Hurry Up, We're Dreaming
Encyclopedia
Hurry Up, We're Dreaming is the sixth studio album
by French electronic
band M83
. The double album
was released on 18 October 2011 by Naïve Records
in France and Mute Records
in the United States. The album was produced by Justin Meldal-Johnsen
and has received generally positive reviews. In addition, it debuted at number fifteen on the US Billboard 200
with first-week sales of 21,000 copies, becoming M83's highest-charting album to date.
. Gonzalez's tour with The Killers, Depeche Mode
and Kings of Leon
, in addition to his road trips to Joshua Tree National Park
heavily influenced the album. Gonzalez cited the ambitiousness of albums such as Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness
as the reason he made Hurry Up, We're Dreaming a double album. In addition, he described the two discs as brother and sister, with each track having a sibling on the other disc. The album was recorded in Los Angeles at Sunset Studio and The Sound Factory
. Because of budget constraints and union issues, the string and brass players who contributed to the album were not paid and were credited with pseudonyms.
Hurry Up, We're Dreaming was first teased on 23 June 2011 in a YouTube
video titled "Echoes...", which also announced North American tour dates. The album's lead single, "Midnight City", premiered online on 19 July 2011, and was officially released on 16 August 2011. On 10 October 2011, the album was streamed in its entirety on the Urban Outfitters
website. Urban Outfitters also hosted a simultaneous listening party at all of its store the Saturday before Hurry Up, We're Dreamings release. On 17 October 2011, a music video for "Midnight City" was released.
Gonzalez described the album's sound as a mix between the synthpop
of Saturdays = Youth
and the more ambient
work of Before the Dawn Heals Us
. Additionally, the album uses instruments not found on previous M83 albums, such as acoustic guitar
and saxophone
. Hurry Up, We're Dreaming also features contributions from Medicine
's Brad Laner and Zola Jesus
.
Gonzalez explained to Spin
magazine that Hurry Up, We're Dreaming is "mainly about dreams, how every one is different, how you dream differently when you're a kid, a teenager, or an adult. I'm really proud of it. If you're doing a very long album, all the songs need to be different and I think I've done that with this one." In an interview with musicOMH
, he described the album as "a reflection of my 30 years as a human being" and something he dedicated to himself.
, which assigns a normalised
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
score of 77, based on 34 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Pitchfork Media
's Ian Cohen gave Hurry Up, We're Dreaming a "Best New Music" designation, dubbing it "the best M83 record yet" and adding that "the traditionally structured songs here are some of the most thrilling pop music released this year. The heavily saturated synths Gonzalez favored early in his career invited plenty of My Bloody Valentine comparisons, but whereas pure shoegaze of that nature attempts to overwhelm and obliterate, Hurry Up is like a sonic planetarium, penetrable and totally geared toward enhancing the user experience." The Daily Telegraph
s James Lachno gave the album four out of five stars and stated: "On top of booming synth-pop templates, [Gonzalez's] cosmic compositions arch off in weird directions, incorporating blues-bar sax solos, Afrobeat
slap bass, swooping strings, psychedelic imagery and—really—a children's story all about frogs. It's surprisingly exhilarating stuff." Under the Radar
s Laura Studarus gave the album nine stars out of ten, calling it a "double album of stunningly ambitious, synth-soaked dreams" as well as a "remarkable accomplishment". The Independent
critic Simon Price
deemed the album "[e]xtraordinary" and praised it as "a towering city of sparkling synth edifices simultaneously summoning the best of the 1980s (New Order
, The Cure
) and the current breed (The Knife
, Empire of the Sun
)". Heather Phares of Allmusic rated the album four out of five stars and noted: "More than any of M83's other albums, Hurry Up, We're Dreaming feels like a destination to explore; while it may not be quite as striking as Saturdays = Youth, it delivers a welcome mix of classic sounds and promising changes." Rudy Klapper of Sputnikmusic
complimented the influence of 1980s music on the album, writing: "In its execution, the record is near flawless, an essential distillation of the sounds of Gonzalez's youth, nostalgia and melancholy and happiness all mixed up into a sparkling pop stew." In a review for the NME
, Jamie Crossan compared the album to Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
's 1943 novella The Little Prince
, stating: "If Anthony Gonzalez [...] is like the aviator, having imagined this double album while in the Joshua Tree desert in California, Hurry Up, We're Dreaming is itself the Little Prince: guileless and dreamy. Quite a bold statement to make, but this is an album of equal valour." Reef Younis of BBC Music
felt that "[w]hile some consistency may have been sacrificed in favour of a space-filling selection of tracks, this set still represents a heaving, breathing journey through the introspective and the bombastic, the striving and the exhaustive. It is the undeniable sound of one man's triumphant dreams."
