She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She
| She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | February 9, 2024 | |||
| Genre | Electronica | |||
| Length | 42:56 | |||
| Label | Loma Vista | |||
| Producer | Dave Sitek | |||
| Chelsea Wolfe chronology | ||||
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| Singles from She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She | ||||
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She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She is the seventh studio album by American singer-songwriter Chelsea Wolfe. It was released on February 9, 2024, by Loma Vista Recordings, her first album with the label. It was preceded by four singles.
The album was recorded with producer and TV on the Radio guitarist Dave Sitek, as well as regular Wolfe collaborators Ben Chisholm, Bryan Tulao, and Jess Gowrie. It consists primarily of electronica, with significant influence of trip hop, gothic rock, and industrial music, and was mainly inspired by Wolfe achieving sobriety in January 2021. It was received positively by critics, who described the album as ambitious, adventurous, and sonically disparate.
The album was followed by two EPs. The first was a remix EP, Undone EP, released on August 30, featuring remixes by Ash Koosha, Full of Hell, Boy Harsher, Justin K Broadrick, Forest Swords, and Crosses. The second, the Unbound EP of acoustic renditions of songs from the album, was released on November 15.
Background
[edit]After starting work on the album in 2020, Wolfe made the decision to get sober in January 2021.[1] She had started drinking alcohol as a preteen, and realized in her adult years that she was relying on it to "push myself past my own energetic limits, and just do too much."[1] Having struggled in the past to write about deeply personal subject matter, Wolfe waited until she felt "like I was really solid in my sobriety and like it was going to really stick" before she was ready to tackle her struggles in song.[1] Wolfe also noted the inspiration of seeing a friend leave a toxic relationship of 30 years and learning how to live on their own again,[1] and musical influences including the Depeche Mode album Violator, Nine Inch Nails, and Tricky.[1]
When asked for ten songs that influenced the album, Wolfe named Depeche Mode's "Waiting for the Night", the Smashing Pumpkins's "Daphne Descends", Björk's "Bachelorette", Madonna's "Frozen", Nine Inch Nails's "The Hand That Feeds", Massive Attack's "Teardrop", Low's "Rome (Always in the Dark), Radiohead's "Where I End and You Begin, TV on the Radio's "Staring at the Sun", and Lhasa de Sela's "Anywhere on This Road".[2]
According to Wolfe, the album's title refers to "the past version of yourself connecting with the present version of yourself, connecting with the future version of yourself".[3] The album cover features Wolfe holding a glass egg which, to her, represented possibility.[4] The image was meant to convey a nurturing tone.[4]
Release
[edit]On September 20, 2023, Wolfe announced that she had signed with Loma Vista, and released the album's lead single "Dusk".[5] Consequence declared it the Heavy Song of the Week, with Jon Hadusek calling it "genre-defying" and saying it "deserves to be heard on a good set of speakers or headphones."[6] Along the release of "Dusk", Wolfe announced a US and Canada tour with Divide and Dissolve for February and March 2024.[5]
The album was announced on October 24, 2023, with a release date of February 9, 2024, by Loma Vista.[7] It came with the release of the second single, "Whispers in the Echo Chamber", and a music video directed by George Gallardo Kattah.[7][8] With the announcement, Wolfe stated that the album was about "the past self reaching out to the present self reaching out to the future self to summon change, growth, and guidance."[7]
The third single, "Tunnel Lights", was released on November 28, with another video directed by Gallardo Kattah.[9] On January 17, 2024, Wolfe released the fourth single, "Everything Turns Blue", with a visualizer and a statement that the song is about "finding yourself again after a long era of being part of something toxic. Making a split with someone after 10 years, 20 years, 30 years — there's going to be some high highs and low lows as you begin to process it all."[10]
Style
[edit]The album mainly consists of electronica,[11][12] and features significant influence of trip hop,[11][12][13] gothic rock,[12] and industrial music.[14][15][13] Some tracks include industrial metal,[11] darkwave,[16] electropop,[16] jazz-metal,[14] and IDM.[11] The electronic elements of the album have been described as "gaseous",[16] "minimalist",[14] "lush",[1] "cavernous",[12] and a "buzzing embrace".[12]
Critical reception
[edit]| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AnyDecentMusic? | 7.5/10[17] |
| Metacritic | 80/100[18] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [19] |
| Clash | 8/10[11] |
| Exclaim! | 8/10[12] |
| Kerrang! | 4/5[14] |
| The Line of Best Fit | 8/10[20] |
| Pitchfork | 7.6/10[21] |
| PopMatters | 6/10[16] |
| The Skinny |  [15] |
| Slant Magazine | [13] |
| Uncut | 7/10[22] |
According to the review aggregator Metacritic, She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She received "generally favorable reviews" based on a weighted average score of 80 out of 100 from 15 critic scores.[18]
