Crystal Castles II

Crystal Castles II was recorded by Ethan Kath in a variety of locations including an abandoned church in Iceland, a self-built cabin in northern Ontario, a garage behind an abandoned drug store in Detroit, as well as Paul Epworth's London studio.[7] Of the experience, Kath said, "I recorded most of the record in the coldest winter in decades in a church without heat in Iceland. It was so cold that when I listen back I can hear myself shivering. I chose it because it felt right".[8] In December 2009, Kath gave vocalist Alice Glass a CD-R containing 70 instrumental tracks, for which she then recorded vocals on 35 tracks.

In order to promote the album, the band released the first single "Celestica" in April followed by an EP titled Doe Deer that was released only a few days later. In May the band physically released the album. The album reached number 48 on the UK Albums Chart and number 188 on the US Billboard 200.[9][10] Later on in December, the duo's cover of the Platinum Blonde song "Not in Love", featuring guest vocals from Robert Smith of the Cure, was released as the album's third single. The single became Crystal Castles' highest-charting single to date.

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
AnyDecentMusic?	7.2/10[11]
Metacritic	77/100[12]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[13]
Billboard	[14]
The Guardian	[15]
Los Angeles Times	[16]
NME	7/10[17]
Pitchfork	8.5/10[18]
Q	[19]
Spin	8/10[20]
The Times	[21]
Uncut	[22]

Crystal Castles II received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted mean rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 77, based on 24 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews".[12] Daniel Brockman of The Boston Phoenix praised the band for creating "a dense-yet-airy thicket of pure pop transcendence." MusicOMH also gave an extremely positive review, describing the album as "bold, dramatic, more than a little screwed-up and stunningly exciting statement." Pitchfork rated the album 8.5 out of 10, and awarded it their "Best New Music" accolade.

As of July 2012, Crystal Castles and Crystal Castles II had sold a combined 174,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.[23]

Notes

• ^{^a} signifies an additional producer.
• ^{^b} signifies an additional vocal producer.

Sample credits[34]

• "Year of Silence" contains a sample of "Inní mér syngur vitleysingur" by Sigur Rós.
• "Vietnam" and "Violent Dreams" contain a sample of "A Walk in the Park" by Stina Nordenstam.

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Crystal Castles II.[34]

Crystal Castles

• Ethan Kath – production (all tracks); mixing (tracks 2, 3, 12–14)
• Alice Glass – vocals

Additional personnel