604 is the debut studio album by English electronic music band Ladytron, released in the United States on 6 February 2001 by Emperor Norton Records and in the United Kingdom on 12 March 2001 by Invicta Hi-Fi. It was co-produced, engineered and mixed by Lance Thomas. Some of the tracks had been previously released on their EPs Miss Black and Her Friends (1999), Mu-Tron EP (2000) and Commodore Rock (2000).

604
Studio album by
Released6 February 2001 (2001-02-06)
Recorded1997–2000 (Liverpool, England)
Genre
Length53:35
Language
  • English
  • Bulgarian
LabelInvicta Hi-Fi
Producer
  • Ladytron
  • Lance Thomas
Ladytron chronology
Mu-Tron EP
(2000)
604
(2001)
Light & Magic
(2002)
Alternative cover
US and reissue cover
Singles from 604
  1. "He Took Her to a Movie"
    Released: 7 June 1999[3]
  2. "Playgirl"
    Released: 26 June 2000
  3. "The Way That I Found You"
    Released: 29 January 2001[4]
  4. "Playgirl (UK re-release)"
    Released: 10 December 2001

On 20 July 2004, 604 was reissued in the US with four bonus tracks, the first three being live recordings made on 16 May 2003 at the Central Military Club in Sofia, Bulgaria.[5] The January 2011 re-release of the album on Nettwerk also features these same bonus tracks.[6]

In a 2002 interview with online magazine Chaos Control, Daniel Hunt stated that the album was named after the area code for British Columbia.[7] Reuben Wu drew the cover of the European edition of 604.[8]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic81/100[9]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [10]
Chart Attack4/5[11]
Drawer BFavourable[12]
entertainment.ie     [13]
Exclaim!Favourable[14]
Muzik     [15]
NME8/10[2]
Pitchfork7.5/10[16]
PopMattersFavourable[17]
Rolling StoneFavourable[18]

604 received general acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 81, based on 11 reviews, which indicates "universal acclaim".[9]

In March 2001, 604 was selected as Album of the Month by Muzik magazine.[15]

As of July 2002, the album had sold 20,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.[19]

Singles

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"He Took Her to a Movie" was released as the album's lead single. The song was recorded for £50,[20] and features guest vocals from Lisa Eriksson of San Francisco-based electronic duo Techno Squirrels.[21] Upon its release, it was named the "Single of the Week" by NME magazine.[22] The track was inspired by Kraftwerk's 1978 song "The Model".[23]

"He Took Her to a Movie" UK 12" single[24]
No.TitleLength
1."He Took Her to a Movie" 
2."He Took Her to a Movie" (Instrumental) 
3."Movie..." (Surreal Madrid Mix) 

"Playgirl" was released as the album's second single. It peaked at number 89 on the UK Singles Chart.[25]

"Playgirl" UK CD 1 (2001)[26]
No.TitleLength
1."Playgirl" (Original 604 Version)3:49
2."Playgirl" (King of Woolworths Coming Down)7:48
3."Playgirl" (I Monster Northern Lites Mix)6:05
"Playgirl" UK CD 2 (2001)[27]
No.TitleLength
1."Playgirl" (Felix Thee Grooveretro Radio Mix)3:51
2."Playgirl" (Zombie Nation Mix)5:46
3."Playgirl" (Simian Playboy Mix)2:38

"The Way That I Found You" was released as the album's third and final single. It reached number 88 on the UK Singles Chart.[25] The single's B-side, "Holiday 601", was included on Ladytron's second studio album, Light & Magic, retitled "NuHorizons".

