Beware of the Dogs

Beware of the Dogs is the debut studio album by Australian indie pop musician Stella Donnelly, released on 8 March 2019 by Secretly Canadian.

For the 1991 album by The Dogs, see Beware of The Dogs (The Dogs album).

Beware of the Dogs
A photo of Stella looking down at a hand holding a bar of soap pointed towards her mouth. Stella is pressing her hand over her mouth. Yellow text at the bottom of the image reads "Beware of the dogs".
Studio album by
Stella Donnelly
Released8 March 2019 (2019-03-08)
Recorded2018 in Fremantle, Western Australia and Athens, GA
Genre
Length42:32
LabelSecretly Canadian
Producer
  • Dean Tuza
  • Jordan Shakespeare
  • Drew Vandenberg
Stella Donnelly chronology
Thrush Metal
(2017)		 Beware of the Dogs
(2019)		 Flood
(2022)
Singles from Beware of the Dogs
  1. "Old Man"
    Released: 10 January 2019[3]
  2. "Lunch"
    Released: 30 January 2019[4]
  3. "Tricks"
    Released: 1 March 2019[5]

The album was nominated for various awards in 2019 and 2020, including Australian Album of the Year for the J Awards and Breakthrough Artist at the ARIA Music Awards.[6][7] In 2020, the album won Independent Album of the Year and Best Independent Pop Album at the AIR Awards.[8]

Background

Donnelly independently released her debut EP, Thrush Metal, in 2017.[9] She was signed to Secretly Canadian in February 2018, while Thrush Metal was re-released by the label that June.[10] One song off of Thrush Metal, "Boys Will Be Boys", was included on Beware of the Dogs.

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?8.0/10[11]
Metacritic81/100[12]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[13]
Consequence of SoundB+[2]
Exclaim!9/10[14]
The Guardian[15]
NME[16]
Pitchfork7.6/10[17]
Q[18]
Rolling Stone[1]
Uncut7/10[19]
Vice (Expert Witness)A−[20]

Many reviewers praised Donnelly's songwriting and the album's discussion of topics like the #MeToo movement and toxic masculinity. For NME, Hannah Mylrea wrote the record is "an enthralling and deeply relevant debut", praising its "searing lyrics" and playfulness.[16] Jon Dolan of Rolling Stone commended its composition, writing "the glazed guitars, sunny Casio beat and pure spirit of her songwriting keeps her shaky reality rolling forward."[1]

Olivia Horn of Pitchfork wrote that Stella's music is "empathetic to the core", and praised her "impressively dexterous voice, which she puts to work in service of some of her album’s most winsome moments."[17]

Reviewing for Vice, Robert Christgau said the album is, "in plain English and unassuming soprano, a musical encyclopedia of assholes, all male not just because she's female but because assholes generally are."[20]

Track listing

All tracks written by Stella Donnelly. All tracks produced by Dean Tuza, except "Boys Will Be Boys" by Jordan Shakespeare and "U Owe Me" by Drew Vandenberg.[21]

  1. "Old Man" – 3:33
  2. "Mosquito" – 3:11
  3. "Season's Greetings" – 2:49
  4. "Allergies" – 2:55
  5. "Tricks" – 4:06
  6. "Boys Will Be Boys" – 4:04
  7. "Lunch" – 3:40
  8. "Bistro" – 2:03
  9. "Die" – 2:54
  10. "Beware of the Dogs" – 3:35
  11. "U Owe Me" – 2:40
  12. "Watching Telly" – 4:45
  13. "Face It" – 2:17

