Everything Else Has Gone Wrong

Everything Else Has Gone Wrong
Studio album by
Bombay Bicycle Club
Released17 January 2020 (2020-01-17)
Recorded25 March–14 September 2019
Studio
  • Konk (London)
  • Sargent Recorders (Los Angeles)
Length41:40
Label
Producer
Bombay Bicycle Club chronology
So Long, See You Tomorrow
(2014) 		Everything Else Has Gone Wrong
(2020) 		My Big Day
(2023)
Singles from Everything Else Has Gone Wrong
  1. "Eat, Sleep, Wake (Nothing but You)"
    Released: 27 August 2019
  2. "Everything Else Has Gone Wrong"
    Released: 27 November 2019
  3. "Racing Stripes"
    Released: 19 December 2019
  4. "I Can Hardly Speak"
    Released: 1 January 2020
  5. "Is It Real"
    Released: 14 January 2020

Everything Else Has Gone Wrong is the fifth studio album by the English indie rock band Bombay Bicycle Club. It was released on 17 January 2020 by the band's own Mmm... Records imprint of Island Records, Caroline International and Arts & Crafts.[1][2] It was their first album in nearly six years, following So Long, See You Tomorrow (2014).

The album debuted at number one on the UK's Official Record Store Chart.[3]

Background and recording

[edit]

Bombay Bicycle Club announced an indefinite hiatus on 29 January 2016. However, they explicitly ruled out the notion that the band was breaking up and also alluded toward potential solo material from frontman Jack Steadman and from bassist Ed Nash.[4] However, in an interview with Q Nash recalled Steadman saying that he did not think he wanted to make another Bombay Bicycle Club album.[5] In January 2017, Nash released the solo album The Pace of the Passing under the moniker Toothless.[6] It featured vocals by Marika Hackman, Tom Fleming, Liz Lawrence and The Staves.[7][8] Bombay Bicycle Club drummer Suren de Saram contributed drumming to the record. The album was produced by Nash and Steadman.[9] In March 2017, Steadman formed the solo project Mr Jukes, releasing the album God First in July 2017.[10] The album was produced by Steadman and featured BJ the Chicago Kid, Elli Ingram, Charles Bradley, De La Soul, Horace Andy, Lalah Hathaway, Lianne La Havas.[11] During the band's hiatus, guitarist Jamie MacColl completed an undergraduate degree in war studies at King's College London and a MPhil in international relations at the University of Cambridge. He worked as an intelligence analyst for a social security company and also worked at a think tank in Washington, D.C.[12] He also launched Undivided, a Brexit campaign group to engage with people under the age of 30.[13] Nash worked for some time in an office job in the interim.[14] Steadman traveled extensively, including traveling on the Trans-Siberian Railway as well as riding on a cargo ship from China to Canada.[15]

The band later sold all of their equipment and initially had no plans to record new music or tour. MacColl believed the band had effectively broken up, but was surprised when Steadman decided to be in the band again. Months after selling their equipment, they discussed the possibility of doing a one-off tour to celebrate the tenth anniversary of their debut album I Had the Blues But I Shook Them Loose (2009). However, they believed a one-off anniversary tour was not appropriate considering they were a relatively young band and since they felt they still had ideas for music. They instead quickly focused on writing new music.[16]

In January 2019, the band announced that they were ending their hiatus and that they would be performing concerts later in 2019, with intentions to record new music as well.[17][18] Bombay Bicycle Club began recording for Everything Else Has Gone Wrong on 25 March 2019 at Konk Studios in London.[19] The band released an extended play of demos from 2004 to 2008 on 3 July 2019, marking exactly ten years since the release of their debut album on 3 July 2009.[20] The band completed recording for the album on 14 September 2019 with producer John Congleton at Sargent Recorders in Los Angeles, California.[21][22] The album was primarily produced by John Congleton with additional production by Steadman, except "Racing Stripes" which was produced by both Congleton and Steadman.[22]

Release and promotion

[edit]

The lead single to promote the album, "Eat, Sleep, Wake (Nothing but You)", was released on 27 August 2019.[23] A music video directed by Louis Bhose, the band's former touring keyboardist, was released on 3 September 2019 and was shot in Ukraine.[24]

The second single, "Everything Else Has Gone Wrong", was released on 27 November 2019.[25] An accompanying music video directed by Louis Bhose was released the same day.[26]

On 19 December 2019, "Racing Stripes" was released as the third single with an accompanying music video directed by Louis Bhose and shot in the Lofoten Islands of northern Norway.[27]

"I Can Hardly Speak" was released as the fourth single on 1 January 2020.[28][29]

"Is It Real" was released as the fifth single on 14 January 2020.[30]

Artwork

[edit]

