''Manifest!'' is the only album from American band

Friends ''Friends'' is an American television sitcom created by David Crane (producer), David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004, lasting List of Friends episodes, ten seasons. With an ensemble cast ...

, released in June 2012 on the Fat Possum label in the United States and on the Lucky Number label in Europe.

Recording and release

The album was recorded between summer 2011 and spring 2012 and produced by the band with the assistance of engineer Daniel Schlett at Strange Weather studios in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

. The tracks were mixed by the band and Schlett with the exception of "Mind Control" which was mixed by the band and Paul Epworth.''Manifest!'' CD booklet, Lucky Number Records The album includes two tracks that were released as singles in 2011, "I'm His Girl" and "Friend Crush", as well as third single "Mind Control".Levine, Nick (2012)
Friends Manifest! Review
,

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

, 1 June 2012, retrieved 30 August 2012 The album was released on June 4, 2012 outside the United States and on June 5 in the US. A limited special edition exclusive to Rough Trade stores in the UK included a second disc with five extra tracks.

Cover art

The album's cover art was designed by singer Samantha Urbani and Erez Avissar, and features a stereoscopic image of the band.

Reception

Like several other reviewers, Michael Hann of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' commented on the album's "pick'n'mix approach to New York's musical history".Hann, Michael (2012)
Friends: Manifest! – review
, ''

'', 31 May 2012, retrieved 30 August 2012 The album was described in a review for the

by Nick Levine as "generally impressive". The album was positively received by the ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'', with Lisa Wright rating it 8/10 and describing it as "louche, cool, and wickedly and exuberantly playful".Wright, Lisa (2012)
Friends - 'Manifest!'
, ''

'', 1 June 2012, retrieved 30 August 2012

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 ...

reviewer Tim Sendra gave the album a four stars out of five, calling it "a loose-limbed, dancefloor-filling jam with songs that are tropically inspired, sweet-spirited, and fun" and noted the "unusual and memorable" lyrics.Sendra, Tim (2012)
''Manifest!'' Review
,

, retrieved 30 August 2012 '' The List''s Jonny Ensall described ''Manifest!'' as an "insidiously hooky album".Ensall, Jonny (2012)
Friends - Manifest!
, '' The List'', 22 May 2012, retrieved 30 August 2012 Liz Pelly, writing in ''

The Boston Phoenix ''The Phoenix'' (stylized as ''The Phœnix'') was the name of several alternative weekly periodicals published in the United States by Phoenix Media/Communications Group of Boston, Massachusetts, including the now defunct ''Boston Phoenix'', '' ...

'', called it "the best pop album of the summer".Pelly, Liz (2012)
Friends , Manifest!
, ''

Boston Phoenix ''The Phoenix'' (stylized as ''The Phœnix'') was the name of several alternative weekly periodicals published in the United States by Phoenix Media/Communications Group of Boston, Massachusetts, including the now defunct ''Boston Phoenix'', '' ...

'', 3 July 2012, retrieved 30 August 2012 ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' gave it a 3.5 star rating.

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Samatha Urbani, Oliver Duncan, Lesley Hann, Matthew Molnar, and Nikki Shapiro. ;Rough Trade bonus CD: #"Perpetual Crush" #"Feelin Dank" #"My Boo" #"I'm His Girl (Arthur Baker remix)" #"Friend Crush (Jake Bullit mix)"

Credits

Friends: * Samantha Urbani *Oliver Duncan *Lesley Hann *Matthew Molnar *Nikki Shapiro with *Jessica Collins - vocals *Daniel Schlett - vocals, engineering

Chart positions

''Manifest!'' peaked at number 100 in the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is the United Kingdom's industry-recognised national record chart for album, albums. Entries are ranked by sales and audio streaming. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the O ...

in June 2012.Friends
, Official Charts, retrieved 1 September 2012

References

{{Authority control 2012 debut albums Fat Possum Records albums Friends (American band) albums