The Rose Has Teeth in the Mouth of a Beast

The Rose Has Teeth in the Mouth of a Beast
Studio album by Matmos
Released	May 9, 2006 (2006-05-09)
Genre	Electronic musique concrète[1]
Length	61:28
Label	Matador Records
Producer	Drew Daniel, Martin Schmidt
Matmos chronology
The Civil War (2003) The Rose Has Teeth in the Mouth of a Beast (2006) Supreme Balloon (2008)

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	81/100[2]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[3]
The A.V. Club	A[4]
Drowned in Sound	8/10[5]
Pitchfork	8.0/10[6]
PopMatters	7/10[7]
Slant Magazine	[8]
Stylus Magazine	B+[9]

The Rose Has Teeth in the Mouth of a Beast is the sixth studio album by Matmos. Each of the album's songs is dedicated to a notable gay or lesbian person who has influenced the duo,[8] and this influence is reflected in the songs themselves. For examples, "Rag for William S. Burroughs" features the clatter of a type writer and a gunshot, representing the William Tell incident, and "Tract for Valerie Solanas" contains excerpts from the SCUM Manifesto.

As with earlier releases, the duo make use of field recordings in the music, recordings that range from ordinary things to more absurd sounds, such as a recording of a bovine uterus.[10] The album's title is taken from a line in Ludwig Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations.[8]

Critical reception

The Rose Has Teeth in the Mouth of a Beast received positive reviews from music critics. Review aggregator website Metacritic gives it a score of 81 out of 100 based on 22 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[2] Brandon Stosuy, writing for Pitchfork, wrote in a positive review that "there are a few moments when the concept's cooler than the result, but in general The Rose Has Teeth's experiments result in frenetic dance tracks doubling as reading lists."[6]

Jonathan Keefe, writing for Slant Magazine, called the album "endlessly fascinating" but concluded that "even armed with a cheat sheet from Wikipedia and a desire to figure out the significance of every last hair clipper and gunshot, the album never engages as anything more than an academic exercise."[8]

Pitchfork placed it at number 47 on the "Top 50 Albums of 2006" list.[11]

