''Hello Cruel World'' is the third studio album by Sole and the Skyrider Band. It was released on Fake Four Inc. on July 19, 2011. Music videos were created for the following songs: "Napoleon", "D.I.Y.", "Hello Cruel World", "Bad Captain Swag", and "Immortality".

Critical reception

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

, a platform that collects music reviews from leading mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 66, based on 6 reviews, indicating a "generally favorable review". Tom Briehan of ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

'' gave the album a rating of 6.1 out of 10, stating that "Sole has largely curbed his frantic, out-of-control, sometimes-arrhythmic rap style, going for a measured and controlled thing instead." David Jeffries of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

gave the album 3.5 stars out of 5, writing, "the album's title references Sole's desire to bring the underground angst to the masses, injecting a little ugliness and art into your everyday programming." Thomas Quinlan of ''

Exclaim! ''Exclaim!'' is a Canadian music and entertainment publisher based in Toronto, which features coverage of new music across all genres with a special focus on Canadian and emerging artists. The monthly ''Exclaim!'' print magazine publishes seven ...

'' said, "While it's unlikely ''Hello Cruel World'' will reach far beyond Sole's current fan base, it should continue to impress those who are already fans, offering a slightly different perspective on the unorthodox MC." ''

Westword ''Westword'' is a free digital and print media publication based in Denver, Colorado. ''Westword'' publishes daily online coverage of local news, restaurants, music and arts, as well as longform narrative journalism. A weekly print issue circ ...

'' included it on the "Denver's Best Music Releases of 2011" list.

Track listing

Personnel

Credits adapted from liner notes. Sole and the Skyrider Band * Tim Holland – vocals, lyrics * Bud Berning – programming, production, arrangement *

William Ryan Fritch William Ryan Fritch (also known under the moniker Vieo Abiungo) is an American musician, composer, and producer, currently residing in Oakland, California. He is a member of Sole and the Skyrider Band and has released several albums under his own ...

– instrumentation, vocals, arrangement * John Wagner – drum programming, production Additional musicians *

Xiu Xiu Xiu Xiu ( ) is an American experimental rock band, formed in 2002 by singer-songwriter Jamie Stewart in San Jose, California. Currently, the line-up consists of multi-instrumentalists Stewart (the only constant member since formation), Angel ...

– vocals (1), lyrics (1) *

Lil B Brandon Christopher McCartney (born August 17, 1989), known professionally as Lil B and Lil B The BasedGod, is an American rapper. He began his career as a member of the Berkeley, California-based hip hop group the Pack in 2005, who signed wi ...

– vocals (5), lyrics (5) *

Pictureplane Travis James Egedy (born May 1, 1985), better known by his stage name Pictureplane, is an American electronic musician, visual artist and fashion designer based in Brooklyn, New York. He first appeared in the music scene of Denver, Colorado, m ...

– vocals (5), lyrics (5) *

Ceschi Julio Francisco Ramos (born July 24, 1981), better known as Ceschi Ramos, or simply as Ceschi ( ), is an American rapper from New Haven, Connecticut. He is a co-founder of Fake Four Inc. He won the Connecticut Music Awards for Best Hip Hop in 20 ...

– vocals (6, 12), lyrics (6, 12) *

Noah23 Noah Raymond Brickley (born February 10, 1978), better known by his stage name Noah23, is a Canadian-American hip hop artist from Guelph, Ontario. He is co-founder of the Plague Language collective and record label, and has been described as "one ...

– vocals (6), lyrics (6) *

Pedestrian A pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, by wheelchair or with other mobility aids. Streets and roads often have a designated footpath for pedestrian traffic, called the '' sidewalk'' in North American English, the ''pavement'' in British En ...

– lyrics (8) *

Sage Francis Paul William "Sage" Francis (born November 18, 1976) is an American independent underground rapper from Providence, Rhode Island. He is the founder and CEO of Strange Famous Records. Early life and education Francis was born in Miami, Florid ...

– vocals (11), lyrics (11) *

Isaiah Toothtaker Isaiah Philip Camacho (born 1981), known professionally as Isaiah Toothtaker, is an American rapper, tattoo artist, and designer. He is the co-founder of the hip hop collective Machina Muerte. Biography Isaiah Toothtaker was born Isaiah Philip ...

– vocals (12), lyrics (12) *

Mestizo ( , ; fem. , literally 'mixed person') is a term primarily used to denote people of mixed European and Indigenous ancestry in the former Spanish Empire. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also refer to people who are culturall ...

– vocals (12), lyrics (12) Technical personnel * Jesse O'Brien – mixing * Tom Capek – mastering * Lando – cover art * Michael Crigler – art direction, design * The Raincoat Man – vinyl layout

References

External links

* {{Authority control 2011 albums Fake Four Inc. albums Sole and the Skyrider Band albums