Credo (The Human League album)
Encyclopedia
Credo is the ninth studio album by The Human League
. It is their first studio album since Secrets in 2001. It has been produced by fellow Sheffield
act I Monster
and is released on Wall of Sound.
The first single from the album, "Night People
" was released on 22 November 2010. Follow up single "Never Let Me Go" was released on 1 March 2011. "Egomaniac" is the second single in Germany, Austria and Switzerland because The Human League secured a slot on a major German TV show for a performance of 'Egomaniac'. The TV programme aired on Friday 4 March and the single was released the same day. In those three territories the album itself was released on Friday 11 March in order to narrow the gap between the TV airing and the album being available. In the rest of the EU the album was released on Monday 21 March in order to narrow the gap between the release in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and the rest of the continent.
Credo was digitally released in the United States on August 16, 2011, with a physical release one week later.
and Rob Barton decided the band needed new material. These new tracks caught the attention of Mark Jones
, founder of Wall of Sound
.
Teaming up with Sheffield
based electronic act I Monster
, the band decided to cater the album mainly toward the dance scene.
The band decided to retain an earlier feel to some of the tracks, including "Privilege" (which they wanted to "sit next to Being Boiled
" and "fixed in 1978"), but welcomed I Monster's heavy resequencing on others, including "Sky". Oakey notes I Monster's contribution to the album stating in an interview with John Doran of The Quietus
, "The first thing he gave us back, 'Sky' we just went, 'Wow, how has he turned that into this?' They’ve got a really good collection of synths."
However, there have been many favourable reviews. One being the Glasswerk National review, which said "Credo manages to make itself heard above the brashest state-of-the-art pop productions and brings some of that primitive essence to the milieu, as well as The Human League’s unique quality of apartness." Gay Times has awarded 'Credo' with 5/5 and has been hailed as an 'incredible pop offering'. Mixmag praised the album for being "crisp, dynamic and upbeat, with contemporary electronic pop sheen". Caroline Sullivan from The Guardian remarked "Credo sounds like nobody but the Human League: electronics gurgle and whirr, and some fairly memorable melodies surge and flow. The production is sleeker than before." MusicOMH declared "Credo, is a lot of fun, marred only by occasionally bad lyrics. It feels like a defiance of time." and that "it still sounds completely fresh and absolutely The Human League." They also stated that the album is "beguiling".
Both singles released from the album failed to chart, however "Never Let Me Go" received substantial airplay on BBC Radio 2
. The album itself charted at #44 on the UK Albums Chart
. A double vinyl edition was released on 25 July 2011, together with the download of "Sky", the third single from the album.
The Human League
The Human League are an English electronic New Wave band formed in Sheffield in 1977. They achieved popularity after a key change in line-up in the early 1980s and have continued recording and performing with moderate commercial success throughout the 1980s up to the present day.The only constant...
. It is their first studio album since Secrets in 2001. It has been produced by fellow Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
act I Monster
I Monster
I Monster are an English electronic music group, composed of the Sheffield based record producers Dean Honer and Jarrod Gosling. They formed in 1997, and released their debut album These Are Our Children in 1998....
and is released on Wall of Sound.
The first single from the album, "Night People
Night People (The Human League song)
“Night People” is a song by the British synthpop group The Human League, released on 22 November 2010, it failed to chart.The single features remixes from Cerrone, Mylo, Emperor Machine and Villa. The single reached No...
" was released on 22 November 2010. Follow up single "Never Let Me Go" was released on 1 March 2011. "Egomaniac" is the second single in Germany, Austria and Switzerland because The Human League secured a slot on a major German TV show for a performance of 'Egomaniac'. The TV programme aired on Friday 4 March and the single was released the same day. In those three territories the album itself was released on Friday 11 March in order to narrow the gap between the TV airing and the album being available. In the rest of the EU the album was released on Monday 21 March in order to narrow the gap between the release in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and the rest of the continent.
Credo was digitally released in the United States on August 16, 2011, with a physical release one week later.
