Cherryland is the sixth studio album released by American electropop singer-songwriter The Ready Set. The album was released independently on October 27, 2023, and is his first album in seven years since his 2016 album, I Will Be Nothing Without Your Love.
| Cherryland | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 27, 2023 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 33:03 | |||
| Label | The Ready Set Music | |||
| Producer | Jordan Witizigreuter | |||
| The Ready Set chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Cherryland | ||||
| ||||
Background and release
editFollowing the release of V1 and V2, Witzigreuter temporary took a step back from The Ready Set in 2019 and adopted a new name, Onlychild. According to Witzigreuter at the time, he wanted to create "raw tracks" such as "Teeth" and "Crimson Red".[2]
Cherryland is The Ready Set's first album in seven years since his 2016 album, I Will Be Nothing Without Your Love. The album was announced in August 2023.[3] Witzigreuter stated that the theme of album deals with, "accepting yourself as an artist and learning to stop overthinking everything so much."[4] He described the record as sad, joyful, anxious and hopeful. He also stated that the idea of Cherryland came up two years ago where parts of the songs were written years ago, while some were written weeks ago.[5]
"Who You Really Are" was released on May 26, 2023 as the lead single from the album.[6] Witzigreuter spoke about the track with idobi Radio: "It's really chaotic sounding... It may be polarizing, which I kind of wanted. The whole vibe of it feels like sort of a mix of what all of the new stuff is, it's so many different things at once. It's supposed to feel really chaotic, it just feels like anxiety. Which sort of sums up a lot of the thesis of this and that. But it's hopeful, too."[6] The music video for the single was released on June 9, 2023, and was directed by Ryan Blewett.[7] "Teammate" was released on July 7, 2023 as the album's second single.[8] "ACT 2" was released as the album's third single on August 18, 2023.[1] "Loose Change" was released on September 29, 2023 as the fourth and final single from the album.[9]
Promotion
editIn support of the album's release, The Ready Set joined Boys Like Girls on the Speaking Our Language tour in the fall of 2023.[1] He also announced a concert show at the Echo in Los Angeles for May 7, 2024.[10]
Reception
editKeaton Mae of The Honey Pop gave the album a positive review. She praised the album's first track, "Gateway" for its opening and strong chorus. She described the fifth track, "Telemetry" as a "full evolution of a certain kind of TRS song," comparing the track to previous Ready Set songs such as "World Owes Nothing" and "The Witching Hour". She complimented the writing on the tenth track "2 & 3". She called the second track, "Cherryland", "mindblowing," and praised the vocals and pop sound.[11] Maria Serra of idobi Radio stated that the album possesses "game-changing bouncy synth-pop" tracks and praised the single "Act 2", noting how Witzigreuter "has matured into an even more authentic version of himself."[12]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Gateway" | 3:12 |
| 2. | "Cherryland" | 2:34 |
| 3. | "Loose Change" | 2:17 |
| 4. | "Who You Really Are" | 3:20 |
| 5. | "Telemetry" | 2:56 |
| 6. | "KO" | 2:13 |
| 7. | "Echo" | 3:36 |
| 8. | "Act 2" | 2:09 |
| 9. | "Safety Raft" | 2:54 |
| 10. | "2 & 3" | 4:26 |
| 11. | "Teammate" | 3:21 |
| Total length: | 33:03 | |
Release history
edit| Region | Date | Format(s) | Label | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Various | October 27, 2023 | The Ready Set Music | [14] | |
| May 10, 2024 | [13] |
References
edit- ^ a b c Maria Serra (August 18, 2023). "The Ready Set Gets Sentimental In New Single ACT 2". idobi Radio. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
- ^ Maria Serra (March 17, 2021). "Jordan Witzigreuter and Colin Dieden are finally able to write more honestly". Alternative Press. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
- ^ Maria Serra (August 25, 2023). "The Ready Set Announces Sweet Upcoming Record, Cherryland". idobi Radio. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
- ^ Keaton Mae (October 20, 2023). "Exclusive Interview: The Ready Set Takes Us To Cherryland". The Honey Pop. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
- ^ @thereadyset (October 27, 2023). "cherryland is out today. my first album in.. 7 years" – via Instagram.
- ^ a b Paige Owens (May 26, 2023). "The Ready Set Return With Who You Really Are". idobi Radio. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
- ^ Keaton Mae (June 10, 2023). "The Ready Set Is Back And Ready To Slay With Who You Really Are". The Honey Pop. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
- ^ Maggie Schneider (July 7, 2023). "The Ready Set Releases Hopeful New Single Teammate". idobi Radio. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
- ^ @thereadyset (September 24, 2023). "loose change 9.29 ✔️" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ @thereadyset (March 18, 2024). "cherryland, live 5.7.24 the new album + more 🍒" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Keaton Mae (October 29, 2023). "The Ready Set's Cherryland Is Our Seventh Wonder". The Honey Pop. Retrieved November 11, 2023.
- ^ Maria Serra (December 21, 2023). "9 Reunion Releases That We Can't Get Enough Of". idobi Radio. Retrieved April 23, 2024.
- ^ a b "Cherryland (Deluxe) - Album by The Ready Set". Apple Music. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
- ^ "Cherryland - Album by The Ready Set". Apple Music. Retrieved October 29, 2023.