Burst Apart

Burst Apart
Studio album by The Antlers
Released	May 10, 2011
Recorded	Watcher's Woods, Brooklyn, September 2010 – January 2011
Genre	Indie rock chamber pop
Length	41:27
Language	English
Label	Frenchkiss Records Transgressive Records
Producer	The Antlers
The Antlers chronology
Hospice (2009) Burst Apart (2011) Undersea (2012)
Singles from Burst Apart
"Parentheses" Released: April 5, 2011 "I Don't Want Love" Released: May 2, 2011

Burst Apart is the fourth studio album by American indie rock group The Antlers. It was released on Frenchkiss Records on May 10, 2011, and the day before in the UK / Japan / Europe by Transgressive Records. It began streaming on the National Public Radio website on April 24, 2011. The cover art was designed by Zan Goodman, who also designed the album cover for their previous album, Hospice.

The track "Parentheses" was released as an iTunes single on April 5, 2011.[1]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
AnyDecentMusic?	7.9/10[2]
Metacritic	81/100[3]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[4]
The A.V. Club	A−[5]
Consequence of Sound	[6]
The Guardian	[7]
The Independent	[8]
NME	7/10[9]
Pitchfork	8.2/10[10]
Q	[11]
Slant Magazine	[12]
Spin	6/10[13]

Upon its release, Burst Apart received highly positive reviews from most critics. It was featured on many best of the year lists of music magazines and was voted album of the year 2011 by Drowned in Sound. It currently holds a score of 81 from review aggregate website Metacritic, indicating "universal acclaim".[3] Most critics have noted the contrast between Burst Apart and its predecessor Hospice, a highly conceptual album about a hospice worker who falls in love with a dying patient.

Pitchfork endorsed it with its "Best New Music" label; reviewer Ian Cohen remarked that although Burst Apart could not achieve the cult-like following of Hospice, it is "still tethered to a magnanimity and expressive clarity that makes it almost every bit as devastating."[10] Jeremy Aaron of AbsolutePunk said that while the record "marks a move away from the stifling bleakness" of Hospice, it is still "an incredible sounding album", composed with "breathtaking elegance".[14]

Marc Hawthorne of The A.V. Club likewise commented on the difference, writing that Hospice "bummed everyone out--in the best possible way," but that The Antlers were able to create a followup that "easily reaches grand, dramatic heights even while remaining relatively subdued."[5]

Track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"I Don't Want Love"	3:22
2.	"French Exit"	4:06
3.	"Parentheses"	3:29
4.	"No Widows"	5:20
5.	"Rolled Together"	4:40
6.	"Every Night My Teeth Are Falling Out"	3:26
7.	"Tiptoe"	2:24
8.	"Hounds"	5:19
9.	"Corsicana"	3:42
10.	"Putting the Dog to Sleep"	5:48
Total length:		41:27

iTunes Deluxe version

No.	Title	Length
11.	"Tongue Tied"	5:03
Total length:		46:30

Personnel

• Peter Silberman: Vocals, lyrics, guitar, mandolin, organ
• Darby Cicci: Synthesizers, electric pianos, organ, bass, vocals, trumpet, banjo
• Michael Lerner: Drums, percussion
• Engineered by Darby Cicci
• Mixed by The Antlers and Dan Seiders
• Mastered by Greg Calbi, Sterling Sound
• Cover design by Zan Goodman
• Cover photo by Justin Hollar
• Additional Design by Zan Goodman, Darby Cicci

References

1. iTunes listing for "Parentheses" - Single
2. "Burst Apart by The Antlers reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved December 28, 2019.
3. "Reviews for Burst Apart by The Antlers". Metacritic. Retrieved May 11, 2011.
4. Lymangrover, Jason. "Burst Apart – The Antlers". AllMusic. Retrieved October 12, 2018.
5. Hawthorne, Marc (May 10, 2011). "The Antlers: Burst Apart". The A.V. Club. Retrieved May 11, 2011.
6. Meyer, Caitlin (April 29, 2011). "Album Review: The Antlers – Burst Apart". Consequence of Sound. Archived from the original on July 12, 2011. Retrieved May 11, 2011.
7. Cragg, Michael (May 26, 2011). "The Antlers: Burst Apart – review". The Guardian. Retrieved October 12, 2018.
8. Gill, Andy (June 10, 2011). "Album: The Antlers, Burst Apart (Transgressive)". The Independent. Archived from the original on June 12, 2011. Retrieved October 12, 2018.
9. Catling, Simon Jay (June 14, 2011). "Album Review: The Antlers – 'Burst Apart'". NME. Archived from the original on June 18, 2011. Retrieved October 12, 2018.
10. Cohen, Ian (May 12, 2011). "The Antlers: Burst Apart". Pitchfork. Retrieved May 12, 2011.
11. "The Antlers: Burst Apart". Q (300): 106. July 2011.
12. Cole, Matthew (May 20, 2011). "The Antlers: Burst Apart". Slant Magazine. Retrieved May 20, 2011.
13. Tedder, Michael (April 30, 2011). "The Antlers, 'Burst Apart' (Frenchkiss)". Spin. Retrieved May 12, 2011.
14. Jeremy Aaron (May 11, 2011). "Antlers, The - Burst Apart - Album Review". Retrieved 2011-05-11.