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Glasgow Eyes

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Glasgow Eyes
An abstracted painting of a human face with a smeared stripe of red for the mouth and blobs of dark blue for the eyes.
Studio album by
The Jesus and Mary Chain
Released22 March 2024 (2024-03-22)
Studio
Length48:55
LabelFuzz Club
ProducerThe Jesus and Mary Chain
The Jesus and Mary Chain chronology
Sunset 666
(2023) 		Glasgow Eyes
(2024)
Singles from Glasgow Eyes
  1. "Jamcod"
    Released: 29 November 2023
  2. "Chemical Animal"
    Released: 18 January 2024
  3. "Girl 71"
    Released: 26 February 2024

Glasgow Eyes is the eighth studio album by Scottish alternative rock band The Jesus and Mary Chain. It was released on 22 March 2024 through Fuzz Club,[1] and marks their first studio release in seven years, following Damage and Joy (2017).

The album received positive reviews from critics and debuted at No. 7 on the UK Albums Chart, the band's first top 10 placement since the Barbed Wire Kisses compilation in 1988.[2]

Background and promotion

[edit]

The band recorded Glasgow Eyes mostly at the Castle of Doom Studios in Glasgow.[3] Jim Reid stated that the album is "certainly" what people expect of a Jesus and Mary Chain record.[4] Coinciding with their 40th band anniversary, he said that their "creative approach" is the same as it was in 1984: "just hit the studio and see what happens".[5] They started recording a "bunch of songs" and "let it take its course". Reid clarified that there were "no rules" as they share a form of "telepathy", calling him and his brother "those weird not-quite twins that finish each other's sentences".[6] The duo went into the studio and felt their "way around" operating by "the same old deal", however, contemporary music had "some sort of impact on the production values". They messed around with "some synths" and tweaked "the sound a bit".[7] In an interview with Kyle Meredith, William Reid revealed that the band had to record the entire album a 2nd time after their engineer lost all of the original recordings, forcing to the band to start from scratch.[8]

The lead single "Jamcod" was released alongside the album announcement on 29 November 2023. Leaning on "their barbed electronic aspects", it showcases William Reid's "synth skills" and combines "dark electronica with some crunching guitars".[1] The duo will embark on a European tour in March and April 2024.[9]

On 22 February 2024, it was announced that the album would be delayed by two weeks, and was now set to release on 22 March.[10]

Critical reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic77/100[11]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[12]
Classic Rock[13]
The Guardian[14]
Mojo[15]
Pitchfork6.5/10[16]
Record Collector[17]
Uncut8/10[18]

Glasgow Eyes received a score of 77 out of 100 on review aggregator Metacritic based on 15 critics' reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[11] Mojo felt that "Glasgow Eyes' liberal use of electronics is a renewing force, and a kind of homecoming too", calling the album "a positive twist in the saga of these negaholics synonymous".[15] Uncut stated that "William and Jim Reid remain as defiantly out of time as ever", while Classic Rock observed that "the record ends with a burst of Velvets fuzz-rock titled Hey Lou Reid – but it's only fitting on a record that burnishes their legend with such sizzling acid".[13] Record Collector's Jeremy Allen wrote that Glasgow Eyes "puts a stop to any perceived rot. It's a staggering, swaggering achievement more vital than anything they've done in the last 35 years".[17]

Track listing

[edit]

All tracks are written by William Reid and Jim Reid

Glasgow Eyes track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Venal Joy"3:27
2."American Born"3:04
3."Mediterranean X Film"4:24
4."Jamcod"3:59
5."Discotheque"4:13
6."Pure Poor"5:18
7."The Eagles and the Beatles"3:10
8."Silver Strings"3:28
9."Chemical Animal"4:33
10."Second of June"3:56
11."Girl 71"3:08
12."Hey Lou Reid"6:15
Total length:48:55

Personnel

[edit]

The Jesus and Mary Chain

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  • Jim Reid – vocals (tracks 1, 4, 7, 9–11), instruments, production
  • William Reid – vocals (tracks 2, 3, 5–8, 12), instruments, production, artwork

Additional personnel

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  • Fay Fife – vocals (track 1)
  • Rachel Conti – vocals (track 11)
  • James Mason – handclaps (track 7)
  • Majorie Mason – handclaps (track 7)
  • Tony Doogan – programming, piano, engineering, mixing
  • George Arnold – additional engineering
  • Duncan Chave – additional engineering
  • Dollar Bill McLeish – additional engineering
  • Dan Doherty – additional mixing assistance
  • Pete Maher – mastering

