Philharmonics (album)

Philharmonics is the debut studio album by Danish singer-songwriter Agnes Obel. It was released on 17 September 2010 by PIAS. The album received positive reviews from both Danish and international music critics. Philharmonics peaked at number one in Denmark and Belgium, and charted inside the top ten in France and the Netherlands. The album has sold 450,000 copies in Europe.[1] The album includes the singles "Riverside", "Just So", and "Brother Sparrow".

Philharmonics
Studio album by
Agnes Obel
Released17 September 2010 (2010-09-17)
Recorded2008–2010
(Berlin, Germany)
Genre
Length39:51
LabelPIAS
ProducerAgnes Obel
Agnes Obel chronology
Philharmonics
(2010)		 Aventine
(2013)
Singles from Philharmonics
  1. "Riverside"
    Released: 30 May 2010
  2. "Just So"
    Released: 8 October 2010
  3. "Brother Sparrow"
    Released: 31 October 2011

Composition

Obel cited Erik Satie as an influence on many of the compositions: "I am a huge fan of his work on silences. I like also his uses of repetitive sequences, almost hypnotic. That gives extremely strong pieces, calms and powerful at the same time."[2]

According to the singer, "The texts come from the melody, its atmosphere, the piano (…) They also speak about the uncertainty of the future and undoubtedly of the feeling of loneliness, but without the anger which, for me, is not a musical engine".[3]

Philharmonics's lyrics are simple, mysterious, and allegoric. Philippe Cornet says, "The texts in question sound like metaphors of love, death, impetuosities of nature or sudden rustles of the city."[3]

Philharmonics contains three titles that are purely instrumental: "Falling, Catching", "Louretta" and "Wallflower".[4]

Promotion

"Just So" was used in a Deutsche Telekom commercial in Germany.[5] Three songs from the album were on the soundtrack of the 2009 film Submarino.[6] "Riverside" was used in the episode "Not Responsible" of Grey's Anatomy and in episode 12 of the second season of Offspring. It was again played in the episode "What Are You Doing Here, Ho-Bag?" from The CW hit series Ringer.[7]

The ABC television show Revenge have used two songs from this album in their show. "Avenue" was played in the episode "Trust" and "Riverside" was played in the episode entitled "Duplicity".[8]

The German director Markus Thoess used a couple of songs for the documentary Tod einer Scientologin - (Death of a Scientologist) that was broadcast in 2012 on NDR and Feb 2013 in ARD, first German Channel.

The first episode of the 2020 Danish mini-series Efterforskningen (The Investigation), used both "Riverside" and the John Cale cover "Close Watch".

Reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
The 4058/10[9]
AllMusic[4]
Drowned in Sound7/10[10]
The Independent[11]
MusicOMH[12]
The Skinny[13]

Critical reception

Philharmonics earned generally positive reviews with, for example, James Skinner from the BBC saying that "the compositions... are slow, sombre, sepulchral even, but not without a sense of occasionally singular beauty".[14]

In the French cultural magazine Les Inrockuptibles, Johanna Seban speaks about a "disarming purity" and states, "There is, in these deeply melancholic ballads, the clearness and reassuring nobility of bedside discs."[15]

In MusicOMH, Ben Edgell wrote, "Obel sings with a hushed and tender grace that waxes wistful and serene over yearning cello, harp, and piano vignettes. She's a fey siren, with a dusky, near-whispered vocal that speaks to Ane Brun or Eva Cassidy."[12] In November 2011, she won five prizes at the Danish Music Awards for her album Philharmonics. She won Best Album of the Year, Best Pop Release of the Year, Best Debut Artist of the Year, Best Female Artist of the Year, and Best Songwriter of the Year.[16]

Commercial performance

The album entered the charts at number four in Denmark on 15 October 2010. On its thirteenth week on the chart, on 7 January 2011, the album rose to number one[17] and spent seven consecutive weeks at number one.[17] It has since been certified six-times platinum by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) for sales of 120,000 units.[18] Philharmonics peaked at number one in France. It has since been certified platinum by the Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique (SNEP) for sales of 100,000 units.[19] It also peaked at number one on the Belgian Albums Chart in Wallonia.[20] Philharmonics has since been certified gold by the Belgian Entertainment Association (BEA) for sales of 10,000 units.[21] In October 2011, it was awarded a diamond certification from the Independent Music Companies Association (IMPALA), which indicated sales in excess of 200,000 copies throughout Europe.[22]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Agnes Obel, except where noted

