''Any Man in America'' is the sixth studio album and ninth album overall by

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

band

Blue October Blue October is an American Rock music, rock band originally from Houston, Texas. The band was formed in 1995 and is currently composed of singer/guitarist Justin Furstenfeld, drummer Jeremy Furstenfeld, multi-instrumentalist #Personnel, Ryan ...

. The album was recorded at Matchbox Studios in Austin,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

between Summer of 2010 and March 2011, and was released August 16, 2011 by Justin Furstenfeld's Up/Down Records and distributed through

RED Distribution RED Music, stylized RED MUSIC, formerly RED Distribution, LLC (Relativity Entertainment Distribution) was a Sony-owned sales and marketing division that merged under The Orchard in 2017. RED previously handled releases for more than sixty in ...

. The album was produced by

Tim Palmer Timothy J. Palmer (born 4 October 1962, in North Shields) is an English record producer, audio engineer, guitarist and songwriter of rock and alternative music. He mixed Pearl Jam's debut album ''Ten'' (1991) and tracks on U2's album ''All Tha ...

, who has previously worked with artists such as

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

Robert Plant Robert Anthony Plant (born 20 August 1948) is an English singer and songwriter, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of the English rock band Led Zeppelin for all of its existence from 1968 until 1980, when the band broke up following th ...

The Cure The Cure are an English rock band formed in 1978 in Crawley, West Sussex. Throughout numerous lineup changes since the band's formation, guitarist, lead vocalist, and songwriter Robert Smith has remained the only constant member. The band's ...

, U2 and

Pearl Jam Pearl Jam is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. The band's lineup consists of founding members Jeff Ament (bass guitar), Stone Gossard (rhythm guitar), Mike McCready (lead guitar), and Eddie Vedder (lead vocals, ...

and had mixed Blue October's album '' History for Sale''. The artwork on the album cover is a drawing of

Justin Furstenfeld Justin Steward Furstenfeld (born December 14, 1975) is an American musician and actor. He is the lead vocalist, guitarist, and lyricist of rock band Blue October. He is also a member of the band Harvard of the South. Personal life When not tour ...

drawn by Tim Palmer's daughter Bluebell, who was three years old at the time. The songs on the album are largely about Justin Furstenfeld's divorce and custody battle over his daughter. The first single from the album, "The Chills", became available for digital download May 31, and impacted radio June 27, 2011. On June 9, 2011 the band posted a video of the song "The Feel Again (Stay)", directed by Merritt Fields, on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second most ...

. Due to the overwhelming positive response to the video by fans, the band released the song on iTunes five days later. On Monday, July 25, 2011, the official music video for the first single, "The Chills", was released via the band's

Vevo Vevo ( , an abbreviation for "Video Evolution", stylized as VEVO until 2013) is an American multinational video hosting service, best known for providing music videos to YouTube. The service is also available as an app on selected smart TVs, ...

channel. Upon release, the album topped the

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album downloads chart. The album sold 27,275 copies in its first week, making it the highest-selling debut, the highest-selling alternative rock album, the second highest-selling independent album, and the eighth best selling album overall. Additionally, the album was popular on iTunes where it was the best selling alternative album, and the fifth best selling album overall. The album debuted at number eight on the ''Billboard'' 200, making it the highest-charting album of Blue October's career, although their two previous studio albums actually sold more units in their first week of release. It peaked at number two on the ''Billboard'' Independent Albums chart and number one on the Top Rock Albums Chart.

Track listing

Reviews

The album was released to mixed reviews, Allmusic rating the album with 2 out of 5 stars and stating "Justin Furstenfeld has no qualms about putting his domestic problems on display, and while heartache and ruin are well-worn rock & roll topics, self-indulgence works best when tempered with hooks, something Furstenfeld seems to have left at the crime scene." Diminuendo had to say about the album, "As long as they continue doing what they're good at - writing deeply personal, heart-wrenching lyrics - it doesn't matter where they venture musically. Any Man in America is a model to follow for great artists: an ever-changing sound with a signature lyrics and vocals," giving the album a volume setting of 9 out of 11.

Personnel

– vocals, guitar, production * Steve Schiltz - guitars *

C.B. Hudson Blue October is an American rock band originally from Houston, Texas. The band was formed in 1995 and is currently composed of singer/guitarist Justin Furstenfeld, drummer Jeremy Furstenfeld, multi-instrumentalist Ryan Delahoussaye, bassist M ...

- guitar * Patricia Lynn Drew - backing vocals / guest vocalist * Ray Cordero - guest vocalist * Brendan Bond - trumpet * Dwight Baker - engineering * Matt Noveskey – bass, guitar * Jeremy Furstenfeld – drums, percussion * Ryan Delahoussaye - violin, keyboard, mandolin *

- guitars, production, engineering, mixing

References

{{Authority control 2011 albums Blue October albums Albums produced by Tim Palmer