Fourteen Autumns & Fifteen Winters
Encyclopedia
Fourteen Autumns & Fifteen Winters is the debut studio album by Scottish
indie rock
band The Twilight Sad
, released by Fat Cat Records
on April 3, 2007 in the US, and May 7, 2007 in the UK. The album features production from Peter Katis
and the band themselves. It was recorded over a short period of just three days, and the songs featured were the first ones the band had ever written.
Vocalist James Graham commented on the difference between the band's live show and the album, stating that, "If you came to see us live before you actually heard the record or any recordings we made, you'd probably think we were kind of a noisy band. If you had the record and sat down with it, you can totally see it's more than noise."
"That Summer, at Home I Had Become the Invisible Boy
", "Last Year's Rain Didn't Fall Quite So Hard", and "And She Would Darken the Memory
" also appear on the band's debut EP, The Twilight Sad
, while four tracks from the album would later appear on Here, It Never Snowed. Afterwards It Did
in a re-recorded state.
The album's influences include Van Dyke Parks
, Phil Spector
, Daniel Johnston
, Arab Strap
, Serge Gainsbourg
, and Leonard Cohen
.
, which assigns a normalized
rating out of 100 based on reviews from mainstream critics, the album has received a favourable score of 79, based on 16 reviews. Pitchfork Media
praised the "vividness of the lyrical themes" and "street-level earthiness", awarding the album an 8.6 out of 10 rating. The Skinny awarded the album 5 out of 5 stars, hailing the album as "one of the finest Scottish albums in years." Both The Skinny and Teletext
's music page Planet Sound
named Fourteen Autumns & Fifteen Winters as the best album of 2007. Regarding the album's warm critical reception, guitarist Andy MacFarlane stated that the band didn't expect the acclaim and that they "just wanted to release something that we were happy with," adding that "[the band] didn't expect anyone else to like it."
In December 2007, the album's opening track "Cold Days from the Birdhouse" was voted number 73 on Pitchfork Media's "Top 100 Tracks of 2007" list. In December 2009, Fourteen Autumns & Fifteen Winters ranked number 2 in The Skinnys "Scottish Albums of the Decade" list.
Recording personnel
Artwork
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
band The Twilight Sad
The Twilight Sad
The Twilight Sad are an indie rock band from Kilsyth, Scotland, comprising James Graham , Andy MacFarlane and Mark Devine . The band are currently signed to Fat Cat Records and have released two full-length albums, as well as several EPs and singles...
, released by Fat Cat Records
Fat Cat Records
Fat Cat Records is an independent label based in Brighton on England’s South Coast. Their output includes electronica, post rock, indie, downtempo, minimal techno, noise and punk-pop...
on April 3, 2007 in the US, and May 7, 2007 in the UK. The album features production from Peter Katis
Peter Katis
Peter Katis is an American record producer, engineer, mixer and musician.Working primarily out of his own residential studio in Bridgeport, Connecticut, Katis is best known for producing alternative and indie rock bands, especially for Fat Cat Records.-Biography:Katis attended New Canaan Country...
and the band themselves. It was recorded over a short period of just three days, and the songs featured were the first ones the band had ever written.
Vocalist James Graham commented on the difference between the band's live show and the album, stating that, "If you came to see us live before you actually heard the record or any recordings we made, you'd probably think we were kind of a noisy band. If you had the record and sat down with it, you can totally see it's more than noise."
"That Summer, at Home I Had Become the Invisible Boy
That Summer, at Home I Had Become the Invisible Boy
"That Summer, at Home I Had Become the Invisible Boy" is a song by Scottish indie rock band The Twilight Sad, that appears on the EP The Twilight Sad, and their debut album, Fourteen Autumns & Fifteen Winters. The song was released as the album's first single on 2 April 2007 on Fat Cat Records...
", "Last Year's Rain Didn't Fall Quite So Hard", and "And She Would Darken the Memory
And She Would Darken the Memory
"And She Would Darken the Memory" is a song by Scottish indie rock band The Twilight Sad, that appears on the EP The Twilight Sad, and their debut album, Fourteen Autumns & Fifteen Winters. The song was released as the album's second single on 16 July 2007 on Fat Cat Records...
" also appear on the band's debut EP, The Twilight Sad
The Twilight Sad (EP)
The Twilight Sad is the debut EP by The Twilight Sad, released on November 14, 2006 on Fat Cat Records. The EP was only released in the United States. Regarding its US-only release, former bassist Craig Orzel stated that "the American side of Fat Cat wanted a release to announce our arrival, so...
, while four tracks from the album would later appear on Here, It Never Snowed. Afterwards It Did
Here, It Never Snowed. Afterwards It Did
-Credits:* James Alexander Graham – vocals, lyrics* Andy MacFarlane – guitar, accordion, noise, producer, mixing* Mark Devine – drums, percussion, mixing* Craig Orzel – bass, glockenspiel* Iain Cook – engineer, mixing, mastering...
in a re-recorded state.
