2 is the second full-length album by the Austrian singer-songwriter Luise Gruber, better known as Saint Lu.[1][2][3] The album is noteworthy for its music direction change, from the blues and rock of its predecessor toward a more soul-oriented aesthetic with elements of funk, jazz and baroque pop.[4][5] The album was released on 15 February 2013 via Warner Music.[6][7] The album was intended to accompany Saint Lu's representation of Germany at the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö but the selection jury in Hannover selected Cascada instead.[8][9]
| 2 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 15 February 2013 | |||
| Genre | Soul, Pop, Soft rock | |||
| Label | Warner Music | |||
| Producer | Patrik Majer | |||
| Saint Lu chronology | ||||
| ||||
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Waterfall" | Shelly Peiken, Luise Gruber, Xandy Berry | 3:12 |
| 2. | "Craving" | Gruber, Stefan Skarbek | 3:52 |
| 3. | "Falling for Your Love" | Jimmy Messer, Roxanne Seeman, Gruber | 2:43 |
| 4. | "I Got a Feeling" | Gruber, Tim Baxter | 3:37 |
| 5. | "No One Loves You Like I do" | Charlie Midnight, Gruber | 4:39 |
| 6. | "Revive This Flower" | Gruber, Baxter | 3:56 |
| 7. | "The Letter" | Gruber | 2:58 |
| 8. | "Postcard from Hell" | Midnight, Messer, Gruber | 3:05 |
| 9. | "Mrs. Suffer" | Midnight, Gruber | 3:28 |
| 10. | "Why Do I Want Love" | James Bryan, Nicholas Whitecross, Gruber | 3:51 |
| 11. | "Lady of the Lanterns" | Gruber, Baxter | 3:57 |
| Total length: | 39:23 | ||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Craving (Saint Lu Bathroom Remix)" | Gruber, Skarbek | 3:45 |
An acoustic EP, named "2 (Acoustic EP)" was released shortly after the release of the album. It contains new, acoustic arrangements of six of the songs from the album
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Falling for Your Love (Acoustic Version)" | Messer, Seeman, Gruber | 2:52 |
| 2. | "Waterfall (Acoustic Version)" | Peiken, Gruber, Berry | 3:16 |
| 3. | "Postcard From Hell (Acoustic Version)" | Midnight, Messer, Gruber | 3:15 |
| 4. | "I Got a Feeling (Acoustic Version)" | Gruber, Baxter | 4:03 |
| 5. | "Craving (Acoustic Version)" | Gruber, Skarbek | 3:28 |
| 6. | "Lady of the Lanterns (Acoustic Version)" | Gruber, Baxter | 3:48 |
| Total length: | 20:45 | ||
Personnel
edit- Patrik Majer – producer, engineer, percussion
- Sven Teichmann – engineer
- Steve Price – engineer
- Saint Lu – co-producer, glockenspiel
- Ben Hamilton – acoustic guitar
- Alex Grube – bass
- Philipp Schwär – co-producer
- Jan Burkamp – drums
- James Bryan – electric guitar
- Jimmy Messer – electric guitar
- Lars Cölln – electric guitar
- Christian Löhr – keyboards
- Philipp Schwär – keyboards, programming
- Philipp Steinke – keyboards
- Tim Baxter – keyboards
- Sebastian Borowski – saxophone
- Steve Sidwell – strings
- Christoph Titz – trumpet
Critical reception
editOberösterreichische Nachrichten, Austria, describes the album as "abounding with emotions and ideas. Soul Pop and Blues combine with the dark, versatile grater-like voice of the 30-year old into a fascinating fusion".[11]
Tracks Magazin, Switzerland, writes: "2 keeps what the self-titled debut from 2009 brought into view. At that time, she sang confident pop rock. Now it is more confident and more rock pop with a lot of soul in it".[12]
Steve Braun of Rock Times writes: "2 offers magical moments that reveal Luise Gruber's huge potential. 'Falling For Your Love' must be mentioned first".[13]
Charts
edit| Chart (2013) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Germany (German Albums Chart)[14] | 42 |
| Austria (O3 Austria Top 40)[15] | 27 |
| Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[16] | 36 |
References
edit- ^ a b 2 - Saint Lu | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic, retrieved 2021-07-12
- ^ "Saint Lu | Biography, Albums, Streaming Links". AllMusic. Retrieved 2021-07-12.
- ^ Andi. "CDs - Saint Lu setzt auf ihre Powerstimme und betitelt das neue Album kämpferisch mit "2" - Musicheadquarter - Internet Musikmagazin - Hier ist Musik zuhause!" (in German). Retrieved 2021-07-12.
- ^ a b "Saint Lu on Apple Music". Archived from the original on 2021-07-12. Retrieved 2021-07-12.
- ^ Redaktion (2019-09-16). "Redaktionsbesuch Saint Lu im Interview". womenweb.de (in German). Retrieved 2021-07-12.
- ^ "MusicLine". www.musicline.de. Retrieved 2021-07-12.
- ^ "ROCKTIMES - CD-Review / Saint Lu - 2". www.rocktimes.info. Retrieved 2021-07-12.
- ^ "Saint Lu". Warner Music Germany (in German). 2012-12-19. Retrieved 2021-07-12.
- ^ Vom Bauernhof ans Mikro Archived 2013-03-29 at the Wayback Machine "Im NDR 2 Soundcheck Musikszene Deutschland wird Saint Lus markant-rauchige Stimme am Mittwoch live zu hören sein. Bei Pascal Hillgruber spricht sie ab 21 Uhr über ihr aktuelles Album "2" und ihre Pläne nach dem Aus im ESC-Vorentscheid."
- ^ 2 on Spotify, retrieved 2021-07-12
- ^ "Saint Lu: Die Janis Joplin aus Steinhaus bei Wels". nachrichten.at (in German). Retrieved 2021-07-13.
- ^ Hug, Christian (2013-02-23). "SAINT LU 2". Tracks Magazin. Retrieved 2021-07-13.
- ^ "ROCKTIMES - CD-Review / Saint Lu - 2". www.rocktimes.info. Retrieved 2021-07-13.
- ^ "Suche - Offizielle Deutsche Charts". www.offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved 2021-07-12.
- ^ "Discographie Saint Lu - austriancharts.at". austriancharts.at. Retrieved 2021-07-12.
- ^ "Discographie Saint Lu - hitparade.ch". hitparade.ch. Retrieved 2021-07-12.