Not all reviews were entirely positive, though. David Marchese of Spin
commented that while "the album is full of goose-bump moments: Zola Jesus' majestic vocal cameo on 'Intro'; the radiant keyboard riff and blooming melody of 'Steve McQueen'; and the glistening white noise of 'Echoes of Mine,'" the album's "lack of something as enjoyably plain (and relatively calm) as 'Kim & Jessie
,' from 2008's Saturdays =Youth, makes Gonzalez's insistence on oversize emotions feel a tad restrictive. The little ones matter, too." Timothy Gabriele of PopMatters
opined that, although "M83 lose much of their impact on Hurry Up, We're Dreaming by focusing too much on magnitude throughout and too little on depth", the "totality of sound" on the album "has a way of blinding even the most critical listener to the problems that underline many of the album's lesser songs—weak choruses, unfinished ideas, and a repetition of previously successful formulas." The A.V. Club
s Christian Williams found the album underwhelming, concluding: "[F]or an album of such impressive scale and nanoscopic attention to detail, leaves a surprisingly light impression." In a similarly mixed review, Drowned in Sound
's Mary Bellamy remarked: "Double albums are necessarily somewhat hit and miss. That's part of their pick'n'mix charm. But M83 mostly miss me here. For each post-'Kim and Jessie' slice of pungent Eighties-rehabilitation pop cheese [...] there are two tracks that sound just how you'd imagine Eighties Genesis [...] For each enjoyably blatant Lemon Jelly
rip [...] or modest Eno
-recalling interlude [...] there's a track where you fully expect Jim Kerr
to descend from the gods hooting and dressed as a flower." Kevin Liedel of Slant Magazine
criticised the album for rehashing sounds from earlier M83 albums and expressed: "[U]ltimately Hurry Up, We're Dreaming sounds much more like an M83 wannabe's poor imitation than the real deal."
Paste
named Hurry Up, We're Dreaming the 9th best album of 2011, writing "As with everything the Frenchman's done so far, the album is lush and ably produced, crescendo after crescendo." The same website also named the track "Midnight City" the second best song of the year.
. Additional lyrics by Yann Gonzalez, Morgan Kibby
and Brad Laner.
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by French electronic
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
band M83
M83 (band)
M83 is a musical act by French musician Anthony Gonzalez. It is named after a spiral galaxy, Messier 83. The band was founded in 2001 by Gonzalez and former member Nicolas Fromageau in Antibes, France...
. The double album
Double album
A double album is an audio album which spans two units of the primary medium in which it is sold, typically records and compact discs....
was released on 18 October 2011 by Naïve Records
Naïve Records
Naïve Records is a French independent record label based in Paris, specializing in electronic music, pop music, jazz and classical music. It was founded in 1997 by Patrick Zelnik, Gilles Paires and Eric Tong Cuong.-Artists:* Aṣa* Asian Dub Foundation...
in France and Mute Records
Mute Records
Mute is an independent record label based in the UK. It was founded in 1978 by Daniel Miller and featured several prominent musical acts on its roster such as Goldfrapp, Depeche Mode, Yazoo, Erasure and Fad Gadget.-Beginnings:...
in the United States. The album was produced by Justin Meldal-Johnsen
Justin Meldal-Johnsen
Justin Meldal-Johnsen is an American musician and bassist, best known for his work with Grammy Award-winning artist Beck. He served as the touring bassist for Nine Inch Nails during their final tours.-Recording career:...
and has received generally positive reviews. In addition, it debuted at number fifteen on the US Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
with first-week sales of 21,000 copies, becoming M83's highest-charting album to date.
