The English Riviera (album)

The English Riviera is the third studio album by English electronic music band Metronomy, released on 8 April 2011 by Because Music. Following the release of their second studio album, Nights Out (2008), founding member Gabriel Stebbing left the band (on this album, Olugbenga Adelekan had joined on bass and Anna Prior had joined on drums). However, Stebbing recorded the bass parts on the album prior to his departure.

The English Riviera
Studio album by
Metronomy
Released8 April 2011 (2011-04-08)
Studio
  • Smokehouse (London)
  • Motorbass (Paris)
Genre
Length45:04
LabelBecause
ProducerJoseph Mount
Metronomy chronology
Nights Out
(2008)		 The English Riviera
(2011)		 Love Letters
(2014)

The album was nominated for the 2011 Mercury Prize.

Singles

"She Wants" was released as the lead single from the album on 26 January 2011. The promo video (directed in Jul & Mat) takes place during a house party with the action being played out in reverse in one continuous take. The bandmembers are absent although pictures of the group's faces can be seen throughout the video. At one point a QR code is mounted on a wall, providing an interactive feature that allows fans to access the Metronomy website after being scanned.

"The Look" was released as the second single on 11 March 2011. The video, directed by Lorenzo Fonda, depicts the band performing the song in a white room alongside stop motion animated sequences featuring seagulls. The band scenes were filmed in London while the animation was produced in Los Angeles. Frontman Joseph Mount is seen playing a Yamaha Electone EX-2 organ. The song is played over the end titles of the 2013 Pedro Almodóvar film I'm So Excited!

The third single, "The Bay", was released on 10 June 2011. The video, directed by David Wilson, intersperses bird's-eye views of Torbay (known as the English Riviera) and the band performing the song at various places in Torquay where the video was shot.

"Everything Goes My Way" was released on 17 October 2011 as the album's fourth and final single. The video features the band along with guest vocalist Roxanne Clifford having a stroll in a nature reserve surrounded by deer.

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.6/10[1]
Metacritic78/100[2]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
The Daily Telegraph[4]
The Guardian[5]
The Irish Times[6]
Mojo[7]
NME9/10[8]
The Observer[9]
Pitchfork6.4/10[10]
Q[11]
Uncut[12]

NME placed the album at number two on its list of the "Top 50 Albums of 2011",[13] while Uncut and Q listed the album at numbers three and seventeen, respectively.[14][15] Mike Williams of NME wrote, "With this, his third full-length album, Joe Mount has transformed his Metronomy project from a jaunty, brilliant, yet ultimately niche electro outfit into one of the most expansive and visionary pop bands in the country".[8]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Joseph Mount

No.TitleLength
1."The English Riviera"0:37
2."We Broke Free"4:05
3."Everything Goes My Way"3:30
4."The Look"4:37
5."She Wants"3:51
6."Trouble"4:46
7."The Bay"4:50
8."Loving Arm"3:31
9."Corinne"3:16
10."Some Written"6:03
11."Love Underlined"5:58
iTunes Store bonus tracks[16]
No.TitleLength
12."Tens and Tens"4:39
13."She Wants" (music video)5:07
14."The English Riviera Track by Track" (music video)10:23

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of The English Riviera.[17]

Metronomy

Additional musicians
  • Harriet Wheeler – violin (track 1)
  • Gabriel Stebbing – bass guitar (tracks 2–5, 10); handclaps (track 3); guitar solo (track 9)
  • Roxanne Clifford – vocals (track 3)
  • Ash Workman – handclaps (track 4)
  • Marion Cassan – vocals (track 6)
  • Nicole Elizabeth – backing vocals (track 11)

Technical
  • Ash Workman – engineering, mixing
  • Jedidiah Allcock – engineering assistance
  • Jamie Bell – engineering assistance
  • Julien Noudin – engineering assistance
  • Nilesh – mastering
  • Joseph Mount – production

Artwork
  • John Gorham – cover image
  • Grégoire Alexandre – photography
  • Joseph Mount – art direction
  • Aaron Larney – design layout

Charts

Certifications
Certifications for The English Riviera
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[26] Gold 100,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

