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Collections from the Whiteout
Studio album by Ben Howard
Released	26 March 2021
Studio	Long Pond, New York La Frette, Paris Devon
Genre	Indie rock, folktronica
Length	54:01
Label	Island
Producer	Aaron Dessner Ben Howard
Ben Howard chronology
Noonday Dream (2018) Collections from the Whiteout (2021) Is It? (2023)
Singles from Collections from the Whiteout
"What a Day" Released: 26 January 2021 "Crowhurst's Meme" Released: 2 February 2021 "Far Out" / "Follies Fixture" Released: 26 February 2021 "Sorry Kid" Released: 22 March 2021

Collections from the Whiteout is the fourth studio album by the English singer-songwriter Ben Howard, released on 26 March 2021.

Singles

The lead single from the album, "What a Day", premiered on Annie Mac's BBC Radio 1 show on 26 January 2021. A second single "Crowhurst's Meme" was released 2 February 2021. The third and fourth singles, "Far Out" and "Follies Fixture" were released on 26 February 2021. The fifth single, "Sorry Kid" premiered on Annie Mac’s show on 22 March 2021.

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
AnyDecentMusic?	7.2/10
Metacritic	69/100
Review scores
Source	Rating
The AU Review
DIY
The Independent
The Line of Best Fit	7/10
Mojo
NME
Pitchfork	6.9/10
Uncut	5/10

The album was met with positive reviews from music critics. On Metacritic, which assigns a rating out of 100, the album was scored a 69, which indicates generally favourable reviews. Ben Lynch of DIY Magazine gave the album 4 stars, calling the album "Melancholy, meticulous and achingly grand", elaborating that "His dialling down the traditional guitar/vocal folk and diving deeper into a range of electronics, whether the harsh distortion of ‘Sage That She Was Burning’ or the bright, tactile ‘Metaphysical Cantations’, is a primary deviation here. ‘Follies Fixture’, the opener and a highlight, expresses this newfound path from the onset, its entrancing swirl likely to divide fans while potentially turning a few new heads his way. Make no mistake though, Collections From The Whiteout remains in the truest sense a Ben Howard release." The Independent's Roisin O'Connor and Rachel Brodsky say that "instead of a too-many-cooks situation, which this easily could’ve been, and Howard find cozy nooks for everyone. The singer’s reedy voice is the drawstring that ties it all together." Hannah Jocelyn of Pitchfork gave the album 6.9 out of 10, saying that "Whiteout doesn’t always sound like a revelation, but it allows Howard to open up, letting in new lyrical and musical ideas that complement his own without overwhelming them."

Other reviews were less positive. John Murphy of musicOMH.com gave the album 3 stars, explaining that "there’s certainly a lot to take in on Ben Howard’s fourth album – not all the ideas work in fairness, and there’s a few too many moments which feel like half-sketched ideas. Yet Dessner makes a decent foil for him and for those who have joined Howard on his career journey to date will be more than happy to continue travelling with him." PopMatters' Brice Ezell gave the album 6 out of 10, saying that "if Whiteout is an imperfect album, it is one that also evinces Howard’s refusal to stay in a single musical lane."

Commercial performance

Collections from the Whiteout spent its first week of release at number one on the UK Albums Chart (with first-week sales of 15,621 copies, including 1,759 from sales-equivalent streams). Unusually for a number one album, it recorded no other weeks in the chart.

Track listing

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.

Charts

References

1. "Collections from the Whiteout by Ben Howard". Rate Your Music. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
2. ^ Skinner, Tom (26 January 2021). "Ben Howard shares new single 'What A Day' and announces fourth album". NME. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
3. "Ben Howard announces new album 'Collections From The Whiteout'". DIY. 27 February 2021. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
4. "Collections From The Whiteout: Standard CD". Ben Howard.
5. "Ben Howard Drops Nautical New Single 'Crowhurst's Meme'". Rolling Stone. 2 February 2021. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
6. "Ben Howard shares two new songs 'Far Out' and 'Follies Fixture'". DIY. 26 February 2021. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
7. "Ben Howard Shares Melodic New Single 'Sorry Kid'". 22 March 2021. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
8. "Collections From The Whiteout by Ben Howard reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
9. ^ "Reviews for Collections from the Whiteout by Ben Howard". Metacritic. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
10. Marshall, Dylan (25 March 2021). "Album of the Week: Ben Howard's Collections From the Whiteout is a surprising return to form". The AU Review. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
11. Lynch, Ben (25 March 2021). "Ben Howard - Collections From The Whiteout". DIY Magazine. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
12. Brodsky, Rachel (25 March 2021). "Ben Howard – Collections from the Whiteout". The Independent. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
13. Milross, Hayley (24 March 2021). "Ben Howard's fourth album Collections From The Whiteout is a reinvention powered by slick production". Retrieved 25 March 2021.
14. Doherty, Niall. "Devon singer-songwriter mesmerises with quiet complexity". Mojo (April 2021 ed.). p. 81.
15. Kemp, Ella (25 March 2021). "Ben Howard – 'Collections From the Whiteout' review: too many ideas, if anything". NME. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
16. Jocelyn, Hannah. "Ben Howard – 'Collections From the Whiteout'". Pitchfork. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
17. Price, Andrew. "A disorienting stew of experimental folk yields meagre sustenance". Uncut (April 2021 ed.). p. 30.
18. "Ben Howard - Collections From The Whiteout". DIY. 25 March 2021. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
19. "Album reviews: Ben Howard and serpentwithfeet". The Independent. 25 March 2021. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
20. "Ben Howard: Collections From the Whiteout". Pitchfork. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
21. Murphy, John (26 March 2021). "Ben Howard - Collections From The Whiteout | Album Reviews". musicOMH. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
22. "Ben Howard: Collections from the Whiteout | Album Review". PopMatters. 17 May 2021. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
23. "Island's Louis Bloom on Ben Howard's 'truly exceptional' No.1 album campaign". Retrieved 3 April 2021.
24. "Ultratop.be – Ben Howard – Collections from the Whiteout" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
25. "Ultratop.be – Ben Howard – Collections from the Whiteout" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
26. "Dutchcharts.nl – Ben Howard – Collections from the Whiteout" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
27. "Offiziellecharts.de – Ben Howard – Collections from the Whiteout" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 1 April 2021.
28. "Official Irish Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
29. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
30. "Swisscharts.com – Ben Howard – Collections from the Whiteout". Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
31. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2 April 2021.

• 2021 albums
• Ben Howard albums
• Island Records albums
• Albums produced by Aaron Dessner