Tender Buttons (album)

Tender Buttons is the third studio album by British indie electronic band Broadcast. Following the departure of several bandmembers, the album was recorded largely as the core duo of Trish Keenan and James Cargill, and as such is considered to have a rawer and more stripped back sound than previous Broadcast releases. It was released on 19 September 2005 by Warp. Upon its release, Tender Buttons received acclaim from critics but failed to place in international charts. "America's Boy", the lead and only single from the album, peaked at No. 139 in the UK Singles Chart.[1]

Tender Buttons
A black-and-white picture of Broadcast vocalist Trish Keenan. Handwritten black text to the left reads "Broadcast Tender Buttons"; "Tender" is written backwards. Partial repetition of the text is visible to the bottom left.
Studio album by
Broadcast
Released19 September 2005 (2005-09-19)
Genre
Length40:34
LabelWarp
Producer
Broadcast chronology
Haha Sound
(2003)		 Tender Buttons
(2005)		 The Future Crayon
(2006)
Singles from Tender Buttons
  1. "America's Boy"
    Released: 15 August 2005

The album remains their most recent album that isn't a collaborative project or a soundtrack, and is presumably the band's final non-collaborative project or soundtrack recording following the death of Keenan in 2011.

Reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic76/100[2]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Entertainment WeeklyB−[4]
The Guardian[5]
The Independent[6]
Mojo[7]
NME8/10[8]
Pitchfork7.5/10[9]
Q[10]
Uncut[11]
URB[12]

Upon its release, Tender Buttons received critical acclaim. At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews and ratings from mainstream critics, the album received a score of 76, based on 21 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[2] AllMusic writer Heather Phares said that the album "strips [the band's] luminous electronic pop down to its barest essence" and "has a uniquely fresh, modern feel. Sparingly applied beats, intricate but subtle guitars, and hazy synths dominate the album, providing a restrained backdrop for Keenan's quietly commanding voice and crossword-puzzle lyrics."[3] The Guardian's David Peschek wrote that "Broadcast's recent records have often seemed too cluttered with effects" but that on Tender Buttons the band "managed to find a halfway house between this always engaging but fussed-at sound and … resonant, muscular psychedelia".[5] In a positive review, Paul Woloszyn of musicOMH said that the album "takes you to another planet with a sonic soundscape lent from Stereolab, but developed to be distinctly Broadcast", and referred to the album as "arguably their finest moment".[13]

Writing for Stylus Magazine, Jeff Siegel said that "on its surface, [Tender Buttons] seems like such a simple little curlicue, all Mother Goose coos, descending-scale melodies, and no-wave screech over dinky drum-machine patters … no mucking around in different time signatures, no showy genre fusions, just a single idea … most acts would falter here, but Broadcast pull it off with an easy grace and breezy elegance".[14] PopMatters reviewer Adrien Begrand wrote that "instead of finding a comfortable middle ground, there's more of a sense of tension to the proceedings, the vocal hooks lulling you, only to have electronic noise jolt you awake", further referring to Tender Buttons as "rewarding [and] their boldest album to date."[15] Pitchfork's David Raposa was more reserved in his praise, saying that the band "bring the melodies, but then dress their poptastic efforts with whatever ruckus they can conjure" and "there's no … stand-out track on this album (and there's certainly no 'oh wow' moments)" but concluding that "this is still a Broadcast album, meaning it's one of the better things you'll put in your ear this year."[15]

In 2018, Pitchfork ranked Tender Buttons at number seven on its list of the 30 best dream pop albums.[16] In 2023, British GQ ranked it at number eight on its list of the 10 best electronic albums of all time.[17]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Trish Keenan and James Cargill

No.TitleLength
1."I Found the F"2:21
2."Black Cat"3:58
3."Tender Buttons"2:51
4."America's Boy"3:34
5."Tears in the Typing Pool"2:12
6."Corporeal"3:54
7."Bit 35"1:49
8."Arc of a Journey"5:17
9."Michael A Grammar"3:56
10."Subject to the Ladder"3:13
11."Minus 3" (also known as "Evil Is Coming")0:47
12."Goodbye Girls"3:08
13."You and Me in Time"1:24
14."I Found the End"2:05
Total length:40:34
Japanese CD[18] bonus track
No.TitleLength
15."Microtronics 14"1:30
Total length:42:04

Personnel

All personnel credits adapted from Tender Buttons' album notes.[19]

Broadcast
Design personnel

References
  1. Zywietz, Tobias. "1994–2010 / Darren B – David Byrne". Chart Log UK. zobbel.de. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
  2. "Reviews for Tender Buttons by Broadcast". Metacritic. Retrieved 20 September 2013.
  3. Phares, Heather. "Tender Buttons – Broadcast". AllMusic. Retrieved 16 October 2012.
  4. Dombal, Ryan (23 September 2005). "Broadcast: Tender Buttons". Entertainment Weekly. p. 90.
  5. Peschek, David (16 September 2005). "Broadcast, Tender Buttons". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
  6. Sauma, Luiza (18 September 2005). "Broadcast: Tender Buttons (Warp)". The Independent.
  7. "Broadcast: Tender Buttons". Mojo (143): 118. October 2005.
  8. "Broadcast: Tender Buttons". NME: 58. 17 September 2005.
  9. Raposa, David (18 September 2005). "Broadcast: Tender Buttons". Pitchfork. Retrieved 20 September 2013.
  10. "Broadcast: Tender Buttons". Q (231): 115. October 2005.
  11. "Broadcast: Tender Buttons". Uncut (101): 96. October 2005.
  12. "Broadcast: Tender Buttons". URB (130): 77. October 2005.
  13. Woloszyn, Paul (19 September 2005). "Broadcast – Tender Buttons". musicOMH. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
  14. Siegel, Jeff (23 September 2005). "Broadcast – Tender Buttons – Review". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
  15. Begrand, Adrien (20 October 2005). "Broadcast: Tender Buttons". PopMatters. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
  16. "The 30 Best Dream Pop Albums". Pitchfork. 16 April 2018. p. 3. Retrieved 24 April 2018.
  17. "The 10 best electronic albums of all time". British GQ. 12 May 2023. Retrieved 13 May 2023.
  18. Tender Buttons (Album notes). Broadcast. Beat Records. 2005. BRC-134.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  19. Tender Buttons (Album notes). Broadcast. Warp Records. 2005. WARPCD136.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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