Anna Calvi (album)

Anna Calvi is the debut album of British singer-songwriter Anna Calvi, released on 14 January 2011, by Domino Records.[1][2] In Autumn, 2010, Calvi entered Black Box studio in France with producer Rob Ellis[3] and, using vintage analogue equipment, created "a velvet Wall of Sound that justified the hype in the buildup to its 2011 release."[4] The album peaked at No. 40 in the UK Album Charts[5] reached No. 17 in France,[6] and entered several European charts. The album has been nominated for the 2011 Barclaycard Mercury Prize.

Anna Calvi
Studio album by
Anna Calvi
Released14 January 2011
RecordedAutumn 2010
GenreArt rock
Length39:17
LabelDomino
ProducerRob Ellis, Anna Calvi
Anna Calvi chronology
Anna Calvi
(2011)		 One Breath
(2013)
Singles from Anna Calvi
  1. "Blackout"
    Released: 21 March 2011
  2. "Desire"
    Released: 20 June 2011
  3. "Suzanne & I"
    Released: 12 September 2011

History

The debut album's material had been written in Anna Calvi's parents' attic, using eight-track equipment. Of Rob Ellis, best known for his work with PJ Harvey, she said:

He’s old-school rock‘n roll… you know, 'Hit the drums harder!' Which I love. We both share a love of classical music...he loves the same composers as I do. So I didn’t have to explain what I meant when I said that I wanted I wanted a guitar or a shaker to sound like an orchestra. It was great to find someone who understood.[7]

Calvi herself said she was proud with the album and picked out two songs where she felt she'd got close to what she ultimately wanted to achieve: "Love Won’t Be Leaving" (noted for microscopic sound detailisation) and "The Devil". "I see music very visually. And I want the music itself to express the story as much, if not more, than the lyrics. I think I achieved that on Love Won’t Be Leaving," she commented on the former. As for the latter, "It’s a good example of how I wanted to make the guitar sound like another instrument. I wanted the middle-section to sound like the strings on a Hitchcock soundtrack. It crescendos towards an explosion, but in a real and honest way. It's not about bravado," she added.[7]

Singles

"Blackout" with the cover of Surrender (classic Neapolitan song, originally Torna a Surriento, adapted for Elvis Presley in 1961 by Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman, with lyrics by Claude Aveling) was released as the first single from the album on 21 March 2011[8] and was debuted on Pitchfork in the US.[9] "Desire" was the second single (backed with a reworking of Leonard Cohen's "Joan of Arc") and was released on 20 June 2011. The track was available on 7" (RUG412) and via digital download (RUG412D).[10] "Suzanne & I" (backed with the cover of the Shirelles "Baby It's You") was released as the third single from the album on 12 September 2011.

Reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.6/10[11]
Metacritic80/100[12]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Evening Standard[13]
Financial Times[14]
The Guardian[15]
The Irish Times[16]
Mojo[17]
NME9/10[18]
Pitchfork7.8/10[19]
Q[20]
Uncut[21]

Upon its release, Anna Calvi received generally positive reviews from music critics. Aggregating website AnyDecentMusic? reports a score of 7.6 based on 29 professional reviews.[11]

Reviewer Eamonn Seoige (IHeart AU), called the album "fully-formed and... an instantly engaging body of work", argued that it's "key strength is honest, raw power." Describing Calvi's songs as "poetic, free-flowing, often incorporating multiple styles that frame her distinctive and kaleidoscopic vocal range," he added: "A gifted musician, possessor of a unique voice and writer of inimitable songs, Calvi is already primed for greatness."[22] Matt James of PopMatters described Calvi as "eternally glamorous, but perennially doomed nightclub torch-song singer with a skeleton army in their closet" and her debut, never "afraid to be fantastical, striking," as "rich and strange".[23] NME called the debut "perhaps the first great record of 2011."[18] According to Jon O'Brien of AllMusic, this "ambitious and always intriguing debut... heralds the arrival of a unique and inventive addition to the plethora of U.K. female singer/songwriters."[1]

Mojo placed the album at number 8 on its list of "Top 50 albums of 2011."[24]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Anna Calvi.

