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By the Time I Get to Phoenix (Injury Reserve album)

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By the Time I Get to Phoenix
Man sitting in front of Phoenix, Arizona's cityscape with a light obscuring the face, with a predominant red hue.
Studio album by
ReleasedSeptember 15, 2021
Recorded2019–2020
Genre
Length41:14
LabelSelf-released
Producer
Injury Reserve chronology
Injury Reserve
(2019)
By the Time I Get to Phoenix
(2021)
Singles from By the Time I Get to Phoenix
  1. "Knees"
    Released: 11 August 2021
  2. "Superman That"
    Released: 1 September 2021

By the Time I Get to Phoenix is the second and final studio album by American rap group Injury Reserve. It was released on September 15, 2021, and is dedicated to late member Stepa J. Groggs, who died during the recording of the album.[1][2][3][4][5] The album features Bruiser Brigade rapper ZelooperZ, with production contributions from Black Midi drummer Morgan Simpson, as well as Body Meat, Jam City, and SADPONY.

Background and production

[edit]

Once the tracklist came together and we started to make sense of it, one of the last phone conversations we had with Groggs was over his love for the repurposing of Isaac Hayes’ By the Time I Get to Phoenix to title the album. Shortly thereafter we were struck with his loss and of course everything was put on hold, but eventually, we regathered and felt most comfortable finishing this album we had made as it still resonated fully (in some respects even taking on what felt like haunting pre-echoes) and above all else stayed true to his constant insistence while recording to simply ‘make some weird shit.’

Injury Reserve, in a social media statement made prior to the release of the album[6]

While touring in Europe after the release of their self-titled 2019 album, the group performed an improvised DJ set remixing their songs to create a new avant-garde style; at one point in the set, they remixed Black Country, New Road song "Athens, France". This impromptu sample flip, along with improvised vocals by Ritchie With a T, laid the foundation for one of the album's two singles, "Superman That". Inspired by this set, they pursued this experimental sonic direction when crafting their next album.[4] The album's production was influenced by tumultuous events in 2020, including the COVID-19 pandemic and George Floyd protests. Halfway through the year, the album was mostly completed, when Stepa J. Groggs died. Following his death, the group went on a brief two-month hiatus before completing the remainder of the album.[7] The remaining group members named the album, By the Time I Get to Phoenix, as Groggs had suggested.[2]

The album explores a variety of personal themes ranging from hopelessness, death, and despair. Some songs also touch on the political themes of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the increase of conspiracy theories during that time. A good majority of the lyrical content was heavily influenced by the sudden death of emcee Ritchie with a T's stepfather.[8] As an effect, the writing ventures away from the typical verse-chorus structure with most songs lacking a chorus, hook, or bridge to create friction and tension. During the recording process, Ritchie with a T would record his vocals in a dark room:

"I recorded all my stuff alone in a dark room, but this created a truth. I was trying to rap in new voices so I could get out of my head."[8]

In response to the lyrics, the album embraces a more deconstructed, dissonant sound in terms of production in comparison to the group's previous releases. In an article for The New Yorker, Sheldon Pearce categorized the album as a "post-rap epic, exploding with poignant music that is hectic, congested, and glitchy."[4]

Release and promotion

[edit]

Following a year-long silence, the album's release date and name was revealed on the group's social media alongside a statement with no prior warning.[9] The album was made available for pre-order the same day via Bandcamp. The lead single, "Knees", was released the following day accompanied by a music video.[10]

Another single, "Superman That" was teased on August 30, 2021 through their social media. It was released on September 1, 2021 with a music video.[11] Simultaneously with the release of "Superman That", a black vinyl pressing packaged with a poster limited to 1,000 copies was made available on their website.[12]

A week prior to the release of the album, an international tour was revealed with musicians Zeroh & Slauson Malone as supporting acts on the American leg of the tour.[13] Tickets for all touring dates were made live on their website on September 10, 2021.[14] Due to unforeseen circumstances, Zeroh was replaced by electronic producer Colloboh as a supporting act.[15] On November 2, it was announced that frequent collaborator and musician Body Meat would join the European leg of the tour.[16] Native dance troupe, Indigenous Enterprise opened the New York show without any prior announcement.[17]

