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Everything Harmony

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This article is about the album; the song is part of the track listing.
Everything Harmony
Studio album by
the Lemon Twigs
ReleasedMay 5, 2023 (2023-05-05)
RecordedJanuary–October 2021[1][2]
Studio
GenrePower pop, Baroque pop, jangle pop, soft rock
Length48:00
LabelCaptured Tracks
ProducerThe Lemon Twigs
The Lemon Twigs chronology
Songs for the General Public
(2020) 		Everything Harmony
(2023) 		A Dream Is All We Know
(2024)
Singles from Everything Harmony
  1. "Corner Of My Eye"
    Released: January 3, 2023
  2. "Any Time of Day"
    Released: February 13, 2023
  3. "In My Head"
    Released: March 15, 2023
  4. "Every Day Is the Worst Day of My Life"
    Released: April 13, 2023

Everything Harmony is the fourth studio album by American rock band the Lemon Twigs, released on May 5, 2023, through Captured Tracks. It was self-produced by the band and received positive reviews from music critics. Starting in January, the album was preceded by the singles "Corner of My Eye", "Any Time of Day", "In My Head", and "Every Day is the Worst Day of My Life".[1]

Composition and recording

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According to band member Michael D'Addario, the Lemon Twigs constructed Everything Harmony around several ballads that his brother Brian wrote.[3] In another interview, Michael said, "Brian had composed these haunting melodies, and it felt appropriate to write lyrics that were delicate and revealing."[4] Among the artists the band cited for musical inspiration on Everything Harmony were the Beach Boys, Arthur Russell, Simon and Garfunkel, Curtis Mayfield, and the Left Banke;[5][6] reviewers also noted influence from the Bee Gees, the Byrds, James Taylor, and Teenage Fanclub.[7]

Everything Harmony's early sessions took place in Manhattan's Music Building, which proved unsuitable for recording the album's acoustic ballads. The brothers then relocated to Hyde Street Studios in San Francisco to finish recording the album.[1]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic87/100[8]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[9]
The Guardian[7]
The Line of Best Fit7/10[10]
NME[1]
PopMatters8/10[11]
Under the Radar[12]

Everything Harmony received a score of 87 out of 100 based on 12 critics' reviews on review aggregator Metacritic, indicating "universal acclaim".[8] Connor Shelton of The Line of Best Fit stated that the duo "push[ed] themselves toward intriguing new paths" on the album, and while the "first third of the LP shows a band more focused than ever, the lack of playfulness proves a detriment going into the middle chunk" of the album.[10] PopMatters wrote that "their new batch of songs is so derivative of the early to mid-1970s that on first listen to it, it can be hard to hear past the influences", but that the band "echo, and, at times, even improve on those influences with such convincing skill and ebullient spirit that they demand we take them more seriously".[11] Erica Campbell of NME described Everything Harmony as "a melodic and imaginative romp" on which they make "a sound of their own". Campbell added: "when you consider that the album was recorded, produced and engineered solely by the D'Addario brothers, it adds even more weight to the fact that they could create songs that harken back to classics without sounding too derivative".[1]

Reviewing the album for Under the Radar, Ian Rushbury found it to be "not a radical departure from their delightfully rear facing sound" and the duo "have a simpler approach [as] the music they like is reflected in the songs they write, it just happens to be from an era which the cool kids haven't found yet".[12] Ben Beaumont-Thomas of The Guardian opined that the duo "have never mined the past more effectively than on this fourth album", writing that their "biggest touchstone is the beautifully harmonised existential dread of the Beach Boys post-Pet Sounds flop era: rarely has stark despair (one song is called Every Day Is the Worst Day of My Life) sounded so lovely".[7] Fred Thomas of AllMusic felt that the album has the duo "changing directions yet again, turning the volume down and exploring a more sentimental side of their '70s-informed songwriting style", with its "especially gentle songs" like "Any Time of Day" demonstrating "the band's progression the most".[9]

Anthony Fantano rated Everything Harmony as his 10th-favorite album of 2023.[13]

Commercial performance

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The album appeared at number 78 on the midweek UK Albums Chart dated May 8, 2023.[14]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by the Lemon Twigs

Everything Harmony track listing
No.TitleLead vocalsLength
1."When Winter Comes Around"Brian4:42
2."In My Head"Michael3:18
3."Corner of My Eye"Brian3:19
4."Any Time of Day"Brian2:51
5."What You Were Doing"Michael4:33
6."I Don't Belong to Me"Michael2:59
7."Every Day Is the Worst Day of My Life"Michael3:25
8."What Happens to a Heart"Brian3:55
9."Still It's Not Enough"Michael3:42
10."Born to Be Lonely"Brian4:26
11."Ghost Run Free"Brian and Michael3:09
12."Everything Harmony"Michael and Brian3:43
13."New to Me"Brian3:58
Total length:48:00

Personnel

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Credits adapted from Everything Harmony album liner notes.[2]

Charts

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Chart performance for Everything Harmony
Chart (2023) Peak
position
French Albums (SNEP)[15] 154
Scottish Albums (OCC)[16] 6
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[17] 6

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e Campbell, Erica (May 4, 2023). "The Lemon Twigs – Everything Harmony review: a melodic and imaginative romp". NME. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d e Everything Harmony (LP liner notes). The Lemon Twigs. Captured Tracks. 2023. CT-358.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  3. ^ Roberts, Elliot (May 5, 2024). "I Interviewed The Lemon Twigs!". YouTube. Retrieved May 8, 2024. At 21:27.
  4. ^ Chick, Stevie (May 2, 2024). "'Who wants to stare at a computer?' Pop duo the Lemon Twigs on the joys of analogue life". The Guardian. Retrieved May 8, 2024.
  5. ^ Marszalek, Julian (August 15, 2023). "The Lemon Twigs have backed The Zombies and played with Todd Rundgren: they also drive each other crazy". louder. Retrieved May 8, 2024.
  6. ^ Sharp, Ken (August 21, 2023). "How The Lemon Twigs aced perfect harmony, and gained Elton John as a fan". Goldmine Magazine. Retrieved May 8, 2024.
  7. ^ a b c Beaumont-Thomas, Ben (May 5, 2023). "The Lemon Twigs: Everything Harmony review – rarely has stark despair sounded so lovely". The Guardian. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  8. ^ a b "Everything Harmony by The Lemon Twigs Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  9. ^ a b Thomas, Fred. "The Lemon Twigs – Everything Harmony Album Reviews, Songs & More". AllMusic. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  10. ^ a b Shelton, Connor (May 5, 2023). "The Lemon Twigs: Everything Harmony Review – refined and toned down sound | Indie". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  11. ^ a b "The Lemon Twigs: Everything Harmony (Album Review)". The Line of Best Fit. May 8, 2023. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  12. ^ a b Rushbury, Ian (May 4, 2023). "The Lemon Twigs: Everything Harmony (Captured Tracks) – review". Under the Radar. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  13. ^ "Top 50 Albums of 2023". December 23, 2023. Retrieved July 8, 2024 – via YouTube.
  14. ^ "Official Albums Chart Update Top 100: 08 May 2023 – 14 May 2023". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  15. ^ "Top Albums (Week 19, 2023)". Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  16. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 13, 2023.
  17. ^ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 13, 2023.
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