Blank Project

Blank Project is the fourth studio album by Neneh Cherry, released by Smalltown Supersound on 25 February 2014.[2] The record is Cherry's first album of solo music in 18 years.[3][4] It was recorded and mixed over a 5-day period in Woodstock, NY.[5] It was produced by Four Tet's Kieran Hebden and features a guest appearance by Robyn.[6] The record also includes work with prior collaborators, synth/drum duo RocketNumberNine.[3] Critical reviews of the album were very positive.

Blank Project
Studio album by
Neneh Cherry
Released25 February 2014
GenreElectronic, trip hop,[1] experimental
Length48:52
LabelSmalltown Supersound
ProducerFour Tet
Neneh Cherry chronology
Man
(1996)		 Blank Project
(2014)		 Broken Politics
(2018)
Singles from Blank Project
  1. "Everything"
    Released: 24 January 2014
  2. "Out of the Black"
    Released: February 2014
  3. "Spit Three Times"
    Released: 26 October 2014

Description

Cherry wrote the material as a way to mourn for her mother, who died in 2009.[7] The record is a departure from her previous work, consisting of a more sparse sound, with loose drums and a few synthesizers as the only accompaniment to her voice.[8] RocketNumberNine provides industrial beats.[9]

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?8.0/10[10]
Metacritic82/100[11]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[12]
The A.V. ClubA−[1]
The Daily Telegraph[13]
The Guardian[14]
The Independent[15]
NME8/10[16]
Pitchfork7.7/10[17]
Q[18]
Rolling Stone[19]
Spin8/10[20]

Blank Project received widespread critical acclaim upon its release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has received an average score of 82, based on 36 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[11] NPR calls the work "stark and urgent, almost entirely percussive. Her lyrics are less rebel treatises than koans or ruminations."[3] Spin says it is "a stark, bracing, and emotionally vulnerable album that straddles the jazz, pop, and electronic worlds rather brilliantly."[7] The Guardian calls it "a bold and adventurous album".[21]

The Arts Desk describes the record: "High on rhythms and percussion and low on conventional melodies, it certainly isn’t easy listening but is frequently bold and challenging, with harsh electronica providing the only accompaniment to Neneh’s warm vocals."[9] The Skinny calls Blank Project a "triumph."[22]

Electronic Beats says: "Blank Project is an upturned bag on a table, pouring out its contents for anyone to sort through: chewed up emotions, snotty little insecurities and the kind of anxiety that’ll etch red marks into the skin if you carry it around too long."[23]

In Vice, Robert Christgau gave the album a one-star honorable mention, naming "Out of the Black" and "Spit Three Times" as highlights, while writing, "long-ago hipster-funk ingénue reclaims her avant-garde roots".[24]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Neneh Cherry, Cameron McVey and Paul Simm[25].

Blank Project (mp3, CD, LP)
No.TitleLength
1."Across the Water"3:28
2."Blank Project"4:05
3."Naked"3:57
4."Spit Three Times"4:18
5."Weightless"5:46
6."Cynical"4:10
7."422"5:21
8."Out of the Black" (featuring Robyn)5:15
9."Dossier"5:12
10."Everything"7:20
Total length:48:52

Bonus tracks

Bonus CD

The Blank Project - Bonus Remix Disc (available via Rough Trade Records and Piccadilly Records[26]

  1. "Everything" (Radio Edit)
  2. "Out of the Black" (featuring Robyn) (Joe Goddard Extended Version)
  3. "Everything" (Villalobos & Loderbauer: Vilod Low Blood Pressure Mix)
  4. "Out of the Black" (featuring Robyn) (Bouvet Remix)

Personnel

Chart positions
Chart (2014) Peak
position
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[27] 38
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[28] 44
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[29] 65
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[30] 71
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[31] 39
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[32] 40
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[33] 28
UK Albums (OCC)[34] 41
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[35] 6

