Carry the Meek is the debut album by Irish band Ham Sandwich. It was released on 18 February 2008 and has received average to favourable reviews. It didn't initially appear on streaming platforms, being released across them on 18th April 2023 for the band's 20th anniversary
| Carry the Meek | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 15 February 2008 | |||
| Recorded | 2006–07[1] | |||
| Studio | JAM Studios (Kells, County Meath) and Headfort House (Kells, County Meath)[2] | |||
| Genre | Indie rock | |||
| Length | 41:29 | |||
| Label | Route 109A Records | |||
| Producer | Karl Odlum | |||
| Ham Sandwich chronology | ||||
| ||||
Production
editHam Sandwich had been performing live for several years and had already released several singles before beginning work on their first album in 2006. Carry the Meek was recorded starting at JAM Studios, Kells with Producer Martin Quinn and also in a home-made studio at Headfort House in their home-town of Kells, produced by Karl Odlum and mastered by Fred Kevorkian.[2][3] The album was released on 15 February 2008 on the band's own label, Route 109A Records.[4][1] On the day that the album was released the band won the Hope for 2008 Award at the Meteor Music Awards.[5]
The artwork for the album was designed with the help of the band's fans, who were encouraged to send the band their photographs on the theme of heartbreak.[6]
Reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Hot Press |   [7] |
| RTÉ.ie | [8] |
| entertainment.ie | [9] |
| Irish Independent | [10] |
Upon its release the album peaked at 23 on the Irish album charts.[11] Reviews from the Irish media were generally positive.
Patrick Freyne of Hot Press gave the album 4 out of 5 stars, saying "Generally the tracks have a real heart tugging quality to them, with rising melodies and great musical diversions as middle eighths – the band really know how to build a song to an epic climax", singling out the vocal interplay between McNamee and Farrell as the band's "secret weapon".[7] Harry Guerin writing for RTÉ Entertainment gave an equally positive review, declaring that "Ham Sandwich turn in as assured and alluring a debut as you'll get".[8]
A less positive review by Lauren Murphy of entertainment.ie gave the album 2 out of 5 stars, saying that "Carry the Meek is a disappointing, characterless album that offers little or no sense of individuality. Like a ham sandwich, it fills a void and will do for the time being - but sometimes, you need to sink your teeth into something a bit more nutritious".[9]
Track listing
editAll tracks are written by Ham Sandwich
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "St. Christopher" | 4:43 |
| 2. | "Keepsake" | 3:21 |
| 3. | "Click...Click...Boom!" | 3:20 |
| 4. | "Never Talk" | 4:29 |
| 5. | "Words" | 3:48 |
| 6. | "Broken Glass" | 3:41 |
| 7. | "Sad Songs" | 4:40 |
| 8. | "Sleep" | 4:37 |
| 9. | "Ashes" | 3:36 |
| 10. | "Thru the Grass" | 5:14 |
| Total length: | 41:29 | |
Sources:[12]
Personnel
edit- Ham Sandwich
- Niamh Farrell - lead vocals
- Podge McNamee - lead vocals, guitar
- Brian Darcy - guitar
- John Moore - bass
- Ollie Murphy - drums
- Production
- Karl Odlum - production
- Martin Quinn - engineering[13]
Charts
edit| Chart (2008) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Irish Album Chart[11] | 23 |
References
edit- ^ a b Donnelly, Dave. "Ham Sandwich Biography". Allmusic. Retrieved 17 May 2015.
- ^ a b Kelly, Tom (23 February 2008). "Ham Sandwich is listener's choice as Kells band scoops Meteor". Meath Chronicle. Retrieved 21 May 2015.
- ^ "Big year ahead for Irish acts: We preview the key albums". Hot Press. 15 January 2008. Archived from the original on 6 October 2012. Retrieved 21 May 2015.
- ^ "Ham Sandwich announce album & tour". Hot Press. 7 January 2008. Archived from the original on 19 July 2011. Retrieved 17 May 2015.
- ^ "Meteor eight-in-a-row for Westlife". The Irish Times. 16 February 2008. Retrieved 19 February 2008.
- ^ "Are you heartbroken? Ham Sandwich want your pics". 19 July 2007. Archived from the original on 19 July 2011. Retrieved 21 May 2015.
- ^ a b Freyne, Patrick (11 February 2008). "Carry The Meek". Hot Press. Archived from the original on 28 March 2013. Retrieved 20 May 2015.
- ^ a b Guerin, Harry (11 March 2011). "Ham Sandwich - Carry the Meek". RTÉ.ie. Archived from the original on 25 May 2015. Retrieved 20 May 2015.
- ^ a b Murphy, Lauren (21 February 2008). "Ham Sandwich - Carry the Meek". entertainment.ie. Retrieved 20 May 2015.
- ^ "Ham Sandwich". Irish Independent. 15 February 2008. Archived from the original on 17 October 2012. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
- ^ a b "Discography Ham Sandwich". irish-charts.com. Retrieved 20 April 2015.
- ^ Carry the Meek (booklet). Ham Sandwich. Route 109A Records. 2008. rou0006.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ "JAM Recording Studios - Credits of Projects worked on by our team". JAM Studios. Retrieved 25 May 2015.