The Big Roar

The Big Roar is the debut album by Welsh rock band the Joy Formidable, released in the UK on 24 January 2011 on Atlantic Records, with a US release following on 15 March 2011.[1] The tracks "Austere", "Cradle", "Whirring" and "The Greatest Light Is the Greatest Shade" were originally featured on the band's debut mini album A Balloon Called Moaning.[2] These songs were re-recorded for The Big Roar.

The Big Roar
Studio album by
The Joy Formidable
Released24 January 2011
Genre
Length49:53
LabelAtlantic
ProducerThe Joy Formidable, Rich Costey, Neak Menter
The Joy Formidable chronology
A Balloon Called Moaning
(2008)		 The Big Roar
(2011)		 Roarities
(2011)
Singles from The Big Roar
  1. "Popinjay"
    Released: 5 April 2010
  2. "I Don't Want To See You Like This"
    Released: 8 October 2010
  3. "A Heavy Abacus"
    Released: 8 July 2011

Background and recording

In summer 2010, the band signed with Canvasback Records, a subsidiary of Atlantic. The band worked on writing and tracking the material for The Big Roar when they were not on tour. The album was recorded in London.[3]

On the album, bassist Rhydian Dafydd said that "(it) covers a lot of emotional range. It's captured the battle between the eternal optimist and the manic depressive". Their debut was produced by the band, with help from engineer Neak Menter. The band traveled to Los Angeles to mix it with producer Rich Costey, who had worked with bands such as Mew, Muse, Foo Fighters and Glasvegas. The first single from those sessions, "I Don't Want to See You Like This", was released in the autumn of 2010.[3] The Japanese release of the album contains three exclusive bonus tracks.[4]

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AbsolutePunk(84%) link
Allmusic link
Contactmusic link
BBC Music(very positive) link
Drowned in Sound link
NME8/10 link
Clash link
The Guardian link
Pitchfork6.8/10 link
Spin8/10 link

The Big Roar has received mostly positive reviews. The album currently has a 77 out of 100 on the review aggregate site Metacritic, which indicates "generally favorable reviews."[5]

Reviewer Mike Haydock of BBC Music praised the album, calling it "a fantastic debut".[6] Lisa Wright of NME also gave the album a positive review, writing, "The Big Roar is the kind of epic-yet-intimate debut that does exactly what its title makes out in the most tactful of styles; an LP that ultimately delivers on every count on the four years of promise leading up to it".[2] In another positive review, Clash wrote of the album: "Bolt on an undeniably zealous execution, a set of simple yet well-written songs, add an element of confident adventure via some experimentation and diversity and the rebirth of indie may just have found its leading protagonists".[7]

In a more mixed review, Stuart Berman of Pitchfork criticized the album for being excessive, writing, "There's no denying the Joy Formidable's passion, vigor, and pop smarts; it would just be easier to appreciate those qualities if The Big Roar didn't so often sound like a big blur".[8] Jason Keller of Now Magazine agreed, writing, "The immediate criticism about this long-in-the-making debut... is that there’s too much big, as the title suggests".[9]