References
  1. Bowman, Patrick (25 February 2014). "Neneh Cherry crafts trip-hop in her own image on Blank Project". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  2. Anderson, Kurt (7 February 2014). "Live In-Studio: Neneh Cherry's Soul Punk Project (Interview + Performance)". Studio 360. Archived from the original (audio interview) on 9 February 2014. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  3. Macia, Peter (February 17, 2014). "First Listen: Neneh Cherry, 'Blank Project'" (article and audio stream). NPR. Retrieved 25 February 2014.
  4. Chinen, Nate (21 February 2014). "The Sounds of Things Ending, Continuing and Reshaping". The New York Times. Retrieved 25 February 2014.
  5. Young, Martyn (18 February 2014). "Neneh Cherry – Blank Project". MusicOMH. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  6. Battan, Carrie (18 November 2013). "Listen: Neneh Cherry Shares Title Track From Four Tet-Produced Album Blank Project". Pitchfork. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  7. Gehr, Richard (24 February 2014). "Neneh Cherry Talks Her Weird Punk-Pop-Jazz Trajectory, and the New 'Blank Project'". SPIN. Spin Music, a division of SpinMedia. Retrieved 25 February 2014.
  8. "Neneh Cherry shares details of new album Blank Project out 24th February 2014/25th February in the US on Smalltown Supersound". SoundCloud. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  9. Oddy, Guy (23 February 2014). "CD: Neneh Cherry - Blank Project". The Arts Desk. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  10. "Blank Project by Neneh Cherry reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved 19 December 2019.
  11. "Reviews for Blank Project by Neneh Cherry". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 24 February 2014.
  12. Kellman, Andy. "Blank Project – Neneh Cherry". AllMusic. Retrieved 24 February 2014.
  13. Brown, Helen (24 February 2014). "Neneh Cherry, Blank Project, review". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 25 February 2014.
  14. Petridis, Alexis (20 February 2014). "Neneh Cherry: Blank Project – review". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 February 2014.
  15. Harley, Kevin; Williams, Holly; Richman, Simmy; Coleman, Nick; Johnson, Phil (23 February 2014). "Album reviews: Beck, St Vincent, Neneh Cherry, Ags Connolly, John Harle & Marc Almond". The Independent. Retrieved 31 October 2018.
  16. Batey, Angus (24 February 2014). "Neneh Cherry – 'Blank Project'". NME. Archived from the original on 27 February 2014. Retrieved 25 February 2014.
  17. Raymer, Miles (24 February 2014). "Neneh Cherry: Blank Project". Pitchfork. Retrieved 25 February 2014.
  18. "Neneh Cherry: Blank Project". Q (332): 110. March 2014.
  19. Hermes, Will (25 February 2014). "Blank Project". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  20. Sherburne, Philip (25 February 2014). "Neneh Cherry's 'Blank Project' Is an Ocean of Intimate, Nonchalantly Electrifying Funk". Spin. Retrieved 31 October 2018.
  21. Mossman, Kate (22 February 2014). "Neneh Cherry, interview: 'People ask me where I've been for 18 years'". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 February 2014.
  22. Gieben, Bram E. (11 February 2014). "Neneh Cherry – Blank Project (5 Stars)". The Skinny. Radge Media Limited. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  23. Saxelby, Ruth (20 February 2014). "Sweet and Sour: Ruth Saxelby on Neneh Cherry's Blank Project". Electronic Beats. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  24. Christgau, Robert (November 4, 2016). "Reinvention, Response, and "Redemption Song": Expert Witness with Robert Christgau". Vice. Retrieved November 6, 2016.
  25. Bui, Paul (24 February 2014). "life is just a bowl of neneh cherry's". i-D Magazine. Archived from the original on 2014-04-28. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  26. "Neneh Cherry Blank Project - Bonus Disc Edition: Track Listing". Piccadilly Records. Retrieved 25 February 2014.
  27. "Austriancharts.at – Neneh Cherry – Blank Project" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 12, 2014.
  28. "Ultratop.be – Neneh Cherry – Blank Project" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 12, 2014.
  29. "Ultratop.be – Neneh Cherry – Blank Project" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 12, 2014.
  30. "Dutchcharts.nl – Neneh Cherry – Blank Project" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 12, 2014.
  31. "Officialcharts.de – Neneh Cherry – Blank Project". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved March 12, 2014.
  32. "Swedishcharts.com – Neneh Cherry – Blank Project". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 12, 2014.
  33. "Swisscharts.com – Neneh Cherry – Blank Project". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 12, 2014.
  34. "Neneh Cherry | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved March 12, 2014.
  35. "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 12, 2014.
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