Fix Yourself, Not the World

Fix Yourself, Not the World
Studio album by the Wombats
Released	14 January 2022 (2022-01-14)
Studio	None (recorded remotely from London, Los Angeles, and Oslo)
Genre	Post-punk Britpop[1]
Length	40:31
Label	AWAL
Producer	Gabe Simon Jacknife Lee Mark Crew Mike Crossey Paul Meany
The Wombats chronology
Beautiful People Will Ruin Your Life (2018) Fix Yourself, Not the World (2022) Oh! The Ocean (2025)
Singles from Fix Yourself, Not the World
"Method to the Madness" Released: 26 May 2021 "If You Ever Leave, I'm Coming with You" Released: 17 August 2021 "Ready for the High" Released: 14 October 2021 "Everything I Love Is Going to Die" Released: 15 November 2021

Fix Yourself, Not the World is the fifth studio album by English rock band the Wombats, released on 14 January 2022. It was preceded by the singles "Method to the Madness", "If You Ever Leave, I'm Coming with You", "Ready for the High", and "Everything I Love Is Going to Die". Music videos were also released for the tracks "This Car Drives All By Itself" and "Worry". The album was supported by a tour throughout America, Europe, and Australia during 2022.[2][3]

The album debuted atop the UK Albums and UK Independent Albums charts with 13,812 units in its first week.[4]

Background and recording

The album began when all members were together in Los Angeles in 2019 and wrote several songs.[5] It was then recorded remotely during several COVID-19 lockdowns beginning in 2020, with each band member in a different location: Matthew Murphy in Los Angeles, bassist Tord Øverland Knudsen in Oslo and drummer Dan Haggis in London. They made a plan each day before separately recording their parts and sending them on to the producers.[6] Haggis said that the band "explored new genres and pushed ourselves further than ever musically" on the album.[7]

Cover art

The cover art for the album and its singles was created by German–American pixel art collective eBoy. Kai Vermehr of eBoy said that he "collected loose ideas" from Murphy and the other band members, and the artwork came together without having "a detailed plan" but through "more of a discovery process".[8]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
AnyDecentMusic?	6.8/10[9]
Metacritic	72/100[10]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Clash	8/10[11]
The Guardian	[12]
MusicOMH	[13]
NME	[14]
No Ripcord	2/10[15]

At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from professional publications, the album received an average score of 72, based on 8 reviews, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[10] Aggregator AnyDecentMusic? gave it 6.8 out of 10, based on their assessment of the critical consensus.[9]

Track listing

Fix Yourself, Not the World track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Flip Me Upside Down"	Matthew Murphy Gabriel Edward Simon	Gabe Simon Mark Crew	3:13
2.	"This Car Drives All by Itself"	Murphy Garret "Jacknife" Lee	Lee	4:45
3.	"If You Ever Leave, I'm Coming with You"	Murphy Timothy Randolph Edgar	Crew	2:49
4.	"Ready for the High"	Murphy Dan Haggis Tord Øverland Knudsen	Crew The Wombats	4:05
5.	"Method to the Madness"	Murphy Haggis Knudsen	Crew The Wombats	4:33
6.	"People Don't Change People, Time Does"	Murphy Haggis Knudsen	Crew The Wombats	3:01
7.	"Everything I Love Is Going to Die"	Murphy Luke Niccoli Micah Premnath	Crew	3:20
8.	"Work Is Easy, Life Is Hard"	Murphy Paul Meany	Meany	3:16
9.	"Wildfire"	Murphy Haggis Knudsen	Crew The Wombats	3:29
10.	"Don't Poke the Bear"	Murphy Haggis Knudsen	Crew The Wombats	3:07
11.	"Worry"	Murphy Lee	Lee	3:10
12.	"Fix Yourself, Then the World (Reach Beyond Your Fingers)"	Murphy Haggis Knudsen	Crew The Wombats	1:43
Total length:				40:31

Personnel

• Greg Calbi – mastering
• Steve Fallone – mastering
• Mike Crossey – mixing
• Gabe Simon – engineering
• Jack Duxbury – engineering
• Jacknife Lee – engineering
• Jonas Jalhay – engineering
• Mark Crew – engineering
• Paul Meany – engineering
• The Wombats – engineering
• Kai Vermehr – cover illustration
• Steffen Sauerteig – cover illustration
• Svend Smital – cover illustration
• Anthony Kitson – graphic design
• Stephen Sesso – assistance

Charts

Chart performance for Fix Yourself, Not the World

Chart (2022)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[16]	2
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[17]	89
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[18]	38
Scottish Albums (OCC)[19]	2
UK Albums (OCC)[20]	1
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[21]	1

References

1. Collar, Matt. "The Wombats – Fix Yourself, Not the World Album Reviews, Songs & More". AllMusic. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
2. Brayden, Kate (17 August 2021). "The Wombats share new single, announce fifth album Fix Yourself, Not The World". Hot Press. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
3. "Home". The Wombats. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
4. "The Wombats 5th album, 'Fix Yourself, Not The World', hits #1 spot". Proper Music Group. 21 January 2022. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
5. Ahmed, Narzra (16 August 2021). "The Wombats On New Album 'Fix Yourself, Not The World'". Clash. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
6. Krol, Charlotte (16 August 2021). "The Wombats announce new album 'Fix Yourself, Not The World' and UK arena tour dates". NME. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
7. "The Wombats To Hit The Road In 2022". Noise11. 18 August 2021. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
8. "An Interview With eBoy, The Artists Who Worked On The Wombats' Epic Pixel Art Album Cover". Cool Accidents. 25 August 2021. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
9. "Fix Yourself, Not The World by The Wombats reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Archived from the original on 14 January 2022. Retrieved 21 January 2022.
10. "Fix Yourself, Not the World by The Wombats Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 19 January 2022. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
11. Garner, Shannon (14 January 2022). "The Wombats – Fix Yourself, Not The World". Clash. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
12. Petridis, Alexis (6 January 2022). "The Wombats: Fix Yourself, Not the World review – noughties indie returns bigger and brighter". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
13. Shepherd, Sam (14 January 2022). "The Wombats – Fix Yourself, Not The World". MusicOMH. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
14. Beaumont, Mark (11 January 2022). "The Wombats – 'Fix Yourself, Not The World' review: bold brushstrokes and modernist melody". NME. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
15. Coleman, David (17 January 2022). "The Wombats: Fix Yourself, Not the World – Music Review". No Ripcord. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
16. "Australiancharts.com – The Wombats – Fix Yourself, Not the World". Hung Medien. Retrieved 21 January 2022.
17. "Dutchcharts.nl – The Wombats – Fix Yourself, Not the World" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
18. "Offiziellecharts.de – The Wombats – Fix Yourself, Not the World" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 21 January 2022.
19. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
20. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 21 January 2022.
21. "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 21 January 2022.