Track listing

No.	Title	Notes	Length
1.	"Roses and Teeth for Ludwig Wittgenstein"	Credits:[12] Guitar [twang guitar], Performer [electronics] – Jay Lesser Performer [cow recordings, goose call], Mixed By – M.C. Schmidt Performer [roses, teeth, manure, sampling, sequencing, digital editing] – Drew Daniel Voice [excerpts from Ludwig Wittgenstein's Philosophical Investigations read aloud by] – Björk Guðmundsdóttir, Laetitia Sonami, Marcus Schmickler, Rose McKereghan, Werner Phillip Schmidt, Zum Zoom	3:24
2.	"Steam and Sequins for Larry Levan"	Credits:[12] Drums – Steve Goodfriend Guitar [electric guitar], Horns [peck horn], Trumpet – Mark Lightcap Performer [electronics] – John Talaga Performer [steam, sewing machine, sequins, Arp 2600, sampling, sequencing, digital editing] – Drew Daniel Performer [V-synth, tambourine, shaker, saucepan], Mixed By – M.C. Schmidt Synthesizer [Arp 2600] – Matthew Curry Voice – Kalonica McQuesten	5:20
3.	"Tract for Valerie Solanas"	Credits:[12] Performer [cow uterus, reproductive tract, vagina, vacuum cleaner, plastic gloves], Mixed By – M.C. Schmidt Performer [sampling, sequencing, digital editing, machete, scissors, knives, paper, Personal alarms (rape alarms)] – Drew Daniel Voice [excerpts from Valerie Solanas' The SCUM Manifesto read by] – Barbara Golden, Yalie Kumara	5:07
4.	"Public Sex for Boyd McDonald"	Credits:[12] Drums – Steve Goodfriend Guitar [electric guitar], Trumpet – Mark Lightcap Performer [pen, paper, typewriter, videotape, sampling, sequencing, digital editing, Arp 2600] – Drew Daniel Saxophone – Stephen Thrower Synthesizer [Arp 2600, Sh 101, V-synth, Juno 6], Performer [Videotape], Mixed By – M.C. Schmidt	5:52
5.	"Semen Song for James Bidgood"	Credits:[12] Arranged By [String Arrangement] – Jefferson Friedman Cello – Clarice Jensen Harp – Zeena Parkins Keyboards [V-synth, piano], Performer [sampling, sequencing], Mixed By – M.C. Schmidt Performer [file transfers, effects] – Jon Leidecker Performer [sampling, sequencing, digital editing, toilet paper roll panflute, paper, semen] – Drew Daniel Piano – Matthew Fuerst Strings – American Contemporary Music Ensemble Viola – Bridget Fitzgerald Violin – Erik Carlson, Miranda Cuckson Voice – Anohni Hegarty	5:02
6.	"Snails and Lasers for Patricia Highsmith"	Credits:[12] Double bass – Brian O'Reilly Drums – Steve Goodfriend French horn – Amy Vaillancourt Performer [sampling, sequencing, digital editing] – Drew Daniel Performer [sequencing, V-synth, Ms2000, books, brushes, live garden snails, glass cylinder, Light-sensitive theremin], Mixed By – M.C. Schmidt	5:52
7.	"Germs Burn for Darby Crash"	Credits:[12] Performer [Arp 2600, Wahl hair clipper, hair] – M.C. Schmidt Performer [lighter, cigarette] – Don Bolles Performer [sampling, sequencing, digital editing, burnt flesh, cry of pain] – Drew Daniel	4:10
8.	"Solo Buttons for Joe Meek"	Credits:[12] Arranged By [String Arrangement] – Lev "Ljova" Zhurbin Bass – Jay Lesser Cello – Jeffrey Zeigler Drums – Steve Goodfriend Guitar – Mark Lightcap Performer [tapes, synths, sampling, sequencing, digital editing] – Drew Daniel Performer [whinging] – M.C. Schmidt Strings – Kronos Quartet Viola – Hank Dutt Violin – David Harrington, John Sherba	3:33
9.	"Rag for William S. Burroughs"	Credits:[12] Goblet Drum [darbuka] – Darcy Bartoletti Performer [amateur piano, sampling, V-synth, sequencing, tape recorder, typewriter, vacuum cleaner tube, horn] – M.C. Schmidt Performer [Burroughs adding machines, film projectors] – Michael Brown Performer [electronics] – Jay Lesser Performer [Heidelberg windmill, Chandler And Price printing presses] – Leif Fairfield Performer [sampling, sequencing, digital editing, bombard, tape recorder, shortwave radio, marbles, keys, Efx] – Drew Daniel Trumpet – Mark Lightcap Violin – Blevin Blectum	13:52
10.	"Banquet for King Ludwig II of Bavaria"	Credits:[12] Drums, Percussion [sleighbells] – Steve Goodfriend French horn – Amy Vaillancourt Performer [glassware, dishes, coconuts, sampling, sequencing, V-synth] – M.C. Schmidt Performer [glassware, dishes, sampling, sequencing, digital editing] – Drew Daniel Tuba, Horns [peck horn], Performer [plastic tube] – Mark Lightcap Voice – Maja S. K. Ratkje	3:23

Japanese edition bonus track

No.	Title	Length
11.	"Kendo for Yukio Mishima"	5:54

Charts

Chart	Peak position
US Top Dance/Electronic Albums (Billboard)[13]	21

References

1. Flavorwire Staff (February 12, 2009). "Exclusive: Pics and Buzz from Big Ears Fest". Flavorwire. Retrieved October 7, 2022.
2. The Rose Has Teeth In The Mouth Of A Beast, by Matmos Metacritic. Retrieved November 1, 2015.
3. Heather Phares, The Rose Has Teeth in the Mouth of a Beast review AllMusic. Retrieved November 1, 2015.
4. Andy Battaglia, The Rose Has Teeth in the Mouth of a Beast review The A.V. Club, May 17, 2006. Retrieved November 1, 2015.
5. Rachel Cawley, The Rose Has Teeth in the Mouth of a Beast review Archived 2017-03-15 at the Wayback Machine Drowned in Sound, May 13, 2006. Retrieved November 1, 2015.
6. Brandon Stosuy, The Rose Has Teeth in the Mouth of a Beast review PItchfork, May 9, 2006. Retrieved November 1, 2015.
7. Kevin Jagernauth, The Rose Has Teeth in the Mouth of a Beast review PopMatters, May 22, 2006. Retrieved November 1, 2015.
8. Jonathan Keefe, The Rose Has Teeth in the Mouth of a Beast review Slant Magazine, May 19, 2006. Retrieved November 1, 2015.
9. Scott McKeating, The Rose Has Teeth in the Mouth of a Beast review Stylus Magazine, May 9, 2006. Retrieved November 1, 2015.
10. "Matmos at Matador Records".
11. "Top 50 Albums of 2006 (1/5)". Pitchfork. December 19, 2006. Retrieved March 14, 2017.
12. Album credits, Discogs.com. Retrieved November 1, 2015.
13. "Matmos Chart History (Top Dance/Electronic Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 31, 2019.

External links

• The Rose Has Teeth in the Mouth of a Beast at Discogs (list of releases)