23
Studio album by
Blonde Redhead
ReleasedApril 10, 2007 (2007-04-10)
Recorded2006
Studio
  • The Magic Shop (New York City, New York)
  • Stay Gold (New York City)
Genre
Length43:23
Label4AD
ProducerBlonde Redhead
Blonde Redhead chronology
The Secret Society of Butterflies
(2005)		 23
(2007)		 Penny Sparkle
(2010)
Singles from 23
  1. "23"
    Released: April 2, 2007
  2. "Silently"
    Released: May 28, 2007

23 is the seventh studio album by American alternative rock band Blonde Redhead. It released on April 10, 2007 by 4AD.

Background

23 was self-produced by Blonde Redhead.[9] The members of the band stated that while working on 23, they aimed to be more "spontaneous" in their songwriting; "for simplicity and clarity"; and to avoid overanalyzing their compositions.[9] Drummer Simone Pace said that he found it "nerve-wracking" to begin recording the album with only loose ideas for songs.[9] Mitchell Froom collaborated with Blonde Redhead for several days in the middle of the album's recording period, assisting the band on two tracks, "Silently" and "Top Ranking".[9]

Lead vocalist Kazu Makino admitted that making 23 "wasn't an entirely enjoyable experience", adding: "Without a producer, a referee, we could really get on each other's cases. It got intense."[9] Guitarist Amedeo Pace stated that the band was unsure of the album's direction until the mixing stage.[9]

Artist Alex Gross designed the album's cover art.[10]

Release

23 was released by the label 4AD on April 10, 2007 in the United States.[11] It debuted at number 63 on the American Billboard 200 albums chart, selling roughly 11,000 copies in its first week of release.[12] In the United Kingdom, the album was released on April 16, 2007.[11]

The track "23" was released on April 2, 2007 as a one-track 7-inch vinyl single.[13] "Silently" was released on May 28, 2007 as a digital EP featuring the additional tracks "(We Are a Real Team) Harry and I" and "Signs Along the Path",[14] and as a 7-inch vinyl single featuring an alternate version of "(We Are a Real Team) Harry and I" on the B-side.[15]

Melodie McDaniel directed the first official music video for "23".[16] Mike Mills directed music videos for five of the album's tracks: "23", "My Impure Hair", "Silently", "The Dress" and "Top Ranking".[17] The "Top Ranking" video stars actress Miranda July.[18]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic83/100[19]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
The A.V. ClubA−[20]
Entertainment WeeklyA−[6]
The Guardian[21]
Mojo[22]
Pitchfork7.0/10[23]
Q[24]
Spin[8]
Uncut8/10[25]
Urb[26]

23 was met with critical acclaim. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from professional critics, the album received an average score of 83, based on 30 reviews.[19] Heather Phares of AllMusic noted that on 23, Blonde Redhead "trades the cloistered chamber rock" of their previous album Misery Is a Butterfly (2004) "for tone-bending dream pop and subtle electronics".[2] She found that "while the wide open spaces sound a little bare at first, this streamlined approach ends up making this Blonde Redhead's loveliest and most accessible work yet."[2] The A.V. Club's Michaelangelo Matos said that the band's stylistic shift toward a "softer" sound "fits them exceptionally well."[20] Entertainment Weekly critic Simon Vozick-Levinson praised 23 as "an enthralling listen, proving once and for all that they deserve the wide success of fellow travelers like Radiohead and Sonic Youth."[6]

Pitchfork's D. Shawn Bosler was more reserved in his praise, finding the songs on 23 to be "well-written" but overproduced.[23] Dave Simpson of The Guardian felt that the album is marred by "muddy, unfocused production", despite having "more than most seventh albums' share of otherworldly pop delights."[21] Joe Gross of Spin stated that the band lapses into "overheated ambience", and was particularly critical of Amedeo Pace's "wailing, overemotive" vocals.[8]

At the end of 2007, American webzine Somewherecold listed 23 as one of the year's best albums.[27] In 2016, Pitchfork ranked 23 as the 30th best shoegaze album of all time.[5]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Blonde Redhead (Kazu Makino, Amedeo Pace and Simone Pace)

No.TitleLength
1."23"5:18
2."Dr. Strangeluv"4:47
3."The Dress"4:00
4."SW"4:35
5."Spring and by Summer Fall"4:15
6."Silently"3:57
7."Publisher"4:01
8."Heroine"4:11
9."Top Ranking"3:27
10."My Impure Hair"4:52
Total length:43:23
iTunes Store edition bonus track
No.TitleLength
11."(We Are a Real Team) Harry and I"8:03
Total length:51:26
Japanese edition bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
11."Signs Along the Path"3:45
12."(We Are a Real Team) Harry and I"8:03
Total length:55:11

