XXXX (album)
XXXX is the third full-length album by Canadian dance-punk band You Say Party (formerly You Say Party! We Say Die!), released September 29, 2009. It was the last release featuring the band's original longer name and the last album with drummer Devon Clifford (who died in April 2010). The album was recorded between January and August of 2009.[4]
| XXXX | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | September 29, 2009 | |||
| Genre | indie rock/dance-punk | |||
| Length | 39:58 | |||
| Label | Paper Bag | |||
| Producer | Howard Redekopp | |||
| You Say Party! We Say Die! chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Pitchfork Media | (7.0/10) [2] |
| Austin Chronicle | [3] |
| Artrocker | |
In addition to the album's title, the word "XXXX" also appears in several of the album's song titles. In each song, the four Xs represent the word "love".[5] In an interview with CBC Radio 3, the band's vocalist Becky Ninkovic explained that when finalizing the cover art for the band's first EP Dansk Wad, she had wanted to leave a personal "mark of love" on it, and settled on signing it with four small Xs.
The album is often considered to be the high point of You Say Party's career,[6] as it was a longlisted nominee for the 2010 Polaris Music Prize,[7] and won the 2010 Western Canadian Music Award for Rock Recording of the Year.[8]
On August 29, 2020, a 10th anniversary edition was released,[9] remastered by Troy Glessner.[10]
Track listing
All lyrics are written by Becky Ninkovic; all music is composed by Derek Adam, Devon Clifford, Krista Loewen, and Stephen O'Shea
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "There Is XXXX (within my heart)" | 4:39 |
| 2. | "Glory" | 2:14 |
| 3. | "Dark Days" | 4:46 |
| 4. | "Cosmic Wanship Avengers" | 3:32 |
| 5. | "Lonely's Lunch" | 4:44 |
| 6. | "Make XXXX" | 4:0 |
| 7. | "Laura Palmer's Prom" | 4:44 |
| 8. | "She's Spoken For" | 3:49 |
| 9. | "XXXX/Loyalty" | 3:25 |
| 10. | "Heart of Gold" | 4:08 |
Production
Band
- Becky Ninkovic – vocals, arrangements
- Devon Clifford – drums, backing vocals, arrangements
- Derek Adam – guitar, backing vocals, arrangements
- Krista Loewen – keyboards, vocals, arrangements
- Stephen O'Shea – bass, backing vocals, arrangements
Session members
- Shawn Penner – percussion (additional)
- Saara Itkonen – backing vocals (additional)
- Tamarack Hockin – backing vocals (additional)
- Melissa Gregerson – backing vocals (additional), writing, arrangements
Production
- Derek Adam – design, photography
- Brock McFarlane – engineering (assistant)
- Steve Hall – mastering
- Ted Gowans – mixing (assistant)
- Chris Janzen – other (group dynamic calibrator)
- Sharla Sauder – other (vocal coach)
- Devon Clifford – photography
- Todd Duym – photography
- Shawn Penner – producer
- Becky Ninkovic – producer (additional), engineering (additional), artwork
- Howard Redekopp – producer, engineering, mixing, photography
References
- Sendra, Tim. "Review: XXXX". Allmusic. Retrieved February 10, 2010.
- "You Say Party: XXXX". Pitchfork. February 16, 2010. Archived from the original on March 3, 2012. Retrieved March 16, 2012.
- Hernandez, Raoul (March 19, 2010). "You Say Party! We Say Die!: XXXX Album Review". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
- "You Say Party - XXXX". Paper Bag Records. Retrieved 2024-04-21.
- "XXXX keeps You Say Party! We Say Die! together" Archived August 3, 2017, at the Wayback Machine. Georgia Straight, October 8, 2009.
- Janes, Steve (2020-09-14). "You Say Party's XXXX is now on our online shop!". WithGuitars Music Magazine. Retrieved 2024-04-21.
- "Blue Rodeo, BSS on Polaris long list" Archived September 1, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. The Globe and Mail, June 17, 2010.
- "2010 Western Canadian Music Award Winners". BreakOut West. Retrieved 2024-04-21.
- Slingerland, Calum (2020-07-30). "You Say Party Treat 'XXXX' to Vinyl Reissue". Exclaim!. Retrieved 2024-04-21.
- "You Say Party! We Say Die! XXXX LP". Elusive Disc. Retrieved 2024-04-21.