Background and recording
Prior to recording Hurry Up, We're Dreaming, Anthony Gonzalez had moved from his native France to Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. Gonzalez's tour with The Killers, Depeche Mode
Depeche Mode
Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in 1980 in Basildon, Essex. The group's original line-up consisted of Dave Gahan , Martin Gore , Andy Fletcher and Vince Clarke...
and Kings of Leon
Kings of Leon
Kings of Leon is an American rock band that originated in Albion, Oklahoma but formed in Nashville, Tennessee in 1999. The band is composed of brothers Anthony Caleb Followill , Ivan Nathan Followill and Michael Jared Followill Kings of Leon is an American rock band that originated in Albion,...
, in addition to his road trips to Joshua Tree National Park
Joshua Tree National Park
Joshua Tree National Park is located in southeastern California. Declared a U.S. National Park in 1994 when the U.S. Congress passed the California Desert Protection Act , it had previously been a U.S. National Monument since 1936. It is named for the Joshua tree forests native to the park...
heavily influenced the album. Gonzalez cited the ambitiousness of albums such as Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness
Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness
Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness is the third album by American alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins, released October 24, 1995 on Virgin Records. Produced by frontman Billy Corgan with Flood and Alan Moulder, the twenty-eight-track album was released as a two-disc CD and triple LP...
as the reason he made Hurry Up, We're Dreaming a double album. In addition, he described the two discs as brother and sister, with each track having a sibling on the other disc. The album was recorded in Los Angeles at Sunset Studio and The Sound Factory
The Sound Factory
The Sound Factory is a recording studio in Hollywood, California.The Sound Factory was built in the 1960s on Selma Avenue in Hollywood. At the time, it served as the home of Moonglow Records and the Moonglow Recording Studio...
. Because of budget constraints and union issues, the string and brass players who contributed to the album were not paid and were credited with pseudonyms.
Hurry Up, We're Dreaming was first teased on 23 June 2011 in a YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
video titled "Echoes...", which also announced North American tour dates. The album's lead single, "Midnight City", premiered online on 19 July 2011, and was officially released on 16 August 2011. On 10 October 2011, the album was streamed in its entirety on the Urban Outfitters
Urban Outfitters
Urban Outfitters, Inc. is a publicly traded American company that owns and operates five retail brands: Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie, Free People, Terrain, and BHLDN....
website. Urban Outfitters also hosted a simultaneous listening party at all of its store the Saturday before Hurry Up, We're Dreamings release. On 17 October 2011, a music video for "Midnight City" was released.
Gonzalez described the album's sound as a mix between the synthpop
Synthpop
Synthpop is a genre of popular music that first became prominent in the 1980s, in which the synthesizer is the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s and early 1970s by the use of synthesizers in progressive rock, electronic art rock, disco and particularly the "Kraut rock" of...
of Saturdays = Youth
Saturdays = Youth
Saturdays = Youth is the fifth studio album by French electronic band M83, first released on 11 April 2008. The album was produced by Ken Thomas, known for his work with Sigur Rós, The Sugarcubes, Cocteau Twins, and Suede, with co-production by Ewan Pearson and M83 leader Anthony Gonzalez.The...
and the more ambient
Ambient music
Ambient music is a musical genre that focuses largely on the timbral characteristics of sounds, often organized or performed to evoke an "atmospheric", "visual" or "unobtrusive" quality.- History :...
work of Before the Dawn Heals Us
Before the Dawn Heals Us
-Release history:-Singles:*"A Guitar and a Heart"/"Safe" *# "A Guitar and a Heart"*# "Safe"*"Don't Save Us from the Flames" *# "Don't Save Us from the Flames"*# "Until the Night Is Over"...