No.TitleLength
1."Rider to the Sea"2:40
2."No More Words"3:51
3."Desire"3:51
4."Suzanne & I"4:11
5."First We Kiss"3:05
6."The Devil"4:34
7."Blackout"4:05
8."I'll Be Your Man"3:10
9."Morning Light"4:13
10."Love Won't Be Leaving"5:37

Personnel
  • Anna Calvi – lead vocals, bass guitar, guitar, organ, piano, production, string arrangements, strings, violin
  • Brian Eno – piano, backing vocals (tracks 3, 4)
  • Mally Harpaz – drums, harmonium, percussion
  • Daniel Maiden-Wood – bass, drums, backing vocals
  • Dave Okumu – backing vocals (track 2)

Technical personnel

  • Peter Deimel – engineering
  • Rob Ellis – production
  • David Odlux – assistant
  • Chris Potter – mastering
  • Jimmy Robertson – engineering
  • Craig Silvey – mixing
  • Pritpal Soor – mixing, production
  • Emma Nathan - artwork

Charts
Chart (2011) Peak
position
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[25] 33
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[26] 9
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[27] 36
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[28] 68
French Albums (SNEP)[29] 17
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[30] 70
Irish Albums (IRMA)[31] 72
Irish Independent Albums (IRMA)[32] 7
Italian Albums (FIMI)[33] 93
Scottish Albums (OCC)[34] 66
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[35] 55
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[36] 40
UK Albums (OCC)[37] 40
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[38] 3
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[39] 42

Sales
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
France — 35,000[40]
Summaries
Worldwide 170,000[41]

References
  1. O'Brien, Jon. "Anna Calvi – Anna Calvi". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 12 October 2011. Retrieved 12 May 2011.
  2. Domino Record Company, Retrieved 18 January 2011. Archived 20 April 2014 at the Wayback Machine
  3. Perry, Andrew (10 January 2011). "Anna Calvi: giving voice to passion and desire". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011.
  4. AllMusic biography. Archived 6 September 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  5. UK Albums Chart – Week: 23 January 2011, Retrieved 27 January 2011.
  6. lescharts.com – Anna Calvi – Anna Calvi @ lescharts.com. Archived 21 April 2014 at the Wayback Machine
  7. Anna Calvi's profile. Domino Records. Archived 20 April 2014 at the Wayback Machine
  8. Domino | News | Anna Calvi Announces New Single 'Blackout' Archived 20 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  9. Pitchfork: Forkcast: Anna Calvi: Blackout. Archived 24 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  10. Desire to be next single. – www.annacalvi.com Archived 19 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  11. "Anna Calvi by Anna Calvi reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Archived from the original on 30 May 2012. Retrieved 12 May 2011.
  12. "Reviews for Anna Calvi by Anna Calvi". Metacritic. Retrieved 3 May 2019.
  13. "CDs of the week". Evening Standard. 14 January 2011. Archived from the original on 28 January 2011. Retrieved 3 May 2019.
  14. Hunter-Tilney, Ludovic (15 January 2011). "Anna Calvi: Anna Calvi". Financial Times. Retrieved 3 May 2019.
  15. Costa, Maddy (13 January 2011). "Anna Calvi: Anna Calvi – review". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 May 2019.
  16. Carroll, Jim (21 January 2011). "Shape shifter". The Irish Times. Retrieved 3 May 2019.
  17. "Anna Calvi: Anna Calvi". Mojo (208): 96. March 2011.
  18. Cooper, Leonie (17 January 2011). "Album Review: Anna Calvi – Anna Calvi". NME. Archived from the original on 11 October 2013. Retrieved 12 May 2011.
  19. Ashurst, Hari (1 March 2011). "Anna Calvi: Anna Calvi". Pitchfork. Retrieved 3 May 2019.
  20. Mongredien, Phil (February 2011). "Anna Calvi: Anna Calvi". Q (295): 113.
  21. "Anna Calvi: Anna Calvi". Uncut (165): 94. February 2011.
  22. Anna Calvi review. IHeart AU Archived 12 February 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  23. Matt James Anna Calvi PopMatters review. Archived 29 January 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  24. "MOJO's Top 50 Albums Of 2011". Stereogum. 2 December 2011. Archived from the original on 4 November 2012. Retrieved 16 December 2011.
  25. "Austriancharts.at – Anna Calvi – Anna Calvi" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  26. "Ultratop.be – Anna Calvi – Anna Calvi" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  27. "Ultratop.be – Anna Calvi – Anna Calvi" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  28. "Dutchcharts.nl – Anna Calvi – Anna Calvi" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  29. "Lescharts.com – Anna Calvi – Anna Calvi". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  30. "Offiziellecharts.de – Anna Calvi – Anna Calvi" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  31. "Irish-charts.com – Discography Anna Calvi". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  32. "Top 10 Independent Artist Albums, Week Ending 27 January 2011". Chart-Track. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 3 November 2019.
  33. "Italiancharts.com – Anna Calvi – Anna Calvi". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  34. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  35. "Swedishcharts.com – Anna Calvi – Anna Calvi". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  36. "Swisscharts.com – Anna Calvi – Anna Calvi". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  37. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  38. "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  39. "Anna Calvi Chart History (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
  40. Ruelle, Yohann (6 October 2013). "Anna Calvi joue les esprits fantômes dans le clip aérien de "Sing to Me"". chartsinfrance. Retrieved 7 June 2018.
  41. Gibsone, Harriet (13 October 2014). "Mercury nominees 2014: Anna Calvi". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 June 2018.
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