Liberman
Studio album by
Vanessa Carlton
ReleasedOctober 23, 2015
RecordedMarch–July 2015
StudioReal World Studios, Playground Sound[1]
GenreIndie pop[2]
Length35:18[2]
LabelDine Alone Records
ProducerSteve Osborne, Adam Landry
Vanessa Carlton chronology
Rabbits on the Run
(2011)		 Liberman
(2015)		 Love is an Art
(2020)
Singles from Liberman
  1. "Operator"
    Released: September 25, 2015[3]
  2. "House of Seven Swords"
    Released: November 18, 2015[4]
  3. "Nothing Where Something Used to Be"
    Released: April 8, 2016[5]

Liberman is the fifth studio album by American singer-songwriter Vanessa Carlton, released in the US on October 23, 2015 and in the UK and Europe on April 29, through Dine Alone Records.[6] It is the follow-up to Carlton's 2011 album Rabbits on the Run and marks her first release since signing with Dine Alone Records.[1] The title of the album comes from an oil painting made by Carlton's late grandfather, whose given surname was Liberman.[7]

Background and writing

Following the 2011 release Rabbits on the Run, Carlton took time off to get married, start a family, and write another album. She told CBS News that these changes in her life are reflected in Liberman's songs, and that she "wanted the whole album to feel like an escape type of album, where you put it on and you feel like you're in this dreamy state."[7]

To avoid preconceived notions, demos recorded were sent to Dine Alone Records without Carlton's name attached. Label president Joel Carriere says of hearing the demos:

The songs were amazing, it was atmospheric, it kind of fit into what we're all into ... and we never would have guessed it was Vanessa Carlton because her voice has developed so much since her pop songs 14 years ago and the songwriting had obviously changed. We were, like: "Yeah, we want to do this. But what is it we're doing?"[8]

Promotion

In support of the album, Carlton embarked on the "Liberman" tour throughout portions of the United States and Canada in the fall of 2015 and winter of 2016. Special guest on the tour was Joshua Hyslop.[9][10] The tour continued in the UK and Europe in the spring of 2016.[11]

Singles

The first single, "Operator", was released for digital download on September 25, 2015.[3] A music video for the single, directed by Daniel Henry, was released on October 13, 2015. According to Carlton, the video shows the classic tale of children running away reversed, so instead the parents are running away.[12] The second single, "House of Seven Swords", was released for digital download. Since Liberman was already released, it was not released separately, like "Operator", but it was made a single on November 18, 2015.[13] Daniel Henry also directed a music video for "House of Seven Swords" which was released the same day as the single and shows Carlton playing piano and singing the song at home in Nashville. The Wall Street Journal writes of the video:

she takes her baby daughter out into the yard, making "House of Seven Swords" seem like sage advice from mother to child. In a way, Carlton says, it is. "At the same time, the song is absolutely a message to myself, too, probably," she says. Henry shot the footage they used in the video in about an hour while making a different clip with Carlton, and they fit the images to the song. "It was all very organic," she says.[14]

Steve Osborne's remix of "Nothing Where Something Used To Be" was released worldwide as the third single off Liberman on April 8, 2016.

Other songs

Other songs from Liberman were released with music and lyric videos for promotional purposes. "Young Heart", a song that does not appear on the album, was released as a "pre-single" with an "Official Dream Video" on April 20, 2015, as a way to release information that Carlton had signed with Dine Alone Records.[15] A music video for "Blue Pool" was released on August 3, 2015, to promote the Blue Pool EP.[16] A lyric video was released for "Willows" on August 27, 2015, as a way to reveal the album artwork, track listing, and release date.[17] On November 17, 2015, The Wall Street Journal premiered the music video for "House of Seven Swords".[4]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic77/100[18]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
The Boston GlobePositive[19]
Glide Magazine8/10[20]
Paste7.9/10[21]
Pitchfork7.8/10[22]
PopMatters8/10[23]
Rolling Stone[24]

