Angel in Realtime

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Angel in Realtime
Orange background with two identical photos of Dave Le'aupepe's father and a light orange envelope sitting in the foreground
Studio album by
Gang of Youths
Released25 February 2022
Genre
Length67:03
Label
Producer
Gang of Youths chronology
Total Serene
(2021) 		Angel in Realtime
(2022) 		Immolation Tape
(2022)
Singles from Angel in Realtime
  1. "The Man Himself"
    Released: 7 October 2021[1]
  2. "Tend the Garden"
    Released: 10 November 2021[2]
  3. "In the Wake of Your Leave"
    Released: 7 January 2022[3]
  4. "Spirit Boy"
    Released: 23 February 2022[4]

Angel in Realtime (stylised angel in realtime.) is the third studio album by Australian alternative rock band Gang of Youths. It was released on 25 February 2022 by Mosy Recordings.[5] It debuted at number one on the ARIA Album Charts, and was supported by a world tour commencing in Dublin from March 2022.[6]

Lyrically, the album primarily focuses on discovering family identity and coming to terms with loss, written in the aftermath of the death of frontman Dave Le'aupepe's father.[7] A sonic departure from their 2017 album Go Farther in Lightness, Angel in Realtime makes heavy use of vocal samples from Pacific Island choirs and musicians collected by David Fanshawe.[8]

Announced in November 2021, the album was preceded by four singles, as well as tracks "Unison" and "The Angel of 8th Ave." from their preceding EP Total Serene. The latter reached number six on the Triple J Hottest 100 of 2021, while lead single "The Man Himself" reached number 57.[9] Upon release, the album received positive reviews from critics.[10]

At the 2022 ARIA Music Awards, the album was nominated for Album of the Year, Best Group and Best Rock Album.[11]

The album was nominated for Australian Album of the Year at the 2022 J Awards.[12]

Singles

"The Man Himself" was released as the album's lead single on 7 October 2021, which lyrically finds Le'aupepe reckoning with the death of his father.[1] "Tend the Garden" was released on 10 November 2021, alongside the album and world tour announcements.[2]

"In the Wake of Your Leave" was released on 7 January 2022, featuring backing harmonies from the Auckland Gospel Choir and percussion by a number of drummers from the Cook Islands.[3] A music video for the song premiered two weeks later.[13] When writing, Le'aupepe said "I wanted to reflect on how I became dependent on grief for solace and inspiration. The cycle from numbness to acceptance to yearning plays a role in my approach to grieving my dad’s death."[14]

On 22 February 2022, three days before the album's scheduled release, fourth single "Spirit Boy" was released.[15]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic76/100[10]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[16]
Dork[17]
Exclaim!9/10[18]
The Guardian[19]
Pitchfork6.8/10[20]
Riff Magazine10/10[21]
NME[22]

At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised score out of 100 to ratings from publications, the album received an average score of 76 based on 10 reviews, indicating "generally favourable reviews".[10]

Ben Schultz of Riff Magazine gave the album a 10 out of 10, calling it "deeply personal yet all-embracing in spirit" and being an "early contender for best album of the year".[21] Josh Williams of Dork described the album as "a truly great record that doesn’t hold back on its emotions or its storytelling", scoring it four stars out of five.[17] Matt Collar of AllMusic shared a similar sentiment, commending the album's lyrical content and calling it a "deeply personal and autobiographical album, but one filled with a universally relatable emotionality".[16]

Adam Feibel of Exclaim! praised Le'aupepe's storytelling, calling the album a "profoundly beautiful, meaningful album from a band that has decided that every record might as well be a new magnum opus".[18] The Guardian's Bernard Zuel was more critical, writing "for much of the album, air to breathe is rare", but praised its lyricism and how "it is not a coincidence that the special moments on Angel in Realtime are the ones that best match the album’s particularly personal story".[19]

Shaad D'Souza for Pitchfork also critiqued the album's tightness, writing it is "occasionally so dense that it's hard to listen to, with layers of interesting ideas compounded to something impenetrable" – also finding fault with its 67-minute duration – however praised its presentation, "written and performed with such vigor and charm that it’s hard not to get swept up in it".[20]

Rhys Buchanan from NME said "Not only does Angel in Realtime serve as a soul-stirring tribute to Le'aupepe’s late father, but it's also a triumphant exploration of love and life. Though these indie rock grounds have been explored before, by being brutally honest through the healing process, Gang of Youths have crafted some of their finest work so far."[22]

Track listing

All tracks written by Donnie Borzestowski, Max Dunn, Tom Hobden, Jung Kim and David Le'aupepe; "Spirit Boy" co-written by Shane McLean.

  1. "You in Everything" – 6:51
  2. "In the Wake of Your Leave" – 4:03
  3. "The Angel of 8th Ave." – 3:59
  4. "Returner" – 4:43
  5. "Unison" – 5:08
  6. "Tend the Garden" – 4:27
  7. "The Kingdom is Within You" – 4:23
  8. "Spirit Boy" – 6:27
  9. "Brothers" – 5:54
  10. "Forbearance" – 5:38
  11. "The Man Himself" – 4:24
  12. "Hand of God" – 4:03
  13. "Goal of the Century" – 7:03

Notes

Personnel

Gang of Youths

  • David Le'aupepe – lead vocals, production, engineering, guitar (1, 2, 5, 6); backing vocals, piano (2, 6); bass (3), keyboards (3, 5, 6), synthesizer (6)
  • Donnie Borzestowski – drums, production, engineering, percussion (1, 5, 6), piano (1), backing vocals (2, 4, 6–13)
  • Max Dunn – production, engineering, bass (1, 2, 4–13), banjo (1, 5), piano (1, 6), backing vocals (2), guitar (3); autoharp, keyboards (5),
  • Tom Hobden – production, engineering, backing vocals (2, 5), viola (2, 4–6, 11), violin (2–6, 11), piano (4, 7, 9–13)
  • Jung Kim – guitar, production, engineering, backing vocals (2), piano (3, 8)