Personnel

Musicians

  • Stella Donnelly – vocals (all tracks), bass (track 2), guitar (tracks 1-7, 10, 11, 13), percussion (track 1), piano (tracks 2, 3, 10, 11), synth (tracks 7-9, 12, 13), writing, composing
  • Jennifer Aslett – bass (tracks 1, 3, 5, 8-10, 12), guitar (track 7), vocals (track 12)
  • Indigo Foster-Tuke – vocals (track 12)
  • Miranda Murray Yong – cello (track 7)
  • George Foster – drums (track 7), guitar (tracks 1, 3, 5, 8, 10), synth (track 12)
  • Talya Valenti – drums (tracks 1, 3, 5, 8-10, 12), percussion (tracks 1, 3, 7, 12), vocals (track 12)
  • Dean Tuza – drum machine (track 9)

Technical

  • Matt Colton – mastering
  • Tony Espie – mixing
  • Ewan Pearson – mixing
  • Jordan Shakespeare – engineer, producer (6)
  • Dean Tuza – engineer, producer (1-5, 7-10, 12-13)
  • Drew Vandenberg – engineer, producer (11)

Promotional

  • Pooneh Ghana – cover photography
  • Nathaniel David Utesch – design

Charts
Chart (2019) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[22] 15
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[23] 21
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[24] 16
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[25] 43

References
  1. Dolan, Jon (12 March 2019). "Review: Stella Donnelly's Real-Talking Indie-Pop Gem 'Beware of the Dogs'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 19 March 2019.
  2. Dzubay, Laura (12 March 2019). "Stella Donnelly Takes the World to Task on Beware of the Dogs". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 19 March 2019.
  3. Chabrow, Shayna (7 February 2019). "Today's Song: Stella Donnelly Bites Back on "Old Man"". Atwood Magazine. Retrieved 22 April 2022.
  4. Maicki, Salvatore. "Stella Donnelly shares new single "Lunch"". Fader. Retrieved 22 April 2022.
  5. Kenneally, Cerys. "Stella Donnelly shares confident new single "Tricks"". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 22 April 2022.
  6. "ARIA Awards: 2019 ARIA Awards Nominated Artists Revealed". Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). 10 October 2019. Retrieved 10 October 2019.
  7. "The J Award 2019". Triple J. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 2019. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
  8. "That's a wrap: 2020 AIR Awards winners and celebrations". the industry observer. 1 October 2020. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  9. Moodie, Claire (28 November 2017). "Cassette tapes making a comeback thanks to young, independent artists". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
  10. Forbes, Matthew (28 February 2018). "Stella Donnelly signs to Secret Canadian; releases video for 'Mechanical Bull'". Outlet Mag. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
  11. "Beware of the Dogs by Stella Donnelly reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved 4 September 2019.
  12. "Beware of the Dogs by Stella Donnelly Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  13. Thomas, Fred. "Beware of the Dogs – Stella Donnelly". AllMusic. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
  14. Garcia, Brad (5 March 2019). "Stella Donnelly: Beware of the Dogs". Exclaim!. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
  15. Lancaster, Brodie (8 March 2019). "Stella Donnelly: Beware of the Dogs review – sweet-sounding songs with a killer bite". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 March 2019.
  16. Mylrea, Hannah (15 March 2019). "Stella Donnelly – 'Beware Of The Dogs' review". NME. Retrieved 28 November 2019.
  17. Horn, Olivia (11 March 2019). "Stella Donnelly: Beware of the Dogs". Pitchfork. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  18. Solomon, Kate (May 2019). "Stella Donnelly: Beware of the Dogs". Q (397): 111.
  19. O'Connell, Sharon (April 2019). "Stella Donnelly: Beware of the Dogs". Uncut (263): 28.
  20. Christgau, Robert (6 April 2019). "Robert Christgau on Stella Donnelly's Musical Encyclopedia of Assholes". Vice. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  21. Donnelly, Stella (2019). Beware of the Dogs (liner notes). Secretly Canadian.
  22. "Australiancharts.com – Stella Donnelly – Beware of the Dogs". Hung Medien. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
  23. "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 10 August 2019.
  24. "Heatseekers Albums". Billboard. 23 March 2019. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
  25. "Independent Albums". Billboard. 23 March 2019. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
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