Funeral Sky is the debut album of the indie folk[4] band Reuben and the Dark, though the lead vocalist Reuben Bullock had released two solo albums preceding this with members of the same band.
| Funeral Sky | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 2014 | |||
| Genre | Indie folk | |||
| Length | 40:12 | |||
| Label | Arts & Crafts | |||
| Producer | Christopher Lloyd Hayden, Stephen Kozmeniuk | |||
| Reuben and the Dark chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| Popmatters |   [2] |
| Exclaim! | [3] |
The song Black Water, was later used in the trailer for 2019 film El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie.[5]
Production
editThe recording of the album came about because Reuben Bullock, the singer and guitarist of the band, happened to meet Christopher Hayden in Mexico whilst on vacation. This led to some sessions in Mexico followed by more in Canada, before Stephen Kozmeniuk was brought in to record more tracks.[6]
Critical reception
editZachary Houle, writing for Popmatters, gave the album six stars out of ten, and whilst he liked the debut, he had reservations about some of the tracks. "Funeral Sky is a engaging listen, even if it doesn’t fire on all cylinders as one would like. The folksiness of the album is enjoyable, and even when the record stumbles, there’s something of interest to have for the listener."[2] Matt Bobkin, writing in Exclaim!, had similar sentiments to Houle, stating; "The band's identity oscillates between pop craftsmen and languid folkies, with the album at its best when they hit that sweet spot in the middle. Funeral Sky is a decent debut, but the band definitely sounds like they have potential for something greater."[3]
During the 2015 Canadian federal election campaign, it was revealed that Funeral Sky was one of the albums that Justin Trudeau was listening to on the campaign trail.[7]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Bow and Arrow" | 3:19 |
| 2. | "Devil's Time" | 3:40 |
| 3. | "Rolling Stone" | 4:17 |
| 4. | "Shoulderblade" | 3:47 |
| 5. | "Standing Still" | 3:53 |
| 6. | "Marionette" | 4:45 |
| 7. | "A Memory's Lament" | 3:32 |
| 8. | "The River" | 4:04 |
| 9. | "Can't See the Light" | 3:46 |
| 10. | "Funeral Sky" | 2:35 |
| 11. | "Black Water" | 2:35 |
| Total length: | 40:12 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Winter's Widow" | 4:04 |
| 13. | "The Rain" | 3:30 |
| 14. | "Standing Still (alternate version)" | 4:52 |
| 15. | "Bow and Arrow (alternate version)" | 4:00 |
| 16. | "Marionette (alternate version)" | 3:37 |
| 17. | "Red River" | 3:53 |
References
edit- ^ "Funeral Sky - Reuben and the Dark | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
- ^ a b Houle, Zachary (May 28, 2014). "Reuben and the Dark: Funeral Sky". PopMatters. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
- ^ a b Bobkin, Matt (May 26, 2014). "Reuben and the Dark Funeral Sky". exclaim.ca. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
- ^ Hudson, Alex (May 28, 2015). "Reuben and the Dark "Bow and Arrow"". exclaim.ca. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
- ^ Agar, Chris (September 24, 2019). "Breaking Bad Movie Trailer Song (& What It Means For El Camino)". Screen Rant. Archived from the original on July 24, 2021. Retrieved December 23, 2023.
- ^ Bell, Mike (May 27, 2014). "Calgary band Reuben and the Dark see the light with release of Arts & Crafts debut Funeral Sky". Calgary Herald. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
- ^ Raynor, Ben (October 12, 2015). "Trudeau's brooding folk - Tunes on the trail: First in a series". infoweb.newsbank.com. Retrieved December 27, 2019.
- ^ "Reuben and the Dark "Bow and Arrow"". exclaim.ca. May 28, 2015. Retrieved December 26, 2015.