Fate (Dr. Dog album)

Fate
Studio album by
Dr. Dog
ReleasedJuly 22, 2008
GenreIndie rock, Americana, neo-psychedelia, chamber pop
Length44:15
LabelPark the Van
Dr. Dog chronology
Passed Away, Vol. 1
(2008) 		Fate
(2008) 		Shame, Shame
(2010)

Fate is the fifth album by Philadelphia indie rock band Dr. Dog. It was released on July 22, 2008. The album introduces some new studio elements to their established indie rock sound.[1]

Background

Pre-orders from the album, depending on where it was pre-ordered, included signed CD art, a signed or unsigned 7" with two new songs ('The Dearly Departed' and 'Is It Worth My Time'), stickers, posters, t-shirts, and the album on vinyl.[citation needed]

The song "My Friend" was featured in trailers for the Judd Apatow film Funny People.[2]

Album cover

The cover is a picture of a painting with the outlines sewn on done by Chicago native Ken Ellis. It was directly inspired by a picture of ill-fated outlaw duo Bonnie and Clyde.[3] When the members of Dr. Dog saw the painting at Chicago's Rainbo Club, where Ellis bartended, they quickly bought it from him.[4] They then used it as the album cover because they thought it fit with the general aesthetic of the album.

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AbsolutePunk.net(88%) [5]
Allmusic [6]
Billboard(Positive) [7]
Entertainment Weekly(A-) [8]
Filter(93%)
Rolling Stone [9]
Pitchfork Media(5.5/10)[10]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Dr. Dog

No.TitleLength
1."The Breeze"3:59
2."Hang On"4:01
3."The Old Days"3:41
4."Army of Ancients"4:05
5."The Rabbit, the Bat, and the Reindeer"3:29
6."The Ark"3:37
7."From"4:39
8."100 Years"4:06
9."Uncovering the Old"3:21
10."The Beach"3:41
11."My Friend"5:36
Total length:44:15
Bonus tracks on Japanese CD version
No.TitleLength
12."The Dearly Departed"3:00
13."Is It Worth My Time?"3:56
Bonus tracks on iTunes version
No.TitleLength
12."The Dearly Departed"3:14
13."Drop Me Off"4:03
14."From (alternate version)"5:10

Personnel

Dr. Dog is:

  • Toby "Tables" Leaman - vocals, bass, upright bass
  • Scott "Taxi" McMicken - vocals, lead guitar, piano
  • Frank "Thanks" McElroy - rhythm guitar, vocals
  • Zach "Text" Miller - keyboards, piano, guitar
  • Juston "Triumph" Stens - drums, percussion, vocals

Additional Musicians:

  • Danny Scofield - saxophones
  • Janka Perniss - violin
  • Tommy Bindle - percussion
  • Steve Duffy - trombone
  • Kimbal Brown - trumpet
  • John Pettit - trumpet
  • Heather Fortune - flute
  • Laura Foxx - clarinet
  • Victoria Baltimore - cello
  • Megan Smith - oboe
  • Eliza Jones - vocals

Additional Production:

  • Brendan Cooney - string and horn arrangements
  • Greg Calbi – mastering
  • Ken Ellis – paintings
  • Bill Moriarty – mixing
  • T. William Moriarty – production coordination
  • Kyle Pulley – production assistant, mixing assistant

References

  1. ^ The Fader Dr. Dog Review, thefader.com, gives a description of Dr. Dogs performance, retrieved 30 May 2008.
  2. ^ Funny People Trailer on YouTube, TV Spot featuring Dr. Dog's "My Friend".
  3. ^ Bonnie and Clyde Photo, Photo of Bonnie and Clyde that inspired the cover of Fate.
  4. ^ Dr. Dog backstage interview at Lollapalooza 2008 on YouTube
  5. ^ "Dr. Dog - Fate - Album Review". AbsolutePunk.net. 2008-07-22. Retrieved 2012-09-12.
  6. ^ Sean Westergaard (2008-07-22). "Fate - Dr. Dog | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2015-06-10.
  7. ^ [1] Archived August 3, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ Leah Greenblatt (2008-07-18). "Fate Review". EW.com. Archived from the original on September 3, 2008. Retrieved 2012-09-12.
  9. ^ [2] Archived March 1, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
  10. ^ [3] Archived October 21, 2008, at the Wayback Machine