| Obscurities | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Compilation album by Stephin Merritt | ||||
| Released | August 23, 2011 | |||
| Genre | Indie pop | |||
| Length | 38:12 | |||
| Label | Merge Records | |||
| Stephin Merritt chronology | ||||
| ||||
Obscurities is a compilation album by Stephin Merritt, released in 2011 on Merge Records. It consists of B-sides, compilations cuts, and various other previously unreleased material.
Reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 74/100 |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   |
| American Songwriter | |
| The A.V. Club | B |
| Consequence of Sound | B |
| Drowned in Sound | 7/10 |
| MSN Music (Expert Witness) | A– |
| MusicOMH | |
| Pitchfork | 7.5/10 |
| PopMatters | 7/10 |
| Rolling Stone | |
On Metacritic, Obscurities has a score of 74 out of 100, indicating that it has received "generally favorable reviews" from critics. Robert Christgau gave the album an A− grade and wrote that he was "swept off feet by Merritt thoughtfully intoning some little green men's 'Song From Venus.'"
Track listing
Information adapted from LP liner notes.
All tracks are written by Stephin Merritt, except "Beach-a-Boop-Boop," by Merritt and Shirley Simms.
| No. | Title | Source | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Forever and a Day" (Previously Unreleased) | From The Song from Venus, an unfinished musical by Stephin Merritt and Daniel Handler | |
| 2. | "Rats in the Garbage of the Western World" (The Magnetic Fields) | B-Side of "All the Umbrellas in London" 7-inch single | |
| 3. | "I Don't Believe You" (The Magnetic Fields) | 7-inch single | |
| 4. | "Plant White Roses" (Buffalo Rome) | From Cooking for the Priests K Records cassette | |
| 5. | "Rot in the Sun" (The 6ths) | B-Side of "Heaven in a Black Leather Jacket" 7-inch single | |
| 6. | "The Sun and the Sea and the Sky" (Previously Unreleased) | ||
| 7. | "Yet Another Girl" (The 6ths) | From the limited edition Wasps' Nests vinyl box set | |
| 8. | "Scream ('Till You Make the Scene)" (Previously Unreleased) | ||
| 9. | "The Song from Venus" (Previously Unreleased) | From The Song from Venus | |
| 10. | "Beach-a-Boop-Boop" (The Magnetic Fields) | B-Side of "Long Vermont Roads" 7-inch single | |
| 11. | "When I'm Not Looking, You're Not There" (The Magnetic Fields) | B-Side of "I Don't Believe You" 7-inch single | |
| 12. | "Take Ecstasy With Me" (The Magnetic Fields) | From Oh, Merge compilation | |
| 13. | "When You're Young and in Love" (Previously Unreleased) | From The Song from Venus | |
| 14. | "You Are Not My Mother and I Want to Go Home" (The Gothic Archies) | From the Neil Gaiman audiobook Coraline |
Personnel
Credits adapted from LP liner notes.
Musicians
- Stephin Merritt
- Shirley Simms – voice (4), guitar (4)
- Stuart Moxham – voice (7)
- Claudia Gonson – drums (7, 10), background vocals (13)
- Susan Anway – voice (12)
Technical
- Charles Newman – engineer (1, 9, 13)
- Tom Rogers – archival engineering
- Jeff Lipton – mastering
- Gail O'Hara – photographress
- Michael Fusco – design
References
- ^ "Obscurities by Stephin Merritt". Metacritic. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- Monger, James Christopher (23 August 2011). "Obscurities". Allmusic. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
- Weiss, Dan (5 September 2011). "Obscurities Review". American Songwriter. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
- "Obscurities Review". The A.V. Club. 23 August 2011. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
- Kane, Siobhan (2011-09-01). "Album Review: Stephin Merritt – Obscurities". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- Ashman, Neil (2011-09-09). "Album Review: Stephin Merritt - Obscurities". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on 2018-09-11. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (2011-08-23). "Fountains of Wayne/Stephin Merritt". MSN Music. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- Paton, Daniel (2011-10-10). "Stephin Merritt - Obscurities". musicOMH. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- Stosuy, Brandon (1 September 2011). "Obscurities Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
- Pan, Arnold (21 August 2011). "Obscurities Review". PopMatters. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
- Hermes, Will (2011-09-12). "Obscurities". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- ^ Stephin Merritt (2011). Obscurities (LP liner notes). Merge Records. MRG430.
| Stephin Merritt | |
|---|---|
| The Magnetic Fields | |
| The Gothic Archies | |
| The 6ths | |
| Future Bible Heroes | |
| Soundtracks | |
| Related articles | |