Afterglow (Black Country Communion album)

Afterglow is the third studio album by English-American hard rock band Black Country Communion. Recorded in June 2012 with regular producer Kevin Shirley, the album was released by J&R Adventures and Mascot Music in October 2012.

Afterglow
Studio album by
Black Country Communion
ReleasedOctober 29, 2012 (2012-10-29)
RecordedJune 11–16, 2012 at Revolver Studio, Thousand Oaks, California
Genre
Length57:51
LabelJ&R Adventures, Mascot
ProducerKevin Shirley
Black Country Communion chronology
Live Over Europe
(2012)		 Afterglow
(2012)		 BCCIV
(2017)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]

Background

Following the release of their second album 2 in 2011, Black Country Communion embarked on a promotional tour of the United States and Europe, and later released the video album Live Over Europe documenting a number of shows on the tour.[2] In January 2012 it was reported that the band would begin work on the follow-up to 2 in June, with a release planned for later in the year.[3] The writing process for the album, according to main songwriter Glenn Hughes, took approximately six months, compared to six weeks for Black Country and four months for 2.[4]

Recording and production

The group began recording sessions for Afterglow on June 10, 2012.[5] As with their previous two albums, BCC released a number of behind-the-scenes video clips of the recording process leading up to the album's announcement.[6] Speaking about the recording of the album, Hughes has praised the vocal sound achieved by producer Kevin Shirley, stating that "We butted heads a little on the first and second albums, simply because we're both control freaks, but this was the record on which Kevin and [I] became friends".[7]

Composition

The majority of the material for Afterglow was written by frontman Glenn Hughes, who has cited Joe Bonamassa's extensive solo touring schedule as the main barrier to the guitarist's heightened involvement in the composition of the album.[4] Speaking for an official press release, Hughes has pointed out, in reference to his approach to Afterglow, that "I wanted to make a record that stood up to the first two, but not to repeat either of those records. There would be absolutely no point beginning it with a song like 'Black Country'".[7]

Music

In the official press release for the album, the sound of Afterglow was described as "Rich in hooks, melodies and choruses", with Hughes pointing out that he wanted the material to have "more acoustic moments than the previous two [albums]", as well as more exposure of keyboardist Derek Sherinian.[7] In a track-by-track overview of the album, Hughes has offered descriptions of a few individual tracks on Afterglow, including "Big Train" ("very quirky and British-sounding"), "Midnight Sun" (which he compared to the sound of The Who), "Confessor" ("slow and groovy" like "No Time" on Black Country), and "Cry Freedom" ("a ZZ Top/Humble Pie kind of a vibe").[7]

Lyrics

In an interview before the announcement of the album, Hughes described the lyrical content of Afterglow as "kind of a continuation [of the band's previous albums]", claiming that "there's gonna be some darker stuff on there, because the lyrics I'm writing are kind of dark".[4] Hughes has also revealed that the potential that the album would be the band's last provided inspiration for the writing of its songs, explaining that "I figured that if this was to be the last album, then I need to come in with some pretty wild and epic tracks".[8]

Release

The first details regarding the band's third album, including the title Afterglow and the cover artwork, were released at the end of August in 2012.[4] The first song to be released from Afterglow was "Confessor", which was made available as a free digital download from the band's official website on September 19, 2012.[9]

Track listing
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."Big Train"Glenn HughesHughes4:17
2."This Is Your Time"Jason Bonham, HughesBonham, Joe Bonamassa, Derek Sherinian4:32
3."Midnight Sun"HughesBonham, Bonamassa, Sherinian5:17
4."Confessor"HughesHughes5:08
5."Cry Freedom"HughesHughes, Bonham, Bonamassa, Sherinian5:09
6."Afterglow"HughesHughes6:06
7."Dandelion"HughesHughes4:02
8."The Circle"HughesHughes7:01
9."Common Man"Bonham, HughesBonham5:26
10."The Giver"HughesHughes, Bonamassa, Kevin Shirley5:23
11."Crawl"HughesBonamassa, Bonham, Hughes, Shirley5:30
Total length:57:51
Limited edition bonus DVD
No.TitleLength
1."Making of Afterglow"45:00
2."Afterglow" (music video)5:59
3."This Is Your Time" (music video)4:33
4."Confessor" (music video)5:12
5."Midnight Sun" (music video)4:42
Total length:65:26

Personnel

Chart performance
Chart (2010) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[10] 48

Release history
Region Date Label Format Catalog Ref.
Europe October 29, 2012 Mascot Music LP M 7398 1 [11]
CD M 7398 2 [12]
CD+DVD M 7398 5 [13]
North America October 30, 2012 J&R Adventures CD PRAR935488 [14]
Japan December 19, 2012 Avalon CD MICP11078 [15]

References
  1. Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Afterglow - Black Country Communion". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  2. "Black Country Communion: Complete 'Live Over Europe' DVD Details Revealed". Blabbermouth.net. Roadrunner Records. September 1, 2011. Retrieved October 4, 2012.
  3. "Black Country Communion to Record Third Album in June". Blabbermouth.net. Roadrunner Records. January 4, 2012. Retrieved September 19, 2012.
  4. "Black Country Communion: New Album Title, Cover Artwork Unveiled". Blabbermouth.net. Roadrunner Records. August 24, 2012. Retrieved September 19, 2012.
  5. "Black Country Communion to Begin Work on New Album This Weekend". Blabbermouth.net. Roadrunner Records. June 7, 2012. Retrieved September 19, 2012.
  6. "Black Country Communion: Third 'Afterglow' Webisode Released". Blabbermouth.net. Roadrunner Records. September 28, 2012. Retrieved October 4, 2012.
  7. "Black Country Communion "Afterglow"". Noble PR. Archived from the original on October 16, 2012. Retrieved October 4, 2012.
  8. "Glenn Hughes doubts Black Country Communion's future". Classic Rock. September 5, 2012. Archived from the original on October 18, 2012. Retrieved October 4, 2012.
  9. "Black Country Communion: New Song Available for Free Download". Blabbermouth.net. Roadrunner Records. September 19, 2012. Retrieved October 4, 2012.
  10. "Billboard 200: Black Country Communion Album & Song Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 31 July 2017.
  11. "Black Country Communion - Afterglow". HMV Group. Retrieved October 27, 2012.
  12. "Afterglow (Edition Holland, CD)" (in Japanese). HMV Group. Retrieved October 27, 2012.
  13. "Black Country Communion - Afterglow: 2CD: Bonus DVD". HMV Group. Retrieved October 27, 2012.
  14. "Afterglow (Board USA, CD)" (in Japanese). HMV Group. Retrieved October 27, 2012.
  15. "Afterglow (National Board, CD)" (in Japanese). HMV Group. Retrieved October 27, 2012.
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