Here We Go Magic is the eponymous 2009 debut album from Brooklyn-based 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 Here We Go Magic

Here We Go Magic

Here We Go Magic is an American indie rock band based in Brooklyn, New York. Formerly the moniker of folk singer Luke Temple. Temple signed to Western Vinyl in 2008, followed in 2009 by the five-piece group's signing to Secretly Canadian.-History:...

, although at the time of its recording it was a solo project of Luke Temple

Luke Temple

Luke Temple is an American pop-folk singer-songwriter, born in Manchester, Massachusetts. He is an alumnus of the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. While living in New York, making a living by painting murals in wealthy New Yorkers' apartments, he released a four song self-titled EP,...

.

Background and recording

The album was recorded by Temple at home on a 4-track recorder over a two month period. Temple described the recording: "I just had one tom, one microphone, a synth and an acoustic guitar. I didn’t have a full drum kit or normal bass, it was just all synth stuff that I did myself."

Critical reception

Tim DiGravina, writing for Allmusic, gave the album a 3.5/5 rating, saying "There's a lot to admire in Here We Go Magic's dreamy, hazy melodies, and it's easy to get lost in the repetitive, minimalist guitar strumming that centers half of the tracks". Brian Gearing of Glide, gave it a four-star rating, calling it "hypnotic from the opening notes to the closing silence", and stating that it "doesn’t just sound awesome; it compels you to listen". The NME

NME

The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...

s Rob Webb was also impressed, giving the album 7/10. Eric Harvey of 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...

 described the album as "hazy electronic textures, endlessly-spiraling lyrical loops, occasional forays into extended sections of ambience and noise", giving the album 7.4 out of 10. Alex Denney, writing for 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...

, wrote "There isn't a duff moment on ...Magic exactly, but it's the opening salvo, with its lingering impression of small ideas stretched gauzily out, that really sings like firing synapses and leaves you wanting more". Barry Walters of SPIN

Spin (magazine)

Spin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...

gave it 7/10, calling it "Magic indeed".

Track listing

1. "Only Pieces" (3:50)
2. "Fangela" (5:32)
3. "Ahab" (3:37)
4. "Tunnelvision" (4:23)
5. "Ghost List" (4:23)
6. "I Just Want to See You Underwater" (4:49)
7. "Babyohbaby - Ijustcantstanditanymore!" (2:07)
8. "Nat's Alien" (4:27)
9. "Everything's Big" (5:28)