Two days prior to the release of the album, a release show limited to 50 occupants held in Palabra in Phoenix, Arizona was announced via their social media.[18] It was held on September 16, 2021, one day after the release of the album and was livestreamed on the group's Instagram. Shortly thereafter, the group announced a 2 hour radio mix for English online radio station NTS. It featured remixes of Soulja Boy's 2007 single "Crank Dat" and the Jockstrap song "The City". It also featured edits of the released singles, "Superman That", and "Knees".[19]

One day prior to the release of the album, another smoke-colored vinyl pressing limited to 1,000 copies without a poster was announced on their social media. It was made available on their website coinciding with the release.[20] The album released worldwide on September 15, 2021 through streaming and digital download. A general release red-colored vinyl and merchandise was made available on their website for one week following the release.[21][22]

In an interview with Anthony Fantano of The Needle Drop, the group revealed that the album was completed in the final months of 2020, and was to be released that year, but their record label Loma Vista refused to release it commercially.[7] The label released the group from their contract after they requested it, and allowed them to independently release the album.[23]

The album cover was designed by band member Parker Corey and was sourced from a frame of a National Geographic documentary, where the camera crew filmed a man standing outside in a dust storm.[24]

Critical reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic82/100[25]
Review scores
SourceRating
Exclaim!
Clash9/10[26]
Loud and Quiet6/10
Under the Radar5.5/10
Flood Magazine8/10
Beats Per Minute80%
Sputnikmusic[27]
Pitchfork7.7/10

By the Time I Get to Phoenix was met with critical acclaim while polarizing critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from professional publications, the album received an average score of 82 based on 9 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[25]

Critics commented on the jarring experimental nature of the album in comparison to previous releases. Wesley McLean of Exclaim! deemed the project "the most experimental and least accessible Injury Reserve project thus far, abandoning any semblance of tradition or convention", and went on to herald it as "an abstract, melancholic and affecting body of work that is not only another incredible addition to a stellar discography, but a magnificent and moving tribute to a friend gone too soon".[28] Jack Oxford of Clash similarly commended the innovative production, calling it "a truly dystopian impression of despair, smashing together polar opposite genres to create something wholly new" before pondering if the album could be considered "post-rap".[29] In a positive review for The New Yorker, Sheldon Pearce discussed the effectiveness of the group's multi-genre approach, writing, "It’s in the smoking wreckage of the Injury Reserve sound that the members found the radical yet tuneful music they’d been seeking all along—it isn’t rap or pop or punk, but it’s also all of those things at once".[4]

In a more mixed review, Joey Arnone of Under the Radar criticized the disorganization of the release, describing it as "a patchwork of ideas than anything, resembling a puzzle with all of its pieces scattered", while praising the emotional depth of tracks like "Top Picks for You".[30]

Year-end rankings

[edit]
Year-end rankings for By the Time I Get to Phoenix
Publication List Rank Ref.
Sputnikmusic Staff's Top 50 Albums of 2021
4
[31]
PopMatters The 75 Best Albums of 2021
11
[32]
BrooklynVegan 30 Best Rap Albums of 2021
14
[33]
Spin The 30 Best Albums of 2021
19
[34]
NPR Music The Best Music of 2021
20
[35]
Beats Per MInute Top 50 Albums of 2021
39
[36]
Consequence of Sound Top 50 Albums of 2021
41
[37]

Track listing

[edit]

All tracks credited to Injury Reserve.[38][39]

By the Time I Get to Phoenix track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Outside"
  • Angel Gilberto Rada Requiz[a]
  • Jordan Groggs
  • Morgan Simpson
  • Nathaniel Ritchie
  • Parker Corey
Injury Reserve6:14
2."Superman That"
  • Charlie Somerset Pailthorp Wayne[b]
  • Georgia Elizabeth Ellery[b]
  • Isaac George Wood[b]
  • Luke Jay Mark[b]
  • Lewis David Evans[b]
  • May Kershaw[b]
  • Ritchie
  • Tyler Eva Beatrice Hyde[b]
  • Corey
  • Groggs
Injury Reserve2:40
3."SS San Francisco (feat. Zelooperz)"
Injury Reserve3:51
4."Footwork in a Forest Fire"
Injury Reserve3:36
5."Ground Zero"
Injury Reserve2:25
6."Smoke Don't Clear"
  • Christopher Taylor
  • Groggs
  • Ritchie
  • Corey
  • Injury Reserve
  • Body Meat
2:30
7."Top Picks for You"
  • Jack Latham
  • Jeremiah Raisen
  • Groggs
  • Ritchie
  • Corey
  • Injury Reserve
  • SADPONY
  • Jam City
4:32
8."Wild Wild West"
  • Groggs
  • Ritchie
  • Corey
Injury Reserve2:28
9."Postpostpartum"
Injury Reserve4:10
10."Knees"
Injury Reserve5:03
11."Bye Storm"
Injury Reserve3:40
Total length:41:14