Uncut's Johnny Sharp wrote that while Wolfe "tries too hard" with opener "Whispers in the Echo Chamber", her "talent for a melodramatic hook wins through" on "Tunnel Lights" and "Everything Turns Blue".[22] Slant Magazine's Steve Erickson noted a tension in Wolfe's music between her "tendency to overdramatize or cloak her pain in gothic imagery and a genuine yearning to be heard and understood", saying She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She is more often the latter.[13]
Clash's Tom Morgan said that while "it'd be difficult to proclaim it her finest work", the album is "certainly Wolfe's most ambitious and careful-constructed".[11] Exclaim!'s Marko Djurdjić called the album "a wondrous, rhythmic exercise in acceptance, change and self-love."[12] Kerrang!'s Sam Law said the album "may be the most creatively adventurous of her career", and called it "a promise that as brilliantly beguiling as Chelsea Wolfe has always been, her big picture is still coming into focus".[14]
The Line of Best Fit's Greg Hyde wrote that "it is clear when listening to the album after learning of Wolfe's intended vision for it that she has executed it greatly", and said that "fans of artists as disparate as Converge and Tricky should love it".[20] The Skinny's Adam Turner-Heffer called the album "another successful reinvention from the Californian artist".[15] AllMusic's Heather Phares called the album "hopeful in a deeply honest way" and said it "chronicles an evolution that brings out the best, most adventurous aspects of Wolfe's music."[19] In a less positive review, PopMatters's Adriane Pontecorvo wrote that "while [Wolfe's] disparate choices of canvas give us a bumpy ride, it's one worth taking in good faith."[16]
Track listing
[edit]All lyrics are written by Chelsea Wolfe; all music is composed by Wolfe, Ben Chisholm, Bryan Tulao, and Jess Gowrie, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Whispers in the Echo Chamber" | 4:01 | |
| 2. | "House of Self-Undoing" | 4:23 | |
| 3. | "Everything Turns Blue" | 4:26 | |
| 4. | "Tunnel Lights" |
| 4:08 |
| 5. | "The Liminal" | 4:51 | |
| 6. | "Eyes Like Nightshade" |
| 4:34 |
| 7. | "Salt" | 4:23 | |
| 8. | "Unseen World" | 3:27 | |
| 9. | "Place in the Sun" | 4:09 | |
| 10. | "Dusk" | 4:34 | |
| Total length: | 42:56 | ||
Personnel
[edit]- Chelsea Wolfe – vocals
- Dave Sitek – producer
- Ben Chisholm – piano, synthesizer, drum programming
- Bryan Tulao – guitar
- Jess Gowrie – drums, synthesizer, guitar (2)
- Derek Coburn – recording engineer
- Shawn Everett – mixing engineer
- Heba Kadry – mastering engineer
- Seth Presant – immersive mix engineer
Charts
[edit]| Chart (2024) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[23] | 107 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[24] | 122 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[25] | 43 |
| Scottish Albums (OCC)[26] | 19 |
| Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[27] | 28 |
| UK Album Downloads (OCC)[28] | 9 |
EPs
[edit]Undone EP
[edit]| Undone EP | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Remix album by | ||||
| Released | August 30, 2024 | |||
| Length | 26:05 | |||
| Label | Loma Vista | |||
| Chelsea Wolfe chronology | ||||
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On August 2, Wolfe announced the Undone EP, a six-track EP of remixes of songs from the album.[29] The project features remixes by Ash Koosha, Full of Hell, Boy Harsher, Justin K Broadrick, Forest Swords, and Crosses.[29] It will be released on August 30 by Loma Vista.[29] Boy Harsher's remix of "House of Self-Undoing" was released on June 11,[30] and Crosses's remix of "Tunnel Lights" was released on August 2.[29]
Track listing
[edit]| No. | Title | Remixer | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Tunnel Lights" | Crosses | 4:23 |
| 2. | "House of Self-Undoing" | Boy Harsher | 4:01 |
| 3. | "Whispers in the Echo Chamber" | Forest Swords | 4:19 |
| 4. | "Dusk" | Ash Koosha | 4:15 |
| 5. | "Eyes Like Nightshade" | Full of Hell | 4:24 |
| 6. | "Everything Turns Blue" | Justin K Broadrick | 4:43 |
| Total length: | 26:05 | ||
Unbound EP
[edit]| Unbound EP | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| EP by | ||||
| Released | November 15, 2024 | |||
| Length | 16:31 | |||
| Label | Loma Vista | |||
| Chelsea Wolfe chronology | ||||
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On October 15, Wolfe announced the Unbound EP, an EP of acoustic renditions of four songs from the album and a cover of the Spiritbox song "Cellar Door".[31][32] Wolfe previously performed her version of "Cellar Door" on the BBC Radio 1 Rock Show, to which Spiritbox vocalist Courtney LaPlante responded approvingly.[33] The EP was released on November 15 by Loma Vista.[31][34] With the announcement, Wolfe released a music video for the new version of "Place in the Sun".[31]
Track listing
[edit]| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Whispers in the Echo Chamber (Unbound)" | 3:25 | |
| 2. | "Dusk (Unbound)" | 3:24 | |
| 3. | "The Liminal (Unbound)" | 3:20 | |
| 4. | "Place in the Sun (Unbound)" | 3:52 | |
| 5. | "Cellar Door" |
| 2:30 |
| Total length: | 16:31 | ||
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f Ruskell, Nick (February 7, 2024). "Chelsea Wolfe: "This feels very much like what I was put here to do"". Kerrang!. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
- ^ "10 songs that influenced Chelsea Wolfe's She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She". Alternative Press. February 1, 2024. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
- ^ Madden, Emma (November 7, 2024). "Chelsea Wolfe faces the future". The Fader. Retrieved November 15, 2024.
