Apocalypse, Girl (stylized as Apocalypse, girl) is the fifth studio album by Norwegian musician Jenny Hval, released on June 9, 2015 through Sacred Bones and Su Tissue Records.[3]

Apocalypse, Girl
Studio album by
ReleasedJune 9, 2015 (2015-06-09)
Genre
Length38:44
Label
ProducerLasse Marhaug
Jenny Hval chronology
Innocence Is Kinky
(2013)
Apocalypse, Girl
(2015)
Blood Bitch
(2016)

Music videos have been made for "That Battle Is Over", "Sabbath" and "Take Care of Yourself".

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.9/10[4]
Metacritic79/100[5]
Review scores
SourceRating
Consequence of SoundB[6]
Financial Times     [7]
The Guardian     [1]
Mojo     [8]
NME7/10[9]
The Observer     [10]
Pitchfork7.9/10[3]
Rolling Stone     [11]
Spin8/10[12]
Uncut8/10[13]

At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 79, based on 20 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[5] Tiny Mix Tapes said "both her songs and her subject matter hold back from shocking the listener by virtue of their content, and yet they make a startling impact—creating a headspace that leads to nowhere in the same moment that it paves the way to salvation."[14] The Guardian wrote: "The album wrestles with many of the same ideas [as Innocence Is Kinky], set against an erotic sonic futurescape of spoken word, warped choirs, sci-fi electronics and her typically pillow-soft vocals.... It’s provocative, but these are ideas rarely heard in pop, which makes it all the more compelling."[1] Consequence of Sound described the album as "an understated mesh of free jazz and artful improvisation, guiding us out of the nightmare capitalism has dreamed for us and into sexual liberation and individual rebirth."[6] Rolling Stone said "Apocalypse, girl is a shift toward orchestral pop after the noisy rock of 2013's Innocence Is Kinky, but Hval loses none of her avant-garde inclinations in the process."[11] Pitchfork said: "Like all of her best work, it finds new ways to provoke, and new parts of your brain to light up."[3]

Accolades

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Publication Accolade Rank Ref.
Drowned in Sound Favorite Albums of the Year 2015
10
[15]
The Guardian The Best Albums of 2015
32
[16]
Pitchfork The 50 Best Albums of 2015
42
[17]
Pitchfork The 200 Best Albums of the 2010s
88
[18]
The Quietus Best Albums of 2015
16
[19]
The Skinny The 50 Best Albums of 2015
6
[20]
Sputnikmusic Top 50 Albums of 2015
40
[21]
Stereogum The 50 Best Albums of 2015
14
[22]
Tiny Mix Tapes Favorite 50 Music Releases of 2015
23
[23]
Vulture The 10 Best Albums of 2015
3
[24]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Jenny Hval, except where noted

No.TitleLength
1."Kingsize"2:25
2."Take Care of Yourself"3:01
3."That Battle Is Over"4:35
4."White Underground" (Hval, Lasse Marhaug)2:20
5."Heaven"4:53
6."Why This?"3:37
7."Some Days"0:41
8."Sabbath"3:46
9."Angels and Anaemia"3:27
10."Holy Land" (Hval, Marhaug)9:59
Total length:38:44

Notes

  • "Kingsize" quotes and translated the poem "En Stor Sten af en Lille sten at Være" by Mette Moestrup.[25]

Personnel

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Credits adapted from the liner notes of Apocalypse, Girl.[25]

  • Jenny Hval – vocals, effects, keyboards, arrangements, recording
  • Håvard Volden – guitar, bass
  • Kyrre Laastad – drums
  • Øystein Moen – synths, mellotron
  • Okkyung Lee – cello
  • Thor Harris – various mallets, percussion
  • Rhodri Davies – harp
  • Lara Myrvoll – beats (track 5)
  • Syster Alma – sampling
  • Lasse Marhaug – production, mixing, arrangements, recording
  • Rob Halverson – additional recording
  • Sam Grant – additional recording
  • Marcus Schmickler – mastering
  • Zia Anger – photography
  • Lisbeth Vogler – cover

Charts

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Chart (2015) Peak
position
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[26] 81

References

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  1. ^ a b c Hutchinson, Kate (4 June 2015). "Jenny Hval: Apocalypse, Girl review – provocative, compelling art-pop". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  2. ^ Crawford, Anwen (June 22, 2015). "Jenny Hval's "Apocalypse, girl"". The New Yorker. Retrieved August 5, 2017.
  3. ^ a b c Raymer, Miles (9 June 2015). "Jenny Hval: Apocalypse, girl". Pitchfork. Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  4. ^ "Apocalypse, Girl by Jenny Hval reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  5. ^ a b "Reviews for Apocalypse, Girl by Jenny Hval". Metacritic. Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  6. ^ a b Corcoran, Nina (8 June 2015). "Jenny Hval – Apocalypse, girl". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  7. ^ Hunter-Tilney, Ludovic (6 June 2015). "Jenny Hval: Apocalypse, girl — review". Financial Times. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
  8. ^ "Jenny Hval: Apocalypse, Girl". Mojo (260): 92. July 2015.
  9. ^ "7 Great Albums That May Have Passed You By This Week". NME. 29 May 2015. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  10. ^ Fox, Killian (7 June 2015). "Jenny Hval: Apolcalypse, Girl review – ironic, funny and frequently brilliant". The Observer. Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  11. ^ a b Mapes, Jillian (12 June 2015). "Apocalypse, girl". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 5, 2017.
  12. ^ Brown, Harley (10 June 2015). "Review: Jenny Hval Fingers the Intersection of Capitalism and Sexuality on 'Apocalypse, girl'". Spin. Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  13. ^ O'Dair, Marcus (July 2015). "Jenny Hval: Apocalypse, Girl". Uncut (218): 77.
  14. ^ Birkut. "Jenny Hval – Apocalypse, girl". Tiny Mix Tapes. Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  15. ^ "Drowned in Sound's Favorite Albums of the Year 2015". Drowned in Sound. December 17, 2015. Archived from the original on April 16, 2016. Retrieved August 5, 2017.
  16. ^ "The Best Albums of 2015". The Guardian. December 2, 2015. Retrieved December 14, 2015.
  17. ^ "The 50 Best Albums of 2015". Pitchfork. December 16, 2015. Retrieved December 16, 2015.
  18. ^ "The 200 Best Albums of the 2010s". Pitchfork. October 8, 2019. Retrieved October 9, 2019.
  19. ^ "The Quietus Albums Of 2015". The Quietus. December 7, 2015. Retrieved August 5, 2017.
  20. ^ "The 50 Best Albums Of 2015". The Skinny. December 7, 2015. Retrieved August 5, 2017.
  21. ^ "Staff's Top 50 Albums of 2015". Sputnikmusic. December 16, 2015. Retrieved August 5, 2017.
  22. ^ "The 50 Best Albums Of 2015". Stereogum. December 1, 2015. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  23. ^ "Favorite 50 Music Releases". Tiny Mix Tapes. December 23, 2015. Retrieved August 5, 2017.
  24. ^ "The 10 Best Albums of 2015". vulture.com. December 8, 2015. Retrieved August 5, 2017.
  25. ^ a b Apocalypse, Girl (Media notes). Jenny Hval. Su Tissue. 2015.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  26. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Jenny Hval – Apocalypse, Girl" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 May 2020.