. Additionally, the album uses instruments not found on previous M83 albums, such as acoustic guitar
Acoustic guitar
An acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
and saxophone
Saxophone
The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
. Hurry Up, We're Dreaming also features contributions from Medicine
Medicine (band)
Medicine is an alternative noise-pop/rock band from the San Fernando Valley, United States. They were formed in 1991 by guitarist Brad Laner and signed to Rick Rubin's American Recordings label the following year...
's Brad Laner and Zola Jesus
Zola jesus
Zola Jesus is the stage name of Russian American singer/songwriter Nika Roza Danilova . Having released three EPs and two full-length albums, combining industrial, classical, electronic, goth and experimental rock influences, she received generally good reviews and was regarded as one of the names...
.
Gonzalez explained to 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...
magazine that Hurry Up, We're Dreaming is "mainly about dreams, how every one is different, how you dream differently when you're a kid, a teenager, or an adult. I'm really proud of it. If you're doing a very long album, all the songs need to be different and I think I've done that with this one." In an interview with musicOMH
MusicOMH
musicOMH is a United Kingdom-based website which publishes independent reviews, featues and interviews from across all musical genres including classical, metal, rock and R&B.-History:...
, he described the album as "a reflection of my 30 years as a human being" and something he dedicated to himself.
Critical reception
Hurry Up, We're Dreaming received mostly positive reviews from music critics. 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 normalised
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 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
Weighted mean
The weighted mean is similar to an arithmetic mean , where instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others...
score of 77, based on 34 reviews, indicating "generally favorable 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...
's Ian Cohen gave Hurry Up, We're Dreaming a "Best New Music" designation, dubbing it "the best M83 record yet" and adding that "the traditionally structured songs here are some of the most thrilling pop music released this year. The heavily saturated synths Gonzalez favored early in his career invited plenty of My Bloody Valentine comparisons, but whereas pure shoegaze of that nature attempts to overwhelm and obliterate, Hurry Up is like a sonic planetarium, penetrable and totally geared toward enhancing the user experience." The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
s James Lachno gave the album four out of five stars and stated: "On top of booming synth-pop templates, [Gonzalez's] cosmic compositions arch off in weird directions, incorporating blues-bar sax solos, Afrobeat
Afrobeat
Afrobeat is a combination of traditional Yoruba music, jazz, highlife, funk and chanted vocals, fused with percussion and vocal styles, popularised in Africa in the 1970s. Its main creator was the Nigerian multi-instrumentalist and bandleader Fela Kuti, who gave it its name, who used it to...
slap bass, swooping strings, psychedelic imagery and—really—a children's story all about frogs. It's surprisingly exhilarating stuff." Under the Radar
Under the Radar (magazine)
Under the Radar is an American magazine that bills itself as "The solution to music pollution" and features interviews with accompanying photo-shoots. Each issue includes opinion and commentary of the Indie music scene as well as reviews on books, DVDs and albums.Items are reviewed based on a...
s Laura Studarus gave the album nine stars out of ten, calling it a "double album of stunningly ambitious, synth-soaked dreams" as well as a "remarkable accomplishment". The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
critic Simon Price
Simon Price
Simon Price is a British music journalist and club promoter, born on 25 September 1967 in the Welsh town of Barry. He is now best known for his weekly review section in The Independent on Sunday and his book on Manic Street Preachers.-Career:...
deemed the album "[e]xtraordinary" and praised it as "a towering city of sparkling synth edifices simultaneously summoning the best of the 1980s (New Order
New Order
New Order are an English rock band formed in 1980 by Bernard Sumner , Peter Hook and Stephen Morris...
, The Cure
The Cure
The Cure are an English rock band formed in Crawley, West Sussex in 1976. The band has experienced several line-up changes, with frontman, vocalist, guitarist and principal songwriter Robert Smith being the only constant member...