Sample credits

[edit]
  • ^[a] "Outside" contains excerpts from "Panico a Las 5 A.M.", written and performed by Angel Rada. It also contains an excerpt from YouTube rap battle video, "DOT VS BILL COLLECTOR SMACK/URL RAP BATTLE", performed by Dot.
  • ^[b] "Superman That" contains excerpts from the single version of "Athen's, France", written and performed by Black Country, New Road.
  • ^[c] "SS San Francisco" contains excerpts from "Auto-Tech Pilot", written and performed by The Fall.
  • ^[d] "Footwork in a Forest Fire" contains excerpts from "Sailor's Tale", written and performed by King Crimson.
  • ^[e] "Ground Zero" contains excerpts from "I Am Damo Suzuki", written and performed by The Fall.
  • "Wild Wild West" contains an uncredited excerpt from the Peel Session recording of "The End of Radio", written and performed by Shellac.
  • ^[f] "Postpostpartum" contains excerpts from "Nam Myoho Renge Kyo", written and performed by Tee Mac.
  • ^[g] "Knees" contains excerpts from "Sweater", written and performed by Black Midi.
  • ^[h] "Bye Storm" contains excerpts from "Here Come the Warm Jets", written and performed by Brian Eno.

Personnel

[edit]

Credits are adapted from Tidal & Bandcamp.[38][40]

Injury Reserve

  • Ritchie with a T – performance (all tracks), executive production, recording, writing (all tracks)
  • Parker Corey – production (all tracks), executive production, creative direction, writing (all tracks)
  • Stepa J. Groggs – performance (tracks 2, 4, 8–10), executive production, writing (all tracks)
  • Nick Herbert – day-to-day management

Additional personnel

  • ZelooperZ – additional vocals (track 3), writing (track 5)
  • Dot – additional vocals (track 1)
  • Jeremiah "SADPONY" Raisen – production & writing (track 7)
  • Jack "Jam City" Latham – production & writing (track 7)
  • Chris "Body Meat" Taylor – drums (track 5), writing (track 6)
  • Morgan Simpson – drums & writing (track 1)
  • Zeroh – mixing & mastering (all tracks)

