We Started Nothing
We Started Nothing is the debut studio album by English indie pop duo The Ting Tings. It was released on 16 May 2008 by Columbia Records. The US edition has a different cover image in several background colours. The album was also released in the United Kingdom on red vinyl limited to 2,000 copies. The US vinyl version is a standard black vinyl pressing. As of November 2014, We Started Nothing had sold 639,876 copies in the United Kingdom.[13]
We Started Nothing | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | 16 May 2008 | |||
Recorded | 2007–2008 in Salford, Greater Manchester | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 37:47 | |||
Label | Columbia | |||
Producer | Jules De Martino | |||
The Ting Tings chronology | ||||
| ||||
Alternative cover | ||||
International cover | ||||
Singles from We Started Nothing | ||||
|
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 64/100[2] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [3] |
The A.V. Club | B−[4] |
Entertainment Weekly | B+[5] |
The Guardian | [6] |
Mojo | [7] |
NME | 6/10[8] |
Pitchfork | 3.8/10[9] |
Q | [10] |
Rolling Stone | [11] |
The Times | [12] |
Background
According to vocalist and guitarist of The Ting Tings, Katie White:
The way we write changes with each song. "Keep Your Head" started with Jules [De Martino] on the drums, "We Walk" started with me on piano, "Shut Up and Let Me Go" started with Jules on bass, "That's Not My Name" was me ranting about my frustrations with the record industry. "Great DJ" was me playing a D chord on the guitar for hours, because that's all I could play. And then I put my finger on the wrong string, and got what I discovered was an augmented chord. And that was the riff! The lyrics described the life we were living at the time. It was about getting lost in hedonism, about forgetting that you had bailiffs knocking at your door and just surrendering to the joys of the music in a nightclub for several hours—the boys, the girls, the strings, the drums.[14]
Singles
A double A-side single consisting of "That's Not My Name" and "Great DJ" was released as the first single from the album on 27 May 2007 through the independent label Switchflicker Records. The album's second single, "Fruit Machine", was released as a limited 500-copy run, only available for the fans at the duo's concerts. Four covers were made: one for Salford, one for Berlin, one for London and one for New York. The third single, a reissue of "Great DJ", was released on 3 March 2008. The song did chart until the re-release of "That's Not My Name", reaching number 33 on the UK Singles Chart.
The fourth single released from the album was the re-release of "That's Not My Name". It is so far the duo's most successful on the UK Singles Chart, reaching the top spot for one week. The single's popularity caused "Great DJ" to finally chart (two months after its release), and also caused "Shut Up and Let Me Go" to chart early (two months before its release). The song became the UK's 22nd best-selling single of 2008, selling 300,000 copies. In the United States, "That's Not My Name" reached number 33 on the Billboard Hot 100.
"Shut Up and Let Me Go" served as the fifth single from the album. Due to the popularity of "That's Not My Name", it entered the top 75 two months before its release, based on downloads. The song was officially released on 21 July 2008. It is the duo's second highest-peaking single in the UK, charting at number six, while reaching number 55 on the Billboard Hot 100.
"Be the One" was released on 13 October 2008 as the sixth single from the album, peaking at number 28 on the UK chart. The re-release of "Fruit Machine" was originally planned to be released on 9 February 2009 as the album's seventh single, but was cancelled a week before the release. "We Walk" was ultimately released as the seventh and final single on 23 February 2009, reaching number 58 in the UK. It was the band's first single not to have a 7-inch vinyl release, instead coming out on CD and 12-inch vinyl only.
Track listing
All tracks are written by Jules De Martino and Katie White.
