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Lack of wp:notability for this website, it is not even a review as it only talks about the singles + it was published on 23 August and again Diffuser is not even referenced here http://www.metacritic.com/browse/albums/publication/name/d
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''Hippopotamus'' has a score of 81 out of 100 on the review aggregator website [[Metacritic]], based on 17 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim."<ref name=metacritic /> The album entered the UK charts at no. 7, Sparks' first top-ten appearance since ''[[Propaganda (Sparks album)|Propaganda]]''.<ref name=OCUK />
''Hippopotamus'' has a score of 81 out of 100 on the review aggregator website [[Metacritic]], based on 17 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim."<ref name=metacritic /> The album entered the UK charts at no. 7, Sparks' first top-ten appearance since ''[[Propaganda (Sparks album)|Propaganda]]''.<ref name=OCUK />


In a five-star review for ''[[The Independent]]'', Andy Gill described ''Hippopotamus'' as a "glorious and inventive return from the Mael brothers ... smarter and more satisfying than ever."<ref name=IndependentReview>{{cite web|last=Gill|first=Andy|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/album-reviews-sparks-neil-young-the-national-tori-amos-the-waterboys-and-more-a7933916.html|title=Album reviews: Sparks, Neil Young, The National, Tori Amos, The Waterboys and more|date=September 7, 2017|work=The Independent|accessdate=September 9, 2017}}</ref> Leigh Sanders, writing for the ''[[Express & Star]]'', described the album as "magnificent",<ref name=ExpressStarReview>{{cite web|url=https://www.expressandstar.com/entertainment/2017/09/08/album-review-sparks---hippopotamus/|title=Album Review: Sparks - Hippopotamus|first=Leigh|last=Sanders|work=Express & Star|date=September 8, 2017|accessdate=September 9, 2017}}</ref> while Dave Simpson in ''[[The Guardian]]'' called it the group's "best album in decades", with songs that had "a new emotional heft" to them.<ref name=GuardianReview>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/sep/07/sparks-hippopotamus-review-ron-and-russell-mael-at-their-arch-pop-best|title=Sparks: Hippopotamus review – Ron and Russell Mael at their arch-pop best|first=Dave|last=Simpson|date=September 7, 2017|publisher=|accessdate=September 9, 2017|work=The Guardian}}</ref> Daryl Easlea's review in ''[[Record Collector]]'' noted that "Ron's lyrics, as always, locate the heart of the matter, finding the chink in the armour, the dust on the lens" and described the album as "exactly what you'd expect and more besides."<ref name=RecordCollectorReview>{{cite journal|first=Daryl|last=Easlea|url=http://recordcollectormag.com/reviews/hippopotamus|title=Sparks – Hippopotamus|work=Record Collector|issue=September 2017|accessdate=September 9, 2017}}</ref> ''[[Q (magazine)|Q]]'' characterized it as a "straight-up Sparks LP". Reviewer Andrew Perry said that it is "laced with all the latterday narrative leanings, [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] arrangement and pastiches" while adding, "as ever, there's much fun to be had".<ref name=q /> In a four-star review, ''[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]]'' concluded that "beautifully offset by Ron's offbeat pop-classical arrangements ... ''Hippopotamus'' is never anything less than wildly entertaining".<ref name=mojo>{{cite journal |first=James |last=McNair |title=Sparks ''Hippopotamus'' |work=[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]] |date=October 2017 |page=88}}</ref> In a review rated 8.9 out of 10, ''[[Paste (magazine)|Paste]]'' praised "its multifaceted compositional creativity, coupled with its consistently fetching melodies and words".<ref>{{cite web|first=Jordan|last=Blum|date=September 12, 2017|url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2017/09/sparks-hippopotamus-review.html|title=Sparks: Hippopotamus Review|work=Paste|accessdate=September 13, 2017}}</ref> In a review rated 8 out of 10, ''[[Clash (magazine)|Clash]]'' noted that ''Hippopotamus'' was "wryly humorous" and "Pure vaudeville, pure theatre – and pure Sparks".<ref>{{cite web|last=Smith|first=Mat|url=http://clashmusic.com/reviews/sparks-hippopotamus|title=Sparks - Hippopotamus|work=Clash|accessdate=September 13, 2017|date=September 11, 2017}}</ref>