) and the current breed (The Knife
The Knife
The Knife are a Swedish electronic music duo from Gothenburg, formed in 1999. The group consists of siblings Karin Dreijer Andersson and Olof Dreijer, who together also run their own record company, Rabid Records. They first received international attention after their song "Heartbeats", covered by...
, Empire of the Sun
Empire of the Sun (band)
Empire of the Sun is an Australian electronic music duo that formed in 2008. The duo is composed of Luke Steele of The Sleepy Jackson and Nick Littlemore of Pnau. The two met in 2000 after both being signed to the same record label. Luke and Nick knew that they instantly had a chemistry like no other...
)". Heather Phares of Allmusic rated the album four out of five stars and noted: "More than any of M83's other albums, Hurry Up, We're Dreaming feels like a destination to explore; while it may not be quite as striking as Saturdays = Youth, it delivers a welcome mix of classic sounds and promising changes." Rudy Klapper of Sputnikmusic
Sputnikmusic
Sputnikmusic, or simply Sputnik, is a music website offering music criticism and music news alongside features commonly associated with wiki-style websites...
complimented the influence of 1980s music on the album, writing: "In its execution, the record is near flawless, an essential distillation of the sounds of Gonzalez's youth, nostalgia and melancholy and happiness all mixed up into a sparkling pop stew." In a review for 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...
, Jamie Crossan compared the album to Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry , officially Antoine Marie Jean-Baptiste Roger, comte de Saint Exupéry , was a French writer, poet and pioneering aviator. He became a laureate of France's highest literary awards, and in 1939 was the winner of the U.S. National Book Award...
's 1943 novella The Little Prince
The Little Prince
The Little Prince , first published in 1943, is a novella and the most famous work of the French aristocrat writer, poet and pioneering aviator Antoine de Saint-Exupéry ....
, stating: "If Anthony Gonzalez [...] is like the aviator, having imagined this double album while in the Joshua Tree desert in California, Hurry Up, We're Dreaming is itself the Little Prince: guileless and dreamy. Quite a bold statement to make, but this is an album of equal valour." Reef Younis of BBC Music
BBC Music
BBC Music is a team working in the department of Audio and Music Interactive at the BBC. Responsible for the BBC Music website - the portal site to music content across the BBC website....
felt that "[w]hile some consistency may have been sacrificed in favour of a space-filling selection of tracks, this set still represents a heaving, breathing journey through the introspective and the bombastic, the striving and the exhaustive. It is the undeniable sound of one man's triumphant dreams."
Not all reviews were entirely positive, though. David Marchese 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...
commented that while "the album is full of goose-bump moments: Zola Jesus' majestic vocal cameo on 'Intro'; the radiant keyboard riff and blooming melody of 'Steve McQueen'; and the glistening white noise of 'Echoes of Mine,'" the album's "lack of something as enjoyably plain (and relatively calm) as 'Kim & Jessie
Kim & Jessie
"Kim & Jessie" is a song by French electronic/dream pop act M83. Written by Anthony and Yann Gonzalez with Morgan Kibby, it was released in July 2008 as the third single from M83's fifth studio album, Saturdays = Youth.-Critical reception:...
,' from 2008's Saturdays =Youth, makes Gonzalez's insistence on oversize emotions feel a tad restrictive. The little ones matter, too." Timothy Gabriele of PopMatters
PopMatters
PopMatters is an international webzine of cultural criticism that covers many aspects of popular culture. PopMatters publishes reviews, interviews, and detailed essays on most cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, films, books, video games, comics, sports, theater,...
opined that, although "M83 lose much of their impact on Hurry Up, We're Dreaming by focusing too much on magnitude throughout and too little on depth", the "totality of sound" on the album "has a way of blinding even the most critical listener to the problems that underline many of the album's lesser songs—weak choruses, unfinished ideas, and a repetition of previously successful formulas." The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
s Christian Williams found the album underwhelming, concluding: "[F]or an album of such impressive scale and nanoscopic attention to detail, leaves a surprisingly light impression." In a similarly mixed review, Drowned in Sound
Drowned in Sound
DrownedinSound.com or DiS is a UK based music webzine financed by artist management company Silentway . The site is an editorially independent music website.-History:...
