Wikipedia

At Mount Zoomer

At Mount Zoomer, the second full length LP from the Canadian indie rock band Wolf Parade, was released on June 17, 2008.[1]

At Mount Zoomer
Studio album by
Wolf Parade
ReleasedJune 17, 2008
RecordedPetite Église: Farnham
MIXart Studios: Montreal
Mount Zoomer: Montreal
GenreIndie rock
Length46:42
LabelSub Pop
ProducerWolf Parade
Wolf Parade chronology
Apologies to the Queen Mary
(2005) 		At Mount Zoomer
(2008) 		Expo 86
(2010)

Album title

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The album is named after Wolf Parade drummer Arlen Thompson's sound studio, Mount Zoomer; the name of the studio references "a B.C. euphemism for magic mushrooms", and also nods to the Montreal band A Silver Mount Zion.[2] The album was originally meant to be entitled Kissing the Beehive; however, due to possible copyright infringements in relation to Jonathan Carroll's 1997 novel of the same name, this title was changed. Singer and keyboardist Spencer Krug said that the band "didn't know that was the title of a book... We might have to change it, but we might not. And we'll have to make it clear that it's not [named] after his book. It's a complicated situation."[3] It had also been reported earlier by Blender that the record was entitled Pardon My Blues;[4] however, on April 28, Sub Pop officially announced that the album's name would be At Mount Zoomer.[1][5]

Album overview

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The band started playing new songs live that would end up on At Mount Zoomer as early as summer 2007. Among the first to be played were "Language City" and "Fine Young Cannibals".

According to singer and guitarist Dan Boeckner, half of the album was recorded in Farnham, Quebec at Petite Église, an old church that was converted to a recording studio by the band Arcade Fire for the production of their album Neon Bible.[6] After touring the east coast in late 2007, Wolf Parade recorded the rest of At Mount Zoomer at MIXart Studios in Montreal, Quebec.[6] Afterwards, the album was mixed at Arlen Thompson's sound studio, Mount Zoomer.[6]

The cover art for the album features the work of Matt Moroz and Elizabeth Huey, depicting a battle scene between the two artists.[7]

The track "Call It a Ritual" was released by the band on April 14, 2008.[8]

Reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic78/100[9]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [10]
The A.V. ClubB−[11]
Blender     [12]
The Boston Phoenix    [13]
Entertainment WeeklyB[14]
The Guardian     [15]
Pitchfork7.7/10[16]
Q     [17]
Rolling Stone     [18]
Spin     [19]

At Mount Zoomer received positive reviews from critics. On Metacritic, the album holds a score of 78 out of 100 based on 28 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[9]

Track listing

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No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Soldier's Grin"Dan Boeckner4:37
2."Call It a Ritual"Spencer Krug2:45
3."Language City"Boeckner5:02
4."Bang Your Drum"Krug3:10
5."California Dreamer"Krug6:00
6."The Grey Estates"Boeckner3:26
7."Fine Young Cannibals"Boeckner6:31
8."An Animal in Your Care"Krug4:19
9."Kissing the Beehive"
  • Boeckner
  • Krug
10:52
Total length:46:42

Personnel

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  • Wolf Parade – mixing, producing, "overdubs and vocals recorded by"
  • Harris Newman – mastering
  • Arlen Thompson – recording (tracks 1, 2, 4, 6-8), "one vocal recorded by"
  • David Ferry – recording (tracks 3, 5, 9)
  • Nick Petrowski – recording (tracks 3, 5, 9)
  • David Smith – "some vocals recorded by"
  • Jace Lasek – "some vocals recorded by"
  • Elizabeth Huey – artwork
  • Matt Moroz – artwork

References

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  1. ^ a b Wolf Parade Discography, "At Mount Zoomer - SP720", Sub Pop Records, retrieved April 29, 2008.
  2. ^ Aubrey McInnis, "Wolf Parade march to their own beat" Archived December 18, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, Fast Forward Weekly, Vol. 11 #35: Thursday, August 10, 2006.
  3. ^ Michael D. Ayers, "Wolf Parade Kicks Out The Jams On New Album", Billboard Magazine, April 11, 2008.
  4. ^ Blender Magazine, "2008 Rock & Roll User's Guide", blender.com, January 1, 2008.
  5. ^ Amy Phillips, "Wolf Parade Album Gets New Title" Archived April 30, 2008, at the Wayback Machine, Pitchfork Media, April 28, 2008.
  6. ^ a b c Radio Free Canuckistan, "Dan Boeckner Interview", December 12, 2007.
  7. ^ Wolf Parade Fansite, "Cover Art", Nonstuff.com, August 23, 2007.
  8. ^ Mark Richardson, "Wolf Parade: "Call It A Ritual" - Mp3 Stream", Pitchfork Media, April 14, 2008.
  9. ^ a b "At Mount Zoomer by Wolf Parade Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved July 12, 2019.
  10. ^ Kahn, Corey. "At Mount Zoomer – Wolf Parade". AllMusic. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  11. ^ Hyden, Steven (June 16, 2008). "Wolf Parade: At Mount Zoomer". The A.V. Club. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  12. ^ Dolan, Jon. "Wolf Parade: At Mount Zoomer". Blender. Archived from the original on June 18, 2008. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  13. ^ Westhoff, Ben (June 24, 2008). "Wolf Parade". The Boston Phoenix. Archived from the original on September 8, 2008. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  14. ^ Greenblatt, Leah (June 13, 2008). "At Mount Zoomer". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  15. ^ Fitzpatrick, Rob (June 13, 2008). "Wolf Parade, At Mount Zoomer". The Guardian. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  16. ^ Petrusich, Amanda (June 17, 2008). "Wolf Parade: At Mount Zoomer". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  17. ^ "Wolf Parade: At Mount Zoomer". Q. No. 265. August 2008. p. 145.
  18. ^ Hermes, Will (June 26, 2008). "Wolf Parade: At Mount Zoomer". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on April 27, 2009. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  19. ^ Modell, Josh (July 2008). "Buzz or Howl". Spin. Vol. 24, no. 7. p. 100. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
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