Emerald City (John Vanderslice album)

Emerald City is the sixth album by American singer-songwriter John Vanderslice. It was officially released in the United States on July 24, 2007, after having been leaked to the internet on or around June 23, 2007.[1]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic link
Metacritic(82/100) link
Pitchfork Media(6.2/10)
The Wheel's Still in Spinlink
Slant link

Emerald City
Studio album by
John Vanderslice
ReleasedJuly 24, 2007
GenreIndie rock
Length38:16
LabelBarsuk
John Vanderslice chronology
Pixel Revolt
(2005)		 Emerald City
(2007)		 Romanian Names
(2009)

Background

Vanderslice has said about the album: "I was so beaten down after the 2000 election and after 9/11 and then the invasion of Iraq, Afghanistan; I was so depleted as a person after all that stuff happened, that I had to write my way out of it. I really had to write political songs because for me it is a way of making sense and processing what is going on."[2]

The name of the album references both the nickname of the fortified Green Zone in Baghdad and the name of the city in The Wizard of Oz.

Track listing
  1. "Kookaburra" (5:30)
  2. "Time to Go" (2:28)
  3. "The Parade" (4:41)
  4. "White Dove" (4:00)
  5. "Tablespoon of Codeine" (5:26)
  6. "The Tower" (4:06)
  7. "The Minaret" (4:27)
  8. "Numbered Lithograph" (2:22)
  9. "Central Booking" (5:16)

Critical reception

Emerald City achieved a score of 82/100 on Metacritic.[3] Entertainment Weekly called the album "a gleaming gem" that doesn't disappoint.[4] Billboard's review of the record called Vanderslice an "always perceptive lyricist".[5] Calling Vanderslice a "master story-teller", Matt Fink of Paste said that Emerald City was "vividly imagined yet subtle in tone, with conflicted character sketches unfolding around somber synth melodies, creaky electronic effects, and fuzzy acoustic guitar strums."[6]

References
  1. ♪ ĻĖÅĶĘĐ! ♪ The Album Leak Alert – OKKERVIL RIVER's "The Stage Names" | JOHN VANDERSLICE's "Emerald City" – loopnote.com
  2. Interview with John Vanderslice, David Shankbone, Wikinews, September 27, 2007.
  3. "Emerald City - John Vanderslice". Metacritic. Retrieved March 12, 2009.
  4. Simon Vozick-Levinson (July 27, 2007). "Emerald City Music Review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 12, 2009.
  5. Menze, Jill (August 4, 2007). Reviews: Emerald City. Billboard Magazine. p. 42.
  6. Matt Fink (July 24, 2007). "Emerald City Music Review". Paste Magazine. Retrieved March 12, 2009.


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