Track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."The Everchanging Spectrum of a Lie"Rhydian Davies, Ritzy BryanThe Joy Formidable, Neak Menter7:44
2."The Magnifying Glass"Davies, BryanThe Joy Formidable, Neak Menter2:19
3."I Don't Want to See You Like This"Davies, BryanThe Joy Formidable, Neak Menter4:18
4."Austere"Davies, BryanThe Joy Formidable, Neak Menter3:30
5."A Heavy Abacus"Davies, BryanThe Joy Formidable, Neak Menter3:40
6."Whirring"Davies, BryanRich Costey6:47
7."Buoy"Davies, BryanThe Joy Formidable, Neak Menter4:51
8."Maruyama"Davies, BryanThe Joy Formidable, Neak Menter1:46
9."Cradle"Davies, BryanRich Costey2:46
10."Llaw = Wall"Davies, BryanThe Joy Formidable, Neak Menter3:44
11."Chapter 2"Davies, BryanThe Joy Formidable, Neak Menter3:08
12."The Greatest Light Is the Greatest Shade"Davies, BryanThe Joy Formidable, Neak Menter5:20
Japanese edition bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
13."My Beerdrunk Soul Is Sadder Than a Hundred Christmas Trees"Davies, BryanThe Joy Formidable4:56
14."Popinjay"Davies, BryanThe Joy Formidable, Neak Menter3:15
15."Chwyrlio"Davies, BryanThe Joy Formidable4:12
Limited edition bonus CD: It's Just a World Apart
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Greyhounds In the Slips" (featuring Paul Draper)Davies, BryanThe Joy Formidable3:25
2."My Beerdrunk Soul Is Sadder Than a Hundred Christmas Trees"Davies, BryanThe Joy Formidable4:56
3."Popinjay"Davies, BryanThe Joy Formidable, Neak Menter3:15
4."Chwyrlio"Davies, BryanThe Joy Formidable4:12
5."The Butterfly's Last Spell"Davies, BryanThe Joy Formidable3:21
6."Wide Eyed"Davies, BryanThe Joy Formidable2:43
Limited edition bonus DVD: One Shape Under the Magnifying Glass: Live at the Mercury Lounge
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."The Greatest Light Is the Greatest Shade"Davies, BryanJohn Ashby 
2."Cradle"Davies, BryanAshby 
3."The Last Drop"Davies, BryanAshby 
4."Austere"Davies, BryanAshby 
5."Ostrich"Davies, BryanAshby 
6."Greyhound In the Slips"Davies, BryanAshby 
Limited edition bonus DVD: A Bridge Splits November's Sky
No.TitleLength
1."To Worms Head" (includes "My Beerdrunk Soul Is Sadder Than a Hundred Christmas Trees", "The Magnifying Glass", "Whirring", "I Don't Want to See You Like This", "Austere", "The Everchanging Spectrum of a Lie") 
2."Austere" (music video) 
3."Cradle" (music video) 
4."Whirring" (music video) 
5."Popinjay" (music video) 
6."I Don't Want to See You Like This" (music video) 

Personnel
The Joy Formidable
  • Ritzy Bryan – Vocals, guitar
  • Rhydian Dafydd – Bass, vocals (10)
  • Matt Thomas – Drums
Production
  • Rich Costey – Mixing, producer
  • Neak Menter – Mixing, producer
Design personnel
  • Rhydian Dafydd - Illustrations
  • Jeremy Cowart – Photography
  • Danny North – Photography
  • Alex Kirzhner – Layout

Charts
Chart (2011) Peak
position
Billboard Heatseekers Albums[10] 8
UK Albums Chart[11] 31

References
  1. The Joy Formidable announce debut album release date and tracklisting. NME. Retrieved 10 June 2011.
  2. Wright, Lisa. Album Review: The Joy Formidable. NME. Retrieved 10 June 2011
  3. The Joy Formidable - Full Biography. MTV. Retrieved 15 December 2011.
  4. Joy Formidable, The - The Big Roar on Discogs
  5. The Big Roar: Reviews. Metacritic. Retrieved on 10 June 2011.
  6. Haydock, Mike. Review of The Joy Formidable - The Big Roar. BBC Music. Retrieved 10 June 2011
  7. The Joy Formidable - The Big Roar. Clash. Retrieved 10 June 2011
  8. The Joy Formidable: The Big Roar. Pitchfork. Retrieved 10 June 2011
  9. Joy Formidable - The Big Roar. Now Magazine. Retrieved 10 June 2011.
  10. "Artist Chart History - The Joy Formidable". Billboard. Retrieved 10 June 2011.
  11. "JOY FORMIDABLE - The Official Charts Company". The Official Charts Company. Retrieved 10 June 2011.
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