's Mary Bellamy remarked: "Double albums are necessarily somewhat hit and miss. That's part of their pick'n'mix charm. But M83 mostly miss me here. For each post-'Kim and Jessie' slice of pungent Eighties-rehabilitation pop cheese [...] there are two tracks that sound just how you'd imagine Eighties Genesis [...] For each enjoyably blatant Lemon Jelly
Lemon Jelly
Lemon Jelly is a British electronic music duo from London, formed in 1998. Since their inception, the band's line-up has included Fred Deakin and Nick Franglen. Lemon Jelly has been nominated for the Mercury Music Prize and BRIT Awards....
rip [...] or modest Eno
Brian Eno
Brian Peter George St. John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno , commonly known as Brian Eno or simply as Eno , is an English musician, composer, record producer, singer and visual artist, known as one of the principal innovators of ambient music.Eno studied at Colchester Institute art school in Essex,...
-recalling interlude [...] there's a track where you fully expect Jim Kerr
Jim Kerr
James "Jim" Kerr is a Scottish musician and singer-songwriter, best known for his work with the band Simple Minds who achieved five UK #1 albums and a #1 single "Ballad of the Streets EP". He released his first solo album, Lostboy! AKA Jim Kerr, on the 27 May 2010.- Simple Minds :Kerr attended...
to descend from the gods hooting and dressed as a flower." Kevin Liedel of Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine is an online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York Film Festival.- History :...
criticised the album for rehashing sounds from earlier M83 albums and expressed: "[U]ltimately Hurry Up, We're Dreaming sounds much more like an M83 wannabe's poor imitation than the real deal."
Acclaim
| Publication | Country | Accolade | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paste Paste (magazine) Paste is a monthly music and entertainment digital magazine published in the United States by Wolfgang's Vault. Its tagline is "Signs of Life in Music, Film and Culture."-History:... |
US | The 50 Best Albums of 2011 | 2011 | 9 |
Paste
Paste (magazine)
Paste is a monthly music and entertainment digital magazine published in the United States by Wolfgang's Vault. Its tagline is "Signs of Life in Music, Film and Culture."-History:...
named Hurry Up, We're Dreaming the 9th best album of 2011, writing "As with everything the Frenchman's done so far, the album is lush and ably produced, crescendo after crescendo." The same website also named the track "Midnight City" the second best song of the year.
Track listing
All songs composed by Anthony Gonzalez. Additional music composition by Justin Meldal-JohnsenJustin Meldal-Johnsen
Justin Meldal-Johnsen is an American musician and bassist, best known for his work with Grammy Award-winning artist Beck. He served as the touring bassist for Nine Inch Nails during their final tours.-Recording career:...
. Additional lyrics by Yann Gonzalez, Morgan Kibby
Morgan Kibby
Morgan Kibby is an American singer-songwriter who is based in Los Angeles. She has had various musical projects throughout the years including fronting the LA based indie band The Romanovs, collaborating and touring with the French electronic/ambient group M83, to her most current solo project...
and Brad Laner.
Personnel
The following people contributed to Hurry Up, We're Dreaming:- Anthony Gonzalez – vocals, art direction, backing vocals, clapping, conductor, design, electric guitar, keyboards, orchestral arrangements, piano, producer, programming, snaps, synthesizer
- Chelsea Alden – monologue
- Lydie Benzakin – monologue
- Anouck Bertin – art direction, design, photography
- Roland Brown – management
- Todd Burke – engineer
- Dave Cooley – mastering
- Antoine Gaillet – mixing
- John Graney – whistle
- Tony HofferTony HofferTony Hoffer is an American producer, guitarist, and music mixer who is credited for his work on multiple platinum-selling albums including The Kooks, The Thrills, Beck, Supergrass, Turin Brakes and Air...