In a five-star review for ''[[The Independent]]'', Andy Gill described ''Hippopotamus'' as a "glorious and inventive return from the Mael brothers ... smarter and more satisfying than ever."<ref name=IndependentReview>{{cite web|last=Gill|first=Andy|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/album-reviews-sparks-neil-young-the-national-tori-amos-the-waterboys-and-more-a7933916.html|title=Album reviews: Sparks, Neil Young, The National, Tori Amos, The Waterboys and more|date=September 7, 2017|work=The Independent|accessdate=September 9, 2017}}</ref> Leigh Sanders, writing for the ''[[Express & Star]]'', described the album as "magnificent",<ref name=ExpressStarReview>{{cite web|url=https://www.expressandstar.com/entertainment/2017/09/08/album-review-sparks---hippopotamus/|title=Album Review: Sparks - Hippopotamus|first=Leigh|last=Sanders|work=Express & Star|date=September 8, 2017|accessdate=September 9, 2017}}</ref> while Dave Simpson in ''[[The Guardian]]'' called it the group's "best album in decades", with songs that had "a new emotional heft" to them.<ref name=GuardianReview>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/sep/07/sparks-hippopotamus-review-ron-and-russell-mael-at-their-arch-pop-best|title=Sparks: Hippopotamus review – Ron and Russell Mael at their arch-pop best|first=Dave|last=Simpson|date=September 7, 2017|publisher=|accessdate=September 9, 2017|work=The Guardian}}</ref> Daryl Easlea's review in ''[[Record Collector]]'' noted that "Ron's lyrics, as always, locate the heart of the matter, finding the chink in the armour, the dust on the lens" and described the album as "exactly what you'd expect and more besides."<ref name=RecordCollectorReview>{{cite journal|first=Daryl|last=Easlea|url=http://recordcollectormag.com/reviews/hippopotamus|title=Sparks – Hippopotamus|work=Record Collector|issue=September 2017|accessdate=September 9, 2017}}</ref> ''[[Q (magazine)|Q]]'' characterized it as a "straight-up Sparks LP". Reviewer Andrew Perry said that it is "laced with all the latterday narrative leanings, [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] arrangement and pastiches" while adding, "as ever, there's much fun to be had".<ref name=q /> In a four-star review, ''[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]]'' concluded that "beautifully offset by Ron's offbeat pop-classical arrangements [...] ''Hippopotamus'' is never anything less than wildly entertaining".<ref name=mojo>{{cite journal |first=James |last=McNair |title=Sparks ''Hippopotamus'' |work=[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]] |date=October 2017 |page=88}}</ref> In a review rated 8.9 out of 10, ''[[Paste (magazine)|Paste]]'' praised "its multifaceted compositional creativity, coupled with its consistently fetching melodies and words".<ref>{{cite web|first=Jordan|last=Blum|date=September 12, 2017|url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2017/09/sparks-hippopotamus-review.html|title=Sparks: Hippopotamus Review|work=Paste|accessdate=September 13, 2017}}</ref> In a review rated 8 out of 10, ''[[Clash (magazine)|Clash]]'' noted that ''Hippopotamus'' was "wryly humorous" and "Pure vaudeville, pure theatre – and pure Sparks".<ref>{{cite web|last=Smith|first=Mat|url=http://clashmusic.com/reviews/sparks-hippopotamus|title=Sparks - Hippopotamus|work=Clash|accessdate=September 13, 2017|date=September 11, 2017}}</ref>