"The Way That I Found You" UK CD single[28]
No.TitleLength
1."The Way That I Found You"3:29
2."Holiday 601"3:57
3."Miss Black"1:52
"The Way That I Found You" UK 7" single[28]
No.TitleLength
1."The Way That I Found You"3:29
2."Holiday 601"3:57

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Ladytron, except where noted

No.TitleLength
1."Mu-Tron"2:58
2."Discotraxx"3:50
3."Another Breakfast with You"3:03
4."CSKA Sofia"2:21
5."The Way That I Found You"3:29
6."Paco!"3:00
7."Commodore Rock"4:47
8."Zmeyka"3:14
9."Playgirl"3:49
10."I'm with the Pilots"2:43
11."This Is Our Sound"4:09
12."He Took Her to a Movie"3:10
13."Laughing Cavalier"1:08
14."Ladybird" (music by Ladytron; words by Ladytron and K Grime)4:38
15."Jet Age"3:10
16."Skools Out..."4:06
Reissue bonus tracks[5][6]
No.TitleLength
17."USA vs. White Noise" (live in Sofia)4:05
18."He Took Her to a Movie" (live in Sofia)5:15
19."Commodore Rock" (live in Sofia)4:31
20."Playgirl" (Snap Ant Remix)6:13

604 (Remixed & Rare)

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On 1 September 2009, Redbird Records and Cobraside Distribution released a compilation of remixes, B-sides and rarities titled 604 (Remixed & Rare). The cover is the negative of the US cover for 604.

No.TitleLength
1."Playgirl" (Felix da Housecat Glitz Club Remix)6:37
2."He Took Her to a Movie" (Bertrand Burgalat Remix)3:46
3."Playgirl" (Tobias Neumann Mix)3:56
4."USA vs. White Noise"2:18
5."Playgirl" (Simian Playboy Mix)2:38
6."Miss Black"1:54
7."Playgirl" (Snap Ant Remix)6:14
8."Holiday 601"3:54
9."He Took Her to a Movie" (Surreal Madrid Remix)4:55
10."Olivetti Jerk"3:27
11."Playgirl" (I Monster Remix)6:08
12."Playgirl" (Tobias Neumann Club Remix)3:53
13."Playgirl" (Tommie Sunshine Remix)5:43

Personnel

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Credits adapted from the liner notes of 604.[29]

  • Ladytron – production, design
  • Lance Thomas – additional production, engineering
  • Eddy Schreyer – mastering
  • Lisa Eriksson – guest vocals on "He Took Her to a Movie"
  • Tom Dolan – design
  • Sebastian Meyer – cover photography (US edition)

Release history

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Region Date Edition Label Ref.
United States 6 February 2001 Standard Emperor Norton [30]
United Kingdom 12 March 2001 Invicta Hi-Fi [31]
Germany 26 March 2001 Labels [32]
United States 20 July 2004 Reissue Emperor Norton [5]
Germany 14 January 2011 Nettwerk [6]
United States 18 January 2011 [33]
United Kingdom 24 January 2011 [34]
604 (Remixed & Rare)
Region Date Format Label Ref.
Germany 1 September 2009 Digital download
[35]
United Kingdom [36]
United States [37]
13 December 2011 CD Nettwerk [38]
Germany 20 December 2011
  • CD
  • digital download
[39][40]
United Kingdom CD ADA [41]
Digital download Nettwerk [42]
United States [43]

