Pony (Rex Orange County album)
Pony is the third studio album and major-label debut by English musician Rex Orange County. It was released on 25 October 2019.[3]
Pony | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 25 October 2019 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 33:58 | |||
Label | RCA | |||
Producer |
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Rex Orange County chronology | ||||
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Singles from Pony | ||||
Critical reception
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AnyDecentMusic? | 7.4/10[7] |
Metacritic | 76/100[8] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [9] |
American Songwriter | [10] |
DIY | [1] |
Financial Times | [11] |
The Guardian | [12] |
NME | [3] |
The Observer | [13] |
Pitchfork | 5.0/10[14] |
Q | [15] |
The Times | [16] |
Hannah Mylrea from NME wrote of the album: "A dazzling follow up to Apricot Princess, Rex Orange County’s third studio album is a total delight. It may be miserable outside, and the world's going to shit, but try listening to Pony and not feeling a little bit more optimistic about the future. Go on, we dare you."[3] Elly Watson expressed similar views in DIY magazine, describing it as "equal parts heart wrenching and hopeful".[1]
Giving the album an average 3 out of 5, Tara Joshi at The Guardian described the album as "jaunty and engaging", though Joshi expressed that "Pony meanders, seemingly unaware of its purpose".[12]
Luke Levenson from American Songwriter commented: "His unique pop prosody and production skills, more sophisticated than ever in Pony, foretell that his sound will continue progressing to new creative heights, with the heft of catchy pop music and the inventiveness of its growing indie subgenre."[10]
Track listing
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "10/10" | 2:26 |
2. | "Always" | 3:17 |
3. | "Laser Lights" | 2:11 |
4. | "Face to Face" | 3:39 |
5. | "Stressed Out" | 1:46 |
6. | "Never Had the Balls" | 3:56 |
7. | "Pluto Projector" | 4:27 |
8. | "Every Way" | 2:13 |
9. | "It Gets Better" | 3:32 |
10. | "It's Not the Same Anymore" | 6:26 |
Total length: | 33:58 |
Personnel
- Rex Orange County – vocals, guitar, bass, drum programming, drums, Fender Rhodes, keyboards, organ, percussion, piano, producer, saxophone, strings, synthesizer, vocoder, woodwind
- Ben Baptie – guitar, drum programming, brass, saxophone, woodwind, strings, percussion, production, mixing
- Sally Herbert – arrangement, conducting, strings, violin
- Pino Palladino – bass
- Michael Underwood – clarinet, flute, saxophone, woodwind arrangement
- Nick Barr – viola
- Natalia Bonner – violin
- Seb Brooks - viola
- Ian Burdge – cello
- Reiad Chibah – viola
- Calina de la Mare – violin
- Louisa Fuller – violin
- Richard George – violin
- Ian Humphries – violin
- Oli Langford – violin
- John Metcalfe – viola
- Steve Morris – violin
- Tom Pigott-Smith – violin
- Rachel Robson – viola
- Tony Wollard – cello
- Chris Worsey – cello
- Amy Stewart – string conductor
- Haydn Bendall – string engineer
- Johnny Woodham – trumpet
- Choir: Karima Abdi, Ayana Ahmed, Abdul Akbari, Zainab Al-Shammary, Mahad Ali, Retaj Almataj, Ghena Alshteiwi, Emily Amoura, Junaid Attoh, Vihan Bhudia, Nelu Dobie, Adelina Gherman, Luke Halpin, Mosda Hisharizada, Sarah Jabir, Isa Khalid, Salam Al Lakod, Lisa Marie Massiah, José Mendes, Vanessa Prilogran, Gabi Sandru, Farah Siddique, Houda Warsama, Mohammad Zalghara
- Thea Morgan-Murrell – backing vocals (track 6)
Production
- Bráulio Amado – design, illustrations
- Madeleine Pfull – paintings
- Tom Archer – assistant
- Natasha Canter – assistant
- Alex Ferguson – assistant
- Ted Jensen – mastering
Charts
Weekly charts
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Year-end charts
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References
- Watson, Elly (25 October 2019). "Rex Orange County – Pony". DIY. Retrieved 1 November 2019.
- Milross, Hayley (24 October 2019). "Rex Orange County's Pony lays bare human vulnerabilities with colour and beauty". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 1 November 2019.
- Mylrea, Hannah (24 October 2019). "Rex Orange County – 'Pony' review: eclecticism and hope delivered with dazzling charm". NME. Retrieved 28 November 2019.
- Reilly, Nick (2019-09-13). "Listen to '10/10', the new single from Rex Orange County". NME. Retrieved 2019-10-26.
- "Rex Orange County Shares 'Pluto Projector'". NPR. Retrieved 2019-10-26.
- "Rex Orange County shares new song "Face To Face"". The Fader. Retrieved 2019-10-26.
- "Pony by Rex Orange County reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
- "PONY by Rex Orange County Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved 1 November 2019.
- Collar, Matt. "PONY – Rex Orange County". AllMusic. Retrieved 1 November 2019.
- Levenson, Luke (5 November 2019). "With 'Pony,' Rex Orange County Shows New Creative Heft". American Songwriter. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
- Hunter-Tilney, Ludovic (25 October 2019). "Rex Orange County: Pony — thoughtfully constructed songs". Financial Times. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
- Beaumont-Thomas, Ben (25 October 2019). "Rex Orange County: Pony review – chatty raps of a heart-bruised softboi". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 November 2019.
- Joshi, Tara (27 October 2019). "Rex Orange County: Pony review – jaunty and engaging". The Observer. Retrieved 1 November 2019.
- Gaca, Anna (25 October 2019). "Rex Orange County: Pony". Pitchfork. Retrieved 1 November 2019.
- Cooper, Leonie (December 2019). "Rex Orange County: Pony". Q (405): 110.
- Hodgkinson, Will (25 October 2019). "Rex Orange County: Pony — honest songs from a sophisticated musical mind". The Times. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
- "Australiancharts.com – Rex Orange County – Pony". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
- "Rex Orange County Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
- "Dutchcharts.nl – Rex Orange County – Pony" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
- "Irish-charts.com – Discography Rex Orange County". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
- "2019 44-os savaitės klausomiausi (TOP 100)" (in Lithuanian). AGATA. 4 November 2019. Retrieved 29 November 2019.
- "Charts.nz – Rex Orange County – Pony". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
- "Portuguesecharts.com – Rex Orange County – Pony". Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
- "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
- "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
- Caulfield, Keith (3 November 2019). "Kanye West's 'Jesus Is King' Arrives as His Record-Tying Ninth Consecutive No. 1 Debut on Billboard 200 Chart". Billboard. Retrieved 4 November 2019.
- "Rex Orange County Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
- "Top Rock Albums – Year-End 2019". Billboard. Retrieved 29 July 2020.