Glow On (stylized in all caps) is the third studio album by the American hardcore punk band Turnstile, released on August 27, 2021, via Roadrunner Records. It is the band's last album to feature founding guitarist Brady Ebert, who departed from the band in August 2022.[1]

Glow On
Studio album by
ReleasedAugust 27, 2021 (2021-08-27)
RecordedJuly–August 2020
StudioPhantom Studios (Gallatin, Tennessee)
Genre
Length34:51
LabelRoadrunner
ProducerMike Elizondo
Turnstile chronology
Time & Space
(2018)
Glow On
(2021)
Singles from Glow On
  1. "Mystery"
    Released: May 26, 2021
  2. "Alien Love Call"
    Released: July 14, 2021
  3. "Blackout"
    Released: July 28, 2021
  4. "Fly Again"
    Released: August 11, 2021
  5. "Holiday"
    Released: 2022

The album was recorded in summer 2020[2] at Phantom Studios in Gallatin, Tennessee.[3][4] It was recorded by American producer Mike Elizondo, and marks as the band's first release to include a featured artist with a guest appearance from British singer/songwriter and producer Blood Orange.

Glow On was preceded by the band's fifth EP, Turnstile Love Connection,[5] released June 27, 2021, which previewed four songs (including lead single, "Mystery") from the album set to an accompanying short film directed by frontman and lead vocalist, Yates. The follow-up singles, "Alien Love Call" featuring Blood Orange,[6] "Blackout"[7] and "Fly Again"[8] were released July and August 2021 respectively.

Glow On sold 15,600 album-equivalent units in its first week to debut at number 30 on the US Billboard 200,[9] becoming the band's first album to chart there, and was praised by music critics, and named the best album of 2021 by Spin and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Tracks "Holiday" and "Blackout" earned nominations at the 65th Grammy Awards.

Composition

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Glow On has been praised for making hardcore "genre-fluid" and showing "just how innovative [the genre] could become".[10][11] It and the quintet have been seen for expanding 1990s melodic hardcore.[12] To balance out the hardcore sounds, they also dig into "melodic" alt-rock songs.[13] Alternative pop, grunge, indie rock, post-punk, psychedelia, rap rock, R&B, shoegazing and soul sounds also appear throughout.[13][14][15] Chris Richards of The Washington Post noted that the album's sound could be compared to that of Jane's Addiction.[16]

Glow On is also noted for its "cleanly-produced" takes on pop music. A "newly-polished" dream pop style shows as well, yielding a sound for the album that is cast in "overt hues of pink".[17]

"Don't Play" mixes samba into punk rock while "No Surprise" is "hazy" emo pop.[18] With its drums, cowbells and layered handclaps, "Dance-Off" journeys into "heavy" funk.[19]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?8.5/10[20]
Metacritic92/100[21]
Review scores
SourceRating
Clash8/10[22]
ConsequenceA−[13]
DIY     [10]
Exclaim!7/10[11]
Kerrang!5/5[23]
The Line of Best Fit9/10[18]
NME     [24]
Paste8.4/10[25]
Pitchfork8.4/10[19]
Under the Radar8.5/10[26]

Glow On received praise from music critics. On Metacritic, it holds a score of 92 out of 100, based on thirteen reviews.[21]

Laviea Thomas for Clash called it "a riveting return" for the quintet.[22] Australian Guitar Magazine called the album "a true masterclass in the art of heavy music", with writer Matt Doria adding, "the sheer depth and dynamism of its musicality cannot be understated, nor Turnstile’s passion in sculpting it".[27] Paste referred to its appeal, writing, "GLOW ON isn’t just one of the best hardcore albums of the year; it’s one of the best albums of the year in general."[25] Reviewing the album for AllMusic, James Christopher Monger described it as both "vital and respective" and claimed it to be "a violent, late-summer storm" that "pummels the power grid but mercifully leaves the lights on".[28]

Accolades

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Year-end lists

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A "—" denotes the publication's list is in no particular order, and Glow On did not rank numerically.