Liberman received mostly positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an average score of 77 out of 100, which indicates "generally favorable reviews" based on 7 reviews.[18]

Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic rated the album four out of five stars, stating: "Carlton is still avoiding any of the grand gestures that defined her earliest work but at this point, this quietly meditative pop feels like a truer reflection of her intentions than 'A Thousand Miles'."[2] Pitchfork's Matthew Schnipper rated the album 7.8 out of ten, writing: "Carlton's voice is the key attraction on songs [from Liberman] that register between low-key pop, rock, and folk."[22] The Boston Globe's Ken Capobianco states: "Carlton's reinvention finds her a long way from 'A Thousand Miles' – and in a better place, artistically."[19]

Track listing

Adapted from AllMusic[2] and the album's liner notes.

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Take It Easy"
Osborne5:32
2."Willows"
Osborne2:53
3."House of Seven Swords"
Osborne3:43
4."Operator"
  • Carlton
  • John J. McCauley III[28]
Adam Landry3:16
5."Blue Pool"Carlton[29]Osborne3:16
6."Nothing Where Something Used to Be"
Osborne4:01
7."Matter of Time"Carlton[31]Osborne3:16
8."Unlock the Lock"Carlton[32]Osborne3:11
9."River"Carlton[33]Landry3:33
10."Ascension"
  • Carlton
  • McCauley III[34]
Landry2:37
Total length:35:18
Deluxe edition bonus tracks[6]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
11."Blue Pool" (Living Room Session)Carlton[29]2:42
12."River" (Living Room Session)Carlton[33]2:50
13."Take It Easy" (Living Room Session)
4:29
14."Willows" (Living Room Session)
2:52
15."House of the Seven Swords" (Original Demo)
3:00
16."Operator" (Living Room Session)
  • Carlton
  • McCauley III[28]
3:15
17."Unlock the Lock" (Living Room Session)Carlton[32]3:11
18."Nothing Where Something Used to Be" (Living Room Session)
3:52

Personnel

Credits adapted from AllMusic[35]

Musicians

Technical

Charts

Chart (2015) Peak
position
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[36] 32

Release history

List of release dates, showing region, format(s), label and reference
Region Date Format(s) Label Ref.
United States October 23, 2015
Dine Alone Records [37]
UK & Europe April 29, 2016
Dine Alone/Caroline Records [11]

