Famous First Words (Viva Brother album)
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| Famous First Words | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1 August 2011 | |||
| Recorded | 2011 | |||
| Studio | Angelic Studio (Brackley, Northamptonshire) and Sofa Sound Studios (London)[1] | |||
| Genre | Britpop revival | |||
| Label | Geffen | |||
| Producer | Stephen Street | |||
| Viva Brother chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Famous First Words | ||||
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Famous First Words is the debut studio album by English rock band Viva Brother, released on 1 August 2011 on Geffen Records in the United Kingdom. Preceded by the singles "Darling Buds of May", "Still Here" and "New Year's Day", the album was produced and mixed by Stephen Street, who had previously worked with acts such as Blur and The Smiths.
Reception[edit]
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 34/100[2] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [3] |
| Clash | 5/10[4] |
| The Guardian | [5] |
| The Independent | [6] |
| The Irish Times | [7] |
| Mojo | [8] |
| musicOMH | [9] |
| NME | 5/10[10] |
| The Observer | [11] |
| Pitchfork | 2.9/10[12] |
The album was panned by critics upon release, with reviewers criticising the lack of original content and the clumsiness with which the band attempted to emulate popular acts of the 1990s. On Metacritic, the album received a score of 34/100, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".[2] Alexis Petridis of the Guardian likened the band to a tragicomedy and remarked that "Viva Brother haven't got a new idea in their heads – as every song fades out, you somehow imagine the theme music from TFI Friday fading in".[5] Martin Headon of musicOMH praised certain aspects of the album, but noted that overall it was clichéd, had "few arresting melodies" and lacked courage.[9] Similarly, Hari Ashurst of Pitchfork lamented the "chugging guitar and infant grade lyrics", ultimately judging the album to be "pretty brainless stuff, the special kind that makes you feel somehow stupider for having listened".[12] John Meagher of the Irish Independent wrote that Viva Brother "might just be responsible for the most uninspired, downright awful British album of the year".[13]
NME's Emily Mackay gave the album a more moderate score of 5/10, commenting positively on "New Year's Day" and "Darling Buds of May", but going on to criticise the rest of the songs, saying, "there's no lyrical content here with lasting weight or worth much comment at all..." The review ultimately described the album as "disappointing [and] formulaic".[10] Many reviewers pointed out that while Viva Brother attempted to be a lad rock act, they ended up only producing dad rock.[14]
Track listing[edit]
All tracks are written by Viva Brother
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "New Year's Day" | 3:22 |
| 2. | "Still Here" | 4:03 |
| 3. | "David" | 3:12 |
| 4. | "High Street Low Lives" | 3:02 |
| 5. | "Electric Daydream" | 3:46 |
| 6. | "Darling Buds of May" | 3:15 |
| 7. | "Otherside" | 3:40 |
| 8. | "Fly by Nights" | 2:50 |
| 9. | "False Alarm" | 3:49 |
| 10. | "Time Machine" | 3:17 |
| Total length: | 34:16 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 11. | "Shoot Like Lightning" | 2:49 |
References[edit]
- ^ "Viva Brother - Famous First Words". Discogs. August 2011. Archived from the original on 23 December 2020. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
- ^ a b "Famous First Words by Viva Brother". Metacritic.
- ^ "Famous First Words - Viva Brother | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic.
- ^ "Viva Brother - Famous First Words". August 2011.
- ^ a b Petridis, Alexis. "Viva Brother: Famous First Words - review". The Guardian, 28 July 2011. Retrieved on 28 July 2011.
- ^ The Independent
- ^ "Viva Brother". The Irish Times.
- ^ "Famous First Words by Viva Brother". Metacritic.
- ^ a b Headon, Martin. "Viva Brother - Famous First Words Archived 2011-08-05 at the Wayback Machine". musicOMH, 28 July 2011. Retrieved on 28 July 2011.
- ^ a b Mackay, Emily (26 July 2011). "Album Review: Viva Brother - 'Famous First Words'". NME. Retrieved 1 September 2011.
- ^ "Viva Brother: Famous First Words – review". TheGuardian.com. 30 July 2011.
- ^ a b Ashurst, Hari. "Viva Brother - Famous First Words". Pitchfork, 29 July 2011. Retrieved on 29 July 2011.
- ^ Meagher, John. "Viva Brother - Famous First Words". Irish Independent, 29 July 2011. Retrieved on 29 July 2011.
- ^ Martin, Clive (19 June 2012). "Viva Brother Reincarnated As Lovelife". Vice. Archived from the original on 24 December 2020. Retrieved 24 December 2020.
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