- ^ a b Jackson, Luke (October 24, 2024). "Interview: Chelsea Wolfe Talks She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She and Undone". New Noise Magazine. Retrieved November 15, 2024.
- ^ a b Pearis, Bill (September 20, 2023). "Chelsea Wolfe shares new single "Dusk", announces 2024 tour w/ Divide and Dissolve". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved October 24, 2023.
- ^ Hadusek, Jon (September 22, 2023). "Heavy Song of the Week: Chelsea Wolfe Embraces Expansive Production on Moody New Single "Dusk"". Consequence. Retrieved October 24, 2023.
- ^ a b c Minsker, Evan (October 24, 2023). "Chelsea Wolfe Announces Album, Shares New "Whispers in the Echo Chamber" Video". Pitchfork. Retrieved October 24, 2023.
- ^ Rettig, James (October 24, 2023). "Chelsea Wolfe – "Whispers in the Echo Chamber"". Stereogum. Retrieved October 24, 2023.
- ^ Chelosky, Danielle (November 29, 2023). "Chelsea Wolfe Shares New Song "Tunnel Lights"". Stereogum. Retrieved November 29, 2023.
- ^ Scarlett, Liz (January 17, 2024). ""Making a split with someone after 10 years, 20 years, 30 years — there's going to be some high highs and low lows as you begin to process it all". Chelsea Wolfe shares shadowy new single "Everything Turns Blue"". Metal Hammer. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f Morgan, Tom (February 6, 2024). "Chelsea Wolfe – She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She". Clash. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g Djurdjić, Marko (February 6, 2024). "Chelsea Wolfe Shines Some Light on She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She". Exclaim!. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
- ^ a b c d Erickson, Steve (February 1, 2024). "Chelsea Wolfe She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She Review: Gothic Sturm und Drang". Slant Magazine. Retrieved February 5, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e Law, Sam (February 5, 2024). "Album review: Chelsea Wolfe – She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She". Kerrang!. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
- ^ a b c Turner-Heffer, Adam (February 6, 2024). "Chelsea Wolfe – She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She". The Skinny. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e Pontecorvo, Adriane (8 February 2024). "Chelsea Wolfe Takes Unpredictable Turns on Her New LP". PopMatters. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
- ^ "She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She by Chelsea Wolfe reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
- ^ a b "She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She by Chelsea Wolfe Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
- ^ a b Phares, Heather. "Chelsea Wolfe – She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She". AllMusic. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
- ^ a b Hyde, Greg (7 February 2024). "Chelsea Wolfe re-embraces abrasiveness on She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
- ^ Bardhan, Ashley (February 9, 2024). "Chelsea Wolfe: She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved February 11, 2024.
- ^ a b Sharp, Johnny (February 2024). "Chelsea Wolfe - She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She". Uncut. Retrieved February 1, 2024.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – Chelsea Wolfe – She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – Chelsea Wolfe – She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
- ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Chelsea Wolfe – She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
- ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
- ^ "Swisscharts.com – Chelsea Wolfe – She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
- ^ "Official Album Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
- ^ a b c d Gregory, Allie (August 2, 2024). "Chelsea Wolfe Gets Full of Hell, ††† (Crosses), Boy Harsher for Undone EP". Exclaim!. Retrieved August 5, 2024.
- ^ Carter, Emily (June 11, 2024). "Hear Boy Harsher's new remix of Chelsea Wolfe's "House of Self-Undoing"". Kerrang!. Retrieved August 5, 2024.
- ^ a b c Scarlett, Liz (October 15, 2024). ""A contemplation on the nature of change": Chelsea Wolfe announces Unbound EP from She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She album sessions". Metal Hammer. Retrieved October 15, 2024.
- ^ Carter, Emily (October 15, 2024). "Chelsea Wolfe announces Unbound acoustic EP". Kerrang!. Retrieved October 15, 2024.
- ^ Kennelty, Greg (May 1, 2024). "Chelsea Wolfe Covered Spiritbox's "Cellar Door", Courtney LaPlante Approves". Metal Injection. Retrieved October 15, 2024.
- ^ Kelly, Tyler Damara (October 15, 2024). "Chelsea Wolfe announces the final chapter of the She Reaches Out triptych". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved October 15, 2024.