Black Star Elephant

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Black Star Elephant
Studio album by
Nico & Vinz
Released16 September 2014 (2014-09-16) Australia
Recorded2012–2014
Genre
Length57:29
Label
Producer
  • Vincent Dery (also exec.)
  • Thomas Eriksen
  • Amanuel Kidane (exec.)
  • William "Will IDAP" Wiik Larsen
  • Magnus "Magnify" Martinsen
  • Stargate
  • Kouame Sereba
  • Kahouly Nicolay Sereba (also exec.)
  • Raymond Sereba
  • Petter "Walther" Walthinsen
Nico & Vinz chronology
The Magic Soup and the Bittersweet Faces
(2012) 		Black Star Elephant
(2014) 		Cornerstone
(2015)
Singles from Black Star Elephant
  1. "Am I Wrong"
    Released: 12 April 2013
  2. "In Your Arms"
    Released: 21 October 2013
  3. "When the Day Comes"
    Released: 30 September 2014[2]
  4. "My Melody"
    Released: 6 February 2015[3]

Black Star Elephant is the second studio album by Norwegian duo Nico & Vinz and their first album under that moniker, following a name change from Envy. It was released in Australia on 16 September 2014,[4] and on 14 October 2014 in the United States. It contains fourteen songs and 7 interludes.[5]

The album garnered a mixed reception from critics divided by the production and the duo's socially conscious lyrics. It debuted at number one in Norway and reached the top 40 in countries like Australia, New Zealand and the United States, spawning four singles: "Am I Wrong", "In Your Arms", "When the Day Comes", and "My Melody". Following its release, "Am I Wrong" went on to become the duo's most successful hit single to date.

Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic58/100[1]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[6]
Billboard[7]
The Guardian[8]
The Northern Echo7/10[9]
PopMatters[10]
Renowned for Sound[11]

Black Star Elephant received mixed reviews from music critics divided by the mixture of the duo's socially conscious lyrics and the production driving it. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 58, based on 5 reviews.[1]

Jon Caramanica of The New York Times praised the duo's decision to deliver social issues through African-influenced pop production that didn't muddle it, saying that "Behind that choice seems to be an understanding that reaching the most really means alienating the fewest."[12] Simon Harker of The Northern Echo praised the album's upbeat pop numbers for delivering social messages that feel refreshing, concluding that "Not every track manages to avoid coming across a little too treacly or earnest, but the likes of the Stargate-helmed 'Imagine' and easygoing rhythms of 'In Your Arms' are just as catchy and enjoyable as their best-known hit."[9] AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine felt that the duo's approach to genre-bending tracks resembled that of Bruno Mars but that it also helped shaped them, concluding that "this cultural disconnect enhances them because it emphasizes how, at their core, Nico & Vinz are lite bubblegum worldbeat pop, and will try on any fashion just as long as it might bring them a hit."[6]

Brent Faulkner of PopMatters said that despite the record's misuse of interludes and its tracks being too sugary and not quite matching "Am I Wrong", he praised the duo's delivery of social consciousness for sounding authentic, saying that "All in all, Black Star Elephant seems accomplished in its goals – delivering an album that thrives off its ‘good vibes’. There is no denying that Nico & Vinz better their listeners by eschewing negativity, not to mention avoiding profanity for the most part. That said, sometimes so much positivity grows ever too schmaltzy and a bit blasé."[10] Caroline Sullivan of The Guardian praised the duo's vocal delivery of inspiration lyrics over eclectic worldbeat production but felt the interludes drag their message down, saying that it "nudges the album into the cheese zone."[8] Chuck Arnold of Billboard said that despite the duo showing some heart and charm on tracks like "Know What I'm Not", he criticized the album's cheesy African instrumentation and inspirational lyrics, concluding that "Black Star Elephant goes all amateur theater Lion King on you. That shows just how wrong Nico & Vinz can be."[7]

Track listing[edit]

