Neotheater

Neotheater
Studio album by
AJR
ReleasedApril 26, 2019 (2019-04-26)
Length44:28
Label
Producer
AJR chronology
The Click
(2017) 		Neotheater
(2019) 		OK Orchestra
(2021)
Singles from Neotheater
  1. "100 Bad Days"
    Released: January 29, 2019
  2. "Birthday Party"
    Released: March 12, 2019
  3. "Dear Winter"
    Released: April 5, 2019

Neotheater is the third studio album by American pop band AJR. It was released on April 26, 2019[2] by the band's label AJR Productions. The album was self-produced by the trio. It is a follow-up to the trio's 2017 album The Click (2017).

Background and release

The 12 tracks were collectively described as "a coming of age tale that hears the band coming to terms with the sacrifices that come with growing older now that they are in their 20s". A description of the album also stated: "The buoyant and uplifting music is juxtaposed with darker lyrical narratives that touch on anxiety, naivete and searching for integrity."[3]

This album contained two official singles, and one promotional single. AJR released the lead single "100 Bad Days" on January 29, 2019.[4] They also released a promotional single "Birthday Party" on March 12, 2019.[5] "Dear Winter" was later released as the second official single on April 5, 2019.[6] On October 25, 2019, they released "Dear Winter 2.0," an alternate version of the original song with added instruments.[7]

Commercial performance

Neotheater debuted at number eight on the US Billboard 200 with 52,000 album-equivalent units (of which 32,000 were pure album sales). It is AJR's highest-peaking and first US top 10 album.[8]

Critical reception

Neotheater ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[9]
Rolling Stone[10]

The album received favorable to mixed reviews. Rolling Stone wrote in par, citing the bubbly tracks stepped in light orchestration, crisp hooks, and the social commentary, while AllMusic says that the album is "never less than refreshing".

Track listing

All tracks are written by Jack Met and Ryan Met. All tracks are produced by Ryan Met.

No.TitleLength
1."Next Up Forever"4:17
2."Birthday Party"3:44
3."100 Bad Days"3:33
4."Don't Throw Out My Legos"4:11
5."Break My Face"3:46
6."Turning Out Pt. II"3:43
7."The Entertainment's Here"3:07
8."Karma"4:05
9."Beats"3:19
10."Wow, I'm Not Crazy"3:17
11."Dear Winter"2:48
12."Finale (Can't Wait to See What You Do Next)"4:38
Total length:44:28

Notes

  • "Birthday Party" features a sample of the song "In Heaven", written by Peter Ivers and David Lynch and performed by Laurel Near in the 1977 film Eraserhead.[11]
  • Ryan Met is credited with writing two of the songs on this album by himself. One of those songs is "Dear Winter". Jack Met further discusses the origins of this song at 18:30 - 22:37 of source 7.[12]

Personnel

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.[13]

AJR

  • Adam Met – bass guitar, programming, samples, percussion, vocals
  • Jack Met – lead vocals, guitar, melodica, ukulele, drums, percussion, keyboards, synthesizers, samples, programming, trumpet, composition
  • Ryan Met – lead vocals, vocals, programming, keyboards, ukulele, trumpet, production, composition

Additional personnel

  • Daniel Rosenfeld – audio editing, composing
  • Maikel Valdama – audio editing, mixing
  • Drew Allsbrook – bass guitar (5, 10)
  • Chris Berry – drums (2–4)
  • Chris Cerrato – design
  • Ezra Donellan – vocals (2)
  • Samia Finnerty – vocals (5, 9, 12)
  • Chris Gehringer – mastering
  • Bruce Healey – choir arranger (1)
  • JJ Kirkpatrick – trumpet (3–5, 7)
  • Ruth Kornblatt-Stier – cello (1, 2, 6, 8, 9, 12)
  • Emelia Suljic – violin (3–5, 7)
  • Joe Zook – mixing

Charts

See also

References

  1. ^ "US: AJR debut atop the US charts with new album Neotheater". BMG. May 7, 2019. Archived from the original on December 1, 2020. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
  2. ^ Adam Met, Jack Met, Ryan Met (March 10, 2019). NEOTHEATER - 4/26 (ALBUM TRAILER). AJR Productions – via YouTube.
  3. ^ "AJR Neotheater – CD". Retrieved April 25, 2019.
  4. ^ Aniftos, Rania (January 30, 2019). "AJR Laugh About Their Failures In New Single '100 Bad Days'". Billboard. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
  5. ^ Legaspi, Althea (March 12, 2019). "AJR Bring Exuberant '100 Bad Days' Performance to 'Kimmel'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
  6. ^ Snyder, Brett (April 15, 2019). "AJR's Dear Winter Hits All The Feels". Better Spins. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
  7. ^ Bosch, Eva (October 25, 2019). "AJR Release New Version Of "Dear Winter"". Strife Mag. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
  8. ^ a b Caulfield, Keith (May 6, 2019). "P!nk's 'Hurts 2B Human' Album Debuts at No. 1 on Billboard 200 Chart". Billboard. Retrieved May 7, 2019.
  9. ^ Collar, Matt. "Neotheater - AJR". AllMusic. Retrieved 2019-06-18.
  10. ^ Dolan, Jon (26 April 2019). "Review: AJR Dance Through Coming of Age Reality on 'Neotheater'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2019-06-18.
  11. ^ Met, Jack (March 26, 2019). AJR Chat About Their Latest LP, "Neotheater" (YouTube video). BUILD Series. Event occurs at 13:27. Retrieved August 16, 2019.
  12. ^ AJR [LIVE Acoustic Performance] | 101X, 10 June 2019, retrieved 2021-04-07
  13. ^ Neotheater (Media notes). AJR. AJR Productions. 2019.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  14. ^ "ARIA Australian Top 50 Digital Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. May 6, 2019. Retrieved May 4, 2019.
  15. ^ "AJR Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
  16. ^ "AJR Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
  17. ^ "AJR Chart History (Top Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
  18. ^ "AJR Chart History (Top Alternative Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
  19. ^ "AJR Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
  20. ^ "AJR Chart History (Top Tastemaker Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
  21. ^ "Top Rock Albums – Year-End 2019". Billboard. Retrieved July 9, 2020.