Forth (album)

Forth is the fourth and most recent studio album by the English alternative rock band The Verve before their third break up in 2009. It was released internationally on 25 August 2008 on EMI, and a day later in North America on the On Your Own label.[3] The band reformed in 2007, having broken up in 1999. Forth is their first album of new material since their 1997 album Urban Hymns, and their first album since their 1995 album A Northern Soul to feature the original line-up, without their second guitarist and keyboardist Simon Tong.

Forth
Studio album by
The Verve
Released25 August 2008 (2008-08-25)
Recorded2007-2008
StudioState of the Ark in Richmond, London[1]
Genre
Length64:18
LabelParlophone, Megaforce, EMI
ProducerChris Potter, Tim Bran, The Verve
The Verve chronology
This Is Music: The Singles 92–98
(2004)		 Forth
(2008)
Singles from Forth
  1. "Love Is Noise"
    Released: 11 August 2008
  2. "Rather Be"
    Released: 17 November 2008

The album's first single, "Love Is Noise", received its first airplay on BBC Radio 1 on 23 June 2008.[4] The song reached No. 4 on the UK Singles Chart and became a summer hit in Europe. The band also released a non-album track, "Mover", as a free digital download a week later.

Background

The band recorded new songs in Richmond between 2007 and 2008. Most of the backing tracks were done before touring the UK in November and December. Then, recording continued between February and the start of their summer dates in April and some final work was done after the mini US-tour done between April and May before their summer festival appearances in Europe and Japan.[5] Jonathan Cohen of Billboard states that Forth is "[A] bracing blend of the experimentalism of the group's early work and the more structured songwriting of its last two efforts."[6]

"Sit and Wonder" and "Love Is Noise" have been played live during the band's festival appearances, including the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April 2008; "Rather Be" also received select live airings throughout the summer, notably as part of the band's headlining set at the V Festival in August 2008. "I See Houses" was played live once, at the Eden Project in Cornwall in August 2008.

Release and reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic71/100[7]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[8]
Drowned in Sound5/10[2]
The Guardian[9]
The Michigan Daily[10]
NME8/10[11]
Pitchfork5.0/10[12]
Q[13]
Rolling Stone[14]
Spin[15]
Uncut[16]

Like The Verve's previous studio album Urban Hymns, Forth peaked on the UK Albums Chart at number one, and at number 23 on the US Billboard 200.[17] Forth was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry.[18] The album sold about 21,000 copies in its first week of release in the US,[17] and as of January 2009 has sold about 53,000 copies in the US.[19]

Forth received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 71, based on 28 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews."[7]

Forth was named No. 47 in Q's "50 Best Albums of the Year" for 2008 [20] and No.26 in NME magazine's "Best Albums of 2008" list.[21]

Track listing

All songs written by The Verve, except where noted.

Standard version
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Sit and Wonder" 6:52
2."Love Is Noise"The Verve/Ashcroft5:29
3."Rather Be"Ashcroft5:38
4."Judas" 6:18
5."Numbness" 6:34
6."I See Houses"Ashcroft5:37
7."Noise Epic" 8:13
8."Valium Skies"Ashcroft4:34
9."Columbo" 7:30
10."Appalachian Springs"Ashcroft7:33
LP and Japanese version bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
10."Ma Ma Soul"5:42
11."Muhammad Ali"6:20

Notes

  • Due to the addition of two tracks before "Appalachian Springs" on the LP and Japanese versions, the song "Appalachian Springs" becomes track 12.

Digital downloads
  • "The Thaw Session" - 14:09 ( It was released exclusively as a free download by the band through the NME website on 22 October 2007)
  • "Mover" - 3:55 (2008 Version / It was available at www.theverve.tv for one week only)
  • "Let the Damage Begin" – 4:09 (Amazon.com exclusive bonus track – live version from 2007 originally released as a B-side to "Love Is Noise")

B-sides
  • "Chic Dub" - 6:12 ("Love Is Noise" B-side)
  • "Major Force" - 5:53 (Rather Be 7" Vinyl #1)
  • "All Night Long" - 7:26 (Rather Be - 7" Vinyl #2)

Unofficially released songs
  • "Blue Pacific Ocean" - 6:20 (Leaked the 18-05-08)
  • "Mona Lisa" - 3:59 (It was going to be included in the album and was also proposed as the first single, according to Nick McCabe)
  • "Ain't The Future A Trip" ?:?? (This song was temporarily leaked on a forum of fans)

Special edition DVD
  • Space & Time: The Verve Documentary[22]
  • The Verve: Live at Coachella, April 2008[22]
    1. "Sonnet"
    2. "This Is Music"
    3. "The Rolling People"
    4. "Lucky Man"
    5. "Love Is Noise"