Publication Country Accolade Rank Ref.
AllMusic
US
AllMusic Best of 2021
BBC
UK
The 21 Best Albums of 2021
21
Billboard
US
The 50 Best Albums of 2021: Staff List
27
Consequence
US
Top 50 Albums of 2021
4
Top 30 Metal and Hard Rock Albums of 2021
3
Crack Magazine
UK
The Top 50 Albums of the Year
17
The Economist
UK
The best albums of 2021
Esquire
US
The Best Albums of 2021
Exclaim!
CA
Exclaim!'s 50 Best Albums of 2021
17
The Fader
US
The 50 best albums of 2021
14
The Guardian
UK
The 50 best albums of 2021
18
Les Inrockuptibles
FR
Carole Boinet's Top 10 Albums of 2021
10
Cyril Camu's Top 10 Albums of 2021
2
Théo Dubreuil's Top 10 Albums of 2021
2
Kerrang!
UK
The 50 best albums of 2021
4
Loudwire
US
The 45 Best Rock + Metal Albums of 2021
3
Men's Health
US
The 15 Best Albums of 2021
3
NME
UK
The 50 best albums of 2021
9
NPR
US
The 50 Best Albums of 2021
24
Paste
US
The 50 Best Albums of 2021
2
Pitchfork
US
The 50 Best Albums of 2021
6
The 31 Best Rock Albums of 2021
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
US
The 10 best albums of 2021
1
PopMatters
US
The 75 Best Albums of 2021
56
The Quietus
UK
Quietus Albums Of The Year 2021
93
Revolver
US
25 Best Albums of 2021
3
The Ringer
US
The Best Albums of 2021
3
Rolling Stone
US
The 50 Best Albums of 2021
8
Spin
US
The 30 Best Albums of 2021
1
Uproxx
US
The Best Albums Of 2021
The Washington Post
US
Best music of 2021
4

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Turnstile, except where noted

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Mystery" 2:35
2."Blackout" 2:53
3."Don't Play" 2:13
4."Underwater Boi"
3:04
5."Holiday" 2:52
6."Humanoid / Shake It Up" 1:09
7."Endless"
  • Turnstile
  • Sam Trapkin
1:58
8."Fly Again" 2:31
9."Alien Love Call" (featuring Blood Orange)2:56
10."Wild Wrld" 2:54
11."Dance-Off" 2:09
12."New Heart Design" 2:27
13."T.L.C. (Turnstile Love Connection)" 1:42
14."No Surprise" 0:45
15."Lonely Dezires" (featuring Blood Orange) 2:43
Total length:34:51

Notes

  • All tracks are stylized in all caps. For example, "Mystery" is stylized as "MYSTERY".

Personnel

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Credits adapted from the liner notes of Glow On[3] and Tidal.[57]

Turnstile

  • Brendan Yates – vocals (tracks 1–13, 15), co-production (all tracks), art direction
  • Franz Lyons – bass (all tracks), vocals (tracks 6, 14)
  • Brady Ebert – guitar (all tracks)
  • Pat McCrory – guitar (all tracks)
  • Daniel Fang – drums (tracks 1–13, 15)

Additional personnel

  • Dev Hynes – vocals (tracks 9, 15), additional vocals (track 7)
  • Julien Baker – additional vocals (track 4)
  • Mike Elizondo – production (all tracks), drum programming (1–7, 10–13) synthesizer (tracks 1, 9–15)
  • Adam Hawkins – mixing (all tracks)
  • Lawson White – engineering (all tracks)
  • Erica Block – assistant engineering (all tracks)
  • Zachary Stokes – assistant engineering (all tracks)
  • Chris Gehringer – mastering
  • Alexis Jamet – cover, design
  • Dewey Saunders – art direction
  • Jimmy Fontaine – band photos

Charts

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Chart performance for Glow On
Chart (2021–2022) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[58] 82
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[59] 75
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[60] 93
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[61] 108
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[62] 9
Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[63] 25
Scottish Albums (OCC)[64] 22
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[65] 98
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[66] 30
UK Albums (OCC)[67] 62
UK Rock & Metal Albums (OCC)[68] 2
US Billboard 200[69] 30

References

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  2. ^ Lipshutz, Jason (August 27, 2021). "Ready Or Not, Turnstile Is Breaking Through". Billboard. Retrieved August 27, 2021.
  3. ^ a b Glow On (liner notes). Turnstile. Roadrunner Records. 2021. 1-654153.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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  8. ^ Breihan, Tom (August 11, 2021). "Turnstile – 'Fly Again'". Stereogum. Retrieved August 27, 2021.
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