Upon release, the album received acclaim from critics, with many reviewers naming it some of the band's strongest work. Several publications such as NME, Billboard, Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, and Variety listed it as one of the best releases of 2022. It debuted atop the UK Albums Chart as well as reaching number one in Scotland, Ireland and Australia. It also reached the top 7 on the US Billboard 200, as well as top 10 in New Zealand, Japan, Canada and the Netherlands. The album was nominated for Album of the Year at the 2023 Brit Awards.[8]
Background
Many of the band's 2020 shows that were postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic were ultimately cancelled on 12 January 2021. During this time, lead singer Matty Healy teased future music under their previous name "Drive Like I Do", and said that the band was working on their fifth studio album. However, there was no indication as to when writing, recording, or mixing would be finished.[9]
On 14 February 2022, the band deactivated their main social media accounts, hinting at new material.[10][11]
The album title and track listing were revealed to select fans through postcards. The band released its first single from the album "Part of the Band" on 7 July 2022.[12] The second single, "Happiness", was released on 3 August 2022.[13][14][15] The third single, "I'm in Love with You", was released on 1 September 2022.[16] The fourth single, "All I Need to Hear", was released on 21 September 2022.[17]
Recording and production
"Every record I've made, I convinced myself that I had so much to prove, so it had to be about everything that ever happened, everything that's happening now, and everything that could ever happen. But on this record, I said, 'Instead of a magnum opus, what about more like a polaroid?"
Writing sessions for what would eventually become Being Funny in a Foreign Language started in 2021, when the band worked on-and-off with producer BJ Burton, whom Healy admired for his production work on Bon Iver's 22, A Million (2016) and Low's Double Negative (2018) and Hey What (2021). During their time together, Burton noticed that his creative process varied greatly from the band's, as they would "[pull] up songs from Spotify, or [check] another reference for a chord progression" while writing.[18] He set out to align their differences, and eventually they did record what amounted to be "sparks where songs were being bred ... a bunch of early demos", but after Burton heard that the band began working with producer Jack Antonoff, he ended the sessions.[18] In an August 2022 interview with Pitchfork, Burton indicated that the band's creative pivot still "stung", though Healy indicated he was hoping to rekindle his working relationship with Burton for a future album.[18]
When recording with Antonoff, the band was determined to focus on their instrumental strong-suits and keep things as live and unadulterated by computers as possible. In an interview with Apple Music 1, Healy amounted the process to outright defining the true sonic identity of the band, while host Zane Lowe described it as the next step for a band with "such restless energy" as the 1975. Lowe cited that the band had "exhausted" their stylistic exploration and had reached a point of reflection on their improved technical skill in this record.[19] Similarly to Burton, Healy sought out to work with Antonoff, whom he called the "biggest producer in the world" out of respect for his production capabilities, specifically his work with American singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey.[18] However, Healy made it clear to Antonoff that he retained full creative control of the recording process while working together.[18][19]
Being Funny in a Foreign Language received critical acclaim upon its release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 based on reviews from mainstream critics, the album received a score of 82 out of 100, based on reviews from 16 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[24] The album was rated an 7.6 out of 10 on the aggregator AnyDecentMusic?.[23]
Brady Brickner-Wood of Pitchfork wrote that the album "tames the group's taste for excess and plays up their fundamentals: goopy '80s guitars, pumping drums, schmaltzy saxophones, and infuriatingly good hooks" and praised the band's experimentation, noting that "even when their songs reek of camp, Healy has enough moxie to elevate a potentially horrible idea into an eloquent exclamation point".[32] El Hunt, writing for NME, noted how the band "tightened things up" on Being Funny in a Foreign Language, calling Healy's songwriting on the album "his most contradictory and intriguing yet, frequently turning his pen back on himself", concluding that the record "feels like the right next step after pushing experimental excess to its logical conclusion, and is comparatively lean with just eleven tracks to its name. 'The 1975: At Their Very Best' – the lofty, and slightly tongue-in-cheek title they've given to their upcoming tour – might be infuriatingly, brilliantly cocky, but let's face facts: it's also pretty accurate."[31]
Year-end lists
Select year-end rankings of Being Funny in a Foreign Language
^Bucksbaum, Sydney; Greenblatt, Leah; Lamphier, Jason; Myers, Owen; December 08, Allaire Nuss; EST, 2022 at 07:25 PM. "The 10 best albums of 2022". EW.com. Archived from the original on 12 December 2022. Retrieved 24 December 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^Wood, Mikael (4 December 2022). "The 20 best albums of 2022". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 4 December 2022. Retrieved 11 June 2023.
^Pareles, Jon; Caramanica, Jon; Zoladz, Lindsay (30 November 2022). "Best Albums of 2022". The New York Times. ISSN0362-4331. Archived from the original on 30 November 2022. Retrieved 11 June 2023.
^Slant Staff (7 December 2022). "The 50 Best Albums of 2022". Slant Magazine. Archived from the original on 7 December 2022. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
^Aswad, Chris Willman, Jem; Willman, Chris; Aswad, Jem (9 December 2022). "The Best Albums of 2022". Variety. Archived from the original on 9 December 2022. Retrieved 11 June 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