No.TitleLength
1."Falling, Catching"1:33
2."Riverside"3:48
3."Brother Sparrow"3:58
4."Just So"3:35
5."Beast"3:50
6."Louretta"2:06
7."Avenue"4:07
8."Philharmonics"3:33
9."Close Watch" (John Cale cover)4:00
10."Wallflower"2:26
11."Over the Hill"2:48
12."On Powdered Ground"4:07
Total length:39:51
Danish iTunes bonus track[23]
No.TitleLength
13."Katie Cruel"2:59
Total length:42:50
French digital bonus tracks[24]
No.TitleLength
13."Just So" (Instrumental)3:35
14."Philharmonics" (Instrumental)3:32
15."Over the Hill" (Live at White Session)2:56
16."Smoke & Mirrors" (Live at White Session)3:27
17."Just So" (Live at White Session)4:04
Total length:57:25
Deluxe edition bonus disc[25]
No.TitleLength
1."Smoke & Mirrors" (Live in Copenhagen)3:40
2."Katie Cruel" (Live in Copenhagen)4:47
3."Sons & Daughters" (Live in Copenhagen)4:31
4."Louretta" (Live in Copenhagen)3:20
5."Philharmonics" (Live in Copenhagen)4:01
6."Close Watch" (Live in Copenhagen)5:02
7."Avenue" (Piano Sessions)4:05
8."Riverside" (Piano Sessions)3:47
9."Brother Sparrow" (Piano Sessions)3:57
10."Just So" (Piano Sessions)3:32
11."On Powdered Ground" (Piano Sessions)4:06
Total length:44:48

Charts

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Belgium (BEA)[21] Platinum 30,000*
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[38] 6× Platinum 120,000‡
France (SNEP)[19] Platinum 100,000*
Netherlands (NVPI)[39] Gold 25,000^

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history
List of release dates, showing country, record label, and format
Region Date Format(s) Edition(s) Label Ref.
Germany 17 September 2010 (2010-09-17)
  • CD
  • LP
 Standard PIAS Recordings [40]
Denmark 4 October 2010 (2010-10-04) CD [41]
France
  • CD
  • LP
 [42]
Netherlands 22 October 2010 (2010-10-22) CD [43]
United States 22 October 2010 (2010-10-22) Digital download [44]
France 7 February 2011 (2011-02-07) French digital bonus tracks [24]
Germany 22 April 2011 (2011-04-22) CD Deluxe [25]
Denmark 2 May 2011 (2011-05-02) [45]

