Cult Following

Cult Following
Studio album by Little Scream
Released May 6, 2016 (2016-05-06)
Recorded 2014–15
Studio Hotel de Ville, Hotel2Tango, Sonovox Studio, The Bridge, Studio MixArt, Spinning Plates
Genre Indie rock, art rock, folk, pop
Length 44:05
Label Merge Records, Dine Alone Records
Producer Richard Reed Parry
Little Scream chronology
The Golden Record
(2011)		 Cult Following
(2016)
Singles from Cult Following
  1. "Love As A Weapon"
    Released: February 10, 2016
  2. "Someone Will Notice"
    Released: April 5, 2016
  3. "The Kissing"
    Released: April 12, 2016
  4. "Dark Dance"
    Released: April 19, 2016
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic79/100[1]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
American Songwriter[3]
Exclaim(8/10)[4]
Mojo[5]
NOW Magazine[6]
Pitchfork(7.5/10)[7]

Cult Following is the second studio album by American-born, Montreal-based indie rock artist Little Scream. It was released on Merge Records (in the United States) and Dine Alone Records (in Canada) on May 6, 2016.

Background

Sprengelmeyer's own experiences influenced the direction of Cult Following as she "'grew up in a kind of Christian religious cult' as a Jehovah’s Witness" as well as her visit to a "cult-like group in Brazil". [8] [9] In an interview with Exclaim, Sprengelmeyer described her album as her attempt at making Purple Rain if it was "done by a Midwestern girl with more of a folk upbringing". Although unused on the final cut of the album, three of the songs were mixed by Prince's longtime collaborator, David Z. at Sunset Sound Recorders where Purple Rain was mixed.[10]

On the song "Love as a Weapon", Sprengelmeyer says “I was thinking of classic pop songs, how a good one can lift you out of a fog like nothing else. This is a song of rebellious joy, for dancing and crying and starting over, again and again.”[11]

Recording

The album features Sufjan Stevens, Sharon Van Etten, Aaron Dessner and Bryce Dessner (of The National), Owen Pallett, Kyp Malone (of TV on the Radio), and Mary Margaret O'Hara.[12] Many of the album's collaborations came about through friendships and previous collaborations. Regarding her collaboration with O'Hara, Sprengelmeyer remarked that she was the only person she "really reached out to as a fan".[13]

Richard Reed Parry, of the band Arcade Fire, is credited as Little Scream's creative partner and helped with the music on the album.[12]

Promotion

The first single, "Love as a Weapon," premiered on February 10, 2016 on Beats 1 Radio with Zane Lowe. The music video for the single premiered on March 22, 2016.[11][12]

The song "Someone Will Notice" premiered on April 5, 2016.[14] "The Kissing", featuring Kyp Malone of TV on the Radio, was released as a third pre-release single on April 12, 2016.[15]

Track listing

No. Title Length
1. "Welcome to the Brain"   0:53
2. "Love as a Weapon"   4:52
3. "Dark Dance"   4:21
4. "Introduction to Evan"   0:30
5. "Evan"   5:02
6. "Aftermath"   1:03
7. "The Kissing"   4:45
8. "Wishing Well"   5:45
9. "Wreckage"   5:35
10. "Someone Will Notice"   5:34
11. "Silent Moon"   4:41
12. "Goodbye Every Body"   1:04

Personnel

Musicians
  • Andrew Barr - drums, vocals
  • Brad Barr - guitar, vocals
  • Thomas Bartlett - keyboards, piano
  • Aaron Dessner - engineer, guitar, synthesizer, bass
  • Bryce Dessner - guitar
  • Jeremy Gara - drums
  • Adam Kinner - saxophone
  • Kyp Malone - vocals
  • Mary Margaret O'Hara - vocals
  • Sarah Pagé - harp
  • Owen Pallett - string arrangements, violin
  • Marcus Paquin - bass, composer, engineer, guitar, mixing, producer
  • Richard Reed Parry - bass, upright bass, composer, drum machine, durms, engineer, guitar, keyboards, percussion, producer, string arrancements
  • Andrew Peneycad - vocals
  • Parker Shper - piano
  • Laurel Sprengelmeyer - art direction, composer, guitar, noise, omnichord, piano, primary artist, synthesizer, vocals
  • Lily Sprengelmeyer - composer, vocals, engineer, producer
  • Sufjan Stevens - composer, synthesizer
  • Sharon Van Etten - vocals
  • Mark "Bucky" Wheaton - drums
Production
  • Pietro Amato - engineer
  • Philip Shaw Bova - mastering
  • Hans Bernhard - engineer
  • Howard Bilerman - engineer
  • Dusdin Condren - cover photo
  • Mikel Durlam - art direction, composer
  • Maggie Fost - design
  • Mark Lawson - engineer
  • Joey Kramm - inside photo
  • Rusty Santos - mixing
  • Tim Vesely - engineer
  • Jordy Walker - engineer
  • David Z. - mixing

References

  1. ↑ "Metacritic Review". Metacritic.com. Retrieved 2016-05-15.
  2. ↑ Deming, Mark (2016-05-05). "Cult Following - Little Scream". AllMusic. Retrieved 2016-07-16.
  3. ↑ "Little Scream: Cult Following << American Songwriter". American Songwriter. Retrieved 2016-05-27.
  4. ↑ Rodgers, Ian (2016-05-05). "Little Scream Cult Following". Exclaim.ca. Retrieved 2016-05-15.
  5. ↑ [Jun 2016, p.97]
  6. ↑ Clarke, Christine (2016-05-11). ">>> Little Scream - NOW Toronto Magazine". Nowtoronto.com. Retrieved 2016-05-15.
  7. ↑ Snapes, Laura (2016-05-10). "Little Scream: Cult Following - Pitchfork Media Album Review". Pitchfork.com. Retrieved 2016-05-15.
  8. ↑ Williams, Matt (5 May 2016). "MONTREAL'S LITTLE SCREAM MAKES SURREAL POP FOR THE OPTIMIST SOUL". Noisey. Noisey. Retrieved 19 May 2016.
  9. ↑ Gaca, Anne (9 May 2016). "Q&A: Little Scream on the Cult That Inspired 'Cult Following'". Spin. Spin. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  10. ↑ Warner, Andrea (5 May 2016). "Little Scream on Her Prince-like Ambitions and How 'Cult Following' Is Her 'Purple Rain'". Exclaim. exclaim. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  11. 1 2 "Little Scream premieres new single with Zane Lowe on Beats 1 Radio". www.mergerecords.com. Retrieved 2016-04-14.
  12. 1 2 3 "Little Scream Enlists Sufjan Stevens, The National/Arcade Fire Members, Sharon Van Etten for Cult Following LP, Shares "Love as a Weapon" Video | Pitchfork". pitchfork.com. Retrieved 2016-04-14.
  13. ↑ "Little Scream: "This album feels like a pretty weighty monument to a two year period of my life…"". thelineofbest.com. Retrieved 2016-05-26.
  14. ↑ "Little Scream – "Someone Will Notice"". Stereogum. Retrieved 2016-04-14.
  15. ↑ "Little Scream – "The Kissing" (Feat. Kyp Malone)". Stereogum. Retrieved 2016-04-14.
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