References

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  1. ^ Phares, Heather. "Gravity the Seducer – Ladytron". AllMusic. Retrieved 14 December 2018.
  2. ^ a b Beaumont, Mark (27 March 2001). "Ladytron : 604". NME. Archived from the original on 20 October 2012. Retrieved 26 March 2004.
  3. ^ "Ladytron – He Took Her To A Movie (CDr, Single, Promo) at Discogs". discogs. 21 June 1999.
  4. ^ "Ladytron – The Way That I Found You (CDr) at Discogs". discogs. 3 October 2023.
  5. ^ a b c "604 (Extra tracks)". Amazon (US). 2004. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
  6. ^ a b c "Ladytron – 604". musicline.de (in German). Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  7. ^ "Ladytron". Chaos Control. 2002. Archived from the original on 16 March 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
  8. ^ Wright, Jade (25 April 2008). "Ladytron's tour de force". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 2 June 2013.
  9. ^ a b "604 by Ladytron Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved 14 December 2018.
  10. ^ Phares, Heather. "604 – Ladytron". AllMusic. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
  11. ^ Pascual, Brian (6 February 2001). "Ladytron – 604". Chart Attack. Archived from the original on 2 October 2011. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  12. ^ Doherty, Patrick (24 March 2001). "Ladytron – 604 (Emperor Norton)". Drawer B. Archived from the original on 16 March 2005. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  13. ^ Lynch, Andrew (9 April 2001). "Ladytron – 604". entertainment.ie. Archived from the original on 2 October 2011. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  14. ^ Burrows, Mike (February 2001). "Ladytron – 604". Exclaim!. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  15. ^ a b Bell, Duncan (March 2001). "Reviews" (PDF). Muzik. p. 57. ISSN 1358-541X. Retrieved 13 October 2012.
  16. ^ Richard-San, Mark (31 March 2001). "Ladytron: 604". Pitchfork. Retrieved 29 August 2006.
  17. ^ Rao, Shailesh. "Ladytron: 604". PopMatters. Archived from the original on 6 October 2013. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
  18. ^ Gaar, Gillian G. (14 February 2001). "Ladytron: 604". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 28 March 2009. Retrieved 18 September 2007.
  19. ^ Paoletta, Michael (27 July 2002). "Nü-Electro Sounds Emerges". Billboard. Vol. 114, no. 30. p. 67. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 14 December 2018.
  20. ^ Proefrock, Stacia. "Ladytron | Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
  21. ^ "Techno Squirrels: Bio". technosquirrels.com. Archived from the original on 23 June 2011. Retrieved 26 May 2011.
  22. ^ Hodgkinson, Will (7 March 2001). "The weird world of Ladytron". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 7 August 2010.[permanent dead link]
  23. ^ Forsberg, Niklas (24 April 2001). "Ladytron: 604". Release Magazine. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 30 May 2011.
  24. ^ "He Took Her to a Movie by Ladytron". Rate Your Music. Retrieved 7 September 2011.
  25. ^ a b "Ladytron". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
  26. ^ "Ladytron – Playgirl (CD1)". discogs. Retrieved 25 May 2011.
  27. ^ "Ladytron – Playgirl (CD2)". discogs. Retrieved 25 May 2011.
  28. ^ a b "Ladytron – The Way That I Found You". discogs. Retrieved 24 May 2011.
  29. ^ 604 (US reissue liner notes). Ladytron. Emperor Norton. 2004. ENR 7037-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  30. ^ "604". Amazon (US). 2001. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
  31. ^ "The Band That Ate Europe: While most groups sing about broken hearts, Ladytron write about consumer culture and their favourite buildings". London Evening Standard. London. 7 March 2001.
  32. ^ "604". Amazon (Germany) (in German). 2001. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
  33. ^ "604". Amazon (US). 2011. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
  34. ^ "604". Amazon (UK). 2011. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
  35. ^ "604 (Remixed & Rare): Ladytron: MP3-Downloads". Amazon (Germany) (in German). 2009. Archived from the original on 5 November 2012. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  36. ^ "604 (Remixed & Rare): Ladytron: MP3 Downloads". Amazon (UK). 2009. Archived from the original on 26 May 2024. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  37. ^ "604 (Remixed & Rare): Ladytron: MP3 Downloads". Amazon (US). 2009. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  38. ^ "604 (Remixed & Rare)". Amazon (US). Retrieved 17 July 2016.
  39. ^ "604 Remixed & Rare [Rmx]". Amazon (Germany) (in German). Retrieved 17 July 2016.
  40. ^ "604 (Remixed & Rare): Ladytron: MP3-Downloads". Amazon (Germany) (in German). 2011. Archived from the original on 22 August 2016. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
  41. ^ "604 (Remixed & Rare)". Amazon (UK). Retrieved 17 July 2016.
  42. ^ "604 (Remixed & Rare): Ladytron: MP3 Downloads". Amazon (UK). 2011. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
  43. ^ "604 (Remixed & Rare): Ladytron: MP3 Downloads". Amazon (US). 2011. Retrieved 17 July 2016.