The artwork illustrations for the album and its singles were commissioned by the band from Spanish artist María Medem.[31]

Critical reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.4/10[32]
Metacritic74/100[33]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[34]
The Daily Telegraph[35]
Exclaim!8/10[36]
The Guardian[37]
The Independent[38]
NME[39]
Pitchfork5.9/10[40]
Q[41]
The Times[42]
Uncut7/10[43]

Everything Else Has Gone Wrong received mostly favourable reviews from contemporary music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 from reviews from mainstream critics, the album received a score of 74, based on sixteen reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[33] Aggregator AnyDecentMusic? gave it 7.4 out of 10, based on their assessment of the critical consensus.[32]

Niall Doherty of Q gave the album a favourable review, writing, "Jack Steadman's breezy melodies are the perfect counter to the mutating musical backdrop."[41] Greg Cochrane of Uncut gave the album a favourable review, calling "Good Day" its "vulnerable centerpiece" and "Eat, Sleep, Wake (Nothing but You)" a "reminder of how far they've advanced since their early badge as adolescent indie rockers."[43]

Track listing

[edit]
Everything Else Has Gone Wrong track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Get Up"Jack Steadman
2:33
2."Is It Real"Steadman
  • Congleton
  • Steadman[a]
3:05
3."Everything Else Has Gone Wrong"Steadman
  • Congleton
  • Steadman[a]
4:09
4."I Can Hardly Speak"Steadman
  • Congleton
  • Steadman[a]
3:59
5."Good Day"Ed NashCongleton3:52
6."Eat, Sleep, Wake (Nothing but You)"
  • Nash
  • Steadman
  • Congleton
  • Steadman[a]
3:39
7."I Worry Bout You"Steadman
  • Congleton
  • Steadman[a]
3:40
8."People People" (featuring Liz Lawrence)
Congleton3:27
9."Do You Feel Loved?"Steadman
  • Congleton
  • Steadman[a]
4:22
10."Let You Go"Steadman
  • Congleton
  • Steadman[a]
4:48
11."Racing Stripes"Steadman
  • Steadman
  • Congleton
4:06
Total length:41:40

Notes

  • ^[a] signifies an additional producer.

Personnel

[edit]

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Everything Else Has Gone Wrong.[22]

Charts

[edit]
Chart performance for Everything Else Has Gone Wrong
Chart (2020) Peak
position
Australian Digital Albums (ARIA)[44] 48
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[45] 172
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[46] 68
Irish Albums (OCC)[47] 24
Scottish Albums (OCC)[48] 4
UK Albums (OCC)[49] 4

