Obscurities is a compilation album by Stephin Merritt, released in 2011 on Merge Records. It consists of B-sides, compilations cuts, and various other previously unreleased material.
| Obscurities | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Compilation album by | ||||
| Released | August 23, 2011 | |||
| Genre | Indie pop | |||
| Length | 38:12 | |||
| Label | Merge Records | |||
| Stephin Merritt chronology | ||||
| ||||
Reception
edit| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 74/100[1] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [2] |
| American Songwriter | [3] |
| The A.V. Club | B[4] |
| Consequence of Sound | B[5] |
| Drowned in Sound | 7/10[6] |
| MSN Music (Expert Witness) | A–[7] |
| MusicOMH | [8] |
| Pitchfork | 7.5/10[9] |
| PopMatters | 7/10[10] |
| Rolling Stone | [11] |
On Metacritic, Obscurities has a score of 74 out of 100, indicating that it has received "generally favorable reviews" from critics.[1] Robert Christgau gave the album an A− grade and wrote that he was "swept off [his] feet by Merritt thoughtfully intoning some little green men's 'Song From Venus.'"[7]
Track listing
editInformation adapted from LP liner notes.[12]
All tracks are written by Stephin Merritt, except "Beach-a-Boop-Boop," by Merritt and Shirley Simms.
| No. | Title | Source | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Forever and a Day" (Previously Unreleased) | From The Song from Venus, an unfinished musical by Stephin Merritt and Daniel Handler | |
| 2. | "Rats in the Garbage of the Western World" (The Magnetic Fields) | B-Side of "All the Umbrellas in London" 7-inch single | |
| 3. | "I Don't Believe You" (The Magnetic Fields) | 7-inch single | |
| 4. | "Plant White Roses" (Buffalo Rome) | From Cooking for the Priests K Records cassette | |
| 5. | "Rot in the Sun" (The 6ths) | B-Side of "Heaven in a Black Leather Jacket" 7-inch single | |
| 6. | "The Sun and the Sea and the Sky" (Previously Unreleased) | ||
| 7. | "Yet Another Girl" (The 6ths) | From the limited edition Wasps' Nests vinyl box set | |
| 8. | "Scream ('Till You Make the Scene)" (Previously Unreleased) | ||
| 9. | "The Song from Venus" (Previously Unreleased) | From The Song from Venus | |
| 10. | "Beach-a-Boop-Boop" (The Magnetic Fields) | B-Side of "Long Vermont Roads" 7-inch single | |
| 11. | "When I'm Not Looking, You're Not There" (The Magnetic Fields) | B-Side of "I Don't Believe You" 7-inch single | |
| 12. | "Take Ecstasy With Me" (The Magnetic Fields) | From Oh, Merge compilation | |
| 13. | "When You're Young and in Love" (Previously Unreleased) | From The Song from Venus | |
| 14. | "You Are Not My Mother and I Want to Go Home" (The Gothic Archies) | From the Neil Gaiman audiobook Coraline |
Personnel
editCredits adapted from LP liner notes.[12]
Musicians
- Stephin Merritt
- Shirley Simms – voice (4), guitar (4)
- Stuart Moxham – voice (7)
- Claudia Gonson – drums (7, 10), background vocals (13)
- Susan Anway – voice (12)
Technical
- Charles Newman – engineer (1, 9, 13)
- Tom Rogers – archival engineering
- Jeff Lipton – mastering
- Gail O'Hara – photographress
- Michael Fusco – design
References
edit- ^ a b "Obscurities by Stephin Merritt". Metacritic. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- ^ Monger, James Christopher (23 August 2011). "Obscurities". Allmusic. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
- ^ Weiss, Dan (5 September 2011). "Obscurities Review". American Songwriter. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
- ^ "Obscurities Review". The A.V. Club. 23 August 2011. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
- ^ Kane, Siobhan (2011-09-01). "Album Review: Stephin Merritt – Obscurities". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- ^ Ashman, Neil (2011-09-09). "Album Review: Stephin Merritt - Obscurities". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on 2018-09-11. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- ^ a b Christgau, Robert (2011-08-23). "Fountains of Wayne/Stephin Merritt". MSN Music. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- ^ Paton, Daniel (2011-10-10). "Stephin Merritt - Obscurities". musicOMH. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- ^ Stosuy, Brandon (1 September 2011). "Obscurities Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
- ^ Pan, Arnold (21 August 2011). "Obscurities Review". PopMatters. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
- ^ Hermes, Will (2011-09-12). "Obscurities". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- ^ a b Obscurities (LP liner notes). Merge Records. 2011. MRG430.
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