– mixing - Graham Hope – assistant engineer
- Gabriel Johnson – trumpet
- Toni Kasza – choir director
- Morgan KibbyMorgan KibbyMorgan Kibby is an American singer-songwriter who is based in Los Angeles. She has had various musical projects throughout the years including fronting the LA based indie band The Romanovs, collaborating and touring with the French electronic/ambient group M83, to her most current solo project...
– backing vocals, monologue - James King – baritone saxophone, flute, saxophone
- Shane Konen – layout
- Brad Laner – vocals, backing vocals
- Cameron Lister – assistant engineer
- Loïc Maurin – clapping, drums, percussion, snaps
- Justin Meldal-JohnsenJustin Meldal-JohnsenJustin Meldal-Johnsen is an American musician and bassist, best known for his work with Grammy Award-winning artist Beck. He served as the touring bassist for Nine Inch Nails during their final tours.-Recording career:...
– acoustic guitar, bass guitar, clapping, electric guitar, engineer, keyboards, mandolin, percussion, producer, programming, snaps - Zelly Boo Meldal-Johnsen – monologue
- The Purple Mixed Adult Choir – backing vocals, choir, chorus, clapping
- Mike Schuppan – assistant engineer, engineer
- Ashkahn Shahparnia – Layout
- The Shakespeare Bridge Children's Choir – backing vocals, choir, clapping, snaps
- Tipple – acoustic guitar
- Joseph TrapaneseJoseph TrapaneseJoseph Trapanese is a composer, arranger, and producer. He works in the production of music for for films, television, theater and concerts. He currently lives in Los Angeles.-Film and Television Music:...
– conductor, orchestral arrangements - Joey WaronkerJoey WaronkerJoseph "Joey" Waronker is an American drummer and music producer. He is the son of record producer Lenny Waronker and singer/actress Donna Loren; his younger sister is musician Anna Waronker; and his grandfather is record executive and professional violinist Simon Waronker. He has three other...
– electric drums, orchestral percussion, percussion - Patrick Warren – piano
- Amy White – backing vocals
- Lyle WorkmanLyle WorkmanLyle Workman is an American guitarist, composer, session musician and music producer. His music has been widely distributed since his debut on the eponymous Bourgeois Tagg album in 1986, and is currently best known for his work as composer and bandleader for the Superbad soundtrack.Workman is also...
– acoustic guitar, banjo, mandolin, marxophone - Zola JesusZola jesusZola Jesus is the stage name of Russian American singer/songwriter Nika Roza Danilova . Having released three EPs and two full-length albums, combining industrial, classical, electronic, goth and experimental rock influences, she received generally good reviews and was regarded as one of the names...
– vocals
Charts
| Chart (2011) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
37 |
| 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) |
30 |
| Belgian 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) |
58 |
| Canadian Albums Chart Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS... |
37 |
| French Albums Chart Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
70 |
| Irish Albums Chart Irish Albums Chart The Irish Albums Chart is the Irish music industry standard albums popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on its behalf by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured electronically... |
53 |
| Japanese Albums Chart Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc... |
210 |
| Norwegian Albums Chart VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
18 |
| Spanish Albums Chart | 70 |
| Swiss Albums Chart Swiss Music Charts The Swiss Music Charts are Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.The Swiss Charts include:* Singles Top 75... |
65 |
| 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 |
| UK Indie Albums Chart UK Indie Chart The UK Independent Chart or Indie Chart is a chart of the best-selling independent record releases in the UK.- History :In the wake of punk, small record labels began to spring up, as an outlet for artists that were unwilling to sign contracts with major record companies, or were not considered... |
7 |
| US Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
15 |
| US Dance/Electronic Albums | 1 |
| US Rock Albums | 5 |
| US Independent Albums Independent Albums The Billboard Independent Albums is a chart of the highest-selling independent music albums and extended plays in the United States, compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is used to list artists who are not signed to major labels... |
3 |
| US Alternative Albums | 4 |