In 2012, the album was certified 2× Gold by the Independent Music Companies Association (IMPALA), denoting sales in excess of 150,000 copies across Europe.[27]

Release history
Release history for The English Riviera
Region Date Label Ref.
Ireland 8 April 2011 Because [28]
United Kingdom 11 April 2011 [29]
France Warner [30]
Germany 15 April 2011 [31]
Australia 6 May 2011 Because [32]
Canada 31 May 2011 Warner [33]
United States 26 July 2011
[34]

References
  1. "The English Riviera by Metronomy reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved 25 December 2019.
  2. "Reviews for The English Riviera by Metronomy". Metacritic. Retrieved 6 December 2011.
  3. O'Brien, Jon. "The English Riviera – Metronomy". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 July 2011.
  4. Burrows, Tim (8 April 2011). "Metronomy: The English Riviera, CD review". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 6 December 2011.
  5. Sullivan, Caroline (7 April 2011). "Metronomy: The English Riviera – review". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 April 2011.
  6. Carroll, Jim (29 April 2011). "Metronomy". The Irish Times. Retrieved 12 October 2018.
  7. "Metronomy: The English Riviera". Mojo. No. 210. May 2011. p. 114.
  8. Williams, Mike (13 April 2011). "Album Review: Metronomy – 'The English Riviera' (Because)". NME. Archived from the original on 3 June 2011. Retrieved 19 April 2011.
  9. Grundy, Gareth (10 April 2011). "Metronomy: The English Riviera – review". The Observer. Retrieved 6 December 2011.
  10. Love, Joshua (19 April 2011). "Metronomy: The English Riviera". Pitchfork. Retrieved 19 April 2011.
  11. "Metronomy: The English Riviera". Q. No. 298. May 2011. p. 114.
  12. "Metronomy: The English Riviera". Uncut. No. 168. May 2011. p. 91.
  13. "NME's 50 Best Albums of 2011". NME. 7 December 2011. Archived from the original on 9 April 2012. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
  14. "Uncut's Top 50 Albums of 2011". Stereogum. 29 November 2011. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
  15. "Q's 50 Best Albums of 2011". Stereogum. 29 November 2011. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
  16. "The English Riviera by Metronomy". iTunes Store. United Kingdom. Archived from the original on 14 April 2011. Retrieved 9 September 2011.
  17. The English Riviera (liner notes). Metronomy. Because Music. 2011. BEC5772817.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  18. "ARIA Digital Albums – Week Commencing 16th May 2011" (PDF). The ARIA Report. No. 1107. 16 May 2011. p. 10. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 May 2011. Retrieved 6 December 2011 – via National Library of Australia.
  19. "Ultratop.be – Metronomy – The English Riviera" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 December 2011.
  20. "Lescharts.com – Metronomy – The English Riviera". Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 December 2011.
  21. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 December 2021.
  22. "Swisscharts.com – Metronomy – The English Riviera". Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 December 2011.
  23. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 December 2021.
  24. "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 December 2021.
  25. "Classement Albums – année 2011" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Archived from the original on 24 December 2010. Retrieved 2 February 2012.
  26. "British album certifications – Metronomy – The English Riviera". British Phonographic Industry. 14 February 2020. Retrieved 27 December 2021.
  27. "Impala Sales Award-Preisträger 2012". VUT. 15 June 2012. Archived from the original on 27 April 2018. Retrieved 28 October 2017.
  28. "Metronomy – English Riviera". Tower Records Ireland. Retrieved 6 December 2011.
  29. "Metronomy: English Riviera". HMV. Archived from the original on 10 July 2012. Retrieved 6 December 2011.
  30. "The English riviera : Metronomy" (in French). Fnac. Retrieved 27 December 2021.
  31. "Metronomy – The English Riviera" (in German). Warner Music Germany. Archived from the original on 13 February 2013. Retrieved 6 December 2011.
  32. "English Riviera, The – Metronomy". JB Hi-Fi. Archived from the original on 30 December 2012. Retrieved 6 December 2011.
  33. "English Riviera by Metronomy". HMV Canada. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 6 December 2011.
  34. "English Riviera: Metronomy". Amazon. United States. Archived from the original on 18 January 2016. Retrieved 6 December 2011.
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