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Great DJ" | 3:23 |
2. | "That's Not My Name" | 5:11 |
3. | "Fruit Machine" | 2:54 |
4. | "Traffic Light" | 2:59 |
5. | "Shut Up and Let Me Go" | 2:52 |
6. | "Keep Your Head" | 3:23 |
7. | "Be the One" | 2:58 |
8. | "We Walk" | 4:04 |
9. | "Impacilla Carpisung" | 3:41 |
10. | "We Started Nothing" | 6:22 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
11. | "Great DJ" (acoustic version) | 3:33 |
12. | "Shut Up and Let Me Go" (acoustic version) | 2:46 |
13. | "Great DJ" (7th Heaven Radio Remix) | 3:31 |
14. | "That's Not My Name" (Soul Seekerz Radio Mix) | 3:23 |
15. | "That's Not My Name" (Taku Takahashi Mix) | 5:14 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Great DJ" (music video) | 3:21 |
2. | "That's Not My Name" (music video) | 3:44 |
3. | "Shut Up and Let Me Go" (music video) | 2:55 |
4. | "Be the One" (music video) | 2:53 |
5. | "Making of Shut Up and Let Me Go" | 4:07 |
6. | "Making of Be the One" | 4:30 |
7. | "Salford/Berlin/London/New York Documentary" | 3:01 |
8. | "Be the One" (acoustic version; audio) | 3:14 |
9. | "Shut Up and Let Me Go" (acoustic version; audio) | 2:46 |
10. | "Great DJ" (acoustic version; audio) | 3:34 |
11. | "That's Not My Name" (acoustic version; audio) | 4:26 |
Personnel
Credits adapted from the liner notes of We Started Nothing.[16]
- Jules De Martino – production
- Dave Sardy – mixing
- Greg Gordon – mix engineering
- Matt Irwin – band photography
- Denis Kleiman – band photography
Charts
Weekly charts
|
Year-end charts
|
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA)[42] | Gold | 35,000^ |
France (SNEP)[43] | Silver | 35,000* |
Ireland (IRMA)[44] | Platinum | 15,000^ |
United Kingdom (BPI)[45] | 2× Platinum | 639,876[13] |
*sales figures based on certification alone |
Release history
Region | Date | Edition | Label | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
Ireland | 16 May 2008 | Standard | Columbia | [46] |
United Kingdom | 19 May 2008 | [47] | ||
Australia | 23 May 2008 | Sony | [48] | |
Germany | 30 May 2008 | [49] | ||
United States | 3 June 2008 |
|
[50] | |
France | 16 June 2008 | Sony | [51] | |
United Kingdom | 24 November 2008 | Deluxe | Columbia | [52] |
Japan | 21 January 2009 |
|
Sony | [53][54] |
France | 8 June 2009 | Deluxe | [55] |
References
- Gill, Andy (2 March 2012). "The Ting Tings: "We don't keep songs for a rainy day"". The Independent. Retrieved 30 November 2020.
- "Reviews for We Started Nothing by The Ting Tings". Metacritic. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
- Phares, Heather. "We Started Nothing – The Ting Tings". AllMusic. Retrieved 16 October 2012.
- Koski, Genevieve (16 June 2008). "The Ting Tings: We Started Nothing". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
- Vozick-Levinson, Simon (30 May 2008). "We Started Nothing". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
- Petridis, Alexis (16 May 2008). "The Ting Tings, We Started Nothing". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 June 2008.
- "The Ting Tings: We Started Nothing". Mojo. No. 175. June 2008. p. 109. ISSN 1351-0193.
- Fullerton, Jamie (15 May 2008). "The Ting Tings: We Started Nothing". NME. Archived from the original on 4 August 2011. Retrieved 17 May 2008.
- Moerder, Adam (19 June 2008). "The Ting Tings: We Started Nothing". Pitchfork. Retrieved 20 June 2008.
- "The Ting Tings: We Started Nothing". Q. No. 263. June 2008. p. 143. ISSN 0955-4955.
- Endelman, Michael (12 June 2008). "We Started Nothing : The Ting Tings". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 5 April 2009. Retrieved 9 June 2008.
- Elan, Priya (17 May 2008). "The Ting Tings: We Started Nothing". The Times. Archived from the original on 16 June 2011. Retrieved 13 June 2008.