Additional musicians

  • Daniel Ricciardo – backing vocals (2, 11)
  • Auckland Gospel Choir – backing vocals (2, 11)
  • Seumanu Simon Matāfai – music direction (2), piano (6)
  • Anuanua Drummers – percussion (2, 6)
  • Ian Burdge – cello (5, 11)
  • Johnny Griffiths – clarinet, flute, saxophone (5)
  • Ilid Jones – cor anglais, oboe (5)
  • Nick Etwell – flugelhorn, trumpet (5, 11)
  • Matt Gunner – French horn (5, 11)
  • Dave Williamson – trombone (5, 11)
  • Indiana Dunn – backing vocals, percussion (6)
  • James Larter – marimba (6)
  • Kaumātua – spoken voice (6)
  • Tony Gibbs – spoken voice (6)
  • Aemon Beech - percussion (1)
  • Anna Pamin – percussion (11)
  • Blake Friend – percussion (11)
  • Peter Hutchings – synthesizer (11)

Technical

  • Peter Hutchings – production (2, 11), engineering (2, 3, 6, 11), mixing (11)
  • Peter Katis – production (2), mixing (5)
  • Count – mastering (1, 2, 5, 6), mixing (1, 2, 6)
  • Joe LaPorta – mastering (3)
  • Craig Silvey – mixing (3, 11)
  • Richard Woodcraft – engineering (1, 5, 6, 11)
  • Gergő Láposi – orchestral engineering (1)
  • Péter Barabás – orchestral engineering (1)
  • Dani Bennett Spragg – mixing assistance (11)
  • Emily Wheatcroft Snape – engineering assistance (2, 11)
  • Jamie Sprosen – engineering assistance (2, 11)
  • Luke O'Dea – engineering assistance (3)
  • Tess Dunn – engineering assistance (6)

Charts

Chart performance for Angel in Realtime
Chart (2022) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[23] 1
Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[24] 12
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[25] 37
Scottish Albums (OCC)[26] 6
UK Albums (OCC)[27] 10

References

  1. ^ a b Deville, Chris (7 October 2021). "Gang Of Youths Share New Single "The Man Himself": Listen". Stereogum. Retrieved 8 October 2021.
  2. ^ a b Langford, Jackson (10 November 2021). "Gang Of Youths announce new album Angel in Realtime and 2022 world tour". NME. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  3. ^ a b Langford, Jackson (7 January 2022). "Gang of Youths release new single "In the Wake of Your Leave"". NME Australia. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
  4. ^ Gonzalez, Alex (22 February 2022). "David Le'aupepe Roams London On The New Gang Of Youths Single 'Spirit Boy'". Uproxx. Retrieved 23 February 2022.
  5. ^ "Gang of Youths announce new album angel in realtime. and 2022 tour". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 11 November 2021. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  6. ^ "Gang Of Youths snare second ARIA #1 album with angel in realtime". ARIA Charts. 4 March 2022. Retrieved 5 March 2022.
  7. ^ Newstead, Al (24 February 2022). "Gang of Youths' angel in realtime: A complex saga of family, loss, legacy ...and soccer". triple j. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
  8. ^ Deville, Chris (25 February 2022). "The Story Behind Every Song On Gang Of Youths\\\' Inspiring New Album \\\'angel in realtime\\\'". Stereogum. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
  9. ^ "Hottest 100 2021 | triple j". www.abc.net.au. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
  10. ^ a b c "Angel in Realtime by Gang of Youths". Metacritic. 25 February 2022. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
  11. ^ Lars Brandle (12 October 2022). "Rüfüs Du Sol Leads 2022 ARIA Awards Nominees (Full List)". The Music Network. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
  12. ^ "Here's all the J Awards 2022 nominees!". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 1 November 2022. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  13. ^ Gang of Youths - in the wake of your leave (Official Video), retrieved 21 February 2022
  14. ^ "Gang Of Youths release new single 'In The Wake Of Your Leave'". NME. 7 January 2022. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  15. ^ "Gang Of Youths Share The New Single 'Spirit Boy'". UPROXX. 22 February 2022. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
  16. ^ a b Collar, Matt (25 February 2022). "Angel in Realitime – Gang of Youths | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
  17. ^ a b Williams, Josh (23 February 2022). "Gang of Youths – angel in realtime". Dork. Retrieved 24 February 2022.
  18. ^ a b "Gang of Youths' 'angel in realtime' Revels in Relentless Optimism". Exclaim!. Retrieved 24 February 2022.
  19. ^ a b "Gang of Youths: Angel in Realtime review – overcrowded anthems with a few special moments". The Guardian. 24 February 2022. Retrieved 24 February 2022.
  20. ^ a b D'Souza, Shaad. "angel in realtime". Pitchfork. Retrieved 27 February 2022.
  21. ^ a b "Album Review: Gang of Youths soars with stunning 'Angel in Realtime'". Riff Magazine. 21 February 2022. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  22. ^ a b "Gang Of Youths – 'Angel In Realtime.' review: A towering account of love and loss". NME. 25 February 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
  23. ^ "ARIA Top 50 Albums Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. 7 March 2022. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
  24. ^ "Album Top 40 slágerlista – 2022. 9. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  25. ^ "NZ Top 40 Albums Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 7 March 2022. Retrieved 5 March 2022.
  26. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 5 March 2022.
  27. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
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