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Murphy, Sarah (27 November 2019). "Bombay Bicycle Club Share Title Track from 'Everything Else Has Gone Wrong'". Exclaim!. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  2. ^ Gersten, Amanda (3 September 2019). "Bombay Bicycle Club Announce New Album, Release "Eat, Sleep, Wake (Nothing But You)" Video". Paste. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  3. ^ "Official Record Store Chart Top 40: 24 January 2020 – 30 January 2020". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  4. ^ "Bombay Bicycle Club are taking a break but not 'breaking up'". BBC Newsbeat. 29 January 2016. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  5. ^ "The Ties That Bind". Q. No. 408. March 2020. p. 92.
  6. ^ Johnson, Eugenie (27 January 2017). "Toothless - The Pace of the Passing". DIY. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  7. ^ "PREMIERE: Toothless - "Sisyphus"". Noisey. Vice. 24 November 2016. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  8. ^ Schiller, Mike (16 February 2017). "Toothless: The Pace of the Passing". PopMatters. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  9. ^ Krisciunas, Mantas (21 March 2017). "Born Anew: An Interview with Bombay Bicycle Club's Ed Nash". PopMatters. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  10. ^ Renshaw, David (21 March 2017). "Mr Jukes Teams Up With BJ The Chicago Kid For The Joyful "Angels/Your Love"". The Fader. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  11. ^ Murray, Robin (31 May 2019). "Mr Jukes Could Be The Year's Most Surprising Return". Clash. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  12. ^ Lello, Michael (7 October 2019). "Bombay Bicycle Club gets back on the bus". New York Post. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  13. ^ Blake, Jonathan (26 October 2016). "Bombay Bicycle Club guitarist Jamie MacColl launches Brexit campaign group for under-30s". BBC Newsbeat. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  14. ^ "The Ties That Bind". Q. No. 408. March 2020. p. 94.
  15. ^ Steadman, Jack (18 July 2017). "Bombay Bicycle Club's Jack Steadman: my trip around the world – in pictures". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
  16. ^ Richards, Will (3 September 2019). "Bombay Bicycle Club: "We sold all our instruments. To all intents and purposes, we had broken up"". NME. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  17. ^ Saddler, Jack (15 January 2019). "Bombay Bicycle Club announce comeback with new music and live shows planned: 'We've missed you'". The Independent. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  18. ^ Maicki, Salvatore (15 January 2019). "Bombay Bicycle Club announce return to music". The Fader. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  19. ^ Moore, Sam (26 March 2019). "Bombay Bicycle Club are recording a new album". NME. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  20. ^ Richards, Will (3 July 2019). "Bombay Bicycle Club to play debut album in full on new UK tour". NME. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  21. ^ @BombayBicycle (15 September 2019). "Yesterday we finished recording Everything Else Has Gone Wrong with @congletonjohn in LA. We know it's been a long wait, so as a reward for your patience here's a video of Suren recording topless. You can pre-order the album now: https://bombaybicycleclub.lnk.to/EEHGWAlbumTW" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  22. ^ a b c Everything Else Has Gone Wrong (liner notes). Bombay Bicycle Club. Mmm...Records, Caroline International, Island Records. 2020. 0827596.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  23. ^ Spruch, Kirsten (28 August 2019). "Bombay Bicycle Club Return With First Single in Five Years, 'Eat, Sleep, Wake (Nothing But You)': Listen". Billboard. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  24. ^ Slingerland, Calum (3 September 2019). "Bombay Bicycle Club Detail New Album 'Everything Else Has Gone Wrong'". Exclaim!. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
  25. ^ Skinner, Tom (27 November 2019). "Bombay Bicycle Club share hopeful title track from upcoming album 'Everything Else Has Gone Wrong' – listen". NME. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  26. ^ Murphy, Sarah (27 November 2019). "Bombay Bicycle Club Share Title Track from 'Everything Else Has Gone Wrong'". Exclaim!. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
  27. ^ Lavin, Will (19 December 2019). "Bombay Bicycle Club release airy new single 'Racing Stripes'". NME. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  28. ^ Daly, Rhian (2 January 2020). "Bombay Bicycle Club share lyric video for glimmering new track 'I Can Hardly Speak'". NME. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  29. ^ Kenneally, Cerys (1 January 2020). "Bombay Bicycle Club kick off 2020 with new single "I Can Hardly Speak"". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  30. ^ "Bombay Bicycle Club have dropped another new track, 'Is It Real'". Dork. 14 January 2020. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  31. ^ Goodridge, Hayden (2 January 2020). "Bombay Bicycle Club Share Ethereal New Single "I Can Hardly Speak"". Paste. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  32. ^ a b "Everything Else Has Gone Wrong by Bombay Bicycle Club reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
  33. ^ a b "Everything Else Has Gone Wrong by Bombay Bicycle Club Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
  34. ^ Collar, Matt. "Bombay Bicycle Club - Everything Else Has Gone Wrong". AllMusic. Retrieved 18 January 2020.
  35. ^ McCormick, Neil (17 January 2020). "Bombay Bicycle Club, Everything Else Has Gone Wrong, review: a rallying cry for the age of anxiety". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 4 June 2021. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
  36. ^ Mohammed, Jenna (14 January 2020). "Bombay Bicycle Club Everything Else Has Gone Wrong". Exclaim!. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  37. ^ Snapes, Laura (17 January 2020). "Bombay Bicycle Club: Everything Else Has Gone Wrong review – songs to buy a mid-range hatchback to". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
  38. ^ Bray, Elisa (16 January 2020). "Album reviews: Bombay Bicycle Club – 'Everything Else has Gone Wrong' and Gabrielle Aplin – 'Dear Happy'". The Independent. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
  39. ^ Mylrea, Hannah (16 January 2020). "Bombay Bicycle Club – 'Everything Else Has Gone Wrong' review: nostalgic kicks and fresh new sounds". NME. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
  40. ^ Cliff, Aimee (23 January 2020). "Bombay Bicycle Club: Everything Else Has Gone Wrong Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved 23 January 2020.
  41. ^ a b Doherty, Niall (March 2020). "Bombay Bicycle Club – Everything Else Has Gone Wrong". Q. No. 408. p. 114.
  42. ^ Hodgkinson, Will (17 January 2020). "Bombay Bicycle Club: Everything Else Has Gone Wrong review — formulaic return from London indie rockers". The Times. Archived from the original on 30 July 2021. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
  43. ^ a b Cochrane, Greg (February 2020). "Bombay Bicycle Club – Everything Else Has Gone Wrong". Uncut. No. 273. p. 25.
  44. ^ "ARIA Australian Top 50 Digital Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. 27 January 2020. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
  45. ^ "Ultratop.be – Bombay Bicycle Club – Everything Else Has Gone Wrong" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
  46. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Bombay Bicycle Club – Everything Else Has Gone Wrong" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
  47. ^ "Official Irish Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
  48. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
  49. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
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