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Saves the World

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Saves the World is the second studio album by American band Muna, released through RCA Records on September 6, 2019. The album was promoted by the singles "Number One Fan", "Who", "Stayaway", and "Taken", receiving positive reviews.

Saves the World
Studio album by
Muna
ReleasedSeptember 6, 2019 (2019-09-06)
Genre
Length43:50
LabelRCA
Producer
Muna chronology
About U
(2017) 		Saves the World
(2019) 		Muna
(2022)
Singles from Saves the World
  1. "Number One Fan"
    Released: June 7, 2019
  2. "Who"
    Released: June 28, 2019
  3. "Stayaway"
    Released: August 16, 2019
  4. "Taken"
    Released: September 5, 2019
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.6/10[1]
Metacritic82/100[2]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Clash9/10[4]
DIY[5]
The Independent[6]
NME[7]
Pitchfork7.7/10[8]
Q[9]
Rolling Stone[10]

Background

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After supporting English singer Harry Styles during his 2017–2018 tour, the band took a hiatus until lead singer Katie Gavin concocted the opening verse of the song "Number One Fan" six months later, starting the album's songwriting process.[11][12] According to guitarist Josette Maskin, the album title represents the band's belief that "saving yourself is the key to saving the world".[13] Maskin also said Saves the World was meant to evoke optimism in listeners.[14]

Music and lyrics

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Saves the World is a pop,[8] alternative rock,[8] synth-rock,[10] indie pop,[15] synth-pop,[16] electropop,[10] alt-pop,[17] and power pop[10] album. Thematically autobiographical, Saves the World has been described as "an emotional excavation."[18] Its lyrics depict explorations of "addiction", "alienation", "romantic desolation", and "cycles of abusive behavior".[11] The band approached the album with the intention of crafting a minimalist sound, with musically shorter sentences in comparison to those in their first album.[14]

Release and promotion

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"Number One Fan" was released as the lead single from the album on June 7, 2019,[19] followed by the releases of "Who" and "Stayaway" on June 28 and August 16, respectively.[20][21] Saves the World was released on September 6, 2019.[3] Muna embarked on a tour within the United States from September to October 2019 in promotion of the album.[22]

Critical reception

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Saves the World garnered "rave reviews" upon its release.[11] At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album holds an average score of 82 based on eight reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[2]

In a perfect five-star review, Alexandra Pollard of The Independent asserted that Saves the World set up the band to joining "the ranks of those who have brazenly borrowed their sound".[6] Rolling Stone's Jonathan Bernstein awarded the album four stars out of five and praised its "concise and clever" yet "never overly precious" songwriting.[10] Writing for Pitchfork, Eve Barlow highlighted how the album was "as sentimental as it is versatile".[8] Marcy Donelson of AllMusic commented that while the album's lyrics were more effective than its hooks, it contained "a handful of low-key anthems".[3]

Saves the World placed on several critics' lists of the best albums of 2019. It was ranked as the 41st best by Billboard,[15] the 33rd by The Guardian,[16] the 15th by The Independent,[23] and included on an unranked list by Paper.[24]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Muna, except "Number One Fan," "Stayaway," and "Taken" by Muna and Rebecca Gresang

Saves the World track listing
No.TitleProducer(s)Length
1."Grow"Muna1:47
2."Number One Fan"
3:25
3."Stayaway"
3:31
4."Who"
  • Crossey
  • Muna
3:08
5."Navy Blue"
  • Crossey
  • Muna
3:58
6."Never"
  • Crossey
  • Muna
4:03
7."Pink Light"
  • Crossey
  • Muna
4:11
8."Taken"Muna4:05
9."Hands Off"
  • Crossey
  • Muna
3:39
10."Good News (Ya-Ya Song)"
  • Crossey
  • Muna
4:10
11."Memento"Muna2:01
12."It's Gonna Be Okay, Baby"Muna5:44
Total length:43:50

Charts

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Chart performance for Saves the World
Chart (2019) Peak
position
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[25] 7

Release history

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Release history and formats for Saves the World
Region Date Format Label Ref.
Various September 6, 2019
RCA [26]

References

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  1. ^ "Saves the World by MUNA reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved August 19, 2020.
  2. ^ a b "Saves the World by MUNA Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  3. ^ a b c Donelson, Marcy. "Saves the World - MUNA". AllMusic. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  4. ^ Murray, Robin (September 6, 2019). "Muna – Saves The World". Clash. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  5. ^ Tipple, Ben (September 6, 2019). "MUNA - Saves The World". DIY. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  6. ^ a b Pollard, Alexandra; White, Adam; O'Connor, Roisin (September 5, 2019). "Album reviews: MUNA – Saves the World, Iggy Pop – Free and Chrissie Hynde – Valve Bone Woe". The Independent. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  7. ^ Hunt, El (September 3, 2019). "Muna – 'Saves the World' review". NME. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  8. ^ a b c d Barlow, Eve (September 7, 2019). "MUNA: Saves the World Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  9. ^ "Saves the World". Q (published October 2019). September 6, 2019. p. 114 – via Metacritic.
  10. ^ a b c d e Bernstein, Jonathan (September 6, 2019). "MUNA's 'Saves the World' Is a Synth-Rock Course In Deep California Blues". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  11. ^ a b c Savage, Mark (September 17, 2019). "Muna: Saving the world, one breath at a time". BBC Online. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  12. ^ Maicki, Salvatore (September 11, 2019). "MUNA are going to save the world". The Fader. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  13. ^ Cragg, Michael (June 8, 2019). "Muna on Harry Styles, imposter syndrome and Trump-baiting". The Guardian. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  14. ^ a b Smyth, David (September 6, 2019). "MUNA interview: 'We don't think we can be saved by politicians at the moment'". Evening Standard. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
  15. ^ a b "The 50 Best Albums of 2019: Staff Picks". Billboard. December 10, 2019. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
  16. ^ a b "The 50 best albums of 2019: the full list". The Guardian. December 20, 2019. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
  17. ^ Walker, Sophie (December 20, 2021). "Silk Chiffon and the Reintroduction of MUNA". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved May 9, 2022.
  18. ^ Whelan, Catherine; Tidmarsh, Kevin; Branch, Natasha (September 4, 2019). "Alt-Pop Band MUNA Talks About Its New Album 'Saves The World'". NPR. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
  19. ^ Exposito, Suzy (June 7, 2019). "Muna Preach Unabashed Self-Love in New Single, 'Number One Fan'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  20. ^ Schramm, Molly (June 28, 2019). "MUNA Deal with the Helplessness of Heartbreak in Video for Their Latest Single "Who"". Paste. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  21. ^ Martoccio, Angie (August 16, 2019). "Watch Muna Avoid the Past in New Video for 'Stayaway'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  22. ^ Martoccio, Angie (June 18, 2019). "Muna Announces Fall Headline Tour". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
  23. ^ "The 50 best albums of 2019 – from Tyler, the Creator's IGOR to Weyes Blood's Titanic Rising". The Independent. December 20, 2019. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
  24. ^ "PAPER's Top 20 Albums of 2019". Paper. December 18, 2019. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
  25. ^ "Muna Chart History (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved July 5, 2020.
  26. ^ "Saves the World by MUNA". Apple Music. September 6, 2019. Retrieved May 27, 2020.
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