Traditional Techniques

Traditional Techniques is a solo album by American musician Stephen Malkmus, the fourth album credited to Malkmus and the second to not feature his band The Jicks. It is the ninth project in Malkmus's career since Pavement disbanded, and the fourteenth album released in his career. It was released on March 6, 2020 by Matador Records and Domino Recording Company.[1][2]

Traditional Techniques
Studio album by
Stephen Malkmus
ReleasedMarch 6, 2020 (2020-03-06)
Genre
Length41:05
Label
ProducerChris Funk
Stephen Malkmus chronology
Groove Denied
(2019)		 Traditional Techniques
(2020)

Background and recording

Malkmus conceived the idea for Traditional Techniques during the recording of Sparkle Hard.[3] According to a press release, the concept gained traction and became a fully realized album in a matter of weeks.[4] Recording of the album took place in Portland, Oregon, at Halfling Studio. The album was produced by Chris Funk of The Decemberists and features guitarist Matt Sweeney and musician Qais Essar.[5]

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.5/10[6]
Metacritic80/100[7]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[8]
American Songwriter[9]
DIY[10]
Loud and Quiet8/10[11]
NME[12]
Pitchfork7.7/10[5]
PopMatters[13]
The Skinny[14]
Slant Magazine[15]
Spectrum Culture[16]

Traditional Techniques received positive reviews from music critics. Many critics praised Malkmus' foray into folk music. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 80, based on eighteen reviews, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[7]

Writing for Loud and Quiet, Sam Walton gave the album a positive review, praising it as "an expertly written and performed exploration of muted psych-rock and various strands of folk music".[11]

Robert Christgau gave the album a two-star honorable mention in his Substack-published "Consumer Guide" column, highlighting the songs "Xian Man" and "Cash Up" while writing in summation: "It’s more than cool, as it had better be, that he’s matured from willfully acerbic to willingly pretty, but he’s too smart not to know in the heart he’s proud to have that while acerbic feeds on chaos, pretty is better off explaining itself".[17]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Stephen Malkmus

Traditional Techniques track listing
No.TitleLength
1."ACC Kirtan"6:19
2."Xian Man"4:07
3."The Greatest Own In Legal History"3:48
4."Cash Up"4:07
5."Shadowbanned"3:23
6."What Kind Of Person"3:28
7."Flowin' Robes"2:52
8."Brainwashed"4:59
9."Signal Western"3:46
10."Amberjack"4:16
Total length:41:05
Traditional Techniques – Japanese edition (bonus track)[18]
No.TitleLength
11."Juliefuckingette"3:02
Total length:44:07

Credits

Adapted from Allmusic:[19]

Additional credits
  • Sharmila Banerjee – illustrations
  • Jan Lankisch – design
  • Adam Lee – mixing
  • Jeff Lipton – mastering
  • Maria Rice – mastering
  • Jason Quigley – photography

References
  1. Shaffer, Claire (January 22, 2020). "Stephen Malkmus Announces New Album 'Traditional Techniques', Shares 'Xian Man'". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on January 23, 2020. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  2. Moore, Sam (January 22, 2020). "Listen to Stephen Malkmus' 'Xian Man' from his new album 'Traditional Techniques'". NME. Archived from the original on February 25, 2020. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  3. Eede, Christian. "Stephen Malkmus Announces New Album". The Quietus. Archived from the original on October 31, 2020. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  4. Schatz, Lake (January 22, 2020). "Stephen Malkmus announces new album Traditional Techniques, plots North American tour". Consequence of Sound. Archived from the original on April 7, 2020. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  5. Rytlewski, Evan. "Stephen Malkmus: Traditional Techniques Album Review". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on March 7, 2020. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  6. "Traditional Techniques by Stephen Malkmus reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Archived from the original on March 7, 2020. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
  7. "Traditional Techniques by Stephen Malkmus Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Archived from the original on March 7, 2020. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
  8. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Review of Traditional Techniques at AllMusic. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  9. Chris, Rutledge. "Stephen Malkmus Drops New Phase of Folk on 'Traditional Techniques'". American Songwriter. Archived from the original on October 31, 2020. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  10. Doherty, Jack (March 5, 2020). "Stephen Malkmus - Traditional Techniques". DIY. Archived from the original on October 31, 2020. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  11. Walton, Sam. "Stephen Malkmus - Traditional Techniques - Album Review". Loud and Quiet. Archived from the original on March 27, 2020. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  12. Rigotti, Alex (March 6, 2020). "Stephen Malkmus – 'Traditional Techniques' review: folky experimentalism and dad jokes galore". NME. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  13. Cochrun, Kyle (March 4, 2020). "Stephen Malkmus Goes Folk on 'Traditional Techniques'". PopMatters. Archived from the original on March 5, 2020. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  14. Wade, Lewis. "Stephen Malkmus – Traditional Techniques". The Skinny. Archived from the original on September 20, 2020. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  15. Rowin, Michael Joshua (March 2020). "Review: Stephen Malkmus's Traditional Techniques Challenges Form and Function". Slant Magazine. Archived from the original on March 2, 2020. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  16. Hazelwood, Holly (March 6, 2020). "Stephen Malkmus: Traditional Techniques". Spectrum Culture. Archived from the original on October 31, 2020. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
  17. Christgau, Robert (July 8, 2020). "Consumer Guide: July, 2020". And It Don't Stop. Substack. Archived from the original on July 15, 2020. Retrieved July 14, 2020.
  18. "BEATINK.COM Traditional Techniques". Beatink.com. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
  19. "Stephen Malkmus Traditional Techniques". AllMusic. Archived from the original on October 31, 2020. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
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