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.[10]

Blonde Redhead

  • Kazu Makino
  • Amedeo Pace
  • Simone Pace

Additional musicians

Production

Design

Charts

Chart (2007) Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[28] 52
Belgian Alternative Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[29] 31
French Albums (SNEP)[30] 77
Italian Albums (FIMI)[31] 38
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[32] 196
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[33] 100
UK Albums (OCC)[34] 152
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[35] 13
US Billboard 200[36] 63
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[37] 4
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[38] 20

References

  1. ↑ Corcoran, Nina (2023-10-02). "Blonde Redhead's Kazu Makino on the Music That Made Her". Features. Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2023-10-08.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Phares, Heather. "23 – Blonde Redhead". AllMusic. Retrieved June 1, 2016.
  3. ↑ Katzif, Mike (September 5, 2010). "First Listen: Blonde Redhead, 'Penny Sparkle'". NPR Music. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  4. ↑ Howe, Brian (April 11, 2007). "Blonde Redhead – 23". Paste. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
  5. 1 2 "The 50 Best Shoegaze Albums of All Time". Pitchfork. October 24, 2016. p. 3. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  6. 1 2 3 Vozick-Levinson, Simon (April 9, 2007). "23". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on January 18, 2018. Retrieved June 1, 2016.
  7. ↑ Purdum, Grant "Gumshoe" (April 9, 2007). "Blonde Redhead – 23". Tiny Mix Tapes. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
  8. 1 2 3 Gross, Joe (April 2007). "Blonde Redhead: 23". Spin. Vol. 23, no. 4. p. 86. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Chick, Stevie. "Blonde Redhead Biography". blonderedhead23.com. Archived from the original on November 29, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2018.
  10. 1 2 23 (liner notes). Blonde Redhead. 4AD. 2007. CAD 2717CD.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  11. 1 2 "Blonde Redhead: About 23". blonderedhead23.com. Archived from the original on November 28, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2018.
  12. ↑ Hasty, Katie (April 18, 2007). "'NOW' Remains No. 1 As Bright Eyes Debuts High". Billboard. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
  13. ↑ "Blonde Redhead: '23'". 4AD. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  14. ↑ "Silently – EP by Blonde Redhead". United States: Apple Music. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  15. ↑ "Blonde Redhead: 'Silently'". 4AD. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  16. ↑ Gottlieb, Steven (May 1, 2007). "New Release: Blonde Redhead '23'". VideoStatic. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  17. ↑ Perez, Rodrigo (May 21, 2007). "Miranda July Stars In The New Mike Mills-Lensed Blonde Redhead Video; 4 More Clips Revealed". The Playlist. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  18. ↑ "Blonde Redhead and Miranda July". Paper. July 17, 2007. Archived from the original on May 15, 2018. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  19. 1 2 "23 by Blonde Redhead Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  20. 1 2 Matos, Michaelangelo (April 24, 2007). "Blonde Redhead: 23". The A.V. Club. Retrieved June 1, 2016.
  21. 1 2 Simpson, Dave (April 13, 2007). "Blonde Redhead, 23". The Guardian. Retrieved June 1, 2016.
  22. ↑ Barnes, Mike (May 2007). "Blonde Redhead: 23". Mojo. No. 162. p. 110.
  23. 1 2 Bosler, D. Shawn (April 11, 2007). "Blonde Redhead: 23". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 1, 2016.
  24. ↑ Yates, Matt (May 2007). "Blonde Redhead: 23". Q. No. 250. p. 123.
  25. ↑ Pinnock, Tom (October 2016). "How to Buy... Blonde Redhead". Uncut. No. 233. p. 49.
  26. ↑ Wasfie, Giselle Zado (April 2007). "Blonde Redhead: 23". Urb. No. 145. p. 100.
  27. ↑ Lamoreaux, Jason T. (December 30, 2007). "SWC Awards 2007". Somewherecold. Archived from the original on April 12, 2018. Retrieved September 30, 2020.
  28. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Blonde Redhead – 23" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
  29. ↑ "Alternatieve Albums" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. May 5, 2007. Retrieved July 18, 2021.
  30. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Blonde Redhead – 23". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
  31. ↑ "Italiancharts.com – Blonde Redhead – 23". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 14, 2018.
  32. ↑ "23 | ブロンド・レッドヘッド" (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on September 19, 2020. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
  33. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Blonde Redhead – 23". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
  34. ↑ "Chart Log UK: Darren B – David Byrne". Zobbel.de. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  35. ↑ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 29, 2018.
  36. ↑ "Blonde Redhead Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 14, 2018.
  37. ↑ "Blonde Redhead Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 14, 2018.
  38. ↑ "Blonde Redhead Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 14, 2018.
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