Production
After the commercial failure of their previous album, Secrets, the band decided to concentrate on their live appearances and forgo a contract with a major label. After seven years of working live venues, Philip OakeyPhilip Oakey
Philip Oakey is an English composer, singer, songwriter and producer.He is best known as the lead singer, frontman and co-founder of the famous English synthpop band The Human League. He has also had an extensive solo music career and collaborated with numerous other artists and producers...
and Rob Barton decided the band needed new material. These new tracks caught the attention of Mark Jones
Mark Jones (Wall of Sound)
Mark Jones is the founder of Wall of Sound record label.-Early life:He was born in Hayes, Middlesex. He went to art college and left after one day to form a visuals company called Pop with Michael Speechley...
, founder of Wall of Sound
Wall of Sound (record label)
Wall of Sound is an independent record label based in London, England. It is part of the [PIAS] Entertainment Group, a European independent music company....
.
Teaming up with Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
based electronic act I Monster
I Monster
I Monster are an English electronic music group, composed of the Sheffield based record producers Dean Honer and Jarrod Gosling. They formed in 1997, and released their debut album These Are Our Children in 1998....
, the band decided to cater the album mainly toward the dance scene.
The band decided to retain an earlier feel to some of the tracks, including "Privilege" (which they wanted to "sit next to Being Boiled
Being Boiled
"Being Boiled" is a song composed by Sheffield musicians Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh, with lyrics by Philip Oakey, and recorded by them as The Human League...
" and "fixed in 1978"), but welcomed I Monster's heavy resequencing on others, including "Sky". Oakey notes I Monster's contribution to the album stating in an interview with John Doran of The Quietus
The Quietus
The Quietus is a British online rock music and pop culture magazine, focusing on arts news, reviews, and features. The site is an editorially independent publication led by John Doran and a group of freelance journalists and critics, some of whom have worked for other media outlets...
, "The first thing he gave us back, 'Sky' we just went, 'Wow, how has he turned that into this?' They’ve got a really good collection of synths."
Critical reception
The album has received mixed reviews. Mojo magazine said "Will their return to recording prove their relevance, three decades after 1981's epochal, synapse-sparkling Dare!? The hi-gloss but uneven Credo only partially convinces." Musicweek compared Credo to "a latter period Pet Shop Boys album."However, there have been many favourable reviews. One being the Glasswerk National review, which said "Credo manages to make itself heard above the brashest state-of-the-art pop productions and brings some of that primitive essence to the milieu, as well as The Human League’s unique quality of apartness." Gay Times has awarded 'Credo' with 5/5 and has been hailed as an 'incredible pop offering'. Mixmag praised the album for being "crisp, dynamic and upbeat, with contemporary electronic pop sheen". Caroline Sullivan from The Guardian remarked "Credo sounds like nobody but the Human League: electronics gurgle and whirr, and some fairly memorable melodies surge and flow. The production is sleeker than before." MusicOMH declared "Credo, is a lot of fun, marred only by occasionally bad lyrics. It feels like a defiance of time." and that "it still sounds completely fresh and absolutely The Human League." They also stated that the album is "beguiling".
Both singles released from the album failed to chart, however "Never Let Me Go" received substantial airplay on BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...
. The album itself charted at #44 on the UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
. A double vinyl edition was released on 25 July 2011, together with the download of "Sky", the third single from the album.
Track listing
Written by Robert Barton and Philip Oakey, except where noted- "Never Let Me Go" (Barton/Honer/Gosling/Oakey)
- "Night PeopleNight People (The Human League song)“Night People” is a song by the British synthpop group The Human League, released on 22 November 2010, it failed to chart.The single features remixes from Cerrone, Mylo, Emperor Machine and Villa. The single reached No...
" - "Sky"
- "Into the Night"
- "Egomaniac"
- "Single Minded"
- "Electric Shock" (Barton/Honer/Gosling/Oakey)
- "Get Together"
- "Privilege"
- "Breaking the Chains"
- "When the Stars Start to Shine"
Charts
| Chart (2011) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgian Albums Chart Ultratop 50 Ultratop 50 singles, often just Ultratop 50, is the weekly chart of fifty best-selling singles in Flanders, Belgium, and is produced and published by the Ultratop organization. The chart has existed since March 31, 1995... (Flanders) |
85 |
| Belgian Heatseekers Albums Chart Ultratop Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium, and it is also the name of most of those charts... (Wallonia) |
3 |
| German Albums Chart | 57 |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
44 |