Charts

[edit]
Chart performance for Glasgow Eyes
Chart (2024) Peak
position
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[19] 12
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[20] 71
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[21] 69
Croatian International Albums (HDU)[22] 33
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[23] 36
Irish Independent Albums (IRMA)[24] 12
Portuguese Albums (AFP)[25] 115
Scottish Albums (OCC)[26] 1
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[27] 1
Swedish Physical Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[28] 5
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[29] 33
UK Albums (OCC)[30] 7
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[31] 1
US Top Current Album Sales (Billboard)[32] 47
US Top Tastemaker Albums (Billboard)[33] 9

References

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  1. ^ a b Murray, Robin (29 November 2023). "The Jesus And Mary Chain Announce New Album Glasgow Eyes". Clash. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  2. ^ "Elbow earn fourth Number 1 album with AUDIO VERTIGO". Official Charts. 29 March 2024. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
  3. ^ Duda, Marty (20 March 2024). "The Jesus And Mary Chain And Glasgow Eyes: 13th Floor Interview". 13th Floor. Retrieved 5 April 2024.
  4. ^ Grow, Kory (29 November 2023). "The Jesus and Mary Chain Embrace 'No Rules' on New Song "Jamcod"". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  5. ^ Minsker, Evan (29 November 2023). "The Jesus and Mary Chain Announce New Album and Tour, Share Video for New Song: Watch". Pitchfork. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  6. ^ Pearis, Bill (29 November 2023). "The Jesus & Mary Chain announce new LP Glasgow Eyes, share "jamcod" video". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  7. ^ Beaumont, Mark (29 November 2023). "The Jesus & Mary Chain share single "jamcod" and tell us about new album Glasgow Eyes". NME. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  8. ^ "The Jesus and Mary Chain's William Reid on Glasgow Eyes". 23 March 2024.
  9. ^ Chelosky, Danielle (29 November 2023). "The Jesus And Mary Chain – "jamcod"". Stereogum. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  10. ^ Siroky, Mary (22 February 2024). "The Jesus and Mary Chain Unveil New Song "Girl 71": Stream". Consequence. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
  11. ^ a b "Glasgow Eyes by The Jesus and Mary Chain". Metacritic. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
  12. ^ Sendra, Tim. "Glasgow Eyes – The Jesus and Mary Chain". AllMusic. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
  13. ^ a b "The Jesus and Mary Chain – Glasgow Eyes". Classic Rock. April 2024. p. 76.
  14. ^ Mongredien, Phil (24 March 2024). "The Jesus and Mary Chain – Glasgow Eyes review". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  15. ^ a b "The Jesus and Mary Chain – Glasgow Eyes". Mojo. April 2024. p. 86.
  16. ^ Erlewine, Stuart (22 March 2024). "The Jesus and Mary Chain: Glasgow Eyes". Pitchfork. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
  17. ^ a b Allen, Jeremy (28 February 2024). "Glasgow Eyes | The Jesus and Mary Chain". Record Collector. Retrieved 2 March 2024.
  18. ^ "The Jesus and Mary Chain – Glasgow Eyes". Uncut. March 2024. p. 29.
  19. ^ "Austriancharts.at – The Jesus and Mary Chain – Glasgow Eyes" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
  20. ^ "Ultratop.be – The Jesus and Mary Chain – Glasgow Eyes" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  21. ^ "Ultratop.be – The Jesus and Mary Chain – Glasgow Eyes" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  22. ^ "Lista prodaje 36. tjedan 2024" (in Croatian). HDU. 26 August 2024. Archived from the original on 13 September 2024. Retrieved 13 September 2024.
  23. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – The Jesus and Mary Chain – Glasgow Eyes" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
  24. ^ "IRMA - Irish Independent Albums". Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  25. ^ "Portuguesecharts.com – The Jesus and Mary Chain – Glasgow Eyes". Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
  26. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  27. ^ "The Jesus & Mary Chain – Glasgow Eyes". Productores de Música de España. Retrieved 8 April 2024.
  28. ^ "Veckolista Album Fysiskt, vecka 13". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 5 April 2024.
  29. ^ "Swisscharts.com – The Jesus and Mary Chain – Glasgow Eyes". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  30. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  31. ^ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
  32. ^ "The Jesus and Mary Chain Chart History (Top Current Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  33. ^ "The Jesus and Mary Chain Chart History (Top Tastemaker Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
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