''PC Music Volume 2'' is the second compilation album by British record label

PC Music PC Music is a record label and art collective based in London and run by producer A. G. Cook. It was founded in 2013, uploading its first releases to SoundCloud that year. Artists on its roster have included Hannah Diamond, GFOTY, Danny L H ...

, released on 18 November 2016. The compilation received mostly positive reviews from critics, with most critics praising its expansion on the label's sound and catchy songs, deeming it an improvement over the first volume, though some found it monotonous and repetitive.

Composition

Described as an

electropop Electropop is a popular music fusion genre combining elements of the electronic and pop styles. It has been described as a variant of synth-pop with emphasis on a hard electronic sound. The genre was developed in the 1980s and saw a rev ...

synth-pop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a music genre that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s and early 1970s b ...

, and "

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...

-fueled" album, ''PC Music Volume 2'' features the group's trademark "marriage of

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

hooks, rubbery

synths A synthesizer (also synthesiser or synth) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis an ...

, and beguiling female vocals," as well as "a mix of styles appropriated from both the

dance Dance is an The arts, art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often Symbol, symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

underground and

Top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is a list of the 40 currently most popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "To ...

". Many of the songs feature an "allergy" to the

polyrhythms Polyrhythm () is the simultaneous use of two or more rhythms that are not readily perceived as deriving from one another, or as simple manifestations of the same meter. The rhythmic layers may be the basis of an entire piece of music (cross-r ...

typical in dance music, like on "Super Natural" "where beats, hand claps, and screamingly dense

Eurodance Eurodance (sometimes referred to as Euro-NRG) is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in the late 1980s in Europe. It combines many elements of Hip-hop, rap, techno and Eurodisco. This genre of music is heavily influenced by the use ...

keyboards are all pulsing at you as one".

Songs

The opener "Fade Away" has been described as "immensely satisfying

trance Trance is a state of semi-consciousness in which a person is not self-aware and is either altogether unresponsive to external stimuli (but nevertheless capable of pursuing and realizing an aim) or is selectively responsive in following the dir ...

-pop". "Super Natural" features Canadian singer

Carly Rae Jepsen Carly Rae Jepsen (born November 21, 1985) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. After studying musical theatre for most of her school life and while in university, Jepsen garnered mainstream attention after placing third on the fifth season of ...

, a choice that was noted for breaking the mould in comparison to the "often metallicized" and manipulated vocals usually present on PC Music songs.

GFOTY Polly-Louisa Salmon (born 19 July 1990), better known by her stage name GFOTY, an abbreviation of Girlfriend of the Year, is a British pop singer. From 2013 to 2018, she released music through the PC Music label. She now independently release ...

's song "Poison" introduced

nu-rave New rave (also typeset as nu-rave, nu rave or neu rave) is a genre of music described by ''The Guardian'' as "an in-yer-face, DIY disco riposte to the sensitive indie rock touted by bands like Bloc Party." It is most commonly applied to a Britis ...

and industrial elements to the label's sound. "A New Family" by Felicita features " horror-film whispers emerging from underneath the sort of crunchy torrent of sound favored by so-called post-club producers."

Hannah Diamond Hannah Amond (born 20 June 1991), known professionally as Hannah Diamond, is an English singer, songwriter, photographer, and visual artist. She has recorded on A.G. Cook's PC Music label since 2013, beginning with her debut single " Pink an ...

's "Hi" was praised for its "restrained" sound and proving "that PC Music wheelhouse is far larger than just chrome-painted

dance pop Dance-pop is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in the late 1970s to early 1980s. It is generally uptempo music intended for nightclubs with the intention of being danceable but also suitable for contemporary hit radio. Developi ...

Critical reception

''PC Music Volume 2'' received a score of 79 out of 100 from review aggregate site

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 ...

, indicating "generally favourable reviews". Rachel Aroesti 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 ...

'' gave the collection a perfect score, and said that following the hype of ''

Volume 1 Volume One, Volume 1, Volume I or Vol. 1 may refer to: Albums * ''Volume One'' (The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band album), 1966 * ''Volume One'' (Sleep album) * ''Volume One'' (Fluff album) * ''Volume One'' (She & Him album), 2008 * ''Volum ...

'' "this second compilation provides an opportunity to appreciate the music on its own terms – and it feels more beautiful and progressive than ever before." Grand Rindner of ''

The Line of Best Fit ''The Line of Best Fit'' is an independent online magazine based in London, concentrating on new music. It publishes independent music reviews, features, interview, and media. Founded by Richard Thane in February 2007 and currently edited by P ...

'' praised the album for expanding upon the collective's signature sound in new directions. Rich Juzwiak of ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spin (physics) or particle spin, a fundamental property of elementary particles * Spin quantum number, a number which defines the value of a particle's spin * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thr ...

'' praised it for being "more mature, less obnoxious, and much more deserving of the early hype PC Music received" and "actual songs" as opposed to its irony-laden predecessor. Conversely, Thea Ballard 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 ...

'' felt "worn out" by the compilation, but singled out "Only You" and "Broken Flowers" as highlights.

Track listing

References

{{A. G. Cook 2016 compilation albums Electronic compilation albums Electropop compilation albums PC Music compilation albums Pop albums by English artists Pop compilation albums Record label compilation albums Synth-pop compilation albums Synth-pop albums by English artists Albums produced by A. G. Cook Sequel albums