Middle Brother (album)

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Middle Brother
A black-and-white photo of the three band members with their names written over their heads in a black frame.
Studio album by
Middle Brother
ReleasedMarch 1, 2011 (2011-03-01)
StudioPlayground Sound, Nashville
GenreFolk rock, roots rock
Length48:57
LabelPartisan Records
ProducerAdam Landry[1]

Middle Brother is the eponymous debut album by the folk-rock band Middle Brother, released on March 1, 2011 on Partisan Records. The band members, all of whom had been in their own bands before forming Middle Brother, described the band's debut album as a "one-off" that they didn't want to take precedence over their original projects.[2]

Background and recording[edit]

The album's songs, along with 10 others that were not included on it, were recorded at Adam Landry's home studio Playground Sound in Nashville, Tennessee[1] over a week-long period. The album also contains songs from each of Middle Brother's members' other bands that never made it onto their previous groups' albums.[3] In March 2010, Middle Brother, then known as "MG&V", played their first show at SXSW, where they said they would release an album soon, depending on their bands' tour schedules.[4]

Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic(76%)[5]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[6]
Rolling Stone[7]
PopMatters[8]
Robert Christgau(A-)[9]
Spin(6/10)[10]
The A.V. Club(B+)[11]
The Austin Chronicle[12]
American Songwriter[4]

The album received mainly positive reviews from critics; for instance, Doug Freeman praised the way that "McCauley's caustic growl gets softened by the smoother tenors of Goldsmith and Vasquez."[12] Ken Tucker also reviewed the album favorably in an article written for NPR, in which he compared Middle Brother to Crosby, Stills and Nash – the collaboration between David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash that was originally conceived as a one-time collaboration. Tucker stated that the similarities lie in how each member helps the other achieve a musical effect the other wants.[13]

Track listing[edit]

  1. "Daydreaming" (McCauley)
  2. "Blue Eyes" (Vasquez)
  3. "Thanks For Nothing" (Goldsmith)
  4. "Middle Brother" (McCauley, Goldsmith, Jonny Corndawg)
  5. "Theater" (Vasquez)
  6. "Portland" (Replacements cover)
  7. "Wilderness" (Goldsmith)
  8. "Me Me Me" (McCauley)
  9. "Someday" (Vasquez)
  10. "Blood and Guts" (Goldsmith)
  11. "Mom and Dad" (McCauley)
  12. "Million Dollar Bill" (Goldsmith)

Personnel[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "40 Watt » FREE Deer Tick Show – T. Hardy Morris & The Hardknocks – Tickets – 40 Watt Club – Athens, GA – September 17th, 2014". www.40watt.com. Archived from the original on 2015-01-03.
  2. ^ Fusilli, Jim (8 March 2011). "Surviving the Supergroup". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 14 June 2014.
  3. ^ Maloney, Devon (8 March 2011). "Middle Brother Says It's Less 'Supergroup,' More 'Exotic Band'". Billboard. Retrieved 14 June 2014.
  4. ^ a b Stone, Jon (6 March 2011). "Middle Brother: Middle Brother". American Songwriter. Retrieved 18 June 2014.
  5. ^ Middle Brother, Metacritic
  6. ^ Ruhlmann, William. "Middle Brother". AllMusic. Retrieved 14 June 2014.
  7. ^ Hermes, Will (1 March 2011). "Middle Brother Review". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 14 June 2014.
  8. ^ Tebo, Daniel (1 March 2011). "Middle Brother: Middle Brother". PopMatters. Retrieved 14 June 2014.
  9. ^ CG: Middle Brother
  10. ^ Young, Jon (1 March 2011). "Middle Brother, 'Middle Brother' (Partisan)". Spin. Retrieved 14 June 2014.
  11. ^ Hyden, Steven (8 March 2011). "Middle Brother Review". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 14 June 2014.
  12. ^ a b Freeman, Doug (18 March 2011). "Middle Brother". Austin Chronicle. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
  13. ^ Tucker, Ken (28 March 2011). "'Middle Brother': Hand-Clapping Foot-Stompers". NPR. Retrieved 27 June 2014.
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