Magic Hour (Surf Curse album)

Magic Hour is the fourth studio album by American band Surf Curse and their first album with Atlantic Records. Produced by Chris Coady, it was released on October 7, 2022. The album received generally favorable reviews.

Magic Hour
Studio album by
Surf Curse
ReleasedOctober 7, 2022 (2022-10-07)
StudioElectric Lady Studios
GenreIndie rock[1]
Length44:54
LabelAtlantic
ProducerChris Coady
Surf Curse chronology
Heaven Surrounds You
(2019)		 Magic Hour
(2022)

Background and production
Chris Coady (pictured 2009) produced the album.

Formerly based in Las Vegas and Reno, Nevada, Surf Curse was formed by Nick Rattigan and Jacob Rubeck in 2013. The two relocated to Los Angeles, gaining commercial success after their 2013 single "Freaks" became popular on TikTok in 2020.[2][3] After signing with Atlantic Records, the band added Noah Kohll and Henry Dillon to their line-up. Magic Hour is both the band's debut album with Atlantic Records and the two new band members.[4][5]

Magic Hour, Surf Curse's fourth studio album, was produced by Chris Coady and recorded at Electric Lady Studios in New York City.[6] Commenting on the band's genre shifts–and despite the band's name implying that they play surf-rock–Rattigan said that type of music was "not really what we do anymore."[4] The album was intended as a demonstration of the band's departure from their earlier "lo-fi, post-punk sound".[7]

Release

The album's release was scheduled for September 16, 2023;[8] it was released October 7.[5] The lead single "Sugar" had been released in March that year, followed by "TVI" in July, "Lost Honor" in August, and "Self Portrait" in September.[8][6][9]

Critical reception

Oliver Heffron of The Nuance Magazine said Surf Curse "hit their stride" with the album, describing the stylistic shifts as "an exciting development".[5] Vidal N. Granados of Quip, reflecting on a Surf Curse's concert performance after the album's release, commented that Magic Hour's tracks had a "much slower" pace than the band's earlier works and had new dynamics introduced by Kholl and Dillon.[10] Landry Wood of the The Rice Thresher commented that the album's opener, "Arrow", could "dupe" listeners into expecting more music like that off Surf Curse's 2017 Nothing Yet. Instead, Wood said the album was "an evolution that doesn’t go quite far enough to be a reinvention" and praised "Fear City" as "refreshing sound with creative lyrics, a rarity for Rattigan."[7]

Track listing
Magic Hour tracklist
No.TitleLength
1."Arrow"2:06
2."Cathy"2:57
3."Sugar"2:43
4."Lost Honor"3:59
5."Self Portrait"3:32
6."Unwell"6:13
7."Strange"3:55
8."TVI"2:41
9."Little Rock 'n' Roller"2:30
10."No Tomorrows"6:02
11."Fear City"4:35
12."Randall Flagg"3:39
Total length:44:54

Personnel

Surf Curse

  • Nick Rattigan – drums (all tracks), lead vocals (tracks 1, 3, 5-8, 11, 12)
  • Jakob Rubeck – guitar (all tracks), lead vocals (tracks 2, 4, 9, 10)
  • Noah Koll – guitar (all tracks)
  • Henry Dillon – bass (all tracks)

Other Musicians

  • Gillian Rivers – viola (tracks 7, 8, 12), violin (tracks 7, 8, 12)
  • Kenny Wang – viola (tracks 7, 8, 12)
  • Taylor Zaro – cello (tracks 7, 8, 12)
  • Stuart Bogie – horns (track 11)
  • Maddeleine Boyd – guest vocals (track 11)
  • Cole Haden – guest vocals (track 11)[11]

References
  1. "Magic Hour". AllMusic. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
  2. Brown, August (July 19, 2021). "These indie-rock lifers went from obscurity to scandal to a major-label deal in 10 months". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 6, 2023.
  3. Astorga, Malaika (February 3, 2023). "Surf Curse Talks DIY Music Scenes, Friendship and TikTok Algorithms". Also Cool. Retrieved April 6, 2023.
  4. "New Noise: Surf Curse". Wonderland. September 14, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2023.
  5. Heffron, Oliver (October 7, 2022). "Surf Curse hit their stride on major-label Magic Hour". The Nuance Magazine. Retrieved April 6, 2023.
  6. Farrell, Margaret (August 10, 2022). "Surf Curse's New Single "Lost Honor" Is About Overcoming Life's Hardships". FLOOD Magazine. Retrieved 7 April 2023.
  7. Wood, Landry (October 18, 2022). "Review: Surf Curse abrasively experiments with smoothness on 'Magic Hour'". The Rice Thresher. Houston, Texas. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  8. Lesuer, Mike (July 14, 2022). "Surf Curse Have a Hard Time Staying Out of Trouble in New "TVI" Video". FLOOD Magazine. Retrieved April 6, 2023.
  9. Kirschner, Nicole (September 24, 2022). "Surf Curse tease new LP with indie single 'Self Portrait'". Glasse Factory. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  10. Granados, Vidal N. (December 9, 2022). "Surf Curse delivers "Magic Hour" to sold out crowd". Quip. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
  11. Liner notes of Magic Hour release
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