References

  1. 1 2 "Vanessa Carlton signs to Dine Alone, new album 'Liberman' out Fall 2015". Dine Alone Records. April 20, 2015. Archived from the original on September 26, 2015. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Liberman – Vanessa Carlton — Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. All Media Network. Archived from the original on October 23, 2015. Retrieved October 19, 2015.
  3. 1 2 "Operator – Single by Vanessa Carlton on iTunes". iTunes. Archived from the original on October 1, 2015. Retrieved September 25, 2015.
  4. 1 2 Danton, Eric R. (November 17, 2015). "Watch Vanessa Carlton's Video for 'House of Seven Swords' (Exclusive)". The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company. Archived from the original on November 18, 2015. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
  5. ↑ Murray, Robin (April 7, 2016). "Premiere: Vanessa Carlton – 'Nothing Where Something Used to Be' (Steve Osborne Remix)". Clash magazine. Archived from the original on April 9, 2016. Retrieved April 7, 2016.
  6. 1 2 "Liberman – Dine Alone Records". Archived from the original on 2015-09-08. Retrieved 2015-08-27.
  7. 1 2 Moraski, Lauren (September 1, 2015). "Vanessa Carlton on escaping with "Liberman"". CBS News. CBS. Archived from the original on September 4, 2015. Retrieved September 3, 2015.
  8. ↑ Rayner, Ben (November 18, 2015). "Vanessa Carlton, a thousand miles farther on Liberman". Toronto Star. John D. Cruickshank. Archived from the original on November 19, 2015. Retrieved November 19, 2015.
  9. ↑ "Liberman Tour & Album Pre-sale!". Vanessacarlton.com. September 10, 2015. Archived from the original on January 22, 2016. Retrieved September 10, 2015.
  10. ↑ "New Tour Dates Announced!". Vanessacarlton.com. November 12, 2015. Archived from the original on December 26, 2015. Retrieved November 12, 2015.
  11. 1 2 "Liberman UK/EU Release Date & UK/EU Tour Announced!". Vanessacarlton.com. February 9, 2016. Archived from the original on August 9, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2016.
  12. ↑ "Vanessa Carlton Premieres 'Operator' Video: Watch the Exclusive Clip". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. October 13, 2015. Archived from the original on October 15, 2015. Retrieved October 13, 2015.
  13. ↑ "Liberman by Vanessa Carlton on iTunes". iTunes. Archived from the original on November 20, 2015. Retrieved October 23, 2015.
  14. ↑ "Watch Vanessa Carlton's Video for 'House of Seven Swords' (Exclusive)". The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company. November 18, 2015. Archived from the original on November 18, 2015. Retrieved November 18, 2015.
  15. ↑ Schrodt, Paul (April 20, 2015). "Exclusive: Listen to the First New Music from Vanessa Carlton in 2015". Esquire. Archived from the original on April 22, 2015. Retrieved April 20, 2015.
  16. ↑ Andrews, Travis M. (August 3, 2015). "Music Premiere Monday: "Blue Pool" by Vanessa Carlton". Southern Living. Southern Progress Corporation. Archived from the original on August 5, 2015. Retrieved August 3, 2015.
  17. ↑ Mansfield, Brian (August 27, 2015). "Vanessa Carlton debuts new track 'Willows'". USA Today. Gannett Company. Archived from the original on August 31, 2015. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
  18. 1 2 "Reviews for Liberman by Vanessa Carlton". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on October 29, 2015. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
  19. 1 2 Capobianco, Ken (October 22, 2015). "Vanessa Carlton, 'Liberman'". The Boston Globe. John W. Henry. Archived from the original on October 26, 2015. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
  20. ↑ Ferguson, Maeri (October 22, 2015). "Vanessa Carlton – Liberman (ALBUM REVIEW)". Glide Magazine. Glide Publishing LLC. Archived from the original on October 24, 2015. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
  21. ↑ Corcoran, Nina (October 23, 2015). "Vanessa Carlton: Liberman". Paste. Wolfgang's Vault. Archived from the original on November 18, 2015. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
  22. 1 2 Schnipper, Matthew (October 21, 2015). "Review: Vanessa Carlton: Liberman". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on October 23, 2015. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
  23. ↑ Olson, Benjamin Hedge (October 26, 2015). "Vanessa Carlton: Liberman". PopMatters. Archived from the original on October 27, 2015. Retrieved October 26, 2015.
  24. ↑ Arnold, Chuck (October 29, 2015). "Vanessa Carlton, 'Liberman'". Rolling Stone. Wenner Media. Archived from the original on October 31, 2015. Retrieved October 29, 2015.
  25. 1 2 "BMI Repertoire Search". BMI. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
  26. 1 2 "BMI Repertoire Search". BMI. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
  27. 1 2 "BMI Repertoire Search". BMI. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
  28. 1 2 "BMI Repertoire Search". BMI. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
  29. 1 2 "BMI Repertoire Search". BMI. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
  30. 1 2 "BMI Repertoire Search". BMI. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
  31. ↑ "BMI Repertoire Search". BMI. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
  32. 1 2 "BMI Repertoire Search". BMI. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
  33. 1 2 "BMI Repertoire Search". BMI. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
  34. ↑ "BMI Repertoire Search". BMI. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
  35. ↑ "Liberman – Vanessa Carlton – Credits – AllMusic". AllMusic. All Media Network. Archived from the original on November 8, 2015. Retrieved October 24, 2015.
  36. ↑ "Vanessa Carlton Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard.
  37. ↑ "Vanessa Carlton: Liberman: Music". ASIN B014JDOBX0. Archived from the original on May 25, 2022. Retrieved November 13, 2015.
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