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Intro" (interlude)
  • Raymond Sereba
  • Kouame Sereba
  • Kahouly Nicolay Sereba
  • Vincent Dery
  • R. Sereba
  • K. Sereba
  • Magnus "Magnify" Martinsen[a]
  • Petter "Walther" Walthinsen[a]
0:39
2."Am I Wrong"
  • Dery
  • K. N. Sereba
  • William "Will IDAP" Wiik Larsen
  • Abdoulie Jallow
Larsen4:07
3."Last Time"
  • Dery
  • K. N. Sereba
  • Thomas Eriksen
  • David Agwumaro
Eriksen4:19
4."Leave Us" (interlude)
  • R. Sereba
  • K. Sereba
  • K. N. Sereba
  • Dery
  • R. Sereba
  • K. Sereba
  • Martinsen[a]
  • Walthinsen[a]
0:18
5."Know What I'm Not"
  • Dery
  • K. N. Sereba
  • Larsen
  • Jørgen Ousman Jaquesson Sowe
Larsen3:48
6."Miracles"
  • Dery
  • K. N. Sereba
  • Agwumaro
  • Sowe
  • Larsen
  • Terje Wiik
Larsen3:25
7."New in Town" (interlude)
  • R. Sereba
  • K. Sereba
  • Martinsen
  • R. Sereba
  • K. Sereba
0:26
8."My Melody"
  • Dery
  • K. N. Sereba
  • Ntirelang Berman
  • Larsen
Larsen4:11
9."Powerful" (interlude)
  • R. Sereba
  • K. Sereba
  • K. N. Sereba
  • Dery
  • R. Sereba
  • K. Sereba
  • Martinsen[a]
  • Walthinsen[a]
0:15
10."Another Day"
  • Dery
  • K. N. Sereba
  • Magnus Eliassen
  • Erik Eliassen
  • Larsen
  • Larsen
  • Eliassen
2:19
11."People"
  • Dery
  • K. N. Sereba
  • Dave Kuncio
  • Larsen
Larsen4:23
12."Runnin'"
  • Dery
  • K. N. Sereba
  • Eriksen
  • Agwumaro
Eriksen4:15
13."Imagine"
2:57
14."In Your Arms"
Larsen3:25
15."Homeless"
  • Dery
  • K. N. Sereba
  • Ntirelang Berman
  • Larsen
Larsen2:59
16."Lakota" (interlude)
  • R. Sereba
  • K. Sereba
  • K. N. Sereba
  • Dery
  • R. Sereba
  • K. Sereba
  • Martinsen[a]
  • Walthinsen[a]
1:23
17."Thought I Knew"
  • Dery
  • K. N. Sereba
  • Eriksen
Eriksen4:25
18."Arrival" (interlude)
  • R. Sereba
  • K. Sereba
  • K. N. Sereba
  • Dery
  • R. Sereba
  • K. Sereba
  • Martinsen[a]
  • Walthinsen[a]
0:34
19."When the Day Comes"
  • Dery
  • K. N. Sereba
  • Sowe
  • Larsen
Larsen3:47
20."Kokadinye" (interlude)
  • R. Sereba
  • K. Sereba
  • K. N. Sereba
  • Dery
  • R. Sereba
  • K. Sereba
  • Martinsen[a]
  • Walthinsen[a]
1:29
21."Imaa Imaa"
  • Dery
  • K. N. Sereba
  • Eriksen
  • Agwumaro
Eriksen4:05
Notes
  • ^[a] signifies an additional producer
  • "Imagine" contains an interpolation of "The Champ" written by Harry Palmer.[13]

Charts[edit]

Chart (2014) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[14] 17
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[15] 28
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[16] 1
US Billboard 200[17] 45

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c "Black Star Elephant – Nico & Vinz". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 31 January 2015.
  2. ^ Gracie, Bianca (30 September 2014). "Nico & Vinz Release New Video For "When The Day Comes": Watch The Inspiring Clip". Idolator. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
  3. ^ "Nico & Vinz - My Melody". YouTube. 6 February 2015. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
  4. ^ "Black Star Elephant". iTunes Australia. Retrieved 7 October 2014.
  5. ^ "Nico & Vinz announce new album 'Black Star Elephant' featuring 'Am I Wrong'". Music Times. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  6. ^ a b Thomas Erlewine, Stephen. "Black Star Elephant – Nico & Vinz". AllMusic. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  7. ^ a b Arnold, Chuck (14 October 2014). "Album Review: Nico & Vinz's Debut 'Black Star Elephant' Proves Doubters Right". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Archived from the original on 16 October 2014. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  8. ^ a b Sullivan, Caroline (27 November 2014). "Nico & Vinz: Black Star Elephant review – world-pop mashup full of positivism". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  9. ^ a b Harker, Simon (11 December 2014). "Album Review: Nico & Vinz – Black Star Elephant". The Northern Echo. Newsquest. Retrieved 31 January 2015.
  10. ^ a b Faulkner, Brent (30 January 2015). "Nico & Vinz: Black Star Elephant". PopMatters. Retrieved 31 January 2015.
  11. ^ Janes, Naomi (27 November 2014). "Album Review: Nico & Vinz – Black Star Elephant". Renowned for Sound. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  12. ^ Caramanica, Jon (13 October 2014). "Albums by Mary Lambert, Nico & Vinz and Angaleena Presley". The New York Times. Retrieved 29 August 2016.
  13. ^ Black Star Elephant (booklet). Nico & Vinz. Warner Bros. Records, 5 Star Entertainment. 2014. 9362-49327-8.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  14. ^ "Australiancharts.com – Nico & Vinz – Black Star Elephant". Hung Medien. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
  15. ^ "Charts.nz – Nico & Vinz – Black Star Elephant". Hung Medien. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  16. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Nico & Vinz – Black Star Elephant". Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 October 2014.
  17. ^ "Nico & Vinz Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
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