- Jones, Alan (3 November 2014). "Official Charts Analysis: Taylor Swift tops albums with 90,336 sales of 1989". Music Week. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
- The Guardian: 1000 Songs Everyone Must Hear – Party Songs, Writing Party Songs, pg. 7
- "We Started Nothing: Ting Tings". HMV Japan. Retrieved 1 April 2013.
- We Started Nothing (liner notes). The Ting Tings. Columbia Records. 2008. 88697314542.CS1 maint: others (link)
- "Australiancharts.com – The Ting Tings – We Started Nothing". Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 January 2009.
- "Austriancharts.at – The Ting Tings – We Started Nothing" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 January 2009.
- "Ultratop.be – The Ting Tings – We Started Nothing" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 May 2009.
- "Ultratop.be – The Ting Tings – We Started Nothing" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 May 2009.
- "Dutchcharts.nl – The Ting Tings – We Started Nothing" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 January 2009.
- "Hits of the World". Billboard. Vol. 120 no. 23. 7 June 2008. p. 67. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 27 January 2016 – via Google Books.
- "Lescharts.com – The Ting Tings – We Started Nothing". Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 January 2009.
- "Offiziellecharts.de – The Ting Tings – We Started Nothing" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
- "Irish-charts.com – Discography The Ting Tings". Hung Medien. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
- ウィ・スターテッド・ナッシング | ザ・ティン・ティンズ [The Ting Tings | The Ting Tings] (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
- "Charts.nz – The Ting Tings – We Started Nothing". Hung Medien. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
- "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
- "Swisscharts.com – The Ting Tings – We Started Nothing". Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 January 2009.
- "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
- "The Ting Tings Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
- "The Ting Tings Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
- "The Ting Tings Chart History (Top Alternative Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
- "The Ting Tings Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
- "ARIA Charts – End Of Year Charts – Top 100 Albums 2008". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 10 May 2009.
- "Year End Charts – European Top 100 Albums". Billboard.biz. 2008. Archived from the original on 4 October 2012. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
- "Classement Albums – année 2008" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Archived from the original on 26 September 2012. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
- "End of Year Album Chart Top 100 – 2008". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
- "Year End Charts – Independent Albums". Billboard.biz. 2008. Archived from the original on 4 October 2012. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
- "Classement Albums – année 2009" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
- "End of Year Album Chart Top 100 – 2009". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
- "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2008 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on 10 August 2020. Retrieved 11 January 2009.
- "Certifications Albums Argent – année 2008" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. 23 October 2008. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
- "The Irish Charts - 2008 Certification Awards - Platinum". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
- "British album certifications – The Ting Tings – We Started Nothing". British Phonographic Industry. 3 April 2009. Retrieved 27 January 2016. Select albums in the Format field. Select Platinum in the Certification field. Type We Started Nothing in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
- "Ting Tings – We Started Nothing". Tower Records Ireland. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
- "The Ting Tings – We Started Nothing". Columbia Records UK. Archived from the original on 21 April 2012. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
- "We Started Nothing – Ting Tings, The". JB Hi-Fi. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
- "The Ting Tings – We Started Nothing" (in German). Sony Music Entertainment Germany. Archived from the original on 6 March 2012. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
- "We Started Nothing: Ting Tings". Amazon. United States. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
- "We started nothing – The Ting Tings" (in French). Fnac. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
- "Ting Tings: We Started Nothing: Deluxe Edition: Includes Dvd". HMV. Archived from the original on 9 July 2012. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
- ザ・ティン・ティンズ : ウィ・スターテッド・ナッシング [The Ting Tings: We Started Nothing] (in Japanese). Sony Music Entertainment Japan. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
- ザ・ティン・ティンズ : ウィ・スターテッド・ナッシング デラックス・エディション [The Ting Tings: We Started Nothing Deluxe Edition] (in Japanese). Sony Music Entertainment Japan. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
- "We started nothing – Inclus DVD bonus : The Ting Tings" (in French). Fnac. Retrieved 24 January 2020.