Commenting on the album's musical style, Randy Lewis, writing for the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'', said, "'Hippopotamus' brings the Mael brothers back more into the realm of rock music with the inclusion of electric guitars, bass and drums largely absent from their more orchestral-driven outings of the past decade-plus", concluding the album was "simply put, genius".<ref name=LATimesReview>{{cite news|last=Lewis|first=Randy|title=On 'Hippopotamus,' Sparks shows pop genius on topics fleeting to ginormous|url=http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-sparks-hippopotamus-album-review-20170907-story.html|work=Los Angeles Times|date=September 11, 2017|accessdate=September 12, 2017}}</ref> Dave Swanson, reviewing the album for ''[[Diffuser.fm]]'', said it was "without question, a five-star classic. ''Hippopotamus'' explores various angles of Sparks' sonic adventures over the years, and pulls them all together into one concrete and incredibly fresh batch of songs ... Sparks remain a genuine treasure."<ref name=Diffuser.fmReview /> Rob Mesure of ''[[musicOMH]]'' judged the album "a varied and immensely satisfying set, picking elements from their different eras – from oddball, articulate rock, through synthpop, to opera – and tossing them nonchalantly together – adding a smattering of drum'n'bass (Giddy, Giddy) and cool, flatpacked Europop (Scandinavian Design) – like the assortment of objects floating in the pool of the title track ... a big, joyous beast of an album."<ref name=musicOMHReview>{{cite web|last=Mesure|first=Rob|url=https://www.musicomh.com/reviews/albums/sparks-hippopotamus|title=Sparks – Hippopotamus|work=musicOMH|date=September 9, 2017|accessdate=September 10, 2017}}</ref>
Commenting on the album's musical style, Randy Lewis, writing for the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'', said, "'Hippopotamus' brings the Mael brothers back more into the realm of rock music with the inclusion of electric guitars, bass and drums largely absent from their more orchestral-driven outings of the past decade-plus", concluding the album was "simply put, genius".<ref name=LATimesReview>{{cite news|last=Lewis|first=Randy|title=On 'Hippopotamus,' Sparks shows pop genius on topics fleeting to ginormous|url=http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-sparks-hippopotamus-album-review-20170907-story.html|work=Los Angeles Times|date=September 11, 2017|accessdate=September 12, 2017}}</ref> Rob Mesure of ''[[musicOMH]]'' judged the album "a varied and immensely satisfying set, picking elements from their different eras – from oddball, articulate rock, through synthpop, to opera – and tossing them nonchalantly together – adding a smattering of drum'n'bass (Giddy, Giddy) and cool, flatpacked Europop (Scandinavian Design) – like the assortment of objects floating in the pool of the title track ... a big, joyous beast of an album."<ref name=musicOMHReview>{{cite web|last=Mesure|first=Rob|url=https://www.musicomh.com/reviews/albums/sparks-hippopotamus|title=Sparks – Hippopotamus|work=musicOMH|date=September 9, 2017|accessdate=September 10, 2017}}</ref>


==Track listing==
==Track listing==

Revision as of 22:41, 15 September 2017

Untitled

Hippopotamus is the 23rd studio album by American rock group Sparks. It was released on September 8, 2017, through BMG Records,[4] their first record issued on a major label for decades.[5]

Following the 2009 radio musical The Seduction of Ingmar Bergman and Sparks' subsequent collaboration with Franz Ferdinand in FFS, the release of Hippopotamus marked a return to the traditional Sparks format of "short, literate, witty pop songs",[6] mixing elements from the band's various stylistic periods.[7][8]

Hippopotamus was met with critical acclaim, and entered the UK album charts at no. 7, Sparks' first UK top-ten appearance in over 40 years.[9][10]

Recording

Having spent much of the past decade working on two musicals, The Seduction of Ingmar Bergman and the forthcoming movie musical Annette, a collaboration with French director Leos Carax, the Mael brothers set out to return to a more traditional song-orientated, rather than narrative, pop format for their next Sparks release.[11][5][12] They worked on the album over a 10-month period, starting at the beginning of 2016 and ending in October, with most of the recording done in Russell Mael's home studio in Los Angeles.[11][12]

