NME7 10 17 Pitchfork8 5 10 18 Q nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 19 Spin8 10 20 The Times nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 21 Uncut nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 22 Crystal Castles II received generally positive reviews from music critics At Metacritic which assigns a weighted mean rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics the album received an average score of 77 based on 24 reviews which indicates generally favorable reviews 12 Daniel Brockman of The Boston Phoenix praised the band for creating a dense yet airy thicket of pure pop transcendence MusicOMH also gave an extremely positive review describing the album as bold dramatic more than a little screwed up and stunningly exciting statement Pitchfork rated the album 8 5 out of 10 and awarded it their Best New Music accolade Commercial performance editAs of July 2012 Crystal Castles and Crystal Castles II had sold a combined 174 000 copies in the United States according to Nielsen SoundScan 23 Accolades edit The album was a longlisted nominee for the 2010 Polaris Music Prize 24 Publication List RankDrowned in Sound Albums of the Year 2010 25 18MusicOMH Top 50 Albums of 2010 26 33NME 75 Best Albums of 2010 27 31Pitchfork The Top 50 Albums of 2010 28 34The 100 Best Albums of the Decade So Far 2010 2014 2 65PopMatters The 70 Best Albums of 2010 29 51Rough Trade Albums of the Year 2010 30 35Slant Magazine The 25 Best Albums of 2010 31 6Spin The 40 Best Albums of 2010 32 21Stereogum Top 50 Albums of 2010 33 12Track listing editNo TitleWriter s Producer s Length1 Fainting Spells Ethan KathAlice GlassKath2 442 Celestica KathGlassKathPaul Epworth a 3 483 Doe Deer KathGlassKath1 384 Baptism KathGlassLuke LeederKathJacknife Lee4 135 Year of Silence KathSigur RosKath4 546 Empathy KathGlassKathAlex Bonenfant4 117 Suffocation KathGlassKathLee4 028 Violent Dreams KathStina NordenstamKath4 359 Vietnam KathNordenstamKathLee5 0810 Birds KathGlassKath2 3111 Pap Smear KathGlassKath3 4312 Not in Love Mark HolmesKathLee3 3313 Intimate KathGlassKath4 4514 I Am Made of Chalk KathKathEpworth b 3 09 Big Day Out edition bonus tracksNo TitleLength15 Not in Love featuring Robert Smith from The Cure 3 4816 Celestica Bear in Heaven Remix 3 2917 Celestica Thurston Moore Remix 3 5118 Baptism No Age Remix 4 1819 Baptism Punks Jump Up Remix 5 0320 Suffocation Memory Tapes Remix 5 0921 Mother Knows Best 2 0122 Insectica 1 4923 Seed 1 44 Notes a signifies an additional producer b signifies an additional vocal producer Sample credits 34 Year of Silence contains a sample of Inni mer syngur vitleysingur by Sigur Ros Vietnam and Violent Dreams contain a sample of A Walk in the Park by Stina Nordenstam Personnel editCredits adapted from the liner notes of Crystal Castles II 34 Crystal Castles Ethan Kath production all tracks mixing tracks 2 3 12 14 Alice Glass vocalsAdditional personnel Lexxx vocal recording track 1 mixing tracks 1 4 11 Paul Epworth additional production vocal recording track 2 guitar solo recording track 10 additional vocal production track 14 Matthew Wagner vocal recording track 3 Jacknife Lee production tracks 4 7 9 12 Alex Bonenfant vocal recording tracks 4 7 10 11 production track 6 mixing tracks 7 13 guitar recording track 10 drum recording track 13 Christopher Chartrand drum solo track 13 live drums X Tecumseh Clark cover model Todd Tamanend Clark photograph Marc Pannozzo band photo Nilesh Patel masteringCharts editChart 2010 PeakpositionAustralian Albums Chart 35 25Irish Albums Chart 36 56Scottish Albums Chart 37 54UK Albums Chart 9 48UK Dance Albums Chart 38 8US Billboard 200 10 188US Dance Electronic Albums 39 6References edit Zaleski Annie November 6 2012 Crystal Castles III The A V Club Retrieved February 15 2016 a b The 100 Best Albums of the Decade So Far 2010 2014 Pitchfork August 19 2014 Retrieved February 15 2016 Young Alex May 3 2010 Crystal Castles