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "By the Time I Get to Phoenix". Bandcamp. September 15, 2021. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
  2. ^ a b Chris Deville (September 14, 2021). "Album Of The Week: Injury Reserve By The Time I Get To Phoenix". Stereogum. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
  3. ^ Jordan Darville (September 15, 2021). "Injury Reserve share new album By the Time I Get to Phoenix". The Fader. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d Sheldon Pearce (September 21, 2021). "The Radical yet Tuneful Music of Injury Reserve". The New Yorker. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
  5. ^ Stephen Kearse. "Injury Reserve: By the Time I Get to Phoenix Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
  6. ^ "Injury Reserve Drops New Album 'By the Time I Get to Phoenix'". September 15, 2021.
  7. ^ a b Injury Reserve INTERVIEW, September 3, 2021, retrieved October 2, 2021
  8. ^ a b "'He was the heart of the band': Injury Reserve on a future without Groggs". Huck Magazine. September 15, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  9. ^ "By the Time I Get to Phoenix coming September 15, first single+video tomorrow". Twitter. August 10, 2021. Archived from the original on August 10, 2021. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  10. ^ "Injury Reserve - "Knees"". Stereogum. August 11, 2021. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  11. ^ "Injury Reserve Share New Song "Superman That": Listen". Stereogum. September 1, 2021. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  12. ^ "BtTIGtP vinyl preorders available now". Twitter. September 1, 2021. Archived from the original on September 1, 2021. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  13. ^ "BtTIGtouring us & euro dates this fall/winter, tickets go on sale friday at 10am local time. V thankful to have @slausonmalone joining us again and excited to play w @_zeroh ofc after mixing this new record w him <3". Twitter. September 7, 2021. Archived from the original on September 7, 2021. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  14. ^ "Tickets for all~touring~dates now available". Twitter. September 10, 2021. Archived from the original on September 10, 2021. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  15. ^ "BtTIGtouring starts this friday in Chicago, unfortunately Zeroh won't be able to join us". Twitter. October 4, 2021. Archived from the original on October 4, 2021. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  16. ^ "Announcing bodymeatco will be joining us for bttigtouring european dates !". Twitter. November 2, 2021. Archived from the original on November 2, 2021. Retrieved November 15, 2021.
  17. ^ Seibert, Brian (November 3, 2021). "A New Kind of Native American Dance Troupe". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved November 15, 2021.
  18. ^ "a special release performance of BtTIGtP this friday at Palabra in Phoenix , v limited tickets available now for $10". Twitter. September 13, 2021. Archived from the original on September 13, 2021. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  19. ^ Radio, N. T. S. "Injury Reserve 13th September 2021". NTS Radio. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  20. ^ "BtTIGtP variant vinyl (clear smoke + back cover, but without the poster) will be available tomorrow at 9am pst (limited 1k copies) + merch". Twitter. September 14, 2021. Archived from the original on September 15, 2021. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  21. ^ "BtTIGtP merch now available". Twitter. Archived from the original on September 17, 2021. Retrieved October 2, 2021.
  22. ^ "A general release variant is now available". Twitter. Archived from the original on September 24, 2021. Retrieved October 2, 2021.
  23. ^ Taconelli, Jesse (September 24, 2021). "Sonemic Interview: Injury Reserve". Rate Your Music/Sonemic. Archived from the original on September 24, 2021. Retrieved October 2, 2021.
  24. ^ "Shooting in a Dust Storm | Great Migrations". YouTube. October 15, 2010.
  25. ^ a b "By the Time I Get to Phoenix by Injury Reserve". Metacritic. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  26. ^ "Injury Reserve - By The Time I Get to Phoenix Review". Clash Magazine. September 16, 2021. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  27. ^ "By the Time I Get to Phoenix - REVIEW". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
  28. ^ "Injury Reserve Give Stepa J. Groggs a Heartbreaking Memorial on 'By the Time I Get to Phoenix' | Exclaim!". Exclaim. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  29. ^ "Injury Reserve - By The Time I Get To Phoenix". Clash Magazine. September 16, 2021. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  30. ^ Arnone, Joey. "By the Time I Get to Phoenix". Under The Radar. Archived from the original on September 16, 2021. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
  31. ^ "Sputnikmusic - Staff's Top 50 Albums of 2021: 50 – 31 « Staff Blog". Retrieved January 1, 2022.
  32. ^ Zarker, Karen (December 21, 2021). "The 75 Best Albums of 2021". PopMatters. Retrieved January 1, 2022.
  33. ^ Andrew Sacher. "30 Best Rap Albums of 2021". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved January 1, 2022.
  34. ^ "The 30 Best Albums of 2021". SPIN. December 13, 2021. Retrieved January 1, 2022.
  35. ^ "NPR Music's 50 Best Albums of 2021". NPR. December 1, 2021. Retrieved January 1, 2022.
  36. ^ Hakimian, Rob; McMullen, Chase; Sentz, Tim; Pickard, Joshua; Wohlmacher, John; Finlayson, Ray; Amen, John; Kenny, Mimi; Kohner, Kyle (December 23, 2021). "BPM's Top 50 Albums of 2021 | Beats Per Minute". beatsperminute.com. Retrieved January 1, 2022.
  37. ^ "Top 50 Albums of 2021". Consequence. December 7, 2021. Retrieved January 1, 2022.
  38. ^ a b "By the Time I Get to Phoenix, by Injury Reserve". Injury Reserve. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
  39. ^ "Try the TIDAL Web Player". listen.tidal.com. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
  40. ^ "By the Time I Get to Phoenix, by Injury Reserve". Bandcamp. Archived from the original on August 10, 2021. Retrieved September 23, 2021.