The album's influences include Van Dyke Parks
Van Dyke Parks
Van Dyke Parks is an American composer, arranger, producer, musician, singer, author and actor. Parks is perhaps best known for his contributions as a lyricist on the Beach Boys album Smile....
, Phil Spector
Phil Spector
Phillip Harvey "Phil" Spector is an American record producer and songwriter, later known for his conviction in the murder of actress Lana Clarkson....
, Daniel Johnston
Daniel Johnston
Daniel Dale Johnston is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and artist. Johnston was the subject of the 2006 documentary The Devil and Daniel Johnston. He currently lives in Waller, Texas....
, Arab Strap
Arab Strap (band)
Arab Strap were an indie rock band from Scotland that consisted of core members Aidan Moffat and Malcolm Middleton. The band were signed to independent record label Chemikal Underground, and split in 2006...
, Serge Gainsbourg
Serge Gainsbourg
Serge Gainsbourg, born Lucien Ginsburg was a French singer-songwriter, actor and director. Gainsbourg's extremely varied musical style and individuality make him difficult to categorize...
, and Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen
Leonard Norman Cohen, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, poet and novelist. Cohen published his first book of poetry in Montreal in 1956 and his first novel in 1963. His work often explores religion, isolation, sexuality and interpersonal relationships...
.
Lyrical content
Regarding the album's lyrical content, Graham remarked that:Critical reception
Fourteen Autumns & Fifteen Winters was released to mostly positive reviews. At MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, which assigns a normalized
Standard score
In statistics, a standard score indicates how many standard deviations an observation or datum is above or below the mean. It is a dimensionless quantity derived by subtracting the population mean from an individual raw score and then dividing the difference by the population standard deviation...
rating out of 100 based on reviews from mainstream critics, the album has received a favourable score of 79, based on 16 reviews. Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
praised the "vividness of the lyrical themes" and "street-level earthiness", awarding the album an 8.6 out of 10 rating. The Skinny awarded the album 5 out of 5 stars, hailing the album as "one of the finest Scottish albums in years." Both The Skinny and Teletext
Teletext
Teletext is a television information retrieval service developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s. It offers a range of text-based information, typically including national, international and sporting news, weather and TV schedules...
's music page Planet Sound
Planet Sound
Planet Sound was a Teletext music page on ITV and Channel 4 in the UK. It was broadcast on analogue Teletext from page 340, and on digital Teletext from page 820. From May 24, 2007, Planet Sound was also available to read online via the Teletext website...
named Fourteen Autumns & Fifteen Winters as the best album of 2007. Regarding the album's warm critical reception, guitarist Andy MacFarlane stated that the band didn't expect the acclaim and that they "just wanted to release something that we were happy with," adding that "[the band] didn't expect anyone else to like it."
In December 2007, the album's opening track "Cold Days from the Birdhouse" was voted number 73 on Pitchfork Media's "Top 100 Tracks of 2007" list. In December 2009, Fourteen Autumns & Fifteen Winters ranked number 2 in The Skinnys "Scottish Albums of the Decade" list.
Track listing
Release history
| Country | Date | Label | Format | Catalogue # |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | April 3, 2007 | Fat Cat Records Fat Cat Records Fat Cat Records is an independent label based in Brighton on England’s South Coast. Their output includes electronica, post rock, indie, downtempo, minimal techno, noise and punk-pop... |
CD | FATCD55 |
| United Kingdom | May 7, 2007 | CD | FATCD55 | |
| LP | FATLP55 | |||
| Limited edition CD | FATCD55J |
Credits
The Twilight Sad- James Alexander Graham – vocals
- Andy MacFarlane – guitar, accordion
- Craig Orzel – bass
- Mark Devine – drums
Recording personnel
- Produced by The Twilight Sad
- Paul SavagePaul SavagePaul Savage is a Scottish musician and record producer, best known for being the drummer in the Scottish indie rock group The Delgados.-Early life:...
– engineer - David Paterson – engineer ("That Summer, at Home I Had Become the Invisible Boy", "Last Year's Rain Didn't Fall Quite So Hard", and "And She Would Darken the Memory")
- Peter KatisPeter KatisPeter Katis is an American record producer, engineer, mixer and musician.Working primarily out of his own residential studio in Bridgeport, Connecticut, Katis is best known for producing alternative and indie rock bands, especially for Fat Cat Records.-Biography:Katis attended New Canaan Country...
– mixing (at Tarquin Studios, Bridgeport, ConnecticutBridgeport, ConnecticutBridgeport is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. Located in Fairfield County, the city had an estimated population of 144,229 at the 2010 United States Census and is the core of the Greater Bridgeport area...
) - Alan Douches – mastering (at West West Side Music)
- Jesse Baccus – mastering (at West West Side Music)
Artwork
- dlt – artwork