2011 studio album by WU LYF
| Go Tell Fire to the Mountain | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Studio album by WU LYF | |
| Released | 13 June 2011 (2011-06-13) |
| Recorded | Winter 2010 |
| Studio | St Peter's Church in Ancoats, Manchester, England |
| Genre | Indie rock, post-rock, art rock |
| Length | 47:09 |
| Language | English |
| Label | LYF Recordings |
| Producer | WU LYF |
| Singles from Go Tell Fire to the Mountain | |
| |
Go Tell Fire to the Mountain is the debut album by English band WU LYF, released on 13 June 2011. The album was released to high anticipation and the backing of NME, Stereogum, and Pitchfork.
Recording
The band had the concept for Go Tell Fire to the Mountain long before the recording process took place. Roberts states that it was written "in a narrative sense and as a complete work rather than a bunch of songs thrown together." When searching for a place to record, the group was dissatisfied with the sound they were getting from traditional studios, leading them to settle on Saint Peter's, an old abandoned church in Ancoats, Greater Manchester. The amount of open airspace in the church allowed for a healthy dose of reverb, which is a critical part of the album's larger than life sound. Despite the media's insistence of the location's relevance to the religious theme of the band, Roberts denies it. Although the church altered the "vibe of the songs", the band asserts that Saint Peter's church sonically fit the album's needs.
Singles
"Heavy Pop" and "Concrete Gold" were released as a double A-side single prior to the album on 31 May 2010. "Dirt" was released as a radio-only promo CD in support of the album's release in June 2011. "We Bros" was released as a single from the album on 20 September 2011.
Critical reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AnyDecentMusic? | 7.5/10 |
| Metacritic | 77/100 |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    |
| The A.V. Club | C+ |
| The Guardian | |
| The Irish Times | |
| Mojo | |
| NME | 8/10 |
| Pitchfork | 8.4/10 |
| Q | |
| Spin | 8/10 |
| Uncut | |
Go Tell Fire to the Mountain was met with "generally favorable" reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, this release received an average score of 77 based on 20 reviews.
Accolades
| Critic/Publication | List | Rank | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beats Per Minute | Beats Per Minute's Top 50 Albums of 2011 | 6 | |
| Complex | Complex's Top 25 Albums of 2011 | 10 | |
| The Fly | The Fly's Top 50 Albums of 2011 | 28 | |
| NME | NME's Top 50 Albums of 2011 | 10 |
Track listing
All songs written and composed by WU LYF.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "L Y F" | 4:31 |
| 2. | "Cave Song" | 3:49 |
| 3. | "Such a Sad Puppy Dog" | 5:32 |
| 4. | "Summas Bliss" | 4:01 |
| 5. | "We Bros" | 6:27 |
| 6. | "Spitting Blood" | 3:48 |
| 7. | "Dirt" | 3:19 |
| 8. | "Concrete Gold" | 5:35 |
| 9. | "14 Crowns for Me & Your Friends" | 4:42 |
| 10. | "Heavy Pop" | 5:35 |
Charts
| Chart (2011) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) | 73 |
| French Albums (SNEP) | 85 |
| UK Albums (OCC) | 98 |
| US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard) | 32 |
References
- Wilkinson, Matt (12 May 2010), "Radar Band Of The Week – No 5: Wu Lyf", NME
- Suarez, Jessica (27 May 2010), "Band To Watch: WU LYF (World Unite/Lucifer Youth Foundation)", Stereogum
- ^ Fitzmaurice, Larry (1 June 2011), "New Release: WU LYF: Go Tell Fire to the Mountain", Pitchfork
- ^ Newman, Jason (27 July 2011), WU LYF Explain The Band Behind The Myth, MTV, archived from the original on 9 July 2021
- We Bros – Single by WU LYF, iTunes Store
- Go Tell Fire To The Mountain by WU LYF reviews, AnyDecentMusic?
- ^ Reviews for Go Tell Fire To The Mountain by WU LYF, Metacritic
- O'Brien, Jon, Go Tell Fire to the Mountain – WU LYF, AllMusic
- Hyden, Steven (5 July 2011), "Wu Lyf: Go Tell Fire To The Mountain", The A.V. Club
- Simpson, Dave (10 June 2011), "Wu Lyf: Go Tell Fire to the Mountain – review", The Guardian
- Carroll, Jim (10 June 2011), "Wu Lyf", The Irish Times
- "WU LYF: Go Tell Fire to the Mountain", Mojo, no. 212, p. 115, July 2011
- Haynes, Gavin (14 June 2011), "Album Review: Wu Lyf – 'Go Tell Fire To The Mountain'", NME, archived from the original on 28 October 2011, retrieved 24 June 2011
- Cohen, Ian (23 June 2011), "WU LYF: Go Tell Fire to the Mountain", Pitchfork
- "WU LYF: Go Tell Fire to the Mountain", Q, no. 300, p. 118, July 2011
- Harvey, Eric (21 June 2011), "WU LYF, 'Go Tell Fire to the Mountain' (LYF)", Spin, archived from the original on 6 April 2013
- "WU LYF: Go Tell Fire to the Mountain", Uncut, no. 169, p. 107, August 2011
- "The Top 50 Albums of 2011". Beats Per Minute. 15 December 2011. Archived from the original on 12 September 2013. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
- Ahmed, Insanul (20 December 2011). "The 25 Best Albums of 2011". Complex. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
- Dunning, JJ (2 December 2011). "The Top 50 Albums of 2011". The Fly. Archived from the original on 8 January 2012. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
- "50 Best Albums of 2011". NME. 9 December 2011. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
- "Ultratop.be – Wu Lyf – Go Tell Fire to the Mountain" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
- "Lescharts.com – Wu Lyf – Go Tell Fire to the Mountain". Hung Medien. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
- "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
- "Wu Lyf Chart History (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 30 June 2021.