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Alpinisms

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Alpinisms
Studio album by
School of Seven Bells
ReleasedOctober 28, 2008
Studio
  • Painted Girl Studios, New York, U.S.
  • Stratosphere Sound, New York, U.S.
Genre
Length55:00
LabelGhostly International
School of Seven Bells chronology
Alpinisms
(2008) 		Disconnect from Desire
(2010)
Singles from Alpinisms
  1. "My Cabal"
    Released: 2007
  2. "Half Asleep"
    Released: 2008
  3. "Iamundernodisguise"
    Released: 2009

Alpinisms is the debut studio album by American band School of Seven Bells. It was originally released on Ghostly International on October 28, 2008,[1] and re-released on Vagrant Records on July 14, 2009.[2] The deluxe edition with bonus tracks was released on October 13, 2009.[3] The album peaked at number 17 on the UK Independent Albums Chart.[4]

Background

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In 2004, Alejandra Deheza and her twin sister Claudia (both of On!Air!Library!) met Benjamin Curtis (of Secret Machines) when they were on tour with Interpol.[5] In 2007, they formed School of Seven Bells and started making music together.[6] The group's debut studio album, whose working title was Wired for Light, was officially titled Alpinisms.[7]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic70/100[1]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[8]
ConsequenceB[9]
The Guardian[10]
The Line of Best Fit78%[11]
MusicOMH[12]
Pitchfork8.0/10[13]
PopMatters7/10[14]
Rolling Stone[15]
Slant Magazine[16]
Tiny Mix Tapes[17]

According to the review aggregator Metacritic, Alpinisms received "generally favorable reviews" based on a weighted average score of 70 out of 100 from 23 critic scores.[1]

Eric Harvey of Pitchfork said, "Throughout Alpinisms, the group finds a perfect middle ground between the indie realms of tribal and choral, layering electronic flourishes without letting them overwhelm the arrangements."[13] M. R. Newmark of PopMatters commented that "School of Seven Bells hit the sweet spot with enough frequency to make Alpinisms worthwhile, and though not every experiment works, it should give those who have been following these musicians around some satisfaction to realize that this is the sort of album they've been waiting so long to create."[14] Lukas Suveg of Tiny Mix Tapes stated, "Although this final version could have featured more diverse song selections, Alpinisms is an undoubtedly singular album, setting the bar quite high for this burgeoning trio."[17]

Accolades

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Publication List Rank Ref.
MusicOMH Top 50 Best Albums of 2009 24 [18]
NME Best Albums of 2008 42 [19]

Track listing

[edit]
No.TitleLength
1."Iamundernodisguise"3:48
2."Face to Face on High Places"4:41
3."Half Asleep"4:21
4."Wired for Light"4:57
5."For Kalaja Mari"4:18
6."White Elephant Coat"4:18
7."Connjur"4:40
8."Sempiternal/Amaranth"11:26
9."Chain"4:22
10."Prince of Peace"3:06
11."My Cabal"5:09
Total length:55:00
UK edition bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
12."Trance Figure"3:29
13."If I Had Glass Hands and Glass Feet"2:16
Japanese and digital edition bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
12."If I Had Glass Hands and Glass Feet"2:16
Deluxe edition bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
12."Wired for Light" (Live Drum Version)3:51
13."Half Asleep" (Alternate Version)4:32
14."White Elephant Coat" (Early Demo Version)3:53
15."Caldo" (Live on Stereogum's Decomposed)3:00
16."Sempiternal" (Alternate Version)11:16
17."Iamundernodisguise" (Vocal Mix I)3:41
18."My Cabal" (Early Mix 07)3:49
19."Connjur" (Alternate Version)4:39
20."For Kalaja Mari" (Drum Outtake Mix)4:22

Personnel

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Credits adapted from liner notes.[20]

School of Seven Bells

  • Benjamin Curtis – music, recording, mixing
  • Alejandra Deheza – music, recording, mixing
  • Claudia Deheza – music, recording, mixing

Additional musicians

  • Simone Pace – drums (8)
  • Niki Randa – vocals (10)

Technical personnel

  • Geoff Sanoff – recording (8)
  • Joe Lambert – mastering
  • Bryan Collins – cover design

Charts

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Chart (2009) Peak
position
French Albums (SNEP)[21] 142
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[4] 17

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Alpinisms by School of Seven Bells". Metacritic. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
  2. ^ Studarus, Laura (July 9, 2009). "School of Seven Bells Partner With Vagrant Records, Announce Tour". Under the Radar. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
  3. ^ Grisham, Tyler (September 23, 2009). ""Iamundernodisguise" (Alternate Version)". Pitchfork. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
  4. ^ a b "Official Independent Albums Chart on 1/3/2009". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
  5. ^ Bennett, Kim Taylor (November 13, 2015). "You'll Fall In Love Again: The Story of School of Seven Bells". Vice. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
  6. ^ Renshaw, David (March 6, 2009). "School Of Seven Bells - Interview". DIY. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
  7. ^ Motley, John (August 7, 2014). "Throwback Thursday: School of Seven Bells Interview from 2007". Under the Radar. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
  8. ^ Kellman, Andy. "Alpinisms - School of Seven Bells". AllMusic. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
  9. ^ Young, Alex (November 30, 2008). "Album Review: School of Seven Bells – Alpinisms". Consequence. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
  10. ^ Clarke, Betty (November 14, 2008). "Rock review: School of Seven Bells, Alpinisms". The Guardian. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
  11. ^ Cemm, Ro (March 6, 2009). "School Of Seven Bells – Alpinisms". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
  12. ^ Hogwood, Ben (February 23, 2009). "School Of Seven Bells – Alpinisms". MusicOMH. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
  13. ^ a b Harvey, Eric (November 12, 2008). "School of Seven Bells: Alpinisms". Pitchfork. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
  14. ^ a b Newmark, M. R. (November 25, 2008). "School of Seven Bells: Alpinisms". PopMatters. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
  15. ^ Fricke, David (December 11, 2008). "Alpinisms : School Of Seven Bells". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on December 18, 2008. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
  16. ^ Cinquemani, Sal (November 15, 2008). "Review: School of Seven Bells, Alpinisms". Slant Magazine. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
  17. ^ a b Suveg, Lukas. "School of Seven Bells - Alpinisms". Tiny Mix Tapes. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
  18. ^ "musicOMH's Top 50 Best Albums Of 2009: 30-21". MusicOMH. August 3, 2009. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
  19. ^ "NME's best albums and tracks of 2008". NME. October 10, 2016. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
  20. ^ School of Seven Bells (2008). Alpinisms (CD booklet). Ghostly International.
  21. ^ "Lescharts.com – School Of Seven Bells – Alpinisms". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
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