Publishing

The album was published via BMG rather than the Maels' own Lil' Beethoven label.[5] BMG had just taken on the publishing rights for Sparks' back catalogue, which had come up for renewal.[5] "Once we did a publishing deal with them," Russell Mael told PopMatters, "the record label side of BMG really was interested in listening to the new album. So they flew out from London and we played them the album and they just kind of flipped out and said, 'This is amazing, we need to do the record deal now as well.'"[5] BMG signed the album worldwide.[5] Sparks are touring Europe and the United States in support of the album.[5][13]

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic81/100[9]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[14]
Exclaim!8/10[15]
Glide Magazine[16]
The Guardian[17]
The Independent[6]
The Irish Times[18]
Pitchfork7.1/10[19]
Q[20]
Record Collector[21]
The Times[22]

Hippopotamus has a score of 81 out of 100 on the review aggregator website Metacritic, based on 17 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim."[9] The album entered the UK charts at no. 7, Sparks' first top-ten appearance since Propaganda.[10]

In a five-star review for The Independent, Andy Gill described Hippopotamus as a "glorious and inventive return from the Mael brothers ... smarter and more satisfying than ever."[6] Leigh Sanders, writing for the Express & Star, described the album as "magnificent",[23] while Dave Simpson in The Guardian called it the group's "best album in decades", with songs that had "a new emotional heft" to them.[17] Daryl Easlea's review in Record Collector noted that "Ron's lyrics, as always, locate the heart of the matter, finding the chink in the armour, the dust on the lens" and described the album as "exactly what you'd expect and more besides."[21] Q characterized it as a "straight-up Sparks LP". Reviewer Andrew Perry said that it is "laced with all the latterday narrative leanings, Broadway arrangement and pastiches" while adding, "as ever, there's much fun to be had".[20] In a four-star review, Mojo concluded that "beautifully offset by Ron's offbeat pop-classical arrangements [...] Hippopotamus is never anything less than wildly entertaining".[24] In a review rated 8.9 out of 10, Paste praised "its multifaceted compositional creativity, coupled with its consistently fetching melodies and words".[25] In a review rated 8 out of 10, Clash noted that Hippopotamus was "wryly humorous" and "Pure vaudeville, pure theatre – and pure Sparks".[26]

Commenting on the album's musical style, Randy Lewis, writing for the Los Angeles Times, said, "'Hippopotamus' brings the Mael brothers back more into the realm of rock music with the inclusion of electric guitars, bass and drums largely absent from their more orchestral-driven outings of the past decade-plus", concluding the album was "simply put, genius".[13] Rob Mesure of musicOMH judged the album "a varied and immensely satisfying set, picking elements from their different eras – from oddball, articulate rock, through synthpop, to opera – and tossing them nonchalantly together – adding a smattering of drum'n'bass (Giddy, Giddy) and cool, flatpacked Europop (Scandinavian Design) – like the assortment of objects floating in the pool of the title track ... a big, joyous beast of an album."[8]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Ron Mael and Russell Mael

No.TitleLength
1."Probably Nothing"1:21
2."Missionary Position"4:18
3."Édith Piaf (Said It Better Than Me)"4:32
4."Scandinavian Design"4:10
5."Giddy Giddy"3:10
6."What the Hell Is It This Time?"4:03
7."Unaware"3:54
8."Hippopotamus"3:47
9."Bummer"3:58
10."I Wish You Were Fun"4:04
11."So Tell Me Mrs. Lincoln Aside from That How Was the Play?"4:00
12."When You're a French Director" (featuring Leos Carax[27])2:45
13."The Amazing Mr. Repeat"2:59
14."A Little Bit Like Fun"3:57
15."Life with the Macbeths" (featuring Rebecca Sjöwall)4:12

Track listing adapted from iTunes.[4]

Hippopotamus – Japanese cd edition bonus track
No.TitleLength
16."You've Earned The Right To Be A Dick"3:10

Personnel

Charts

Chart (2017) Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[28] 127
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[29] 32
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[30] 88
Scottish Albums (OCC)[31] 7
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[32] 45
UK Albums (OCC)[10] 7

