''Hypnoprism'' is an album by Scottish musician
Momus
Momus (; Ancient Greek: Μῶμος ''Momos'') in Greek mythology was the personification of satire and mockery, two stories about whom figure among Aesop's Fables. During the Renaissance, several literary works used him as a mouthpiece for their ...
. It was released on 27 September 2010 through independent label Analog Baroque (a division of
Cherry Red Records
Cherry Red Records is a British independent record label founded in Malvern, Worcestershire by Iain McNay in 1978. The label has released recordings by Dead Kennedys, Everything but the Girl, The Monochrome Set, and Felt, among others, as w ...
) in the United Kingdom, and in the United States by American Patchwork, distributed on CD by
Darla Records
Darla Records is an independent record label founded by James Agren in October 1993 while he was in New York (state), New York. Darla's first release was a 7-inch by Grifters (band), Grifters, an indie rock/lo-fi music, lo-fi band from Memphis.
...
.
Background
Momus says the album was inspired by "falling back in love with pop music" through
YouTube
YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
videos.
''Hypnoprism'' was, in turn, the first Momus album released through YouTube, with self-made music videos uploaded as songs were finished, a process that he would continue into the 2020s.
The album sleeve was painted by Japanese artist Misako Kawai.
Track 12, "Adoration", is a cover of the song by
Josef K, the Scottish post-punk band containing members of Momus' former band,
the Happy Family.
The album's title track was later reworked for Momus' 2018 album ''
Pantaloon'' as "Brexochasm".
Reception
''Hypnoprism'' received mixed to positive reviews from critics. ''
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 ...
'' critic Michael Edwards praised the artist's "newfound playfulness" and commented that some tracks harkened back to his
Creation Records
Creation Records Ltd. was a British independent record label founded in 1983 by Alan McGee, Dick Green, and Joe Foster. Its name came from the 1960s band The Creation, whom McGee greatly admired. The label ceased operations in 1999, although ...
output of the 1990s. However, Edwards commented that the mix of genres present on the album, though ambitious, could "clash awkwardly" and were "somewhat fragmented".
Mojo
Mojo may refer to:
* Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in Hoodoo
Arts, entertainment and media Film and television
* ''Mojo'' (2017 film), a 2017 Indian Kannada drama film written and directed by Sreesha Belakvaadi
* '' ...
praised the album's lyrical content and noted hints of
bossa nova, and
Uncut called it "21st century lounge music".
''
PopMatters
''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, ...
'' writer Stephen Rowland gave the album a glowing review, rating it 8/10. Rowland called the album "utterly unique", adding that it contained "many moments of brilliance".
''
Blurt Magazine
''Blurt'' is a music print magazine and online outlet originally based in Silver Spring, MD. The magazine was originally known as ''Harp Magazine'' for over 10 years, also based in Silver Spring, and was considered one of the best music magaz ...
'' highlighted "Datapanik" and "Adoration" as two of the album's standout tracks.
Other tracks drew comparison to the work of
Soft Cell
Soft Cell are an English synth-pop duo who came to prominence in the early 1980s. The duo consists of vocalist Marc Almond and instrumentalist David Ball (electronic musician), David Ball. The band are primarily known for their 1981 hit versio ...
,
of Montreal
of Montreal is an American indie pop band from Athens, Georgia. It was founded by frontperson Kevin Barnes in 1996, named after a failed romance between Barnes and a woman "of Montreal". The band is identified as part of the Elephant 6 collec ...
,
Talk Talk
Talk Talk were an English band formed in 1981 by Mark Hollis (vocals, guitar, piano), Lee Harris (drums), Paul Webb (bass), and Simon Brenner (keyboards). Initially a synth-pop group, Talk Talk's first two albums, '' The Party's Over'' (198 ...
,
Roxy Music
Roxy Music are an English rock music, rock band formed in 1970 by Bryan Ferry (lead vocals/keyboards/principal songwriter) and Graham Simpson (musician), Graham Simpson (bass). By the time the band recorded their Roxy Music (album), first albu ...
, and
the Divine Comedy
The ''Divine Comedy'' (, ) is an Italian narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun and completed around 1321, shortly before the author's death. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature and one of the greatest wor ...
.
Track listing
Personnel
* All songs recorded and produced by Nick Currie
* Tracks 3, 7 arranged by
John Talaga
* Track 13 featuring Joe Howe
* Artwork by Misako Kawai
* Design by James Goggin of Practise
External links
Darla Records release page''Hypnoprism'' playlist on YouTube
References
{{Authority control
2010 albums
Momus (musician) albums