''Tough Baby'' is the second studio album by Canadian
musical collective
Musical collective is a phrase used to describe a Musical ensemble, group of musicians in which membership is flexible and creative control is shared.Liisa Ladouceur"Collective Souls" ''This Magazine'', November/December 2004. The concept is dist ...
,
Crack Cloud, released on September 16, 2022, via the group's independent imprint, Crack Cloud Media Studio, and Meat Machine Records. The album was preceded by three singles, "Please Yourself", "Tough Baby" and "Costly Engineered Illusion" released May 11, July 8, and September 1. 2022, respectively.
Promotion and release
On April 1, 2022, Crack Cloud released a teaser trailer via
social media
Social media are interactive technologies that facilitate the Content creation, creation, information exchange, sharing and news aggregator, aggregation of Content (media), content (such as ideas, interests, and other forms of expression) amongs ...
, featuring a brief cameo by Canadian singer/songwriter,
Mac Demarco
McBriare Samuel Lanyon DeMarco (born Vernor Winfield McBriare Smith IV; April 21, 1990) is a Canadian singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer. He has released five full-length studio albums: his debut '' 2'' (2012), '' Salad Days' ...
as a
clapper loader
A clapper loader or second assistant camera (2nd AC) is part of a film crew whose main functions are that of loading the raw film stock into camera magazines, operating the clapperboard (slate) at the beginning of each take, marking the actors as ...
, alongside members of the collective on a
soundstage
A sound stage (also written soundstage) is a large, soundproof structure, building or room with large doors and high ceilings, used for the production of theatrical film-making and television productions, usually located on a secured movie or te ...
as a film crew documenting a teenage girl and a group of patients in
hospital gowns
A hospital gown, sometimes called a johnny gown or johnny, especially in Canada and New England, is "a long loose piece of clothing worn in a hospital by someone doing or having an operation". It can be used as clothing for bedridden patients.
U ...
watching a mysterious television program in a partially-constructed set decorated and made to appear like the girl's bedroom.
The trailer was later revealed to be the music video for the album's first single, "Please Yourself" which was released on May 11, 2022, alongside the album's announcement. On July 6, 2022, the group released the album's self-titled second single and music video, consisting of a narrative focused around a young, adolescent girl who daydreams of living amongst a group of
Troglodytes (also portrayed by members of the collective).
The album's third single, ''Costly Engineered Illusion'' was released September 1. 2022.
Track listing
Personnel
* Zack Rain Hope Choy – lead vocals, drums, percussion, violin,
mellotron
The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical musical instrument developed in Birmingham, England, in 1963. It is played by pressing its keys, each of which causes a length of magnetic tape to contact a Capstan (tape recorder), capstan, which pulls i ...
, production, synthesizer, keyboards, design, album concept, writing, composition, lyrics, processing, arrangements, additional mixing
* Nicolas Dirksen – strings, organ, guitar, synths, drum machine, bass, vocals, additional engineering, additional mixing, additional lyrics
* Eve Adams – vocals
* Jesse Atkey – saxophone
* Sukhi Aulakh – voice
* Will Hael Choy – guitar, vocals
* Danny Choy – voice , masks ''(featured on the album cover)''
* Bryce Cloghesy – saxophone, guitar, synths, vocals
* Mackenzie Cruse – vocals, graphic design
* Justin Defries – percussion
* Caton Diab – trumpet,
bowed guitar
Bowed guitar is a method of playing a guitar, acoustic or electric, in which the guitarist uses a bow, rather than the more common plectrum, to vibrate the instruments' strings, similar to playing a viola da gamba. Unlike traditionally bowed in ...
, flute
* Aleem Khan – piano, vocals
* Jouvaughan Meek – voice
* Garnet Aroynk MMuhammmed – guitar, bass, vocals
* Sage Aroynk Muhammed – percussion, vocals
* Daniel Robertson – keys, synths, mellotron, guitar, vocals
* Mohammad Ali Sharar – guitar, vocals, graphic design, album concept
* Camryn Sproule – percussion, vocals
Additional musicians
* Tabitha Brasso-Ernst – vocals
* Greta Das – trumpet
* Kira Fondse – vocals
* Alison Gorman – flugelhorn
* Jacob Grammit – vocals
* Brian Harding – trombone
* Marc Lindy – tuba
* Steve Maddock – vocals
* Carman J. Price – vocals
* Taka Shimojima – vocals
* Lucy Smith – vocals
* Risa Takahashi – vocals
Technical
* John Paul Stewart – engineering, additional mixing, processing, synths, guitar, bass, vocals
* Be Hussey – additional engineering
* Paul Corley – mixing
* Lisa Choy – cover model
*
Heba Kadry
Heba Kadry is an Egyptian mastering engineer who currently resides in Brooklyn, New York. She is best known for her work with Björk, Beach House, Slowdive, The Mars Volta, Neon Indian, Wooden Shjips, Lightning Bolt, White Hills, Alex G, Futur ...
– mastering
* Fahim Kassam – cover photography
* Amy Lowe – diorama ''(featured on album insert)''
* Shilo Preshyon – additional engineering
* Nathan Salon – additional mixing
* Curtis Windover – album layout
References
{{Reflist
2022 albums
Crack Cloud albums