Wilderness (The Handsome Family album)
Wilderness is the ninth studio album by alternative country duo The Handsome Family. It was released in May 2013 by Carrot Top Records. Wilderness is an often surreal concept album about nature, with each song named after an animal.[2]
| Wilderness | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 14, 2013 | |||
| Genre | Alternative country | |||
| Length | 52:41 | |||
| Label | Carrot Top, Loose Music | |||
| The Handsome Family chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 76/100[1] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |    [2] |
| The A.V. Club | B+[3] |
| PopMatters | 7/10[4] |
Reception
The album was well received by critics: according to Metacritic, the album has received an average review score of 76/100, based on 9 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews."[1] James Monger of AllMusic noted the album's Kafkaesque, dreamlike quality, praising the "remarkably affecting" song "Wildebeest," about the death of 19th-century songwriter Stephen Foster.[2] A.V. Club reviewer Christopher Bahn described Wilderness as "rootsy, literary country-rock that’s a little like a collaboration between Hank Williams and Edgar Allan Poe," and called it "one of the strongest, most cohesive albums of their career."[3]
Track list
All tracks are written by The Handsome Family.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Flies" | 3:41 |
| 2. | "Frogs" | 4:41 |
| 3. | "Eels" | 4:25 |
| 4. | "Octopus" | 3:33 |
| 5. | "Owls" | 3:59 |
| 6. | "Caterpillars" | 4:41 |
| 7. | "Glow Worm" | 5:33 |
| 8. | "Lizard" | 5:12 |
| 9. | "Woodpecker" | 4:22 |
| 10. | "Gulls" | 4:20 |
| 11. | "Spider" | 3:54 |
| 12. | "Wildebeest" | 4:20 |
References
- "Wilderness Reviews". Metacritic.com. Retrieved 2013-07-08.
- Monger, James. "Wilderness - The Handsome Family". Allmusic.com. Retrieved 2013-07-08.
- Bahn, Christopher (2013-05-14). "The Handsome Family: Wilderness". Avclub.com. Retrieved 2013-07-08.
- Arado, Matt (2013-05-10). "The Handsome Family: Wilderness". Popmatters.com. Retrieved 2013-07-08.