The Drift

The Drift is the thirteenth studio album by American solo artist Scott Walker, released on 8 May 2006 on 4AD. Apart from composing the soundtrack to the film Pola X, the album was Walker's first studio album in eleven years and only his third studio album since the final disbanding of The Walker Brothers in 1978. Walker composed the songs for the album slowly over the decade after the release of 1995's Tilt,[4] beginning with "Cue" (the longest song to complete), up until the album's recording. An early version of "Psoriatic" was premiered at the Meltdown festival on 17 June 2000 under the title "Thimble Rigging".

The Drift
Studio album by
Released8 May 2006 (2006-05-08)
RecordedJune 2004 – November 2005
StudioMetropolis Studios, Chiswick, London, and AIR Studios, Hampstead, London
Genre
Length68:48
Label4AD
ProducerScott Walker, Peter Walsh
Scott Walker chronology
5 Easy Pieces
(2003)
The Drift
(2006)
And Who Shall Go to the Ball? And What Shall Go to the Ball?
(2007)

The album was recorded over a period of 17 months at Metropolis Studios in Chiswick, London, with orchestra recorded in one day at George Martin's AIR Studios in Hampstead, London. Receiving positive reviews from critics before its release, the album was released as an LP and CD in May 2006. The artwork for the album was designed by Vaughan Oliver at v23 with assistance from Chris Bigg and photography by Marc Atkins.

Overview

Walker's first album composed entirely of new material since 1995's Tilt, The Drift forms the second installment of the "trilogy" that concluded with 2012's Bish Bosch.[5] In the years between Tilt and The Drift, Walker's released output comprised a few instrumental tracks on the soundtrack to the film Pola X, a cover of Bob Dylan's "I Threw It All Away" on the To Have and to Hold soundtrack, and "Only Myself to Blame" from The World Is Not Enough soundtrack, as well as a few compilations of previously released material, including the retrospective box set 5 Easy Pieces.

The Drift has been cited by many critics and fans alike as a disturbing and complex album that departs from Scott Walker's previous albums while still remaining true to his experimental roots. French singer Vanessa Contenay-Quinones appears as the voice of Clara Petacci on "Clara".

The sound and subject matter for the album is unrelentingly dark and unsettling, often juxtaposing quiet sections with sudden loud noise to induce discomfort in the listener. Subjects include torture, disease, 9/11, Elvis Presley (and his stillborn twin brother Jesse Garon Presley), and the Srebrenica massacre.[6][7]

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic85/100[8]
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[9]
Alternative Press5/5[10]
The Guardian[11]
The Independent[12]
Mojo[13]
musicOMH[14]
The Observer[15]
Pitchfork Media9.0/10[16]
PlayLouder[17]
The Times[18]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Scott Walker, except "Psoriatic" (Scott Walker/Bob Carleton)

No.TitleLength
1."Cossacks Are"4:32
2."Clara"12:43
3."Jesse"6:28
4."Jolson and Jones"7:45
5."Cue"10:27
6."Hand Me Ups"5:49
7."Buzzers"6:39
8."Psoriatic"5:51
9."The Escape"5:18
10."A Lover Loves"3:11

Personnel

Session 1 Violin I Violin II Cello Bass
Janice Graham
Paul Willey
Steve Morris
Simon Smith
Alistair Blayden
Nick Roberts
Neil Tarlton
Chris West
Julian Tear
Ofer Falk
Deborah Widdup
Alison Kelly
Jane Fenton
Andrew Fuller
Matthew Corman
Clare Tyack
Sophie Barber
Ben Buckton
Clive Dobbins
Amanda Smith
John Tunnell
Tamsy Kaner
Roger Linley
Diane Clark
Clare Hoffman
Elizabeth Wexler
Ulrike Kipp
Jo Godden
Judith Herbert
Jackie Phillips
Karen Leishman
Matthew Scrivener
Ruth Funnell
Sue Briscoe
Robert Max
Roberto Sorrentino
Session 2 Violin I Violin II Cello Bass
Michael Davis
Paul Willey
Steve Morris
Simon Smith
Alistair Blayden
Nick Roberts
Neil Tarlton
Chris West
Julian Tear
Ofer Falk
Deborah Widdup
Alison Kelly
Jane Fenton
Andrew Fuller
Matthew Corman
Clare Tyack
Sophie Barber
Ben Buckton
Clive Dobbins
Amanda Smith
John Tunnell
Tamsy Kaner
Roger Linley
Diane Clark
Clare Hoffman
Elizabeth Wexler
Ulrike Kipp
Jo Godden
Judith Herbert
Jackie Phillips
Ralph De Souza
Robert Salter
Charles Sewart
Celia Sheen
Jonathan Williams
Joely Koos

Production

  • Produced by Scott Walker & Peter Walsh
  • Engineers: Geoff Foster, Peter Walsh
  • Mixing: Peter Walsh

Release history

Region Date Label Format Catalogue
United Kingdom 8 May 2006 4AD LP2×LP CAD 2603
CD CAD 2603 CD
United States 6 June 2006 4AD CD
Japan 24 June 2006 Hostess CD HSE-20015

Charts

ChartPosition
Belgian Albums Chart[19] 49
German Albums Chart[20] 97
Irish Albums Chart 80
UK Albums Chart[21] 51

References

  1. Murray, Noel (December 6, 2012). "Navigating the diverse, difficult musical career of Scott Walker". The A.V. Club. Retrieved August 13, 2018. As for fans of the intense avant-garde exercises of Tilt and The Drift...
  2. Dennis, Jon (March 5, 2014). "10 of the best: Scott Walker". The Guardian. Retrieved August 13, 2018. Tilt (1995), the first of his trilogy of experimental albums
  3. Frank Deserto. October 31, 2017. 40 Years of Goth: Essential Albums from the Genre's Beginnings Archived 2019-01-19 at the Wayback Machine. Post-Punk.com.
  4. Williams, Lewis (2006). Scott Walker - The Rhymes of Goodbye (1st ed.). London: Plexus. p. 179. ISBN 0-85965-395-1.
  5. Hattenstone, Simon (23 November 2012). "Scott Walker: Brother beyond". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 17 November 2016. Retrieved 16 December 2016.
  6. Williams, Ben (2006). "Elvis Dreams of 9/11". New York. Archived from the original on September 13, 2016.
  7. Young, Rob (May 2006). "Interview with Scott Walker". The Wire (267): 24–29.
  8. "The Drift by Scott Walker" via www.metacritic.com.
  9. "The Drift - Scott Walker | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic" via www.allmusic.com.
  10. Alternative Press July 2006 issue, page 210
  11. "CD: Scott Walker, The Drift". the Guardian. May 5, 2006.
  12. "Independent Online Edition > Reviews". enjoyment.independent.co.uk. Archived from the original on 14 May 2006. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
  13. Page 102, Issue #151
  14. "Scott Walker - the Drift | Album Reviews". 7 May 2006.
  15. Guardian Staff (April 23, 2006). "Scott Walker, The Drift". the Guardian.
  16. "Scott Walker: The Drift: Pitchfork Record Review". January 19, 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-01-19.
  17. "PLAYLOUDER | review - The Drift". May 20, 2006. Archived from the original on 2006-05-20.
  18. "TLS - Times Literary Supplement". TLS.
  19. "Scott Walker - The Drift". ultratop.be. Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 February 2010.
  20. "UK, German and French charts". Charts Surfer. Retrieved 12 February 2009.
  21. "Scott Walker". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 12 February 2009.
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