References

  1. ^ www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-sparks-hippopotamus-album-review-20170907-story,amp.html
  2. ^ https://www.thelineofbestfit.com/reviews/albums/sparks-hippopotamus
  3. ^ https://riddlemagazine.com/sparks-hippopotamus/
  4. ^ a b "Hippopotamus by Sparks on Apple Music". Itunes.apple.com. Retrieved March 28, 2017.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Paul, John (September 13, 2017). "Expect the Unexpected: A Conversation with Sparks". PopMatters. Retrieved September 13, 2017.
  6. ^ a b c Gill, Andy (September 7, 2017). "Album reviews: Sparks, Neil Young, The National, Tori Amos, The Waterboys and more". The Independent. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  7. ^ Swanson, Dave (August 23, 2017). "Sparks, 'Hippopotamus': Album Review". Diffuser.fm. Retrieved September 10, 2017.
  8. ^ a b Mesure, Rob (September 9, 2017). "Sparks – Hippopotamus". musicOMH. Retrieved September 10, 2017.
  9. ^ a b c "Hippopotamus by Sparks". Metacritic. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  10. ^ a b c "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 16, 2017.
  11. ^ a b Robson, Adam (August 18, 2017). "INTERVIEW: Far Out talk to the pop innovators Sparks about their new album Hippopotamus, new fans, and their thoughts on politics in music". Far Out Magazine. Retrieved September 13, 2017.
  12. ^ a b Roberts, Randall (September 11, 2017). "Ron and Russell Mael of Sparks discuss new album 'Hippopotamus' and how their musical 'Annette' is colliding with 'Star Wars'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 13, 2017.
  13. ^ a b Lewis, Randy (September 11, 2017). "On 'Hippopotamus,' Sparks shows pop genius on topics fleeting to ginormous". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  14. ^ Deming, Mark. "Sparks Hippopotamus". Allmusic. Retrieved September 13, 2017.
  15. ^ Sylvester, Daniel (September 12, 2017). "Sparks Hippopotamus". Exclaim!. Retrieved September 13, 2017.
  16. ^ Kenney, Andrew (September 11, 2017). "Sparks Continue Cult Genius On 23rd Album 'Hippopotamus' (ALBUM REVIEW)". Glide Magazine. Retrieved September 13, 2017.
  17. ^ a b Simpson, Dave (September 7, 2017). "Sparks: Hippopotamus review – Ron and Russell Mael at their arch-pop best". The Guardian. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  18. ^ Murphy, Lauren (September 7, 2017). "Sparks - Hippopotamus review: still crazy after all these years". The Irish Times. Retrieved September 10, 2017.
  19. ^ Chris, Randle (September 13, 2017). "Sparks: Hippopotamus Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved September 13, 2017.
  20. ^ a b Perry, Andrew (October 2017). "Sparks Hippopotamus". Q: 111.
  21. ^ a b Easlea, Daryl. "Sparks – Hippopotamus". Record Collector (September 2017). Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  22. ^ Hodgkinson, Will (September 8, 2017). "Pop review: Sparks: Hippopotamus. The arcane, dapper outsiders are still brilliant in their fifth decade". The Times. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  23. ^ Sanders, Leigh (September 8, 2017). "Album Review: Sparks - Hippopotamus". Express & Star. Retrieved September 9, 2017.
  24. ^ McNair, James (October 2017). "Sparks Hippopotamus". Mojo: 88.
  25. ^ Blum, Jordan (September 12, 2017). "Sparks: Hippopotamus Review". Paste. Retrieved September 13, 2017.
  26. ^ Smith, Mat (September 11, 2017). "Sparks - Hippopotamus". Clash. Retrieved September 13, 2017.
  27. ^ "Sparks – "Hippopotamus" Video". Stereogum. Retrieved March 28, 2017.
  28. ^ "Ultratop.be – Sparks – Hippopotamus" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved September 16, 2017.
  29. ^ "Ultratop.be – Sparks – Hippopotamus" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved September 16, 2017.
  30. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Sparks – Hippopotamus" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved September 15, 2017.
  31. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 16, 2017.
  32. ^ "Sverigetopplistan – Sveriges Officiella Topplista". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved September 15, 2017. Click on "Veckans albumlista".
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