References
  1. http://www.presswire.dk/default.asp?o=1&pid=69271
  2. Millecamps, Matthieu (13 September 2011). "La Grâce neturelle de Mademoiselle Obel".
  3. Cornet, Philippe (5 May 2011). "Il faut laisser la mélodie décider du texte". FocusVif.
  4. "Philharmonics – Agnes Obel". AllMusic. 4 October 2010. Archived from the original on 1 July 2012. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
  5. Schlosser, Rune (4 October 2010). "Agnes Obel – Ny melodisk klaverpop". Gaffa (in Danish). Retrieved 14 October 2010.
  6. Kønigsfeldt, Amalie (7 October 2010). "Agnes Obel – en symfoni af vellyd". Soundvenue (in Danish). Retrieved 14 October 2010.
  7. "Ringer Music". 8 February 2012.
  8. http://www.wearerocksteady.com/wordpress/archives/1648
  9. Mellor, Anna (13 October 2010). "Philharmonics – Agnes Obel". The 405. Archived from the original on 8 September 2018. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  10. Atherton, James (23 May 2011). "Agnes Obel - Philharmonics". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on 10 January 2012. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
  11. Gill, Andy. "Album: Agnes Obel, Philharmonics ([PIAS])". The Independent. Archived from the original on 28 August 2014. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
  12. Edgell, Ben (4 October 2010). "Agnes Obel Philharmonics". MusicOMH. Archived from the original on 21 December 2010.
  13. Souter, Alan (14 October 2010). "Agnes Obel – Philharmonics". The Skinny. Archived from the original on 1 October 2022. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  14. Skinner, James (6 October 2010). "Agnes Obel Philharmonics Review". BBC. Retrieved 14 October 2010.
  15. Seban, Johanna (9 December 2010). "Agnes Obel La Pureté désarmante". Les Inrockuptibles.
  16. "Agnes Obels store triumf ved DMA" (in Danish). 5 November 2011. Retrieved 5 November 2011.
  17. "Danishcharts.dk – Agnes Obel – Philharmonics". Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
  18. "Guld og platin 2011" (in Danish). International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. 10 January 2011. Retrieved 16 February 2011.
  19. "Agnes Obel Platinum in France". PIAS Recordings. 27 April 2011. Archived from the original on 22 July 2011. Retrieved 20 May 2011.
  20. "Ultratop.be – Agnes Obel – Philharmonics" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
  21. "LES DISQUES D'OR/DE PLATINE – SINGLES – 2011". Ultratop (in French). ULTRATOP & Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
  22. "As Adele hits thirteen times platinum across Europe, over 60 artists pick up IMPALA Sales Awards, including Manel, Bon Iver, Miossec, dEUS, Agnes Obel and The Horrors". Independent Music Companies Association. 12 October 2011. Archived from the original on 7 November 2017. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
  23. "Philharmonics by Agnes Obel – Download Philharmonics on iTunes". iTunes Store. 4 October 2010. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
  24. "Philharmonics: Agnes Obel: Amazon.fr: Téléchargements MP3" (in French). Amazon.fr. Retrieved 28 March 2011.
  25. "Philharmonics (Deluxe Version): Agnes Obel: Amazon.de: Musik" (in German). Amazon.de. Retrieved 28 March 2011.
  26. "Ultratop.be – Agnes Obel – Philharmonics" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
  27. "Dutchcharts.nl – Agnes Obel – Philharmonics" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
  28. "Lescharts.com – Agnes Obel – Philharmonics". Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
  29. "Newcomer-Charts: Hanauer Band feiert besten Neueinstieg" (in German). Media Control Charts. Retrieved 12 February 2011.
  30. "Swisscharts.com – Agnes Obel – Philharmonics". Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
  31. "Album 2010 Top-100". Danish Albums Chart (in Danish). Nielsen Music Control. 2010. Archived from the original on 24 November 2010.
  32. "JAAROVERZICHTEN 2011". Ultratop (in Dutch). Retrieved 29 December 2011.
  33. "RAPPORTS ANNUELS 2011". Ultratop. Retrieved 29 December 2011.
  34. "Hitlisten.NU". www.hitlisterne.dk. Archived from the original on 9 June 2012. Retrieved 30 June 2022.
  35. "JAAROVERZICHTEN - SINGLE 2011". Retrieved 29 December 2011.
  36. "Classement Albums - année 2011" (in French). SNEP. Archived from the original on 24 December 2010. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
  37. "Archived copy" (PDF). www.hitlisterne.dk. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 May 2013. Retrieved 30 June 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  38. "Danish album certifications – Agnes Obel – Philharmonics". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
  39. "Koncert lirycznej Agnes Obel". Polskie Radio. 15 November 2013. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
  40. "Philharmonics: Agnes Obel: Amazon.de: Musik" (in German). Amazon.de. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
  41. "Philharmonics - Obel Agnes - Musik" (in Danish). CDON.COM. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
  42. "Philharmonics : Agnes Obel: Amazon.fr: Musique" (in French). Amazon.fr. Retrieved 12 February 2011.
  43. "bol.com | Philharmonics, Agnes Obel" (in Dutch). bol.com. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
  44. "Amazon.com: Philharmonics: Agnes Obel: MP3 Downloads". Amazon. Retrieved 12 February 2011.
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