Personnel

Charts

Weekly charts
Charts (2008) Peak
position
UK Albums Chart 1
Australian Albums Chart 20
Austrian Albums Chart 11
Dutch Albums Chart 16
Irish Albums Chart[23] 2
Italian Albums Chart 4
Japanese Albums Chart[24] 10
New Zealand Top 40 Albums 10
Polish Albums Chart[25] 32
Portuguese Albums Chart 20
Swedish Albums Chart 34
Swiss Albums Chart[26] 6
US Billboard 200[17] 23

Year-end charts
Chart (2008) Position
UK Albums Chart[27] 63
Italian Albums Chart[28] 81

Certifications

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Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[29] Gold 100,000^
Ireland (IRMA)[30] Gold 7,500^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Release history
Country Date Label Format Catalog number
Germany 22 August 2008 EMI CD Link
United Kingdom 25 August 2008 Parlophone CD
CD with bonus DVD[31]
Double LP with bonus tracks[32] 5099923558410
Luxury box set containing Double LP with bonus tracks,[32] CD and bonus DVD[31]
North America 26 August 2008 On Your Own Records CD VER01 / 0 20286 12522 8
Japan 3 September 2008 EMI Music Japan CD with 2 bonus tracks ("Muhammad Ali" and "Ma Ma Soul")[33] TOCP-66825
CD with 2 bonus tracks[33] and bonus DVD[31] TOCP-66824

References
  1. Menhinnitt, Dan (20 October 2007). "The Verve record new tracks in Richmond studio". Richmond and Twickenham Times. Retrieved 26 August 2008.
  2. Wale, Dan (26 August 2008). "The Verve – Forth". Drowned in Sound. Retrieved 4 August 2019.
  3. Cohen, Jonathan (23 June 2008). "The Verve Readies First Album Since 1997". Billboard. Retrieved 30 June 2008.
  4. "'Zane plays the new Verve single, avail until 30 Jun 08". BBC. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
  5. "A dark music webzine". Reflections of Darkness. 19 August 2008. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
  6. Cohen, Jonathan. "The Verve Storms Back on Fourth Album". Billboard. 1 August 2008.
  7. "Forth by The Verve". Metacritic.
  8. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Forth at AllMusic. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  9. Costa, Maddy (22 August 2008). "Rock Review: The Verve, Forth". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  10. Buljina, Harun (10 September 2008). "Bittersweet Comeback". Michigan Daily. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
  11. Stokes, Paul (14 August 2008). "The Verve – Forth". NME. Archived from the original on 20 June 2011. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  12. "The Verve: Forth". Pitchfork.
  13. Q, August 2008
  14. https://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/22684336/review/22694615/forth Archived 27 August 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  15. Wood, Mikael. "The Verve, 'Forth' (On Your Own/Megaforce)". Spin. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
  16. "Album review: The Verve – Forth – Review". Uncut. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
  17. Hasty, Katie. "Slipknot Edges The Game Atop Billboard 200". Billboard. 3 September 2008.
  18. "Forth British sales certification". British Phonographic Industry. Archived from the original on 20 October 2017. Retrieved 21 January 2009.
  19. Trust, Gary. "Ask Billboard: "English Beat". Billboard. 23 January 2009.
  20. "The 50 Best Albums of 2008". Q. January 2009: 81. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  21. "1001 Best Ever Songs – Q 250". Rock List Music. Retrieved 26 June 2012.
  22. "Verve, The – Forth (CD, Album) at Discogs". discogs. 26 August 2008. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
  23. ">> IRMA << Irish Charts - Singles, Albums & Compilations >>". Irma.ie. 29 September 2011. Archived from the original on 1 April 2011. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
  24. "The Verve（ザ・ヴァーヴ）Official Web Site". Emimusic.jp. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
  25. "OLiS: sales for the period 25.08.2008 – 31.08.2008". OLiS.
  26. Love is Noise at Hitparade.ch (in German)
  27. "The Official UK Albums Chart – Year-End – 2008" (PDF). Retrieved 29 January 2012.
  28. "Hit Parade Italia – Gli album più venduti del 2008" (in Italian). hitparadeitalia.it. Retrieved 29 January 2012.
  29. "British album certifications – The Verve – Forth". British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type Forth in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  30. "The Irish Charts - 2008 Certification Awards - Gold". Irish Recorded Music Association.
  31. "(UK) : The Verve – Forth (Special Edition CD & DVD book)". Play.com. Archived from the original on 7 July 2008. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
  32. "The Verve Forth UK DOUBLE LP (440105)". Eil.com. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
  33. "The Verve Forth Japanese Edition". Cdjapan.co.jp. 22 July 2009. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
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