Crystal Castles II Consequence of Sound Retrieved December 26 2010 Dombal Ryan 2010 04 13 Crystal Castles Announce Second LP News Pitchfork Retrieved 2011 08 30 New album II tracklist Crystalcastles com Archived from the original on 2012 05 25 Retrieved 2011 08 30 II by Crystal Castles iTunes Store January 2011 Retrieved 15 July 2011 2nd album update Crystalcastles com Archived from the original on 2012 06 30 Retrieved 2011 08 30 I recorded most of the record in the coldest winter in decades in a church without heat in Iceland It was so cold that when I listen back I can hear myself shivering I chose it because it felt right a b Crystal Castles select Albums tab Official Charts Company Retrieved February 15 2016 a b Crystal Castles Chart history Billboard 200 Billboard Retrieved February 15 2016 Crystal Castles by Crystal Castles reviews AnyDecentMusic Retrieved May 4 2019 a b Reviews for Crystal Castles 2010 by Crystal Castles Metacritic Retrieved January 10 2013 Phares Heather Crystal Castles II Crystal Castles AllMusic Retrieved January 10 2013 Lipshutz Jason June 16 2010 Crystal Castles Crystal Castles Billboard Retrieved May 4 2019 Hann Michael May 20 2010 Crystal Castles Crystal Castles The Guardian Retrieved February 15 2016 Brown August June 1 2010 Album review Crystal Castles Self Titled II Los Angeles Times Retrieved May 4 2019 Mackay Emily May 3 2010 Album Review Crystal Castles Crystal Castles Fiction NME Archived from the original on May 7 2010 Retrieved January 10 2013 Cohen Ian April 29 2010 Crystal Castles Crystal Castles Pitchfork Retrieved April 29 2010 Crystal Castles Crystal Castles Q 288 129 July 2010 Reeves Mosi June 8 2010 Crystal Castles Crystal Castles Fiction Spin Retrieved February 15 2016 Crystal Castles Crystal Castles The Times May 22 2010 Retrieved May 4 2019 Crystal Castles Crystal Castles Uncut 158 104 July 2010 Lipshutz Jason July 25 2012 Crystal Castles Return With New Track Plague Listen Billboard Retrieved August 2 2018 Blue Rodeo BSS on Polaris long list Archived 2010 09 01 at the Wayback Machine The Globe and Mail June 17 2010 Adams Sean December 2 2010 Drowned in Sound s albums of the year 2010 50 11 Drowned in Sound Archived from the original on November 29 2011 Retrieved February 15 2016 musicOMH s Top 50 Albums Of 2010 The Complete List musicOMH 2 August 2010 Retrieved February 15 2016 75 best albums of 2010 NME November 22 2010 Retrieved February 15 2016 The Top 50 Albums of 2010 Pitchfork December 16 2010 Retrieved December 18 2010 The 70 Best Albums of 2010 PopMatters December 23 2010 Retrieved February 15 2016 Albums of the Year Rough Trade 2010 Archived from the original on November 18 2010 Retrieved December 18 2010 The 25 Best Albums of 2010 Slant Magazine December 14 2010 Retrieved February 15 2016 The 40 Best Albums of 2010 Spin December 6 2010 Retrieved February 15 2016 Stereogum s Top 50 Albums Of 2010 Stereogum December 8 2010 Retrieved February 15 2016 a b Crystal Castles II liner notes Crystal Castles Fiction Records 2010 2740407 a href Template Cite AV media notes html title Template Cite AV media notes cite AV media notes a CS1 maint others in cite AV media notes link Crystal Castles II australian charts com Hung Medien Retrieved February 15 2016 Top 75 Artist Album Week Ending 27 May 2010 Chart Track Irish Recorded Music Association Archived from the original on 29 March 2012 Retrieved February 15 2016 Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100 Official Charts Company May 30 June 5 2010 Retrieved February 15 2016 Official Dance Albums Chart Top 40 Official Charts Company May 30 June 5 2010 Retrieved February 15 2016 Crystal Castles Chart history Dance Electronic Albums Billboard Retrieved February 15 2016 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Crystal Castles II amp oldid 1160569084, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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